Stormblood may not be Final Fantasy 14's best expansion, but it sure as hell is the cheapest right now. Square Enix is currently giving away the MMO's second major expansion for free, though there's a small caveat.
If you're somebody making use of the game's rather generous free trial—the one that contains the base game plus the excellent first expansion Heavensward—you won't be able to claim it. You'll need to have the base game and a paying subscription in order to take advantage of the deal. On the bright side, it's yours to keep forever.
I say Stormblood's not the best expansion, but that's a little unfair when part of that comes from it being sandwiched between the two immaculate expansions. It's still an incredibly solid experience, containing some of my favourite dungeons and trials in the whole game. If you're a Final Fantasy 12 fan you can enjoy the Ivalice 24-man raids, and the optional Four Lords questline is stuffed with fantastic boss fights. It'll also give you access to two DPS classes, magic-user Red Mage and melee fighter Samurai.
The story falls rather flat for many players, but actually playing through the expansion is still a great time. Hell, Steven gave it a score of 92 in his Stormblood review, writing how its "rousing tale of rebellion and exceptional boss fights aren’t just exquisite by MMO standards, but rival even the most beloved Final Fantasy games."
For a limited time, existing owners or purchasers of #FFXIV Starter Edition can add the Stormblood expansion to their account for free! 🎮 https://t.co/gSQ9z04uRo📅 Through Monday, May 8 at 6:59 a.m. (PDT) / 13:59 (GMT)* End times may differ slightly per platform. pic.twitter.com/Rn1Qx6ssI6March 27, 2023
The offer is running from now until May 8, which is a good chunk of time to continue making use of the free trial before jumping into a paid version and scooping Stormblood up as a little bonus. If you've fallen off the Final Fantasy 14 wagon and are looking to come back, Square Enix is running a free login campaign at the same time. If you have a paid account but haven't subscribed in at least 30 days, you can hop back into the world of Eorzea for free.
