Joko's Exchange Quest-prequisites?

To get the quests you need to complete all of Elpam Gorlab's quests and the Subani's Legacy quests. Then you do the 50 phantom seeds and then there is an additional quest that involves getting 50 some elder ashes IIRC

I'm pretty sure you don't need Elder Ashes. You do, however, have to talk to the Raven Ninjas after Lost in Translation (with the Map).

Edit: Elder Ashes are for Fiona's weapon forging and upgrading.