City of Gridania

Located in the midst of the Black Shroud, a dense forest also known as the Twelveswoods serves to filter out those hostile to the elements and those in cooperation with them. Gridania is by far the most unified of the city-states. Its guilds all work in cooperation with each other under the guiding hand of Kan-E-Senna, who brought back the Order of the Twin Adder.

City of Limsa Lominsa

On the southern coast of the island of Vylbrand, under the shadow of ancient cliffs worn by the relentless onslaught of the Rhotano Sea, lies the marine city-state of Limsa Lominsa. Said to be blessed by the goddess of navigation, Llymlaen, the city is spread out over countless tiny islands, each connected by sturdy bridges of iron and wood construction, earning her the name the "Navigator's Veil" from travelling bards who have witnessed the city's beauty from afar.

Limsa Lominsa is a traditional thalassocracy, with power lying in the hands of the ruling party and its leader—Admiral Merlwyb Bloefhiswyn. Its economy is driven by shipbuilding, fishing, and blacksmithing, but the majority of its wealth comes from the lucrative shipping industry.

To maintain the safety of its maritime routes, the city employs a formidable navy known as the Knights of the Barracuda, but even in the waters nearby the city, pirate bands run rampant, raving and pillaging. Admiral Merlwyb reinstated The Maelstrom to combine the forces of the Knights, conscripted pirates, and adventurers into a land-and-sea army to combat the Garlean Empire and the encroaching Sahagin of the Indigo Deep.

City of Ul'dah

The city-state of Ul'dah is located in the deserts of southern Aldenard. It is a popular location for visitors to partake in its fighting arenas and gambling halls. The Ul'dahn culture is known for its affluence. Despite historically being claimed sovereign by the sultan, it is under the rule of the Syndicate, an elite group comprising the six wealthiest and most influential members of society.

Ishgard

The Holy See of Ishgard is found in the central region of Abalathia's Spine, the highlands of Coerthas. The archbishop of the Ishgardian Orthodox Church rules as the nation's sovereign. For a thousand years, they have waged war with the great wyrm Nidhogg and his Dravanian Horde.

Ala Mhigo

This city-state is located in the region of Gyr Abania, situated on the eastern highlands of Aldenard. Though this aggressive nation frequently sought to conquer its neighbours in the west, at the same time it repelled countless invasions from the east in Ilsebard. In the past it succumbed to incursions from the mighty Garlean Empire, it recently has obtained newfound peace as it is rebuilding itself into a democratic republic.

Sharlayan

Though not truly a city-state in the strictest sense, the same-named colony of Sharlayan in the Dravanian hinterlands came to be considered among the great city-states as it grew into a major city of learning. However, when Ala Mhigo fell to Garlemald, the Sharlayans decided to return to their northern homeland in a mass exodus, leaving the city abandoned.