Whats your favorite city state

Mine is Ul'dah and my fav zones from each expansion are,

Arr - thanalan, all of it , with coerthas central high lands being a close 2nd.

HW - Sea of Clouds, I hope one day some kind of housing/apartments comes thier.

SB - Azim Steppe, this place is a perfect zone cause it looks cool and unique, it has some of the best music in the game, plus the lore here was great.

SHB - at this time it's a tie between Ahm Areng and II Mheg, I can't decide cause both zones are just the epitomy of great zones in all aspects of what makes a great zone, maybe one day I'll have a clear favorite but for now it's a tie.

Feel free to tare down my opinions expressed here or post your own favorites.

I really love the Ala Mighan Architecture, buuuut Kugane’s Colors is vast and too amazing for being a Port town. Can’t imagine what the rest of Hingashi looks like.

ARR-Mor Dohna, The music, the area is just so unique and is my personal favorite “endgame” Town

HW-Hinterlands, I’m a sucker for Sharlyon Culture and Wouldn’t mind seeing housing here. Also wouldn’t mind us going to the dam Mothertland!

SB- Azim steppe, good gods the place is amazing. Love the Nomads shout out to the market nomads for getting ahead of the mask trend

SHB- Ill Mehg, Voeburt looked like a amazing place. Fae-folk have done a great job at keeping the place pretty.

Probably Kugane because it actually feels like a city.

ARR: Probably Coerthas but I am a sucker for snowy places

HW: Churning Mists

SB: Azim Steppe hands down. Loved that place.

Shadowbringers: Lakeland I guess. I love the trees and it reminds me of Crystalsong Forest in WoW.

Gridania because I don't like big cities.

Obligatory Limsa Lominsa because Sea Wolf.

But really, I do like Limsa the best.

Grand Company wise, Limsa. For general city stuff/lore, Gridania.

of the three original, definitely Ul'Dah. It had an aesthetic I personally really like, and I felt like it was the best laid out city with the grand company hall being right at the main aethercyte crystal, and more so than other cities, existing as more or less one long, straight line.

currently, though, the Crystarium because of it's classy simplicity. I do also like the little villages in Gyr Abania, so if we ever see Ala Mhigo proper, that may rank pretty high for me as well.

The only city that matters.

Limsa Lominsa

Ishgard, sucker for the architecture and snow filled streets, it helps that the city genuinely comes to adore you as their hero who saved them from a thousand year war, with the overall atmosphere changing throughout the story, hope Ishgard Reconstruction will see some adjustments to the Brume as well.
ARR - The Shroud, particularly the South Shroud, I just really enjoy wandering around it every now and then, particularly Urths Gift.
HW - Sea of Clouds, just a really lovely area and I love the fantastical idea of islands just floating in the sky, above the clouds, the music is nice and it looks very lush and vibrant.
SB - Azim Steppe, really like the simplicity of large stretches of grassy plains and mountainous climbs, I-Can't-Believe-Its-Not-Mongolia was easily a highlight of the expansion.
ShB - Kholusia, an odd choice, but it reminds me of the beaches and fields around where I live and seeing the area go from being ominous and foreboding to being bright and comfortable, complete with music change was really nice, also I love the Dwarves.

Overall
Ul'dah. It's an oasis within an oasis, and it benefits from its great natural wealth; metals, crystals, plants, etc. The only thing holding Ul'dah back is the transition/loading barriers between Steps of Thal/Nald. With ps5 coming out and the likelihood of the missing genders not being added next expansion I would appreciate if they would remove the loading screens in the 3 main cities and Ishgard.

Grand company
Ul'dah

Special mention
Ala Mhigo, it's a great design, very grand and built to create a great culture within its walls.

Ishgard, I would love to say Ala Mhigo to the heavens due to what we do get to explore and see but compared to everywhere else it got the short stick and a damn shame it did, Ishgard just feels so much better because it got the attention it needed.

ARR - Coerthus Central Highlands, the music, the size of the area, only downside was Whiterim had no Aetheryte despite quests continously taking you there

HW - Dravanian Hinterlands, lovely views

SB - The Lochs, the area is rich in history, my only annoyance is the map shows an area you can never go to :/

ShB - Arm Arang, music is so good here, really sells edge of the world

Ul'dah, because it's mah home. The other two city states have their interesting thing, but I'd still pick Ul'dah due to enjoying Thanalan and the theme and intrigue of Ul'dah's woes (big gil, evil lalas, etc). Pirate / pirate accent and theme isn't really my tea and Gridania makes me think of Windurst and that just makes me want to play in Windurst lol. So Ul'dah is my favorite beyond just being my personal city state, but as much fun as it is to talk down the other areas in a jesting way I don't really dislike the other areas- just like mine more.

ARR: Thanalan, all of it's really nice- but something special with the desert view in the Southern Thanalan dunes (looking out past the edge of the zone). That said there are a lot of other areas that are awesome, not just in Thanalan.

HW: The Dravanian Hinterlands

StB: Azim Steppe

ShB: The Tempest, for that one reason.

But I want to note there are many more regions I really enjoy than just that, like I thought the verticality of Khoulsia was wonderful and I'm very happy they played with that concept, or how nice looking at the remnants of Nym are in La Noscea, just loads of great places.

Environment engagement is a pretty big thing for me, and I hope they continue to experiment with how they both present and engage players with it- I love FF environments in general and I think their graphic/design/sound and music teams are really good at it, and I hope the game design side can continue to help emphasize the environments too. Like I imagine environments as a character in each FF game, and I'd probably argue that it is consistently my 'favorite character' of each game. Sure Cloud or whatever is 'cool' but the environment (as a whole unit cross multiple departments) is what really holds the story for me, the glue and vehicle that moves everyone through it, so I hope that department / concept is consistently challenged and given the tools it needs for engagement. Just because I don't like leaving things vague, although vaguely "keep going!" is probably enough, I might say when talking about gameplay (not just general design) like I think SE might have some value in examining wild life that isn't always an enemy (not every squirrel needs to be evil lol), bringing back some behaviors of creatures to make the environment feel to more depth (like Snurbles used to heal people), puzzles and intrigue of the area always enjoyed (the mist of FFIX, or more current example with the owls in the forest area of ShB), hidden places, might even bring class fantasy into this like dragoons being able to leap to unique areas or MRD/WAR breaking a boulder (some feature overlap might happen with like MIN being able to do that too, or if you're on your chocobo and feed it a green), utilizing the shared fate system further like to other content and as well to a tell a story of change for the zone (it says we make it safer but there is no evidence of that as far as I could tell), maybe re-examining the jumping content concept (like more so to how GW2 did it with checkpoints), without making open world content an exclusive solution (like old day FATE farming was) adding more content to the the space (like chocobo hot and cold or revamping the leve system to be more intriguing/valuable, but perhaps less spammy).

Revamping the value of old beast tribes, like I suggested perhaps relating to bringing a more empowered share fate system (to all and old content) and as well they can help smooth out old relic content further (rather than solo farm one dungeon 57 times in a row for light you might do a few slyph quests until you purchase an upgrade that builds a flowing moonlit like fountain from a tree, where you can soak your weapon in once a day for a very big light bonus on your next dungeon). Or like if they added cosmetic merit system (ideally with some nice sphere/crystal/license board influences for that 'ff' vibe), and like FATE's could do something really unique where you always get merit exp even if you're not at cap, or sometimes give you bonus merit exp, such that is some added value (of course at cap you can do roulettes, like a normal merit system works, the purpose is not to make one option absolutely terrible in comparison to another).

None of that goes on the visual / audio side of design but that's I think that one is more case by case / personal and to theme of each expansion, so like I said with the last zone being a real treat or how you could tell they were pushing their system for Khoulsia scale, hope they keep pushing the envelope (like if they might get a space that could get a lot of value out of high object density like some of our older zones might be argued they had, but doing that in our current large zone system).

Gridania. I like trees and nature. Plus, it is the least packed of the 3 starter cities.

Ishgard-most fantasy my prefered spot
Limsa- the second prefered cuz pirates
I like the gaint town(forgot its name without logging on ran by the ghost /in shadowbringers

the others i either hate or meha about

Gridania. It's easy to find your bearings in.

ARR: Most of the Shroud I like. Except for the Sylphlands, for obvious reasons.

HW: Dravanian Hinterlands.

SB: Azim Steppe. By far the most memorable area in the expansion.

ShB: Rak'tika Greatwood. LA-HEE!

ARR: Probably Ul'dah or Limsa, because the 2.0 storyline actively delves into their societal issues which makes them feel far more 'alive' to me than Gridania ever could. Where as with Gridania you actively need to do Job or Side Quests to scratch into that unpleasant underbelly and even then the story just kinda forgets about it when it's convenient? Ul'dah and Limsa just feel like real places I could actually have the potential to visit if I ever got dumped into a fantasy setting. Gridania is basically trying to be discount Rivendell while also occasionally going 'no wait we have issues too you guys, LOL SIKE WE FORGOT ABOUT THEM' in order to keep up that 'calm, peaceful' forest image. If the story surrounding Gridania didn't yo-yo so much I'd probably like it the most.

HW: Idyllshire, if only because I actively enjoyed watching it be rebuilt and because everything is generally in a convenient location. I love Ishgard's lore for similar reasons to the above stuff, but I /HATE/ running around the city even with Aetheryte access.

SB: Here is where I'd put Ala Mhigo, if the dev's actually bothered to make it a proper hub. No, I'm not salty. No sir, not I. (Probably Kugane)

ShB: Eulmore wins for convenience, Amaurot wins for atmosphere even if it suffers from the same issue Ala Mhigo did. Though in this case it's understandable because it's fated to eventually disappear. We don't talk about the Crystarium and it's heinous use of spacial design though I will give it props for being pretty.

In terms of just flat out zones with cities IN them?

ARR: Mor Donuts/Dohna

HW: Dravanian Hinterlands

SB: The Lochs.

ShB: Nothing compares to the Tempest.

I like Rabanstre the most

Gridania. It's so peaceful and quiet, even gameplay wise, it's not as congested on Balmung as Limsa and especially Ul'dah are, so it's where I go to relax without having to worry about the chat log being spammed with innane drivel.

It's also where Enki begun her adventurer journey before the Calamity, and after too. She may have been born in Ala Mhigo, raised in Ul'dah, became a citizen of Ishgard and lives with her wife in Kugane, but Gridania will always hold a special place for her. :)

ARR: Limsa Lominsa. I'm terribly biased, though, since I grew up next to the ocean.
HW: Ishgard. I like the aesthetics of the city and I've always been fond of snowy zones in games. Idyllshire doesn't do much for me since I don't really like Goblins.
SB: Kugane. The place is very exotic compared to Eorzea so it gets points for that outright. Visually, I think it's the most beautiful city to be added so far. That it's neutral on the world stage makes it much more interesting than the others, too.
ShB: Eulmore. I loved the creepy atmosphere when first we visit. Opulent and decadent in the face of an apocalypse is an aesthetic I adore.

The City State of Jowston! Jk

Mine's Ul'dah

Zones:
ARR: Coerthas
HW: Azys Lla
SB: Ruby Sea
SHB: I'll get back to you on this.

Gridania

Middle La Noscea
Dravanian Forelands
Yanxia
Rak'Tika

Ishgard for city state.

ARR Zone - La Noscea
HW Zone - Coerthas
SB Zone - Ruby Sea
ShB Zone - Tempest

Limsa Lominsa - I'm also partial to Kugane but it's difficult to compare with the three beginning cities because they're "home". Limsa has the ocean and I find the faded blue to gray to white color palette pleasant.

ARR - The Central Shroud, particularly Everschade with the guardian tree.

HW - The Hinterlands. I love the Sharlayan ruins.

SB - Yanxia, because it's beautiful and filled with small (and not so small) details to discover. Walking is a favorite pastime of mine in real life and for me it's the most immersive zone in the game, in terms of nature environments.

I haven't made up my mind about SHD areas yet.

Gridania. Full of green, less people and that's where my GC is :)

My favorite city is Kugane. I like the colors and buildings there the most. Second favorite is Ishgard. (But are those technically even city states, or just cities?)
From the original three city states, I actually don't really like the architecture. Gridania is the best of those, because of the beautiful surroundings.

My favorite areas:

ARR: Not really sure. I like Lower La Noscea and Eastern Thanalan. But the old areas have this "old" factor and remind me of all the atma FATE farming and other annoying things from the past. But aesthetically-wise, Lower La Noscea is the prettiest for me. Middle is also nice, as is the western side of Upper. All those that are kind of lush. I like the Shroud areas as well, but La Noscea's green areas are more open and I prefer that.

HW: That's even harder... maybe the Dravanian Hinterlands if you ignore the buildings. The landscape is so pretty, but I don't like the Sharlayan architecture.

SB: Yanxia. It has beautiful nature, I love the trees there, and how mountainous it is.

ShB: Lakeland and Il Mheg. I love Lakeland's purple trees and Il Mheg's pink flowers are nice as well, but what I really love are the green areas of them. I especially love the view across the water in Il Mheg, and that garden up high in Lakeland.

Turns out I actually like the same types of areas across all regions. Overall, my favorites are Yanxia, Lakeland and Il Mheg.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by VictorTheed

... my fav zones from each expansion are,

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Editing to match format.

Starting City: Ul'dah (mostly because I live in Los Angeles, and I like the feel of the desert city, plus it's a short drive to the ocean.)

Favorite cities overall: Kugane for its classical Japanese feel, and Crystarium for just being eye candy.

Most hated: Ishgard (ice-cold frozen place of religious elves. Ew)

Small Town: the village of Sui-no-Sato (my characters' RP place of birth.)


Zones-

ARR: Most of La Noscea, (Reminds me of coastal California)

HW: The Churning Mists, and The Dravanian Hinterlands. (What if LA was a ruined city. Ground level and in the sky. Yes this means I like Idyllshire, sadly it fails to meet ‘favorite’ levels.

StB: The Ruby Sea (yes I know it’s supposed to be the East China Sea or the Sea of Japan, but it reminds me of Malibu and the Channel Islands. Plus my Au Ra Raen RP was born there.)

ShB: Lakeland and Il Mheg. (They have my favorite colors in abundance. Also they are my favorite over all for this reason. Plus they have plenty of water.)

Foundation without question. To this day Heavensward is still my favorite expansion and nothing else within the game has had the same impact for me as the first time I stepped foot into Ishgard. It's still my favorite place to hang out if I'm going to be crafting, using the MB, or doing retainer/inventory management.

Ul'dah!

Ul'dah has..

Nanamo Ul Namo, Her Grace, kind hearted Sultana!

The heroic Raubahn and Pipin, heroes of Stormblood!

Honourable Knights Paladin!

Little Ladies Day, a little bit of silk road Eastern culture in Eorzea, courtesy of House Thorne.

Black Mages!

As for the original city states, for me it's a toss up between Limsa Lominsa and Gridania. It used to just be Limsa 100% Till Sea Swallows All! But Gridania really grew on me over the years. At the time of writing, I think Gridania has edged out Limsa for me, because of many factors, both game related and not. One big reason is that the Limsa aethereyte is a draw for many people, and as a result many people AFK right next to it. Makes load in times real bad. Other big reason is the hunt related glamour weapons, the i70 ones for Gridania are greenish/blue kinda morbol green/teal. Have nice, simple wooden handles. I prefer them above and beyond the Limsa hunt weapon glams, though obviously Limsa got the cooler armor.

ARR Zone: Upper La Noscea for that stellar view from the top of the spike in the western half along with the second half of Westerly Winds that plays when the music starts. That is my favorite zone music in the game.

Heavensward: Churning Mists - I feel like this zone is criminally underrated because it is mostly brown. Its music is stellar though, especially the longer it plays. The juxtaposition between The Aery in the east and Zenith in the west is also pretty awesome. Dragons everywhere. The fates with Hraesvelgr's brood vs. Nidhogg's. The purple sky wide lightning storms. Honorable mention: Dravanian Forelands

Stormblood: The Ruby Sea - A mostly water zone with the curiosity that is Heaven on High. A volcano in the south. A deep ocean palace that's an underwater dungeon... Spearfishing. Susano. I love this zone.

Shadowbringers: The Crystarium itself. It's my favorite city, even if it's a bit far from my FC housing... I love its musical themes, and I love the Crystarium Guard. I love FF3, so the Crystal Tower being its center is also a big plus for me. I love the room they give you. I love the way we pivot about it in the SHB MSQ. I love that we finally go to what passes for the local tavern to get quests and set out on adventures with the Role quest NPCs. Gonna be hard for them to top this one for me. I love all the SHB zones, but Crystarium just takes the cake.