Ul'dah or Limsa Lominsa - most dangerous city state?

[Mahri]

Neither city is one you want to walk alone at night (unless you're a heavily-armed nutcase like we are). But, in daily life, it's a bit different in each.

In Ul'dah, there's some solidarity among the poor, to where things are relatively stable even if you're just barely scraping by. If you keep a low profile and swallow your pride, chances are you'll survive, and every now and then you may catch a break. However, the more you have, the more you have to lose. The rich of Ul'dah know this well, and they're more than willing to use this against one another. It isn't hard to find real-world examples of places like this one all throughout history, up to the present. Humanity is pretty resilient.

Lominsa is different. They have something like self-sustaining anarchy with an "establishment" that's respected, feared, and willing to throw its weight around. If anything gets out of hand, it doesn't stay that way for long. But, those unwilling to play by the rules of a society where crime is outright romanticized stand no chance (could you imagine if an Ishgardian tried to settle there!?) You have to know the culture, and you need to have friends, or it'll end badly. As real-world comparisons go, imagine a place run entirely by inner-city street gangs. The heated rivalries are cooled by bluntly-enforced unity, but there's still that pervasive sense that every single person is just holding back their own violent impulses.

Gridania...has its own problems. Its less about being a dangerous place to live and more about being an impenetrable theocracy where policy is dictated by forces that are quite literally invisible. It is not a welcoming place, and though it is empowered by its unique symbiosis with Eorzea's natural forces, it's population is low for a reason.

It's easy to see why a Garlean might look at the major powers of Eorzea and be just a bit horrified.

[Wadoka]

Neither city is one you want to walk alone at night (unless you're a heavily-armed nutcase like we are).

Yea, though I walk through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, I shall fear no Evil... because I'm the meanest son of a bitch in the Valley!