Ivalice Ivalice is a recurring world in the " Final Fantasy " series . Created by Yasumi Matsuno , Ivalice has been the setting of several games , one not even of the series , but linked to it by the setting . Unlike many other " Final Fantasy " worlds , every game set in Ivalice has been set in the same universe , usually at different periods in time . Appearances . " Final Fantasy XII " . Ivalice is a region consisting of three continents : Ordallia in the west with a secret islet called Den ' s Hideout , Valendia in the northeast , and Kerwon in the south . Only the lands bordering the Naldoan Sea are explored , although other Ivalician lands ( the former Republic of Landis , etc . ) are sometimes mentioned . In ancient times , King Raithwall united the three continents to create the Galtean Alliance , but over time conflicts split the continents again . The continents are dominated by an assortment of industrialized city - states ; the Archadian Empire and the Kingdom of Nabradia in Valendia , the Rozarrian Empire in Ordallia , and sandwiched between the two continents is the Kingdom of Dalmasca . Strategically located between the rival neighboring states of Archadia and Rozarria , Dalmasca ' s position as a neutral buffer region between the two countries is eliminated when it is invaded by the Archadian Empire . Reduced to an occupied territory under Archadian rule , Dalmasca plays a central role in the still - heated dispute between its neighbors , which is again escalating . " Final Fantasy XIV " . The upcoming expansion " " will feature a 24 - man raid series called " Return to Ivalice , " with Ivalice creator Yasumi Matsuno featuring as a guest creator on the series . It is as yet unknown how this return will be facilitated , or what era it will take place in . " Final Fantasy Tactics " . Ivalice is referred to as a kingdom , similar to a European country in the Middle Ages . It is a feudal society with a single major religion , the Church of Glabados , of which all Ivalicians are members , mirroring pre - reformation Christian Europe . Ivalice has recently suffered a series of wars that involved the invasion of neighboring kingdoms of Ordallia and Romanda . In the Fifty Years ' War Ivalice opposed the armies of Ordallia and led to the current destabilized political situation , and eventually the War of the Lions to decide the kingdom ' s true ruler . " Final Fantasy Tactics Advance " . Ivalice is a kingdom created by Mewt Randell ' s imagination after he bought the Gran Grimoire from a bookstore . Mewt and his friends — as well as the entire town — were brought to this kingdom after Mewt uttered magic words to the Grimoire . Ivalice is influenced by classic Middle Eastern cultures as everything from the architecture , character design , and clothing patterns indicates an arabesque style . The Ivalice of " Final Fantasy XII " is arguably based on the Ivalice in " Final Fantasy Tactics Advance " , although a more mature version ; in " Tactics Advance " Ivalice was created by a child . Laws play an important role in this world , being supervised by the Judges of the palace . Hideo Minaba has stated his team tried to bring Arabic culture in the setting . Ivalice may also refer to St . Ivalice , Mewt ' s hometown . Ivalice is a geographical region , not a kingdom . The land is not a dream world like in " Final Fantasy Tactics Advance " , but a region called Jylland , an area situated within the larger world of Ivalice , combining elements from " Tactics Advance " with " Final Fantasy XII " . Jylland is comprised of the Loar continent in the west and the western half of the Ordallia continent in the east . Luso Clemens is teleported to Jylland by writing his name in the Gran Grimoire . " Vagrant Story " . " Vagrant Story " takes place within the kingdom of Valendia , which shares the name of a continent from " Final Fantasy XII " . The story spans three locations : the capital city Valnain , the Graylands , and the evil city of Leá Monde . There are several references to Ivalice , and " Final Fantasy XII " uses the Old Valendian Calendar . The Kiltia religion also features in both . While " Vagrant Story " is not a " Final Fantasy " title , the game was designed by Yasumi Matsuno , the director and story creator for " Final Fantasy Tactics " and the original director for " Final Fantasy XII " . " Vagrant Story " being set in Ivalice is actually a retcon , as originally nothing confirmed the game was set in that world . The game was not promoted as being connected to " Final Fantasy Tactics " on its release , and the " Vagrant Story Ultimania " makes no mention of Ivalice . At the time , Yasumi Matsuno stressed he made " Vagrant Story " to move away ( at least temporarily ) from the " Final Fantasy Tactics " universe . He stated the games are connected in 2004 in " Final Fantasy XII " interviews for a French gaming magazine , " Joypad " . Before that , the allusions to " Final Fantasy Tactics " in " Vagrant Story " could simply be seen as a Easter eggs . History of Ivalice . The age of myths . The gods , calling themselves the Occuria in " Final Fantasy XII " , worked upon the world of Ivalice . They created the twenty - four Scions based on zodiacs split as scions of Light and Dark , tasked with important objectives . Based on ancient texts , some believe there is a thirteenth Scion . The scions of Dark rose against the gods and were bound to the world , hence why only half the Scions appear as Espers in " Final Fantasy XII " . Before Ivalice was created , there existed two warring tribes of gods : the Fabar and the Danan . The war lasted for millennia until the Prophet Matoya predicted the death of the Danan god - king Xabaam in the hands of his trusted blade . Xabaam feared his trusted General Ahnas to be the death of him , and imprisoned him and his loyal followers into the darkest labyrinths . Ahnas implored the death - god Heth to free him in exchange for his own life . Freed along with his followers , Ahnas sought revenge . Now Ahnas the Holy , he and his followers appeared millennia later upon the Fabar and battled the Danan triumphantly . The Fabar god We ' aka was intrigued with the strength of his vengeance and swore an oath to fight alongside his men . Battles raged on for countless millennia until Ahnas finally confronted Xabaam and defeated him . While We ' aka sought the head of Xabaam , Ahnas wished the Danan god - king pay for his misdeeds and immortalized Xabaam ' s body , transforming it into a great land and named it Ivalice . Now Ahnas the Shining , he and his followers withdrew into the heavens , watching as Man lived and thrived upon Xabaam ' s eternal body . The age of gods . Thousands of years before the Galtean Alliance was established , the Occuria ruled over Ivalice . While Man was starting to thrive the Occuria built imposing structures , such as the Pharos at the Ridorana Cataract . For reasons unknown the Occuria withdrew from their command into hiding in the city of Giruvegan , causing mass confusion until the dawn of a new age . Some believed the Occuria left because of the Thousand Years War incited by the twelve Espers , led by the corrupt Holy Seraph Ultima . The Espers were defeated and the Occuria , wanting to ensure the Espers would not rebel again , bound them into glyphs and banished them to the dark reaches within Ivalice . The aegyl Feolthanos defied the Occuria and sealed himself and his people on the Purvama of Lemurés to evade their wrath . In secret , Feolthanos married a viera , creating a subspecies known as the feol viera . Time of the glaciers . Ivalice was covered in ice , much like the ice ages of Earth . Many creatures adapted to a land - based way of life , but some creatures , such as the Croakadile , struggled surviving through the colder temperatures and their population dwindled . Eventually the glaciers began to melt as the climate ' s temperature rose , flooding the lands . The sudden change in sea level killed many land species , and a number of surviving creatures , such as the Coeurl , were forced to adapt . Magick enters Ivalice . Vague records claim that magick was brought to Ivalice from an unknown continent and into the hands of the Man . It is unknown if the Occuria had a hand in this or not , as they are known to have given magick stones with great power to individuals of their choosing . The Light of Kiltia . Circa 1294 years before the Valendian calendar , the Light of Kiltia was founded in Ordalia by a prophet of the same name , with Mt . Bur - Omisace at its center . The dualistic faith worshiped a polytheistic pantheon , led by Faram , the father . It was an early precursor to the Church of Glabados , and also influential to the Iocus Priesthood . The Galtean Alliance . Circa Old Valendian 1 , Ivalice was at war . The Occuria , fearing Ivalice would be scarred even more , gave the garif a large piece of nethicite , a weapon to set everything straight . The garif were unable to use it and , angered at the garif ' s incompetence , the Occuria came to learn of Raithwall ' s victory over the Esper Belias . Amazed , they gifted the nethicite along with the Sword of Kings , to him . Taking three shards off the motherlode of nethicite , the Sun - Cryst , King Raithwall united Ivalice and became known as the Dynast King and the founder of the Galtean Alliance . The Empires of Archadia and Rozarria arose and expanded quickly . King Raithwall was buried with the Dawn Shard , and his tomb is guarded by an Esper he had defeated in life , Belias . The Dusk Shard went to the Kingdom of Dalmasca , while the Midlight Shard went to the Kingdom of Nabradia . In " Final Fantasy Tactics A2 : Grimoire of the Rift " , the Ruins of Delgantua are described as dating back to the Galtean era . This is further evidenced by the ancient stone architecture that composes its rooms and halls . The Dancer - Priestess Müllenkamp lived during this era . A practitioner of the darker arts of Kiltia , Müllenkamp amassed a following , created many magickal Grimoires , and founded the city of Leá Monde . The Blood - Sin tattoo on her back was passed down through her family after her death , and serves as the key to Leá Monde . If the Zodiac Braves from the Church of Glabados legend did exist , it was said to have happened in a warring period before the union of Ivalice , possibly a reference to the Galtean Alliance of this era . The age of technology . Circa Old Valendian 706 , the Empires of Rozarria and Archadia were at war . A truce was signed , but the son of Emperor Gramis Solidor , Vayne , assassinates his father and takes over the Empire . He hopes to start a war with Rozarria and become Ivalice ' s new Dynast King , as he is being led by the rogue Occuria , Venat , who wishes to shatter the control its kind had over Ivalice . Vayne is stopped and killed by Princess Ashe of the Kingdom of Dalmasca , along with the sky pirates Balthier and Fran , street urchin Vaan and his friend Penelo , and a Dalmascan Knight - Captain Basch fon Ronsenburg . Ashe had been the Occuria ' s chosen , but , destroyed the Sun - Cryst instead . A year later , the Purvama of Lemurés is revealed to Ivalice along with the mysterious aegyl race . This sparks a treasure hunting spree among sky pirates that a maddened Feolthanos attempts to exploit . The party who stopped Vayne Solidor , along with some new friends , defeats Feolthanos and restores peace to Ivalice . The cataclysm and the age of Ajora . Circa Old Valendian 800 a great catastrophe hit Ivalice , wiping out many landmarks and taking out many races , including the moogles . Man started referring to the previous era as the Golden Era and rebuilt the world from the ground up . In an age where airships and robots were commonplace , Pharism became the dominant religion of the Holy Ydoran Empire . A man called Ajora at the age of twenty started to preach about the coming of Paradise . His influence incited unrest among the Pharist priests , and Ajora was caught and hanged by the Empire after which an earthquake wiped out Ydora and sunk Mullonde into the sea . Some took this as a divine sign and started praising Ajora as a child of the gods . Over the next few decades Ajora ' s tale would become twisted to make him seem greater . The Church of Glabados was founded by Ajora ' s disciples with Saint Ajora as its cynosure . Pharism faded with the Church of Glabados becoming the main religion . Presumably , Germonique wrote his scriptures around this time , describing Ajora in a less favorable light . The War of the Lions . Circa Old Valendian 2000 , Ivalice is again at war between two men seeking the throne that would become known as the War of the Lions . In reality , the war is a means for a greater evil . The Espers , now calling themselves Lucavi , want to return to rule Ivalice and possess people to use them to do their bidding . It turns out Ajora was being possessed by the Lucavi ' s leader , Ultima , who was trapped in Ajora ' s body when he died . Using the War of the Lions , the current leader of the Lucavi , Hashmal , hopes to revive her . The Lucavi amass an abundance of bloodshed to revive Ajora , Ultima ' s last host , but a young man called Ramza stops them . Ramza is considered a heretic , and his old friend , Delita Heiral , is remembered in history as the man who ended the war . The only one who knows the truth , Orran Durai , is executed by the Church of Glabados as a heretic . Several decades on , Orran ' s descendant , Arazlam Durai , finds his writings and decides to bring the truth to light . While not historically relevant , Luso Clemens appears during this time period , but how he gets there is unknown . It may be speculated he used powers of his Grimoire of the Rift to return to Ivalice in a different era once he is freed from his imprisonment . Balthier from " Final Fantasy XII " also appears in this era , claiming to have been brought to Ivalice ' s future by the Cache of Glabados . It can be speculated that during his time as sky pirate Balthier found a magickal artifact that transported him through time . This is further supported by his statement at the end of " Final Fantasy XII " of going after the Cache of Glabados . The Graylands incident . Previously , a Kildean priestess named Müllenkamp founded the city of Leá Monde . Her followers created a cult after her and as time passed , a man called Saint Iocus was born , and began prohibiting the use of magicks . The influence of the Iocus priesthood increased , and followers of Müllenkamp were hunted down in the Inquisition . The prosperous city of Leá Monde was struck by a great earthquake , turning it into a concentration of dark energy and lost souls . Circa Old Valendian 2000 , Riskbreaker Ashley Riot of Valendia enters Leá Monde to stop Sydney Losstarot , a Müllenkamp cultist leader with an unknown objective to achieve in Leá Monde . Ashley finds the real threat is Romeo Guildenstern who wants the power of the Gran Grimoire . Stripping Sydney of his power , he reveals the entire city is the Grimoire . Ashley stops Romeo , and in turn is granted the dark powers of Leá Monde . Ashley becomes the vagrant , eternally saving lost souls who have become the undead . The true Zodiac Brave Story . Circa Old Valendian 2400 , Arazlam Durai , a descendant of Orran , discovers and reveals the truth about Saint Ajora , the Scriptures of Germonique , and the War of the Lions . The modern age ( ? ) . It is unknown if St . Ivalice in " Final Fantasy Tactics Advance " is a location in the same Ivalice as seen in the other games . It is possible its name merely alludes to it . If St . Ivalice is taken to belong to the same world , it depicts a world several centuries in the future where magick has vanished and been replaced by technology . In a small town by the name of St . Ivalice , a young boy called Mewt Randell buys an ancient book , the Gran Grimoire . Leafing through it with his friends , Marche and Ritz , along with Marche ' s little brother Doned , the book creates an Ivalice following Mewt ' s designs , who in turn is inspired by a " Final Fantasy " game and the grimoire ' s illustrations . Marche eventually reverts the world to normal knowing it isn ' t healthy to live in a dream world . Ten to twenty years later a young boy called Luso finds the Gran Grimoire , but unlike Mewt ' s experience , this time the Gran Grimoire sends Luso back in time to the Golden Era . It is possible this is not the same grimoire Marche used , as in " Final Fantasy Tactics A2 : Grimoire of the Rift " the book is referred to as the Grimoire of the Rift . Alternatively it is possible that the presence of " Final Fantasy Tactics Advance " in Ivalice itself is a retcon , as material related to " Tactics Advance " noted the existence of a civilization that was destroyed by Noah ' s flood . Game timeline . The chronological order of the games is the following : In " Final Fantasy Tactics A2 : Grimoire of the Rift " , Luso is transported to an Ivalice in the timeline after " Final Fantasy XII : Revenant Wings " ( when Vaan and Penelo fully become sky pirates , and hinted by the discussion they have with Hurdy ) and before " Final Fantasy Tactics " ( or during if his " War of the Lions " appearance is considered canon , which is possible , since Mewt gave the Grimoire he used in " Final Fantasy Tactics Advance " to Luso at the end of " Final Fantasy Tactics A2 : Grimoire of the Rift " ) . This would also explain why Luso was looking for his friends in " Final Fantasy Tactics : War of the Lions " . If his " War of the Lions " appearance is canon , it would take place after the events of " Final Fantasy Tactics A2 : Grimoire of the Rift " . " Final Fantasy Tactics A2 : Grimoire of the Rift " appears twice due to the appearances of Luso in both Ivalice and St . Ivalice . Recurring characters . Many of the characters in Ivalice have recurring roles due to the games in Ivalice being based in the same world . Some examples are : The Montblanc , Nono , and Ezel that appear in " Final Fantasy Tactics Advance " are part of the dream world Mewt created with the help of the Gran Grimoire , but Montblanc possibly retains memories of the dream Ivalice .