While at the start of the series, Ys’ world map only encompassed the island of Esteria, over the years it has become more and more expansive. The world of the Ys series doesn’t have a name of its own yet, but it’s a fantasy mirror of the real world. Many of the names of places are direct references to places that exist on Earth, while others have parallels with real-world locations even without sharing a name. With Nordics releasing next month, let’s take a look at the vast world that the Ys series takes place in.
Eresia
The continent of Eresia is the Ys games’ equivalent of Eurasia, and it’s where most of Adol’s adventures have taken place so far. Adol’s adventures have primarily seen him exploring the parts of Eresia that parallel European countries, though the world map does extend into the Ys series’ version of the Middle East and Asia.
Gllia
Adol’s first two adventures and Ys Origin took place on the island of Esteria, off the coast of Gllia. The magical floating island of Ys itself is based on a French legend about a lost island of the same name, while Esteria is the Ys series’ equivalent of an island off the coast of France. Gllia, meanwhile, is the series’ version of the Gaul region. Also within Gllia is the city of Balduq, which is a parallel to Paris. Eight years before the events of Monstrum Nox, Romn conquered Gllia and turned the Balduq Fortress into a vast prison.
Before its Hundred Year’s War against Britai, the predominant religion of Gllia was that of the Nors gods Grimnir and Luki, who are clear parallels to the Norse gods Odin and Loki. Grimnir was Gllia’s patron god, and died at the end of the Hundred Year’s War. The Grimwald Nox was a gift from Grimnir to the Gllians, though by the time of Monstrum Nox the present-day Monstrums have come to see it as a curse while the everyday citizens of Balduq are none the wiser to its existence.
Garman
Garman is the series’ version of Germany, and it’s also where Adol’s childhood home is said to be. In Lacrimosa of Dana, Laxia von Roswell is a runaway noble from Garman. Dogi‘s homeland of Felghana, the setting of The Oath in Felghana, is also in Garman. Like many places in the world of the Ys games, Felghana is an annexed territory of the Romun Empire.
Romn
While Adol hasn’t yet visited the Romun Empire, it’s still an important force in many of the Ys games. It’s an obvious parallel to Rome and the Roman Empire, between the shape of the country Romn is in and the Romun Empire’s tendency towards conquering other nations. Not much of Romn’s history is known yet, though one of the noble families from the city dates its history back to several hundred years before the events of Lacrimosa of Dana.
Britai
Adol also has yet to visit Britai, the Ys series’ version of Britain. Several hundred years before the events of Monstrum Nox, Britai and Gllia were at war. This war lasted 100 years. Where Gllia’s patron god was Grimnir, Britai’s patron god was Luki. Luki also died at the end of the Hundred Year’s War.
Ispani
Ispani is the Ys series’ version of Spain. It contains the Celceta region, which is the setting of Memories of Celceta. The Celceta region is where one of the last of the Eldeen, a group of god-like winged beings, lives. During the events of Memories of Celceta, Adol meets this Eldeen. Several hundred years before the events of the game, the region became covered in trees, which is why the translated Japanese title is Foliage Ocean in Celceta.
Greek
Greek is the series’ version of Greece. Prior to the events of Lacrimosa of Dana, Adol and Dogi had been on board the Lombardia to arrive in Sounion, a city in Greek. However, during the events of the game, Adol finds himself on the Isle of Seiren, which is in-universe named after seirens – a clear parallel to the real-world myth of sirens. One of the Greshun islands is Creet, which is where Sahad Nautilus is from.
Afroca
Afroca is the Ys series’ equivalent of Africa. To date, two of Adol’s adventures have taken place here. Ys 7 sees Adol and Dogi finally being able to visit the kingdom of Altago, after its war with the Romun Empire finally ended. Altago is a large kingdom, home to both sprawling forests and scorching deserts.
Lost Kefin, Kingdom of Sand takes place in the Afrocan region of Xandria, which gets its name from the Egyptian city of Alexandria. On the Ys games’ world map, Xandria is shown to be the land between Eresia and Afroca, making it an analog to Xandria is said to be where the practice of alchemy originates from, specifically the titular lost kingdom of Kefin.
Atlas
The Atlas continent is the Ys series’ equivalent of the Americas, while also taking inspiration from the mythical lost city of Atlantis. So far, only one of Adol’s adventures has brought him to Atlas. In The Ark of Napishtim, Adol is shipwrecked following an encounter with a Romun ship. He finds himself on one of the Canaan Islands, off the shore of Atlas. These islands are the Ys world’s version of the Caribbean Islands, complete with a magical storm that parallels the Bermuda Triangle.
There are three islands that make up the Canaan Islands: Canaan Island itself, Quatera Island, and Zemeth Island. Quatera Island is where Adol wakes up after the shipwreck, and it’s primarily inhabited by the Rehda. It and Canaan Island surround the much smaller Zemeth Island, almost making a complete circle. Canaan Island is where most of the humans whose ships have been destroyed by the Vortex of Canaan have decided to live.
Zemeth Island is a holy place to the Rehda, as it’s where their goddess is. As such, humans are forbidden from entering. However, after Adol proves himself to the Rehda leader, he’s eventually given permission to venture to the island. This is also the location of the titular Ark of Napishtim, which is a relic left by the Eldeen.
Final Thoughts
Nordics is set to take place somewhere north of Eresia, perhaps in the Ys series’ equivalent of Greenland or Iceland. This is an interesting thing to take note of, given that it’s been said since the beginning of the series that Adol dies at the age of 63 when venturing north, but in Nordics he’s only 17 years old. Could the plot of Nordics cover a little of where Adol ends up going when he’s 63?
There are plenty of other locations for Adol to explore across the world of the Ys series, which makes sense given that he’s been said to have hundreds of travelogues across his 47 years of adventuring. Where might we see him explore next? The end of Monstrum Nox doesn’t give any hints, though Dogi does ask Adol whether he’s thought about settling down anywhere.
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