Lesser Used Settings In Fantasy

Spare me your woodlands and your small villages. I got something better for you.

Underwater

Give me Little Mermaid aesthetic, give me people who have a city in a bubble on the bottom of the sea, give me trenches that are actually filled with the magic wielders that abandoned the world above, I'll take it all.

In space

Can we talk about how few and far between magic in space tropes are used? I get that people don't really want fantasy/sci-fi crossovers, but there is still so much potential aside from that! Ships(not spaceships, we're talking wood) that fly through the stars via fairy dust! Sirens in the center of black holes! Werewolves that have taken control of their situation by living on the moon and only going to the light side of it when they want to hunt! This can be done, people!

The mountains

There are ways to use the mountains that aren't your standard fantasy woodland settings. Give me a kingdom that only spans the mountain range and they have mortal enemies beyond their borders. Let's have some elves that live on the mountaintops wrapped in furs and wool, drawing their magic from the sunlight that reflects off the snow! ICE GOBLINS!! Gimme gimme gimme!

Underground

Another place with underrealized potential. Let me give you some solid reasons to build your fantasy world underground. Now picture with me: glowing crystals. Ballroom sized caverns with tall, tall ceilings. The history of your people(and maybe the odd prophecy) hammered into the walls. And picture what else might live down there! As an added bonus, perhaps there's a dark reason why they live underground. What's going on with the surface world that your people would rather not live there?

Upper level of the tropical rain forest

Did you ever read about this in school? The uppermost level of the tropical rainforest, when you're above it, looks almost like another forest rising out of a sea of bushes, and it's super cool! I bet if you created something lightweight enough, or something that could next in the trees themselves, your fantasy world could live happily in the upper canopy of a rainforest!

ICEBERG CASTLE ICEBERG CASTLE ICEBERG CASTLE ICEB

Do I really have to tell you why this is awesome?

Ruins, but make it ruins that people have upcycled into beautiful living spaces that aren't all dusty and crap

Your people are incredibly resourceful! They love making something new out of something old and combining the old and the new for something great! Those huge pieces of wall that fell decades ago that are too heavy to move? They're a multi-level marketplace now. That wall that's half-destroyed and slants awkwardly? We've built a beautiful gate in the hole, and to fill in the slanted space, we've designed a stained glass window. The buildings that have no roofs now have beautiful canopies instead. The rubble-filled roads have been cleared and are now filled with laughing children and commerce. Our beautiful city is flourishing.

Systems of tunnels

Tunnels are cool! If you've ever watched Patema Inverted, you can see where I got my inspiration. 

People can have small houses or tents that they put up inside small side caves, and you can use bioluminescent plants for light! Similar to the underground idea, sure, but the tunnels can be made of metal or stone or clockwork- whatever you want!

Flower kingdom

Whether you want the kingdom to have a flower aesthetic or whether you want to go for all-out with trees made of flowers, houses made of flowers, flowers for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, whatever you want! The header photo of this post was the picture that gave me the idea, and if it sparks anything for you, I'm glad!

Dystopian world, but it's a fantasy world after the reign of [insert magical creature] has taken over.

'It's been two years since the dragons took hold of [kingdom's name], and people are starving.' Just picture this drama! Your normal renegades are now a motley crew of trolls and halflings. The dwarves serve the dragons now as an attempt to save their own skins. Any sorcerers are a threat to the dragons and are captured on sight. You can use this, friend.

Giant garden

Plants, but make 'em huge. Daisies the size of trees! Bonus points if you make all the insects and animals normal-sized, and phoenixes and other things pollinate the plants. I don't know how anyone would use this, but I love the idea of it. Imagine how long one seed could feed your household! 'I'm going to the garden, honey' *garden is three flowers*

Maze aesthetic

It's a crazy huge maze, maybe we don't even know how it got here, but it's huge, and the most important stuff is kept at the center. Maybe it's even a fortress, with guards and traps set at certain places to keep the enemies out. Only the inhabitants of the city/kingdom really know how to get in and out.

Underwater cave system!

Yup, I'm back with the caves again, but have you heard about the cave systems all over the US? People get lost in them trying to just document the branches. It's insane! And underwater, there are added layers like being able to go up and down and diagonal as well as sideways, and little pockets of air and even islands in the tunnels. Underwater cave systems are so coooooooool.

I can't recommend archipelagos enough

Little systems of islands, man. It's like its own little world with an ecosystem and varying kinds of people and maybe pirates. There's so much you can do with an archipelago! And you don't even have to go for the whole Pirates of the Carribean thing with the ships and whatever. What about boats like the ones from Moana? What about people who can run across the water from island to island? What about long suspension bridges from island to island that people ride their unicorns across? You can do so much with just a bunch of little islands.

Chinatown

Or any cultural section of a city. I love urban fantasy more than I can even articulate, and I want to see it more in general as more as more in diverse settings like a Chinatown or other cultural branches of big cities. And imagine if you split up the different cultures across different creatures in a way no one has done yet? It could be so cool! Urban fantasyyyyyyyyyy

Okay, that's all I can think of, and my brain is fried. Go forth into your new worlds and create! And don't forget to tell me how it turns out so that I can shriek over your beautiful new world with you. :D

If you liked this post, here's some more I have like it!

Cool Cultural Things To Add To Your Fictional World

Worldbuilding Tropes To Ward Off With a Stick

10 Underused Historical Settings In Fiction