 Final Fantasy XII is set within the land of Ivalice during an age when " magic was commonplace " and " airships plied the skies , crowding out the heavens " . At this time , magicite , a magic @-@ rich mineral , is commonly used in magic spells and in powering airships — a popular form of transportation in Ivalice . Ivalice is divided into three continents : Ordalia , Valendia , and Kerwon . Ordalia is located in the western part of Ivalice . The Rozarrian Empire makes its home in the vast inland plains of this continent as the eastern portion of it is largely desert or " <unk> " — lawless regions so rich in Mist , the ethereal manifestation of magicite , that airships cannot function . Valendia is the home of Imperial Archadia , where lush highlands dot the landscape . Central to the story is Dalmasca , a small kingdom between the two continents and empires . Located in the middle of the Galtean Peninsula of Ordalia , Dalmasca is surrounded by an expanse of desert . The temperate climate of Dalmasca differs from the cold environs of Kerwon to the south and the lush plains of Valendia and Ordalia . During this time , Ivalice is beset by the pending war between the forces of Rozarria and Archadia . Caught between the two powerful Empires , Dalmasca and a number of smaller nations have already been subjugated by Archadia two years before the game begins . 
