Here’s a condensed idea of my idea.
What is the geography of the world?
The world is divided into four general types of landmass:
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Lowlands are lands closest to sea level. They are typically dangerous due to the presence of the Mist, but were clearly once occupied.
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Midlands are plateaus that rise above the Lowlands. Individual plateaus are miles to hundreds of miles across, though not as big as an Earth continent. They are where most people live. Midlands plateaus are connected to each other by land bridges.
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Uplands are chunks of land that extend above the Midlands. They are reachable from the Midlands by land bridges, but typically do not connect to each other.
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Sky islands, which are large chunks of rock that float unsupported in the air. Sky islands are reachable via Mist barges or (rarely) by bridges or rope. Sky islands range in size from an acre to a mile or more.
What is the Mist?
Magical energy flows like a spiderweb around the world. It concentrates at low elevations, and is rare at higher elevations. The filaments of magic are called ley lines.
Physical matter tends to accumulate and grow in strength around these ley lines. Magical energy is sometimes used in manufacturing to make metal alloys with supernatural durability, for example.
In the Lowlands, the concentration of magic draws out water in the atmosphere, creating an effect called the Mist. “The Mist” is thus just ordinary magical energy, but at dangerous levels.
What are land bridges?
Land bridges are naturally occurring stone that connect different land-masses together, like two nearby plateaus of Midland, or a Midland and a nearby Upland segment. Their location is not accidental - they are strengthened and kept in place because they sit on ley lines.
Most land bridges have been sculpted into roads, staircases, etc. to make them useful for travel. Land bridges can be just wide enough for a few pack animals, or wide as a multi-lane highway.
What are Mist barges?
Sky islands are kept afloat by ley lines connecting them to the surface world, like invisible struts. Engineers have found ways to mine rock from these sky islands that interacts oddly with ley lines. They fit this into a gyroscope, which can then “pull” a vehicle along the ley line, even in midair. These craft, called Mist barges, are used to travel between Sky islands and lower landmasses.
It’s hypothetically possible to have a Mist barge that can fly anywhere, not just along ley lines. This would require a significant source of magical energy, however.