I have built everything from villages of "guardians" protecting a semi-hidden ancient holy place to large cities that have everything and anything going on, including an encampment outside for travelers who can't afford the inns. I also build "ethereal" areas that exist only within the mind or areas that are designed around emotions. These are limited, as they are hard to fit into the genre of a general fantasy world.

I generally use three basic steps to come up with an idea.

First, I find out what the game needs: what "space" in the world is empty and what is near that spalce. What race in the world lacks any racial areas, what bit of history has never been flushed out in an area, what difficultly level is limited, what parts of the world lack civilized encampments, etc.

Second, I go seek inspiration. I have found inspiration from reading about Egyption tomes, reading Plato and Aristole's treatisies on the perfect society, reading archeological books on ancient civilizations, reading through dictionaries of animals and plants for unusual non-human cultures, searching the web for one little point or idea that strikes me the game world could use, etc. Resources that generally have nothing to do with a fantasy world, thus avoiding the mistake of repeating what has been done before a million and one time.

Third step is to take what I discovered that caught my interest and mold it into an area that fits the need of the game. If I love the ritualistic nature of how egyptions are entombed and get caught up in Plato's utopia society based an a very well structured, detailed heiarchy of life positions, perhaps I would end up building a city with the citizens in a strict heirachy which all outsiders would be expected to adhear to and underneath the city would be catacombs with eleborate tomes for when the highest ranking citizens die. The materials described in the rooms themselves would reflect the class of citizen who lives in that building. The goods sold in the markets would reflect which citizens are likely to buy them. The citizens as they walk the streets would have strict levels of finery they could wear. The tomes would be made of everything the highest ranking member has access to, his lifes finest possessions with him. Quite the place to raid, if you can do it without being caught.

Anyway, rather than take what has been done before, begin anew with non-fantasy sources. That is my suggestion. That doesn't mean another area out there won't exist with similar ideas, but at least you'll have the fun of exploring a concept that is far out of your normal daily thoughts.

*wanders off to go draw up a nice utopian city with catacombs*

Sapphar