Dras-Leona is located by Leona Lake and is in close proximity to Helgrind. The citizens there are said to engage in a bloody religion involving the worship of Helgrind and the ritual sacrifice of body parts.It is a sprawling tangle of buildings, strewn with disfigured beggars and desperately impoverished citizens.

Gil'ead is a city in Alagaësia, located close to Du Weldenvarden on Isenstar Lake. It is heavily fortified and home to a base for Galbatorix's soldiers.

Helgrind is a huge black tower, created from a mountain near the city of Dras-Leona. It is the lair of the horrid Ra'zac. It is virtually impossible to reach Helgrind by any way but air travel, due to its extreme height.

Helgrind, which means "Gates of Death" in the Ancient Language, has a dark, malevolent air about it that attracts a kind of morbid fascination among people; it was this aura that brought about Dras-Leona's founding. The eventual result was a religion based on the Helgrind's worship, in which it is common for priests to cut off their own body parts in an attempt to separate themselves from the physical world, and wherein amputation is a common form of punishment. The Cathedral at Dras-Leona was built in the likeness of Helgrind.

Kuasta is a coastal city. It is located near the shore of the western sea in Alagaësia. It is isolated from other settlements by the Spine, and thus, the inhabitants of the city have become highly superstitious and practice strange customs, such as the practice of knocking on a door three times before opening it.

Therinsford is a small town in the Palancar Valley, southwest of Carvahall. It is larger and more poorly organized than Carvahall, and is located on the Anora River as well.

Teirm is a large trading city in Alagaësia. It is a coastal port isolated from the rest of the Empire by the Spine, and is located on the Toark River. It has a defense system like no other city in Alagaësia: after an attack by pirates in which the city nearly burned down, it was rebuilt in a tiered structure so that in case of attack, archers could be posted on the roofs of the houses they would have a clear line of sight to shoot down the invaders. The defenses were centered around a citadel, in which the merchants were required to house their administrative offices so that Imperial officials could track shipments to the Varden.