Be sure to read this guide first:
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3416860824

• Note that several islands have a Fresco that is critical to progression, and I have a more detailed description of how to "do" each in my Progression Guide.
  
• Many islands have multiple variations, meaning that they don't always look the same from game to game.
  
• You can find Emerald Isles biome mixed in with the later biomes (Fallen Heights and Red Cliffs), probably so you don't have to travel all the way back to the start to get certain resources.
  
• There is some slight random variation in the layout of the map; yours will look a little different from mine.
  
• Astrolabe keeps working on their game, so I may have posted something outdated about an island.

With the exception of a few, all island names are my own device (I think Pesky named The Orchard). If you don't like a particular name or have a better suggestion, let me know and I'll change the guide.

I include the JSON ID for each island, found via the console command "debuginfo on". I think this could be useful for reporting. This is most useful for verifying that you are on the island to which I am referring.

Note that there is also an "Internal ID" for the island. This is used for console commands like "teleport 123", not the JSON ID. I don't know how to get from one ID to another.

Note that there are NO procedurally-generated islands in Aloft. Every island was made by hand (although there are several places of obvious copy-paste time-saving).

That being said, there is a random pairing of island (the terrain, rocks, plants) with "topping" (usually some sort of building, structure, or ruins), so as to give the appearance of "randomly-generated" without much technological difficulty. This does not apply to many (most?) islands, but it may account for why your island can look different from my screenshots.

Also:The game may create multiple copies of the same island, right next to each other in the same archipelago. This has to do with "seams" in the island layout generator: small areas of overlap between two sections of the map that could both potentially generate that island.

Some islands are what's called an IBI (Itty Bitty Island), which have the least mass of a claimable island (500), and thus make for the fastest ships. I count 8 of these in the starting cluster (archipelago).

WARNING! An IBI will only have a maximum capacity of 8 producing animals!

https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3421217640
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3411523555
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3425921839
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3411254702
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3415696190

Certain islands on the map will be marked with an Atlas symbol. These are supposed to have superior loot, and often come with a puzzle. At the very least, they should have an Atlas Stone. They (usually? always?) have an Atlas symbol beacon; this can be sketched to learn the Beacons blueprint, but you can't build any beacons of the Atlas variety (devs only).

At the table-map, use an Atlas Stone (there's a big button) to reveal the location of an undiscovered Atlas-marked island.
(see my guide Tips for Aloft for more on these symbols)

Thanks to SikarHiyore, I was able to find the first Wonder Island, which introduces Pyrologic as a reward for solving its puzzles!
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3549215957
See more below, in the Fallen Heights section.

JSON ID: 10
Biome: Emerald Isles
Weight: 16000
Claimable: No
Corrupted: No
Unhealthy: No
Progression: 1 Fresco <Glider Stand>, 3 Knowledge Stones

The starter island is quite large and full of basic starter loot. You may find some items that you can't craft yet, because you haven't gotten any Rope (until after you glide to another island). There are many seaweed baskets that mostly have leaves (but sometimes more), several charred stumps, reishii mushrooms at the base of trees, and blueberry bushes galore. Feel free to explore thoroughly if you like; or you could get the progression blueprints and take off as soon as you have a glider.

Note: If you glide the opposite direction from where you're pointed, you can find a few islands "behind" the starting island (so, head South instead of North like you're supposed to).

---

https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3412847663
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3552598281
JSON ID: 25
Biome: Emerald Isles
Weight: 6700
Claimable: Yes
Corrupted: No
Unhealthy: No
Progression: 1 Knowledge Stone

This is a medium-sized island that's quite pretty -- it has an elder tree over a twin-waterfall pool in front of a knowledge stone. This island makes for a nice bigger base.

There are also two IBIs nearby: JSON ID: 26 and 27, wt. 500. IBIs (27 has a pond)

---

JSON ID: 13
Weight: 8600
Biome: Emerald Isles
Claimable: Yes
Corrupted: No
Unhealthy: No
Progression: 1 Knowledge Stone

The first island you are likely to find after getting a glider will be this quiet pine haven. Sporting several elder-class coniferous trees (and charcoal stumps), the main point of this island is the knowledge stone at the base of the tree in the center of the pond. Usually, I just grab it and move on.

---

JSON ID: 14
Weight: 7100
Biome: Emerald Isles
Claimable: Yes
Corrupted: Yes
Unhealthy: No
Progression: 1 Anchor

Shortly after your first glide begins, you can see a Corrupted Island in the distance. Clear this island, and you will have some decent starter loot, a Knowledge Anchor (possibly your first), and a popular choice to claim for a large starting ship.

---

JSON ID: 15
Weight: 16000
Biome: Emerald Isles
Claimable: No
Corrupted: No
Unhealthy: No
Progression: 1 Fresco <Helm>, 2 Knowledge Anchors

A stone's throw away from The Orchard (not literally), this massive island is mostly rock and trees. I like to start at the base, where a Lost Key pines woefully, "Find me! Please, find me!" It happens to be directly in front of a large brass door that's locked -- now opened by that key. Inside, the second Fresco will teach me how to put a steering wheel on an island.



This island has many stone parts that I like to sketch, charcoal permitting. Also, there are several replenishing piles of rope that can help you get started without a lot of Mykter hunting.

---

JSON ID: 21
Weight: 2900
Biome: Emerald Isles
Claimable: Yes
Corrupted: No
Unhealthy: No
Progression: none

Mostly trees, this island has a small campfire circle near a peaceful pond + waterfall. It's lacking in resources, but makes a simple, small-ish base.

---

JSON ID: 17
Weight: 12450
Biome: Emerald Isles
Claimable: Yes
Corrupted: No
Unhealthy: No
Progression: 1 Anchor

This island has a "puzzle" in the form of a big, obvious lever in front of a waterfall that does nothing to conceal the door behind it.

Although quite large, this island is also very scenic, and can make for a fun base. I used the subterranean chamber as a "natural" sheep pen -- and this one can hold a loooot of sheep.

---

JSON ID: 23
Weight: 11600
Biome: Emerald Isles
Claimable: Yes
Corrupted: Yes
Unhealthy: No
Progression: 1 Anchor

This large island is notable for the broken sawmills everywhere, telling the player, "You can saw wood, soon. Real soon!" It will not be soon. There's even a puzzle reward of an Anchor; if you've gotten all the other anchors to this point, then this one will teach you Wool Sails (which you can't make yet, either). This island may get a little frustrating, due to these inaccessible tools.

---

JSON ID: 19
Weight: 1350
Biome: Emerald Isles
Claimable: Yes
Corrupted: Yes
Unhealthy: No
Progression: 1 Knowledge Stone

This medium-sized island has two docks and numerous boxes and barrels in various states of decay. Although it's not the smallest island, it can still make a pretty light ship, and the pre-made docks make for a decent "bow" of your ship (the front) if you claim this as your home.

Nearby IBIs are JSON ID #28, #29 & #30 (presumably ships "docked" at port, now "adrift")

---

JSON ID: 23
Weight: 1600
Biome: Emerald Isles
Claimable: Yes
Corrupted: No
Unhealthy: No
Progression: none

This little "island" is a bunch of micro-islands chained to a central tree. At the base of that tree is a Lost Key (you need to open a puzzle sphere to get it).

This one's mostly notable for all the brass chains holding the tiny islands in place, making for an interesting setting for a base.
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3415184095

There are a number of Atlas-marked islands between the start and the first real "dungeon" (what I call Funnel Quarry, where you learn the Research Lab blueprint). Many islands also have puzzles or other interesting features. I may some day pick a few of these to report, but for now I'm sticking to the required archipelago.

JSON ID: 6
Weight: 1600
Biome: Emerald Isles
Claimable: No
Corrupted: Yes
Unhealthy: Yes
Progression: 1 Fresco <Research Lab>, 1 Anchor, 3 Knowledge Stones (or is it 4?)

This island is large, but not super complicated. Start at the bottom and spiral upward, killing all the corruption along the way. See full description in my Progression Guide.

If you take a glance at the Mykter cages and think "I need to come back after I get the Coating Station" you would be both right and wrong.

• Wrong in the sense that you need to progress to the Fresco to learn the <Research Lab> blueprint, and you don't need to break the Mykter cages to do so.
  
• Right in the sense that after you build the Research Lab, you can use it to learn the Coating Station blueprint, then come back with a coated weapon to loot the island.

---

Author: Drasticbubble12
JSON ID: 44
Weight: 3650
Biome: Emerald Isles
Claimable: Yes
Corrupted: No
Unhealthy: No
Progression: none

This player-made workshop island won a contest and was included in the main game!
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3487008649&snr=2___
There's a bunch of loot here, so be sure to rob all the tombs. The coffins that are still sealed will need to be broken with a hammer.

---

JSON ID: 91
Weight: 9350
Biome: Emerald Isles
Claimable: Yes
Corrupted: Yes
Unhealthy: Yes
Progression: none

This large forest island is a bit of a "fixer-upper" (both Corrupted & Unhealthy) but has a unique feature: a sort of "pet hospital" (my interpretation) with sketchable Vivaria, possibly giving you access to these critter storage boxes (plus a few others, like a bat stand).

This island is an example of how the map generation will change islands from world to world. It very well may not have the pet hospital on your world. Or perhaps it may not even appear in this archipelago at all; maybe the pet hospital appears on a different island at some other location in your world. In my most recent, I got two copies of #91, one with a pet hospital and one with a campfire circle instead. The designer told me that it was due to a "seam" in the island generation system.

---

Other islands in the cluster:

• #202 has a puzzle, and I think the solution changes by the island's variant; requires multiple worlds to verify. Weight 7200
  
• #183 = IBI, but has an Atlas Stone (is not marked with Atlas symbol/beacon)

TODO

Biome: Emerald Isles
Claimable: No
Corrupted: No
Unhealthy: Yes
Progression: 1 Fresco <Loom>, 1 Anchor, 3? Knowledge Stones

The final progression island in this biome requires the Research Lab & Coating Station first.

There are Windstone Crystals on the roof of the fresco room. There is a hidden alcove above the door to the fresco room, with a Knowledge Stone in it (as well as some more loot).

---

There are MANY islands in the inner ring, so I'm only covering a tiny number of them. Most of these have blatant evidence of copy-pasta, so roll your eyes back into place and take advantage of that! Once you've done one version of an island, you can quickly unearth the clone's buried treasure, solve it's puzzles and sniff out the best loot, then fly away within a few minutes.

This inner ring could be considered the "fly-over States" of Aloft, because you'll probably be skipping most of these islands as you head towards the Cloven Galleon (see below).

---

JSON ID: 9
Weight: 13,600
Biome: Fallen Heights
Claimable: No
Corrupted: No
Unhealthy: No
Progression: 1 Fresco <Windmill>, 2? Knowledge Stones

TODO: <Windmill> fresco island
One Intricate chest off of the upper pool, one in the Fresco room (entrance way)

---

A Wonder Island.
JSON ID: 40
Weight: 10125
Biome: Emerald Isles, although it's in a Fallen Heights sector
Claimable: No
Corrupted: No
Unhealthy: No
Progression: None...?

To open the Engineer's workshop, you must place three brass balls in their bevels.

• The first ball is available out in the open.
  
• The second ball is obtained within the tower (pull a lever on two different floors)
  
• The third ball is granted when you complete a glider course around the island's periphery.

You will also need to pull levers to open a large vestige door -- the second and fifth should be up, the others down.

Zeesha has some good advice (with pictures):

Originally posted by Zeesha:

Just thought, with piccies, I'd help anyone else who ran into this puzzle.

So here's a picture of the main isle which has a Castle of sorts on it.

https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3569240284

One of the first parts of the puzzle, which is also last, is here where you can place a metal ball and it starts to light up the door.

https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3569241266

The big problem I had was the second area. Had already encountered buttons you stand on and "shoot" the target if far or if close can use your hammer and hit it. I had done those including carrying over a metal ball. The problem was being in 3rd person and I had thought I put the ball on the area... but I hadn't. Finally went back and LOOKED all the way down and dropped the metal ball.

I'll show the 2nd part of the puzzle with the key code in the background but I couldn't figure out (having tried everything else) if I was supposed to look for a new key code somewhere else or something like that. Until I tried again with the ball.

https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3569241052


Correct placement of metal ball and that glide rings start (technically 1st part of puzzle)


https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3569240803

Hope that helps someone else that they don't pull their hair out :D

---

JSON ID: 36
Weight: 13,200
Biome: Fallen Heights
Claimable: No
Corrupted: No?
Unhealthy: No?
Progression: ...?

This could be a Wonder Island. I did this quickly; need to revisit to document it.

---

JSON ID: 37
Weight: 10,750
Biome: both Emerald Isles and Fallen Heights
Claimable: No
Corrupted: No
Unhealthy: No
Progression: ...?

This must be a Wonder Island, due to all the puzzles on it. I'm still working on figuring them out.

---

TODO: <Sawmill> Fresco island

TODO!

I think there is a higher density of islands in Red Cliffs. Perhaps as a result, there appear to be more Atlas islands than expected.

TODO: Pottery Wheel Fresco

I've made several other guides for Aloft:
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3411688526
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3414599424
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3414785166
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3422274125
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3430188769
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3518595767
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3555428518