Cosmology (Dominaria Supplement)

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The Transient Realms

The unique construct known as Sigil.

Sigil, The City of Doors

My network destroyed 6 paragraphs of work and a great story... These are bullet points not a stubby article. 1/5/2014

Most who know know it only as a mythical place where otherworldly beings may travel between worlds. Even many planar travelers would only think it a myth, for there are many ways to travel the realms, all myths except the one they know.

Prothean Stucture floating above a pretty unremarkable plain (dark ocean under a night sky with spires, largest are almost impossible and atop one is a strange toroid).

First explorers left it alone as a useless curiosity on an unremarkable demi-plane.

When the first beings stumbled into the structure they realized what a find it was, with portals to everywhere all over the place, in grand doors all the way to alleyflaps.

Lady of Pain is a Prothean. She took up ownership of the Prothean's transient realm after the War and through her power, the strange gangrel creatures she created, and the constructs she created she knows all in the structure. No one challenges her. She took no sides in the war but her power is such that no God challenges her ownership of the Realm.

People began to move in and through in larger quantities untill the city began to develop a 'native' population. People who set up shop or people too destitute to leave.

Interminable gang warfare, as well as factions and Guilds have made the city what it is now. The larger wars, which are RARE but the Lady does allow, have destroyed whole parts of the city to be rebuilt again.

Many buildings are built on top of older ones (some truly ancient buildings go many levels 'underground', it is said there is more life beneath the city than on top. Further down is still the original iunderground: metal hallways and strange machinery, as well as the true denizens of Sigil.

Most streets are like alleys and most alleys are tight and have a coating of detrius. There are streets and boulevards though, as well as places worth treading for their stunning beauty.

A place of opportunity cut with danger and intrigue. There are portals if you know where to ask and the answers always come with a cost.

The first and most widely known is the mythical Sigil, the City of Doors. It is a city built into the inside a hollow doughnut-shaped structure of unknown origin and age floating over a vast, dark sea. Because there are no ways in or out of the structure, the city would be yet another planar anomaly but for the fact that the city is filled with portals to other planes, both within the multiverse and to the small worldlets beyond the Outer Planes. These portals are everywhere and easy to find…if you know who to ask.

Although Sigil is in and of itself the safest of all of the Transient Realms, it is a singularly contentious place: rife with factions and powerful entities struggling over control of the immensely valuable portals. Sigil is a natural gathering place for the many and varied ideological factions of the Multiverse, many of whose views would not be tolerated among the more civilized realms.

A Fortress of the Companions of Wrath.

Factions

The Lower Ward of Sigil.

Districts

The Lady's Ward:

Market Ward:

Guildhall Ward:

Clerk's Ward:

Lower Ward:

The Hive:This is ridiculous... The network did it again. It's just really disheartening to get this work done then have it deleted. 1/14/2014.

Ancient war destroyed almost 1/4 of Sigil.

Was slowly rebuilt from the metal deck up.

Approaching the Hive you see a wall of wood almost closing off the Construct. Up close the mess of engineering and bracing it is become apparent.

Warren of wood and stone roughly arranged into "Blocks" with "Dead Space" in between. Dead space full of a madman's idea of bracing and dubious footing.

Hammer home wood roads above and below w/in "Blocks".

Bridges, catwalks, balconies.

Not all people dangerous, lower-level Coruscant types. Lots of people with normal goals and aspirations.

Some areas abandoned, some full of life, some dangerous, som being reclaimed by flora...and fauna.

The Rivers Styx and Oceanus

The Rivers Styx and Oceanus, one springing from Baator and the other from Elysium, travel between planes and serve to link the Multiverse together.

The river Styx as it passes through Ghenna, a now doomed adventured sits on it's banks.

The River Styx

Styx is a literal river that not only runs across planes but somehow between them. Styx connects every lower plane and the two middle planes, from Pandemonium to Mechanus. It is the largest means of transport within the deep reaches of the lower planes. Transport on the River Styx is crewed by beings called boatmen. The boatmen are thought to be a race that inhabited the lower planes before even the devils and the demons. They are the only ones who know the secrets of navigating the River. Aside from interplanar travel the River has a few other interesting qualities. Its waters are filled with the souls of recently deceased and induce memory loss. No one understands why or how this phenomenon occurs.

One of the enigmatic Boatmen.

The Boatmen

Strange creatures hidden by the folds of their even flowing cloaks. The incredibly ancient Boatmen are a created race of 7 foot tall creatures who work the boats of the River Styx. They rarely speak apart from asking for payment and asking for destination. They are not averse to conversation, but one will rarely hear a Boatman's low monotone voice of its own accord. The creatures never really leave the tiller and move infrequently, but when sparked to combat they are capable of fearsome speed and lightning reflexes. For stats, I use Solar Angels and switch out the good powers for evil ones.

The River Oceanus

The startling beauty of The River Oceanus passes through Elysium.

Oceanus is also an actual river. Its headwaters start in the bottom layer of Elysium and connect all of the upper and both middle planes. Oceanus is one of the most widely used means of transportation in the upper planes. Transport along the water is usually handled by angels and natives of the upper planes. Boats traveling on the river need not be magical unless one plans on traveling between planes. Travel from layer to layer of one plane does not normally require anything extraordinary when on the river. The waters of the river are said to be endlessly deep, and are sweet, life-giving, and heal those who travel along it. Its banks teem with life, both plant and animal and these environments are often some of the most vibrant in the Multiverse. Souls from the Prime will often make their homes along the river.

A good map of the Outlands, ignore the Spire and Sigil on this map.

The Outlands

The Outlands are a large “island” floating in the Astral Plane. It looks like nothing more than a large piece of a planet's crust. It is a strange land with one portal to each of the Outer Planes – looking top-down, the portals are arranged in a manner similar to the standard diagram of the Outer Planes. These portals in the Outlands are well known in each of their respective planes and are heavily built up on both sides. In the upper planes they serve as large trade and commerce hubs as well as staging areas; while in the lower planes they’re garrisons and, on the planar side, are the sites of some of the most gruesome battles of the Bloodwar. Surprisingly, given the number of different factions represented, there is relatively little fighting in the Outlands themselves: most travel in the Outlands goes through any one of several outposts or forts built in the central region in the widely agreed upon neutral zone. The neutral zone is enforced by a strange race of constructs known as the Guardians. They are never seen unless someone physically tries to move an army into the neutral zone or a major fight breaks out. The only serious fighting that ever occurs is between the devils and the demons.

The general landscape in the central Outlands is mostly sandy soil with scrub grass. Scattered groves of African trees dot the landscape. As one nears the gates themselves, the landscape begins to shift to that of the plane that each respective gate leads to. There are many mountain ranges and lakes and even some more unique features. The Astral Plane that surrounds the Outlands appears to be a light blue sky full of wispy clouds. During the 'night'an aurora with the silvery-white trails of dimensional gates appears.

The Endless Stair.

The Endless Stair

The Endless Stair is yet another planar anomaly. It is, as the name implies, an endless stairway which leads from plane to plane in the Outer Planes. If one is looking at a traditional diagram of the planes going “up” on the Stairway takes one counterclockwise and going “down” takes one clockwise. Every so often on the Stairway will be a balcony or landing over looking the vast infinite space of the Astral Sea. On balconies or landings will sometimes be a door. These doors open as portals to a plane. Next to each door will be a painting depicting a vast landscape, somewhere within which the doors exit is. There will be several doors per plane on the Stairway. A short hallway will delineate the beginning of each new set of landings, which is wider than the stairway. Before the hallway starts there will be a plaque written in a completely indecipherable script. The hallway will have several large paintings on each side: these are paintings of various locales within the plane that this section of the Stair leads to. Each painting will have two small plaques on the bottom and right sides. Tubes on the ceiling filled with phosphorescent liquids light the hallways along with torches on the stair and chandeliers in the landings. There are no inhabitants, but one traveling on the stair can and sometimes does encounter other beings.

A Hallway in the Plane of Mirrors.

The Plane of Mirrors

With the proper spell or magic item (for example, the mirror walking spell), a traveler can pass through the glass of a mirror or other reflective surface and enter the strange realm beyond. This realm is a semi-mythical demiplane that lies beyond the Outer Planes. It is a plane of endless hallways and corridors in a variety of styles ranging from medieval to Greek to even the late Victorian all of which is filled with mirrors. When one looks into a mirror for long enough, one eventually begins to discern the far side of a mirror somewhere in the Multiverse. It will eventually become clear that the mirrors are portals to another place. No matter what variety of hallway you’re in, it is always meticulously clean. The Plane of Mirrors can provide anyone who is willing to look long enough with an entrance to any plane. The entrance onto the other plane is always out of a mirror. The strong-willed character who knows exactly what mirror he wants to come through can choose where on the target plane he wants to come out. The only inhabitants of the plane are the mysterious Guardians: a hyperadvanced race of, as far as anyone can tell, sentient mechanical beings that completely ignore everyone on the plane.

A fanciful impression of the World Ash painted by a Venecian Scholar.

The World Ash

The World Ash is a gigantic tree sitting on a demiplane far outside the Outer Planes. The trees branches are wide enough to wage full-scale warfare, the bows shelter entire cities built right out of the wood, the trunk houses a honeycomb of passages leading up and down and across to other branches. This makes the wroshyr trees of the Star Wars universe look like weeds. Because of the immense distance between major branches, giant leaves are often employed as aerial sailing vessels. Smaller branches fork out many, many times from the larger ones and some lead to portals. Within the World Ash’s colossal canopy, branches lead to portals which lead every Inner and Outer plane. Portals on the Prime Material are often found by unsuspecting travelers deep within ancient forests or high up on an undisturbed mountaintop. This is the least known of the gateways between worlds.

The Inner Planes

The Energy Planes

The Positive Energy Plane

The Positive Energy Plane or the Elemental Plane of Light is nearly as deadly as the Negative Energy Plane. As a direct opposite to its “evil twin” it is an endless void of positive energy with intensity akin to the core of a sun. Unprotected mortals who venture onto the plane become so filled with positive energy, as it fixes their every flaw and purges their body of all evils major and minor, that they are immolated. Darkness cannot exist where there is light. Even with magical protection, travels to the Positive Energy Plane are at your own peril. To good aligned immortals such as angels and celestials, the Positive Energy Plane has much the same effect as the Negative Energy Plane would to a lich. Needless to say, all but the very most powerful good mortal creatures can survive. Of the many objects that float through the plane, the two most notable are the Castle Serenity, a meeting hall of the Lords of Good; and an Astral Dreadnaught, the Righteous Fury, made from solid immaterial. It is the flagship of the Arch Angel Rafael’s Divine Fleet. Light and healing magic is drawn from this plane.

The Negative Energy Plane

The Negative Energy Plane or the Elemental Plane of Darkness is the most inhospitable and deadly of the Inner Planes. It is an endless void of darkness that sucks the life out of anything that enters it. Light, heat and life are drained on this plane. No natural creature can inhabit it. Even for most dark and evil aligned creatures it would be fatal because it is so dark. Only the most powerful dark creatures can exist on this plane. The only features of the plane are the remote, twisted castles, hideouts and retreats for the multiverses dark elite along with their twisted creations. The largest of the few artificial features is the gigantic meditation sphere of the demon price, Malgrim, the Duke of Unlife. Dark and evil magic, including necromancy, is drawn from this plane.

The Elemental Planes

The Elemental Plane of Fire

Old data for a map I need to find. XXXXEfreeti inhabit the City of Brass and the Obsidian City. Djinn live in the Azure Keep which is more of a city than anything else. The efreeti’s army outpost is the Basalt Keep on Igneon. From there, they maintain their war against the undead hordes from Necropolis. The Southern Barrier Wastes used to be inhabited until the Beast Wars. During the Beast Wars, the human King Constantine I the Great of Velmorra led a large army into the Plane of Fire to take the City of Brass. It was deemed the Beast War(s) because the Velmorran force were by-and-large beast riders. Constantine’s army sacked three cities and was marching on the Astral Tower when they were ambushed and routed at what is now called to be known as the Place of Skulls. Because of the war, the efreeti are so diminished they can’t maintain a presence south of the Barrier, east of Igneon or west of the Shattered Isles. Since Ruby City held the library, nothing is now known of the “outer reaches”. The Astral Tower is owned and maintained by the demi-lich Ach’xizar. The City of Brass is a huge, very prosperous metropolis of 75% efreeti, 22% djinn and other spirits and 3% planar travelers. The other major city on the Plane of Fire is the Obsidian City which is not quite as large. By planar standards the city is off average prosperity. Still, it is richer than most Prime Material cities. It is inhabited by 65% efreeti, 15% djinn and other spirits and 20% astral dwellers and 15% planar travelers. The lord regent of the Obsidian City lives in an extinct volcano in the middle of the city. It has been hallowed and parapets have been built on the outside; basically it has been turned into a fortress. The Azure Keep is in a crater on the largest island of the Shattered Isles. It is very sophisticated and about as wealthy as the City of Brass. It is made up of 60% djinn and other spirits, 20% astral dwellers, 15% planar travelers and about 5% efreeti. The markets of the Azure Keep are the most varied outside Sigil. Whereas the City of Brass is defended by strength of arms, the Azure Keep magical auras, cunning traps and arms equally. Efreeti and djinn fight on and off. Both sides utilize material troops, spirits and interplanar mercenaries. Travel in the Plane of Fire is made up of ferries across the Sea of Fire and airships that float above the ash clouds. The ground is made up of rock and shale, the remnants of dried lava. The landscape is desolate and barren with rifts and faults like mesas. Crystals grow like plants. Acid often falls like rain. The only green life you’ll find are the tough and hardy plants that grow in between crevices. Few live outside the cities. Ones that do are often wizards that live in towers or are conducting some sort of research. Another notable place on the Plane of Fire is the Temple to the False God which honors a god cast out of Celestia long ago. He is still worshiped by isolated sects and clerics plotting to help him reascend to deity status. XXXX

The Elemental Plane of Earth

The Elemental Plane of Earth is a plane of endless rock, soil and stone filled with immense caverns and cave systems. The variety and consistency of rock that makes up the plane is wide and varied, ranging from relatively soft soil to veins of heavier, and often more valuable, metals. Striations of granite, volcanic rock and marble interweave with brittle crystal and soft, crumbling chalks and sandstones. Thin veins and gemstones are scattered throughout the plane. These gemstones and the valuable heavy metals of the plane often attract people with hopes of easy fortune; many a planar mining operation have failed leaving sporadic ruins behind. These prospectors often fail to take into account the planes native inhabitants: the earth elementals of the plane are quite literally part of their environment and take very unkindly to digging of any kind. The earth elementals do not actively hunt but rather react to negative, often accidental, stimulus. The Plane of Earth could be said to be hostile to sentient life in much the same way as the Plane of Fire… by its very nature. Aside from earth elementals, the plane is home to most any creature that makes its home under the ground and also any creature with a natural affinity to earth or stone up to and including stone giants, certain species of dragons and small colonies of dwarves. All magic that has the earth or metal descriptor or deals with it draws all or part of its magic from this plane. Light on the plane is provided by certain types of metal, rivers of strange substances, or luminescent moss. One problem with the Plane of Earth in which people do not see is that if teleporting or gating in one needs either to know exactly where one is going or a spell caster powerful enough to ensure one does not teleport directly into solid rock. This is a sure way to earn a very quick death with no chance of resurrection. Many adventurers to the Plane of Earth in search of treasure; of these only a few return. Environments in the plane can range anywhere from a distinct Moria feel to a much more enclosed “tunnel dungeons”.

The Elemental Plane of Water

The Elemental Plane of Water is an endless sea, with no bottom or top. Its waters differ from tropical to freezing arctic, from perfectly calm to raging maelstrom and from fresh to salt. The elemental plane of water is generally well lit, although darker patches roam throughout, bringing a random day-night cycle to the place. It is actually one of the more hospitable of the elemental planes once one gets past the problem of breathing under water. What little civilized societies live on the Plane of Water usually reside in and around pieces of debris or flotsam that have found their way into the plane from other planes. The only plant life on the plane can be found growing on this wreckage ranging from pieces of other planes’ crusts to entire cogs from Mechanus to a full battle cube from Acheron. Entire underwater kelp and seaweed forests along great coral reefs have been formed over the ages and most of the smaller animal life thrives around these. Some of the bigger denizens of the plane however do roam and tend to control vast territories. Large beasts such as sea serpents, whales and krakens tend to travel alone while smaller predators like sharks and water nagas move in packs from junk to junk. The only truly notable historical event that has ever taken place on the Plane of Water was when the Acheron cube was ripped through. The battle cube, named the Darkfire Inferno, was operated by a group of fire dwarves. They were a rather successful group on Acheron until they managed to get into a fight with Hextor himself. Hextor thought it would be ironic to banish the cube to the Plane of Water and, to their credit, the dwarves have adapted admirably. They, using their cube, conquered and brought together several debris cities and are now a powerful faction on the Elemental Plane of Water. Aside from the many water civilizations and awe-inspiring wonders of the Plane, the treasure of the dwarves drawn the occasional insane quest. Water elementals, like the elementals from most other planes, tend to stick to themselves or cluster around touchstone sights, enjoying the raw power of their element.

The Elemental Plane of Air

The Elemental Plane of Air is an empty plane with blue sky above and below. Weather patterns and winds move through the plane, shifting around large masses of cloud. Clouds swell in banks ranging from thunderheads to small wispy cirrus clouds. The wind also blows around rain from storms; and rainbows (sometimes used as bridges) can often be seen throughout the plane. The source of light for the plane is not entirely clear but there is a gradual day and night pattern to it. At night, auroras will sometimes form. This plane is one of the most hospitable to travelers, having nothing very deadly other than lightning in the environment; there are no overly dangerous creatures. Gravity on the plane really doesn’t matter most of time because you are in constant freefall. The direction that you are falling towards can be changed with a will check. The plane is host to all manner of creatures, including many avian such as the pterodactyl and the roc along with their non-avian flying counterparts like the hippogriff and the pegasus. Alongside these relatively natural creatures are some more evil and sinister ones such as beholders and harpies who lurk deep within cloud caves. The air elementals of the plane often float nonchalant with the winds, playing in the weather. They are a rather lighthearted bunch. Amongst the many clouds that float in the Plane of Air are certain solid-clouds. These solid-clouds are often very large and serve as the nexus for which civilization on the plane is based. Many have the equivalent of mountain and cave systems. Upon many of these permanent clouds are built the cities for which the sentient avian races on the plane reside as well as the few communities of humanoid inhabitants. In order to stand upon clouds that are not solid one must make a will check or continue to fall through. The less dense the cloud, the harder it is to stand upon. The only event of planar significant to have happened within recent memory was when the white dragon, Vortex Skyking, accidentally found his way onto the plane while flying through the upper atmosphere of the Prime. Vortex immediately took an interest in the plane, believing he had found heaven, taking over a large cloud cave formation and made allies with several powerful beholders. He has since declared himself ruler and terrorized many cities. No one has yet been able to stop him. The Plane of Air is linked to the Prime through naturally occurring portals in the upper atmosphere mainly occurring during large thunderstorms where there is much static electricity. No one notices them because they form within the actual cloud. It is also said that if one jumps off the peek of a mountain above the cloud cover one will fall into the Plane of Air. All magic with the air descriptor or magic that affects the atmosphere has its power drawn from the Plane of Air.

The Outer Planes

The Upper Planes

The Blessed Fields of Elysium

XXXElysium is a plane of ultimate good, unsullied by the troubles of law or chaos. It is home to the most good-aligned creatures of the multiverse and here, goodness is valued over all else. Make no mistake, there are still calamities and disasters on Elysium, but they exist only so beings may show their ability to do good. Fires or injured travelers exist to identify those not from the plane or not good-aligned. People who complete the small, often annoying tasks set before them often find the favor of powerful allies. Elysium’s lowest layer is the source of the river Oceanus, the life giving stream that connects the upper planes. Oceanus is made up of 4 layers. The upper layer, Amoria, is rather similar to the Prime. Small towns dot the landscape, and islands of rolling hills and forests are spread among the fields of green. The bulk of the population of Elysium lives on this layer. The River Oceanus flows through this layer, and many travel and live along its banks. Amoria has seasons, though they are so timid that visitors from the Material Plane hardly notice them. The plane’s second layer is Eronia. Eronia is a rising land of steep hills, sharp-toothed mountains, and white granite valleys, which divert Oceanus’ stream again and again. Rugged foothills coil at the bases of these mountains, high bluffs, plateaus, and mesas. People tend to live on the plateaus or in small towns hunched between the mountains and the River Oceanus. Eronia is a place of rugged peace, its mountains lost in luminous clouds above and a challenge to any climber. Here the wind whips around mightily, and winged creatures have some difficulty flying. The third layer of Elysium is Belierin. Belierin is a land of misty swamps and fog-bound marshes, quite the opposite of what one might expect in a plane of ultimate goodness. Here the river is no more than a tangled braid of slow-moving water through uncountable channels, with low, flooded sandbars and tangles of mangrove rising from it. The few communities that exist on Belierin rise from rocky spurs that jut from the swamp. These small towns are usually built around a cathedral-like lighthouse whose beacon pierces the mildly luminous fog, bringing travelers to dock safely. The reason for Belierin’s dark and foreboding nature is the fact that sometime in the deep past, a powerful evil was imprisoned here. No one knows its true nature, but the indisputable fact is that evil creatures are sometimes caught lurking here and evil is definitely present. Angels and paladins sometimes undertake geas to Belierin to find and extinguish the evil, but they always fail and almost never return. The lowest layer of Elysium is Thalasia, the headwaters of the river Oceanus. It is a great calm sea, dotted with isles and communities. These islands are variously known as the Isles of the Holy Dead, the Isles of the Blessed, the Hills of Avalon, the Islands beyond the world, and the Heroic Isles. Here the holiest of souls and greatest of ancient heroes make their homes. Here hero-kings wait for the day when their nations need them again, and religious scholars research great mysteries in huge libraries. Dominating the landscape of Thalasia is the Fortress of the Sun, one of the palaces of the god Pelor. It sprawls over 100 miles and is the grandest building in the multiverse. It is made of Ivory, Gold and precious stone from all the multiverse and its halls are filled with art and life. Its verandas and terraces are dripping with plants and it is constantly bathed in sun.XXX

The Twin Paradises of Bytopia

XXXBytopia is completely unique in the Outer Planes in that the plane’s two layers face each other and is among the few planes where layers are visible from another layer. One looking up from one layer can easily see the other. Bytopia is good with a slightly lawful bias. Many creatures inhabit Bytopia, almost all of them celestial or, in rare cases, axiomatic versions of their Prime versions. The more peaceful creatures live on Dothion, the first layer of the plane and the wilder, more savage creatures live on Shurrock, the second layer. Travel between the two planes is by air or portal. For a flying creature, it is possible to fly from one sky to the other; for land based beings, portals lying in caverns are the only way. Most of the inhabitants of the plane live on Dothion. There is a night and day cycle on Bytopia, although the radiance comes from the space between the planes. As stated above, the first layer of the plane is Dothion. Dothion is a realm of pastoral activity and individual industry. It’s is characterized by rolling hills that lead to spikes of volcanic rock on the outermost boundaries of the layer that jut toward to its more savage companion layer. The land is a combination of open, settled manor farms and well-tamed woods and forests. The residents have dammed many gentle streams, harnessing them to waterwheels that grind the grain into excellent flour and meal. Towns here lack protective walls, but paved roads link them in well-ordered lines. It is a land of barns and beekeeping, of wool and milk, and of small shops and smithies. Dothion's weather tends to be mild, and it has regular, mostly benign seasons. Often a heavy storm from Shurrock breaks through the border between the two layers, wreaking havoc. A quarter of this layer is dominated by the court of Garl Glittergold, god of the gnomes. His court spreads over the Golden Hills, an area in northeast of Dothion. Each hill is topped by a palace, the largest of which is for the god with smaller ones for his demigod assistants. The palaces have audience and dining halls aplenty and are lavishly appointed. The area around the hills is a gnome’s paradise of small communities, quiet industry, deep mines and farms. Outsiders are sometimes seen in this area due to the fact that the gnome’s mines and smelting depots often have direct links to the elemental planes of earth and fire. The light that bathes the hills has a soft golden tint and all the animals that inhabit the region slowly gain golden fur or plumage. The second layer of Bytopia is Shurrock. Shurrock is Dothion's wild counterpart. While Dothion is well mannered, Shurrock is savage. Where Dothion is calm, Shurrock is extreme. It is a land of rough country and harsh weather, divided by deep, snow-filled winters and dry, parching summers. The land of Shurrock is filled with raw materials. Seams of gold and gems are found just beneath the surface, the tangled woodlands are rich in timber, and all manner of wild game thrives throughout the layer. Quarries and mills are common, usually with small communities crowding them. These towns are often walled and guarded. It is a very different sort of paradise from Dothion.XXX

The Wilderness of the Beastlands

XXXThe Beastlands are a place of nature in its rawest form. Its alignment is good with a slight chaos bias. It is an eternal forest made up of three layers, each frozen at a certain time of day. It is a plane of forests ranging from mangroves hung heavy with moss to snowfall-laden pines to acres of sequoias s0 thick that no light penetrates their canopy. Adventurers who dare to venture into the deep parts of Bytopia will find forests of giant mushrooms and other fungi. There are vast deserts as well, though they are hardly barren wastelands. Cactus, aloe, and other desert plants thrive in the arid parts of the Beastlands. The air in the Beastlands varies in nature but is always perfect for plants. It’s hot and humid in some places, dry and arid in others and just a cool breeze in yet more. Another aspect of the Beastlands is that it is favorable for animals of all kinds. A curious thing happened to animals that come on to the plane. All of them gain at least intelligence 3 and gain the ability to speak common and celestial. Among the wild members of the plane, this means predators are even more fierce and prey often are very good bargainers and extremely silver-tongued. Bytopia has three layers, one bathed in eternal sunlight, one constantly set at sunset, and the other in constant, deep night. Travel between the layers is most often through the rotted core of a dead tree or the hollow of a fallen sequoia. The river Oceanus cuts many paths through the plane and is often a burbling brook or a light river. As it flows between layers however, it becomes rapids capable of smashing all but the sturdiest ships. The uppermost layer of the Beastlands is Krigala, the land of eternal day. The layer is nearly perfectly bisected by the main flow of the river Oceanus. Verdant forests1 cover most of the plane and their canopies soar above quiet glades. Parts of the river shoot out into Krigala to form bayous and oxbow lakes. The land is eternally in mid-afternoon. The temperature is just right and gentle rain falls once a day to mark time. Most creatures found here are active during the day on the material plane and can also avoid portals automatically. Two deities make their homes on this level. The lesser deity Skerrit, lord of the centaurs, resides in the deep forest. Whenever there’s call for a feast2 long table are set out and Skerrit, his followers and the local creatures eat and dance for hours. The other god on the plane, Ehlonna queen of forests, resides in the Grove of the Unicorns. Her palace is a giant cathedral formed by a dozen unnaturally gigantic weeping willows. Their drooping fronds form the outer walls and the lowest branches of the mighty trees from the ceiling. Since the lowest branches are still hundreds of feet up, flying creatures are welcome here. Ehlonna’s palace itself wraps itself around and between the central trunks of the willows. Her palace, true to its name, has a large population of unicorns3. The second layer of the plane is Brux, land of eternal dusk. There is constantly a setting red sun sitting on one horizon and a full moon on the other horizon. Brux is slightly cooler than Krigala and is periodically foggy and misty. The river Oceanus also runs through Brux. Here its offshoots lead to boggy marshes and swamps. Most animal life on Brux is the type that’s active in the morning and evening and sleeps during the heat of the day. The lowest layer is Karasuthra, land of night. A silver moon hangs over an eternal forest filled with slow moving brooks. Slim slivers of moonlight filter through the canopy of the forest. Nocturnal animals as well as the most cunning of predators stalk the woods. Hunters from the Prime often venture to this layer to stalk the most feral of planar and adapted Prime beasts. Trophies from Karasuthra are prized above all others. Time is Karasuthra can only be marked through the torturously slow passage of the phases of the moon.XXX

The Middle Planes

Mechanus

The Urbis Septimana

The plane of Mechanus may be then a mighty gearbox that drives the Great Wheel, but the day to day workings of the processes and natures of all of the many planes of existence requires far too much intimate control to be left to the endless workings of the great cogs. No, the day-in day-out machinations on the planes are controlled by the Urbis Septimana. These vast cities sit on some of the largest developed Cogs on Mechanus and contain the machinery and vast engines necessary to regulate everything from seasonal weather to stellar cycles and in some cases XXXX. Each of these seven cities reflects the nature of its given day. The grim city of Monday for example, is a drab place of monotonous routine marked by imposing and uncaring Gothic architecture and a downtrodden indoctrinated populace. These sad beings tred perfectly organized dark streets under the watchful eyes of XXXX. Of note, among the Urbis Septimana, is Wednesday. The city of Wednesday fell to the onslaught of the Formians during their initial expansions from their mysterious Hive. It's entirely possible that this causes Wednesday's odd place in the week, as opposed to the day influencing the city. The precise relationship is not known however, and investigation therein is frowned upon by an odd sort of Inevitable.

Demi-Planes

The Rock

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