Plane (Dungeons & Dragons)
Encyclopedia
The planes of the Dungeons & Dragons
roleplaying game constitutes the multiverse
in which the game takes place.
In the earliest versions of Dungeons & Dragons, the concept of the Inner, Ethereal, Prime Material, Astral and Outer Planes was introduced; at the time there were only four Inner Planes and no set number of Outer Planes. This later evolved into the Great Wheel cosmology. The fourth edition of the game uses a different, very simplified cosmology with just six main planes calles the World Axis Cosmology.
In addition, some Dungeons & Dragons settings
have cosmologies that are very different from the "standard" ones discussed here. For example, the Eberron
setting has only seventeen planes in total, most of which are unique to Eberron.http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/eb/20040309a
, released July 1977. It was presented again in the original (1st edition) AD&D Players Handbook, published in June 1978, and expanded upon in the original Manual of the Planes
, released in 1987. It was the core cosmology in both editions of AD&D and the 3rd and 3.5 editions of D&D.
Many Outer Planes were renamed in Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Second Edition in the Planescape
campaign setting, released in 1994. In the Third Edition Manual of the Planes, published in 2001, the old and new names were combined together, the Demiplane of Shadow was promoted to the Plane of Shadow, the Prime Material Plane was shortened to the Material Plane, and it was stated that each Material Plane is connected to its own unique Ethereal Plane.
The cosmology is usually presented as a series of concentric
circles, with alternating spatial and transitive planes; from the center outwards, they are ordered as follows: Inner, Ethereal, Material, Astral, Outer Planes, and the Far Realm. The Shadow Plane and the Dimension of Time, if they are included, are separate from the others, and usually represented as being connected to the Material Plane. Demiplanes, although most commonly connected to the Ethereal Plane, can be found attached to any plane. All planes, save the demiplanes, are infinite
in extent.
matter and forces. They consist of the Elemental Planes and the Energy Planes.
. The 2nd edition Dungeon Master's Guide states there are several prime material planes, but several other 2nd edition products say there is only one Prime Material Plane rather than several.
Introduced in the Spelljammer
setting, the Phlogiston is a part of the Material plane. It is a highly flammable gaseous medium in which crystal spheres holding various Prime Material solar systems float, traversable by Spelljammer ships.
-based planes. The home of gods, dead souls, and raw philosophy and belief.
go when they die or are forgotten (or, most likely, both). It is a barren place with only rare bits of solid matter. The Astral Plane is unique in that it is infinitesimal
instead of infinite; there is no space or time here, though both catch up with you when you leave. The soul
s of the newly dead from the Prime Material Plane
pass through here on their way to the afterlife
or Outer Plane
s.
The most common feature of the Astral Plane is the silver
cords of travelers using an astral projection spell. These cords are the lifelines that keep travelers of the plane from becoming lost, stretching all the way back to the traveler's point of origin.
A god-isle is the immense petrified remains of a dead god that float on the Astral Plane, where githyanki
and others often mine them for minerals and build communities on their stony surfaces. Tu'narath
, the capital city of the githyanki, is built on the petrified corpse of a dead god known only as "The One in the Void." God-isles often have unusual effects on those nearby, including causing strange dream
s of things that happened to the god when it was alive. God-isles are also the only locations on the Astral Plane that are known to possess gravity or normal time flows.
setting, can be found in the Deep Ethereal plane; most demiplanes are born here, and many fade back into nothingness here. Unlike the Astral Plane, in which solid objects can exist (though are extremely rare) anything and everything that goes to the Ethereal Plane becomes Ethereal. There is also something here called the Ether Cyclone that connects the Ethereal plane to the Astral Plane.
In the 3rd Edition, each Material Plane is attached to its own unique Ethereal Plane; use of the Deep Ethereal connecting these Ethereal Planes together is an optional rule.
of the game, but finally became a full-fledged transitive plane in the 3rd edition cosmology. It is, as one would expect, an empty plane of darkness, where shadows are cast without any source of light. The Shadow Plane connects to other planes not only through portals but also through darkness; this is especially true on the Material Plane, where a monster
or mage
might use the shadows as a form of transportation. It has also been speculated that the Shadow Plane connects many different cosmologies, thus making it possible for a planeswalker to travel between them. The d20 Modern
campaign's Shadow Chasers, Urban Arcana
, and the d20 Past
campaign Shadow Stalkers, are based on this premise. In the Dungeons & Dragons Third Edition this is an optional rule.
s and extremely powerful wizard
s and psions
. Naturally occurring demiplanes are rare; most such demiplanes are actually fragments of other planes that have somehow split off from their parent plane. Demiplanes are often constructed to resemble the Material Plane, though a few — mostly those created by non-humans — are quite alien. Genesis, a 9th level arcane spell or psionic power, is one of the few printed methods for a player to create a demiplane.
The most notable demiplane is the Demiplane of Dread, the setting of Ravenloft
.
plane of finite size that has an immense curiosity. The only access Neth has to the rest of the multiverse is through a single metallic, peach-colored pool on the Astral Plane. Those who look into the pool from the Astral Plane might notice a huge eye flash into focus on its surface, which quickly fades.
Sometimes, Neth will choose to encapsulate its visitors. Two folds of membrane will come together and ensnare and seal off the victims. Neth will then flood the compartment with either preservative or absorptive fluid. The preservative fluid will put the victim in temporal stasis, and the victim can be revived if the fluid is drained away. If the compartment is flooded with absorptive fluid, the victim will dissolve and be absorbed into Neth itself, including the victim’s memories.
Neth is living membrane the size of a continent. It is folded upon itself and resembles an enormous paper ball with a radius of about twenty-five miles. The spaces between the membrane’s folds can be a hand’s span across or larger than a city. The spaces are filled with air-saturated fluid, but visitors can still breathe in them. If the plane were spread flat, it would be about five hundred miles in diameter, and the average thickness would be approximately thirty feet.
Air- and water-breathing visitors to Neth can breathe and speak in Neth’s fluid normally. If they swim around unnoticed, they might see organ buds larger than city blocks, beings behind membranous capsules, and the humanoid antibodies
of Neth mindlessly going about their business. Every part of the living demiplane has a soft, pink glow. Neth can also flush the fluid wherever it wants, carrying visitors along with it, usually to the Visage Wall to be questioned.
Gravity
on Neth is the same strength as that on the material world; however, Neth chooses the direction of gravity’s pull and may change it at will. Time
is normal on Neth. Neth can move its interior membrane at will, creating or destroying fluid-filled spaces.
The only thing native to Neth is the plane itself. Neth creates humanoid subunits of itself called Neth’s Children, sometimes for specific short-term purposes before reabsorbing them.
Neth's Children are usually identical to flesh golems
and resemble a vaguely humanoid mass of flesh. Though they are free-moving, Neth’s Children react to stimuli according to the preprogrammed will of Neth. Sometimes, Neth creates his children to serve as antibodies, but they are more often sent to other planes, instructed by Neth to explore and return for reabsorption, thus giving Neth more knowledge.
On Neth, the portal to the Astral Plane appears as twenty-foot-wide mouth-like cavity, which Neth can open and close at will.
At Neth’s center is a thick knot of membrane at least a mile across where all the folds come together. This serves as Neth’s brain. Other parts of the membrane also serve specific functions, which include areas where the membrane can be easily deformed for communication, encapsulation, and budding Neth’s Children.
The Visage Wall is an area of Neth's membrane where Neth communicates with visitors. It contains thousands of head-shaped bumps that resemble the likenesses of those previously absorbed by Neth. Neth speaks to its visitors from about five or six of the heads simultaneously, questioning them in order to learn more of the outside world.
is a plane far outside the others and often not included in the standard cosmology. It is inspired by the works of H.P. Lovecraft.
.
In 3rd edition products, some of the detail of Temporal Prime became incorporated into the "Temporal Energy Plane" mentioned in the 3rd edition Manual of the Planes
. Dragon Magazine
#353 associates it also with the "Demiplane of Time" that's appeared in various forms since 1st edition.
campaign setting); some portals only exist for a brief period of time, or shift from one location to another. Conduits are also naturally occurring, but they are natural phenomena, the planar equivalent of whirlpools and tornadoes. Conduits are only known to occur in the Astral and Ethereal Planes. A type of conduit known as a color pool is a common gateway from the Astral Plane to the Outer Planes. A vortex is a link from a Prime Material world to the Inner Planes, which begin in areas of intense concentration of some element (e.g., the heart of a volcano might be a vortex to the Plane of Fire). There also used to be living vortices (plural of vortex) which the sorcerer-monarchs of Athas have managed to maintain, like siphoning water through a hose, and use to empower their "priests," the templars. Gates are portals that are not bounded by physical apertures; gates are rare, and usually appear as a result of magical spells and rare planar phenomena. Lastly, planar bleeding occurs when regions of two planes coexist; such phenomena are usually short-lived, and disastrous for their environs.
Planar pathways are special landscape features appearing in multiple planes or layers of a plane. Travel along a planar pathway results in travel along the planes. Pathways are crucial tactically, because they are very stable compared to portals or gates, and do not require magic spells or portal keys. One notable planar pathway in the Planescape campaign setting is the River Styx, which flows across the Lower Planes and parts of the Astral Plane. Another is the River Oceanus, which flows through the Upper Planes.
See also Alternative theories of the Outer planes.
The D&D Multiverse was expanded with the D&D Immortals Rules set. The Astral Plane permeates and connects the rest of the Multiverse. Plane sizes can vary from the Attoplane (one-third of an inch across), through the Standard Plane (.085 light-years across), to the Terraplane (851 billion light years across), with stars and planets varying in size accordingly.
Astral Dominions in the Points of Light setting
, who resides on the 66th layer of the Abyss. The Elemental Chaos is spacially infinite, the Elemental Realms are not. Creatures native to or connected with the Elemental Chaos generally have the elemental origin. The plane is described in The Plane Below: Secrets of the Elemental Chaos, released in 2010.
Locations within the Elemental Chaos
Locations within the Feywild
, and the thematic successor to the Negative Energy Plane and Plane of Shadow from earlier editions. The Raven Queen
makes her home here rather than the Astral Sea. Creatures native to or connected with the Shadowfell generally have the shadow origin. The plane is described in the boxed set The Shadowfell: Gloomwrought and Beyond, released in 2011.
is a bizarre, maddening plane said to be composed of thin layers filled with strange liquids. Visitors to the Far Realm can only exist in one layer at a time, but large Far Realm natives can exist in multiple layers at once. Creatures native to or connected with the Far Realm generally have the aberrant origin. A crystalline structure connected to the Far Realm, known as the Living Gate, stands in the Astral Sea. Creatures such as the Beholder or the Gibbering beast are very corrupted by these realms.
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
roleplaying game constitutes the multiverse
Multiverse
The multiverse is the hypothetical set of multiple possible universes that together comprise all of reality.Multiverse may also refer to:-In fiction:* Multiverse , the fictional multiverse used by DC Comics...
in which the game takes place.
In the earliest versions of Dungeons & Dragons, the concept of the Inner, Ethereal, Prime Material, Astral and Outer Planes was introduced; at the time there were only four Inner Planes and no set number of Outer Planes. This later evolved into the Great Wheel cosmology. The fourth edition of the game uses a different, very simplified cosmology with just six main planes calles the World Axis Cosmology.
In addition, some Dungeons & Dragons settings
Campaign setting
A campaign setting is usually a fictional world which serves as a setting for a role-playing game or wargame campaign. A campaign is a series of individual adventures, and a campaign setting is the world in which such adventures and campaigns take place...
have cosmologies that are very different from the "standard" ones discussed here. For example, the Eberron
Eberron
Eberron is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, set in a period after a vast destructive war on the continent of Khorvaire...
setting has only seventeen planes in total, most of which are unique to Eberron.http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/eb/20040309a
Great Wheel cosmology
This standardized layout of the planes was presented for the first time in Volume 1, Number 8 of The DragonDragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
, released July 1977. It was presented again in the original (1st edition) AD&D Players Handbook, published in June 1978, and expanded upon in the original Manual of the Planes
Manual of the Planes
The Manual of the Planes is a manual for the Dungeons and Dragons role-playing game. This text addresses the planar cosmology of the game universe....
, released in 1987. It was the core cosmology in both editions of AD&D and the 3rd and 3.5 editions of D&D.
Many Outer Planes were renamed in Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Second Edition in the Planescape
Planescape
Planescape is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, originally designed by Zeb Cook. The Planescape setting was published in 1994...
campaign setting, released in 1994. In the Third Edition Manual of the Planes, published in 2001, the old and new names were combined together, the Demiplane of Shadow was promoted to the Plane of Shadow, the Prime Material Plane was shortened to the Material Plane, and it was stated that each Material Plane is connected to its own unique Ethereal Plane.
The cosmology is usually presented as a series of concentric
Concentric
Concentric objects share the same center, axis or origin with one inside the other. Circles, tubes, cylindrical shafts, disks, and spheres may be concentric to one another...
circles, with alternating spatial and transitive planes; from the center outwards, they are ordered as follows: Inner, Ethereal, Material, Astral, Outer Planes, and the Far Realm. The Shadow Plane and the Dimension of Time, if they are included, are separate from the others, and usually represented as being connected to the Material Plane. Demiplanes, although most commonly connected to the Ethereal Plane, can be found attached to any plane. All planes, save the demiplanes, are infinite
Infinity
Infinity is a concept in many fields, most predominantly mathematics and physics, that refers to a quantity without bound or end. People have developed various ideas throughout history about the nature of infinity...
in extent.
Inner Planes
The Inner Planes are made up of elementalClassical element
Many philosophies and worldviews have a set of classical elements believed to reflect the simplest essential parts and principles of which anything consists or upon which the constitution and fundamental powers of anything are based. Most frequently, classical elements refer to ancient beliefs...
matter and forces. They consist of the Elemental Planes and the Energy Planes.
Material Planes
The Material Planes are worlds that balance between the philosophical forces of the Outer Planes and the physical forces of the Inner Planes, these are the standard worlds of fantasy RPG campaigns. The Prime Material Plane is where the more 'normal' worlds exist, many of which resemble EarthEarth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
. The 2nd edition Dungeon Master's Guide states there are several prime material planes, but several other 2nd edition products say there is only one Prime Material Plane rather than several.
Introduced in the Spelljammer
Spelljammer
Spelljammer is a campaign setting for the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, which features a fantastical outer space environment....
setting, the Phlogiston is a part of the Material plane. It is a highly flammable gaseous medium in which crystal spheres holding various Prime Material solar systems float, traversable by Spelljammer ships.
Outer Planes
AlignmentAlignment (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, alignment is a categorization of the ethical and moral perspective of people, creatures and societies....
-based planes. The home of gods, dead souls, and raw philosophy and belief.
Transitive planes
The transitive planes connects the other planes and generally contains little, if any, solid matter or native life.Astral Plane
The Astral Plane is the plane of thought, memory, and psychic energy; it is where godsDeity
A deity is a recognized preternatural or supernatural immortal being, who may be thought of as holy, divine, or sacred, held in high regard, and respected by believers....
go when they die or are forgotten (or, most likely, both). It is a barren place with only rare bits of solid matter. The Astral Plane is unique in that it is infinitesimal
Infinitesimal
Infinitesimals have been used to express the idea of objects so small that there is no way to see them or to measure them. The word infinitesimal comes from a 17th century Modern Latin coinage infinitesimus, which originally referred to the "infinite-th" item in a series.In common speech, an...
instead of infinite; there is no space or time here, though both catch up with you when you leave. The soul
Soul
A soul in certain spiritual, philosophical, and psychological traditions is the incorporeal essence of a person or living thing or object. Many philosophical and spiritual systems teach that humans have souls, and others teach that all living things and even inanimate objects have souls. The...
s of the newly dead from the Prime Material Plane
Prime Material Plane
The Prime Material Plane is the central plane of existence in the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game...
pass through here on their way to the afterlife
Afterlife
The afterlife is the belief that a part of, or essence of, or soul of an individual, which carries with it and confers personal identity, survives the death of the body of this world and this lifetime, by natural or supernatural means, in contrast to the belief in eternal...
or Outer Plane
Outer Plane
In the fantasy role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons, an Outer Plane is one of a number of general types of planes of existence. They can also be referred to as godly planes, spiritual planes or divine planes. The Outer Planes are home to beings such as deities and otherworldly creatures such as...
s.
The most common feature of the Astral Plane is the silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
cords of travelers using an astral projection spell. These cords are the lifelines that keep travelers of the plane from becoming lost, stretching all the way back to the traveler's point of origin.
A god-isle is the immense petrified remains of a dead god that float on the Astral Plane, where githyanki
Githyanki
The githyanki are a fictional humanoid race in the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. They are cousins to the githzerai. In the Dark Sun setting, they are simply called gith...
and others often mine them for minerals and build communities on their stony surfaces. Tu'narath
Tu'narath
In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Tu'narath is the capital city of the githyanki, a race of humanoids descended from slaves who overthrew the illithid empire thousands of years ago. The city is located on the Astral Plane, where it was built atop a god-isle, the corpse of a forgotten...
, the capital city of the githyanki, is built on the petrified corpse of a dead god known only as "The One in the Void." God-isles often have unusual effects on those nearby, including causing strange dream
Dream
Dreams are successions of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. The content and purpose of dreams are not definitively understood, though they have been a topic of scientific speculation, philosophical intrigue and religious...
s of things that happened to the god when it was alive. God-isles are also the only locations on the Astral Plane that are known to possess gravity or normal time flows.
Ethereal Plane
The Ethereal is often likened to an ocean, but rather than water it is a sea of boundless possibility. It consists of two parts: the Border Ethereal which connects to the Inner and Prime Material planes, and the Deep Ethereal plane which acts as the incubator to many potential demiplanes and other proto-magical realms. From a Border Ethereal plane a traveler can see a misty greyscale version of the plane from which they are traveling; however, each plane is only connected to its own Border Ethereal, which means inter-planar travel necessitates entering the Deep Ethereal and then exiting into the destination plane's own Border Ethereal plane. Many demiplanes, such as that which houses the RavenloftRavenloft
Ravenloft is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. It is an alternate time-space existence known as a pocket dimension called the Demiplane of Dread, which consists of a collection of land pieces called domains brought together by a mysterious force known only as "The Dark...
setting, can be found in the Deep Ethereal plane; most demiplanes are born here, and many fade back into nothingness here. Unlike the Astral Plane, in which solid objects can exist (though are extremely rare) anything and everything that goes to the Ethereal Plane becomes Ethereal. There is also something here called the Ether Cyclone that connects the Ethereal plane to the Astral Plane.
In the 3rd Edition, each Material Plane is attached to its own unique Ethereal Plane; use of the Deep Ethereal connecting these Ethereal Planes together is an optional rule.
Shadow Plane
The Plane of Shadow was a demiplane in an earlier editionEditions of Dungeons & Dragons
Several different editions of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game have been produced since 1974. The current publisher of Dungeons & Dragons , Wizards of the Coast, produces new materials only for the most current edition of the game...
of the game, but finally became a full-fledged transitive plane in the 3rd edition cosmology. It is, as one would expect, an empty plane of darkness, where shadows are cast without any source of light. The Shadow Plane connects to other planes not only through portals but also through darkness; this is especially true on the Material Plane, where a monster
Monster
A monster is any fictional creature, usually found in legends or horror fiction, that is somewhat hideous and may produce physical harm or mental fear by either its appearance or its actions...
or mage
Wizard (Dungeons & Dragons)
The wizard is one of the standard character class in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. A wizard uses arcane magic, and is considered less effective in melee combat than other classes.-Creative origins:...
might use the shadows as a form of transportation. It has also been speculated that the Shadow Plane connects many different cosmologies, thus making it possible for a planeswalker to travel between them. The d20 Modern
D20 Modern
d20 Modern is a roleplaying game designed by Bill Slavicsek, Jeff Grubb, Rich Redman, and Charles Ryan. It was published by Wizards of the Coast in November 2002, and uses the d20 System...
campaign's Shadow Chasers, Urban Arcana
Urban Arcana
Urban Arcana is a campaign setting for the d20 Modern roleplaying game that builds on a small campaign model included in the original rulebook. It adds much in the way of magic and monsters to the game, and contains rules for things such as playing Shadowkind characters.In the world of Urban...
, and the d20 Past
D20 Past
d20 Past is a d20 based role-playing game released by Wizards of the Coast in 2005 as a supplement to d20 Modern, providing a framework and new rules for campaigns set any historic settings from the Renaissance to World War II, including new character options and rules for early modern firearms...
campaign Shadow Stalkers, are based on this premise. In the Dungeons & Dragons Third Edition this is an optional rule.
Mirror Planes
Mirror planes were introduced in the Third Edition Manual of the Planes as an optional group of transitive planes. They are small planes that each connect to a group of mirrors that can be located in any other planes throughout the multiverse. A mirror plane takes the form of a long, winding corridor with the mirrors it attaches to hanging like windows along the walls. Mirror planes allow quick travel between the various mirrors that are linked to each, but each plane contains a mirror version of any traveler that enters it. This mirror version has an opposite alignment and will seek to slay his real self to take his place. All mirrors connect to a mirror plane, though each mirror plane usually has only five to twenty mirrors connecting to it.Demiplanes
Demiplanes are minor planes, most of which are artificial. Demiplanes are commonly created by demigodDemigod
The term "demigod" , meaning "half-god", is commonly used to describe mythological figures whose one parent was a god and whose other parent was human; as such, demigods are human-god hybrids...
s and extremely powerful wizard
Wizard (Dungeons & Dragons)
The wizard is one of the standard character class in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. A wizard uses arcane magic, and is considered less effective in melee combat than other classes.-Creative origins:...
s and psions
Psion (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, Psionics are a form of supernatural power that are similar to, but distinct from, arcane and divine magic.-Overview:...
. Naturally occurring demiplanes are rare; most such demiplanes are actually fragments of other planes that have somehow split off from their parent plane. Demiplanes are often constructed to resemble the Material Plane, though a few — mostly those created by non-humans — are quite alien. Genesis, a 9th level arcane spell or psionic power, is one of the few printed methods for a player to create a demiplane.
The most notable demiplane is the Demiplane of Dread, the setting of Ravenloft
Ravenloft
Ravenloft is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. It is an alternate time-space existence known as a pocket dimension called the Demiplane of Dread, which consists of a collection of land pieces called domains brought together by a mysterious force known only as "The Dark...
.
Neth
Neth, the Plane That Lives, is a living, sentientSentience
Sentience is the ability to feel, perceive or be conscious, or to have subjective experiences. Eighteenth century philosophers used the concept to distinguish the ability to think from the ability to feel . In modern western philosophy, sentience is the ability to have sensations or experiences...
plane of finite size that has an immense curiosity. The only access Neth has to the rest of the multiverse is through a single metallic, peach-colored pool on the Astral Plane. Those who look into the pool from the Astral Plane might notice a huge eye flash into focus on its surface, which quickly fades.
Sometimes, Neth will choose to encapsulate its visitors. Two folds of membrane will come together and ensnare and seal off the victims. Neth will then flood the compartment with either preservative or absorptive fluid. The preservative fluid will put the victim in temporal stasis, and the victim can be revived if the fluid is drained away. If the compartment is flooded with absorptive fluid, the victim will dissolve and be absorbed into Neth itself, including the victim’s memories.
Characteristics
Neth is living membrane the size of a continent. It is folded upon itself and resembles an enormous paper ball with a radius of about twenty-five miles. The spaces between the membrane’s folds can be a hand’s span across or larger than a city. The spaces are filled with air-saturated fluid, but visitors can still breathe in them. If the plane were spread flat, it would be about five hundred miles in diameter, and the average thickness would be approximately thirty feet.
Air- and water-breathing visitors to Neth can breathe and speak in Neth’s fluid normally. If they swim around unnoticed, they might see organ buds larger than city blocks, beings behind membranous capsules, and the humanoid antibodies
Antibody
An antibody, also known as an immunoglobulin, is a large Y-shaped protein used by the immune system to identify and neutralize foreign objects such as bacteria and viruses. The antibody recognizes a unique part of the foreign target, termed an antigen...
of Neth mindlessly going about their business. Every part of the living demiplane has a soft, pink glow. Neth can also flush the fluid wherever it wants, carrying visitors along with it, usually to the Visage Wall to be questioned.
Gravity
Gravitation
Gravitation, or gravity, is a natural phenomenon by which physical bodies attract with a force proportional to their mass. Gravitation is most familiar as the agent that gives weight to objects with mass and causes them to fall to the ground when dropped...
on Neth is the same strength as that on the material world; however, Neth chooses the direction of gravity’s pull and may change it at will. Time
Time
Time is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....
is normal on Neth. Neth can move its interior membrane at will, creating or destroying fluid-filled spaces.
Inhabitants
The only thing native to Neth is the plane itself. Neth creates humanoid subunits of itself called Neth’s Children, sometimes for specific short-term purposes before reabsorbing them.
Neth's Children are usually identical to flesh golems
Golem (Dungeons & Dragons)
A golem is a type of construct, a magically created monster in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game.- Publication history :The Dungeons & Dragons golems are based upon the Golems of Jewish mythology.-Dungeons & Dragons :...
and resemble a vaguely humanoid mass of flesh. Though they are free-moving, Neth’s Children react to stimuli according to the preprogrammed will of Neth. Sometimes, Neth creates his children to serve as antibodies, but they are more often sent to other planes, instructed by Neth to explore and return for reabsorption, thus giving Neth more knowledge.
Locations
On Neth, the portal to the Astral Plane appears as twenty-foot-wide mouth-like cavity, which Neth can open and close at will.
At Neth’s center is a thick knot of membrane at least a mile across where all the folds come together. This serves as Neth’s brain. Other parts of the membrane also serve specific functions, which include areas where the membrane can be easily deformed for communication, encapsulation, and budding Neth’s Children.
The Visage Wall is an area of Neth's membrane where Neth communicates with visitors. It contains thousands of head-shaped bumps that resemble the likenesses of those previously absorbed by Neth. Neth speaks to its visitors from about five or six of the heads simultaneously, questioning them in order to learn more of the outside world.
Far Realm
The Far RealmFar Realm
The Far Realm is a plane found in various settings in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game.-Creative origins:The Far Realm is a mix of horror, madness, and Lovecraftian geometries....
is a plane far outside the others and often not included in the standard cosmology. It is inspired by the works of H.P. Lovecraft.
Temporal Plane
The Plane of Time was known as the Temporal Prime in the 1995 book Chronomancer. It is a plane where physical travel can result in time travelTime travel
Time travel is the concept of moving between different points in time in a manner analogous to moving between different points in space. Time travel could hypothetically involve moving backward in time to a moment earlier than the starting point, or forward to the future of that point without the...
.
In 3rd edition products, some of the detail of Temporal Prime became incorporated into the "Temporal Energy Plane" mentioned in the 3rd edition Manual of the Planes
Manual of the Planes
The Manual of the Planes is a manual for the Dungeons and Dragons role-playing game. This text addresses the planar cosmology of the game universe....
. Dragon Magazine
Dragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#353 associates it also with the "Demiplane of Time" that's appeared in various forms since 1st edition.
Portals, conduits and gates
Portals, conduits and gates are all openings leading from one location to another; some lead to locations in the same plane, others to different planes entirely. Although the three terms are often used interchangeably, there are notable distinctions. Portals are bounded by pre-existing openings (usually doors and arches); the portal is destroyed when the opening is. Portals also require portal keys to open; a key is usually a physical object, but it can also be an action or a state of being. Naturally occurring portals will often appear at random (a common occurrence in the city of Sigil, "City of Doors", in the PlanescapePlanescape
Planescape is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, originally designed by Zeb Cook. The Planescape setting was published in 1994...
campaign setting); some portals only exist for a brief period of time, or shift from one location to another. Conduits are also naturally occurring, but they are natural phenomena, the planar equivalent of whirlpools and tornadoes. Conduits are only known to occur in the Astral and Ethereal Planes. A type of conduit known as a color pool is a common gateway from the Astral Plane to the Outer Planes. A vortex is a link from a Prime Material world to the Inner Planes, which begin in areas of intense concentration of some element (e.g., the heart of a volcano might be a vortex to the Plane of Fire). There also used to be living vortices (plural of vortex) which the sorcerer-monarchs of Athas have managed to maintain, like siphoning water through a hose, and use to empower their "priests," the templars. Gates are portals that are not bounded by physical apertures; gates are rare, and usually appear as a result of magical spells and rare planar phenomena. Lastly, planar bleeding occurs when regions of two planes coexist; such phenomena are usually short-lived, and disastrous for their environs.
Planar pathways are special landscape features appearing in multiple planes or layers of a plane. Travel along a planar pathway results in travel along the planes. Pathways are crucial tactically, because they are very stable compared to portals or gates, and do not require magic spells or portal keys. One notable planar pathway in the Planescape campaign setting is the River Styx, which flows across the Lower Planes and parts of the Astral Plane. Another is the River Oceanus, which flows through the Upper Planes.
Alternative interpretations
In the context of the game, there are many theories of the organisation of the planes. For instance, in some lands it is believed that there are multiple Prime Material planes, rather than one containing all the worlds or planets. In these lands the Ethereal planes are believed to surround each Prime Material plane.See also Alternative theories of the Outer planes.
Coterminous versus coexistent
Planes may border (be coterminous) or may be coexistent. In particular, the Ethereal and Shadow planes are coexistent with the Material Plane. In effect, the "boundary" between the two extends through all of space. Thus a ghost in Dungeons & Dragons, which is an ethereal creature, has a location on the Material Plane when it is near the border of the Material and Ethereal planes. It can "manifest" itself into the Material, and force attacks launched from the Material can hit it.Basic Dungeons & Dragons
The "Basic" edition of D&D had a separate, though similar, cosmology from that of its contemporary AD&D game, which is more open and less regulated than that of its counterpart.The D&D Multiverse was expanded with the D&D Immortals Rules set. The Astral Plane permeates and connects the rest of the Multiverse. Plane sizes can vary from the Attoplane (one-third of an inch across), through the Standard Plane (.085 light-years across), to the Terraplane (851 billion light years across), with stars and planets varying in size accordingly.
The World Axis cosmology
4th edition uses a simplified default cosmology with only six major planes, each of which has a corresponding creature origin. The Astral Sea, Elemental Chaos, Feywild and Shadowfell are covered extensively in the Manual of the Planes, while the Far Realm is covered briefly. Supplemental sourcebooks relating to the Elemental Chaos (The Plane Below) and the Astral Sea (the Plane Above) were released in 2009 and 2010, respectively. The Ethereal Plane has been removed entirely.Fundamental Planes
The fundamental planes are two vast expanses from which the other planes were formed. It was the conflict between the inhabitants of each fundamental plane that constituted the Dawn War.The Astral Sea
The Astral Sea corresponds to the Astral Plane of earlier editions. The Astral Dominions, counterparts to the Outer Planes of earlier editions, are planes which float within the Astral Sea. The majority of the gods dwell in Astral Dominions. The Astral Sea itself is spacially infinite, but the Astral Dominions are all finite. Creatures native to or connected with the Astral Sea generally have the immortal origin. The plane is described in The Plane Above: Secrets of the Astral Sea, released in 2010.Astral Dominions in the Points of Light setting
- Arvandor, the Verdant Isles: A realm of nature, beauty and magic similar to the Feywild. Home to CorellonCorellon LarethianIn the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Corellon Larethian is the leader of the elven pantheon, and the god of Magic, Music, Arts, Crafts, Poetry, and Warfare. Corellon is also considered a member of the default D&D pantheon. He is the creator and preserver of the elven race, and governs those...
and (sometimes) SehanineSehanine MoonbowIn many Dungeons and Dragons campaign settings, Sehanine Moonbow is the elven goddess of the moons. She is one of the more powerful members of the Seldarine. The Lady of Dreams actively opposes the nefarious schemes of the Spider Queen and the other drow powers. She is said to be the wife of...
. - Celestia, the Radiant ThroneMount CelestiaIn Dungeons & Dragons, the fantasy role-playing game, Mount Celestia or more fully, the Seven Mounting Heavens of Celestia, or even the Seven Heavens is a lawful good-aligned plane of existence...
: A great mountain that drifts in a world of silver mists. Home to BahamutBahamut (Dungeons & Dragons)In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Bahamut is a powerful draconic deity, who has the same name as Bahamut from Arabic mythology....
, MoradinMoradinMoradin is the chief deity in the dwarven pantheon in the Dungeons & Dragons game and is a member of the default D&D pantheon. Moradin's domains are Creation, Earth, Good, Law, and Protection. His titles include Soul Forger, Dwarffather, the All-Father, and the Creator...
and, sometimes, Kord. - Chernoggar, the Iron Fortress: The rust-pitted iron castle, where mighty warriors fight and die endlessly. Home to Bane and GruumshGruumshIn the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Gruumsh, also known as Gruumsh One-Eye, is the patron deity of orcs, who regard him as the god of Conquest, Survival, Strength, and Territory. He is also considered a member of the default D&D pantheon of deities...
. - Hestavar, the Bright City: As the name suggests, this dominion is a luminous metropolis, used by planar merchants. Home to ErathisErathisIn the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Erathis is the unaligned goddess of civilization. She is a founder of cities and writer of law, revered by warlords, rulers and inventors...
, IounIounIn the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Ioun is the unaligned goddess of knowledge, prophecy and skill, and is a patron of the study of magic and mental power. She is revered by wizards, scholars and tacticians...
and PelorPelorIn the World of Greyhawk campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Pelor is the god of the Sun, Light, Strength, and Healing. Pelor is also a prominent member of the third edition of the game's default pantheon, and is a popular choice among player character clerics because he...
. - Kalandurren, the Darkened Pillars: A dominion that plays host to demons. It belonged to the god Amoth before he was killed by the demon lords Orcus and Demogorgon.
- The Nine HellsBaatorIn the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, Baator, also known as the Nine Hells of Baator or the Nine Hells, is a lawful evil-aligned plane of existence...
: A place of sin and tyranny, a world of continent-sized caverns. Home to AsmodeusAsmodeus (Dungeons & Dragons)In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, Asmodeus is an Arch-Devil: a lord of the game's version of Hell . There he is the Overlord of the Dukes of Hell...
. - PandemoniumPandemonium (Dungeons & Dragons)In the standard cosmology of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, Pandemonium is the Outer plane where Chaotic Evil and Chaotic Neutral petitioners are sent after death. Pandemonium is a large, complex cavern that never ends. Compounding this problem, howling winds drive most of its...
: The former dominion of Tharizdun. The tower of the lich god Vecna is said to be hidden within it. - Shom, the White Desert: The former dominion of the mysterious God of the Word. Astral giants loyal to the goddess Erathis fight for control of it.
- Tytherion, the Endless Night: A dark wilderness where serpents and dragons lurk. Home to ZehirZehirZehir is a god in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game.-Dungeons & Dragons 4th edition :Zehir appears as one of the deities described in the Players Handbook for fourth edition .-Description:...
and TiamatTiamat (Dungeons & Dragons)Tiamat is the name of a powerful draconic goddess in the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. The name is taken from Tiamat, a goddess in ancient Mesopotamian mythology who is substantially different ....
.
The Elemental Chaos
The Elemental Chaos corresponds to the Inner Planes of earlier editions (excluding the Positive and Negative Energy Planes), also containing some aspects of Limbo. The Elemental Chaos contains Elemental Realms, which are themselves planes; the Abyss is one such realm. The only god who dwells in the Elemental Chaos is LolthLolth
Lolth is a fictional goddess in the Dungeons and Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Lolth , the Demon Queen of Spiders, is the chief goddess of drow elves...
, who resides on the 66th layer of the Abyss. The Elemental Chaos is spacially infinite, the Elemental Realms are not. Creatures native to or connected with the Elemental Chaos generally have the elemental origin. The plane is described in The Plane Below: Secrets of the Elemental Chaos, released in 2010.
Locations within the Elemental Chaos
- The AbyssAbyss (Dungeons & Dragons)In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the Abyss or more fully, the Infinite Layers of the Abyss, is a chaotic evil-aligned plane of existence. It is one of a number of alignment-based Outer Planes that form part of the standard Dungeons & Dragons cosmology, used in the Planescape...
: A place of utter evil and corruption, the result of a mad god's attempt to control the whole cosmos. Lolth's home, the Demonweb Pits, can also be found here. - The City of BrassCity of Brass (Dungeons & Dragons)In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the City of Brass is the capital of the great efreeti empire on the Elemental Plane of Fire.-Publication history:...
: The Efreeti capital and a major trade hub planar trade and travel. - The Keening Delve
- The Ninth Bastion
- Zerthadlun
The World
The equivalent to the Prime Material Plane or Material Plane of earlier editions. This plane lacks a formal name and is most often referred to as the World, although titles such as the Middle World and the First Work were also presented in Manual of the Planes. Creatures native to the world geneally have the natural origin. The gods Avandra, Melora and Torog have their homes in the World. The god Vecna wanders the whole cosmos (Sehanine is prone to doing this as well).The Feywild
One of the two parallel planes, the Feywild is a more extreme and magical reflection of the world with some thematic links to the Positive Energy Plane and the Plane of Faerie of earlier editions and settings. Creatures native to or connected with the Feywild generally have the fey origin. According to the 4th edition Manual of the Planes, this plane has some sort of unspecified connection to Arvandor, and is suspected that the Dominion of Corellon can be reached by here. Important locales within the Feywild are known as Fey Demesnes.Locations within the Feywild
- Astrazalian, the City of Starlight
- Brokenstone Vale
- Cendriane
- The Feydark (Underdark of the Feywild)
- Harrowhame
- The Isle of Dread
- Mag Tureah
- Maze of Fathaghn
- Mithrendain, the Autumn City
- The Murkendraw
- Nachtur, the Goblin Kingdom
- Senaliesse
- Shinaelestra, the Fading City
- Vor Thomil
The Shadowfell
The Shadowfell is a type of underworldUnderworld
The Underworld is a region which is thought to be under the surface of the earth in some religions and in mythologies. It could be a place where the souls of the recently departed go, and in some traditions it is identified with Hell or the realm of death...
, and the thematic successor to the Negative Energy Plane and Plane of Shadow from earlier editions. The Raven Queen
Raven Queen
In the 4th edition of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the Raven Queen is the Unaligned Goddess of Death, and Doom. as well as the Seasonal Goddess of Winter. Her real name was long forgotten.-Dungeons & Dragons 4th edition :...
makes her home here rather than the Astral Sea. Creatures native to or connected with the Shadowfell generally have the shadow origin. The plane is described in the boxed set The Shadowfell: Gloomwrought and Beyond, released in 2011.
- Gloomwrought, the City of Midnight
- Letherna, Realm of the Raven Queen
- The House of Black Lanterns
- Moil, the City That Waits
- Nightwyrm Fortress
- The Plain of Sighing Stones
- The Shadowdark (Underdark of the Shadowfell)
Demiplanes
Demiplanes are relatively small planes which are not part of larger planes. The most prominent demiplane is Sigil, the City of Doors.Anomalous planes
Anomalous planes are planes which do not fit into other categories. The most prominent of these planes is the Far Realm.The Far Realm
An anomalous plane, the Far RealmFar Realm
The Far Realm is a plane found in various settings in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game.-Creative origins:The Far Realm is a mix of horror, madness, and Lovecraftian geometries....
is a bizarre, maddening plane said to be composed of thin layers filled with strange liquids. Visitors to the Far Realm can only exist in one layer at a time, but large Far Realm natives can exist in multiple layers at once. Creatures native to or connected with the Far Realm generally have the aberrant origin. A crystalline structure connected to the Far Realm, known as the Living Gate, stands in the Astral Sea. Creatures such as the Beholder or the Gibbering beast are very corrupted by these realms.
External links
- Plane of existence, D&D Glossary