Page 43 - Dungeon Master's Guide

HAPTER 2: CREATING A MULTIVERSE

The Inner Planes. The four Elemental Planes (Air,
HEN ADVENTURERS REACH HIGHER LEVELS ,
l their path extends to other dimensions of The Outer Planes. Sixteen Outer Planes correspond
Earth, Fire, and Water), plus the Elemental Chaos that
reality: the planes of existence that form the
surrounds them, are the Inner Planes.
multiverse. The characters might be called
on to rescue a friend from the horrific depths
of the Abyss or to sail the shining waters of to the eight non-neutral alignments and shades of
philosophical difference between them.
the River Oceanus. They can hoist a tankard The Positive and Negative Planes. These two planes
- lhe friendly giants ofYsgard or face the chaos of enfold the rest of the cosmology, providing the raw
-bo to contact a wizened githzerai sage. forces of life and death that underlie the rest of
::>Janes of existence define the extremes of strange existence in the multiverse.
- often dangerous environments. The most bizarre
··ons present settings undreamed of in the natural PUTTING THE PLANES TOGETHER
d. Planar adventures offer unprecedented dangers
As described in the Player's Handbook, the assumed
- . ·onders. Adventurers walk on streets made of solid
D&D cosmology includes more than two dozen planes.
or test their mettle on a battlefield where the fallen
For your campaign, you decide what planes to include,
;-e urrected with each dawn. inspired by the standard planes, drawn from Earth's
myths, or created by your own imagination.
At minimum, most D&D campaigns require
: :arious planes of existence are realms of myth these elements:
mystery. They're not simply other worlds, but • A plane of origin for fiends
-ensions formed and governed by spiritual and A plane of origin for celestials
~ ental principles. A plane of origin for elementals
- e Outer Planes are realms of spirituality and • A place for deities, which might include any or all of
ght. They are the spheres where celestials, fiends, the previous three
- deities exist. The plane of Elysium, for example, The place where mortal spirits go after death, which
-merely a place where good creatures dwell, and not might include any or all of the first three
imply the place where spirits of good creatures A way of getting from one plane to another
. hen they die. It is the plane of goodness, a spiritual A way for spells and monsters that use the Astral
where evil can't flourish. It is as much a state of Plane and the Ethereal Plane to function
- a and of mind as it is a physical location.
Once you've decided on the planes you want to use in
e Inner Planes exemplify the physical essence
your campaign, putting them into a coherent cosmology
- elemental nature of air, earth, fire, and water.
is an optional step. Since the primary way of traveling
-- Elemental Plane of Fire, for example, embodies
from plane to plane, even using the Transitive Planes,
~ e ence of fire. The plane's entire substance is
is through magical portals that link planes together, the
= ed with the fundamental nature of fire: energy,
exact relationship of different planes to one another is
--·on, transformation, and destruction. Even objects
largely a theoretical concern. No being in the multiverse
: lid brass or basalt seem to dance with flame, in a
can look down and see the planes in their arrangement
ilile and palpable manifestation of the vibrancy of
the same way as we look at a diagram in a book. No
· dominion.
mortal can verify whether Mount Celestia is sandwiched
- lhis context, the Material Plane is the nexus where
between Bytopia and Arcadia, but it's a convenient
· ese philosophical and elemental forces collide in
theoretical construct based on the philosophical
:umbled existence of mortal life and matter. The
shading among the three planes and the relative
- d of D&D exist within the Material Plane, making
importance they give to law and good.
e starting point for most campaigns and adventures.
Sages have constructed a few such theoretical models
- -e rest of the multiverse is defined in relation to the
to make sense of the jumble of planes, particularly the
.,-erial Plane.
Outer Planes. The three most common are the Great
l: ..... A.NAR CATEGORIES
INVENTING YOUR OWN PLANES
- -e planes of the default D&D cosmology are grouped
Each of the planes described in this chapter has at least
- -:he following categories:
one significant effect on travelers who venture there. When
e Material Plane and Its Echoes. The Feywild and you design your own planes, it's a good idea to stick to
·· e Shadowfell are reflections of the Material Plane. that model. Create one simple trait that players notice, that
doesn't create too much complication at the gaming table,
e Transitive Planes. The Ethereal Plane and the
and that's easy to remember. Try to reflect the philosophy and
. · tral Plane are mostly featureless planes that
mood of the place, not merely its physical characteristics.
: rve primarily as pathways to travel from one plane
•o another.
CHAPTER 2 I CREATING A MULT!VERSE
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