Manual of the Planes
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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, including its various planes such as "Baator", the "Abyss", "The Happy Hunting Grounds", "The Concordant Opposition" and the "Prime Material Plane." It is a considerable expansion to the manual Deities & Demigods, which also had a section devoted to the subject.[1]
Manual of the Planes explains how each of the planes is related to each of the character alignments. For example, "The Seven Heavens" is the final resting place for characters of Lawful Good alignment.
The current Manual of the Planes was published in 2001 by Wizards of the Coast, while the original book (for use with Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 1st edition) was published in 1987 by TSR, Inc..[2]
Contents |
[edit] Book overview
After the typical introduction found in almost all guides of D&D 3rd. Edition, Manual of the Planes presents, in its first chapter, an overview of planes in general: what they are, what their nature is, and what is its function on gameplay. Info about how to shift between planes is also available on this chapter.
The second chapter presents hints on how to design your own cosmology of planes, based on the D&D official cosmology known as "The Great Wheel". Generating a personalized cosmology involves several options - for example, consider how magic works if basic planes that feed magic (such as the Ethereal or Astral planes) are disposed of.
The next chapters in the Manual are dedicated to detail the Great Wheel and the 27 planes that constitutes it.
[edit] The Planes
Prime Material Plane: The center of the cosmology. It is an earth-like universe where the same laws of physics from the real world are applied (except in the case that magic really exists). In the official D&D cosmology, Oerth, the planet described in the campaign material of Greyhawk, is present on this plane, but is only one world/planet out of an innumerable multitude of others set within the same prime material plane.
Astral Plane: The space in between the planes. It is mostly empty space and often serves the role of a "transport plane" through which planar travelers move from one plane to another. A few creatures inhabit this no-gravity place, however, such as the mysterious outsiders called githyanki and the terrifying astral dreadnought.
Ethereal Plane: The place where ghosts and spirits dwell. It is coexistent with the Material Plane and looks like a misty version of it, with gray and nebulous landscapes. Spirits of restless dead inhabit this place, which makes it a bit more dangerous to pass through than the Astral.
Plane of Shadow: The place where darkness is born. As the Astral and the Ethereal, it is a plane used for travel; it connects one place in the Material with another through the numberless shadows within. But it is a dangerous place, even more than Astral and Ethereal, because it is not empty. Here, an entire sunless ecosystem dwells in the eternal darkness and shadow creatures born in the nightmares of mortals constantly strive to catch uncautious prey. If one is brave enough to descend deeper in the Plane of Shadow, it might be possible to find portals to alternative Material Planes - landscapes outside of the Great Wheel itself.
Elemental Plane of Air: The endless sky. It is one of the four elemental planes. An air-dominant place, this plane consists of endless airy space without floor or ceiling. Here the gravity is subjective, which means that creatures can "fly" by choosing the direction in which they "fall". It is home to air-elemental creatures and djinni.
Elemental Plane of Water: The bottomless ocean. It is one of the four elemental planes. A water-dominant place, this plane consists in an ocean with no bottom or surface. As in its air-dominant neighbor, this plane has subjective gravity where creatures choose the direction they want to "sink". Movement here is made through swimming. It's a relatively hospitable plane despite the fact that air-breathing beings might find it difficult to deal with. It is home to water-elemental creatures and marid.
Elemental Plane of Earth: The solid world. It is one of the four elemental planes. An earth-dominant place, this plane consists in an entire universe made of solid rock and soft earth, with a multitude of caverns, grottos and ore veins making its way through it. It's not a hostile place, but can be disturbing because of its claustrophobic nature. The large amount of mass of this solid place makes it a heavy-gravity plane. It is home to earth-elemental creatures and dao.
Elemental Plane of Fire: The torch of the universe. It is one of the four elemental planes. A fire-dominant place, this plane is an astonshing vista of fire, lava and pyroclastic gases. In a curious paradox, this is both the most hostile of the elemental planes and the most populated. That's because of the City of Brass, a marvelous town made of brass and magically protected against the abrasive nature of the plane. A trading metropolis, the City of Brass is home to the efreeti, a fire-lover race that loves intrigue and commercial business, and their city is always full of merchants and visitors. Besides the efreeti, the plane is home to fire-elemental creatures such as the salamander.
Positive Energy Plane: The offspring of life. It is one of the two energy planes. This place is a source of creation, heat and life force, the energy that constitutes the Big Bang. However, it's a deadly place to travelers; once there mortal visitors are quickly suffused with pure energy which makes them literally explode. It is home to the energon beings known as xi-yang (xag-ya, in previous editions), a race made of positive energy.
Negative Energy Plane: The source of entropy. It is one of the two energy planes. This place is a vacuum of destruction, cold and entropic force. It is as deadly as its brighter brother; visitors here are drained of all life and reduced to ashes almost instantly. It is home to the energon beings known as xi-yin (xeg-yi in previous editions), a race made of negative energy. A few undead find their way into this plane, making it even more dangerous.
[edit] The Outer Planes
The Outer Planes are treated in a separate section because their nature is a lot different from the other ten planes. The seventeen Outer Planes are places of beauty beyond imagination or unspeakable horror. They are worlds created and inhabited by gods and goddesses, as well as outsiders of a multitude of races: Aasimon, guardinals, eladrins, archons, yugoloths, demons, devils. and others. These planes are also home to the souls of valorous mortals, who deserved a place among the gods in the afterlife. Each outer plane embodies an aspect of the nine alignments of D&D rules, in a stronger or weaker sense. The Outer Planes are, in general, hospitable to planar travelers that journey there to trade, explore or even meet the deities in person.
Seven Mounting Heavens of Celestia: The ultimate paradise. Also known as "Mount Celestia", "The Seven Heavens" or simply "Celestia", this is a strongly Lawful Good plane. It consists in a silver lake in which the center is an incredibly high mountain, so beautiful that tears blind your eyes once you look at it. Mount Celestia is divided in seven plateaus, inhabited by brave heroes and kind deities that run an endless struggle against the forces of evil. Each plateau is a different demiplane that demands spiritual evolution to be reached, until pure state of mind is found in the seventh heaven.
Blessed Fields of Elysium: The land of the good. This is a strongly Neutral Good plane, whose inhabitants are as kind as the celestians, but are more inclined to a peaceful life than to fight against evil. Elysium is a wonderful garden, and also the offspring of the great river Oceanus, whose waters run through the celestial planes. An eternity of joy and peace in a beautiful landscape is what the newcomers find in Elysium.
Olympian Glades of Arborea: The kingdom of the elven lords. Also known as "Arvandor" (despite the fact that this is the name of just a small part of Arborea), this is a strongly Chaotic Good plane. A sun-lighted forest where the spirits of brave elven heroes and the Seldarine (the elven pantheon) dwell. The plane's alignment reflects the kind and free nature of the elves. Their cousins, the sea elves, live in a nearby ocean, along with their deity, Deep Sashelas.
Nine Hells of Baator: The infernal realm of lawful evil. Also known as "The Pit" or simply "Hell", Baator is home to a race of foul creatures known as baatezu. However, most people calls them simply "devils". Formed by nine mounting layers, it is the opposite of Celestia, once it is the gathering point for the forces of lawful evil. The ruler of Baator and supreme general of its malevolent hellish armies is Asmodeus, a mysterious being who might ultimately be a corrupted being of primordial law. Strangely, due to the strongly Lawful Evil nature of the plane, the baatorians are (relatively) honorable creatures, despite their malevolence.
Gray Waste of Hades: The birthplace and focus of raw Evil. Hades is a colorless plane, a bleak and arid land where everything is gray except the blood that spills from the wounds of dying soldiers. The three layers, or Glooms, of the plane often serve as a battlefield for the Blood War, an endless conflict between the baatezu and the demonic race of the Tanar´ri, who inhabit the plane known as "The Abyss". Baatezu and Tanar´ri hate each other with incomparable fury, and the conflict between them has lasted for eons and shows no sign of an end. Another infernal race, the Yugoloths, are the native fiends of the Waste, sharing the strongly Neutral Evil nature of the plane, and the Wasting Tower of Khin-Oin on the first layer of the plane is an omnipresent reminder of their domination of the Waste. Other inhabitants of Hades are the Gray Sisters, powerful night hags that keep a safe distance from the battlefields.
Infinite Layers of the Abyss: The bottomless hole of infinite horror. The Abyss is a chaotic and violent place inhabited by a chaotic and violent race called Tanar´ri, or simply "demons". They exist in all forms and sizes, as endless as the plane they call home. The Tanar´ri hate everything: the good deities, the evil deities, the mortals, the immortals and even themselves. But above all, they hate the Baatezu, their long-endured rivals in the Blood War. The Abyss is inhabited also by an amazing number of evil deities that dwell in the infinite layers of this dizzying place. The deities despise and hate the Tanar´ri, but the demons are numerous and a force to be feared. The Abyss, as its inhabitants, is strongly Chaotic Evil.
[edit] References
- ^ Williams, Skip; Rich Redman and James Wyatt (2002). Deities and Demigods. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN 0-7869-2654-6.
- ^ Grubb, Jeff (1987). Manual of the Planes. TSR, Inc.. ISBN 0-88038-399-2.
- Grubb, Jeff; David Noonan and Bruce R. Cordell (2001). Manual of the Planes. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN 0-7869-1850-0.
