Planes of Existence
The Spirtual/Mental Planes (click here for a general description of these types of planes.)
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Heaven (Mount Celestia, Seven Heavens) (lawful good)
Bytopia (Twin Paradises) (lawful good with neutral good tendencies)
Elysium (neutral good)
Beastlands (Happy Hunting Grounds) (neutral good with chaotic good tendencies)
Arborea (Olympus/Arvandor) (chaotic good)
Ysgard (Gladsheim) (chaotic good with chaotic neutral tendencies)
Limbo (Purgatory) (chaotic neutral)
Pandemonium (chaotic neutral with chaotic evil tendencies)
Abyss (chaotic evil)
Tarterus (Carceri) (chaotic evil with neutral evil tendencies)
Hades (Hel) (neutral evil)
Gehenna (neutral evil with lawful evil tendencies)
Hell (Ba'ator, Nine Hells) (lawful evil)
Acheron (lawful evil with lawful neutral tendencies)
Nirvana (Mechanus) (lawful neutral)
Arcadia (lawful neutral with lawful good tendencies)
Middle Lands (Outlands) (true neutral)
The Elemental/Physical Planes (click here for a general description of these types of planes.)
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Elemental Plane of Air
Elemental Plane of Fire
Elemental Plane of Earth
Elemental Plane of Water
Para-Elemental Plane of Smoke (between air and fire)
Para-Elemental Plane of Magma (between fire and earth)
Para-Elemental Plane of Mud (Ooze) (between earth and water)
Para-Elemental Plane of Fog (between water and air)
Para-Elemental Plane of Ice (between water and earth)
Para-Elemental Plane of Snow (between ice and air)
Super-Elemental Plane of Positive Energy
Quasi-Elemental Plane of Lightning (between air and positive energy)
Quasi-Elemental Plane of Radiance (between fire and positive energy)
Quasi-Elemental Plane of Gems/Minerals (between earth and positive energy)
Quasi-Elemental Plane of Steam (between water and positive energy)
Super-Elemental Plane of Negative Energy
Quasi-Elemental Plane of Vacuum/Void (between air and negative energy)
Quasi-Elemental Plane of Ash (between fire and negative energy)
Quasi-Elemental Plane of Dust (between earth and negative energy)
Quasi-Elemental Plane of Salt (between water and negative energy)
Transitive Planes (click here for a general description of these types of planes.)
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Astral Plane (The Astral Sea)
Ethereal Planes (The Elemental Chaos) (there are seperate ethereal planes for each prime material plane)
Shadow Plane (there are seperate shadow planes for each prime material plane)
Aether Planes (The Flow, Hyperspace) (there are seperate aether planes for each prime material plane)
Mirror Planes
The Ways
Multiplanar Features
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Mount Olympus
Yggdrasil
River Oceanus
River Styx
Prime Planes
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Prime Material Planes - General
Prime Material Planes - Endless Sea
Demiplanes (click here for a general description of these types of planes.)
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Plane of Terror (Ravenloft)
Demiplane of Fuc
Demiplane of Time
Demiplane of Electro-Magnetism
Demiplanes of Imprisonment
Seelie/Unseelie Realms
Gulguthgor Realms
Demiplanes That "Orbit" Eberon
Dal Quor (The Region of Dreams)
Thelanis (The Faerie Court)
Fernia (The Sea of Fire)
Risia (The Plane of Ice)
Irian (The Eternal Day)
Mabar (The Endless Night)
Daanvi (The Perfect Order)
Kythri (The Churning Chaos)
Syrania (The Azure Sky)
Xoriat (The Realm of Madness)
Lamannia (The Twilight Forest)
Shavarath, the Battleground
Dolurrh, the Realm of the Dead
Many different worlds exist. A traveler who visits many other worlds soon finds that there are several civilizations who are aware of other planes of existence. Yet, strangely, many of these civilizations have different ways to describe and physically arrange the planes of existence they are aware of. The way a civilization describes other planes of existence is called their "cosmology".
One thing a cosmology describes is "where" other planes are and how they are physically or spatially arranged in relationship to each other. Some cosmologies call this the "metalocation" or "metaphysical location". This metaphysical arrangement is really an illusion, and does not literaly exist. Space exists inside of planes, not outside of them, so it is impossible for them to have a physical arrangement between themselves describing how they are spatially related to each other. The metaphysical arrangements between planes that are described in various cosmologies is something imagined by the creatures who created those cosmologies. They do this so they can understand how to find their way from one plane of existence to another. But this arrangement is merely a useful mental tool, and not a description of a literal reality.
When different planes of existence "touch" each other, they are said to be "coterminous", and relatively easy travel between them is possible. When conditions are right, travel between coterminous planes can sometimes be done with no magic at all, but it usually takes magic or technology. Travel between two planes that are not conterminous is not possible or requires very strong magic or technology. What planes are coterminous and what planes are not coterminous is what determines how the spatial arrangements between planes in the various cosmologies are imagined.
Travel between planes that are coterminous is done from one point in one plane to a specific point in another plane. Planes may also be be "coexistent". For example, the Ethereal and Shadow planes are coexistent with the Prime Material Planes. In effect, the "boundary" between the two planes extends through all of the space in each plane. The planes "touch" everywhere, or over large distances that exist together and share a similar structure. The places where two planes are coexistent are usually called "border" areas, as in the "border ethereal".
Connections Between Planes
When planes are coterminous or coexistent, there are similarities in the energy patterns of the two planes that makes them blend together. At these places, travel between planes is possible. These connections manifest in several ways. The most common way to travel between planes is via connections like portals, conduits and gates. These are all openings leading from one location to another. Some lead to locations in the same plane, others to different planes entirely. Although the 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. 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 is the River Styx, which flows across the Planes of Evil and parts of the Astral Plane. Another is the River Oceanus, which flows through the Planes of Good.
Some common cosmologies are described below. Though the physical location of the planes in each cosmology is not literal, the way the planes are related to each other, the nature of the planes, and how to get from one plane to another is accurate. There are also some important things to remember about the planes of existence that are constant from one cosmology to another.
Common Cosmology (Inner/Outer, Upper/Lower Arrangement)
This cosmology is a common one used, and is the most common one used in the Head of the Dragon Galaxy. In this cosmology, the planes that are made up of the spiritual/mental energies are called the "Outer Planes" or the "Upper Planes", and the planes that are made up of elemental/physical energies are called the "Inner Planes or the "Lower Planes". In the Dragon Galaxy, the Upper/Lower Arrangement is the most commonly used cosmology.
The outer/upper planes are made up of mixtures of the energies that create the forces of law, chaos, evil and goodness. These energies are present in varying degrees, creating different "outer" planes of existence. The energies that make up these planes overlap when the energies are present in certain mixtures and at certain levels. Because of the pattern in how these planes overlap, this cosmology describes them as being a wheel, with a neutral outer plane between them all in the "inside" of the wheel. The arrangement of the wheel is described in the chart below.
The energies in the center-top, center-bottom, center-left, center-right and very center of the wheel are one type only. For example, in the part of the wheel described as the center-bottom is the Plane of Hades. In Hades, only evil energy is present.
Each plane is infinite, but certain regions within it have slight imbalances in the energy pattern that makes them up. In these areas, the imbalance in energy manifests itself as a "border area" and eventually as a portal where one can travel from one outer plane to another. Only certain portals or types of border areas can exist, because only certain energy patterns can become coterminous, or in other words, overlap and interact with each other. For example, there can be overlap between the Abyss and the Middle Lands, because the energy pattern of equal levels of chaos and evil and the equal mixture of all four energies that makes up the Middle Lands can overlap, but there can never be overlap between the Abyss and Heaven, because the energy pattern of equal parts chaos/evil cannot interact with the energy pattern of equal parts goodness/law.
The description of the outer/upper planes as a ring comes from the overlapping "border" areas and portals that can exist. The wheel describes how the planes can be traveled to and from. Planes that are next to each other in the wheel can have portals between them. Planes that are not described as "next to each other" in the wheel cannot have direct portals between them. In addition to this, there are different levels in each outer plane. Only one of these levels can interact with other, "neighboring", planes. This level is called the "first level" in most cosmologies. The energy pattern in the other levels is denser and more intricate. These levels can only be traveled to via other levels of the same plane.
One travels between the outer/upper planes and the prime planes via the Astral Plane. This plane is naturally coterminous with all of the first levels of the outer/upper planes and with the prime material planes. As described above, this plane is a mixture of all the spritual/mental energies with no elemental/physical energy present. This plane touches on one level of each outer/upper plane and on each prime plane. There are no border areas in this plane. Transition from it to the planes it is coterminous with is instaneous, with no gradual change in the energy pattern. When one is inside the Astral Plane, the coterminous area where one can transition from it to another plane is perceived as a "color pool". The color of the "pool" tells the experienced traveler where it leads to.
Direct portals between the first levels of outer/upper planes and prime planes can also be temporarily created. From within the Astral Plane these portals appear as infinitely long, twisting tubes, which cannot be penetrated. But for one traveling through one of these portals the inside of the tube is not even percieved. Travel between the first level of an outer/upper plane and a prime plane seems to be instantaneous to a traveler inside one of these temporary portals.
The inner/lower planes are made up the energies that create the substances of fire, earth, water, air and a mixture of all four (positive energy) or the absence of all four (negative energy). These energies are present in varying degrees, creating different "inner" planes of existence. The energies that make up these planes overlap when the energies are present in certain mixtures and at certain levels. Because of the pattern in how these planes overlap, this cosmology describes them as being a sphere or a six-sided cube. The planes of pure fire, earth, water, air make up four sides of the "cube" and the positive and negative energy planes make up the "top" and "bottom" of the cube. Several more planes of mixed energy exist. These "quasi" and "para" elemental planes are said to be were the six sides of the cubes "meet". Each plane is actually infinite, and does not actually "touch" any other plane. Instead, like with the outer/upper planes, there are certain areas where the energy pattern that makes up each plane varies slightly, and other energies are present. In these areas one can travel from one plane to another. The way the interact and the way one can travel between them is why they have been described as a "cube". The arrangement is described in the chart below.
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Common Cosmological Description of the Elemental Inner/Lower Planes Along the "Equator" of the "Cube"
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Smoke
(Air/Fire)
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Fire
(Pure Fire)
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Magma
(Fire/Earth)
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Air
(Pure Air)
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↑Fire↑
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Earth
(Pure Earth)
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←Air
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The Positive and Negative Planes Lie "Above" and "Below" the Planes Shown Here
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Earth→
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↓Ice/Water↓
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Fog
or
Snow
(Water or Ice/Air)
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Ice or
Water
(Water/Earth or Pure Water)
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Ice or
Mud
(Earth/Water) |
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Common Cosmological Description of the Elemental Inner/Lower Planes Along the "Top" of the "Cube"
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Radiance
(Positive Energy/Fire)
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Lightning
(Positive Energy/Air)
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↑Fire↑
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Gems/Minerals
(Positive Energy/Earth)
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←Air
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Positive Energy
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Earth→
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↓Ice/Water↓
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Steam
(Positive Energy/Water)
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Common Cosmological Description of the Elemental Inner/Lower Planes Along the "Top" of the "Cube"
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Ash
(Negative Energy/Fire)
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Vacuum/Void
(Negative Energy/Air)
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↑Fire↑
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Dust
(Negative Energy/Earth)
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←Air
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Negative Energy
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Earth→
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↓Ice/Water↓
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Salt
(Negative Energy/Water)
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Like with the outer/upper planes, each of the inner/lower planes are infinite, but each also has areas where there is a slight alteration in the energy field. In these areas, only certain "foreign" energies can exist. The type and level of other energy present determines what kinds of portals can exist in these areas and the nature of the area. For example, in the Elemental Plane of Water there are areas where slight levels of positive energy is present. If there is enough positive energy present portals to the Para-Elemental Plane of Steam can form, and that plane can be traveled to and from. However, it is impossible for there to be any elemental fire energy mixing with the elemental water energy of this plane, so no portals between these two planes are possible. This is why the inner/lower cosmology arranges the Elemental Plane of Water on the opposite side of a cube from the Elemental Plane of Fire.
One notable difference between various inner/lower cosmologies is the "location" of the Elemental Plane of Ice and the Para-Elemental Plane of Snow. The ice plane can be coterminous with the Elemental Plane of Water, the Elemental Plane of Air, and the Elemental Plane of Earth, all. Different cultures are not aware of all the possibilities, so the Elemental Plane of Ice is variously described as between the planes of air and water, between the planes of water and earth, or "next" to the Elemental Plane of Water and parallel to it. The Para-Elemental Plane of Snow is put in the same place as the Para-Elemental Plane of Fog in some cosmologies. This plane is naturally coterminous with the planes of Air and Ice.
The Ethereal Plane is the most common way to travel between the inner/lower planes and the prime planes. The mixture of all energies present in the prime planes fades, and the elemental energies grow stronger in this plane. Areas where spiritual/mental energies mix with the elemental/physical energies are called the "border ethereal" (prime material border ethereal). Where there is no spiritual/mental energy and no elemental/physical energy predominates over another, one is in the "deep ethereal". In areas where one type of elemental/physical energy predominates one enters the border ethereal area for that specific type of elemental/physical plane of existence.
Travel between the prime planes and the inner/lower planes is also possible without traveling through the Ethereal Plane. This is done by the creation of temporary portals, like it is done when one skips the Astral Plane to go to an outer plane. These portals have no tunnel-like manifstations in the Ethereal Plane like in the Astral Plane, however, and usually cannot be detected at all from inside the Ethereal Plane. Unlike portal that naturally form in a coterminous areas, these portals are temporary, just like portals that skip the Astral Plane.
The last kind of planes are in the "middle", between the Astral and Ethereal Planes. They are neither spiritual/mental energy planes or elemental/pjysical energy planes. Instead, they combine both kinds of energy. If all types of energy are present prime material planes form. If some of the energies are missing then planes called "demiplanes" form. Like prime material planes, demiplanes touch on both the Ethereal and Astral Planes, and draw energy out of both these planes. However, it is often only possible to travel to a demiplane from only one of the main transitive planes, either the astral or ethereal, not both.
For example, some planes like the Demiplane of Terror, also called Ravenloft, can be accessed through the ethereal but not through the astral. Other demiplanes, like the Eberron Cosmology's planes, can be accessed through the astral and not the ethereal. Even so, these planes have connections to both the astral and ethereal because they draw energies from both planes. Specifics in the energy patterns that make up these planes makes it so that travel back and forth to one of the transitive planes or the other is not possible, though. These glitches in the nature of the demiplanes' energy patterns makes them only become coterminous with some of the planes they draw energy from.
Eberron Cosmology
In the cosmology of the world of Eberron, the planes are said to "orbit" Eberron within the Astral Plane. They periodically become coterminous with Eberron, then "drift away" and cease to be coterminous. When this happens they must be reached through the Astral Plane or by standard temporary portals. In addition, when these planes become coterminous with Eberron, the connection is so strong that magic does not need to be used to pass from one plane to another. One can literally walk from one plane to the other without casting any spells if it is done in locations where the conditions are right.
As explained above, planes of existence do not literally have locations in relationship to each other. This is because space only exists within a plane of existence, not outside of it, so planes to not really have physical locations in relationship to each other. But they do become coterminous, or "touch each other", and this creates the illusion that there is a larger physical arrangement between the planes. The planes of Eberron are always coterminous with the Astral Plane, like all of the "outer planes" in the common cosmology, but they are not coterminous with each other, like the standard outer planes are. They are also normally not coterminous with Eberron, but periodically, by the way time is recorded on Eberron, they do become coterminous with it. The best way to describe how this happens is to say they "orbit" Eberron, but in reality the energy patterns that connect them to Eberron and that allow travel back and forth merely grow stronger or weaker.
See also The Structure of Reality - Arrangements and Ways