Cosmology

A glimpse of the multiverse

The Planes

Several planes of existence make up the multiverse, at the center of which is the plane which would come to be known as the Coalescence. 4 planes directly overlap the Coalescence: 2 Interval planes (the Intangible and the Void) and 2 Reflective Planes (the Fae and the Gloom). 6 planes, known as the Primal planes, are closely connected to the Coalescence. These planes include the elemental planes of Fire, Earth, Air, and Water as well as the energy planes known as the Rapture and the Decay. The planes that are in more distant contact with the Coalescence are known as the Divine as many of these were shaped by the deities who inhabit them. The Divine planes also serve as an afterlife for souls of mortals after they have passed away. These include the Mercy (Mictecaci), the Bliss (Ediss), the Orchard (Avallhon), the Unending Abyss (Xib'Oku), the Pits of Hell (Shezhuul), and the Everstill (Nulfon). Beyond this are realms which are not connected to the Coalescence, realms which few mortals even know about. They are home to unspeakable alien beings far beyond understanding. These planes are known as the Eldritch.

The Coalescence

The Coalescence is the material plane which acts as sort of a central hub of the multiverse. It is, in a way, the sum of all parts of the Primal planes. It is the plane on which most mortal races live. It is the plane on which Altustea is located. It is also home to an entire universe filled with galaxies of stars and planets which the people of Altustea have little knowledge of. Most other planes are connected to the Coalescence and they can be accessed through existing portals or certain magic spells. These portals are few and far between and are often guarded by creatures native to the plane to which they lead.

Interval Planes

Interval Planes overlap completely with the Coalescence, as well as connects it to other planes. They serve as the roads between realms.

The Intangible

The Intangible acts, in a way, as a sort of buffer between the planes. It is the cartilage in the skeleton of the multiverse. The Intangible is made up of a proto-material and nothing on the plane is solid. This includes anything entering the plane from another realm. A solid creature becomes intangible. A solid weapon becomes intangible. Some refer to traveling to the Intangible as "drawing the curtain," as passing through to the plane is likened to pushing through a vaporous fabric. Movement in the Intangible is easy and travelers are free to move in any direction, including up or down. Because it directly overlaps with the Coalescence, a popular use of spell casting is to phase into the Intangible, move freely, and then phase back, with the spell caster having traveled an equal distance that they would have on the material plane. The nature of the Intangible is one of fluctuation and malleability. Because of this, it is possible for finite demi-planes to form. These often occur naturally near portals where some essence of the other planes bleed into the Intangible. These naturally occurring demi-planes are often temporary, but the length of time which they last is widely variable, from hours to centuries. Beings of great power have also been known to manipulate the Intangible for their needs.

The Void

If the Intangible is the cartilage in the skeleton of the multiverse, the Void is the cavities into which the planes fit like organs. Prevailing theories is that the Void is essentially the empty space left behind the Refraction. It is infinite nothing dotted by floating material islands, leftover shards of the primordial chaos and colorful portals leading to the other planes. Traveling through the Void is possible, though often odd thanks to the means needed to access it. It usually involves leaving one's physical body behind while one's consciousness, known as the astral self, traverses the Void. Throughout travel, the astral self remains tied to the physical self by a strand that manifests visibly, and upon exiting the Void, the body manifests back around the consciousness. It is a transition often described as "disorienting," "unpleasant," and "horrifying in its implications" by those who explore the Void. Though it is not easy to break, should the strand ever be severed, the body of the traveler would be left as an empty but living husk and the consciousness would be left to float among the Void. Swirling columns of energy called Wormholes can be found inside the Void. The Wormholes connect to other planes and serve as rapid but dangerous travel to gateway portals. There are some who theorize that these Wormholes are pieces of Prism, which broke off during the Refraction, left stuck to the elements which it tore apart. Others believe they are result of tears in the fabric of reality left open after the Refraction and the force of the Void bending into itself in an attempt to fill the negative space creates a tunnel of shortened space.

Reflective Planes

Unlike the Interval Planes, which overlap and connect with the Coalescence but serve as connective tissue or empty space to be filled, the Reflective Planes overlap because they are echoes of the Coalescence. Where a forest grows in the Coalescence, a forest grows on the Reflective Planes. Where a river flows in the Coalescence, a river flows in the Reflective Planes. Not only do the Reflective Planes share a geography with the Coalescence, but they share a bestiary, though the fauna of the Reflective Planes may share different features due to their unique nature. These planes are the "closest" to the Coalescence compared to the others and thus are the easiest planes to find entrances to, though they are still not particularly common. It is assumed that this metaphysical proximity is the reason the Reflective Planes and the Coalescence share so many features despite having different natures.

The Fae

When the multiverse was created and the Coalescence formed, a significant portion of Wild Magic flooded into a newly open plane. This plane was so close to the Coalescence that it was essentially a copy of that world. The Wild Magic Flood washed over this copy, infusing it, creating a land where Wild Magic was much a part of nature as the wind and the trees. Natural beauty in the Fae is exponentially enhanced compared to the Coalescence. Colors are more vivid, natural landmarks more grand. Where a sprawling city stands in the Coalescence, in the Fae, the site may be unremarkable and easily missed. The sun never completely rises nor completely sets in the Fae. Instead, day and night is marked by a shift from the golden hour twilight of dawn to that of dusk. That being said, the concept of "day and night" isn't as fixed as it is on the Coalescence. Time moves almost at its own whims in the Fae. Though it feels no different to the passage of time elsewhere, a visitor to the Fae may return to the Coalescence only to find that hours, days, months, or even years beyond what they perceived have passed. Further complicating matters, distance also fluctuates. Traveling between two points may not take the same amount of time one journey as it does the next. It is for these reasons mortals without any ancestry from the Fae often find themselves disoriented, exhausted, or starving upon returning the the Coalescence as the lost time catches up to them. There are even legends that if a mortal spent enough time in the Fae, they would rapidly age and die if enough time had passed. It is also common for the memories of time spent in the Fae to become muddled or lost when leaving the plane. The abundance of Wild Magic in the plane taps into the primal source of everything, often causing visitors to feel sensations, both emotional and sensory, in a more intense way. Moreover, impulses are often harder to control. Casting spells also often has unpredictable results, being more potent or lasting longer, or having strange side effects. Denizens of the Fae know the plane as Faehame.

The Gloom

During the Refraction, light energy of the Rapture and dark energy of the Decay simultaneously flooded into a plane that overlapped the Coalescence. The two contrasting energies melded into an unlikely echo of the Coalescence, forming a plane made from an inky material known as Shadowplasm. A stark contrast to its fellow Reflective Plane, the Gloom is realm devoid of color and light. There is no sun, no stars, there is only shades of black and white. Sources of light shine dimmer and fires burn with less heat. Even spells dealing with light and fire may be less potent or more prone to fail. Conversely, spells dealing with shadow tend to be more potent. The Gloom is an echo of the Coalescence, however, it is an imperfect, dark, twisted reflection. As shadows warp and shift, so does the Shadowplasm. Though always familiar on some level, the landscape is rarely the same during one visit as it is the next. Objects may shift position or appear in a different state. Structures may appear as normal, dilapidated, with different architecture, etc. Generally, everything in the Gloom appears as a strange, distorted version of its Coalescence counterpart. Due to the negative energy from the Decay that helped form the Gloom, there are pockets where the Decay's influence in stronger. These pockets, known as Weeps, are desolate landscapes which attract life-draining undead such as vampires and wraiths. The very air of the Weeps is capable of sucking away the life force of a living being, killing them within minutes and leaving behind nothing but ash. Sites which are haunted by malevolent spirits, desecrated holy burial sites, and sites under the influence of powerful necromantic energy on the Coalescence often appear as Weeps in the Gloom. Places of civilization have unique echoes in the Gloom. Towns and cities are familiar to those that know them on the Coalescence, but they are altered in an unsettling fashion. They are nightmarish mirages of their counterparts in which buildings appear "wrong" and people, though recognizable, bear horrifying visages. The Gloom has its own native flora and fauna which, just as anything else, are twisted echoes of their Coalescence analogues. Some humanoids have even adapted to living in the Gloom, now calling it home. Visitors can survive in the Gloom for an indefinite period of time. Air is breathable, water is potable, food is edible, provided the visitor can tolerate the constant chill, the foul smell of their drink, and the black, viscous blood which oozes from plants and animals. Visitors also often catch movement from the corner of their eye or sense a presence watching them from nearby when nothing is there. Travelers to the Gloom remember the experience as constantly unsettling and putting them on edge. Living things would spend an extended amount of time in the Gloom begin to change as the Shadowplasm slowly alters them in both advantageous and disadvantageous ways. Creatures changed in this way become cold and distant as their capacity to feel emotion diminishes.

Primal Planes

Surrounding the Coalescence and its Reflective echoes are the Primal Planes. These are planes in which the primordial elements and energies making up the original Chaos split off into when the mass was filtered through Prism. Each plane is dominated by one element or energy, though shards of the others can be found in them. For example, the Plame of Water is dotted with bubbles containing breathable atmosphere from the Plane of Air. Between each elemental plane is a para-elemental plane made up of a mixture of the two elements. Between each elemental plane and either energy plane is a quasi-elemental plane blending the energy and the element. This results in a total of 18 Primal Planes: 4 Elemental, 2 Energy, 4 Para-Elemental, and 8 Quasi-Elemental. The nature of these planes are often not hospitable to those not native to it.

Plane of Fire

Flames of all kinds dominate this plane and no matter the source nor the color, they burn the hottest and brightest possible. No fuel is required to keep them alight. The only potential safe haven for those not adapted to surviving the scorching landscape are places where pieces of other elements were deposited. These "oases" are hardly a great relief, as they are about as hospitable as sweltering desert on the Coalescence.

Plane of Earth

A visitor to the Plane of Earth may quickly find themselves trapped under the pressure of infinite rock, unable to move, see, or breathe. The only means a non-native creature would travel on the Plane of Earth is to find tunnels and pockets that occur naturally or to create them with some kind of spell.

Plane of Water

An infinite body of water with no surface. Pockets of other elements exist here, but traveling requires a visitor to the plane to find a way to breathe water. The pressure is similar to being a few feet under the surface of an ocean and visibility is as well. Salinity varies based on the proximity to the Decay and temperature varies depending on proximity to the Plane of Steam and the Plane of Ice.

Plane of Air

An infinite blue sky and a constant wind mark the Plane of Air. The atmosphere of the plane is breathable. Floating islands of matter offer places for non-native creatures to take shelter upon. Occasionally, the constant wind blows in energy from another plane, resulting in a storm cloud raining down whatever element that created it.

The Rapture

Sometimes known as the Plane of Life, the Rapture is an infinite plane of pure positive energy. Every inch of this plane shines with radiant light and vibrates intensely. This is the plane which healing spells tap into and thus, if a wounded individual were to travel this plane, their wounds would quickly be healed. However, the Rapture is by no means a safe place to travel without protection. A living creature exposed to the energy of this plane for too long would eventually take in so much life energy, their form would become radiant, and thus the creature would explode and be absorbed into the Rapture. Non-living, non-magical material is burned away by the intensity  of the plane.

The Decay

Counter the the Rapture, the Decay is a plane of pure death and darkness. The negative energy in the Decay is so concentrated that it forms solid structures of cold blackness. Traveling to the Decay without protection would result in a creature's life quickly being drained away, its body turned into a shriveled husk, before it crumbled into nothingness. Non-magical material rapidly deteriorates into the black. The force which animates the undead comes from this plane.

Plane of Magma

Between the Planes of Fire and Earth is a sea of molten lava known as the Plane of Magma. Dotted with bubbles of flame, fumes, and rough cut rocky pillars, the air on this plane is difficult to breathe. Closer to the Plane of Fire, matter is more gaseous, whereas closer to the Plane of Earth the magma solidifies into rock.

Plane of Ooze

Between the Planes of Earth and Water is a muddy, bubbling swamp known as the Plane of Ooze. The state of this place ranges from damp earth to quicksand-like muck to thin silt as one passes from one side of the plane to the other.

Plane of Ice

Between the Planes of Water and Air is a frozen waste known as the Plane of Ice. A sea of glaciers marks the proximity to the Plane of Water and jagged ice cliffs pierce the windswept border of the Plane of Air. In between is solid ice marked by caverns and fissures. Like the Plane of Earth, visiting this plane could prove quickly fatal as it is primarily dense ice. One could easily find themselves a permanent fixture of the plane, encased in ice for all time, if they are not careful. Pockets of Air form caverns while pockets of Water form frosted underground lakes.

Plane of Smoke

Between the Planes of Air and Fire is a foul-smelling cloud of choking fog known as the Plane of Smoke. The ashen atmosphere of this plane can quickly kill any creature who needs to breathe to live, asphyxiating them to death. Only pockets of Air provide any kind of relief, while pockets of Fire float about as volatile orbs, ready to explode into a burning whirlwind if disturbed.

Plane of Radiance

Between the Plane of Fire and the Rapture is the burning, brilliant Plane of Radiance. Flames of all color burn at their brightest and hottest, and with such brilliance that the light of the plane could blind a traveler whose eyes weren't protected.

Plane of Minerals

Between the Plane of Earth and the Rapture is the beautiful, dangerous Plane of Minerals. The positive energy of the Rapture running through simple rock and earth turns the matter into precious gemstones, metal ore, and marble. This runs all the way to the edge of the Rapture, where the vibrating energy constantly shatters the earth, creating a fluctuating border. Despite the beauty, this plane is somehow more dangerous than the Plane of Earth, as, along with the normal hazards, sharp crystalline edges threaten to cut travelers as they pass. Perhaps most terrifyingly, the pervasive force of the Rapture which causes these changes threaten to fossilize any non-native creature who inhabit the plane for an extended period of time. Visitors risk being transformed into stone, veins of ore, crystals, or gemstones.

Plane of Steam

Between the Plane of Water and the Rapture is the vaporous Plane of Steam. All types of fog and mist make up this plane, whose temperature shifts from cool to boiling the closer to the Rapture border one moves. The Plane of Steam is inhospitable to those who breathe air, as the incredibly dense humidity can literally drown them by filling their lungs with water vapor.

Plane of Lightning

Between the Planes of Air and the Rapture is the electrically charged Plane of Lightning. Perpetual black storm clouds arc lighting at each other near the Plane of Air as all manner of electricity sparks throughout the rest of the plane. From powerful lightning bolts to glowing St. Elmo's Fire, all backed by the scent of ozone and a constant, deafening cacophony of thunder.

Plane of Ash

Between the Plane of Fire and the Decay is the obscuring cold of the Plane of Ash. The negative energy of the Decay quickly sucks all heat from the embers of the neighboring plane, leaving behind only cold ash, which only grows thicker the closer one gets to the Plane of Death. Like most of the primal planes, the Plane of Ash is dangerous, and often quickly fatal to those who would visit it without protection, as the choking particles leave it impossible to breathe. However, it is also a place of death for any creature whose body temperature is normally above freezing. This is especially dangerous to denizens of the Plane of Fire, which are rapidly snuffed out should they wander from their home into this plane.

Plane of Dust

Between the Plane of Earth and the Decay is the shattered Plane of Dust. The infinite solid earth begins to crack the closer it gets to the Decay, progressively being ground down to finer and finer sand until it was nothing but dust that was eventually dispersed into the black of the Plane of Death at its border. Any non-native creatures who aren't solid would suffer the same fate as the earth here, being progressively broken down and disassociated to itself until it died.

Plane of Salt

Between the Plane of Water and the Decay is the aquaphobic Plane of Salt. Where the ocean of the Plane of Water grows more and more briny the closer it gets to the Decay, the salt eventually supersedes the liquid, forming lumps, until an entire plane of solid salt is created. Any non-native denizen containing water is instantly dehydrated by the extreme levels of salt here, their desiccated corpses crystalizing and becoming encased by the plane. Denizens of this plane fear water with all their being, as it causes them to dissolve and violently fall apart should they be soaked.

Plane of Vacuum

Between the Plane of Air and the Decay is perhaps the most terrifying of all the Primal Planes, the Plane of Vacuum. Moving from the border of the Plane of Air into the Plane of Vacuum, the constant winds die down, the breathable air grows thinner and thinner. Eventually, there is nothing. No air, no trace of any elements whatsoever, simply complete, black emptiness. Beyond the risk of suffocation, the vacuum becomes so perfect that non-native creatures face a rapid death as their very being begins to consume itself in an effort to correct the absolute lack of any of the elements which make them up.

The Divine

These planes are known as the Divine as many of the most powerful beings in the multiverse shaped them and call them home. The concept of morality is often a core building block of these planes, which is why they also act as an afterlife for mortals, a place where their souls venture for their eternal rest. It is common for the Divine planes to be made up of many layers, which metaphysically overlap each other.

The Mercy

The Bliss

The Orchard

The Unending Abyss

The Pits of Hell

The Everstill

The Eldritch

Little is known of the far off, alien realm of the Eldritch. Their origin and nature are unclear. Among the few who risk their very sanity by delving into research of the Eldritch, it is debated whether the plane was created during the Refraction with all the others or if it was there before and the violent creation of the multiverse touched the realm and attached itself to it. Others believe it is a dream, or nightmare, of Prism, made into a terrifying reality as a bi-product of the being's power. Others still claim that Prism itself originated from the Eldritch and the Refraction is part of a greater plot which we do not, and cannot, understand. Whatever the truth is, the reality is that the Eldritch is home to maddening worlds of impossible geometry, horrific creatures that defy explanation, and monolithic beings known as Elder Ones who exist beyond mortal comprehension.

Type

Metaphysical, Astral