Yophas, the Eternal Design
The Creation of Yophas
Following the multiversal devastation of the Obsidian War, Yamma, the Silver Dawn, had a titanic task ahead of himself: the Reshaping of the Cosmos and all within them. The importance of this task was three-fold: firstly, to create planes that would allow the concepts of the nascent Obsidian Lords to flourish, and thus hopefully maintain their prisons. Secondly, to create home planes for the ideas and gods that would become his Children. Thirdly, and most importantly, to create a multiverse that would once more be hospitable for mortal life. With the aid of Alindr, They Who Know and first of the Children of Yamma, the Silver Dawn set about creating the Eternal Design: Yophas. Together, Alindr and Yamma created a brand-new multiverse. First to be created was the Realm of Stars, Ipacia. Within this sea of opalescent starstuff, Alindr and Yamma had a space to construct the planes and place them in relation to one another. But, just as Ipacia forms everything the Eternal Design could be, there was that which Yophas could never be. Primordial chaos, alien minds, and elder evils had all been unleashed in the Obsidian War. Though Yamma sought to destroy them, without light there can be no darkness -- without chaos, no order. Just as much as they threatened all that Yophas could be, so too could Yophas not exist without them; Yamma and Alindr would have to imprison them. But imprisoning an idea is impossible, much less ideas that are fundamental, that are woven into the very threads of reality -- beyond even the designs of gods. And so, Xeccamund was created. Dubbed the Tears Beyond Reality, Xeccamund existed beyond even Ipacia -- as Ipacia represented the beauty of creation, the energy of the Eternal Design, Xeccamund represented the destruction behind it all. The chaos removed from the order, separated yet still connected. And so, the first -- and perhaps most important -- of Yophas' planar relationships was created: the complex, shifting boundaries between Ipacia and Xeccamund, between reality and unreality. Yet, Ipacia was no realm of perfect order, nor was it intended to be. It was simply a canvas to be writ upon, the filling between the planes. A medium through which the planes could be separated but connected. And within this Realm of Stars, Alindr and Yamma first created Yacrena, the Sun. Simultaneously an engine of energy and a plane, Yacrena was the first Divine Plane -- those planes of godly intent mixed with mortal matter. And in Yacrena's light, eleven more Divine Planes were created, using matter created and stored in ten Elemental Realms, which were fueled by the corpses and imprisoned forms of the ancient elemental titans. And with intentions and concepts given form by elements and starstuff, the stage was set for Yamma's most important work: the Reshaping of Emaxus itself. At the center of the Eternal Design was the husk of the Broken World. Last, but certainly not least, Yamma restored life and order to the Material Plane, to the world of Emaxus. Below, you can find in-depth descriptions of the relationships between and contents of the different planes, organized by category. At the foot of the article are all of the realms organized alphabetically.The Cosmological Mediums
Like a canvas upon which the planes of Yophas are inscribed, Ipacia and Xeccamund are known as the Cosmological Mediums. It is within these realms that all other realms -- minor and major -- exist. The former is the Realm of Stars in which the other planes hang like great ornaments, and the latter is the Tears Beyond Reality where those things too ancient, too alien, and too fundamental to the universe reside. Little is known of Xeccamund, for reaching it is nearly impossible; no one in their right mind would even attempt to go there, and even those with the power and will to do so never return -- at least, not the same. Both can be found in greater detail below.Eriothas, the Ethereal Plane
Being less of a true plane and more of an undercurrent that flows through all of Yophas, the Ethereal Plane is known as Eriothas. Nothing truly exists in Eriothas. It is a transitory plane used for travel and even stealth. Certain magics allow one to pass into Eriothas, and Ipacian navigation uses Eriothas to cross mind-numbing distances in minutes. Generally, Eriothas exists to travel between spaces planar and extraplanar quickly and unseen, though it can be a grueling undertaking.The Divine Planes
Numbering twelve (including Yacrena, the Sun and Light of Yophas), the Divine Planes are those realms created to manifest concepts or the domains of gods. They are the furthest planes from Emaxus, arrayed beyond even the Elemental Realms. Some, like Laithna, were created specifically for Children of Yamma to function as their homes and strongholds, while others were created as prisons for the Obsidian Lords, such as Ix'akroth, the Infested Crags. Others still were made simply due to necessity: the devils of the multiverse were granted Iduran, while the demons were consigned to Accorion. And so, the twelve Divine Planes are as seen below.The Elemental Realms
When Alindr and Yamma brought order to Ipacia and pushed Xeccamund beyond the borders of Yophas, their greatest task was organizing the many elements floating about in the primordial chaos that followed the Obsidian War. To this end, they created the Elemental Realms. First, they created Iannathae and Nathrivox, realms of light and darkness, respectively. Then, they created the four Pure Realms, for earth, air, water, and fire, and created the four border planes between them -- those realms created from the fusion of two elements. Those ten Realms are listed all below.Travel
As a rule, reaching the Elemental Realms is easier than reaching the Divine Planes. Ipacian navigation works for reaching all of Realms, or at least their border regions, and their rifts form semi-frequently deep in biomes relevant to their element. For example, numerous portals to Tudulion exist within the oceans, seas, and even deep lakes or rivers of Emaxus, and rifts to Gliziarial hidden away in mountains or deep in caves is not unheard of. Due to this commonality, I've decided to simply place this note here as a general rule for travel to the Elemental Realms, rather than repeating the same ideas in each of the ten Realms below, and let you, the reader, connect the dots or fill them in with your own ideas!
Pure Realms
Border Planes
The Border Planes are a confusing topic in the study of cosmology on Emaxus. Some theories state that they are in fact bridges between the two Pure Realms they border, and are thus not their own planes. Others believe that, while they are their own planes, they are smaller and more finite than the other six Elemental Realms and the Divine Planes. Observations show that they seem to have defined borders where their constituent Pure Realms begin, but Ipacian navigational records still hold that Border Planes are separate locations in the Realm of Stars, with their own surrounding regions and all. The true nature of Border Planes continues to baffle the foremost cosmologists and astronomers, so the articles below may seem contradictory or even lacking at times.The Material Plane
Emaxus, the Material Plane and Center of Yophas. Jewel of the gods, primary battleground of the Reckoning, and the home of the many mortal races of the Eternal Design. If you desire information on Emaxus, look anywhere else in these tomes. Though many mysteries remain, Emaxus is the most well-known and best chronicled of all the planes. Here, heroes and villains, empires and kingdoms, all rise and fall beneath the ceaseless march of history.Maps
-
The Cosmological Map of the Emaxian Multiverse: Yophas, the Eternal Design
Type
Multiverse
Neil
What an amazing amount of incredible work! Love it!
Brian Nicholson
Thank you kindly, friend!