Arborea

Larger than life, Arborea is a place of violent moods and deep affections, of whim backed by steel, and of passions that blaze brightly until they burn out. Its good-natured inhabitants are dedicated to fighting evil, but their reckless emotions sometimes break free with devastating consequences. Rage is as common and as honored as joy in Arborea. There the mountains and forests are extravagantly massive and beautiful, and every glade and stream is inhabited by nature spirits that brook no infringement. Travelers must tread lightly.
Arborea is home to many elves and elven deities. Elves born on this plane have the celestial type and are wild at heart, ready to battle evil in a heartbeat. Otherwise, they look and behave like normal elves.

Optional Rule: Intense Yearning

Keep track of how many days a visitor spends on Arborea. When the visitor leaves, it must make a Charisma saving throw against a DC of 5, plus 1 for each day spent on the plane. On a failed save, the creature becomes afflicted with a yearning to return to Arborea. As long as the effect persists, the creature has disadvantage on ability checks. At the end of each long rest, the creature can repeat the saving throw, ending the effect on a success. A dispel evil and good spell removes this effect from the creature.
(Dungeon Master's Guide, 2014)
Larger than life and quick as a change of heart, Arborea's a place of violent moods and deep affections, of whim backed by iron, and of passions that blaze brightly until they burn out. It's true that most of the creatures of Arborea are goodnatured, and that the powers of the plane are dedicated to fighting evil. But the reckless emotions of the petitioners can break loose with devastating consequences; rage is as common and as honored as joy in Arborea.
The wildness and size of the plane allow many of the former rulers of the layers to do more than nurse their grudges in Ysgard or Carceri. The titans, Lolth, and the gods of the giants have agents and proxies who spy on and torment their enemies. They also have gates that allow them to return and wreak vengeance against the usurpers. The plane itself is determined to remain wild and pure. Every glade and stream is inhabited by nature spirits who don't take kindly to any infringement, so cutters have to tread lightly. Arsonists, woodcutters, those who hunt for sport, and even those who simply blaze a trail in virgin wilderness are often the targets of lethal attacks by the protectors of the ancient woods.

Physical Conditions

Arborea's pleasant breezes often turn into violent storms, but even the extremes of weather don't spoil the plane's beauty. There ain't many burgs, but the place don't need them. The earth yields plenty, and the nature spirits are usually either too shy or too good-natured to be dangerous. A berk's got to go looking for trouble in Arborea. 'Course, the plane's not as rough Pandemonium's winds, but it's not as serene as Mount Celestia, either. Though the Arborean winter is mild, the weather can kill. Mostly, the plane is known for deaths by lightning and hail. Anyone caught in one of the downpours in the ancient forests had better prepare to settle in for the duration; walking through (or worse, traveling up) the canopy has caused many broken legs. Injured travelers are easy prey for the plane's voracious predators.
When a berk says that in Arborea the air itself is as charged as a thunderstorm, he's not just rattling his bone-box. Arborea's not a place where short-tempered berks gather; it's a place that makes everyone short-tempered, passionate, and more prone to play the fool. In some ways, Arborea's emotion embodies the opposite of the logic of Mechanus, though it ain't the pure, formless chaos of Limbo, either.
Players ought to ham it up when their characters are in Arborea; most role-players won't need much encouragement. Even some shy players might come out of their shell to act their character's role.
If all else fails, the players roll saving throws against paralyzation when their characters ought to react strongly. Since the Arboreans value emotionalreactions, failing a saving throw shouldn't always be a bad thing for the characters. Bonus XPs for melodramatic role-playing are definitely in order.
The emotional journeys may be dangerous, but landscape in the settled parts of Arborea (like Olympus) is pleasant, pastoral, and mostly harmless. Gently rolling hills, fields of oats, barley, wheat, and millet, vineyards, and fruit and olive orchards pass by in quaint succession. But the open regions between the realms are often almost impassibly wild. The less settled any region is, the more hostile its hills, mountains, and forests are to visitors. Though it's been said of many places on the Great Ring, in Arborea it's true: Every mountain is the highest, every forest the lushest, and every ocean deeper than can be imagined. Arborea's wilderness just doesn't quit.
The dark that visitors don't often hear is that the land itself is alive with nature spirits. Some of these are the sylvan guardians that canny travelers recognize — sprites, sylphs, dryads, and so on. The spirits of the land itself are much greater: Each river, each mountain, and each cloud has a guardian. If a sod carves a path through unspoiled terrain and then dumps his refuse in a river, the river spirit's sure to react. The reaction varies from place to place, though the wilder the terrain, the stronger the backlash. A river may flow backward, or disappear entirely. An offended wood spirit may shift entire groves around while the traveler sleeps, making landmarks unreliable. None of these resembles the creature they're addressing, though it's an odd thing to see a forest take the form of a githzerai, with leafy hair, twiggy fingers, and eyes of clear sap.
In the wildest regions, a clever basher can find plentiful food, if she knows where to look. If a bush flowers, chances are that it'll bear edible fruit. Primes say that they've never seen bounty like that of Arborea back on their home plane. And it's true that the fish are enormous, the game is plentiful and trusting, and there are almost always fat hares and thick-furred foxes in trapper's snares. But then, clueless primes are easily impressed.
Arborea is much more bountiful than most planes, and even a city berk from Sigil can live off the land here. All it takes is hands to pluck the berries from the shrubs and the will to climb the trees to reach the fruit. The streams are brimming with immense fish (though they're wily and take skill to catch), and the meadows are replete with herds of red deer and elk. All this bounty doesn't mean that the petitioners don't farm; they need grain and hay for their livestock, and likewise the best and largest fruit and vegetables are easier grown than gathered. Petitioners strive to outdo each other, but their prize animals and most impressive vegetables are usu-ally sacrificed to the powers, to avoid their wrath. Arboreans eat heartily, and the mobs of Sigil fight over the scraps and leftovers that the merchants send through the Outland gate-town of Sylvania. Arborea's reputation as a rich plane is well deserved, but the inhabitants like to claim the credit for themselves.
Arborea's the "breadbasket" of the Outer Planes, supplying grains, vegetables, and stranger nourishment (ram's blood, oak sap wine, fermented fish, and so on) to the many races of Sigil. Arborea's reputation for first-quality foodstuffs comes partly from its natural fertile climate, and partly from the belief that the Sensates know what's best. Most addle-coves don't stop to think - the Sensates eat Arborean food because they live in Arborea. But because most berks are gullible, lots of merchants hawk their goods as Arborean. This is absolute rot. Cabbages are sold as "pure Arborean" even if they've just been carted in from the Outlands. If all the rations sold as "pure Arborean" were the true goods, no portals would have room for planewalkers, and Sylvania would be nothing but a trough of foodstuffs (which isn't that far from the truth). 'Course, as long as a basher's bread isn't made with poison grain from the Gray Waste, it doesn't matter, but since even the merchants of the Lower Planes sell "pure Arborean," the poor sod never knows until it's too late.

Magical Conditions

Arborea's kinder to mages than a lot of the Outer Planes, provided they respect the nature of the plane. Those berks who don't soon learn that the backlash can be worse than not casting a spell at all.

CONJURATION/SUMMONING

Except in the realm of Amun-thys, all the layers of Arborea are beholden to nature spirits; these spirits answer the magical calls of monster summoning spells. Attempts to summon fiends or other Lower Planar creatures such as nightmares or spectral steeds bring down the wrath of the Furies on the transgressors.

DIVINATION

Divination is a respected art throughout Arborea, but it requires props. No divination magic can be performed without entrails to read, omens to interpret, or signs and portents drawn from the stars. As a result, all casting times are increased by 1 round per level of the spell.

ENCHANTMENT/CHARM

Arborea is a land of deep emotions and powerful curses, loves, and hatreds. All enchantment/charm spells related to emotions, from fear to charm person, from friends to emotion, are more effective on the plane, with saving throws at a -4 penalty. All durations on such spells are doubled.
However, the increased emotional power in Arborea carries the risk of a backlash. On an unadjusted saving throw roll of 1-4, the target attacks the caster in a berserk rage, with +2 to attack and damage rolls. The attacks continue until the caster is dead or until the target suffers damage, at which point he usually flees.
Enchantments and charms without an emotional component - spells such as sleep, deeppockets, enchanted weapon, and shadow walk - work normally.

NECROMANCY

Necromancy is on shaky ground everywhere in Arborea, a vigorous plane with little patience for tampering with the natural processes. Negative forms of necromancy (those involving death or the undead) don't function here; positive healing spells function normally in most areas, though specific exceptions are described below.
and isn't permitted to others without her approval and without the sacrifice to her of a fatted black calf, sheep, or pig which serves as a spell key. Unfortunately, Hecate is a cruel mistress, harsher than the factol of the Bleak Cabal, and with a keener sense of irony. She approves necromancy only for evil purposes, though most of the creatures and visitors to the realm are good. The elven pantheon forbids necromancy almost entirely within Arvandor, but it functions sporadically at the whim of Labelas and Corellon, the powers most closely associated with elven life and death. Followers of these two powers have a chance of success depending on the degree of their devotion, lO°/o per level of the caster. Even priestly necromantic magic is affected in Arvandor: reincarnation is possible in Arvandor, but raise dead and resurrection spells are not.

ELEMENTAL

The elements are inaccessible from Arborea, except for air magics in Arvandor (which Aerdrie Faenya makes possible) and water magics on the second layer of Ossa (where the number of conduits to the plane of Water makes this possible). All other elemental magic simply doesn't function without a key.

SPELL KEYS

Spell keys in Arborea take the form of ritual offerings to the earth and nature spirits that make the spells function. Wine, oat cakes, milk, gold, olive oil, unblemished animals, and a mage's blood are typical offerings that make normal magic possible. Unfortunately, each school and sometimes each spell has its own offering that serves as a key. Each of the major spell schools is listed below, with typical keys required as sacrifices for low, mid-, and high-level spells.

• CONJURATION/SUMMONING spells often require a bit of food for the creatures summoned using low-level spells. Mid-level spells require a carved image of the desired creature. High-level spells require the caster to speak the language of the summoned creature. Spells that conjure forces rather than creatures function normally.
• DIVINATION spells require an inanimate offering (such as gold, wine, or gems) for low-level spells. Midlevel spells require an animate spell key, though such a sacrifice might be freed doves rather than a slain enemy or a goat's liver. High-level spell keys require a particularly valued item from the caster, such as a wedding band, magical item, sacred item, or the like.
• ENCHANTMENT/CHARM spell keys are broad but sometimes demanding. To cast a low-level spell, the caster must tell a joke, pose a riddle, or otherwise capture the target's attention (puns are considered bad form) before casting the spell. Mid-level spells require that the caster knows the names of her targets. Group names are sufficient for group-affecting spells, so knowing the name of the Scarlet Leaf centaur tribe is enough to use mass suggestion on them. High-level spell keys require the offering of something desired by the target creature.
• NECROMANCY usually requires a few dark gems for low-level spells; a small goblet of tree sap, fresh blood, or some other life-giving liquid for mid-level spells; and pure life energy for high-level spells.
• ELEMENTAL spells require a gift of the opposite element as a spell key, and these gifts become correspondingly larger as the elemental spells themselves grow more powerful. For instance, a burning hands spell would require offering a bucket of water, while a transmute dust to water might require a small forest fire to balance the flooding.

POWER KEYS

The powers of Arborea hand out power keys with wild abandon, and their favorites carry many. Likewise, power keys are revoked at the merest whim, and many are only intended to exist for the duration of a single adventure or trip. Power keys from the Greek gods are usually reminders of that god's favorite colors, triumphs, or symbols (sandals from Hermes, an owl feather from Athena, a bloody spear from Ares, and so on) and they're not easily hidden or disguised.
The power keys of the elven gods (collectively known as the Seldarine) are more subtle, though just as effective. They're usually part of the natural world, like staves that still sprout green leaves, ever-blooming flowers, or even a gust of bottled wind that is released a bit at a time. Crowns of laurel, robes of feathers, herbal infusions, and common minerals carved into ritual shapes like pipes, blades, and chalices are other typical power keys in Arvandor.

INHABITANTS

Arborea's a land of huge appetites and broad emotions, a land more of melodrama than restraint. At the same time, it's bound by ancient traditions and superstitions, codes of conduct and respect that no one dares violate. The powers constantly feud among themselves, and they're not ashamed to use their followers as pawns against one another. Some addle-coves might be flattered that their powers devote such personal attention to them, but they're the sort of idiots who disappear in the realms or die an early, martyr's death.
To avoid the attentions of the powers, the inhabitants of Arborea have created elaborate rituals and tributes designed to appease them. These rituals include libations poured from every cup onto the ground, animals sacrificed at midsummer and midwinter, and offerings of gold, perfumes, and spices designed to distract the powers from the affairs of their worshippers
Since even these rituals don't always keep the powers from interfering in the lives of the inhabitants, the denizens live lives of hedonism, quick fixes, and no restraint. Lots of bashers think it's because Arborea is the home of the Sensates, but that's only half the chant. After all, the curses of the powers can bring about tragic conclusions, including such ugly ends as exile, slavery, patricide, and blindness. Comparing oneself favorably to the gods, failing to make a sacrifice, offering an insufficient sacrifice, breaking an oath — all these things have consequences. Sad truth is, any sod can make a mistake, but in Arborea the powers might hold it against him. That's chaos, but it ain't pretty.

THE POWERS

Long ago, the layers of Arborea were the province of the powers of the titans and the giants, now exiled to Carceri and Ysgard. Two great pantheons moved into town and threw the old lot out. The first to arrive were the deities of the elves, a group of thin, tiny, sickly looking creatures beside the robust giants. Under their high-up man, Corellon Larethian, they challenged the giants and took the plane in a titanic battle (pardon the pun). The giants fled to the lands of Ysgard that the elves had abandoned. Don't make as much sense as it might, but that's the dark of it.
One of the giants remained. Iallanis, the gentle goddess of good-aligned giants, stayed at the hearthside when her brothers went to war. The glory-seeking elven gods didn't toss her out when they drove the others out, but they don't much respect her either.
The Olympians were later arrivals. Stormy, violent, Lusty, and half-mad for power, they threw the greater titans (their forefathers) off Mount Olympus and into the prison-plane of Carceri. They've been breeding halfpowers and new gods ever since, which is the bad news, but they've also been opening conduits to many primematerial worlds, which is the good news. The pantheon has even embraced Nebelun, the gnome tinker-wanderer, who's recently camped in Hephaestus's workshop.
See two things and look for the third. Well, if there is a third pantheon making its home in Arborea, no one knows it. Several lesser powers make their realms here, though, including Nephythys, the goddess of wealth, whose realm lies on the dusty third layer of Pelion.
Syranita, goddess of the aarakocra, is a close ally of Aerdrie Faenya. They share an entirely aerial realm that exists on the border of Ysgard and Arborea; it consists of clouds, floating two-crowned trees, and flying islands. They fly out of their realm into either of the two planes.
Arborea is also home to Chih-Nii, the goddess of spinners and weavers. The very shy daughter of Shangti, lord of the Celestial Bureaucracy, has no realm of her own. Instead she prefers to dwell among the bariaur, tending sheep and silkworms and looking after starcrossed lovers.
Three gods of Toril have a realm here as well: Sune (called Firehair, a great favorite with Sensates), Tymora (goddess of luck), and Llira (goddess of happiness and freedom). They share a single realm, a rowdy place called Brightwater.

THE PROXIES

The Seldarine and the Olympians both have their preferred proxies. The Olympians call on the Furies and their heroic offspring like Hercules and Theseus. For lesser missions they call on the ashira, dryads, satyrs, and sirines. Powers such as Apollo, Ares, and Athena favor per and solars.
The Seldarine sometimes call on agathinon, asuras, and ancient treants as their servants. More commonly, their agents are the creatures of the Seelie Court, such as the many races of sprites, brownies, faerie dragons, dryads, and korred. If trickery and stealth can accomplish their goals, they use them. If force is required, the servants of the Seldarine are sudden, overwhelming, and as utterly ruthless as Nature herself.

THE PETITIONERS

Arborea's petitioners are as varied as the trees in a forest. They include almost all the sylvan races, from centaurs, elves, gnomes, and humans to satyrs, nixies, and harpies. They are the commoners of the plane, tending to the good of the woodlands and meadows. Though not as wild as the Beastlands, Arborea still has many ancient groves in need of care. The Arborean petitioners treat this work with as much diligence and concern as peasants treat their crops elsewhere. Petitioners in Arborea don't always stay petitioners until they merge with the plane. Some of them are transformed into bacchae, the capering halfmad mobs of pleasure and destruction that roam the countryside with a continual, movable celebration. What turns them from the one to the other isn't known, but the infectious magic of music and dance is known to either trigger or be symptoms of the process. The other powers blame the creation of the bacchae on Dionysus, though Pan the woodland god is sometimes named as well. Whatever their origins, they're a danger to all travelers, especially those planars who are addled enough to provoke them - and most anything provokes them: failing to offer them wine, failure to have wine to steal, offering them inferior wine, or failing to be as joyous and drunk as they are. Philosophers of Thrassos and the Guvners still argue about whether petitioners who become bacchae ever regain their normal form. 'Course, what really matters is that they lost it in the first place. A basher should just be grateful that no planar's ever become one against his will - that anyone knows about, anyway.

THE SOCIETY OF SENSATION

The Sensates have more of a presence here than most of the other factions have on their primary plane of influence. Mostly, that's because Arborea is too beautiful, too perfect, for the Sensates to stay away. In addition to the constant revelry at the Gilded Hall (see The Travelogue), the Sensates are among the primary artisans, collectors, and merchants on the plane.
The factol of the Sensates is usually too involved in Sigil's politics to allow her to visit the Sensates' hall. When Erin Darkflame Montgomery does grace the Gilded Hall with her presence, it's only to make sure her position's secure. But for the Sensates it's a better excuse for a party than most; only a complete addle-cove would miss the chance to hobnob with the most powerful woman in Sigil (barring the Lady of Pain, of course).
The Children of the Vine are an offshoot of the Sensates particular to the plane of Arborea: They believe nothing should be denied, no impulse should be resisted, and even the most fleeting whim has merit equal to the great ponderings of sages. Unlike the majority of the Sensates, they don't believe in perfect experiences, in art, or in love; they consider these contrived and meaningless. The Children are always blissfully happy, drunk, and dancing. When they are most deranged they feel they are most at peace with the universe; they believe that only be denying themselves nothing can they gain everything, a crass but simple philosophy. Satyrs, nymphs, bacchae, and dissolute bubbers make up the majority of their followers.

OTHER ENCOUNTERS

The most common encounters are the creatures from Greek and elven legends. Medusae, gorgons, chimerae, titans, giant eagles, pegasi, harpies, cyclopes and their kin, and sphinxes are all common enough. Lions, bulls, wolves, serpents, hawks, and boars are more common than the legendary creatures, as are the giant versions of their kind. These giants among animals are no more aggressive than the usual variety, and thry leave most groups of petitioners and planars alone.
There are the rare and powerful creatures that lord it over vast regions, areas so large that they're nearly realms unto themselves. The balaena are plentiful in Oceanus, which serves as their winter feeding ground. They are more common as modes of transport in the second layer of the plane, but they can be found along the coasts of the first. 'Course, none live on the arid third layer of Arborea.
Entire herds of buraq roam the plains and lush meadows, and their taste for orchard fruit is notorious. A basher can hear their hooves pounding the earth from miles away. Legends say that the buraq were once ordinary horses that stole apples from Idun's garden in Ysgard. If a herd of horses knew how to play the cross-trade that well, they've certainly kept the way of it dark since then.
Greater titans still dwell in the hinterlands (after all, the plane is infinite), nursing their grudges against the Olympians or (in a few cases) totally oblivious that many of their fellows have been cast into Carceri.
Celestial lammasu, devas (aasimon), einheriar, and foo creatures roam the plane, but tend to keep to themselves unless called to act as a proxy for one power or another.

ARB0REAS LAYERS

Arborea has three layers, though the topmost is the one every berk remembers, and the one named after the plane's loudest realm. The others aren't easy to get to, and few travelers go to the trouble. Ossa, the second layer, is a water realm that few travelers can navigate. The third, Pelion, is a realm of sand and dust, where nothing grows and is rumored to contain only dead gods.

Alternative Name(s)

Olympian Glades of Arborea

Type

Dimensional plane

Included Locations

• Arvandor (Layer)