Elysud

Home to the gods and their greatest city, cirvaedheim. The ethereal plane of existence is where all living things go when they die. Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as gods, angim, angietto, souls, alfsir, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the beliefs of some religions, heavenly beings can descend to the physical world or incarnate and earthly beings can ascend to Elysud in the afterlife or, in exceptional cases, enter Elysud alive. Elysud is often described as the "highest place," the "holiest place," or a "Paradise," in contrast to Vosculhu or the "low places" and universally or conditionally accessible by earthly beings according to various standards of divinity, goodness, piety, faith, or other virtues or right beliefs or simply divine will. Some believe in the possibility of an Elysud on Earth in a world to come. Another belief is in a world tree which connects the heavens, the physical world, and the underworld. In Einjar religions, heaven is considered as cyclical, and the soul is again subjected to rebirth in different living forms according to its light. This cycle can be broken after a soul achieves enlightenment. Any place of existence, either of humans, souls or deities, outside the tangible world (Elysud, Vosculhu, or other) is referred to as the otherworld. At least in the Arressi Church, Elysud is the realm of Afterlife where good actions in the previous life are rewarded for eternity (Vosculhu being the place where bad behavior is punished). According to the Fellowship it is merely the place in which the gods and other such beings reside. And reaching it in life is an obtainable goal. The Mauri believe the heavens to be the place where the minds of the peaceful dead sleep. And the venerated dead watch over their slumber. From here their ancestors guide them on the right path that they may one day join their ranks. In the various Murasan beliefs, the heavens are home to the bringers of life. And that upon death all life returns home. All realms that are not the physical are part of the ethereal and found somewhere within.

Geography

Elysud is a vast ethereal realm of concentric circles, each a distinct and unique region. The center is a multilayer forest of massive trees, thick with fog. The upper layer is the canopy made of tall mature trees ranging from 1000 to 2000 feet high. Below the canopy is the three layered, shade tolerant, understory that is 300 to 500 feet shorter than the canopy. The top layer of the understory is the sub-canopy composed of smaller mature trees, saplings, and suppressed juvenile canopy layer trees waiting for an opening in the canopy. Below that is the shrub layer, composed of low growing woody plants. Nearly every tree, shrub, or plant bares flowers, fruit, vegetables, or berries. The ground cover is the most diverse and extends beyond the forest into grassy hills, flat plains, and marsh as the waterlines near. Rivers and streams run through the whole landscape connecting every corner to every other. Lakes and ponds dot the un-forested areas. Beyond the grass is a muddy realm of scattered tall grass and rolling storms. Between the storms, the sun bakes the earth to a dry crust. This gives way to a sandy desert scarce with cacti. Sandy hills lead to a mountain range that rings the whole area. The rock itself is gemstone that glimmers in the sun. Passed the gemstone peaks are black stone mountains that guard the entrance to a volcanic land of ashen ground, acid rain, and sulfuric air. Volcanoes dot the surface, spewing more toxic fumes endlessly into the sky. A realm of constant decay full of predation. Caves dot the landscape leading to a tunnel network that crosses the entirety. A once great forest lies among the ruins, decaying and being feasted upon. At the edge of the decayed forest is a grand cliff with a steep thousand foot drop. Scarce water and rarer grass line the bottom. A long desolate span leads to a cold dreary plain of constant rain and shrieking winds. Intermittent bouts of sleet and hail break up the day as frozen tundra takes hold of the land. A river of liquid nitrogen flows through the land, a petrified forest of frozen bodies line its banks. Dotting the landscape are frozen volcanoes spewing liquid nitrogen into the sky. Deep into the frozen waste lies a chain of mountains whose snow capped peaks lead to an endless plateau. They say Vosculhu lies in the distance.

Alternative Name(s)

Otherworld, Heavens, Ethereal plane, Paradise, Highest Place, Holiest Place

Type

Dimensional plane

Included Locations