Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Scion of Vyshaan 10-02-03, 01:57 AM	Good day, There has been a good deal of controversy over the “new” Realms cosmology, and while my own reaction was initially to ignore it, I have recently decided that the various planes of the Forgotten Realm really only need a more in depth look “in character.” Part of what many people love about the Great Ring cosmology is that it has been very fleshed out over the last twenty years, but I think that with a little bit of description, the planes of Faerun can bring a mystery and danger that the more familiar D&D cosmology lacks. To do this, I am going to write a serious of treatises written by a Faerunian plane-walker, and given over to Candlekeep. I hope that you enjoy my work, and invite anyone to comment on it. These won’t be an attempt to define what the cosmology is, only provide story-hooks and show what an experienced and adventuresome wizard might think upon interacting with planar phenomenon in the Realm. I also think, that if you enjoy it, it would be fun to have a pseudo-scholarly debate “in character,” where the views in these fictional treatises are opposed or supported by other plane-walkers of Faerun. Without further out of character introduction, I’ll start…. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ In the winter of the Year of the Wild Magic, the halls of Candlekeep received a rather unusual visitor by the name of Vestele of the Western Fire, and Sun Elf and Incantatrix who is believed to be part of a small (now defunct) cabal of incantifiers known as the Tower of the Western Fire. Regardless, the Lady Wizard’s claims, if they should bear true, would place her among the most traveled plane-walkers in the recent history of the Realms, and by far one of the most brilliant. Unlike most who slip between the infinite worlds of gods and elements, this elf possess a keen grasp of theory, and managed to pen several short treatises expanding our knowledge of what is called “the planar cosmology.” Whilst efforts are underway to collect these musings in a more formal text, the Keeper of the Tomes has bid me make the raw words available to you, visitors of Candlekeep, lest their insights be held from those who might use them the most. Our first treatise details the nature and role of the Plane of Shadow, and muses upon the nature of the transient realms… “While I had, on occasion, traveled purposely within the Realm of Shadow, for reasons primarily relating to the expeditious nature of such travel on our own realm of Toril, I have only made one true trek to the deepest parts of Shade. Like my other journeys, more pragmatic concerns motivated me to do this, primarily my investigation into the Malaugrym and their interlopers to our reality. This is not, however, a detailed account of this interaction, but rather an analysis of what the Plane of Shadow truly is, and how it relates to our cosmology. That is to say, to consider the Plane of Shadow to be a mere realm of darkness is to ignore the dangerous truth: that the beings that are not illuminated by physics of the elements or the spirits of the gods can still be reached through the emptiness that is shadow. “Like the Border and Deep Ethereal or the Realms Astral, the Realm of Shadow is what sages of yore refer to as a “transitive plane.” While I personally abhor this term as inaccurate, I will continue to use it for the sake of clarity: I understand that most who read this are more interested in practical knowledge than esoteric debate. The term “transitive” is usually applied to planes that are neither “elemental” or “inner” planes, that is, composed of physical matter and energy, unformed by ideas or will, and “spiritual” or “outer” planes, which give form and function to the raw materials of the elements. The thought behind the word “transitive” derives from the many spells that allow access through these realms, they are not true transitions: they are full and complete essences of reality in their own right, not roads or paths between our world and that of Mystra, Kossuth, or the City of Brass. In fact, each “Transitive” plane is tied to how our reality is sculpted, and intrinsically tied with how other planes interact with ours. “My personal belief is that each such plane is an action: a verb that can be entered, if you will. The Ethereal Plane (or Planes, but that is a topic for another day), are the act of being: the simple act of existence that permeates this plane, but not necessarily others. If some is, then the Ethereal Plane is the existence. Given, this is a difficult concept, but if one accepts that the Ethereal plane is literally the being of everything in our world (but not actually anything in itself), the nature of the Ethereal becomes much clearer. (Consider the effects of Force using spells, which call into existence creations without mass or substance, only existence, which are the most tangible aspects of Ethereal space. This shows the ultimate link between pure being and the Ethereal.) Likewise, the Realm Astral is a similar concept: it is interaction. This is most obvious in the conduits it carries between the inner and outer planes, but also in the fact that only that which can act upon something else can interact with the astral: creatures of will are all that one will ever find here. Indeed, the realm itself is timeless, befitting a realm that is relationships; none make act upon action itself, and none may related directly to the astral. “Accepting this, one can understand my discovery of Shadow’s nature… that it is not just merely another set of conduits throughout the cosmos, but a state of action as well. In addition, as planar cartographers have represented for years: Shadow is the opposite of the Ethereal; it is non-existence. “I first came to this conclusion battling several wraiths on my excursion into the plane. The undead struck me as disconcerting because even in their own reality, they really seem to not exist. This epiphany remained with me my entire journey, until I had time afterwards to more closely examine it. I determined that all things of Shadow had one aspect in common: they were not of our reality. Further, the deeper one delved into Shadow, the further reality seemed to influence the plane. Unlike the Ethereal, in which a journey to the Deep would eventually (should you survive to find your way) would eventually lead back to Border Ethereal, a journey deep into Shadow only departs our reality even more. An analogy is that one moves from a relatively “comfortable” realm of nothingness, in which our world is a shade of its true self, to a point where there is no real object to have a shade, true nothingness. “This explains several things, the primary being the existence of forces and beings beyond the reality of Toril. For example, the Shadow Weave, magic outside the realm of our Lady of Mysteries, springs from the Plane of Shadow. It seems a strange conundrum, initially, that magic is possible without the Weave, which by all traditional accounts is magic. It would be like having wine made from grapes that are not grapes at all. However, if this magic were to have a different source, outside our cosmology, and be siphoned from different realms, then this alternate source now remains consistent. Perhaps the deep expanses of Shadows leads to other Realms, fantastic as it may seem, completely unrelated to our reality. There is no Waterdeep, no Candlekeep or Vestele in these Realms, as we do not exist there, as the cities and people of that Realm would not exist for us. I have heard stories of powerful mages and priests crossing over, and visiting this world, and tales of realities like ours, pure fantasy to us, but actual across the sea of Shadow. If this is true, the Shadow Weave, several types of necromantic constructs, and the Shades of the Anauroch represent a siphoning of these alternate realities into our world: parts of non-existence able to cross into our plane. Truly these must be considered a most dire and insidious threat, as they represent an assault on our very existence by dark fantasies. “On another somewhat pessimistic note, it would stand to reason that if the existence of the Ethereal is opposed by the non-existence of Shadow, so to must the connectivity of the Astral be opposed by another, Far Realm. This Far Realm must represent the ultimate in alienation and isolation, and most likely be almost unreachable and unknowable by its very nature. The Far Realm would comprise the sum of all we must never know or feel, and be totally opposed to our rational, sane minds. The impossible event of its discovery would validate my theory on the transitive planes and the Realm of Shadow in particular. However, I personally hope never to know such a place, and fear further research into such a place, as interaction with this hypothetical plane could only lead to the literally unbinding of this world, and a descent into madness. This Far Realm may best be described as that which we were not meant to know.” ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- So what do you think? The next article will be about the outer planes beyond the Gods, fleshing out what the Abyss is like in the Forgotten Realms, how much of the Demonweb Pits is actually controlled by Lloth, and what Brightwater is like between the domains of Sune and Tymora. Also, I hope to include Vestele’s theory on alignment and how it organizes the outer planes.
Scion of Vyshaan 10-02-03, 02:41 PM	The next set of thoughts of a Faerunian plane-walker ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The next treatise recorded for Candlekeep deals with planar civilizations, and the extent of a deities control over the planes of existence. “If one were to come across it on the road from Waterdeep to Luskan or anywhere else in the realms, the Inn of the Broken Banner would seem unusual, but not excessively so. It is crafted completely of sod and soft woods, with a poorly thatched roof and muddy floors, looking much more like a poor homesteader’s abode than an establishment for travelers. Still, Herig, the owner, barkeep, and sole resident of this inn will take in any traveler who crosses his threshold for any one coin that looks like it is made of metal. At any given time, Herig has about one or two boarders, sleeping in hollowed alcoves of his inn, who never stay more than a tenday. The establishment is utterly unremarkable save that Herig (according to my research on his clothing) died somewhere between four and six centuries ago in what is today the Silver Marches, and that the Inn of the Broken Banner lies outside the realm of several goddesses on the outer plane known as Brightwater. “This inn is one of hundreds of signs of mortal civilization outside the direct influence of a deity on another plane. It is also quite indicative of such societies: a small mirror of life on our own world, too small to be noticed by the powers that be, that fell through the cracks of worlds not meant to be inhabited by creatures of soul, will, and matter. “Most sages know that there are five ways of classifying the flora and flauna of the cosmos. The first is known as Prime, the people who live and love and die on Faerun, and stand at the center of reality, the conjunction of the astral. We are by far the most numerous and varied mortals, and seemingly the most important, as the smaller cultures one finds across the planes rarely account for more than a small nation, and they tend to break from their planar isolation more than we tend to seek them out. The second are known as Petitioners, the Dead, who have passed beyond their mortal life to the realm of their deity. The lot of these souls varies greatly, in accordance with the whims of their god: they may well be absorbed directly into the deity’s consciousness, or destroyed and devoured, or transformed into a rock or animal (the larvae who serve as a “currency” on several, more corrupt planes, are transfigured souls). Some however, live on in a manner not very different from mortal life, and are the ones most commonly referred to as Petitioners. The next two forms of life are quite similar, at least in form and power: the Servants of the Gods and the Immortal Planar. Both of these account for the monsters feared lurking in shadows and the angels of our gods. They are beings of great natural power and magic, the only difference being that Servants are created by deities from Petitioners, while the Immortal Planar are native sons of their home plane. The Servants would include beings such as Archons and some other Celestials such as Solars. Immortal Planar races include Daemons, Demons, and Devils (or Yugoloths, Tanar’ri, and Baatezu, as they call themselves), but also Eldarin and Guardinals, and Formorians and Slaad. These creatures capture the essence of their home planes, usually sharing a moral philosophy dictated by their homeland, and, in general, do not die. They are quite different from the Mortal Planar, which include any mortal born naturally on another plane. These include simple animals such as bears or wolves who are born, hunt, and eventually die in Silvanus’ realm, or the exceptionally rare elf actually born to Dead parents in Arvandor, to strange races that breed only on other planes, such as Bladelings, Khaasta, and Githyanki. “The actual societies in which many of these creatures live is not nearly as varied as our own mortal cultures. The majority of signs of civilization are confined to the Petitioners, who by and large are quite boring. They live precisely as their deity dictates, usually in small groups or communities that are completely self-sufficient. Also, as a divine realm can theoretically be infinite, and not all souls are rewarded with eternal self-awareness, the outer planes are very sparsely populated (at least by the Dead). There are “cities” of Petitioners, for example, the City of the Star, which lies in the heart of Lathander’s Realm in the House of Nature, but these are quite unnerving to the Prime observer, as their reality is quite skewed. In the City of Star, every individual made a point to greet every other one, as if the core of their being required them to say “hello,” and indeed, it did. Regardless of the nature of these communities, trade and interest in the realms beyond is virtually non-existent: the Dead do not travel, or even seem to understand the concept. “Still, almost all that we would recognize as culture exists within the Realm of one Deity or another, and exists only at the whims of that deity, with the notable exception of the Immortal Planar. While many such creatures serve various gods and goddesses, many dwell in their own realms, the spaces of the outer planes unclaimed by the powers that be. These societies are by far the largest gatherings on the planes, and some truly boggle the mind. I have had the unfortunate opportunity to see the Iron City of Dis, and was amazed by the fact this evil city did not seem to end: whether it was infinite or not, I cannot say. Populated by souls that the Baatezu have claimed, and bred, over the millennium, this city is also dense with all sorts of evil dealings, just as the Guardinal’s of the House of Nature have lands that overrun with actual celestial animals. Unlike the realms of deities, the Immortal Planar will interact with each other, with a limited amount of trade, but more also with hostility. Every planar scholar should know about the Blood War, and eternal battle between the Demons of the Abyss and the Devils of the Nine Hells, which may be the largest interaction of sentient creatures of all time. I will talk more of these vile races and their slaughter another time, let it suffice for now that the realms of immortal and powerful creatures should be, in general, avoided. “Which brings me to the Mortal Planar, a very difficult group to describe. First, let me discount those mortals living in Petitioner realms, this is exceptionally rare, and they do not possess a true culture apart from the deity’s will. Likewise, the difference between a planar animal, and a Petitioner forced into the form of an animal, is not of much interest to me. Instead, let us examine the gatherings of planar mortals, for here we see the closest reflection of our own world. Almost universally, these cultures are centered around a city or similar institution, and this homeland is isolated, far from any interlopers. The two personal examples of this, that I have personally visited, are Jangling Hilter, home of a race known as Kytons, and the city of the Githyanki Lich-Queen (which is representative of an outer planar city, even though it is technically part of the Astral Realm). Both of these allow for limited trade and interaction with those canny enough to find the place, although in both places I had to fight to cover my escape. Fascinating in their twisted reflection of our own cities, these places are both alien and familiar, and serve as the center for entire races (it is my belief that most planar races are very small in numbers, as compared to our own native peoples). Should I have the time and proper keys, I would much like to visit a city of a more benevolent race, but it seems that most such races have developed a disposition hostile to outsiders. “Beyond the great cities of the Githyanki and Kytons and such are mysterious races such as the Khaasta (a race of reptilian humanoids bent upon slaving) or the keepers (who’s nature is a true enigma) who are scattered across the planes. These are the creatures most likely encountered when traveling the outer planes, as the paths and ways between the divine realms are their homes. Some, like the benign Bariaur, live in small, communities that last for several generations, then move on or die out. Others, like the aforementioned Khaasta, travel in nomadic bands across the planes, and yet still others like the Keepers, seem to move in one loose pack, keeping together in roughly the same area, but never staying long. I have spent many a night studying such creatures, which will interact with you as might any strange traveler on a strange road, and they alone seem to know the ways to the larger freeholds that dot the multiverse. “These freeholds are exceptionally rare: the true planar city (or town, more appropriately). Rarely more than a few hundred people who facilitate the small amount of trade and travel of nomadic planar races and plane-walkers such as myself, a Freehold is similar to an ancient frontier town. I have been to several of these, the largest being Abergorn, a small, caved outpost tucked far from the eyes of Auril and Talos on the plane of Fury’s Heart. How a city of its size remains unnoticed, I do not know, or perhaps it is allowed to resist, regardless, many guides and services are available there that are an precious rarity elsewhere. Another, more benevolent freehold is Haven, which is nestled on the side of a mountain within eyeshot to the Arvandoran portal in the House of Nature. “While these Freeholds are amazing sources of knowledge, they are every bit as dangerous as the rest of the outer planes. These realms are not designed for mortals of any sort, they are the realm of ideas, and these ideas are pure and uncovered there, and can quickly assault and destroy the mind. Planar civilizations are a bit of “normalcy,” places where other mortal minds reinforce a certain paradigm that cast a bit of light on otherwise ineffable places. A word of warning to other plane-walkers: go not long without seeking refuge amongst your kind, or darkness that is idea without form will surely claim you." ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Next: travel on Faerun's planes
Laszlo Koller 10-27-03, 11:41 PM	Excellent work, your effort is appreciated. Please keep 'em coming.