Author Topic: A Full Cosmology  (Read 1511 times)

Offline PlzBreakMyCampaign

  • Honorary Mod
  • *****
  • Posts: 1962
  • Immune to Critical Hits as a Fairness Elemental
    • View Profile
A Full Cosmology
« on: September 29, 2018, 07:34:00 PM »
I'm going to save you from having to read the most difficult D&D source book: Manual of the Planes. Or if you're brave enough, read along with my notes. They presented in order. I'm assuming you already realize how the cosmology is finite. In game, showing the known multiverse that it isn't infinite is merely a matter of one guy going to each layer's extremes and then building portals to show other creatures. Unfortunately in order to maintain such an exhibit, large amount of power would be required to make sure all the visitors played nicely. Only after these three stipulations were met would the below matter. The information could be seeded from Sigil and therefore the rest of the planes.

Outside of the Prime(s), spells that connect to the ethereal don't work: ethereal jaunt, secret chest, etc.
Outside of the Astral, Prime(s), or plane of shadow, all illusion (shadow) spells don't work. You can't shadowwalk on the plane of air, for instance.
If you are somewhere (probably very dangerous) without access to the astral plane, you can't plane shift, (summon), or (teleport) even with teleportation circles. Wish et al still works, though.

Without the inner planes, spells that reference these planes don't work. This include elemental summoning (unless you have enough pure, nonmagical, mass to justify the creation) or weird ones like elemental body.

Of the 2737 planes here is how they would (finitely) stack up (alone with the 3 mentioned demiplanes):

The Material plane (the prime) is just Oerth and the solar system or firmament. It's very special but small.

The Plane of Shadow is the space between any alternate material planes.
The Ethereal plane is as big as the material. The Deep Ethereal just adds some volume perhaps near the astral.
The (Channeled) Astral plane is the largest because it is just the space permeating the planes. See the Far Realm.

Since the 6 inner planes all have 3 physical connections to each other, it doesn't make sense for them to be infinite. If you take the great wheel literally (which is a valid interpretation, more so now than ever) they would be similar in size than the more interesting outer planes since the span of three of them is about half of the wheel.

The 17 outer planes' first layers have 2 connections to other first layers. They occasionally have physical connections, so the idea of infinite directions still doesn't make sense here without placing awkward restraints (ie. the river styx just happens to flow through directions that are finite, but the other sides are infinite). In order, the outer planes have the following number of layers: 1,1,1,2,2,3,3,3,3,4,4,4,4,6,7,9,666.

The reason that the Abyss is said to be infinite is again its lack of exploration due to its extremely powerful, aggressive territorial disputed rulers along with the shear inhospitality and high number of layers. Phrases like "look up visitors as food", "insanely dangerous", and "stranded" are common. You'll notice no one has ever managed to go straight down even 15 layers. Of the 666 layers, only 97 have been discovered by currently semi-civilized beings.

The direct connections and the 17th plane connecting to the other 16 in a circle happens only for first layer. The Outlands is finite despite its distance distortion. It is about as small as any other plane (but almost impossible to measure due to the distortion) rather than as large as the astral because its connections are portal/barrier-like rather than physical, distance relations.

Demiplanes are already finite and attached to at least one other regular plane in at least one spot. They don't have to have physical access and planeshift doesn't work unless one is at such a spot. They don't have transitive planes coexisting in them, even when attached to them. The exception is certain demiplanes with an impeded connection to the astral.

Fog / mists are often used to physically boarder Prime-attached demiplanes (ravenloft, cough cough). Neth is off of the Astral. The observatorium is coterminous with the Plane of Shadow, prefers the astral, has its own ethereal, and can view & connect to any inner or outer plane and atleast view morphic planes, demiplanes, or dead magic planes. It requires a Know(planes) DC30 and makes a scrying sensor that int12 creatures notice with an int DC20 check.

To use the observatorium, you'll probably have to go all RPG and avoid the Will DC30 Wis damage every hour while solving the following quests: Learn of the above from mercenaries and let them go first, separate/unprioritize the researchers from those attempting to seize control, help the githyanki find their illithid target, manipulate the group of fiends into fighting among themselves before finishing them off, stay away from the astral plane's astral dreadnaughts, and leave the original creators in charge.

Common ground is where cataclysmic avoidance would happen. Assuming you aren't a unique or epic level monster, to enter you have to be immune to death of old age and have (multiple) epic level spells. Then you just find it in the astral plane and planeshift. Since epic spell immunity isn't special among the planes, the only other interesting facet after the idolcide is that it is an open secret for powerful characters: those who are powerful enough to find it will, and those who haven't met the bar won't be able to enter.

The Plane/Region of Dreams is finite because there are not infinite sentient creatures inside the multiverse (because there is no infinite space to house infinite creatures). Physical portals are rare but possible. Nothing there is real except memories, but it's still a bad communication medium due to eavesdropping and extreme danger of being pulled into the Dreamheart which blocks being res'd.

The Plane of mirrors is a variable layer finite plane based off the total number of mirrors in the multiverse. If variable-boarder planes like limbo shrink when there is nothing to occupy the space, it makes sense that old, inaccessible constellations would cease to exist once they are no longer inhabited. You also don't want to stay long because you'll kill yourself, literally.

The spirit world [less than one page on MotP 206] isn't used because it's a cheap replacement for the deep ethereal leading into the astral. If you really want it, it functions better as a demiplane of Manifest [GhW].

The Juncture of the elemental planes of Air and Water is the elemental plane of Cold (just like the positive energy plane is at juncture of fire and air). The elemental plane of Wood would be between water and earth (just like the negative energy plane is at juncture of fire and earth). The plane of metal would just be the bottom of the plane of earth. Like all the others, this one is finite for the same boundary reasons.

If there had to be a top to the energy planes, it would be the Temporal Plane. High level abilities are required to get a breather from the "eternal madness of the storm" which isn't actually wind or weather. Even if you save, the d6 subdual per round adds up. Up to 120' in a round is required for up to x number of days to go back x number of rounds, assuming you know the right direction (which no one does). Of course you could overshoot and end up 3600 times further back in time than you wanted, so it's not precise at all. Loops basically leave you SoL unless you blow everything up or complete a quest you don't understand. God is the source, or if your DM hates you, just another way into the Far Realm. This plane definitely has a source, but like the whole numbers it could be infinite. But the period (aka length) describing your normal kind of time is certainly finite.

The Plane of Faerie is a plane connecting everywhere at (and about as big as) the prime. Its nastier traits make you lose 2 weeks for every hour spent. After a day you've eaten or drank there (without food a human would be about dead of hunger and certainly dead of thirst) it also has Will DC10+days spent or you're an amnesiac unwilling to leave. Normal portals are time based up to every 90 days, although the more accessible version has portals with certain outer planes.

The real limit on the Astral plane is the Far Realms which is the madness outside the multiverse. It has a variable number of planes all of finite size. Since it has to have an inside surface area (remembering the geometry doesn't make sense in the Far Realm) as large as the outer edges of the astral plane, it's likely the largest plane of all. Note that a static, infinite time can be displayed as a point spacially, so the size of the far realms doesn't place any limits on the duration of time in the multiverse.

The number of its layers is probably not countable, though it doesn't have to be infinite. Normally layers are represented by counting numbers, but they could be fractional in the far realms. If it were a finite amount, the total would be constantly changing anyway, even assuming you could were powerful enough to get a full, snapshot. Again, remember that the far realms is outside time so it's not necessarily consistent as to what counts and doesn't count for said snapshot. Basically it's all insane, so trying to attribute infinity to it might not even be an answerable question. Still, it's possible that the plane could be finite. We'll keep it that way.

Myriad planes are just another tool to interpret the great wheel. It explains why planes merge slowly and why uninhabited planes disappear. It explains why the inner planes are nearer to the prime. The 'normal' ethereal can be used for the deep ethereal and make sense given the closeness to the astral. Since it gives no method of reaching the plane of magic, it provides another way, in the fluff, to throw out 9th level spells. We aren't throwing out the astral just to use the bubble analogy, though.

The Doppel Material plane is accessible through the plane of shadow and has its own ethereal plane. You don't need to consolidate the inner planes. It does explain the astral as a 'filler' between the other planes, though. Most portals to the "fake" prime through the plane of shadow and away from your "real" prime are underground. Powerful people know of the doppel world, shadow templated red dragons made of shadowstuff hunt those on the wrong side (even if put there as a prank), and you've got another possibility to go there instead of the astral when trying to break the dimensions with nondimensional & extradimensional items.

Orrery planar relations allow for 'ascendant' nearby planes for seasons, but make more sense with the myriad bubble model than with a planetary system model. It does allow for occasional teleportation rather than plane-shifting. The generic outer planes are not useful, so throw out the golden halls or whatever. The name for the Doppel Material of "Nemesis" and its 1000 year invasion cycle is interesting.

Nothing from the winding road is useful aside form some random plane trait rolling tables.

The World Serpend Inn (demi)plane has its own ethereal and connects with various planes at various times. Unless you want to allow a tier up from a quantum fighter (quantum monk or wizard or any class), you should not have Mitchifer or his owner exist. It can just be a front room that slowly takes requests in random order.

There. That's how to use the MotP all at once without conflicting rules. It is canon after all.

Offline SorO_Lost

  • Epic Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 7197
  • Banned
    • View Profile
Re: A Full Cosmology
« Reply #1 on: September 29, 2018, 08:18:42 PM »
I'm going to save you from having to read the most difficult D&D source book: Manual of the Planes.
By explaining them in two thousand words.

All well, thank Pelor you didn't punch a hole through a piece of paper or use the word "tesseract"

Offline PlzBreakMyCampaign

  • Honorary Mod
  • *****
  • Posts: 1962
  • Immune to Critical Hits as a Fairness Elemental
    • View Profile
Re: A Full Cosmology
« Reply #2 on: October 07, 2018, 09:38:19 PM »
222 pages -> 2 sounds about right.

You find those moments cringe-worthy in movies, too eh?