The Ethereal Plane
The Ethereal Plane is a misty, fog-bound dimension. Its "shores," called the Border Ethereal, overlap the Material Plane, its echos and the Inner Planes, so that every location on those planes has a corresponding location on the Ethereal Plane. Visibility in the Border Ethereal is limited to can vary from 60 to 120 feet. The plane's depths comprise a region of swirling mist and fog called the Deep Ethereal, where visibility is limited to 30 feet.
Characters can use the etherealness spell to enter the Border Ethereal. The plane shift spell allows transport to the Border Ethereal or the Deep Ethereal, but unless the intended destination is a specific location or a teleportation circle, the point of arrival could be anywhere on the plane.
Geography
The Border Ethereal
From the Border Ethereal, a traveler can see into whatever plane it overlaps, but that plane appears muted and indistinct, its colors blurring into each other and its edges turning fuzzy. Ethereal denizens watch the plane as though peering through distorted and frosted glass, and can't see anything beyond 30 feet into the other plane. Conversely, the Ethereal Plane is usually invisible to those on the overlapped planes, except with the aid of magic. Normally, creatures in the Border Ethereal can't attack creatures on the overlapped plane, and vice versa. A traveler on the Ethereal Plane is invisible and utterly silent to someone on the overlapped plane, and solid objects on the overlapped plane don't hamper the movement of a creature in the Border Ethereal. The exceptions are certain magical effects (including anything made of magical force) and living beings. This makes the Ethereal Plane ideal for reconnaissance, spying on opponents, and moving around without being detected. The Ethereal Plane also disobeys the laws of gravity; a creature there can move up and down as easily as walking.The Deep Ethereal
To reach the Deep Ethereal, one needs a plane shift spell or arrive by means of a gate spell or magical portal. Visitors to the Deep Ethereal are engulfed by roiling mist. Scattered throughout the plane are curtains of vaporous color, and passing through a curtain leads a traveler to a region of the Border Ethereal connected to a specific Inner Plane, the Material Plane, the Feywild, or the Shadowfell. The color of the curtain indicates the plane whose Border Ethereal the curtain conceals Traveling through the Deep Ethereal to journey from one plane to another is unlike physical travel. Distance is meaningless, so although travelers feel as if they can move by a simple act of will, it's impossible to measure speed and hard to track the passage of time. A trip between planes through the Deep Ethereal takes hours maybe days regardless of the origin and destination. In combat, however, creatures are considered to move at their normal speeds.Localized Phenomena
Ether Cyclones
An ether cyclone is a serpentine column that spins through the plane. The cyclone appears abruptly, distorting and uprooting ethereal forms in its path and carrying the debris for leagues.The Radiant Citadel
Gathering Place of Strangers and Stories Against the unending mist and unseen terrors of the Ethereal Plane, the Radiant Citadel stands bright as a bastion of hope. It's a living relic of the ingenuity and collaboration of twenty-seven great civilizations. Abandoned and lost for ages, the Citadel was resurrected from its slumber and reclaimed by descendants of those societies, though some peoples remain missing. The city serves as a nexus of diplomacy and trade, a repository of histories and secrets, and a thriving sanctuary for those seeking safety or a better life. The Radiant Citadel is a miracle of architecture, a floating city carved out of a single, massive fossil that snakes around a colossal gemstone shard known as the Auroral Diamond. The luminescence of the Auroral Diamond is mirrored in the constellation of fifteen structure-sized gemstones, the Concord Jewels, which orbit the city and provide transportation to the far-flung homes of the Citadel's founding civilizations. In the haze of the Ethereal Plane, the Auroral Diamond is a scintillating beacon visible from leagues away. The diamond itself seems to have moods, changing colors unpredictably, but it is always visible for wanderers lost and in need. Just beyond the city whirls a massive, ever-threatening, ethereal cyclone known as the Keening Gloom—a looming threat that's a grim reminder of the Citadel's precarious position. Heroes and paupers meet on equal footing in the Radiant Citadel. By common agreement, power and resources are equitably shared. Dignity is afforded to all, and great need is met with great aid.
Type
Plane of Existence
