The Dreamscape is a multi-tiered realm made of 3 planes that collide together to create cohesive land. Formed from the Dreamlands, the Mirror Realm, and the Thought Expanse, the Dreamscape is a land where the mind reigns supreme and many of its attributes operate similar to that of the Astral Plane. Some believe the Dreamscape was created by the gods to instill mind and thought into mortals, while others believe it is a naturally occuring realm due to the existence of thoughts and dreams.
Realm Spotlight
Like the Astral Plane, the Dreamscape is a land ruled by the thoughts and minds of those who traverse it. Food, drink, air, or sleep is not required within this realm and those that visit here can move themselves freely through aspects of their mind. Difficulty lies in the power of the mind, for those unskilled in using it they will find it hard to use aspects of their abilities such as physical attacks. Wizards and Psionic classes find this realm very easy to work with as their powers manifest best here.
The Dreamscape appears to be a galactic expanse when viewed from a distance, three spiraling tails of thought, mirror, and dream collide together into a swirling mess of the mind at the very center. It is this complexity that can make it difficult to navigate the realm as one flitters from the possible to the concrete, from the concrete to the observed, and from the observed to the romatic. Unlike other realms, little danger exists for those here as the mind naturally defends and protects itself against possible threats.
Land of Dreams
Entering the Land of Dreams is an experience few beings can place into words. Here, reality is not only mutable, but ever shifting. A young girls dreams of unicorns collide with a warriors nightmares of battle. Imagined super structures mesh with pristine landscapes and ever filling cities. The Land of Dreams is a plane of infinite possibility and diversity that can draw even the most stalwart in for eons. If one can learn to navigate this plane well, it is possible to find individual dreams and even influence them. Magic is chaotic at best here and even using spells designed to locate creatures may just lead you to someones romantic fantasy of them.
For all the wonder and beauty that the Land of Dreams can offer, there is a dark secret held within its cotton candy veil. The Lady of Dark Moons, Amaeus Tuval makes her home deep within the core of this ever filling landscape. A powerful practioner of the arcane arts, she weaves nightmares into minds and provides sweet release if they join her side. From the Nightmare Fortress she provides visions to her followers in their dreams and enhances their minds to the forbidden tasks she undertakes.
Land of Mirrors
Mirrors hold their own magic, one that few people have even begun to understand. The Land of Mirrors is a plane of boundless connection and passage. Like the Astral Realm, it acts as a bridge to many lands and many worlds. Wherever there is a reflection, there is a connection to the Land of Mirrors. This not only makes this realm a powerful location for one who could harness it, but a very dangerous location for one who would exploit it. Upon entering this plane, one is greeted with a black expanse, glittered by thousands upon thousands of small lights. Approaching a light reveals them to be mirrors, millions upon millions of mirrors from all across the multiverse. Learning to travel this land is difficult and requires knowledge and practice. But successfully doing so can allow an entirely new form of travel, one that opens many dangerous doors.
Due in part to the danger that exists here, but just as much to the possibility, Unisial makes his home here in the Mirror-Guard Keep. A massive structure of polished silver that rests somewhere in the land, Unisial uses this land as a place of continuous training and the prime focus of his vigilant watch. Those would come to the Land of Mirrors to exploit its power will quickly earn the ire of the God of Prowess and Skill.
Thought Expanse
Of the three lands that exist within the Dreamscape, the most difficult to comprehend is the Thought Expanse. Seemingly infinite and yet no bigger than a single bed tavern room; the Thought Expanse is blank to the eyes, lacking any smell, and providing no taste or touch that can be described. What it has in abundance is noise. A deafening cacophany of infinite sounds in a myriad of languages. Every conversation one has in their head, every worry or concern, every prepared speech, and every bit of learning done; all of these sounds occur here from across the 12 realms; all at once. To enter this landto hear whispers and shouts, to hear professions of love and lamentations of depression, to experience great historic speaches and every baleful surrender, all simultaniously and all without filter.
Many have tried to tap into the Thought Expanse, to seperat the endless streams of noise and maybe find one single thought. Some lost piece of information or critical flaw in an enemy. None have been successful as there is no end to one thought nor a beginning to another. What has been successful is attempting to reclass one individual. The Expanse will gladly shift from all voices to a single persons, though it is still all of their thoughts simultaniously.
Traveling to the Dreamscape
the Dreamscape is an extremely difficult realm to travel to; a creature must make their way through the roots of the Great Tree and enter the realm through its mirror portal. Only once this travel is made can one plane shift here using a Tuning Fork. It is possible for some spells to allow limited glimpses through this realm, but only through physical travel can one make their way here in a substantial sense. It is this difficulty of travel that leads some to believe that the realm is not meant for mortals, but as a means for the gods to influence and affect the other realms.
The Nightmare Fortress
The elusive lair of the Dark Moons Queen, the Nightmare Fortress is an ever-shifting structure whose total exploration many believe to be impossible. Moving from dream to dream, Amaeus Tuval created a base that only she can allow entry to and only she knows of its exact location. Those who have seen it have described everything from a dark and forboding castle to a small cottage surrounded by a lush garden.
The most common of visitors to the Nightmare Fortress are those dedicated in service to the Dark Moons Queen. Most often this is clerics, warlocks, or annointed blackguards who believe completely in her dominion. To these followers, the Nightmare Fortress will apear as a calming location or one of importance from their past. To those who have pleased her greatly, Amaeus Tuval will appear directly in their dreams, leaving the sanctity of her lair and traveling directly to them. Some believe they have received a direct visit when in fact they have been in the Fortress the entire time.
The Mirror-Guard Keep
A massive, polished silver structure; the Mirror-Guard Keep is the great fortress and home to the Master of Prowess and Skill. Revered by many a fighter, Unisial is a deity steeped in self-reflection and the cause to push ones sense and his keep is no different. Many of his devotee's describe it as a hall of mirrors. A place where one may battle the ultimate foe (the self) and defeat the demons that plague them. The Keep acts as both home and travel point, for Unisial may use any of the mirrors within the domain to travel easily between realms and locations as he pleases. Many fighters and monks have found themselves within his keep, pulled from taverns and lakes they were at moments before.
Rumors among his clerics persist that the Mirror-Guard serves an even more critical purpose to the Land of Mirrors and the Great Tree as a whole. Some believe the keep is a focusing point to allow the gods quick and easy travel across the realms. Others Unisial protects a great secret trapped within a mirror, a dark god whose release could mean the end of the 12 Realms. What is known is that little wandering can be done within the Mirror-Guard Keep.
Comments