The Dream World
Every conscious entity, usually during sleep, casts a shadow in the dream world; an intangible mesh that overlays the cosmos and forms a universal consciousness shared by everything that is, or ever has been, alive. Those who dedicate themselves to understanding the complexities of the dream world will find that it can also be a potent source of magic, a vast repository of knowledge and, at times, a living dungeon housing perils and treasures that rival any ancient ruin in the spheres.
While the Dream World draws its name from them, dreams actually make up a rather small portion of its composition. Dreams are just the only part of the Dream World most people ever directly experience.
Cosmologically speaking, dreams and nightmares hover just outside the Waking World. They are often represented as bubbles, both due to their proximity to the “surface” as well as their ephemeral nature. Dreams change form many times a night, and even disappear once their owners waken.
There is no physical difference between dreams and nightmares. They are simply categorized differently depending on which demi-planes most predominantly influence them and, by extension, how pleasant they are to those experiencing them.
Unlike the Waking World, however, the Astral Plane is directly influenced by the Dream World. Strong emotions, desires, or memories linger in the astral plane, leaving indentations invisible to the naked eye. Presumptuous Daemons native to the Dream World may prowl the Waking World seeking to aid or hinder those who live inside it. Warlocks make use of the Astral Plane to slip out of their own dreams and enter those of others.
the bread and butter of onceironautical adventures, demi-planes function like pocket dimensions nestled in the dream world—each with their own geographies and laws of physics.
The College of Dreams’ model of the Dream World divides demi-planes along two axes. Along the Dream Worlds’ major axis, the “higher planes” align toward harmony while “lower planes” align toward conflict. Planes are further categorized based on their "distance" to the Waking World, with "near planes" more directly correspond conscious thought while "far planes" correspond mmore to uncsonscious desires and drives.
The College of Dreams’ model has drawn its share of criticisms. Some say the Dream World is too complex to be captured on a finite number of axes, much less only two. Critics in this camp argue that the model ignores many close connections between planes on opposite sides of the “map” and suggests connections between neighboring planes that may simply not exist.
Others say that attempting to map a place as chaotic and ever-changing as the Dream World is a fool’s errand, as Demi-Planes disappear, split, change alignment, merge or crash into one another to form entirely new variants of themselves. However, most practitioners in the dream world are aware of at least twenty major demi-planes that can (at least in theory) be explored.
The Party has learned about several demi-planes on their travels, and even visited a few locations within them:
--High Mephisto, a plane ruled by one of The Reikeh known as Christoph Ebliss or the lord of bargains. A vast, unknowable marketplace where an yboon can be purchased for the right price. High Mephisto also houses the Circus, a combat arena where Corsairs, outlaws, and masked combatants fight for the entertainment of daemons and sleeping humans alike.
--The Savage Sea, a plane where beasts go when they dream.
--The City of Secrets, a city shrouded in perpetual fog, where every door is locked, and every clost holds a skeleton. The City of Secrets is where all hidden information is stored in the Dream World.
--Exalt, a mountain where those who reached the pinnacle of human achievement during their lifetimes reside. The artisans, the warriors, the great kings who remain household names centuries or millennia after their deaths enjoy afterlife here.
--The Deep, synonymous with the afterlife. They say everyone experiences death twice, first when their body dies and again when the last person alive forgets their name. The Deep is where departed souls await this second death. Their time there varies greatly depending on the impression they left on the Waking World during their life.
People with these gifts also often exhibit powers that allow them to alter the dream world toward their own ends. Stealing secrets from a dream, uncovering ancient memories, and even possessing unconscious bodies are all possible through the dream world.
Some of the most ostentatious forms of dream world powers are evocation, the art of temporarily pulling figments of fear, desire, and imagination from the astral plane into the waking world and the use of familiars, binding and summoning fallen gods to aid you in battle.
Parts of the Dream World
What most residents of the spheres refer to simply as the Dream World, is actually an interconnected realms with radically different properties. To some, especially natives, the Dream World is not one place but many--some as different from each other as they are to the waking world.Dreams and Nightmares
The most frequently visited parts of the dream world are, unsurprisingly, dreams. While people experience their own dreams as linear sequences of events, when viewed from the outside, dreams occupy a discrete space that can be entered, explored, and even altered by the intrepid astral adventurer. Absent a psychic freak accident or special training, most dreams are dense junkyards of symbols and memories, whose layout is often completely inscrutable to anyone but the dreamer or most adept warlocks.While the Dream World draws its name from them, dreams actually make up a rather small portion of its composition. Dreams are just the only part of the Dream World most people ever directly experience.
Cosmologically speaking, dreams and nightmares hover just outside the Waking World. They are often represented as bubbles, both due to their proximity to the “surface” as well as their ephemeral nature. Dreams change form many times a night, and even disappear once their owners waken.
There is no physical difference between dreams and nightmares. They are simply categorized differently depending on which demi-planes most predominantly influence them and, by extension, how pleasant they are to those experiencing them.
The Astral Plane
The astral plane makes up the majority of the dream world. It is not so much a separate place from the physical world, but more of an “extra layer” populated by the wishes, fears, and prayers that dreamers have projected onto it. The astral plane envelops the entire Waking World, changing its form to create an exact copy of reality like a wad of mystical putty.Unlike the Waking World, however, the Astral Plane is directly influenced by the Dream World. Strong emotions, desires, or memories linger in the astral plane, leaving indentations invisible to the naked eye. Presumptuous Daemons native to the Dream World may prowl the Waking World seeking to aid or hinder those who live inside it. Warlocks make use of the Astral Plane to slip out of their own dreams and enter those of others.
Demi-Planes
Demi-planes are secret locations hidden within the folds of the astral plane itself which exist un-tethered to any location in the waking world. Oftentimes Demi-planes are daemon lairs or caches of hidden knowledge left by warlocks long dead, but sometimes they are simply natural fixtures within the dream world that exist for unexplained reasons. Some demi-planes can be stumbled upon just by exploring the astral plane, but others require adherence to specific rituals in order to open.the bread and butter of onceironautical adventures, demi-planes function like pocket dimensions nestled in the dream world—each with their own geographies and laws of physics.
The College of Dreams’ model of the Dream World divides demi-planes along two axes. Along the Dream Worlds’ major axis, the “higher planes” align toward harmony while “lower planes” align toward conflict. Planes are further categorized based on their "distance" to the Waking World, with "near planes" more directly correspond conscious thought while "far planes" correspond mmore to uncsonscious desires and drives.
The College of Dreams’ model has drawn its share of criticisms. Some say the Dream World is too complex to be captured on a finite number of axes, much less only two. Critics in this camp argue that the model ignores many close connections between planes on opposite sides of the “map” and suggests connections between neighboring planes that may simply not exist.
Others say that attempting to map a place as chaotic and ever-changing as the Dream World is a fool’s errand, as Demi-Planes disappear, split, change alignment, merge or crash into one another to form entirely new variants of themselves. However, most practitioners in the dream world are aware of at least twenty major demi-planes that can (at least in theory) be explored.
The Party has learned about several demi-planes on their travels, and even visited a few locations within them:
--High Mephisto, a plane ruled by one of The Reikeh known as Christoph Ebliss or the lord of bargains. A vast, unknowable marketplace where an yboon can be purchased for the right price. High Mephisto also houses the Circus, a combat arena where Corsairs, outlaws, and masked combatants fight for the entertainment of daemons and sleeping humans alike.
--The Savage Sea, a plane where beasts go when they dream.
--The City of Secrets, a city shrouded in perpetual fog, where every door is locked, and every clost holds a skeleton. The City of Secrets is where all hidden information is stored in the Dream World.
--Exalt, a mountain where those who reached the pinnacle of human achievement during their lifetimes reside. The artisans, the warriors, the great kings who remain household names centuries or millennia after their deaths enjoy afterlife here.
--The Deep, synonymous with the afterlife. They say everyone experiences death twice, first when their body dies and again when the last person alive forgets their name. The Deep is where departed souls await this second death. Their time there varies greatly depending on the impression they left on the Waking World during their life.
Dream World Powers
A rare group of individuals have the power to leave their bodies and explore the dream world in a lucid form. Collectively, these individuals are called warlocks. However, they can be furter subdivided into lucid dreamers--who can only leave their own bodies and dreams during sleep--and somnambulists--who can enter the dream world at will.People with these gifts also often exhibit powers that allow them to alter the dream world toward their own ends. Stealing secrets from a dream, uncovering ancient memories, and even possessing unconscious bodies are all possible through the dream world.
Some of the most ostentatious forms of dream world powers are evocation, the art of temporarily pulling figments of fear, desire, and imagination from the astral plane into the waking world and the use of familiars, binding and summoning fallen gods to aid you in battle.
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