When discussing the planes of existence, it is best to think of Illica as a set of disks. The Material Plane, what most people know and inhabit throughout their lives, lies in the center of the Astral Plane, what many know simply to be the cosmos or the starry sky. The Astral Plane is believed to be infinite, meaning that one could theoretically leave the Material Plane and find entire other worlds somewhere out in the cosmos. Travel of this sort is mostly unheard of.
Two planes exist very close to the Material Plane, often called the “mirror planes” because they seem to closely reflect the Material Plane, as though it were filtered through a different lens. Above, there is the Feywild, a realm dominated by nature, magic, and fey whimsy. Below, there is Shadowfell, a realm dominated by darkness, secrets, and death. These planes can be accessed via the Material Plane through hidden entrances and portals. Seeing what a region of the Material Plane looks like mirrored in both the Feywild and Shadowfell can often reveal things about its past, future, or potential.
These are not to be confused with the true Mirror Planes, however. These are alternate material planes in which time, cause and effect, and the rules of magic and reality have developed somewhat differently. It's theorized that every plane perceives itself as the "prime" material plane, which a mirror plane existing on either side. Thus, an endless chain of possibilities exist, and the further away you travel for your own prime material plane, the more skewed reality and its results become. This is only hypothetical of course, as no one has ever traveled to a mirror plane and returned.
Further above is the 7 Heavens of Mount Celestia, and further below is the 9 Hells surrounded by the Abyss. These realms contain beings of immense power who often try to influence the creatures of the Material Plane. Accessing them often involves teleportation, and they are usually more dangerous and harder to get back from without a clear plan.
Then, there’s the Four Elemental Planes all around that. Earth, Air, Water, and Fire all exist as completely separate societies dominated by their elements. People that come from these planes are often genasi, humanoids that have anatomy defined by their homeland’s primordial element. Border planes exist between them where the elements collide, such as the Plane of Steam that exists between the planes of Fire and Water. A clambering expanse devoid of life exists beyond these elemental planes, a vast fury known only as the Elemental Chaos.
And finally, there is the Ethereal Plane. This plane doesn’t exist separately from the Material Plane, but is rather a different way of seeing it. Creatures that are between life and death can often exist in the Ethereal Plane, able to move about Illica but unable to interact with it directly.
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