Inner Planes
Full of raw power and pure elemental forces, the Inner Planes surround and sustain the Material Plane. The four elemental planes -- Air, Earth, Fire, and Water -- form something of a cradle around the Material Plane, suspending it within the Elemental Chaos. The two energetic planes -- Feywild, and Shadowfel -- balance the Material Plane between growth and decay. It is this balance between opposing forces that sustains and protects the Material Plane, allowing it to function as the hub about which the rest of the cosmos revolves.
Elemental Planes
The planes of Air, Earth, Fire, and Water are the four planes that provide the physical forces that sustain the Material Plane. Given their proximity to the Material Plane, there are portions of each plane which highly resemble the Material Plane; when these planes are discussed, it is almost always these closer (in a conceptual if not geographical sense) portions that are being referenced. Further out from the Material, however, the elemental planes become alien and hostile demesnes to all but those elementals and primordials native to the plane.
Elemental Chaos
At the furthest reaches of the elemental planes, all four elements intermingle in a roiling mass of primal fury known as the Elemental Chaos. Even elementals are loathe to venture this far, as the elemental affinities of a given place can shift wildly and without warning. Those few beings hardy enough to travel here are best left alone.
Energetic Planes
As the elemental planes channel the raw building blocks of the universe into the Material Plane, the energetic planes channel the all important forces of growth and life, and decay and death.
Feywild
Full of life and radiating with magic, the Feywild looks much like the Material Plane, but with unearthly intensity. Colors are brighter, sounds are clearer, with scents crisp enough taste them on your tongue. The plane is a riot of life and light, where the very landscape seems to be infused with magic. It is through the Feywild that positive energy flows through to the Material Plane, and in its wake it leaves an enchanting land of glories, both great and terrible.
At the furthest edges of the Feywild the power of positive energy becomes overwhelming. This area, bright to the point of being blinding, is known as the Gleaming, and it is a dangerous place that few beings can survive for long.
Courts of Seasons
One of the most important portions of the Feywild are the Eladrin and their Court of Seasons. As the self-appointed protectors of multiverse against the trepidations of the Far Realms, the four courts.
Court of Spring
The Spring Court, led by King Oberon, patrols the upper outer planes for signs of incursion. As these Eladrin have dealings with celestials on a regular basis, they are considered some of the safest Eladrin to run into. Relatively speaking, of course.
Court of Summer
The Summer Court, led by Queen Titania, patrols the inner and more neutral outer planes, finding themselves in some of the most varied places. Though relatively peaceful, the extremely militant summer court is quick to draw blades, and even quicker to draw blood.
Court of Autumn
The Autumn Court, led by King Jareth, patrols the lower outer planes for signs of incursion. As these Eladrin have dealings with fiends on a regular basis, they are considered dangerous to spend much time around, let alone cross.
Court of Winter
The Winter Court, led by Queen Mab, have no specific patrol. Instead, these Eladrin are taught from birth to be lethal ministers of death who dream of war and slaughter, manning the front lines of the endless war against the Far Realms. This rapacious bloodlust and the inhumanly inflexible logic protects them against the mind-shattering effects of the Far Realms, but also makes these Eladrin a danger to the rest of the cosmos. Thus as the Winter Court protects the planes from the Far Realms, so must the other three courts protect the rest of the planes from the Winter Court.
Court of Animal Spirits
In a lush grove deep in a primal forest, the Court of Animal Spirits sees to the preservation of the fauna of the many worlds. Celestial, fey, and fiendish animals spirits are all welcome here. Together, they provide an important line of communication for the Courts of Seasons, serving in the same capacities and with the same zeal.
Shadowfel
Full of toxin, death and decay, the Shadowfel looks much like the Material Plane, but desaturated to the point of lifelessness. There is only the barest hint of color here, even with the most vibrant objects, rendering much of the plane in black and white and shades of gray. It is through the Shadowfel that negative energy flows through to the Material Plane, and in its wake it leaves a bleak land that is hostile to most forms of life. Though not actively hostile in the nearer reaches, traveling too far into this plane is almost always fatal. As a result, many of the creatures here are fetid elementals or undead.
At the furthest edges of the Shadowfel the power of negative energy becomes overwhelming. This area, bathed in a darkness so profound no light can penetrate it, is known as the Gloaming, and it is a dangerous place that not even undead can survive for long.
Breathtaking Beauty
When I traveled to the Elemental Plane of Earth, I ended up taking in this stunningly beautiful sight. I have no idea where the light came from, but I know it filtered over the mountains and through the trees that had leaves in colors I have never seen on the Material plane. And then to look up and see that there was another forest just like it in the distance? This was one of the first moments I understood why there were folks who traveled the planes even knowing the dangers.
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