Planes of Existence
Beyond the mundane world we know are domains of raw elemental matter and energy, realms of pure thought and ethos, the homes of demons and angels, and the dominions of the gods.
- The Overworld (mind) – which contains an analog to the Feywild and the Heavens
- The Substantial (matter) – which is the everyday world
- The Underworld (spirit) – which contains my version of The Shadowfell and The Hells
- The Roiling Conflux (energy) – which contains the Elemental Demiplanes
These different planes all exist simultaneously, overlapping with each other, separated by a thin transitional force called The Veil. Because magic is so strong and wild throughout Ora, the Veil is thin in places, creating countless portals between the planes. People must watch where they step on Ora, walk through some arched branches and you may find yourselves suddenly transported to a bit of rock floating through the The Roiling Conflux, or in a demon’s tower of torment, or on the Gray Plains amongst thousands of dead spirits making a pilgrimage to the Spire of Rebirth. Fairie circles and shimmering pools are to be avoided or sought out depending on your needs.
The overlapping nature of the cosmos has given rise to the name, Nested Worlds Cosmology, used in scholarly circles to describe the nature of the planes. To your average person living their day-to-day existence on Ora this is simply theory and not of great importance however. Similarly, most higher beings do not think of the cosmos in these terms either as this understanding is too simple and tidy, and is not considered to be truly accurate to the infinite complexity that the universe actually exhibits. However, this simplification is useful to the discussions of mortals when attempting to understand such abstractions, and so, the Nested Worlds cosmology persists.
Basic Structure of the Nested Worlds Cosmology
The Nested Worlds cosmology consisted of a series of somewhat concentric spheres. In the center is The Substantial where the material world exists, surrounded by a barrier called the Veil. Outside of the Veil are The Overworld and Underworld, containing the realms of the the New Gods of Empyrean and the fey in The Overworld, as well as the lands of the dead and fiends like Demons and Devils within The Underworld. Beyond that is The Roiling Conflux, which houses the Elemental Demiplanes. Finally, the whole of the cosmos is encased in a crystalline lattice known as the Insensible Cage which shields and hides the Empyrean Universe from the multiverse beyond.
Demiplanes
Demiplanes are extradimensional spaces with their own unique rules that can either exist within The Overworld, The Underworld, or The Roiling Conflux, or they can exist wholly on their own as a separate pocket dimension, for example as a bag of holding. Demiplanes can be any size, from a small extradimensional box to an infinite world of imagination. They are pieces of reality that don’t seem to fit anywhere else. Demiplanes come into being by a variety of means. Some are created by spells, or generated at the desire of a powerful deity or other force. They may exist naturally, as a fold of existing reality that has been pinched off from the rest of the multiverse. A given demiplane can be entered through a single point where it touches another plane, called a portal.
Portals:
A portal is a general term for a stationary interplanar connection that links a specific location on one plane or demiplane to a specific location on another. Some portals are like doorways, a clear window, or a fog shrouded passage, and simply stepping through it effects the interplanar travel. Others are locations— circles of standing stones, soaring towers, sailing ships, or even whole towns—that exist in multiple planes at once or flicker from one plane to another in turn. Some are vortices, typically joining an Elemental Demiplane with a very similar location on The Substantial, such as the heart of a volcano (leading to the Demiplane of Fire) or the depths of the ocean (to the Demiplane of Water).
The Overworld
The Overworld is a plane of pure thought that primarily contains the domains of the gods. Each of the gods has their own demiplane here shaped to their liking where they reside. These demiplanes are wholly reflective of whichever god created them and vary wildly, collectively they are known as the Heavens. In addition to the heavens of the gods, metaphysically closer to The Substantial but still within The Overworld, exists a realm called the Feywild, a warped echo of The Substantial where faeries, Eladrin and other fey creatures come from.
The Substantial
The Substantial is the nexus where the philosophical and elemental forces that define the other planes collide in the jumbled existence of mortal life and mundane matter. All of the planets, asteroids, moons, and other objects within the Selestean Star System exist within The Substantial, making it an important locus for all existence. The rest of the multiverse is defined in relation to The Substantial.
The Veil
The Veil is the thin Ethereal barrier between planes. It is a semipermeable membrane that both connects and separates the various planes and demiplanes of the cosmos.
The Underworld
The Underworld is the equal and opposing spiritual force of The Overworld. It has three main layers, metaphysically closest to The Substantial exists it's dark echo known as the The Shadowfell, where the Shadar-kai hail from. It is a vast, gloomy place that is the first stop for a soul after it has departed The Substantial through death. Beyond that lies The Hells, a vast territory ruled by the fiend Asmodeus and his multitude of devils. Below The Hells, and across The River Styx is The Abyss, an ever expanding infinite demiplane that is both the breeding ground and prison for the hordes of chaotic demons banished there by the gods.
The Roiling Conflux
The Roiling Conflux surrounds and enfolds The Substantial and its echoes,The Over World and Underworld, providing the raw elemental substance from which all the universe is made. The four Elemental Demiplanes—Air, Earth, Fire, and Water—form a ring around The Substantial, suspended within The Roiling Conflux.
At their innermost edges, where they are closest to The Substantial (in a conceptual if not a literal geographical sense), the four Elemental Demiplanes resemble a world in The Substantial. The four elements mingle together as they do in The Substantial, forming land, sea, and sky. Farther from The Substantial, though, the Elemental Demiplanes are both alien and hostile. Here, the elements exist in their purest form—great expanses of solid earth, blazing fire, crystal--clear water, and unsullied air. These regions are little--known, so when discussing The Demiplane of Fire, for example, a speaker usually means just the border region. At the farthest extents of The Roiling Conflux, the pure elements dissolve and bleed together into an unending tumult of clashing energies and colliding substance.
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