Summary
Pandemonium is an oppressive, chaotic plane located at the intersection of chaos and evil on the Great Wheel. The plane is comprised of solid stone with cavernous pockets and twisting tunnels, similar to the Plane of Earth, but with cacophonous winds and pitch-blackness that inhibits all illumination. The constant wind is so strong that it snuffs out torches with ease and makes talking and hearing difficult. The plane is least populated of all the Outer Planes, with only scattered points of civilization filled with desperate, huddled beings gone to madness from the nature of the plane.
Inhabitants
The largest population of people in Pandemonium refers to themselves as the Banished, and they are the only native sentient beings. Humanoids of all types are found among their numbers, but they have embraced the madness of Pandemonium, making them dangerous and unhinged. Monsters of all types also prowl in the darkness, including the gloomgaunt, giant olms, cave goats, giant blind star slugs, and monstrous insects.
Layout
The plane is divided into four layers, marked largely by the size and nature of the honeycombed tunnels, from the first layer Pandesmos (with many large tunnels) to the lowest layer Agathion (absolutely no tunnels). The River Styx winds through the upper layer of Pandemonium on its tour of the Lower Planes, providing regular traffic into the otherwise desolate tunnels.
Pandesmos
Pandesmos, the top layer, contains the largest number of caves, some hundreds of miles wide, with the wind blowing constantly through them. The River Styx winds through portions of Pandesmos as well, creating an easy and navigable route into and out of the plane. One of the few permanent settlements on Pandemonium, Madhouse, sits in an enormous cave on this layer.
Cocytus
Cocytus is the second layer, with narrower tunnels that create more dangerous windstorms that bring death and madness. The tunnels and caves in this layer have the appearance of ancient worked stone, and some planar scholars believe that the barriers between the multiverse and the alien Far Realm are weakest on Cocytus. The worked stone may be remnants of Far Realm cities, and the titanic ruins of Shothra, a city of elder things, are tucked away somewhere in these tunnels. The tunnels in Cocytus also hide terrible secrets in their depths, including enormous creatures born of titanic nightmares from lost epochs beyond time and space.
Agathion
Agathion is the deepest and final layer of the Windswept Depths of Pandemonium, located at the very bottom of the plane. It is unlike the other layers as there are no tunnels or caverns to be found, just an endless expanse of solid rock. The oppressive darkness and howling winds of Pandemonium are still present in Agathion, making it a desolate and dangerous place. It is a place of terror and madness, and travelers who venture here invite death and madness.
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