Shadowfell

“The Plane of Shadow, also referred to as the Shadowfell, is an echo of the Material Plane. It overlaps the known world but it remains separate, and a great gloom and sense of dread holds sway over its gray, shadow-filled landscape. It is the opposite of the Plane of Faerie, and there is strong evidence to support the two echo planes are linked in some ephemeral way. I surmise that the Plane of Shadow is a byproduct of the Negative Energy Plane influencing the Material Plane, and that it represents a decaying of the natural order inherent to all things and places in the multiverse. Certainly the prevalence of necrotic energy and undead horrors in the Shadowfell lends credence to this theory.” Lillandri the Moon Mage

Gloom, despair, hopelessness, and loss are just some of the words that can be used to describe the feelings that weigh down travelers that enter the Plane of Shadow. It is an echo of the Material Plane, but it holds only a dark reflection filled with darkness and a creeping sense of being watched. Forests hold sinister shadows, mountains loom taller and more ominous, and everywhere the natural order seems twisted and bent towards a darkly malevolent end.
The nature of the Plane of Shadow draws evil and undead creatures to it, and this attraction has led many planar scholars to link the realm to the Negative Energy Plane. There certainly seems to be some truth to this connection, and it’s worth noting that the Plane of Faerie – another echo plane, but one filled with vibrant and often violent life – seems just as strongly linked to the Positive nergy Plane. Are these two sides of the Material Plane the result of the Positive and Negative Energy Planes? Or are the Positive and Negative Energy Planes a result of the Shadowfell and Feywild? Debates continue in scholarly circles.
From a more conventional standpoint, the Plane of Shadow is a place where fell creatures dwell, and its location on the other “side” of the Material Plane makes its interference much more common than other decidedly evil outer planes, such as the Abyss or the Nine Hells. A pervasive gloom in a forlorn crypt, the shadow cast by a tombstone in the moonlight, or the yawning darkness beneath a creaking gallows all can contain portals to the Plane of Shadow, allowing monstrous creatures to slip between the cracks and wreak havoc.
The Shadowfell is also the home to the Domains of Dread, unique and isolated realms locked away from the rest of the plane by insidious Dark Powers. These unknown macabre masters of darkness draw powerful men and women away from the Material Plane at their darkest moment, trapping them and their lands. Barovia, home of the vampire lord Strahd von Zarovich, is the most famous, but other domains exist, scattered across the Plane of Shadow.
Monsters of all types stalk the gloomy wilderness of the Shadowfell, and between them havens of civilization are hard to come by. The most famous is the city of Gloomwrought with its legion of mysterious keepers maintaining order. Other famous sites include the Nightwyrm Fortress, the Onyx Palace of the Raven Queen, the Moon Towers, and the Circle of Midnight Stones, just to name a few. Truly, in a realm possessed of so much darkness and despair, heroes are needed to push back the encroaching shadow at every opportunity.

Geography

LAY OF THE LAND

As an echo of the Material Plane, the Plane of Shadow holds many of the same basic geographic features of its mirror. However, they are distorted, often more brooding and sinister in appearance. The sky is always dark, cloaked often in thick gray clouds, but even when they pass there is no moon, sun, or stars that shine overhead. Most major natural features in the Material Plane have a “shadowanalogue” in the Shadowfell, such as mountains and forests, and even cities have a dark mirror. Few of them are inhabited in the Plane of Shadow, however.

Just as in many Material Planes, twisting below the ground of the Plane of Shadow is a labyrinthine maze of tunnels and caves. Known as the Shadowdark, in the Plane of Shadow this region is unnaturally cold and only gets colder the further into the ground one explores. Some planar scholars have theorized that there is a massive portal or vortex leading to the Negative Energy Plane somewhere in the Shadowdark, but if it’s true it has yet to be found.

There are some strange exceptions to these general guidelines. The most prominent of which are the Domains of Dread, each an isolated realm surrounded by obscuring fog that reaches beyond the planar border. These pockets of the Shadowfell are held together by powerful entities known as the Dark Powers, though their exact makeup and nature are a mystery, and each domain serves as a prison for those trapped inside. The center of each domain is a darklord – a creature, usually sentient but not always, that has gained the favor of the Dark Powers and exercises some control over the mists that bind the domain and even some denizens within it. Each darklord is as much a prisoner as other inhabitants, however, but through the influence of the Dark Powers they have extended or even immortal lifespans.

The most famous Domain of Dread is Barovia, a gothic land ruled by the powerful vampire darklord Count Strahd von Zarovich. From his imposing seat of power at Castle Ravenloft, Count Strahd works towards multiple ends, including how to break free of the mists and return to the Shadowfell proper. Another well-known and feared domain is the Necropolis, a bleak region dominated by countless mindless undead under the direct control of the region’s scheming master, the lich Azalin.

Finding one of these Domains of Dread is rarely a chance encounter, and the mists the surround and bind each one seems to be a direct extension of the Dark Powers themselves. The mists can extend through the multiverse, though they rarely move beyond the Material Plane, and they can draw in unsuspecting people into their prisons.

Ecosystem

Highlights & Impressions

The below listings include notes on highlighting the nature of the Plane of Shadow as characters explore and travel through it. These are suggestions of elements that can be used in descriptions of the landscape and denizens with the goal of actualizing the “outside” nature of the multiverse beyond the Material Plane. Use them to incorporate into encounters and adventures on the Plane of Shadow.
Hidden Menace. The Plane of Shadow is infused with a sense of dread and menace lurking just behind what’s visible. Tree branches take on the shape of long claws, a soft wind feels like the breath of a dangerous stalker, and a thousand other sounds and sensations all add up to a very real feeling of hidden terror. Whether it’s in the wilderness or in a city, the Shadowfell conveys the idea that travelers are being watched by sinister eyes at all times, and that anything could jump out at any moment.
Dark Mirror. As an echo plane, the Shadowfell is a dark and twisted mirror of the Material Plane. This mirroring is broad and can easily become distorted – a forest of lush trees in the Material Plane may be a gnarled wood of dead branches, or a mountain may hold innumerable caves filled with darkness and chilling winds. Cities on the Plane of Shadow are gloomy places where inky pools gather in otherwise empty streets and sinister alleys.
Perpetual Twilight. No sun or moon hangs in the sky over the Plane of Shadow. Instead, a perpetual twilight blankets the land in shades of gray and black, bathing everything in monochromatic tones that heighten the sense of dread throughout the entire plane. Time passes here but there’s little to mark its passage, though occasionally a noteworthy event – such as a full moon – may create a disturbing equivalent in the Shadowfell, something most view as a sign of ill portent.

Ecosystem Cycles

CYCLE OF TIME

Time passes in the Plane of Shadow exactly the same as the Material Plane, but not sun or moon exists to mark the passage of time. Day and night are filled with the same inky twilight with no discernible difference between the two. Each of the isolated Domains of Dread within the Shadowfell behave under their own rules, however. Most do have a day-night schedule with a sun that rises and sets, but it’s all part of the prison built by the Dark Powers and maintained by the domain’s darklord.

Localized Phenomena

HAZARDS & PHENOMENA

The Plane of shadow is a dangerous place for the unprepared. The very air saps the will to live out of visitors, and spontaneous hazards like necromantic seepage and darklands can cause sudden and very real problems. Travelers to the Shadowfell be warned!

Darkland Darklands are regions of intense cold and dread in a concentrated area on the Plane of Shadow. Typically, a darkland covers a radius of 1d20 miles, but larger and smaller zones have been encountered across the plane. Creatures that take a short rest in a darkland cannot spend any hit dice for healing and must succeed on a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw or suffer one level of exhaustion from the deep numbing cold. Creatures that finish a long rest within a darkland automatically gain a level of exhaustion and do not regain any hit points or spent hit dice.

This effect is more than just a physical cold, however. If a creature is immune to both necrotic and cold damage it is immune to the effect of the darkland, but only if it is immune to both damage types.

It is theorized that darklands are regions where the border between the Plane of Shadow and the Negative Energy Plane is thinnest. Sometimes this has an obvious source, and sometimes the source can be stopped so that the power of the darkland eventually fades away. In the Shadowdark below the surface of the Shadowfell, darklands are much more common and less obvious in their causes.

Fell Despair An intangible but omnipresent feeling of dread and despair hangs over the entire Plane of Shadow. Creatures entering it from the Material Plane feel it immediately – an oppressiveness, as if the darkness had weight and was pressing in from all sides. It’s been described as suffocating and insufferable. For characters, spending too much time in the Shadowfell risks an effect known as fell despair.

After each short rest spent in the Plane of Shadow, characters must succeed on a DC 10 Wisdom saving throw. On a failure, the character is affected by fell despair. Roll 1d20 and consult the following table to determine the fell despair effect. 1d20 Fell Despair Effect 1 Clumsy. Whenever you roll a 1 on an attack roll, saving throw, or ability check, you fall prone. 2 Distracted. You suffer disadvantage on initiative. 3 Drowsy. You cannot make opportunity attacks. 4 Fatalistic. You suffer disadvantage on death saving throws. 5 Hopeless. You suffer -2 on all saving throws. 6 Indifferent. You cannot use Inspiration. 7 Lethargic. You suffer disadvantage on Constitution saving throws. 8 Sluggish. Your speed is reduced by 5 feet. 9 Unconcerned. You suffer disadvantage on Dexterity saving throws. 10 Craven. You suffer disadvantage on Strength￾based ability checks. 11 Insomnia. You regain only half normal hit points from Hit Dice spent. 12 Mistrustful. You cannot move through allies’ spaces. 13 Paranoid. You suffer disadvantage on Wisdom saving throws. 14 Forgetful. You suffer disadvantage on Intelligence-based ability checks. 15 Jealous. You cannot take the Help action. 16 Squeamish. You suffer disadvantage on your first attack in a round against an opponent who is at or below half their starting hit points. 17 Delusional. You suffer disadvantage on Wisdom-based ability checks. 18 Jittery. You suffer disadvantage on Dexterity-based ability checks. 19 Quarrelsome. You suffer disadvantage on Charisma-based ability checks. 20 Surge of Hope. You gain a point of Inspiration.If a character is already suffering a fell despair effect and fails the saving throw, the new despair effect replaces the old one. Removing a fell despair effect requires spending half of the character’s Hit Dice during a long rest and succeeding at a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw. The calm emotions spell removes despair, as does any spell or other magical effect that removes a curse.

Necromantic Seepage Pools of black and purple sludge occasionally bubble up from the ground in the Plane of Shadow, creating necromantic seepage. This thick fluid is lethal, and any living creature that touches necromantic seepage must succeed on a DC 14 Constitution saving throw. On a failure the creature contracts a debilitating disease known as soul rot.
Soul rot takes effect immediately. Creatures suffering from soul rot lose all of their available Hit Dice, and cannot regain Hit Dice or spend Hit Dice while suffering from the disease. They regain only half the normal hit points from magical healing sources and regain no hit points on a long rest. Victims show signs immediately as their skin becomes pale and deep shadows appear under their eyes and around the corners of their mouth.
At the end of each long rest, the infected creature must make a DC 14 Constitution saving throw. On a failure, the character suffers necrotic damage equal to one half of their maximum hit points. The infected creature must succeed on two saving throws to end the soul rot. If the necrotic damage suffered reduces the character’s hit points to 0 or lower, they die immediately and rise as a wraith in 1d4 rounds.
Shadow Stain The Plane of Shadow’s connection to the Negative Energy Plane is strong, and in certain areas that vibrancy can increase the potency of undead creatures. These regions, known as shadow stains, usually cover 60-foot radius areas, and any undead creature inside the area of effect regenerates 5 hit points at the start of their turn as long as they have 1 or more hit points. In addition, any necrotic damage suffered by a target in a shadow stain deals maximum damage. It has been theorized that shadow stains are the result of powerful undead creatures expiring in the Shadowfell, and that some remnant of their strong link between the two planes remains and empowers similar creatures.

Tourism

GETTING THERE

Spontaneous portals to the Plane of Shadow from the Material Plane are common, and they only appear at night. Few permanent portals are known to exist, and the ones that are known exist below ground where the sun never shines and darkness prevails. The appearance of a spontaneous portal to the Shadowfell is difficult to predict, but certain organizations such as the Tenebrous Cabal and the Shadow Hand Guild have worked to understand and catalog the triggers.
A spontaneous portal appears in a place of darkness and shadow and usually only when certain conditions are met. Some of those conditions are known. For example, nights where the moon or moons are obscured in the sky on the Material Plane are prime triggers for spontaneous portals, as are certain festivals and holidays that honor the gods and goddesses of shadow and darkness. Cemeteries, graveyards, and crypts can all hold portals to the Plane of Shadow, often in new construction over old ground.
Certain spells in older tomes and spellbooks are known to pierce the veil between the Material Plane and Shadowfell as well, but the secrets of these have been lost to most of the current arcane world.

SURVIVING

The Plane of Shadow seems to share the same air as its mirror so creatures that can live and breathe in the Material Plane have no inherent problems in the Shadowfell. A creature can survive in the Plane of Shadow as long as they can live off the brackish foul-tasting water that runs in the lakes and rivers, and find food that hasn’t spoiled (something that happens at an accelerated pace). Any non-native humanoid that takes a short rest in the Plane of Shadow risks fell despair (described under Hazards & Phenomena).

TRAVELING AROUND

Movement is no more hindered or helped in the Plane of Shadow than the Material Plane, but distance becomes a somewhat elastic concept over time. A group of travelers that enters the Shadowfell from a forest within the Material Plane may find themselves in a similar forest, though dark and twisted. Traveling outside the forest, however, the travelers can find the landscape take on larger deviances, but these differences are fluid. Maps are usually without merit on the Plane of Shadow.
However, this landscape distortion can be a boon when utilized properly. Great distances can be traveled over much shorter timespans if an entrance to the Material Plane can be found in the right region.
While on the Plane of Shadow, light sources are greatly diminished. Every light source provides radiance in half of the normal area while in the Shadowfell, and spells and effects that provide illumination have their durations reduced by half. The ever-present darkness of the plane seeks to snuff out all light that enters.Characters that take a short rest in the Plane of Shadow risk suffering from fell despair; see the Hazards & Phenomena section for details on this effect.

Alterations to Magic The land of Barovia resides in its own demiplane, isolated from all other planes, including the Material Plane. No spell - not even wish - allows one to escape from Strahd's domain. Astral projection, teleport, plane shift, and similar spells cast for the purpose of leaving Barovia simply fail, as do effects that banish a creature to another plane of existence. These restrictions apply to magic items and artifacts that have properties that transport or banish creatures to other planes. Magic that allows transit to the Border Ethereal, such as the etherealness spell and the Etherealness feature of incorporeal undead, is the exception to this rule. A creature that enters the Border Ethereal from Strahd's domain is pulled back into Barovia upon leaving that plane.


For the purpose of spells whose effects change across or are blocked by planar boundaries (such as sending), Strahd's domain is considered its own plane. Magic that summons creatures or objects from other planes functions normally in Barovia, as does magic that involves an extradimensional space. Any spells cast within such an extradimensional space (such as that created by Mordenkainen's magnificent mansion) are subject to the same restrictions as magic cast in Barovia.


While in Barovia, characters who receive spells from deities or otherworldly patrons continue to do so. In addition, spells that allow contact with beings from other planes function normally - with one proviso: Strahd can sense when someone in his domain is casting such a spell and can choose to make himself the spell's recipient, so that he becomes the one who is contacted.


Cosmetic Spell Modifications


At your discretion, a spell can be modified cosmetically to enhance the horrific atmosphere. Here are examples:

• Alarm: Instead of hearing a mental ping when the alarm is triggered, the caster hears a scream.
• Bigby's hand: The conjured hand is skeletal.
• Find familiar: The familiar is undead - not a celestial, fey, or fiend - and is immune to features that turn undead.
• Find steed: The summoned steed is undead - not a celestial, fey, or fiend - and is immune to features that turn undead.
• Find the path: A child's spirit appears and guides the caster to the desired location. The spirit can't be harmed and doesn't speak.
• Fog cloud: Misty, harmless claws form in the fog.
• Gust of wind: A ghastly moan accompanies the summoned wind.
• Mage hand: The summoned hand is skeletal.
• Maze: The surfaces of the demiplane's maze are made of mortared skulls and bones.
• Phantom steed: The steed resembles a skeletal horse.
• Rary's telepathic bond: Characters linked together by the spell can't shake the feeling that something vile is telepathically eavesdropping on them.
• Revivify: A creature restored to life by a revivify spell screams upon regaining consciousness, as though waking from some horrible nightmare.
• Spirit guardians: The spirits appear as ghostly, skeletal warriors.
• Wall of stone: A wall created by the spell has ghastly faces sculpted into it, as though tortured spirits were somehow trapped within the stone.
• Light spells are halved, & must succeed on a DC 15+Spell level Arcana check to cast a light spell.
• Shadow, & darkness spells work better than usual.

Resurrection Madness


In Barovia, the souls of the dead are as trapped as the souls of the living. They become caught in the mists and can't travel to the afterlife.


When a humanoid who has been dead for at least 24 hours returns to life, either by way of a spell or some supernatural means, it gains a random form of indefinite madness brought on by the realization that its spirit is trapped in Barovia, likely forever. To determine how this madness is expressed, roll on the Indefinite Madness table in chapter 8 of the Dungeon Master's Guide.


*D&D DMG: Reference: Madness
*D&D DMG: Table: Indefinite Madness

Type

Dimensional plane

Location under

Transitive Planes