The Ethereal Plane is a misty, fog-bound dimension. Its “shores,” called the Border Ethereal, overlap the Material Plane and the
Inner Planes, so that every location on those planes has a corresponding location on the Ethereal Plane. Visibility in the Border Ethereal is limited to 60 feet. The plane’s depths comprise a region of swirling mist and fog called the Deep Ethereal, where visibility is limited to 30 feet.
Geography
Border Ethereal
From the Border Ethereal, a traveler can see into whatever plane it overlaps, but that plane appears muted and indistinct, its colors blurring into each other and its edges turning fuzzy. Ethereal denizens watch the plane as though peering through distorted and frosted glass, and can’t see anything beyond 30 feet into the other plane. Conversely, the Ethereal Plane is usually invisible to those on the overlapped planes, except with the aid of
Magic.
Normally, creatures in the Border Ethereal can’t attack creatures on the overlapped plane, and vice versa. A traveler on the Ethereal Plane is invisible and utterly silent to someone on the overlapped plane, and solid objects on the overlapped plane don’t hamper the movement of a creature in the Border Ethereal. The exceptions are certain magical effects (including anything made of magical force) and living beings. This makes the Ethereal Plane ideal for reconnaissance, spying on opponents, and moving around without being detected. The Ethereal Plane also disobeys the laws of gravity; a creature there can move up and down as easily as walking.
Deep Ethereal
To reach the Deep Ethereal, one needs a plane shift spell or arrive by means of a gate spell or magical portal. Visitors to the Deep Ethereal are engulfed by roiling mist. Scattered throughout the plane are curtains of vaporous color, and passing through a curtain leads a traveler to a region of the Border Ethereal connected to a specific Inner Plane, the Material Plane, the
Feywild, or the Shadowfell. The color of the curtain indicates the plane whose Border Ethereal the curtain conceals; see the Ethereal Curtains table.
Ethereal Curtains
| d8 |
Plane |
Color of Curtain |
| 1 |
Material Plane |
Bright turquoise |
| 2 |
Shadowfell |
Dusky gray |
| 3 |
Feywild |
Opalescent white |
| 4 |
Elemental Plane of Air |
Plae blue |
| 5 |
Elemental Plane of Earth |
Reddish-brown |
| 6 |
Elemental Plane of Fire |
Orange |
| 7 |
Elemental Plane of Water |
Green |
| 8 |
Elemental plane of weave |
Purple |
Getting There
Characters can use the etherealness spell to enter the Border Ethereal. The plane shift spell allows transport to the Border Ethereal or the Deep Ethereal, but unless the intended destination is a specific location or a teleportation circle, the point of arrival could be anywhere on the plane.
Traveling Around
Traveling through the Deep Ethereal to journey from one plane to another is unlike physical travel. Distance is meaningless, so although travelers feel as if they can move by a simple act of will, it’s impossible to measure speed and hard to track the passage of
Time. A trip between planes through the Deep Ethereal takes 1d10 × 10 hours, regardless of the origin and destination. In combat, however, creatures are considered to move at their normal speeds.
Creatures & Denizens
Denizens
Most encounters in the Border Ethereal are with creatures on the Material Plane whose senses or abilities extend into the Ethereal Plane (phase spiders, for example). Ghosts also move freely between the Ethereal and Material Planes.
In the Deep Ethereal, most encounters are with other travelers, particularly ones from the Inner Planes (such as elementals, genies, and salamanders), as well as the occasional celestial, fiend, or fey.
Features
Ether Cyclones
An ether cyclone is a serpentine column that spins through the plane. The cyclone appears abruptly, distorting and uprooting ethereal forms in its path and carrying the debris for leagues. Travelers with a passive Wisdom (Perception) score of 15 or more receive 1d4 rounds of warning: a deep hum in the ethereal matter. Travelers who can’t reach a curtain or portal leading elsewhere suffer the cyclone’s effect. Roll a d20 and consult the Ether Cyclone table to determine the effect on all creatures in the vicinity.
Ether Cyclone
| d20 |
Effect |
| 1-13 |
Extended journey |
| 14-20 |
Blown to the Border Ethereal of a random plane (roll on the Ethereal Curtains table) |
The most common effect of an ether cyclone is to extend the duration of a journey. Each character in a group traveling together must make a DC 15 Charisma saving throw. If at least half the group succeeds, travel is delayed by 1d10 hours. Otherwise, the journey’s travel time is doubled. Less often, a group is blown into the Border Ethereal of a random plane.
History
Creation Myth
In the beginning, the realm was shrouded in elemental chaos. Here, the very forces and spirits of nature waged an unrelenting battle within a primordial chaos. This tumultuous conflict is now remembered as the Elemental War, where each elder elemental strove for dominance over the plane. Their clashes, fueled by the fury of weave, fire, air, water, and earth, gave birth to the material plane, emerging from the crucible of elemental chaos.
Yet, amid their ferocious combat, the elder elementals inadvertently consumed the essence of the Weave elemental, leading to a profound imbalance within this nascent world. It was within this unstable and volatile realm that the ancient gods arrived—a group of nine deities, each representing a distinct alignment.
The ancient gods sought to establish order and society, but the elder elementals fiercely contested their presence. However, due to the preexisting imbalance triggered by the consumption of the Weave elder elemental, the ancient gods ultimately prevailed. They banished the elder elementals to pocket planes known as the Elemental Planes.
Nevertheless, the elemental power of these ancient beings was too potent to be wholly suppressed. In time, they harnessed the surrounding chaos, giving rise to the five Elemental Planes. Meanwhile, dragons and giants, forged the prime material plane from the materials left of the battle of the elements, shaping the world into the familiar form it holds today.
The connection between the inner planes and the Ethereal Plane is a remnant of the once-unbridled elemental chaos, its formidable power gradually harnessed and subdued over the course of countless ages.
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