The Plane Above

162 Pages·2012·4.72 MB·English

The Plane Above:
Secrets of the Astral Sea
™
ROLEPL AYING GA ME SUPPLEMENT
Rob Heinsoo
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S e c r e t s o f t h e A s t r a l S e a™
ROLEPL AYING GAME SUPPLEMENT
Rob Heinsoo • Ari Marmell • Eric Scott de Bie
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Design Art Director
Rob Heinsoo (lead), Mari Kolkowsky
Ari Marmell, Eric Scott de Bie,
Robin D. Laws, Matthew Sernett, Rodney Thompson Cover Illustration
William O’Connor (front), Ralph Horsley (back)
Development
Stephen Radney-MacFarland (lead), Graphic Designers
Peter Schaefer, Stephen Schubert Keven Smith, Leon Cortez, Emi Tanji
Editing Additional Graphic Design
Cal Moore (lead), Soe Hemmi
Joanna G. Hurley, Jenny Lockington, Lynnette Struble
Interior Illustrations
Managing Editing Dave Allsop, Kerem Beyit, Zoltan Boros & Gabor
Kim Mohan Szikszai, Julie Dillon, Vincent Dutrait, Wayne England,
Jason A. Engle, Ralph Horsley, Howard Lyon, Jim Nelson,
Director of D&D R&D and Book Publishing William O’Connor, Adam Paquette
Bill Slavicsek
Cartographer
D&D Creative Manager Jason A. Engle
Christopher Perkins
Publishing Production Specialist
D&D Design Manager Erin Dorries
James Wyatt
Prepress Manager
D&D Development and Editing Manager Jefferson Dunlap
Andy Collins
Imaging Technician
D&D Senior Art Director Ashley Brock
Jon Schindehette
Production Manager
Cynda Callaway
Game rules based on the original DUNGEONS & DRAGONS®
rules created by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and the
later editions by David “Zeb” Cook (2nd Edition); Jonathan
Tweet, Monte Cook, Skip Williams, Richard Baker, and Peter
Adkison (3rd Edition); and Rob Heinsoo, Andy Collins, and
James Wyatt (4th Edition).
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ISBN: 978-0-7869-5392-9
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DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, d20, d20 System, WIZARDS OF THE COAST, Player’s Handbook, Dungeon Master’s Guide, Monster Manual, EBERRON, D&D Insider, Dragon, Divine Power,
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is prohibited without the express written permission of Wizards of the Coast LLC. Any similarity to actual people, organizations, places, or events included herein is purely
coincidental. Printed in the U.S.A. ©2010 Wizards of the Coast LLC.
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The Astral Sea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Adventure: Hell’s Bonds . . . . . . . . 70 The Forgotten Sanctuary . . . . . . . .125
Geography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 The Outer Torments: Frostburn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .125
Campaign Themes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Hell’s Border Islands . . . . . . . . . . . 76 Kar’ka Dun . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126
Explore the Infinite Sea . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Tytherion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 Mutas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126
Crawl Astral Dungeons . . . . . . . . . . 11 Tiamat’s Realm: Azharul . . . . . . . . . 80 Pluton, the Gray Waste . . . . . . . . .126
Fight Astral Pirates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Samaragd, Shivering Spires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126
Fight the Gods of Evil . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 the Serpent’s Kingdom . . . . . . . . . 82 The Triad Islands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .127
Join Heaven’s Order . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 The Scales: Zulkolosz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .127
Overcome Heaven’s Flaws . . . . . . . 17 Tytherion’s Archipelago . . . . . . . . 88
Adventure into Myth . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 (cid:52)(cid:58)(cid:3)(cid:65)(cid:83)(cid:84)(cid:82)(cid:65)(cid:76)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:69)(cid:78)(cid:73)(cid:90)(cid:69)(cid:78)(cid:83) . . . . . . . . .128
Traveling the Astral Sea . . . . . . . . . . . 19 (cid:51)(cid:58)(cid:3)(cid:84)(cid:72)(cid:69)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:69)(cid:69)(cid:80)(cid:3)(cid:65)(cid:83)(cid:84)(cid:82)(cid:65)(cid:76)(cid:3)(cid:83)(cid:69)(cid:65) . . . . . 90 Abomination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .130
Ship-to-Ship Combat Astral Render . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .130
in the Astral Sea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 (cid:82)(cid:65)(cid:67)(cid:69)(cid:83)(cid:3)(cid:79)(cid:70)(cid:3)(cid:84)(cid:72)(cid:69)(cid:3)(cid:65)(cid:83)(cid:84)(cid:82)(cid:65)(cid:76)(cid:3)(cid:83)(cid:69)(cid:65) . . 92 Hundred-Handed One . . . . . . . . . .130
Astral Vehicles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Couatls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 Malediction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .131
Dominion Ships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Outlook and Interaction . . . . . . . . . 92 Nullifier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .132
Navigating the Astral Sea . . . . . . . . 25 Cloudlands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93 Voracia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .133
Adventures on the Astral Sea . . . . . 27 Life and Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93 Banesworn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .134
Environmental Hazards . . . . . . . . . . 28 Githy anki . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94 Banesworn Warrior . . . . . . . . . . . .134
History of the Githy anki . . . . . . . . . 94 Banesworn War Priest . . . . . . . . . .134
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The World of the Gods . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Outlook and Interaction . . . . . . . . . 96 the Black Hand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .135
The Gods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Maruts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 Banesworn Iron Bulwark . . . . . . . .135
Exarchs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Life and Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 Banesworn Lore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .135
Angels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Outlook and Interaction . . . . . . . . . 99 Encounter Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . .135
Exalted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Major Sites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .100 Devil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .136
Outsiders. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Quom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .101 Burning Devil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .136
Dominions and Border Islands . . . 36 History of the Quom . . . . . . . . . . .101 Indwelling Devil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .137
Arvandor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Life and Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .102 Pillager Devil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .138
The Glorious Hunt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Outlook and Interaction . . . . . . . .102 Warder Devil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .139
Major Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Exalted of Erathis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .140
Adventure Hooks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 (cid:83)(cid:72)(cid:65)(cid:84)(cid:84)(cid:69)(cid:82)(cid:69)(cid:68)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:79)(cid:77)(cid:73)(cid:78)(cid:73)(cid:79)(cid:78)(cid:83) . . . . . .104 Exalted of Kord . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .141
Encounter Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 Carceri . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .104 Githy anki . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .142
The Green Isles: Arvandor’s The Isles of Carceri . . . . . . . . . . . . .105 Ch’r’ai Inquisitors . . . . . . . . . . . . . .142
Archipelago . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Adventures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .106 Duthka’gith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .142
Celestia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 Environmental Features . . . . . . . . .107 Githy anki Far Wanderer . . . . . . . .143
Major Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Erishani . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .108 Githy anki Blackweave . . . . . . . . . .144
Gods of Celestia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Adventure Hooks . . . . . . . . . . . . . .109 Githy anki Ghustil . . . . . . . . . . . . . .144
The Game of Mountains . . . . . . . . . 46 Environmental Features . . . . . . . . .109 Githy anki Pyroclast . . . . . . . . . . . . .145
The Foothills: Encounter Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . .109 Githy anki Sword Stalker . . . . . . . .145
Celestia’s Archipelago . . . . . . . . . . 47 Adventure: The Monolith Stirs . . . .110 Gul’othran Marauder . . . . . . . . . . .146
Chernoggar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Kalandurren . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .114 Gul’othran Dragon Raider . . . . . . .146
Gods of Chernoggar . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 Environmental Features . . . . . . . . .115 Tu’narathi Dragon Rider . . . . . . . .147
Major Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 Encounter Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . .115 Osyrimon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .148
Adventures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Pandemonium . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116 Vlaakith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .149
Between War and Destruction . . . 56 Adventure Hooks . . . . . . . . . . . . . .117 Gruumsh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .150
The War Expands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 Environmental Features . . . . . . . . .118 Battlesworn of Gruumsh . . . . . . . .150
The Shrapnels: Encounter Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . .118 Exarchs of Gruumsh . . . . . . . . . . . .152
Chernoggar’s Islands . . . . . . . . . . 59 Shom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .119 Quom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .156
Hestavar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 Death of a God, Quom Fanatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .156
Gods of Hestavar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 Rise of the Illumians . . . . . . . . . .119 Quom Enforcer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .156
The Daybreak Islands: The Shattering of the Word . . . . .119 Quom Harpoonist . . . . . . . . . . . . . .156
Hestevar’s Archipelago . . . . . . . . . 64 Adventure Hooks . . . . . . . . . . . . . .121 Quom Desperate . . . . . . . . . . . . . .157
The Nine Hells . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 Environmental Features . . . . . . . . .121 Durud Fragment Mage . . . . . . . . . .157
Asmodeus’s Fall and Encounter Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . .121 Durud Healer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .158
the Foundation of Hell . . . . . . . . . 65 Encounter: Purifiers of Shom . . . .122 Durud Slayer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .158
Devilish Motives Motes in the Astral Sea . . . . . . . . . . .124
and Adventures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Archanus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .124 (cid:77)(cid:79)(cid:78)(cid:83)(cid:84)(cid:69)(cid:82)(cid:83)(cid:3)(cid:66)(cid:89)(cid:3)(cid:76)(cid:69)(cid:86)(cid:69)(cid:76) . . . . . . . . .159
CHAPTER 1
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and Dungeon
Masters might be familiar with previous descrip-
tions of the Astral Sea as an infinite silvery plane. In
the world of the 4th Edition D&D® game, the Plane
Above is that and more—it also serves as the place
where many of the deities of the D&D multiverse
reside.
This new view of the Astral Sea includes other
aspects that haven’t been part of the cosmology
before, such as the border islands that surround the
divine dominions. Suffice it to say that the amount of
interesting territory and beings that characters might
interact with in the Plane Above has been expanded.
Those border islands are covered in full later in this
book along with the dominions themselves.
Chapter 1, however, is designed to help you get the
most out of this book for your campaign. The chapter
presents seven campaign themes that weave together
the rest of the elements of this book. These themes
range from the predictable (Fight the Gods of Evil)
to the unexpected (Overcome Heaven’s Flaws) to the
world-shaking (Adventure into Myth).
“Traveling the Astral Sea” at the end of Chapter 1
revisits the earlier discussion of geography, providing
mechanics for navigation, vessels, and astral hazards.
The following sections of this chapter create a
framework for adventures on the Astral Sea.
✦ The Astral Sea: The Plane Above has many facets
to its nature and its history, any of which can come
into play. This summary highlights each of those
facets.
✦ Geography: Essential physical concepts that play
into all the areas the Astral Sea encompasses.
✦ Campaign Themes: Seven diverse approaches
to running a campaign that uses the Plane Above.
Most of the themes are complementary rather
than exclusive, meaning that you can incorpo-
rate elements from more than one to create a
unique campaign experience.
✦ Traveling the Astral Sea: How to move
around in the Astral Sea, and a look at some of
the hazards that visitors and natives alike can R
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encounter as they traverse the Plane Above. NN
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M
A
WILLI
CHAPTER 1 | Astral Adventuring
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Welcome to the world above the world of mortals, Realm took advantage of the devastation wrought
an infinite silver expanse dotted by countless small by the Dawn War to pry a hole into reality through
shards of land, scattered larger islands, and the which they could enter. And as always, many hor-
dominions of the gods. Here are some key highlights rible echoes of the Dawn War are poised to enter
to keep in mind as you prepare to use the Plane the Astral Sea unless capable paragon and epic tier
Above in your campaign. characters can set things right and create something
better in the scars left over by the war.
The Astral Sea is a former battlefield still ravaged
by the cosmic conflict known as the Dawn War. The Astral Sea is the home of the gods.
The deities were the original inhabitants of the Most of the deities who survived the Dawn War main-
astral realm when the world was newly created by tain mighty dominions on islands scattered widely
the primordials and the mortal races had yet to find through the Astral Sea. Chapter 2 details each of the
their final forms. Along with shaping and refining functioning divine dominions, as well as the border
the creation of the world, the gods had grand plans islands that cluster around each dominion. (The shat-
for a single realm that would link all their domin- tered dominions are discussed in Chapter 3.)
ions together with an all-powerful astral connection Although the deities wield much influence in the
known as the Lattice of Heaven. mortal world and its echo planes, the Feywild and
When the gods intervened to prevent the primor- the Shadowfell, the gods’ influence has been limited
dials from destroying the world and starting a new due to the ravages of the Dawn War and the forceful
creation, the primordials responded by invading the intervention of the primal spirits. But in the Plane
Plane Above. Gods died, dominions crumbled, and Above, the deities are the most powerful agents,
the incomplete Lattice of Heaven was shattered into taking direct actions and choosing paths that shape
fragments. The astral world that had nearly become a the history of the plane.
fantastic interlocked mesh of divine dominions blew Momentous divine events that have acquired
apart into an infinite silver sea. Much later, when the mythic force did not end after the Dawn War. Epoch-
gods had eked out a narrow victory in the Dawn War, shaping events since that conflict have included
only a few of the divine dominions that survived the Asmodeus’s rise to power and manipulation of the
devastation still functioned for their deities, hinting gods (page 65), Gruumsh’s invasion of Bane’s domin-
at the glory that died forever when the primordials ion of Chernoggar (page 51), the destruction of the
destroyed the Lattice. god Amoth and his dominion of Kalandurren by
Since that time, shattered dominions (those that three demon princes (page 114), and Erathis’s more
no longer have a deity), ruins, corpses of forgotten recent determination to restore the dominions of the
gods and primordials, and war magic left over from gods and rebuild the Lattice of Heaven (page 61).
the Dawn War still linger within the Astral Sea, Depending on the scope and interests of your cam-
whether on shards of matter scattered throughout paign, the player characters might be able to reshape
the astral realm or floating freely through it. Dra- the Plane Above, including the agendas and life spans
matic examples of such remnants include the Golden of the deities that reside there. The campaign themes
Monolith of Erishani (page 108), the floating corpse beginning on page 9 explore these possibilities in
of the primordial Haemnathuun (Open Grave: Secrets more detail.
of the Undead, page 120), and the primordial energy
bubble known as Frostburn (page 125). The Astral Sea is the setting for many separate
The player characters will most likely have already afterlives for mortal worshipers of the gods.
met the free-willed servitors that have a preference Each of the functioning divine dominions has its
for killing known as abominations—one of the worst population constantly refreshed by a small number of
consequences of the great rituals employed during exalted, the spirits of dead mortals restored to life in
the Dawn War. In the prison realm of Carceri (page new physical bodies known as soulforms. The exalted
104), or perhaps on the Glorious Hunt in the domin- are generally not the protagonists of the great stories
ion of Arvandor (page 37), the characters might of the Plane Above, since they generally maintain
uncover the full story of the abominations’ origin and their immortality only while they stay within their
the reasons for their increasing attacks centuries after god’s dominion. But many exalted do venture beyond
the end of the war they were created to win. the protection of their dominion on pilgrimages,
Gods such as Asmodeus took advantage of the sightseeing voyages, or missions for their deity that
Dawn War to seize power they didn’t deserve (see could bring them into conflict or association with the
the Nine Hells on page 65). Threats native to the Far player characters.
CHAPTER 1 | Astral Adventuring
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A
The exalted most frequently encountered in the a campaign featuring confrontations with astral
E
wider Astral Sea are exalted of Bane (on missions pirates (page 12), the gith yanki and their wander- S

of conquest), Gruumsh (on missions of destruction), ing city Tu’narath can become the characters’ chief L
A
Erathis (pursuing aspects of the Game of Making, adversaries. R
page 62), and Kord (raising hell or training for the The maruts were originally creations of the dei- T
S
Dusk War, page 45). ties. But they were created to have an impartial A
Chapter 2 details the exalted and their less fortu- perspective to allow them to make detached rul- E
H
nate counterparts, the soulform beings collectively ings that would cut down on the squabbling gods’
T
known as outsiders. After the destruction of the tendency to resolve arguments by force. Unless the
Lattice of Heaven, the divine dominions stopped characters have supreme diplomatic skills and some
functioning at full power and effectiveness. Many knowledge of history, it’s likely that the maruts’
mortals who were traveling to their god’s dominion literally interpreted contracts will force them into
to become exalted suffered the repercussions of that awkward and violent situations rather than making
event, instead waking up on the shores of the border their lives easier.
islands surrounding each of the dominions. They are The quom are the most straightforward of the four
cursed with the name “outsiders” because they are races. A once-peaceful race converted to violence
physically unable to enter the dominion of their god. by the accidental death of their god in a Dawn War
The outsiders live as well as they can in the outer battle between Bahamut and a powerful primordial,
islands, sometimes managing a prosperous if not per- the quom cut the fragments of their dead god out of
fect afterlife (as in the Green Isles around Arvandor, the bodies of anyone who had the bad luck to contain
page 42, and in the Daybreak Islands around Hes- a piece of it, no matter how small. The quom rival the
tavar, page 64). In other cases, such as in the island gith yanki as fearsome raiders, but where the gith-
chain around Tytherion known as the Scales (page yanki seek plunder and entertaining violence, the
88), outsiders live only by avoiding the hunting par- quom target random creatures, structures, and magic
ties led by the servants of the evil deities they might items. As part of a campaign, the quom’s random
once have worshiped. raids can target the player characters, or those close
Even in the best circumstances, the outsiders and to them. Occasionally, the quom might even target
mortals living on the border islands are cut off from the characters’ enemies, perhaps forcing the charac-
the full protection of the dominions. Player characters ters to choose between enemies to assist.
will often be the only defenders standing between the
inhabitants of the border islands and the ravagers of The Astral Sea is most suited to paragon tier and
the Astral Sea: abominations, aberrants, slavers from epic tier adventures.
the Nine Hells, gith yanki pirates, quom searchers, and Most of the monsters and threats found in the
servants of the evil gods. In turn, the border islands Astral Sea match up well against paragon and epic
and their outsider populations provide points of light tier adventurers. Exceptions exist, but few heroic
outside the divine dominions where characters can tier characters should count on being able to sail
recuperate and prepare for their next adventure. through the Astral Sea without falling prey to gith-
yanki pirates or devils harvesting souls for the Nine
The Astral Sea is the home of many native Hells. Heroic tier characters can use portals to access
mortal races whose goals will shape the charac- specific astral locations, but most adventures in the
ters’ adventures. Astral Sea are better suited for adventurers in the
The four major independent races of the Astral Sea are paragon or epic tier.
covered in detail at the start of Chapter 3. Each of the
four races has its own slant on the Plane Above that is
likely to conflict with the player characters’ goals. (cid:79)(cid:84)(cid:72)(cid:69)(cid:82)(cid:3)(cid:83)(cid:79)(cid:85)(cid:82)(cid:67)(cid:69)(cid:83)
The couatls seem like the most benevolent of the Certain aspects of the Astral Sea have been detailed in
four, but their crusade against various forms of evil earlier D&D® supplements and in some Dragon® magazine
masks a status-oriented society that can turn player articles on D&D Insider™. Here’s a list of significant sources.
characters into pawns used in the hierarchy contests Manual of the Planes™, especially Chapter 5: The Astral
within the couatls’ Cloud Court (page 93). Sea.
Of the four races, the gith yanki have the most “Playing Gith zerai” in Dragon #378.
influence on events in the Astral Sea. Player char- “Tu’narath, City of Death” in Dragon #377.
acters will probably have encountered gith yanki in “Codex of Betrayal: Alloces, the Butcher of Nessus” in
their earlier adventures. The gith yanki excel as quick- Dragon #373.
sailing raiders and pirates, preying mostly on the “Deities and Demigods: Bane” in Dragon #372.
border islands, on those who sail between the islands, “Masters of the Planes” in Dragon #372.
and on explorers who dare the deep Astral Sea. In “Hestavar” in Dragon #371.
CHAPTER 1 | Astral Adventuring
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The “silver sea” left in the wake of the destruction wanderers or the quom, has a clear idea of everything
of the original Lattice of Heaven isn’t actually a sea, that could be found in the deep Astral Sea—the part of
but rather a fantastic version of the space beyond the the plane that surrounds the comparatively small area
world, filled with vast clouds of a luminous silver- in which most of the gods’ dominions are located.
gray substance that is not fully a mist and not fully a So far as anyone knows, the only truly fixed
liquid. Thousands of stars glitter in the distance, as locations in the Astral Sea are occupied by the few
well as the colored veils of the astral dominions, if a functioning divine dominions that still maintain some
traveler is close enough to see them. Vast expanses of sort of connection with the skeleton of the original
“open sea” between the drifting clouds of astral mist divine Lattice, such as Celestia, Tytherion, and the
provide travelers with hundreds of miles of visibility. Nine Hells. The border islands that spring up around
Inside even the densest astral mist, a traveler can see each of the functioning divine dominions don’t stay
objects several miles away with ease, since the wispy in fixed positions, but each does tend to remain
clouds of the Astral Sea don’t impede vision as much within the orbit of its source dominion. The rest of the
as clouds do in the world. islands, motes, and shattered dominions of the Astral
The Astral Sea is not wet or cold; a cool tingle on Sea often change position slightly or drastically every
the skin is the only sensation a traveler gets. Crea- year as a consequence of changes in the astral tide.
tures that breathe do so without trouble. Flying Astral navigators start with knowledge of the
creatures can fly through the astral stuff as if it were basic directions from one functioning divine domin-
air, and natural swimmers can swim through it as if it ion to the next. But even with that knowledge, the
were water. Other creatures can move slowly through amount of time it actually takes to sail or fly through
the Astral Sea by sheer willpower (they have a fly the entire Astral Sea from one known dominion to
speed of 2 [clumsy] and can hover). More information another varies hugely depending on flows of astral
on flying and sailing through the Astral Sea is located energy that are largely imperceptible. More details on
in “Traveling the Astral Sea” on page 19. astral travel appear on page 19.
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Even though the Astral Sea is a three-dimensional
void, it has a distinct horizon that forms something
Great walls of shimmering light known as color veils
like the surface of an ocean. The mists below this
surround each of the functioning divine dominions
surface are darker and denser, while the mists above
(as well as the dominions that have lost their deities).
the surface are brighter and more open. Most crea-
Each dominion has its own color (see Manual of the
tures and vessels slowly orient themselves toward
Planes, page 16). Most color veils are semiopaque,
this subtle demarcation, often without realizing it,
offering partial or shifting glimpses of the dominion
in order to travel along the “surface” of the Astral
within.
Sea. Vessels in the Astral Sea tend to meet along this
Travel along the horizon of the Astral Sea is often
nominal surface, creating encounters that begin in
sped up considerably by color strands, which are
a space that seems two-dimensional, though it can
wide ribbons of light related to the color veil of their
become three-dimensional as soon as vessels begin
dominion. Whereas crossing an actual color veil
maneuvering for position.
immediately places a traveler inside the dominion,
The functioning divine dominions all rest along
entering a color strand transports a traveler to a posi-
this surface horizon. A vessel approaching an astral
tion on the edge of the corresponding dominion. If
dominion normally does so from the dominion’s
the dominion has border islands, travelers entering a
equivalent of sea level, or from its equator for those
color strand are transported to the edge of that archi-
dominions that are shaped like globes. It’s unusual,
pelago, allowing entrance to the dominion only by
though obviously not impossible, to drop in on a
sailing through the border islands.
dominion from a pole or the zenith of its sky.
A traveler using a color strand to reach a shattered
(cid:68)(cid:110)(cid:103)(cid:92)(cid:105)(cid:95)(cid:110)(cid:3)(cid:100)(cid:105)(cid:3)(cid:111)(cid:99)(cid:96)(cid:3)(cid:66)(cid:109)(cid:96)(cid:92)(cid:111)(cid:3)(cid:78)(cid:96)(cid:92) dominion that no longer has border islands is trans-
ported to a place some miles from the dominion’s
Though the Astral Sea is profoundly empty, it is so edge, leaving enough time for preparations before
unthinkably vast that it has room for divine domin- reaching the ruined land. Details on each of the
ions, shattered dominions, countless island motes, dominions’ color veils and the rules for travel by way
tumbling wrecks of Dawn War battlefields, and cita- of color strands appear in the “Navigating the Astral
del islands. No one, except perhaps a few gith yanki far Sea” section on page 25.
CHAPTER 1 | Astral Adventuring
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E
M
E
H
No book can provide the compelling stories that you (cid:64)(cid:115)(cid:107)(cid:103)(cid:106)(cid:109)(cid:96)(cid:3)(cid:111)(cid:99)(cid:96)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:105)(cid:97)(cid:100)(cid:105)(cid:100)(cid:111)(cid:96)(cid:3)(cid:78)(cid:96)(cid:92)
T
and the player characters weave together to bring your N
Part of the appeal of the separate planes of existence
game world to life. The goal of this book is to provide a G
compelling backdrop and a rich selection of elements is that they offer you a change of pace, allowing an AI
for you to draw upon for your campaign. The seven all-new style of adventure with an elaborate context P
that you can draw in as you choose. M
campaign themes introduced below help you benefit
A
Fundamentally, the Astral Sea establishes an
from this book. Several of the themes include sug- C
otherworldly analog of seafaring adventures involv-
gested campaign arcs to use as inspiration.
ing relatively rapid but perilous travel between a
succession of familiar and unexplored islands. Of
The themes discussed in this section are:
course, from the perspective of characters newly
✦ Explore the Infinite Sea: An infinite ocean
arrived to the Astral Sea, even the friendliest of
opens the option of framing much of a campaign’s
the divine dominions count as unknown terri-
points of interest as moments in the career of the
tory, to say nothing of the border islands, shattered
greatest explorers of the cosmos. This theme exam-
dominions, and motes of the deeper Astral Sea.
ines the manner in which rephrasing character
Most campaigns that make use of multiple locations
rewards can turn some exploration into the char-
within the Astral Sea can easily contain a strong
acters’ main goal instead of a step along the way.
element of exploration.
✦ Crawl Astral Dungeons: Groups that prefer old- The assumptions of the “points of light” setting for
school dungeon crawl adventures can find what the 4th Edition world translate well to adventures
they’re looking for, one island at a time. in the Astral Sea. The gods’ dominions are the only
✦ Fight Astral Pirates: Gith yanki, quom, and sla- truly stable points in an otherwise ever-shifting
vers working for the evil gods make great enemies, environment, and the sole fixed locations that can be
particularly when the characters get to feel like confidently placed upon an astral map. Depending on
pirates. The Astral Incursion campaign arc sug- the way you treat the island archipelagoes outside the
gests one way of using the gith yanki as focal dominions, a few of the border islands might contain
villains for much of the paragon tier. settlements that qualify as points of light where the
✦ Fight the Gods of Evil: No enemies exist that are characters can seek refuge. Of course, raiders from
one of the evil dominions or the deep Astral Sea can
more powerful than the evil gods. Make use of the
erase such havens at any time. Depending on their
information on the dark dominions in Chapter 2 to
relations with the gods, the characters might need to
infiltrate, assault, and perhaps ultimately destroy
explore large portions of the Astral Sea just to find
the realms of the evil gods. The Gods War cam-
locations they can use as safe havens.
paign arc is a campaign that spans thirty levels,
gradually revealing the nature of this theme.
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✦ Join Heaven’s Order: Epic tier characters already
In a sense, the Astral Sea is the scene of a perpetual
dabble with demigod status and positions as
age of exploration. Unlike our own world, which
exarchs. This theme draws the characters into
offers merely two poles for explorers’ flags and a
closer connection with the gods of one or more
finite number of mightiest rivers and tallest moun-
dominions, or points the way to joining the gods
tains, the Astral Sea perpetually renews itself with
on the characters’ own terms.
undiscovered islands and shards of ancient Dawn
✦ Overcome Heaven’s Flaws: The divine system
War battlefields newly swirled into reach by the
hasn’t worked properly since the Lattice of Heaven
astral tides.
was destroyed. The characters attempt to solve the
To motivate the characters to explore wide reaches
tragedy of the outsiders, with or without the assis-
of the Astral Sea, draw a clear connection between
tance of the deities.
exploration and loot. Fragments of ancient battle-
✦ Adventure into Myth: This theme offers as pos- fields that have escaped or defied plunder since the
sible adventures the conflicts of history and myth Dawn War should be rich sources of magic items.
related in this book (and in all other supplements). Some come from the original armies of the gods.
Venturing into deep myth makes it possible for the Others come from the forces of the primordials.
characters to succeed and change the world for the Given the scope of the conflict and its numerous
better or fail horribly and return to a world in worse bizarre alliances, any item you want to introduce into
shape than it was before. It’s a delicate balance, but your campaign, or that your players have asked for
an exciting option for demonstrating how epic tier on their wish lists (Dungeon Master’s Guide, page 125),
characters assume the mantle of cosmic power. could reasonably be found somewhere on an ancient
CHAPTER 1 | Astral Adventuring
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