Planes of Existence

Four planes of existence are known in Merowe: the material plane, the Aether, the Gateway, and the Silver Sea. Most people only know of the material plane and the Aether, the other two planes are harder to reach and shrouded in mystery.

Material Plane
This is the plane in relation to which the other planes are defined. It is the home of races such as humans, elves and dwarves.

Inside the material plane there exist demiplanes, rare places with greatly altered surroundings compared to the rest of the material plane. Examples of such demiplanes include the elemental planes, the shadowfell and the feywild.

The Aether
This is the home of all spiritual beings, such as celestials and fiends. From the material plane it is normally only accessible by mages, who draw their magic from the Aether. When they enter the Aether, only a projection of their mind does so. Entering the Aether physically from the material plane has only been done once, and required enormous amounts of magical energy to do so.

The Aether makes only as much sense as the minds inside of it allow it to be. Many things in the Aether appear similar to the material plane, for instance, one may find a cup floating in the air as though someone was picking it up from a table, taking a sip, and putting it back, but without the table or person actually being there. Other things don’t seem to bear a resemblance to the material plane, or are made from materials found there, but with completely different functions. Walls can be made of running water that is solid to the touch, and floors can be made out of cheese that feels like sand. The appearance of an area in the Aether often reflect a creature that controls it.

Attempts to map the Aether have been made, but have all proven to be futile. The Aether is ever changing, as the inhabitants shape the world around them. Moreover, the Aether does not follow the spatial rules of the material plane. It is possible to be standing in a vast desert with nothing around you but a palm tree that always stays at the same distance, until you walk backwards and bump into that same palm tree.

Some sages theorize that material beings go to the Aether after they die. This theory is based on the fact that many things in the Aether resemble specific memories from people in the material plane, and some creatures in the Aether take on the likeness of deceased people in the material plane.

The Gateway
The Gateway is a plane that is supposedly between the material plane and the Aether. Only a few people have seen the Gateway, as it is notoriously different to reach, and as a result it is only mentioned in a few books. Many people who come back from the dead claim to have seen parts of it, while only the most powerful magic items allow to see into it. On rare occasions powerful magic has enabled people to build portals into the Gateway that allow physical access. These portals have then been used for safely storing items, studying the Gateway, or creating travelling shortcuts. These portals eventually all mysteriously stop working sometime after their creation, ranging from days to decades.

The Gateway appears to be a mixture between the material plane and the Aether. The same rules of logic and physics apply as on the material plane, and unlike the Aether, the Gateway is unchanging and can be mapped out – although no estimate has been made of its size thus far. One exception is that everything in the Gateway happens on islands that are floating in the sky. These islands are not always interconnected, and it is not always possible to see other islands from the one you are on. In between these islands is a cloud like mist. Holes in this mist allow sojourners glimpses of the material plane.

No living creatures are known to come from the Gateway, but it is speculated that the Seraphim came from here.

The Silver Sea
This mythical plane has never been seen by creatures from the material plane. Its existence is known only to creatures from the material plane because beings from the Aether have told them about it. The Silver Sea consists of vast silvery clouds. Anything in it loses its colour and becomes shades of white and light grey.