Arborea

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Arborea
Rune of Arborea
Alignment Chaotic Good
Number of layers 3
Associated Faction Society of Sensation
Gate-Town Sylvania
Inhabitants of Arborea
Previous
Beastlands
Next
Ysgard

When most Sigilians think of Arborea, the first thing to pop to mind is the grub, for the best food and drink comes from this plane: the most flavorful meats, the juiciest fruits, the most layered wines and ales. However, Arborea is far more than merely the breadbox of the planes. A plane of deep passions and wondrous adventures, the Olympian Glades of Arborea inspire great deeds in nearly all that journey there, whether they be farmers or adventurers. Though with a few glowing points of light, the majority of Arborea is endlessly untamed; wild, beautiful, and for those seeking trouble, dangerous. This land is where all great tales of triumphant, independent heroes occur, where the greatest epics play themselves out every day. Here, a plucky attitude and a desire to win can let one's greatest dreams be met; in Arborea, the Quest is king.

Physical Conditions

A plane with deep connections to nature, Arborea is thick with nature spirits of all sorts, and the landscapes of Arborea reflect this well, ranging from placid fields around the settled lands to dark and deadly places filled with ravenous beasts. Overhead across every layer, a bright golden sun hangs during the day, and a bright, pure-white moon at night. In many ways like the Beastlands, Arborea's untamed wilds differ in one key aspect: while in the Beastlands the animals are tough because they rule, in Arborea the animals are tough because it wouldn't be worth the hunt if they weren't. Just like anything else, in this plane if a goal doesn't have obstacles to overcome, it's not worth doing.

And danger lurks not merely from the beasts of Arborea, but from the spirits of nature. Quick to anger and long to hold a grudge, the spirits of Arborea don't take kindly to being ignored or insulted, and should they think a traveler isn't showing them the proper respect, they'll throw all manner of extra walls in their path. Cleared trails will become root-entangled while a person's back is turned, rivers will change or even reverse course, tunnels will shift about in the middle of mountains. In Arborea, even more than in the Beastlands, one must pay the proper deference to Mother Nature and her children, for here outsiders are nothing but guests in her home.

The weather of Arborea, guided by its own spirits of wind and cloud, reflects this as well; while there's always at least a sweet-scented breeze blowing about, without warning a pleasant spring day can snap to a horrid thunderstorm. The spring and fall of Arborea are quite livable, but the summer and winter can be very harsh, and even deadly, and far too many travelers here have perished from lightning or hail while on the watch for other dangers.

Despite all this, Arborea is very bountiful. The saturation of nature spirits allows for amazing harvests of both plant and animal; many of the planes' most skilled and renown chefs prefer nothing but Arborean ingredients in their creation. Though some say this is more in the mind than anything, most feel there's just that slight bit of something extra, of deeper and more layered flavors in the products of Arborea. That the passions of the plane infuse themselves into its creations.

Of course, these passions bring about more unnatural conditions to watch for in Arborea as well. The air itself at times seems to be energized with pure emotions, and it is on this plane that the melodramatic monologues, dialogues, and soliloquies of drama play out in life. Passions are heightened here, and those within the plane each have their role to play while here. Ancient archetypes that resound through the fictions of all peoples, flat in many ways yet harking back to a time when these roles were personality, when Story was first being written. That is truly the only way to describe what happens to these people: they become archetypical, they become roles in a play more than individuals. And the more their purpose for being with Arborea can fall into these roles, the more classical or epic their quest, the more likely a set of visitors will fall victim to this effect. To some degree it can be contagious, but it seems to be so more via drama than via any traditional vectors. A slightly shady merchant will be fine until forced into direct conversation with someone suffering this ailment, at which point they become the Snake Oil Salesman. A poor child becomes the Plucky Urchin. A benevolent mayor becomes the Honorable Leader. These individuals are still themselves, they act with their own wills, and yet everything about them appears shallow and broad. After departing Arborea, many that catch a bit of this affliction describe their actions to have been as if they were acting out a script of their own writing; they were doing as they wished, but accomplishing their goals like an actor playing their role.

Magical Conditions

Abjuration No change
Conjuration But for within the realm of Amun-thys, the only beings that can be summoned within Arborea are nature spirits of various sorts; anything from dryads to pixies to eladrin, but no other sort of being.
Divination While divination is well-respected within Arborea, it requires some sort of item from which the readings are taken. Tea leaves, the casting of runes, signs from the stars, some sort of appropriate prop is required for divinations of any sort.
Enchantment Thanks to the heightened passions upon Arborea, all enchantment spells dealing with emotions in any way - cause fear, emotion, charm person - are enhanced, both extended and heightened by 2 spell levels.
Evocation No change
Illusion No change
Necromancy Necromancy is negatively impacted throughout Arborea, with spells channeling negative energy impeded.
Transmutation No change
Elemental Most spells with elemental descriptors are impeded in Arborea, but for Air spells in Olympus and Water spells in Ossa.

Spell Keys

In Arborea, spell keys most often serve as ritual, sacrificial offerings, appealing to the spirits of the plane to allow their magics to function normally. Typical offerings include wine, milk, a bit of the caster's blood, gold, or small unblemished animals. In the case of summoning spells, the offerings usually serve as food for the creature summoned. For elemental spells, a gift symbolizing the opposing element is needed, of size proportional to balance toe effect of the spell.

Layers

Powers

References

  • Manual of the Planes, 3rd edition, pp.144-147
  • On Hallowed Ground, pp.172-182
  • Planes of Chaos - Book of Chaos, pp.34-57
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