Cosmology

The Planes are the framework upon which worlds rest. Travel between them is nigh-impossible short of magical means, and even then must travel in a linear fashion; for example, one must travel first to Talar before reaching Praxia, although the contact need only be momentary.


After a being dies, its soul is freed and naturally gravitates toward Limbo. From there, if the soul still possesses the will to fight and live, it travels to Praxia; If it is dead in spirit as well as in body, it travels to Gulnan. If it desires only to wait for judgment, or it cannot decide, it waits in Limbo until its soul is judged; if it desires for nonexistence, then it may opt to enter the Abyss. A being who exists within Gulnan, Limbo or Praxia as their afterlife cannot be revived if killed, for their spirit and body are now one and the same.

Dead souls need not pass through the planes in a linear fashion to reach the Afterlife of their destination.


The denizens of both Heaven and Hell may vouch for souls they particularly desire to have among them. If unopposed, that soul then enters Heaven or Hell. If a hellish vote and a heavenly vouch are placed upon the same soul (usually because Hell wishes to deny their opponent a valuable ally or to punish one of Hell's enemies for all eternity) the heavenly vouch takes precedence.

A Hellish vouch prevents a soul from entering the Abyss, and thus oblivion over torment is not generally possible.


A soul sent to Praxia, Limbo or Gulnan may be revived anytime. A soul sent to Hell or Heaven may only be returned assuming the soul still exists, wishes to return, and has not joined the angelic or demonic hordes.






Anoth Peras, the Home Plane

Center of the universe and home to the material world, Anoth Peras - also known as the Home Plane or Prime Material Plane - is where the planet Anoth exists, and upon it the main continent of Isenna with which we largely concern ourselves. Anoth Peras is quite literally the axis upon which all of existence is balanced - it lies directly between Hell and the various Heavens. It is here that mortals are born and grow old, where they live and die. It is the stage upon which the Tarthiana Caepropa, what scholars call the Cosmic Play, is acted out - endlessly and forever. The gods all touch Anoth Peras with clarity proportionate to their strength.


Ern

Ern is an unfinished, discarded existence. It is said that the First created it before anything else had been given form - but in disappointment, they moved on to the foundation of Anoth Peras instead. It consists of a single, tiny planet of the same name; it is a round chunk of red earth, heaped haphazardly upon itself and occasionally finding the sky from beneath a crimson sea. Nothing lives in Ern, nor does anyone have reason to.


Talar

Talar is the home of all power, of almost any kind. Radiant energy streams to every plane from Talar, and it is from here that elemental energies are evoked. The few civilizations that occupy Talar are heavily-built, and shielded from the omnipresent, streaming fury by thick stone and potent spells.


Praxia

Praxia is home to what some call the Everjourney, a continuous war and search for an ancient artifact of unknown origin and description supposedly placed there by the First. For those who die and find that they have yet to renounce their purchase on worldly cares and campaigns, Praxia makes a transitory afterlife where there is always a cause to fight for.


Gulnan

A dead, empty expanse of endless midnight, the Dead Hollow is an endless series of dark, deathly-silent valleys. Water can be found in quiet, still springs - drinkable, but without taste or refreshment. Berries hang from sickly, briared bushes; and while they provide sustenance, they give little else. Gulnan is home to the souls of those who are exhausted, and who no longer care whether or not they live. There is nothing in the Hollow capable of giving harm or fright - other than, of course, what each soul carries within themselves.


Limbo

A place of transition, Limbo is the place at the very foot of the great Golden Stair that leads to heaven. Fairly pleasant, but not precisely enjoyable for the most part - Limbo is the sort of place that one only visits on the way to someplace else. There are, however, pockets of Limbo that make excellent spots to relax and simply enjoy oneself.


Hell

Made of unimaginable torments, both physical and otherwise. The throngs, the pulsating hordes of demons which choke Hell's jagged, rocky terrain are only half the problem; the air is sulphuric and barely breathable, and few who venture willingly to Hell ever survive. It is rare for a being to actually reach Hell; typically, most people who find themselves here have been damned or otherwise banished. Occasionally, too, a demon will vouch for a soul in which they find particular interest; it is then very likely that the spirit in question will find themselves sucked into Hell instead of Limbo or other afterlife-planes. The spirits brought to Hell have only a short time of torment here before they become demons themselves; after this point, their torment as Hell's Own has begun and resurrection is no longer possible.


Heaven

Most souls do not reach Heaven, vouching (or being sent) instead for Gulnan, Praxis, Limbo, or (rarely) the Abyss. However, some particularly virtuous or admirable souls may be vouched for by angels or the celestial horde; all being well, those souls go directly to Heaven and join them. Spirits brought to Heaven may remain as they are or join the ranks of the Angels. In either case, they are free to do as they wish.


The Abyss

The Abyss is an empty nothingness. Souls that enter it are forever destroyed.



The Ethereal Sea is a liquid, malleable alter-existence to Anoth Peras - it occupies the same space and overlaps with totality. Teleportation is accomplished in the Home Plane by skipping briefly to the Ethereal Sea and back.



Larger than the Ethereal Sea, the nearly-infinite Astral Sea envelops Anoth Peras, the Ethereal Sea, Talar and Ern - as well as the miscellaneous demi- and quasi-planes nearby. Ordinary planar travel functions by traveling through the Astral Sea. Moving to outside planes is much more difficult, and requires more potent magic.

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