Variant Cosmology for Pathfinder 2nd Edition

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Davies
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Variant Cosmology for Pathfinder 2nd Edition

Post by Davies »

Author's Note: This is something I've been fiddling with for a while now. Its central conceit arises from the fact that the spell plane shift, in Pathfinder 2nd Edition, is one of the few spells that is part of the spell list of all four spell-casting traditions -- arcane, divine, occult and primal. While considering this, I wondered what would happen if one organized the planes of existence in a way that echoed that division, with plane shifts cast by a certain tradition only able to access planes that related to that tradition. This allowed me to use parts of the standard PF cosmology while also bringing in parts of earlier F20 cosmologies, and other games, that interested me.

The rarities noted in parenthesis after each planar description are the rarities of the tuning fork needed to cast
plane shift.

Commentary, criticism, and suggestions for planes that are missing are welcome.

The Arcane Planes

These planes float in Limbo, with Elysium, Nirvana, Heaven, Utopia, Hell, Abaddon and Pandemonium surrounding Stygia, and a great gulf of Limbo separating Elysium and Pandemonium. It is theoretically possible to walk from Elysium all the way to Pandemonium, a journey of roughly eight thousand kilometres, but only one entity has ever successfully done so.

Abaddon: Sometimes called Gehenna, the dumping grounds of the Abyss and Hell. The fiends who flourish here are called daimons, though their own name for themselves is 'yujoloth'. They are ruled over by a junta of seven immortals known as the Riders of Apocalypse, and are frequently employed as mercenaries in the wars of the lower planes. The fate of the mortal souls which arrive here is generally to be consumed by the daimons, though a much smaller number are transformed to become daimons. (Rare)

Elysium: The home plane of the azata, sometimes known as the eladrin. These fey-like celestials dwell in a realm of wild, idealized natural beauty, similar in many ways to Arcadia (see below) and reputedly connected to it. Their rulers are dozens of courts of immortals, the most famous of which is the Syndarine, ruled by Korelon Elsundal, the ancient patron of the elves. Mortal souls who arrive here generally labor in the service of the courts until such time as they are rewarded with reincarnation as one of the azata. (Uncommon)

Heaven: Sometimes called Celestia, this realm is usually envisioned as a great mountain. It is home to the archons, or ashema, construct-like celestials, ruled by one of their number called Metatron, or Enoch. Mortal souls who arrive here are taught to climb the mountain, a journey as much spiritual as physical. Only one being, a woman either named Ursula or Utena depending on the legend, has ever returned from what is viewed as the summit of the mountain; when asked what was to be found there, she reportedly replied, "Another side of the mountain." (Rare)

Hell: Resembling, to mortal eyes, a series of nine flat circular plains resting above each other, with a gigantic crater torn through the middle of eight of them, this plane is the home of the fiends known as devils, or shedim. Each of the circles is ruled by an immortal, who all owe allegiance to the being known as Baal. Mortal souls who arrive here typically expect to be rewarded for their deeds of evil. They have been deceived, and will be tortured, broken down, and finally consumed by the plane itself, if they last that long. (Uncommon)

Limbo: Sometimes called the Astral Plane, this realm is the timeless space of immaterial unreality that lies beyond the borders of the other arcane realms. It is home to the entities known as the proteans, mad creatures which raid other realms, perhaps for reasons unimaginable to minds less chaotic, or perhaps simply for sport. It also home to the two surviving species descended from the Ancients, the Zerai who create settlements, and the Byange who raid in imitation of the proteans. What becomes of those mortal souls who arrive here is a mystery. (Rare)

Nirvana: Home to the devas, also known as seraphim, this plane resembles a series of fertile valleys carved by a great river, with many islands in its stream. The deva, and the plane, are governed by a council of immortals risen up from their number, most notably she who is known as Sophia. While some mortal souls who arrive here are reborn as devas themselves, it is more common for them to eventually merge with the plane itself, supposedly becoming one with the multiverse in a way that even the immortals and deities cannot conceive. (Rare)

Pandemonium: Sometimes called the Abyss, this is less a singular location than the collective name for an unimaginable number of small planes of madness and depravity. Some are ruled by the fiends known as demons, or specifically the immortal demon princes. Others are given over to the aberrations known as the oberith, sometimes called qlippothic entities or even just qlippoths. Still others have been claimed by mortal wizards of great power and greater hubris. Mortal souls who arrive here are eventually reborn as demons, though this can take eons. (Uncommon)

Stygia: Considered the heartland and breadbasket of the arcane planes, this is the realm of the psychopomps, entities greatly involved with the process of death and dying. Ruled by an entity known as Teleute (sometimes called Pharasma or the Raven Queen) this is the realm where the overwhelming majority of mortal souls end up ... and are, after their arrival, more or less left to their own devices. While some journey from here to other realms, many more remain here, experiencing existences not that much different from those they knew while living. (Uncommon)

Utopia: Sometimes called Axiom, this is the great city of the planes, a place of commerce and diplomacy in perpetual twilight. It is ruled over by entities called aeons, and their immortal rulers, who monitor the balances between good and evil, law and chaos. Rumors claim that there are portals to every location in the multiverse within the boroughs of Utopia, explaining why everything is for sale here. Mortal souls who arrive here must become productive denizens of the city; those who won't (or can't) are reborn as bricks in the city's wall or roads. (Uncommon)

The Divine Planes

There is not a single set of divine planes, but rather one for each of the major groupings of deities -- the Asgardians, the Olympians, and the Pharaonic deities, as well as the Celestial Bureaucracy of distant Ketai. Somewhat confusing matters is the fact that "the arcane planes" are also "the divine planes" of those religions which worship the immortals who reside there. It has been suggested that this is these immortals have encouraged the development of arcane magic to a greater degree than the deities. This suggestion tends to annoy followers of Selene, Odin and Thoth, among others. (Generally, plane shifting to an afterlife realm is Uncommon, while plane shifting to a deital realm is Rare or Very Rare.)

The Occult Planes

Akashic Records: The plane of knowledge. This plane contains all information in the multiverse in a single, vast visual library of psychic experiences. Supposedly, these psychic records provide perfect and unambiguous understanding of all knowledge, and they present this knowledge on command. Of course, nothing is that simple, as the set of all information includes all false information, all lies and opinions and delusions, and distinguishing the truth is very much left to those who would study here. This plane has no native life, but many powerful entities are said to reside here permanently or visit. (Uncommon)

Eternity: The plane of time. Supposedly, those who travel here can access all times. Of course, nothing is that simple, and a would-be time traveler is much more likely to end up in a completely different era from the one they sought ... but often one where they are needed. Eternity itself is timeless, and sometimes used as a place to store objects and creatures safely. The plane is the home of entities known as time dimensionals (sometimes misnamed as 'time elementals') who act as guardians of Eternity and the timestream, and is also thick with chronogeists. (Rare)

Mechanus: A plane of uncertain origin, the home (and possible physical form) of an entity known as the God-Machine. From its foundries are born entities called modrones, similar to archons but constructs rather than celestials. They act as the protectors and maintainers of the God-Machine, except when they go rogue and flee into the multiverse beyond. Mechanus also contains 'cradles' which periodically produce androids, though this is not the only known source of these beings. (Rare)

Polymorphia: The plane of mutation, sometimes known as the Warp. It is a roiling sea of biological matter that periodically gives rise to solid regions, which break apart just as frequently. Home to entities called selathi, similar to proteans but aberrations rather than monitors. They act as carriers of a plague that causes bizarre physical and mental transformations in those it infects, but the entire realm can infect those who visit it if such travelers are not extremely careful. (Rare)

Shadow: The greater plane which supports the various occult planes, it also allows travel between the various cosmologies, and so can be used to access arcane, divine and primal planes. However, this travel is seldom safe, as the Shadow Plane is also home to the fiends known as velstracs, who actively hunt beings traveling through shadow, and to the planetouched entities called fetchlings (or shadar-kai to use their own name) who are often forced into servitude by the velstracs. Shadow dragons are also surprisingly common here. (Uncommon)

Symphonia: The plane of music, a vast hollow sphere with occasional platforms shaped from metals of unknown origin. Home to entities called tonals, similar to air elementals but monitors rather than elementals, who embody various sounds and tend to be lawfully aligned. Supposedly, every song or piece that has ever been performed in the multiverse can be and has been recreated here, though organizing such recreations is challenging at the best of times. (Rare)

The Primal Planes

Arcadia: This is the plane of the fey, although not necessarily the home plane of all such creatures, who also spawn on the Material Plane and on many others. It is a realm filled with lands of wonder and gemstone cities. Non-fey who spend time on this plane frequently find that more time has passed on their planes of origins than they experienced. Despite certain legends, this does not depend on whether or not the subject has eaten fairy food, as simply breathing the air of Arcadia can have this effect. Despite rumors to the contrary, fey are not immortal on this plane; death exists even here. (Uncommon)

Arborea: The plane of plant-kind, where every variety of plant, both mobile and rooted, that has ever existed on the Material Plane continues to exist. This is perhaps the safest of the primal planes, as no transformations are said to befall those who spend time there. However, it is also the only known plane where the creatures called leshy awaken spontaneously, and Arborean leshy tend to be far more territorial than other examples of their brethren. (Uncommon)

Beastlands: The plane of animal-kind, with ordinary, giant, and intelligent examples of all the species known to exist on the Material Plane, including some which are extinct or very rare. This is also the home plane of the various Questing Beasts. While animal visitors who travel here often spontaneously awaken to human-like intelligence, the exact opposite frequently happens to human or humanoid visitors. (Uncommon)

Elemental Planes: While the planes of air, earth, fire and water are all well-known, they are not the only planes composed only of elemental matter. Some are the result of the combination of two or more elemental types (the plane of steam, combining fire and water), some are composed of matter antithetical to a given element (the plane of ice opposed to the plane of fire, the plane of vacuum as opposed to that of air) and some don't seem to make sense (the plane of lightning). Some have attempted to put the various planes in arrangements, but these maps do not remotely describe the territory. Entities who spend too much time here tend to transform into elementals themselves. (The four major elemental planes are Uncommon, the lesser ones are Rare)

Maelstrom: A plane of elemental chaos, allegedly the greater plane in which the elemental planes (and possibly all primal planes) all float. This realm is home to certain entities who resemble the demons of the Abyss, but who are elemental in nature rather than fiends. They battle each other constantly, but will also fight any other entity. Primal dragons are also found here in large numbers. (Rare)
Last edited by Davies on Fri Jul 10, 2020 5:07 am, edited 1 time in total.
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greycrusader
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Re: Variant Cosmology for Pathfinder 2nd Edition

Post by greycrusader »

I actually quite like these classification of the planes. It maps onto the different pathways to magic in the game (divine, arcane, primordial, and so on), and avoids allows beings of varying alignments to coexist among the "god-planes" as well. Nicely done.

All my best.
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Davies
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Re: Variant Cosmology for Pathfinder 2nd Edition

Post by Davies »

This is the Olympian pantheon of this cosmology. It's not meant to exactly match the Greek myths, but I'm trying to capture their feel to the best of my ability. None of the theoi (and none of the aesir or netjer) are or care much about 'good' or 'evil'.

Aphrodite (CN)
Edict: pursue romance regardless of personal cost, encourage others to follow their dreams
Anathema: claim to be more beautiful than Aphrodite, choose security over passion
Follower Alignments: CE, CG, CN, N, NG
Divine Font: harm or heal
Divine Skill: Deception
Favored Weapon: Dagger
Domains: indulgence, passion, secrecy, trickery
Cleric Spells: 1st: charm, 2nd: humanoid form, 3rd: enthrall

Apollo (LN)
Edict: heal the sick, teach music and song
Anathema: refuse medical aid, show cowardice
Follower Alignments: CG, LG, LN, N, NG
Divine Font: heal
Divine Skill: select Medicine or Performance
Favored Weapon: Shortbow
Domains: confidence, healing, knowledge, perfection
Cleric Spells: 1st: soothe, 2nd: false life, 4th: resilient sphere

Ares (CN)
Edict: attain victory in battle through fair means or foul, push your limits
Anathema: prevent conflict through negotiation, continue to fight a losing battle
Follower Alignments: CE, CG, CN, N, NE
Divine Font: harm or heal
Divine Skill: Intimidation
Favored Weapon: Greataxe
Domains: ambition, might, protection, zeal
Cleric Spells: 1st: true strike, 2nd: enlarge, 4th: weapon storm

Artemis (N)
Edict: live in the wilderness, own no more than you can carry
Anathema: abandon chastity, kill wantonly
Follower Alignments: CG, CN, LG, N, NG
Divine Font: harm or heal
Divine Skill: Nature
Favored Weapon: Longbow
Domains: family, nature, travel, zeal
Cleric Spells: 1st: true strike, 3rd: wall of thorns, 5th: tree stride

Athena (LN)
Edict: revere a father-figure, live a chaste life
Anathema: claim to be wiser than Athena, betray your father-figure
Follower Alignments: LE, LG, LN, N, NG
Divine Font: harm or heal
Divine Skill: Society
Favored Weapon: Spear
Domains: cities, perfection, truth, zeal
Cleric Spells: 1st: mage armor, 2nd: humanoid form, 3rd: hypercognition

Demeter (N)
Edict: assist in planting and harvest, take part in the mysteries
Anathema: betray or harm a child, reveal mysteries to outsiders
Follower Alignments: Any
Divine Font: harm or heal
Divine Skill: Nature
Favored Weapon: Scythe
Domains: earth, family, nature, sorrow
Cleric Spells: 1st: temporary tool, 2nd: shape wood, 3rd: wall of thorns

Dionysus (CN)

Edict: eat, drink and make merry, celebrate theatre
Anathema: deny pleasures for yourself or others, show mercy to enemies
Follower Alignments: CE, CG, CN, N, NE
Divine Font: harm or heal
Divine Skill: Select Occultism or Performance
Favored Weapon: Staff
Domains: delirium, freedom, indulgence, nature
Cleric Spells: 1st: fleet step, 3rd: wall of thorns, 5th: hallucination

Hades (LN)
Edict: conduct funerals, console the bereaved
Anathema: create undead, despoil graves
Follower Alignments: LE, LN, N, NE
Divine Font: harm or heal
Divine Skill: Stealth
Favored Weapon: Shortsword
Domains: darkness, death, secrecy, wealth
Cleric Spells: 1st: phantom pain, 2nd: invisibility, 3rd: haste

Helios (N)
Edict: rise with the dawn, fulfill the charges which you have been given
Anathema: neglect your duty, yield to personal desires
Follower Alignments: LG, LN, N, NG
Divine Font: harm or heal
Divine Skill: Nature
Favored Weapon: Spear
Domains: duty, fire, sun, time
Cleric Spells: 1st: burning hands, 3rd: fireball, 4th: wall of fire

Hephaestus (LN)
Edict: craft new creations, pay attention to details
Anathema: carelessly destroy others’ creations or research, engage in shoddy work
Follower Alignments: CG, LG, LN, N, NG
Divine Font: harm or heal
Divine Skill: Crafting
Favored Weapon: Warhammer
Domains: creation, fire, might, wealth
Cleric Spells: 1st: summon construct, 3rd: meld into stone, 4th: stoneskin

Hera (N)
Edict: avenge any insult to yourself or Hera, give counsel to women
Anathema: commit adultery, fail to treat adultery as an insult
Follower Alignments: LE, LN, N, NE, NG
Divine Font: harm or heal
Divine Skill: select Diplomacy or Thievery
Favored Weapon: Light mace
Domains: family, secrecy, tyranny, zeal
Cleric Spells: 1st: anticipate peril, 2nd: misdirection, 3rd: nondetection

Hermes (N)
Edict: outwit your opponents instead of overpowering them, play pranks
Anathema: destroy knowledge, be completely honest
Follower Alignments: All
Divine Font: harm or heal
Divine Skill: select Athletics or Deception
Favored Weapon: Staff
Domains: confidence, knowledge, travel, trickery
Cleric Spells: 1st: penumbral shroud, 3rd: invisibility sphere, 6th: mislead

Hestia (N)

Edict: keep the hearth fire burning, care for children
Anathema: abandon your family, exalt yourself above others
Follower Alignments: LG, LN, N, NG
Divine Font: heal
Divine Skill: Society
Favored Weapon: Mace
Domains: family, fire, protection, vigil
Cleric Spells: 1st: soothe, 2nd: humanoid form, 7th: magnificent mansion

Poseidon (CN)
Edict: sacrifice before any ocean voyage, eat fish and other sea food
Anathema: show excessive pride, aid followers of Athena
Follower Alignments: CE, CN, N, NE
Divine Font: harm or heal
Divine Skill: Survival
Favored Weapon: Trident
Domains: destruction, earth, travel, water
Cleric Spells: 1st: hydraulic push, 3rd: feet to fins, 5th: mariner’s curse

Selene (N)

Edict: cast light in places of darkness, lead the lost
Anathema: intentionally mislead someone, abandon a creature in darkness
Follower Alignments: CG, CN, N, NG
Divine Font: harm or heal
Divine Skill: Arcana
Favored Weapon: Dagger
Domains: dreams, magic, moon, nightmares
Cleric Spells: 1st: message rune, 2nd: humanoid form, 3rd: enthrall, 4th: suggestion, 5th: summon fey, 6th: mislead, 7th: project image, 8th: dream council, 9th: weird

Zeus (N)
Edict: show hospitality to strangers, lead and try to lead wisely
Anathema: seek to escape mortality, kill kindred
Follower Alignments: Any
Divine Font: harm or heal
Divine Skill: Society
Favored Weapon: Longspear
Domains: air, lightning, might, tyranny
Cleric Spells: 1st: true strike, 2nd: animal form, 3rd: lightning bolt
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Ian Turner
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Re: Variant Cosmology for Pathfinder 2nd Edition

Post by Ian Turner »

I like Arborea, in particular, from your Planes cosmology, as I've long wondered why there aren't 'elemental planes' for the eastern elements of wood, metal and void/ku. An 'elemental plane of wood' so to speak, sounds super fun.

Mechanus could end up being kinda/sorta what became of the 'elemental plane of metal,' after countless aeons. (I like the idea of a 'God-Machine.' My own setting had something called the Creation Engine, a massive machine of uncertain provenance floating in the same plane as Axis, guarded by (on opposite sides, so as to avoid friendly fire 'accidents') legions of devils and archons, protecting it from the occasional runs at the machine taken by demons, proteans or qlippoth, who believe that it is the machine that began the process of stratifying reality from the primordial chaos of the Maelstrom / Abyss into the more regimented and defined and static planes like Celestia and the Hells and the 'material plane,' and that if they can just destroy it (or damage it enough to stop it from working), they can erode away these other planes and return them to their pristine ever-changing state. Whether or not this was true, it was enough to create a strange focal point in an endless war between forces of Law and Chaos (with the chaotic forces not allying at all, but the archons and devils (and inevitables that seem to serve the machine itself) allying from time to time, even if they are hardly friends...).

Neat choice making the Olympian gods morally neutral. Even the gods with good PR, like Athena and Apollo, could be horrible jerks (to Aesculapius, murdered by Apollo for being a better healer than him, or Araidne, cursed to become a big bloated spider because *somebody else* bragged that she was a better weaver than Athena!), while even the ones that Disney movies (Hades) or DC comics (Ares) tend to depict as evil, were not really malicious, or enemies to the other gods (that was what the Titans were for!). I feel like the Norse and Egyptian gods kind of fit that as well, with the Norse gods being less 'good and evil' so much as aligned against the giants, and the Egyptian gods being much more concerned with ma'at (and therefore Law) than good/evil.

Dragging it off to a super-hero tangent, a Wonder Woman/Captain Marvel mash-up who draws upon power from the six Olympian goddesses by saying the nonsense word 'Ahadha' (Artemis, Hera, Athena, Demeter, Hestia, Aphrodite) could be a fun twist, although what sort of powers she'd get from those six in particular would be a bit of a stumper. (Although Hestia, by herself, could be awesome. Defenses and entrapping effects based on calling up stone walls, and blasting enemies with hearthfire! It's got offense and defense, and a funky theme!)

It's a riot that the 'twelve' Olympians are, like, fourteen. (Even before Hestia leaves to make room for Herakles!) Zeus, Hera, Hermes, Apollo, Aphrodite, Artemis, Athena, Demeter, Dionysus, Ares, Hephaestus, Hades, Poseidon, Hestia/Herakles. Some don't count Hermes (he's just their message-boy! But then later, he's made the big time, and Iris is the singing telegram girl). Some don't count Hephaestus (he's just their smith!). Some don't count Hades (yeah, don't count out Hades, he's pretty cranky!).
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Davies
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Re: Variant Cosmology for Pathfinder 2nd Edition

Post by Davies »

Ian Turner wrote: Sat Jul 11, 2020 10:31 am I like Arborea, in particular, from your Planes cosmology, as I've long wondered why there aren't 'elemental planes' for the eastern elements of wood, metal and void/ku. An 'elemental plane of wood' so to speak, sounds super fun.
Well, I imagine that the authors of other cosmologies had a problem with the idea of a plane of plants without earth, water, or air, all of which are essential for plant growth. Come to that, I have some worries about how carnivorous plants on Arborea sustain themselves ...
Ian Turner wrote: Sat Jul 11, 2020 10:31 am Dragging it off to a super-hero tangent, a Wonder Woman/Captain Marvel mash-up who draws upon power from the six Olympian goddesses by saying the nonsense word 'Ahadha' (Artemis, Hera, Athena, Demeter, Hestia, Aphrodite) could be a fun twist, although what sort of powers she'd get from those six in particular would be a bit of a stumper. (Although Hestia, by herself, could be awesome. Defenses and entrapping effects based on calling up stone walls, and blasting enemies with hearthfire! It's got offense and defense, and a funky theme!)
Artemis: Command over animals.
Hera: Might. ("Great Hera!")
Athena: Wisdom.
Demeter: Command over plants.
Hestia: Command over fire.
Aphrodite: Beauty.

It makes them more of a Fantomah type figure than Captain Marvel, but that's interesting in and of itself.

Thanks for the comment!
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