astral travel 5e

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Astral plane, description.

Also known as the Great Realm, and while infinities are practically common throughout the planes, with travellers speaking glibly of the bottomless chasm of the Inferno or the infinitely hot fires of the Fire Plane, the sheer size of the Astral Realm is… beyond. The gulfs between stars and the slow march of all time from the foundation of the worlds to their inevitable ends are as nothing compared to the eternal vastness of the Astral Plane. The Astral Plane is a void; sometimes shimmering white, sometimes coruscating purple, sometimes a shifting colour that has no name in the tongues of elf or man. It contains more demi-planes, pocket realms and portals than any other plane. The rest of the planes – all that exist, save the Far Realms – float amid the Great Realm and thus the Astral Plane is coterminous with all others. It also serves as the great highway of the planes, and travellers of all sorts are common. The Astral Plane’s Time and Arcane traits combine to Quicken all spells cast on the plane.

Astral Plane Traits

• Subjective directional gravity : The strength of gravity on a plane with this trait is the same as on the Material Plane, but each individual chooses the direction of gravity’s pull. Such a plane has no gravity for unattended objects and nonsentient creatures. This sort of environment can be very disorienting to the newcomer, but is common on “weightless” planes. Characters on a plane with subjective directional gravity can move normally along a solid surface by imagining “down” near their feet. If suspended in midair, a character “flies” by merely choosing a “down” direction and “falling” that way. Under such a procedure, an individual “falls” 150 feet in the first round and 300 feet in each succeeding round. Movement is straight-line only. In order to stop, one has to slow one’s movement by changing the designated “down” direction (again, moving 150 feet in the new direction in the first round and 300 feet per round thereafter). It takes a DC 13 Wisdom check to set a new direction of gravity as a free action; this check can be made once per round. Any character who fails this Wisdom check in successive rounds receives advantage on subsequent checks until he or she succeeds.
• Timeless : Age, hunger, thirst, poison, and natural healing don’t function in the Astral Plane, though they resume functioning when the traveler leaves the Astral Plane.

Getting there… and Back

Almost every travel spell may be used to access the Astral Plane. Even a humble door, if cast in the right place, can open a way onto the Great Realm. There also exist spells such as astral projection which are specifically designed to bring travellers to the Astral Plane. The Astral Plane never mingles with other planes under normal circumstances, although magical accidents can bring about temporary vortices. Such incidents are quickly repaired by the Planewrights. Natural portals to the Astral Plane are rare, and usually occur where the fabric of reality has worn thin or large numbers of entities have used planar travel spells. There are an infinite number of natural portals leading from the Great Realm to other planes. These are known as colour pools. They form and dissolve randomly as storms run across the Astral Plane.

Survival on the Astral Plane

Survival is relatively easy on the Astral Plane – the realm is timeless, so characters need not eat, drink, breathe or even sleep if they do not want to. Decay, illness, even the onset of poison is halted on the Astral Plane. Dying here takes effort. That is not always a blessing. The Astral Plane is almost completely empty. Matter consists only of a few rare islands of stone. While the subjective gravity of the plane allows travellers to ‘fly’ at great speed, the astral gulfs are much, much too large for a character to get anywhere by controlled falling alone. Magic such as teleport, an accurate plane shift or an astral vessel is practically a requirement for survival. Unprepared travellers who door to the Astral Plane can find themselves in the middle of an infinite nowhere. Neither starvation nor age will take them, so they must wait for an eternity unless they have some means of calling for aid (or killing themselves). Travellers using astral projection have another problem to deal with – the silver cord that links the projected form to the traveller’s real body. If the cord is cut, the character is slain.

Features & Properties

The dominant feature of the Astral Plane is its sheer emptiness. A traveller can fall for weeks and see nothing but the endless shifting fractal patterns of the plane. The only creatures commonly encountered are Astral Parasites, minor vermin attracted to conscious minds.

Natural Portals

Portals to random planes manifest in the wake of astral storms, starcs, and psychic or arcane novas. These portals respond to conscious thought – by concentrating, a character within range of a portal (range equals the character’s Charisma score x 10 feet) can cause the portal to become translucent and allow astral characters to see the other plane, or make the portal open or close. If two characters try to control a portal at the same time, use an opposed Constitution check to determine who wins. If a portal is open, an astral character can step through onto the destination plane. The portal is normally one-way – a character can only go from the Astral to the other plane. However, for 1d4 rounds after a character has stepped from the portal, the portal can be used to reach the Astral Plane. The portal is invisible from the far side. Use the Random Plane Table to determine where a portal leads.

Erratics are the free-floating chunks of matter that dot the Astral Plane. Most are lumps of stone which have been sheared away from the Plane of Earth or a decaying demiplane, but there are pockets of empty air, globes of water or spheres of eternal flame drifting through the Astral Plane. Most solid erratics are inhabited by the various denizens of the Great Realm, while watery or fiery erratics are tapped to refuel and resupply astral barges going on voyages to planes with a normal Time trait.

Waystations

Waystations are inhabited erratics that have been claimed by one of the astral civilisations or guilds, such as the Wayfarers. A small waystation looks like a border fort clinging to a floating rock, with several strange astral barges docked at arched metallic spines that sprout from the fort. Larger waystations can have thousands of inhabitants. The main feature of a waystation is its aethervane, a complex assemblage of crystals, brass rods, cogs and gauges. Aethervanes are sensitive to the distortions caused by the opening and closing of portals on the Astral Plane. A skilled aethervane operator can detect a portal opening millions of miles away. The waystations send their astral barges to these portals to pick up travellers. Inside a waystation, a traveller may expect to find a small general store selling supplies (although food and drink are rarely sold), rooms to rent, a common room, a place to book passage on an astral vessel and the chamber containing the aethervane. As gravity is subjective here, chambers tend to be put to multiple uses; a craftsman on a waystation might have his bed and personal effects attached to the ‘floor’ of a room, and his tools and work area on the ‘ceiling’ – when he goes to work, he simply reverses his personal gravity and makes the work area into the floor. Waystations can be surprisingly well equipped for their size.

Aethervanes

An aethervane weighs at least 1,000 lb., and costs 2,000 gp. It is a non-magical contraption, created using the Craft (aethervane) skill. The aethervane is operated using the Profession (aetherist) skill (a character can use the Spellcraft skill instead, but all DCs are increased by +5). The following actions can be performed using an aethervane:

• Detect Nearest Portal (DC 11): The aethervane detects the nearest portal (which will usually be 1d100 x 1d100 miles away).
• Plot Portals (DC 12): The aethervane detects all active portals within 100,000 miles.
• Plot Course (DC 10): The aethervane operator can plot a course to a specific portal to guide a barge or teleport spell.
• Examine Portal (DC 13): The aethervane operator can examine the aura of a portal as if he were observing it using detect portal.

Astral Barges

Wondrous item, rare The sheer size of the Astral makes mundane modes of transport useless. Magic is, therefore, the only effective option. The famed vessels that traverse the Great Realm are known as ‘astral barges,’ although they are often much too large and ornate to be properly called a humble ‘barge’. The barges work by skimming along the surface of the Astral Plane, using the same principles as the dimension door spell. The barges are powered by the will of the crew, so most behave like oared vessels, the ‘rowers’ use their Wisdom instead of Strength to row. The speed attainable by astral barges is extraordinary; the vessels flit in and out of the dimensions and attain velocities greater than even the swiftest air elemental (up to five thousand miles per day). However, the magical field that propels the barge is very fragile – if one barge comes within two dozen miles of another, both are slowed to the speed of a mundane vessel. Therefore, shipping routes on the Astral Plane are carefully planned and interceptions and piracy are common. Some astral barges are converted from seagoing vessels, while others were built on the Astral Plane, and look like nothing that ever sailed – after all, they need no streamlined hull nor sails. A cargo ship, for example, might be nothing but four wooden canoes containing the psychic rowers, with a huge net strung between them. The heart of an astral barge is the astral keel, the magical device that propels the barge. Most keels are driven by the will of the ‘rowers,’ except for magekeels (which drain spell slots – each spell slot gives as much ‘push’ as one rower) and binding-keels (which rely on magically bound creatures of high Wisdom such as gynosphinxes).

The Great Realm is littered with the detritus of ancient planar empires – it is the crossroads of creation, so thousands of battles have been fought in its changeless skies. Occasionally, a traveller happens across the corpse of some warrior slain in a battle long ago; the body is as whole and fresh as it was when the death blow was struck, for there is no time on the Astral Plane. Most of these relics have long since either been picked clean of treasure and magic, or have drifted off into the more remote regions of the plane and been forgotten. Vaults are a different and far more dangerous matter. A long-lost civilisation had the custom of entombing its vanquished foes in magically sealed vaults instead of merely killing them. These vaults blocked escape from within. The trapped creatures would float through the Astral Plane for millennia until they took their own lives – a fitting punishment for the enemies of the greatest empire in all creation (sadly, no living sage has ever learned the name of this ancient civilisation). All vaults are identical – cubes of black marble floating through the astral gulf, with a single sealed door on each side leading inwards. When examined with detect magic, the vault radiates ancient moderate conjuration and abjuration magic. The vault cannot be entered using any sort of dimensional travel, as the inside of the vault is locked with a dimensional anchor effect. However, the door of a vault can be opened by a thief (Open Lock, DC 11 + 1d10) and the contents looted – assuming the vault’s prisoner is not still alive. To determine if the victim is still alive, have the denizens of the vault make Constitution saves (DC 10 + 1d10); if the save succeeds, the denizens have endured the centuries.

The Astral Plane is timeless and seemingly unchanging, but is capable of sudden and shocking bursts of violence. Most voyages will go untroubled, but the unfortunate exception faces the terrible wrath of the Great Realm.

Astral Currents (CR0)

These are flows of energy within the Astral Plane. A traveller ‘falling’ along one of these currents moves ten or more times faster than normal. There is a 20% chance that a current brings the character towards a useful portal, a 20% chance it is dragging him away from a portal-rich region and a 60% chance that the current is simply meandering through the plane. Monsters often hunt along such currents, and astral barges use suitable currents to speed their passage. The average Encounter Level is increased by two along an astral current.

Astral Storms (CR7)

An astral storm is a heralded by a sudden strange wind – strange because there is normally no strong wind on the Astral. 1d6 rounds later, 1d100 miles of the Great Realm erupts into a seething chaos. An Astral Storm has both mental and physical effects on travellers; characters caught in a storm must make a Constitution save and a Wisdom save, both at DC 12 + 1d3. If a character fails the Constitution save, he is blown off course for 1d4+1 days. Astrally projecting characters must make an additional Constitution save at the same DC or die as their silver cord snaps. If a character fails the Wisdom save, his mind is blasted by the chaotic energies of the astral storm. He is stunned for 1d6 hours, and has 1d4 languages replaced by an equal number of random languages. Spellcasters who fail the Wisdom save have 2d10 random prepared spells or unused spell spots replaced by an equal number of random spells (these replacement spells do not have to be ones the caster knows – they are simply psychic junk vomited into the character’s brain). A character who fails both saves is swept through a portal into a random plane. The energies of an astral storm open up 2d10 portals into random planes. The storm also attracts swarms of astral parasites, some of which accidentally swim into these portals and are destroyed. The portals become two-way portals for a brief time and creatures or matter from the other planes may fall onto the Astral Plane. This is how most erratics form, and there is a 10% chance that a storm leaves 1d4 new erratics in its wake. A fleet of astral barges looking for useful erratics shows up soon after a storm clears.

Starcs (CR12)

Opposites attract. When one of the opposites is the infinite fury of the Positive Energy Plane, and the other is the equally infinite and hateful void of the Negative Energy Plane, this attraction can be lethal. A starc occurs when an astral current carries Positive Energy close to the Negative Plane, or vice versa. Huge, thousandmile- wide, tendrils of energy lash out from one plane, seeking hungrily for the other. These tendrils are easy enough to avoid, as they move quite slowly until they close to within a mile of each other. Then, the formation of the starc is imminent. For an unfortunate traveller caught in the middle, between the two tentacles, a starc looks like a host of whirlwinds, occupying an area 5 + 1d10 miles in radius. Half of the whirlwinds reach up from the Negative Energy Plane and are dark and eerie; the other half extend down from the Positive Energy Realm and burn with a terrible light. A starc lasts for 20 + 2d20 rounds before grounding. Each round, roll on the Starc Impact table for each traveller. A character can attempt to fall into Positive tendrils – this is a move action, and means that a result of ‘none’ on the Starc Impact table becomes a result of ‘Positive Tendril’. When a starc grounds itself, the main tendrils of Positive and Negative energy find each other and cancel each other out. The result is a massive explosion of force. Any characters within the area of effect of the starc are dealt 10d10 points of force damage ( Constitution save, DC 17 for half). There is a 5% chance that a starc leaves a planar seed behind after it grounds itself.

Novas (CR = CR of characters)

A nova is a fluctuation in the fabric of the Astral Plane, caused by an excess of arcane or psychic power being expended in one place. A potential nova begins when a character uses his highest level arcane spell or psychic power (lower-level spells can easily be controlled by the character, and so have almost no chance of ‘leaking’. Roll a nova check (1d20 + the level of the spell) against DC 20 – if the check is successful, a nova forms. If another highest level spell or power is used within 300 feet of where the first was used, make another check, adding the levels of the arcane spells or powers together, and subtracting one for every round that has elapsed since the first ability was used. Subsequent spell uses also add to the total in the same way. Example: Three 5th level wizards are duelling on the Astral Plane. One casts haste on himself – this is his highest level spell, so the Games Master makes a nova check, rolling 1d20+3 against DC 20. The check fails. Next round, the other two wizards cast dispel magic and fireball at the hasted wizard . Two more nova checks are made. The first is at +5 (third level dispel magic + third level haste – one elapsed round), while the second is at +8 (third level dispel magic + third level haste + third level fireball – one elapsed round). The third check succeeds, and a nova forms. A nova lasts for a number of rounds equal to the modifier to the roll that created it, so our example nova will last eight rounds. A nova manifests as an explosion of crackling colour, centred on the character whose spell or power tipped the balance. The nova extends for 1d6 x 100 feet in all directions. Any arcane spellcasters or psionic characters within the area of effect of the nova must make a Constitution saving throw (DC 15) each round or the nova forces them to cast an arcane spell or begin to manifest a power. The caster may choose which arcane spell or power to use, but he must cast a spell or manifest a power if able. Especially potent novas can drain a wizard of all his spells. A character casting an arcane spell may make a Arcana check (DC 12 + one half the level of the spell) to ‘dampen’ it and ensure that it does not contribute towards triggering a nova. If this Arcana check is failed, the spell is lost.

The Astral Plane is home to numerous empires of great strength, size and antiquity, encompassing thousands of erratics and waystations. Exiled nations of humans, exilarchs, elves, dragons, celephates, titans and st ranger creatures claim ownership over vast stretches of the Astral Plane – but the size of the Great Realm makes these empires appear as grains of sand floating in the sea.

The ‘greatest waystation,’ the Orrery and the Neverbuilt City are described on page 184.

Tollbooth of Erthiz

The ‘tollbooth’ is actually a Colossal iron construct , covered with blood-stained blades and vicious spikes. Erthiz is a 32HD glabrezu exiled from the Infernum for unknown reasons. His tollbooth incorporates a magical aethervane that can detect portals and gates opening over vast distances, and can even discern the current condition of the character activating the portal. If Erthiz detects an injured or weak character opening a portal to the Astral Plane, he teleports the tollbooth so that the exit to the portal leads into the tollbooth’s mouth. From the unfortunate traveller’s perspective, the portal does not open onto the Astral Plane – instead, it leads to a steel chamber, with a single door and a large altar in the centre. The glabrezu demands that travellers pay a toll (usually 5,000 gp in gold or magic items). If a suitable toll is placed on the altar, the tollbooth vanishes. Otherwise, the door opens, leading to a gauntlet of progressively more dangerous traps and monsters. At each stage, Erthiz offers the traveller another chance to pay the toll, which increases by 5,000 gp after each door; most travellers refuse at first, but pay up as the dangers intensify. Despite his demonic nature and mercenary attitude, Erthiz is not especially evil, and he is extremely knowledgeable on the subject of portals and planar travel. He also pays handsomely for new and rare monsters to stock his tollbooth.

The Eidolon is the largest astral barge ever built, a floating city of unparalleled luxury and decadence. It was once intended as the royal vessel for a particularly rich astral empire, but the building of Eidolon beggared the whole nation. The ship was then purchased by a consortium of deities for transporting souls. To keep running costs down, the upper decks of Eidolon are still as beautifully decorated and as filled with indulgent distractions as they were when the ship was first built, but the lower decks have been stripped down to the bulkheads to cram in as many lost souls as possible. Now Eidolon cruises through the Astral Plane, carrying a mixed load of souls and rich travellers. It docks at portals to each of the Outer Planes in turn, to offload the souls destined for the afterlife, thus allowing the cruise passengers to tour the planes. Eidolon is generally recognised as a neutral place, where agents of the various great powers can meet and deal with each other. Some gods even travel incognito on board, lest they be recognised by thousands of their worshippers packed into the hold.

The Seal of Never

While most of the portals on the Astral Plane are temporary pools, there are a few permanent gateways to other planes. The most famous is one that goes nowhere – the Seal of Never. The Seal is a circular metal slab seven miles across, and engraved with a message in Celestial reading: What Was Promised Lies Beyond This Gate For Those Who Know. The cryptic inscription has attracted sages and thieves from across the cosmos, all trying to open the gate. A small city, Telos, has grown up on the surface of the seal. The two-hundred-foot-wide ravines of the inscription have been colonised, and the buildings of Telos are located within the message. Each letter is a different district, so a Telosian might advise a traveller to try the third S for blacksmiths, or the G temple district for clerics . Telos (Small City): AL LN; 15,000 gp limit; Assets 5,625,000 gp; Pop 7,500; Integrated (practically any race imaginable). Power Centres: Philosopher’s Guild (LN), T’nazzin the Locksmith (Psychomagnate King, CN).

There are relatively few creatures native to the Astral Plane; it is a realm of exiles and wanderers. The native creatures spend all their lives in a world without gravity, so they ‘drown’ within minutes if brought to a plane with a high Gravity trait.

Aether Mouths

To your horror, teeth sprout along the edges of the color pool, and it snaps at you. A massive bulk heaves itself out of the astral landscape and claws at you. Aether mouths are curious predators that disguise themselves as natural portals. They can camouflage most of their corpulent forms to look identical to the shifting energies of the Astral Plane, leaving only their glowing oval mouths visible. The mouth looks exactly like a portal. Travelers are permitted a Wisdom (Perception) check (opposed by the aether mouth’s Dexterity (Stealth) check) to notice the tiny imperfections in the Astral Plane around the portal. Characters examining the portal with arcane sight may use Spellcraft instead of Spot. Any character walking through the ‘portal’ is actually walking right into the creature’s stomach, and is automatically Swallowed Whole. Aether mouths are sometimes captured and forced to gate in creatures from other planes, but the beasts soon sicken and die in captivity. Aether mouths wait for food to walk through them, by mimicking portals to other well travelled planes. They sometimes pretend to be portals to one plane, wait to see if a traveler takes the bait, then close their mouth, scuttle a short distance, and open a portal to a different ‘plane’ a short distance away. If the deception fails and the aether mouth must fight, it extrudes claws and summons defenders.

• Hit Points 76 (9d12 + 18)
• 3/day: : conjure animals (Any animal so conjured has a flight speed equal to its land speed or swim speed.)

Astral Parasites

This creature is a mess of little barbed tentacles, eyes, mouths and fins; it seems to be nothing but appendages, with no real body at all. Astral parasites are the vermin of the Great Realm, a species (or rather, hundreds of similar species) that graze contentedly on stray thoughts, emotions and magical emanations that flow through the Astral Plane. They are spawned in their millions from starcs and other major astral events, and swarm through the plane in vast hosts. They are almost useless as a food source, as only other native creatures can digest the energies of a dying parasite. They vanish seconds after being slain. Astral parasites are only dangerous when they focus on a particular character’s mind. A swarm of parasites can suck up stray thoughts and emotions using their psychic drain ability. The swarm can be driven off by killing 30 + 1d20% of its members.

• Type Aberration
• Speed fly 30 ft.
• The astral parasite gains the following action: Psychic Drain: An astral parasite can target a character and feed off his mind. For every twenty parasites feeding, the character suffers a –1 penalty to all Wisdom saves.

Astral Whales

A massive creature glides past; it resembles a whale, but its iridescent hide is covered in strange protrusions and dangling tendrils. Astral whales feed on parasites just as baleen whales feed on plankton.

• Size Gargantuan
• Hit Points 138 (12d20 + 12)
• Speed fly 60 ft.
• The astral whale gains the following action: Gravity Pulse: The astral whale emits a pulse of energy in a cone 360 feet long and 120 feet wide. Any creatures caught in the cone must make a Constitution save (DC 12) or be unable to use the Subjective Gravity trait of the Astral to move for 1d12 rounds. Native astral creatures with a Fly speed cannot move if they fail the save. Astral whales are immune to the gravity pulses of other whales.

This entity is a giant , floating stone head, about five feet tall. Lighting crackles in its empty eye-sockets, and its cavernous mouth glows reddish-orange when it laughs. Celephates are among the more curious entities encountered on the Astral Plane. They are floating stone heads, with booming laughs and forceful personalities. They are a curious and boastful race, always getting into trouble and flaunting their power and intelligence. They are also extremely knowledgeable, famed for their learning. They are integrated into astral society as viziers, sages, overseers and spellcasters, as they rely on humanoids for many tasks. The celephates have telekinetic abilities, as they have no hands or other limbs. A celephate in an urban environment is usually encountered with two or three ‘hands’ or servants. Celephates reproduce asexually – when a celephate feels the urge to produce an offspring, it takes a lump of rock, shapes it with its telekinetic powers, then shoots a bolt of lightning into the head’s eyesockets. The new celephate comes to life fully grown, inheriting many of the skills of its ‘parent’. They worship an obscure deity named Hutut-Novgrod, the Guardian of the Goal. Celephates tend to charge lustily into combat, using their flight to dance out of range of enemies. They also shout taunts and insults at foes, which are doubly disconcerting when coming from a giant , flying stone head that is burning with its own inner flames.

• Alignment Any
• Type Monstrosity
• Languages Common, Primordial, Celestial
• At will : mage hand
• Replace the Blue Dragon Wyrmling’s bite action option with the following: Headbutt : Melee Weapon Attack : +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit : 8 (1d10 + 3) bludgeoning damage plus 3 (1d6) lightning damage.

Exilarchs are a race of failed celestials. According to their traditions, they were banished from the Firmament for failure in the task of ridding the planes of evil, but the archons whisper the truth – the exilarchs were too stern and unforgiving even for the gods of good. The first exilarchs could not even tolerate the slightest deviation from perfect righteousness, and would destroy an entire mortal city if it contained even a single unrighteous man. Since they left the heavens, the exilarchs – once united in their common, unwavering cause – have become divided. Some have stayed true to their ideals, launching attacks on bastions of evil and judging all others according to the strictest criteria. Others try to win back the favour of the gods by searching for some grand quest or gesture for redemption, while other exilarchs have inverted their morality and become as perfectly evil as they can be. The one thing they all still have in common is a fanatical devotion to purity. Exilarchs look like they are composed of multiple beings, like a set of torsos all branching off a single point. Each portion can act independently – an exilarch gets only one move action in a round, but each ‘body section’ can attack or cast spells on its own.

• Alignment Any Lawful

Psychomagnate

This curious creature is humanoid in shape, but it has no head – its face is sunken into its chest. It is armoured in a crystalline shell, and wields a halberd in either hand. Psychomagnates are not originally native to the Astral Plane, but they moved there en masse when their own plane slid into chaos centuries ago. They are a strong and intelligent race, but see most other humanoids as nothing but slaves and cannon fodder until they prove themselves. Their society is driven purely by merit; a psychomagnate who accomplishes nothing is often treated as a slave, while a human hero who completes a great task is honoured and respected as an equal. The psychomagnate fighting style relies on trips and keeping the opponent down as much as possible. They have adapted this style to the Astral Plane by combining their attacks with their natural ability to manipulate energy fields. Psychomagnates welcome combat, as it gives them a chance to prove their skills. They prefer single combat, and issue challenges and invitations to one-on- one duels when they can.

• Alignment Any Chaotic
• Size Medium
• Hit Points 97 (13d8 + 39)
• Languages Common, Psychomagnate
• The psychomagnate gains the following action: Energy Field : Psychomagnates can project a glowing purple energy field around themselves. This field has a radius of 30 feet. The field deflects all incoming arrows, rays and other range attacks 20% of the time. Furthermore, anyone trying to use the Astral Plane’s subjective gravity to move within the field must make a Will save (DC 13) – failure means the character cannot move this round using subjective gravity. If a psychomagnate trips a foe inside the energy field, the field deals an extra 1d6 points of lightning damage. Activating the field is an action, and it lasts for ten minutes.

Adventure Seeds

The Great Realm is the crossroads of the Planes – usually, the characters will be using it to get from one place to another or as a neutral meeting ground. The Astral Plane is also big enough and old enough for literally anything to be encountered there. It can be the dumping ground of odd encounters and locales that would not fit anywhere else.

• The characters are hired to locate a fabled lost portal. They are given a portable aethervane and a description of the portal’s traits. They must scour the Astral Plane for astral storms and other portal-opening phenomena, then quickly scan for the desired portal. Their employer has not informed them where the portal goes – will their curiosity take them beyond the Great Realm and into the unknown?
• Something is moving, out there in the Planes. Waystation after waystation is found bereft of crew. In every case, they left suddenly as if in a panic, but the station’s structure is intact and sound. As a strange darkness closes over the Great Realm, where will the characters take refuge?
• A god dies. All his worshippers, servants, armies and treasures are unceremoniously dropped into the Astral Plane. For scavengers, it is a wonderful opportunity, but others are looking at a suddenly homeless army and wondering where they will go – and just where did their god go, anyway?
• Whenever an extradimensional space is ruptured, its contents are spilled onto the Astral Plane. An important document or relic was stored in such a space, and a magical accident has occurred. The characters have to go to the Great Realm and find a needle in what amounts to an infinite haystack – however, it soon turns out that the ‘accident’ was deliberate. No one is going to notice a few extra corpses floating on the astral gulf, anyway.

Classic Play – The Book of the Planes, copyright 2004 Mongoose Publishing Ltd.

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The Astral Projection Spell in D&D 5e: What It Is & When to Use It

Last Updated: April 1, 2024 Fact Checked

• Casting Astral Projection
• Who can cast Astral Projection?

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This article was co-authored by Lonny Foran and by wikiHow staff writer, Glenn Carreau . Lonny Foran is a Dungeons & Dragons Expert. He founded his YouTube channel, All Things DnD, in 2015. The channel has amassed 244K subscribers and over 54M views. His website, All Things DnD, is an online community hub for Dungeons & Dragons enthusiasts, hosting a podcast, DnD guides, an NPC generator, quizzes, and more. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 5,913 times.

If you’ve reached a high enough level in D&D 5e to learn a level 9 spell, try Astral Projection. Essentially, it’s a powerful spell that allows access to the astral plane—a vast, formless ocean of dreams, memories, and portals to distant worlds. Sound cool? Then Astral Projection might be an ideal spell for your PC (player character) to pick up. Read on to learn all the various properties of Astral Projection in Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition, including its range, casting time, duration, and how it works.

Things You Should Know

• Astral Projection is a 9th-level spell that lets your character project their form into the astral plane, complete with their normal stats and equipment.
• Use the Astral Projection spell to travel across the astral plane and even enter different worlds, as portals to virtually every world exist in the astral plane.
• Clerics, wizards, and warlocks are the 3 classes able to cast Astral Projection in 5e, though bards can also cast it by learning it with their Magical Secrets feat.

Astral Projection Spell Overview

• Casting time: 1 hour
• Range: 10 feet
• Target: Your character and up to 8 willing creatures within range
• Components: Verbal, somatic, and material
• Duration: Lasts until dismissed by the caster
• Fun fact: In D&D lore, the Astral Projection spell originated in the year -1791 DR at the hands of a Netherese arcanist, Valdick.

How does the Astral Projection spell work?

• As long as the silvery cord remains intact, your PC can find their way back to their original body and plane. If the cord is cut, their soul is separated from their body, killing them.
• Generally, those effects are up to the DM’s discretion, as D&D rules state that “very few” things can sever the cord. For example, a Githyanki’s silver sword or a Wish spell are both capable of doing so.

• Your PC’s astral form is separate from their body while the spell is active. Therefore, any damage their astral form takes doesn’t carry over to their physical body, even once the spell ends.

• Hit points determine how much health your character has. When they lose all their hit points and drop to 0, they go unconscious.
• If your PC falls unconscious while Astral Projection is active, their astral form is pulled back to their body, and the spell ends, so long as their silver cord is intact.
• Usually, the easiest way for creatures to find their way back home is to drop to 0 hit points themselves, after which they’ll also be transported back to their bodies.

• So, for example, if you wanted to cast Astral Projection on your PC and your 3 party members, you’d need 4 jacinth gemstones and 4 silver bars in total.
• Not every spell has such expensive requirements, but higher-level spells are more likely to come with them. As a level 9 spell, Astral Projection is one of the most powerful spells available!

How to Use Astral Projection in 5e

• For example, your PC might use the spell if they have enemies or allies among the githyanki, a race of people who live in the astral plane.
• Similarly, if your PC is an astral elf or has allies or enemies among the astral elves, they might use the spell to visit their home plane.
• Your PC might want to visit the Astral Sea, a perilous place with treasures from worlds across the D&D multiverse.
• The husks of dead gods often end up in the astral plane, though they still emit great power or energy. If your PC is searching for powerful components, they might travel to the astral plane to find what they need.

• For example, your PC might try to navigate the astral plane to move between material planes (which are basically the habitable worlds that most campaigns take place in). They might travel from Greyhawk to the Forgotten Realms, for example.
• Your PC might also travel from a material plane to a fantastical one, like Elysium, the Nine Hells, Arborea, Pandemonium, or Limbo.
• DM Tip: Astral Projection is a powerful spell that can expand the scope of your campaign at the drop of a hat, so be prepared if one of your players learns it! You might design a one-shot or quest that involves travel to a specific plane, for example.

• If you want a “quick escape” spell to keep on hand when combat gets too rough, spells such as Teleport, Plane Shift, or even Gate are ideal—they take 1 action to cast, so they’re easier to pull off in the middle of a fight.
• For example, Teleportation Circle (which is handy in that it allows you to teleport to a known circle) takes 1 minute to cast, which still isn’t ideal for combat.

• For example, the Gate spell’s description says, “Deities and other planar rulers can prevent portals created by this spell.”
• Thus, if your PCs needed to sneak into a demon lord’s realm to take them down, for example, they might use the Astral Projection spell to enter the realm undetected.

Who can cast Astral Projection in 5e?

• However, if you create a bard character , you might also be able to learn Astral Projection through your “Magical Secrets” feat. Bards get this feat 3 times as they level up and can learn 2 spells from outside their spell list each time.

You Might Also Like

Thanks for reading our article! If you’d like to learn more about role-play games, check out our in-depth interview with Lonny Foran .

• ↑ https://dmdave.com/the-astral-plane-1/
• ↑ https://5thsrd.org/spellcasting/spells/astral_projection/
• ↑ https://media.wizards.com/2016/downloads/DND/SRD-OGL_V5.1.pdf
• ↑ https://blackcitadelrpg.com/spells/astral-projection-5e/

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• Planes of existence
• Transitive planes
• Fundamental planes
• Locations on Yggdrasil

Astral Plane

• Edit source
• View history
• 1.1 Geographical Features
• 2.1 Great Wheel
• 2.2 World Tree
• 2.3 World Axis
• 3 Inhabitants
• 5.2 Gallery
• 5.3.1 Adventures
• 5.3.2 Novels & Short Stories
• 5.3.3 Comics
• 5.3.4 Gamebooks
• 5.3.5 Video Games
• 5.3.6 Organized Play & Licensed Adventures
• 5.4 External Links
• 5.5 References
• 5.6 Connections

Geography [ ]

The Astral could be reached from almost any point in a Prime Material plane or first layer of any Outer plane by spell , psionic ability, or device. It was described as a barren place of other-dimensional nothingness extending in all directions. What little solid substance that floated in the bright, gray void was typically chunks of matter broken off from their original plane. The Astral had no gravity but objects did retain their mass so you could throw small items or push off from large objects to move in the weightless environment. [6]

Time in the Astral flowed at the same rate on a Prime Material plane but the effects of time were slowed almost to a stop―a thousand years in the Astral plane felt like only a day to the traveler. [7] Hence, it was sometimes considered effectively timeless. [17] Creatures did not go hungry or age while in the Astral plane. For that reason, its mortal inhabitants needed to return to the Material Plane in order to have children or to reach adulthood. [16]

Entering the Astral plane could be accomplished in one of two ways: projecting your astral form into the plane via the astral projection spell, or by physically entering the plane. [16] Astral projection was the safest way to travel but still involved risk because you left your physical body behind on the traveler's plane of origin. The astral body would be accompanied by the astral forms of any items and clothing that were magical or radiated a magic aura. While projecting, your astral self was connected to your physical body by a silver cord that stretched out behind you for about 10 feet (3 meters), or 1 foot (30 centimeters) depending on the version of the spell, and then became invisible and intangible. [6] [18] Very few things could sever this silver cord: a powerful psychic wind , a githyanki silver sword , or the will of gods . [19] The physical body left behind appeared alive but did not require food, water, or air and did not age. [6] It could be moved and was vulnerable to damage and death. If the traveler's physical body was slain, death followed the projection some minutes later. If the astral self was slain, the traveler then returned to his or her physical body in a coma. Physically entering the Astral plane required a spell such as plane shift and brought travelers wholly into the Astral with no silver cord to anchor them to their plane of origin. [19]

Geographical Features [ ]

One of many dead gods in the Astral Plane.

Upon entering the Astral plane, travelers saw a silvery color pool nearby—a portal to the location on the Prime Material plane from which they originated. Astral projecting travelers saw their silver cord leading back to this pool. Color pools appeared as two-dimensional circles about 10‒60 ft (3‒18 m) in diameter and only visible from one side unless they had some way to detect invisible objects. Pools of different colors were portals to the different Outer planes . Each Outer plane had its own unique color, but the traveler's home portal was always a metallic silver, rippling like mercury in a pan. Color pools could be used to view the destination plane before stepping through by mentally concentrating on the nearby pool until it became transparent. A viewer could also move (with some limitations) the portal's viewpoint by concentration. [20] Astral projecting travelers formed a new physical body (with silver cord attached) when they stepped through a color pool to their destination plane. [7] The new body was formed out of local materials so the greater the similarity between one's home plane and the destination, the more one's new body looked like the original one. [21]

It was considered to be boundless. [17]

Cosmology [ ]

Great wheel [ ].

According to the Great Wheel cosmology model, the Astral plane connected the Prime Material Planes to the first layers of the Outer planes . [6] [16]

The Position of Realmspace (left) in the Astral plane.

In some versions of the Great Wheel cosmology held in the late 15 th century DR , it was possible to travel to the Astral plane directly from wildspace aboard a spelljammer . In this cosmology, wildspace was a region where the Prime and the Astral overlapped. Moreover, upon exiting a wildspace system such as Realmspace , a ship would leave this overlapping region and fully enter the Astral. [22] The border between wildspace and the Astral Sea had the appearance of a silvery haze. [23]

Once in the Astral, spelljamming captains could steer their ships in the direction of other wildspace systems or specific locations in the Astral in the same way that individuals would traverse the plane: by concentrating their thoughts on the destination. [22]

This view was in contrast with the prevailing Great Wheel cosmology of the 14 th and earlier centuries DR, according to which a ship would encounter a crystal sphere at the edge of its system and, if capable of traversing it, would enter the phlogiston . [24] [25]

World Tree [ ]

Travelers in the Astral Plane.

In the World Tree cosmology , the Astral plane was described as a shapeless cloud that surrounded all the other planes (including the Inner Planes which were not accessible via the Astral in the Great Wheel model). [26] The World Tree cosmology model interpreted the Astral plane as tree-shaped, touching nearly all planes, and overlapping the World Tree as well. The ramification of this was that travel between planes was not easily accomplished without going through the "trunk" of the tree (the Material plane). Direct connections between separate dominions of the gods was only possible by cooperation between the deities in question. [13]

The Astral Plane had the following traits in the World Tree cosmology model:

• Subjective Directional Gravity : [note 1] a traveler picked a "down" direction and "fell" in the direction until a new direction was chosen.
• Timeless : the effects of time were suspended until the traveler exited the Astral Plane, whereupon the effects retroactively occurred.
• Mildly Neutral-Aligned : no circumstance penalties.
• Enhanced Magic : Spells and spell-like abilities required less time to be cast.

Color pools still existed in this model, but an Astral traveler had to choose the destination plane before setting out and would only encounter pools that lead to the chosen plane. To change destinations, the traveler had to reenter the Material plane and then begin the journey anew. [13]

Toril's Material plane actually linked to several other Astral planes, each of which connected Toril to the outer-planer homes of a different set of deities. They were based on the geographical areas of control held by the different pantheons. [27] As such, there was an Astral Plane for the Maztican and Zakharan pantheons (even though many of the Zakharan deities resided on the Material Plane). The Kara-Turan faiths were not connected to their own astral plane, as instead their deities connected to the Spirit World . [28] Very little was known in Faerûn about these other astral planes, but it was theorized that Ao supervised them just as he adjudicated the conflicts between the pantheons. [27]

World Axis [ ]

According to the World Axis cosmology , the Spellplague set the dominions adrift—they were no longer linked to a tree-shaped Astral plane but floated aimlessly in the Astral Sea. [29]

The Astral Sea was described as being "above" the Prime Material plane and its two reflections, the Feywild and the Shadowfell . [9] The Spellplague destroyed the World Tree [30] and set the dominions of the gods adrift to wander about in the silvery void. Access to the Astral Sea was accomplished through passages found in the world or using the proper ritual. Once in the Sea, travel was initiated by thought and was very similar to flying. [29]

In addition to the astral dominions, the Astral Sea could be used by powerful beings to create demiplanes by focusing on an idea and applying a strong will. Each demiplane had its own traits and physical laws as dictated by the one who created it, and was always smaller than an astral dominion. [31] If abandoned, it would break apart and fade from existence just like an astral dominion. [32]

Inhabitants [ ]

A showdown on the Astral Sea.

On this plane of thought, the existence of true natives was doubtful. [33] The githyanki , however, had been a dominating presence for long ages, [34] ruled from their great city of Tu'narath but mostly spread about innumerable fortresses. [35] [36]

Astral searchers , astral streakers , astral whales , the mighty astral dragons , and the tiny kodragons inhabit the Silver Void. The dreaded astral dreadnoughts are believed by some to be a manifestation of the Astral Plane itself, while others point to their indefinitely long tails as an indicator for an origin elsewhere. [37] [38]

Brain collectors , dhours , and foo creatures can all be found here. [37] [39]

All manner of fiends , celestials , slaadi and other planars used the Astral as shortcuts to their business elsewhere, but both astral devas and shedu patrolled the plane regularly to keep evil in check. Despite their connection to the Abyss , bebiliths were thought to be at home on the Astral plane. [37]

Spectral hounds are usually found with githyanki communities as guard animals. [37]

Deities [ ]

The Astral Plane was the graveyard of the gods. If a deity, which could be considered among the greatest of concepts, died, its remnant were cast into this realm of thought. Here it remained as a floating "god-isle", a piece of solid matter within the endless empty void, with only a fraction of residual energy left. [40]

An exception to these rules was the god Celestian from Oerth . This deity of travellers kept no permanent realm , but wandered the Astral (and sometimes beyond). [41] [42]

Sardior 's Ruby Palace also rested in the Astral Plane [43] [44] between its travels through the planes. [45]

Known dead deities drifting in the Astral Plane (at least temporarily) were:

• Amaunator [46] [47] [48]
• Bane [46] [47] [49]
• Bhaal [46] [47] [50]
• Enki [46] [47]
• Gilgeam [51]
• Ibrandul [46] [47] [52]
• Kalzareinad [53]
• Karsus [54]
• Kiputytto [46] [47]
• Leira [46] [47] [55]
• Moander [46] [47] [56]
• Myrkul [46] [47] [57]
• Ulutiu [58]

Appendix [ ]

• ↑ 1.0 1.1 The Manual of the Planes 3rd edition states on page 47 that the Astral Plane had the No Gravity trait but the Player's Guide to Faerûn says on page 142 that the Astral plane functioned as described in the Dungeon Master's Guide v.3.5 and differed only in shape.

Gallery [ ]

Appearances [ ]

Novels & short stories, video games, organized play & licensed adventures, external links [ ].

References [ ]

• ↑ Jeff Grubb  (July 1987). Manual of the Planes 1st edition . ( TSR ), p. 65. ISBN  0880383992 .
• ↑ Jeff Grubb , Bruce R. Cordell , David Noonan  (September 2001). Manual of the Planes 3rd edition . ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 49. ISBN  0-7869-1850-8 .
• ↑ 3.0 3.1 Monte Cook , Jonathan Tweet , Skip Williams  (July 2003). Dungeon Master's Guide v.3.5 . ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 154. ISBN  0-7869-2889-1 .
• ↑ Jeff Grubb  (April 1987). “Plane Speaking: Tuning in to the Outer Planes”. In Roger E. Moore  ed. Dragon #120 ( TSR, Inc. ), pp. 42–43.
• ↑ Richard Baker , John Rogers , Robert J. Schwalb , James Wyatt  (December 2008). Manual of the Planes 4th edition . ( Wizards of the Coast ), pp. 88–89. ISBN  978-0-7869-5002-7 .
• ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 Jeff Grubb  (July 1987). Manual of the Planes 1st edition . ( TSR ), p. 60. ISBN  0880383992 .
• ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Jeff Grubb  (July 1987). Manual of the Planes 1st edition . ( TSR ), p. 63. ISBN  0880383992 .
• ↑ Jeff Grubb  (July 1987). Manual of the Planes 1st edition . ( TSR ), pp. 68–70. ISBN  0880383992 .
• ↑ 9.0 9.1 Bruce R. Cordell , Ed Greenwood , Chris Sims  (August 2008). Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide . Edited by Jennifer Clarke Wilkes , et al . ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 60. ISBN  978-0-7869-4924-3 .
• ↑ Richard Baker , John Rogers , Robert J. Schwalb , James Wyatt  (December 2008). Manual of the Planes 4th edition . ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 7. ISBN  978-0-7869-5002-7 .
• ↑ Richard Baker , John Rogers , Robert J. Schwalb , James Wyatt  (December 2008). Manual of the Planes 4th edition . ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 86. ISBN  978-0-7869-5002-7 .
• ↑ Ed Greenwood , Sean K. Reynolds , Skip Williams , Rob Heinsoo  (June 2001). Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 3rd edition . ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 256. ISBN  0-7869-1836-5 .
• ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Richard Baker , James Wyatt  (March 2004). Player's Guide to Faerûn . ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 139. ISBN  0-7869-3134-5 .
• ↑ Jeff Grubb , Bruce R. Cordell , David Noonan  (September 2001). Manual of the Planes 3rd edition . ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 47. ISBN  0-7869-1850-8 .
• ↑ Jeff Grubb , Bruce R. Cordell , David Noonan  (September 2001). Manual of the Planes 3rd edition . ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 48. ISBN  0-7869-1850-8 .
• ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 Mike Mearls , Jeremy Crawford , Christopher Perkins , James Wyatt  (2014). Dungeon Master's Guide 5th edition . ( Wizards of the Coast ), pp. 46–48. ISBN  978-0786965622 .
• ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 Larian Studios (October 2020). Designed by Swen Vincke , et al. Baldur's Gate III . Larian Studios .
• ↑ Mike Mearls , Jeremy Crawford  (2014). Player's Handbook 5th edition . ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 215. ISBN  978-0-7869-6560-1 .
• ↑ 19.0 19.1 Jeff Grubb  (July 1987). Manual of the Planes 1st edition . ( TSR ), p. 61. ISBN  0880383992 .
• ↑ Jeff Grubb  (July 1987). Manual of the Planes 1st edition . ( TSR ), p. 62. ISBN  0880383992 .
• ↑ Jeff Grubb  (July 1987). Manual of the Planes 1st edition . ( TSR ), p. 75. ISBN  0880383992 .
• ↑ 22.0 22.1 Christopher Perkins , Jeremy Crawford , Ari Levitch  (August 2022). “ Astral Adventurer's Guide ”. In Judy Bauer , Kim Mohan  eds. Spelljammer: Adventures in Space ( Wizards of the Coast ), pp. 20–21. ISBN  978-0-7869-6816-9 .
• ↑ Christopher Perkins , Jeremy Crawford , Ari Levitch  (August 2022). “ Astral Adventurer's Guide ”. In Judy Bauer , Kim Mohan  eds. Spelljammer: Adventures in Space ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 4. ISBN  978-0-7869-6816-9 .
• ↑ Jeff Grubb  (August 1989). “Concordance of Arcane Space”. Spelljammer: AD&D Adventures in Space ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 9. ISBN  0-88038-762-9 .
• ↑ Bruce R. Cordell  (1998). A Guide to the Ethereal Plane . Edited by Michele Carter , Keith Francis Strohm . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 7. ISBN  0-7869-1205-7 .
• ↑ Monte Cook , Jonathan Tweet , Skip Williams  (July 2003). Dungeon Master's Guide v.3.5 . ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 150. ISBN  0-7869-2889-1 .
• ↑ 27.0 27.1 Richard Baker , James Wyatt  (March 2004). Player's Guide to Faerûn . ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 164. ISBN  0-7869-3134-5 .
• ↑ Richard Baker , James Wyatt  (March 2004). Player's Guide to Faerûn . ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 165. ISBN  0-7869-3134-5 .
• ↑ 29.0 29.1 Bruce R. Cordell , Ed Greenwood , Chris Sims  (August 2008). Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide . Edited by Jennifer Clarke Wilkes , et al . ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 62. ISBN  978-0-7869-4924-3 .
• ↑ Thomas M. Reid  (July 2009). The Crystal Mountain . ( Wizards of the Coast ). ISBN  978-0-78695235-9 .
• ↑ Bruce R. Cordell , Ed Greenwood , Chris Sims  (August 2008). Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide . Edited by Jennifer Clarke Wilkes , et al . ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 64. ISBN  978-0-7869-4924-3 .
• ↑ Bruce R. Cordell , Ed Greenwood , Chris Sims  (August 2008). Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide . Edited by Jennifer Clarke Wilkes , et al . ( Wizards of the Coast ), p. 65. ISBN  978-0-7869-4924-3 .
• ↑ Monte Cook  (January 1996). A Guide to the Astral Plane . Edited by Miranda Horner . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 68. ISBN  0-7869-0438-0 .
• ↑ Monte Cook  (January 1996). A Guide to the Astral Plane . Edited by Miranda Horner . ( TSR, Inc. ), pp. 44–46. ISBN  0-7869-0438-0 .
• ↑ Monte Cook  (January 1996). A Guide to the Astral Plane . Edited by Miranda Horner . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 54. ISBN  0-7869-0438-0 .
• ↑ Jeff Grubb  (July 1987). Manual of the Planes 1st edition . ( TSR ), p. 72. ISBN  0880383992 .
• ↑ 37.0 37.1 37.2 37.3 Monte Cook  (January 1996). A Guide to the Astral Plane . Edited by Miranda Horner . ( TSR, Inc. ), pp. 68–77. ISBN  0-7869-0438-0 .
• ↑ Allen Varney , ed. (June 1994). Planescape Monstrous Compendium Appendix . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 128. ISBN  978-1560768623 .
• ↑ Allen Varney , ed. (June 1994). Planescape Monstrous Compendium Appendix . ( TSR, Inc. ), pp. 40–41. ISBN  978-1560768623 .
• ↑ Monte Cook  (January 1996). A Guide to the Astral Plane . Edited by Miranda Horner . ( TSR, Inc. ), pp. 34–38. ISBN  0-7869-0438-0 .
• ↑ Monte Cook  (January 1996). A Guide to the Astral Plane . Edited by Miranda Horner . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 39. ISBN  0-7869-0438-0 .
• ↑ Colin McComb  (October 1996). On Hallowed Ground . Edited by Ray Vallese . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 166. ISBN  0-7869-0430-5 .
• ↑ Steven Schend  (1995). Blood Wars , " Sardior ". TSR, Inc. .
• ↑ Steven Schend  (1995). Blood Wars , " The Ruby Palace ". TSR, Inc. .
• ↑ Wolfgang Baur  (February 1995). “Mount Celestia”. In Michele Carter  ed. Planes of Law ( TSR, Inc ), p. 21. ISBN  0-7869-0093-8 .
• ↑ 46.0 46.1 46.2 46.3 46.4 46.5 46.6 46.7 46.8 Monte Cook  (January 1996). A Guide to the Astral Plane . Edited by Miranda Horner . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 38. ISBN  0-7869-0438-0 .
• ↑ 47.0 47.1 47.2 47.3 47.4 47.5 47.6 47.7 47.8 Colin McComb  (October 1996). On Hallowed Ground . Edited by Ray Vallese . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 182. ISBN  0-7869-0430-5 .
• ↑ Julia Martin , Eric L. Boyd  (March 1996). Faiths & Avatars . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 27. ISBN  978-0786903849 .
• ↑ Julia Martin , Eric L. Boyd  (March 1996). Faiths & Avatars . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 36. ISBN  978-0786903849 .
• ↑ Julia Martin , Eric L. Boyd  (March 1996). Faiths & Avatars . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 45. ISBN  978-0786903849 .
• ↑ Eric L. Boyd  (September 1997). Powers & Pantheons . Edited by Julia Martin . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 102. ISBN  978-0786906574 .
• ↑ Julia Martin , Eric L. Boyd  (March 1996). Faiths & Avatars . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 71. ISBN  978-0786903849 .
• ↑ Dale Donovan  (January 1998). Cult of the Dragon . Edited by Julia Martin . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 120. ISBN  0-7869-0709-6 .
• ↑ Eric L. Boyd  (September 1997). Powers & Pantheons . Edited by Julia Martin . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 35. ISBN  978-0786906574 .
• ↑ Julia Martin , Eric L. Boyd  (March 1996). Faiths & Avatars . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 93. ISBN  978-0786903849 .
• ↑ Julia Martin , Eric L. Boyd  (March 1996). Faiths & Avatars . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 119. ISBN  978-0786903849 .
• ↑ Julia Martin , Eric L. Boyd  (March 1996). Faiths & Avatars . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 124. ISBN  978-0786903849 .
• ↑ Eric L. Boyd  (September 1997). Powers & Pantheons . Edited by Julia Martin . ( TSR, Inc. ), p. 62. ISBN  978-0786906574 .

Connections [ ]

Prime Material plane • Feywild • Shadowfell • Fugue Plane Transitive Planes : Astral Plane • Ethereal plane Inner Planes : Elemental Plane of Air • Elemental Plane of Water • Elemental Plane of Earth • Elemental Plane of Fire • Elemental Chaos Para-Elemental Planes: Frostfell • Swamp of Oblivion • Fountains of Creation • Great Conflagration Quasi-Elemental Planes: Lightning • Radiance • Minerals • Steam • Vacuum • Ash • Dust • Salt Outlands : Sigil Outer Planes : Arcadia • Mount Celestia • Bytopia • Elysium • Beastlands • Arborea • Ysgard • Limbo • Pandemonium • Abyss ( Layers ) • Carceri • Hades • Gehenna • Nine Hells • Acheron • Mechanus Energy planes : Positive Energy plane • Negative Energy plane Planar Pathways: Infinite Staircase • Oceanus • Mount Olympus • Styx • Yggdrasil Far Realm

Prime Material plane • Cynosure • Fugue Plane Transitive Planes : Astral Plane • Ethereal plane • Plane of Shadow • Spirit World Celestial Outer Planes : Arvandor • Brightwater • Dwarfhome • Dweomerheart • Gates of the Moon • Golden Hills • Green Fields • House of Knowledge • House of the Triad Fiendish Outer Planes : Abyss ( Layers ) • Barrens of Doom and Despair • Blood Rift • Clangor • Deep Caverns • Demonweb Pits • Fated Depths • Fury's Heart • Hammergrim • Nine Hells • Nishrek • Supreme Throne Neutral Outer Planes : Dragon Eyrie • Heliopolis • House of Nature • Jotunheim • Warrior's Rest Inner Planes : Elemental Plane of Air • Elemental Plane of Earth • Elemental Plane of Fire • Elemental Plane of Water • Positive Energy plane • Negative Energy plane Planar Pathways: Infinite Staircase • River of Blood • World Tree Far Realm

Prime Material plane Fundamental planes : Astral Sea • Elemental Chaos Astral dominions : Arvandor • Banehold • Celestia • Cynosure • Deep Wilds • Demonweb Pits • Dismal Caverns • Dwarfhome • Eternal Sun • Fugue Plane • Gates of the Moon • Green Fields • House of Knowledge • Nine Hells • Nishrek • Supreme Throne • Towers of Night • Tu'narath • Warrior's Rest Elemental realms : Abyss ( Layers ) • City of Brass • Cresting Spires • Fimbulwinter • Hidden Realm • Muspelheim • Root Hold • Sky Home • Steading • Thraotor • Undying Pyre • Zerthadlun Parallel planes : Feywild • Shadowfell Anomalous planes: Far Realm

Astral Plane 5e: A Quick and Dirty Guide

So, the players felt like putting one Bag of Holding inside another one? Dope. Welcome to the Astral Plane in 5e. No idea what that means? Take a 5 minute break and get learnt in this quick and dirty guide. 

In this article I’ll very briefly discuss the following:

What are Planes in D&D 5e? Material Plane Inner & Outer Planes Transitive Planes What is the Astral Plane? How to get to the Astral Plane? What to do in the Astral Plane?

What are Planes in D&D 5e?

Although every campaign setting is unique in its own right, there are a handful of recurring planes of existence within D&D cosmology. You can think of each plane as a separate realm, world, dimension, or reality – whatever makes the most sense to you. Each of these planes exist within the universe simultaneously, with each plane behaving by its own set of rules. There are some nifty diagrams that try to layout the location of the planes in relation to each other, but I wouldn’t spend too much time worrying about that. I don’t think it’s really supposed to make too much sense ’cause it’s awfully tricky to represent multiple planes of existence in a 2d or 3d space. But anyway, here’s a quick rundown of the most common planes in D&D:

The Material Plane – “You are here.”

Where things physically are . Time moves in the forward direction and matter behaves “normally”. The Material Plane is basically the D&D equivalent of life on planet Earth. The majority of campaigns will start their adventures here, and many campaigns may not leave the material plane at all. 

The Inner and Outer Planes – “I’ve a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore.”

• The Inner Planes are composed of the elemental planes: Air, Water, Fire, and Earth. These planes contain the pure and unbridled energy of each of these elements. I like to think of them as churning hellscapes of raw power.
• The Outer Planes can vary wildly in their appearance and composition. They are often the homes of otherworldly beings such as deities and devils. In a gross oversimplification, you can think of them as somewhat similar to the concept of Heaven and Hell. They might resemble the material plane at first glance, but can behave by drastically different rules.

Aside from using very powerful magic, adventurers must travel through a set of metaphorical planar bridges, called the Transitive Planes in order to get from the Material Plane to either the Inner or Outer Planes.

The Transitive Planes – “Neither here nor there.”

• The Ethereal Plane is basically a bunch of mist and fog. It directly overlaps with the Material Plane and allows adventurers to travel to the Inner Planes. It’s not super accurate, but I always picture the ethereal as similar to when Bilbo puts on the ring .
• The Astral Plane does not directly overlap with the material plane (stay tuned for more), but is accessible from both the Material Plane and the Outer Planes.

What is the Astral Plane in 5e?

The Astral Plane is a distant world composed of vast nothingness. There is an endless silver sea with faint twinkling stars on the infinite horizon. The lack of overlap with the Material Plane means that travelers do not travel through the Astral Plane with their actual bodies. Instead they navigate this trippy ocean with theirs souls.

How to get to the Astral Plane?

Aside from listening to a 20-minute guided meditation Youtube video or good ole fashioned DMT, the party can travel to the Astral Plane using magic ( duh ). But more specifically, with a spell called “ Astral Projection ”. The effect of this spell is basically that you and your buddies get a collective out-of-body experience. Your body is left resting in its place within the material plane – not needing to breathe, eat, or drink –  while your spirit gets fucking shot out of a cannon into deep outer-space. A silver cord attached to a traveler’s back keeps them tethered to the Material Plane. Also, heads up, if this cord is severed you instantly die.

As previously mentioned, adventurers in D&D can also open a gate to the Astral Plane if they start messing around with placing one extradimensional space inside another (two bags of holding, for example).

What to do in the Astral Plane?

Not really a whole lot, though your party may encounter a roaming Astral Dreadnaught or some Githyanki astral ships. As a Transitive Plane, its main function is for travel from the Material Plane to the Outer Planes. This can be done by hopping in to a swirling whirlpool made of color (astral color pool). These can be found scattered about the Astral Plane and are typically one-way trips. 

Thanks for checking out the article. I hope you enjoyed it and learned a thing or two about the 5e Astral Plane! Send your thoughts to [email protected]

For more information about the Astral Plane and its history, check out this awesome in-depth article by DumpStatAdventures .

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Spelljammer Dispatch: Adventuring in the Astral Sea

Teos Abadía

I trust this missive finds you well! Last time we reviewed the varied adventurers you may find in Wildspace. Now let’s get to what it’s like to travel the void between planets, and even the Astral Sea itself.

Traveling the Astral Sea

Here’s the big picture – and I mean big! The Astral Sea is a plane where everything from the bodies of forgotten dead gods to floating fortresses can be found. Also accessible throughout the Astral Sea are entire systems of planets, known collectively as Wildspace.

Anyone can move through the astral. You simply will yourself to move! The stronger your intellect, the faster you can move. You can pick a direction, or even a destination, so long as it is in Wildspace or the Astral. If you choose to travel towards Krynnspace, off you go. This is very useful, since locations in the Astral can shift over time. You don’t hunger, you don’t thirst, and you don’t age, so you can travel at a slow speed if you want. We call it a sea, and that’s fitting, because you can even see Astral fish and catch them with a line and some bait. Just watch out for space eels and far worse things you don’t ever want to see on the end of your line!

Once you reach a planetary system, such as Realmspace, you transition into Wildspace. Most systems have planets rotating around a sun (Greyhawk is one of the exceptions, with even the sun rotating around Oerth).

DMs take note: this gives you a lot of room to develop adventures. You can zip through the Astral Sea, or add detail by having travelers encounter any number of wonders as they travel. It is also an elegant way to expand your campaign. From a material plane (such as Toril and Realmspace) you can introduce characters to either the Astral or Wildspace, and then to the other, and then to other planes… all at a pace that works for you!

Traveling Wildspace

Once you leave the Astral, time resumes its relentless march and the rules of Wildspace apply. Let’s discuss the key aspects.

Air Envelopes

The void of Wildspace lacks breathable air. Fortunately, when you leave the Astral Sea or a planet, you take a bubble of air with you. The size depends on how big you are. A spelljamming vessel gets an even bigger air envelope, and everyone inside shares it (you would only form your own air envelope if you left the ship’s envelope).

The size corresponds to the space you take up, so it’s easy to remember. A small or medium creature has a 5-foot-square air envelope, while a large one is 10-feet-square. A spelljammer brings with it an envelope that is the size of the ship’s longest dimension. For example, a nautiloid ship is 180 feet long, so that’s the size of the envelope extending from any of the ship’s surfaces. The bubble tends to smooth itself, so in this case it’s an oval. But, it is possible for a rectangular shape to have a rectangular bubble.

Your air has a quality: fresh, foul, or deadly. Fresh air is what you want, but it degrades after 120 days if the ship has the normal crew capacity. Foul air poisons you, and will degrade in another 120 days to deadly. If you are a fond of breathing, take heed. You will immediately begin to suffocate until you find fresh air. Sometimes the deadliest part of a ghost ship isn’t the ghost!

Air envelopes create all kinds of fun scenarios. If the ship can’t approach an area, say a cave inside an asteroid, the characters have to explore with their personal envelopes. That can create some fun tension, since a personal air bubble only lasts for one minute!

When two objects or creatures have their air envelope overlap, the air combines and immediately becomes the quality of the largest object. This is another interesting way to add tension or pace your campaign by requiring stops at planets or other large bodies with an atmosphere.

Gravity Planes

On a spelljammer, gravity extends from the imaginary horizontal line that would extend through the center of the vessel. Gravity points down from both sides, towards that line. This means that one crew member could stand on the ship’s deck, while another could stand on the bottom of the ship’s hull. Both can move and act normally, as if that side of the horizontal line was the surface of a planet. Anything that leaves the air envelope will no longer experience gravity, and will continue moving in the same direction until it strikes something. So, if you want to try a risky maneuver that might leave you outside the ship’s air envelope, and you want to return, tie a rope around yourself. You can also rely on flight, teleportation, or something similar.

When a spelljammer enters an atmosphere, its gravity plane is suppressed. If two ship-sized objects touch, the gravity plane of the largest ship wins out. I can imagine some of you are thinking tactically, and yes, you can use this to your advantage. Falling in a gravity plane is just like falling anywhere if you strike a surface.

The ship with the most hit points is considered largest. This can lead to some interesting tactics that further reinforce the idea of firing siege weapons from afar and then closing to board. More on that later! Also worth noting that a weightless creature is at disadvantage when making a melee attack with a weapon unless they have a flying or swim speed, or if the weapon deals piercing damage.

Spelljamming

While it can be fun to ride a dragon through space, most of us lack such friends. We instead need a spelljammer, which is a vessel equipped with a special kind of device known as a spelljamming helm. A helm looks different depending on the maker, but typically appears to be a throne or similar device with various embellishments. Some folks like the ones with sharp menacing angles. I prefer the ones with lots of cushions. Either way, you must be a spellcaster and attune to the helm.

Once attuned, you can pilot the vessel through space, air, or even underwater if the ship is built for that. The spelljammer pilot can see around the ship as if they were standing upon the ship in any location of their choosing.

When in an atmosphere, a ship’s movement speed is tens of feet per six seconds, depending on the vessel. When flying through Wildspace, all spelljammers soar at an incredible 100 million miles in 24 hours.

Seriously! That’s fast, and it lets your campaign get to the cool parts quickly. But, also, there is a built in stopgap that lets you drop in surprises. When a spelljammer would come close to something large enough to have an air envelope, it slows to the movement speed, which tends to range between 25 to 50 feet per round. This speed is also what you use if you travel in an atmosphere, though often converted to miles per hour. A ship that moves at a speed of 30 feet will travel 3.5 miles per hour. To convert other speeds, add or subtract a half mile for every 5 feet of movement speed difference. A ship moving at 45 feet will travel 5 miles per hour.

A ship can maintain its speed (spelljamming or otherwise) as long as it has a rested spelljammer pilot at the helm. A ship can stop to rest, or it can have the pilot transfer attunement immediately by simply touching a willing creature.

Ships and Combat

The ships found in space are as varied as the creatures, worlds, and cultures designing them, from seemingly delicate elven vessels to the stone hive ships of the beholder nations. Most crews know to run from a mind flayer nautiloid or neogi nightspider on sight, and a good smuggler knows the difference between a hammerhead and a scorpion ship and when one is better than the other for a particular situation.

Ships add a huge variety to your campaign. Slowly introducing ships allows your players to experience surprises as they see how many creatures and ship types there are. New ships are also something the party can take over, allowing them to upgrade their ship over time.

You can find a full dossier and even deck plans for all of the spelljammer vessels on the Roll20 compendium, as well as bring them into your game as handouts or to use the maps for exciting Wildspace battles.

Wildspace Combat

There are a few key differences you should learn before you ever leave the dock. First, most ships will aim to fire siege weapons and close to board. This is because reloading siege weapons takes time, and a ship often has creatures who will deal greater damage to the crew with melee, spell, or by other means. Spelljammers are also valuable, so destroying them is seldom the goal.

A DM gets to choose the starting distance, and this will determine how long ships get to use siege weapons and whether other ranged attacks can be used. The rules mention using side initiative (found in the   Dungeon Master’s Guide ) as an option. In this format, each side takes turns, and that side chooses the order in which all allies act. A ship moves on the pilot’s turn.

Boarding can take place whenever one ship is adjacent (within 5 feet) of another. Creatures usually choose the Ready action to move across as soon as this takes place.

Some situations call for destruction. A spelljammer pilot can decide to ram another, or a creature, resulting in a crash. This can also result in the gravity plane changing for one ship, and creatures falling.

Ramming a ship requires a special attack roll, and typically inflicts damage to both ships (or the ship and a creature) based on the size of what is struck. Repairs take time and cost 20 gp per hit point repaired, though you can use the  mending  spell.

Spells and Magic Items

Clever spellcasters have devised the second level  air bubble  spell, which lasts 24 hours. And while ports are filled with high-priced spelljammer helms, the fifth level  create spelljamming helm  will work just as well.

If you can’t cast spells and want breathable air the next time you enter a derelict ship’s deadly air envelope, a  fish suit  can provide you with air and a swim speed or flying speed as appropriate.

Being a consummate wanderer, I’m a big fan of orreries. A  wildspace orrery  magically tracks the position of all suns, planets, moons, and comets in a system. You can even see your location as a glowing spec.

Well, I may have taken on some questionable cargo at the last port, and I hear the splintering of crates, so that will be all for this week. I guess my next dispatch will be on creatures and monsters. See you next time… I hope!

Start your own   Spelljammer: Adventures in Space   on Roll20!

Teos Abadía Teos Abadía is a Colombian-American freelance author and developer working with Wizards of the Coast, Penny Arcade, Dwarven Forge, Hasbro, and several organized play programs. Teos was a primary author on the Acquisitions Incorporated D&D book and on the vast Dungeon of Doom and Caverns Deep adventures for Dwarven Forge. Board game work includes the recent HeroQuest game relaunch. Blogging at Alphastream.org, Teos shares knowledge and advocates for diversity and better industry pay. Reports that he was created by tinker gnomes in a device powered by space hamsters are incorrect… it leaves out the important role played by flumphs.

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