Planescape Planescape Pre-order Page Shows Off The Books!

You can now pre-order Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse from D&D Beyond. The set comes out on October 17th.

Scroll down through the comments to see more various peeks at the books!

Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse

An adventure setting spanning the infinite realities of the world’s greatest roleplaying game

www.dndbeyond.com

• Discover 2 new backgrounds, the Gate Warden & the Planar Philosopher, to build planar characters in the D&D Beyond character builder
• Channel 7 otherworldly feats, new intriguing magic spells & more powered by planar energies
• Explore 12 new ascendant factions, each with distinct cosmic ideologies
• Face over 50 unusual creatures including planar incarnates, hierarch modrons, and time dragons in the Encounter Builder
• Journey across the Outlands in an adventure for characters levels 3-10 and 17
• Adds adventure hooks, encounter tables, maps of Sigil and the Outlands & more to your game

This 3 books set comprises:

• Sigil and the Outlands: a setting book full of planar character options with details on the fantastic City of Doors, descriptions of the Outlands, the gate-towns that lead to the Outer planes, and more
• Turn of the Fortunes Wheel: an adventure set in Sigil and the Outlands designed for character levels 3-10 with a jump to level 17
• Morte’s Planar Parade: Follow Morte as he presents over 50 inhabitants of the Outer Plane, including incarnates, hierarch modrons, time dragons, and more with their stats and descriptions

 

[Kobold Avenger]

The map of the Outlands looks like it has more going on with it. It feels less empty than the one that Rob Lazzaretti did. But it's just more crowded the various landmarks, even though it covers basically the same things.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

If we've learned anything about WotCs 5e business model after nearly 10 years, it's that all books are standalone and no follow-up products to setting books will be produced.

Definitely. And it's both a strength and a weakness. I no longer need to get the boxed set, the monster book, and whatever regional supplements to run a particular setting. I also no longer can get the boxed set, the monster book, and whatever regional supplements. On the whole it's served Wizards pretty well, though part of me misses that expansive worldbuilding of the past (though I certainly don't miss the times we'd get a chapter on a locale or sometimes even a whole book that left me wondering, instead of "where's the beef?" "where's the adventure?"

I want to solve this mystery. But i can make up my own stats np!

And that's a totally valid DM's prerogative. I'm sure countless DMs have done so. But I think settings, even game ones, need to have mysteries. It's like how we'll never know what exactly Tom Bombadil is.

 

[dave2008]

Why would they stop mid-sequence? Decaton, nonaton, octon, septon... it's very likely to be 9 or 10, depending on whether they want to stat Primus' near godlike status...

The history of 5e suggests to me they will not spend all of the space on them.

 

[dave2008]

Why would they stop mid-sequence? Decaton, nonaton, octon, septon... it's very likely to be 9 or 10, depending on whether they want to stat Primus' near godlike status...

The history of 5e suggests to me

I'll probably cause a number of Planescape fans aneurysms with this, but...

Sigil is a giant city like Waterdeep or Sharn. The Outlands acts kinda like the surrounding countryside. The spire Sigil is on is completely nonmagical, but the farther you go from it, the more magic returns and eventually you reach the "edge" of the Outlands where it borders on another outer plane and the Outlands takes on some characteristics of said plane. That allows you to have some adventures near certain planes that would kill low level adventurers if it was set directly on said plane. In that way, it acts like a buffer for less powerful adventurers who aren't ready to go into the Abyss yet.

Now, that's not to say it's safe; there are divine realms like the Ithilid God-brain and there are their own type of planar inhabitants, but it's a slight bit easier to adventure in than most places. So Planescape has usually tried to use the Outlands as a place to adventure in until you're ready for the harsher places like Limbo or the Abyss.

... But them sods always go running off to the nearest portal to Carceri and get themselves put in the dead book. Ya can't teach 'em.

That is helpful - thank you!

 

[dave2008]

This isn't Chronicles of Darkness, ...

I don't know what that is.

alot of folks care about setting canon, D&D players, video game fans, novel fans, etc...,

IDK, you could be correct or you could be wrong. I am interested in canon, but I don't really care about. I like it for inspiration only pretty much.

you create needless division...

Or useful and productive division, depending on how you look at it.

and get a rep for lazy writing doing that,....

I disagree. I think some of the most engaging setting writing was in 4e and it specifically tried to make canon nebulous. I like and find it inspiring they are doing it in 5e too.

 

[dave2008]

Sigil is to the Outlands what London is to the U.K.

Sigil is The Big City with Everything, that is in the Outlands (the center of the Outlands map has the Spire, which Sigil orbits). The Outlands are for going outside The Big City and having adventures with extraplanar creatures without going full-on Descent into Avernus.

thank you! that is concise and clear!

 

[dave2008]

There are some big differents in the Metaphysics of Sigil and Outlands. Gods weaker then Overgod can't visit Sigil, they can't set up Divine Domains in Sigil, and there is the Overgod Lady of Pain that rules over the city, although she doesn't run it, the Factions do.

I don't think the LoP is technically an Overgod. I don't think it has ever been determined what she is, and this is the point isn't it? FYI, I stated her as a primordial. Also, I know gods can't enter (in theory), but I didn't realize there was an overgod exception.

Outlands have Gods and Divine Domains running around. The Outlands act as a neutral meeting ground for Gods, Sigil is a place the Gods can't even enter. The Outlands have a varied climates and geography and outside of cities and towns are much more wild. The flavour of the Gatetowns and Divine Domains are very different from each other and Sigil.

So how do the function differently. Are they both not gateways to other planes?

 

[dave2008]

The Outlands serves a couple purposes for a GM...

1) It's the most mid-level area of the Outer Planes. The original box presents Sigil as beginning levels, with the first portals players discovering leading to the Outlands.

2) In a similar way, it serves as an introduction to adventurers beginning to explore the Outer Planes before dialing the weirdness all the way to 100. Part of its selling point was that it could be just a few shades different from the Material Plane to provide a sense of familiarity against which the stranger stuff to come could stand out in sharper contrast. Note: this is only half-true (or situationally true) because starting in Sigil you already have tons of weirdness going on.

3) More than anywhere else in the planes, the Outlands showcase "Belief Can Move Mountains" (a core Planescape theme) because the more ideologically aligned a region/settlement in the Outlands becomes toward a certain plane, the more that region/settlement "drifts" across the Outlands and can eventually cross over the edge into the new plane. The gate-towns were especially vulnerable to this. You barely get this in Sigil, and almost never on other planes.

4) There are two distinct features that make traversing the Outlands unique – the closer to the central Spire the less magic works (until at the very center even gods are stripped of their powers), while at the edges fantastic and dream-like things can be found and potentially magic is enhanced (though this was only hinted at and never outright stated from what I recall).

Thank you - that is very helpful. I have to think about this and if and how I might integrate the outlands into my setting. I've used Sigil, but I never have had the Outlands as a thing in my setting before. It sound interesting enough to ponder its inclusion.

 

[Incenjucar]

I need to brush up on my PS Lore (finally got all my 2E stuff out of storage!), but the Outlands may make for a good neutral zone for beings from different planes, including differently-aligned people who had a connection prior to death. The Outlands may be where you meet up with your Chaotic Neutral great grandma and Lawful Neutral great great great grandpa to discuss the family's legacy artifact causing problems in Toril.

 

[Kobold Avenger]

I don't think the LoP is technically an Overgod. I don't think it has ever been determined what she is, and this is the point isn't it? FYI, I stated her as a primordial. Also, I know gods can't enter (in theory), but I didn't realize there was an overgod exception.

The fandom assumption from 2e is that The Lady of Pain is an Overpower on par with AO of FR and the High God of DL.