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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Yaarel" data-source="post: 9034751" data-attributes="member: 58172">ANGELS (AND AASIMAR) IN D&DTo decide what traits the Celestial Aasimar has, requires information about how the Celestial dominions function, and the angels there. Little is known.The 5e Astral Plane involves the creature types of Fiend and Celestial, the player species whose ancestries originate there, like Tiefling and Tabaxi, and the classes like Cleric and some Warlock and Sorcerer subclasses. So far, 5e describes more about the Fiendish dominions for its monsters to fight. But 5e lore about Celestial is minimal and adhoc.The D&D angels are like the D&D drow. Every edition has them. But each edition has a different version of them. What one thinks an angel is depends mostly on which editions one is familiar with. (Or maybe the concept of angel relies more on reallife folkbelief or popculture movies.)Across the editions of D&D the "angels" can go by different names, such as "aasimon" or even "eladrin". Their appearances and themes are many.5e Planescape is coming soon. There is some info about the Astral Plane already. 5e Spelljammer confirms, most of the Astral Plane is an Astral Sea. The alignment planes, such as Lawful Good Mount Celestia, are Astral dominions that appear like floating islands. One can reach them by sailing thru the Astral Sea. The Astral Plane is made out of thought, and one interacts with its concepts like in a dream. An island can be bigger within than it appears from without. Adventurers can also reach an alignment dominion by passing thru a planar portal that planeshifts the traveler from one level of existence to an other. Likewise, adventurers can port from one dominion to an other, traveling at the speed of thought.The adventure, Descent into Avernus, details the first of the Nine Hells of the Lawful Evil dominion of Baator. The fiendish angels − the Devils − are native there.So far, official 5e products mention the Celestial dominions in passing. The "Angels" there are typically Lawful Good. The Good by Chaotic Good dominion of Beastland exists, and at least the Tabaxi species comes from there. The Elves originate from the shapeshifting blood of the Corellon, spilled in the Chaotic Good dominion of Arborea. But most of the Celestial realms are unknown. Thus, 5e reveals less about angels. Angels from earlier editions such as Agathinon might exist in 5e, but so far there is no evidence of them.DMs often fill the blanks in 5e with material from earlier editions. But earlier editions differ from each other. Because decisions about the Astral Plane inform the deep structure of the D&D cosmology, these DMs are playing different versions of 5e that feel distinct from each other.The 5e designers have for almost ten years avoided as much as possible any official commitment to what the Celestial dominions are like. This caution seems wise. But 5e Planescape is coming soon. The designers seem ready to commit to more details. It seems the work on the books of Mordenkainen Presents and of the Spelljammer setting allowed a clearer picture of what the 5e Celestial dominions can be like. The playtest Ardvark and its Beastlands origins show they are drawing inspiration from the treasury of earlier D&D editions.1e ANGELSAD&D 1e introduces the angels, but not by name. The Monster Manual 2 lists separate entries for Solar, Planetar, Deva, and Agathinon, and describes them by circumlocutions, like "spirits" of "Good alignments" from the "Upper Planes".From the "Lower Planes" the Evil angels, namely Devils plus Demons, appear earlier in the Monster Manual 1 to be monsters for players to combat. The Monster Manual 2 adds Daemons.The alignment planes of Good Upper and Evil Lower appear in a cosmology map in the 1e Players Handbook.Later on in the 1e Manual of the Planes, the Archon appears as the "primary inhabitants" of the lawful good "Seven Heavens", namely Mount Celestia, whose seven levels correspond roughly to the seven planets of antiquity comprising sun and moon and the five visible wandering stars.1e has fallen angel, Devil, plus Demon and Daemon. Good angels in the sense of Solar and Archon, and a few other "inhabitants" of the "Upper Planes", come later in ways that are adhoc and pioneering.2e ANGELSMainly for business public relations, the designers of 2e decide to avoid the words "devil" and "demon", and by extension avoid "angel" too.The 2e Monstrous Compendium 8 consolidates some angels of 1e, Solar, Planetar, Deva, and Agathinon, plus a new one called Light, and names them "Aasimon".Later, the 2e Planescape setting evolves the 1e Manual of the Planes, and populates its planar descriptions with new angelic creatures. The Monstrous Compendiums 20 and 21 are for it. As counterparts with the 1e "lawful good" Arcon, it adds "chaotic good" Eladrin and "neutral good" Guardinal.The adversarial angels of the Lower Planes lampshade under new names. Devil goes by the name Baatezu, and Demon by Tanarri. Plus, there is now a Yugoloth (and its suffix "loth" replaces the 1e "daemon"). Accordingly, the opposite of the Lawful Evil Devil is a Chaotic Good Eladrin, and the opposite of the Chaotic Evil Demon is a Lawful Good Archon. Via these angelic counterparts, 2e presents Archon and Eladrin and the rest of them as, defacto, different kinds of angels. These 2e angels correspond to the D&D alignments.There are even neutral angels: chaotic Slaad, later neutral Rilmani, and later lawful Modron.Where 2e has each alignment have its own kind of angel, the Aasimon functions assymetically. They are like an interplanar angel, manifesting anywhere with any Good alignment for any Good plane. This oddity attracts attention.3e ANGELS3e causes cosmic upheaval to the Outer Planes. The changes seem inconsequential at first. But the deep structure it puts in place eventually shifts everything. The fragile cosmology of the 2e Greyhawk setting convolutes and flies apart. Later 4e will try to make sense of it.The 3e Monster Manual continues the 2e angelic traditions, but calls the 2e Aasimon plainly by the name "Angel". Aasimon discontinues. Solar, Planetar, and Deva, now list together under Angel. Agathinon and Light cease to exist.Relatedly, the Baatezu and Tanarri regain their earlier 1e angelic names: Devil and Demon, in the sense of fallen angels. A later Monster Manual 2 continues the name 2e Yugoloth.Archon, Guardinal, and Eladrin all keep their 2e names. However now, because only the Aasimon is officially an "Angel", these other angels become less recognizable as such.Thus the 2e asymmetry looms large. The Lower Planes still have one type of angel for each Evil alignment: Devil, Yugoloth, and Demon. But now the counterpart for all three is only one type of "Angel" for any Good alignment.Archon, Guardinal, and Eladrin fall apart.Despite the 3e Monster Manual characterizing the Guardinal as "always neutral good" and "native to the plane of Elysium", the alternative 3e cosmology of the Forgotten Realms redefines the Guardinal to be the "native" of the True Neutral plane, called "House of Nature". To be fair, the animalistic themes of the Guardinals make more sense as the "primary inhabitants" of a plane that is all about Beasts. Even so, this planar relocation to a Non-Celestial plane with a Non-Good alignment further erodes the angelic status of the Guardinal. It is no longer the counterpart to a fallen angel. By association neither are Archon and Eladrin angelic.4e ANGELS4e tries to make sense of the cosmology that sprawls awkwardly across the splatbooks of 3e. For example, cosmological attempts during 3e to reconcile Spelljammer place the Elemental Planes at one end, connecting by ether to the Material Plane in the middle, whence by convolution of "phlogiston", to the Astral Plane at the other end. Within this 3e Astral Plane, the alignment planes floated like islands in a sea. Hence the 4e cosmology presents this axis vertically with the Elemental Chaos at the bottom end and the Astral Sea at the top end. The Material Plane aka the Mortal World situates between, to integrate both Elemental matter and Astral thought.3e cosmology evolves in ways weird and wonderful. But it often disconnects from the genres of reallife fantasy literature. Besides, having an entire plane where there is nothing − or "nothing but" − is bland. 3e has many of these. They lack internal conflict, thus lack stories, and can feel less rich for a fantasy world. Adventurers visit these planes of nothing but never live there.4e designers decide to reconnect D&D with "mythological accuracy". Reallife folkbelief energizes many of the fantasy stories of popculture that players are familiar with and want to adventure in. 4e introduces a fairyland by the name Feywild and an underworld by the name of Shadowfell. What was a 3e Ethereal Plane of nothing diversifies and becomes these two planes instead. (They also absorb the Shadow Plane of nothing: the Fey is a place of illusion and the Shadow a place of ghostly wisps.) Shadowfell is especially the realm of the dead. So the underworld themes that were in the Lower Planes like Hades are now in Shadowfell. The otherwordly forests of the Eladrin in Arborea are now in Feywild. Feywild and Shadowfell "echo" the richness of the Material Plane, where diverse conflicts and stories can happen.The casualty of a cosmology that makes more sense, becomes more playable, and proves popular, is the destruction of the angels − or at least transfiguring or physicalizing them.The Eladrin that enter D&D as Chaotic Good angels in earlier editions are now the primary inhabitants of Feywild and of "any alignment".The Archons that early on are the Lawful Good angels are now the messengers of the Elemental matter and of "any alignment".Guardinals cease to exist.All of the aligned Good angels are gone in 4e, one way or an other.The angelic species of Solar and Planetar lose their names in 4e and reform by names such as "Angel of Battle", "Angel of Protection", "Angel of Light", and similar. 4e Angels can be "any alignment", ascendant or fallen: "angels exist as expressions of the Astral Sea, sentient energy in humanoid form."The earlier Deva species of Angel that works as an agent of the Upper Planes while in the Material Plane merges with the Aasimar that descends from there as a playable species. Leaning into mythological accuracy for the Hindu name "Deva" and its association with avatars, the D&D Deva undergoes cycles of reincarnation between the Astral and the Material planes. The reincarnating Deva is a playable Celestial character and is the counterpart to the devilish Tiefling.Among the Evil angels, Devil and Demon become more than fiends who differ by ethical alignment. They become distinctive kinds of creatures. The Devil is a creature of thought (and seduction) in the Astral Sea. The Demon is a creature of matter (and destruction) in the Elemental Chaos.Yugoloth discontinues. A 4e version of the species Ultraloth is a Chaotic Evil Demon in the Elemental Chaos.Defacto, the 4e Aberrant of the Farrealm is the Yugoloth by a different name with a more vivid trope.As a design principle for organizing the game, 4e abandons the abstract ethical alignments and chooses vivid tropes instead.5e ANGELS5e continues the 4e cosmology. It also finds ways to salvage some traditions from earlier editions. It makes spaces for them in ways that make sense in the 5e cosmology.Feywild and Shadowfell endure. 5e Spelljammer confirms the Astral Sea. The Elemental Chaos is on the 5e cosmology map.There is no mention of the "Archon" in 5e, except in the settings of Thera and Ravnica, where the name means other things. Neither is there a "Guardinal", not even when describing Beastland for Tabaxi or Ardling. The "Eladrin" is busy as natives of the Feywild.Even so, the 5e Astral Sea reintroduces one domain for each of the seventeen alignment planes in early editions.The 5e "Angel" returns the species of Solar, Planetar, and Deva by name. But they are Lawful Good, typically. These can exist elsewhere and even do missions for other Good alignments. They appear to displace the Archon as the primary inhabitants of Lawful Good Mount Celestia.Up to now, 5e makes the "Angel" a creature subtype that is Lawful Good. The subtypes for the Evil angels are Lawful Evil Devil, True Evil Yugoloth, and Chaotic Evil Demon.5e PLANESCAPEWhen 5e Planescape arrives, I expect angelic subtypes that are Chaotic Good and True Good as counterparts to the Lawful Good Angel.Since the animalistic characteristics of the Guardinal make more sense for Beastlands − a dominion for animals and humanimals − perhaps the 5e version will specify the Guardinal is the subtype for the Good-by-Chaotic-Good angel. The Gehreleth of Carceri might appear as the subtype for the Evil-by-Chaotic-Evil angel.Potentially, there are seventeen angelic subtypes, one for each alignment dominion in the Astral Sea.5e AASIMARThe Aasimar exists in 5e. Mordenkainen Presents has their latest playable version. Nominally, it is the angelic counterpart to the devilish − and soon more broadly fiendish − Tiefling.But the location of the Aasimar in Mordenkainen feels like a retirement. See the trope "Put on a Bus". It is there for fans who want it. But unlike Tiefling, it isnt core. And wont be. The playtest Ardling feels like an aggressive attempt to displace it.On the other hand, the stats from DnDBeyond evidence the Aasimar is highly popular among D&D players, around the ranks of Gnome and Goliath. It seems like a waste of money if WotC doesnt make the Aasimar core. Indeed, the Ardling looks like an attempt to monetize the popularity of Aasimar.I expect the 2024 Players Handbook to include some form of Celestial angelic species.But what this species looks like might be anything. It depends on which editions of D&D one considers. Maybe the name of the species will "Aasimar", after all. Or maybe it will go by the name "Deva", as it does in 4e. Or maybe its name is neologism, like "Ardling".The traits of this core angelic species can be anything. It depends on which Celestial dominions it shares affinity with. This depends on how these dominions work and what Celestials populate them. So far, 5e is vague and the details sporadic.</blockquote>

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