Archive:Elemental Planes

This article is currently only a proposal

The features or design guidelines described in this article are only a proposal made by one or some persons. It has not been evaluated or accepted by the core development team yet. Feel free to add your personal opinion about them or make counter proposals.

The Elemental Planes are parallel dimensions which exist coterminous to the Mana World, each of them being composed almost entirely of a single element. They are the dwelling places of various elemental creatures, and provide exotic environments for players of medium or high level to explore.

History

During their confinement in the crystals, the Gods each passed the long time of their solitude by creating miniature realities, each of composed entirely of a single element. When the crystals were shattered, these miniature realities were released along with the Gods. When released, they absorbed some of the energy of the crystals and the mana world, and then were shunted away from the mana world, each of them becoming a parallel dimension.

Initially, the Elemental Planes remained unknown to the inhabitants of the Mana World, but as the centuries passed, the boundaries between the Elemental Planes and the Mana World weakened and grew thin, and some of the energy of the elemental planes bleeded over into the Mana World, creating areas where an element was particularly strong.

The mages of the mana world discovered these places, and after investigating they devised spells that would allow them to enter and explore the elemental planes. News of the discovery of these planes stirred up nearly every spellcaster in the Mana World, as they attempted to theorize or discover the origin and purpose of the planes. Some theorized that they are the source of all elemental energy in the mana world, while some beleived that the mana world was created from the excess energy of these planes.

Access

Normally, the Elemental Planes are difficult to access, but there are a number of means that would allow a person to enter them. The primary manner of entering an elemental plane is by the use of a dimensional gateway. They are usually in obscure or difficult to reach locations that have a strong affinity for a particular element.

Normally, the gates will function only at certain times. Some, however, require a "Gate Key" in order to open. Gate Keys can be acquired killing certain monsters (or bosses), by completing a specific quest, or an NPC might sell them. Once used, a gate key will disappear. Then, there are freestanding gates that are continually active. These gates, however, are quite rare, and will usually have some special requirement in order to access (such as slaying the gate keeper, paying a "toll" to an NPC, etc.

The other method of entering a plane is by being teleported their from a spell. A spellcaster player could possibly learn a spell that would transport them to and from a specific elemental plane. Each spell would only transport you to and from one plane, and the spell would be categorized under the plane's element. Compared to other spells, these plane shifting spells would have a long recharge time, preventing them from being used frequently.

These spells could also be known by NPC's, who would charge money to cast them on a player. As well, some enemies (particularly magic-using ones) attempt to cast the spell on a player, forcibly translocating them to an elemental plane. Success should not be automatic, as a player should be allowed to resist or avoid it somehow. When a player is sent to a plane in this manner, they appear in a random location with a slightly higher chance of appearing in a particularly dangerous location.

Departure

Leaving an elemental plane is not as difficult as entering it. Quite frequently, one-way portals to the Mana World will randomly open up, and will stay open for about a random amount of time (at least a minute). Upon going through, you will appear at a respawn point within the Mana World. The respawn point would be randomly chosen from a list of respawn points that you have been to, with a preference for respawn points located in or near an area with a strong affinity to the plane's element.

Players that have a spell which enables travel to an Elemental Plane can also use it to return to the Mana World (as mentioned above. The main restriction on this is the long recharge time of the spell, which prevents players from popping in and out of the plane. Some NPC's will also be on the elemental plane, and can cast a spell to return a player to the Mana World.

Some of the native monsters on an elemental plane may know a banishment spell, which would forcibly send a player back to the mana world. However, they are unlikely to actually use the spell unless they are close to defeat. If a player hoping to get a free trip back to the mana world starts harrassing a monster with such a spell, then the monster is unlikely to use it unless the player is able bring it close to defeat.

Lastly, the gateways leading to the elemental planes may provide a means of return. Most of them, however, are one-way gates. Gateways that require Gate Keys will require that you use another gate key from your inventory to open them again. And then there's the continually active gateways, which are two-way.

Magic

With the abundance of energy on an elemental plane, spells of the same element as a plane will recharge much faster than normal. On the other hand, spells of all other elements will recharge much more slowly. Those who specialize in magic of a different element may quickly discover that they may not be able to use their magic very often. Those afflicted by this disability may wish to carry some source of elemental energy with them, such as a crystal.

Plane of Air

The plane of air is just one endless, open sky. The only land in it consists of floating islands which drift aimlessly through the plane. Most of these landmasses were originally from the Mana World, torn away when the Plane of Air was released. Many of them are heavily forested, while some have ancient structures, now ruined. Others have thriving cities and small villages on them, populated by people stranded on the plane. Most of the people living on the plane are Sparron, many of whom beleive the Plane of Air is their ancestral homeland.

Those who do not have the ability to fly will find themselves limited to exploring whichever island they arrive on the plane at. However, some of the natives operate hot-air balloons or magically-powered dirigibles, which they use to ferry stranded visitors between islands. However, some of them may require payment, while others are run by pirates who will rob any unsuspecting players once they are on board the vessel, and away from any nearby land. A player in this situation is given the option of fighting, bribing the pirates to let him off the ship.

Plane of Earth

The plane of earth consists entirely of a huge network of caverns. It is perhaps the easiest plane to explore, since no special abilities are necesary in order to do so. The caves have great variety, with some being underwater, volcanic, or filled with "forests" of giant mushrooms. Some cave chambers are made entirely of crystals, while some are filled with pools of acid and toxic fumes. The cities of this plane are mostly located in the larger cave chambers, while some of them are excavated from the stone to create vast citadels.

Many of the monsters inhabiting this plane are capable of burrowing. A burrowing monster cannot usually be attacked until it surfaces or comes close to the surface. In case of the latter, a player will be able to attack by using a pointed weapon (such as a polearm) or by using some spell to blast it.

Plane of Fire

The entire plane is a relatively flat field of volcanic rock. Fissures and vents release flames and hot poisonous gases from the magma beneath, creating many hazards. The best bet for survival is to have some protection against heat, and to stay on the higher ground. The only people living on this plane are mostly Ifrits, who may provide assistance to extraplanar visitors.

The greatest hazard on the Plane of Fire are volcanic seas: low-lying areas where the rock is either very thin or nonexistant. A few monsters lurk in the lava below, waiting for someone to walk out onto the rock before they burst out from beneath to attack. These monsters are mostly stationary, only appearing above the surface when they sense movement. Larger creatures, such as massive "sea" serpents, actively hunt, and signs of their movement can be visible, especially before they strike.

Plane of Water

The plane of water is a vast underwater realm, with a landscape composed of sand flats, forests of kelp and seaweed, coral reefs, and underwater cities inhabited by Triton. For most people, the only safe places to explore are the tritan cities, which have enclosures filled with breathable air. Otherwise, the only people who can explore this plane are those who can breath underwater, or have a seperate oxygen supply.

On the "surface" of the plane, there is little of interest. It is mostly a endless expanse of ocean. However, there are some places to explore. Ships from the Mana World sometimes are transported here (Bermuda Triangle, anyone?). There are some plants on the surface, which have gaseous bulbs in their roots to help them stay afloat. Some of these plants are as big as trees, and can become interconnected over time to create floating islands.

Magic on the Plane of Water: The environment of the plane of water can have a signicant impact on spellcasting. All but the most powerful fire spells are negated instantly, and even then they have greatly diminished effect. Lightning spells are dispersed by the water, spreading out over an area to potentially strike multiple targets, at the expense of reduced damage. Lightning spells could also potentially strike the caster, if he's not careful. Ice spells can freeze the water surrounding the target, encasing him in ice. Spells that already do so are more likely to succeed as well.

Sub-Elemental Planes

In addition to the four elemental planes, there are four sub-elemental planes. They do not border the Mana World like the elemental planes do, instead lying in between two of the elemental plans, and are composed of a mixture of the two planes (much how the sub-elements are a mixture of the main elements). Because of their orientation, the sub-elemental planes will be much harder to access. Portals leading to them from the Mana World will be much rarer, with permanent gateways being nonexistant. Spells used to reach them take even longer to recharge unless cast from an Elemental Plane that borders the Sub-Elemental Plane.

• Plane of Lightning: I imagine this plane being similar to the Plane of Air, except that the sky is dark and turbulent with one massive superstorm. The land in this place is thin platforms of sharp, black rock, all or most of which are interconnected. Tall spires on this land attract most of the lightning, so it is wise to stick close to them if you don't want to get struck. However, it may be required for you to enter certain areas, perhaps in order to reach a portal or to acquire some kind of treasure.
• Plane of Ice: This plane is a mixture of tundra, snow fields, frozen seas, glaciers, and icy caverns. The average temperature here is as cold as the coldest place on the Mana World, and the temperatures often plummet even lower, making resistance to the cold a necesity for survival.
• Plane of Metal: Don't know about this one. It could either be done as a gigantic factory-like environment, or it could be a cavern made entirely out of metal ores. Maybe fill this cavern with monsters that consume metal (and are made of metal themselves). Perhaps something like the Rust Monster from Dungeons and Dragons could be included as well.
• Plane of Wood: This plane would be simply be a forest, which is growing on the branches of colossal trees that are part of a massive forest. And this forest of gigantic trees is growing on the branches of even larger trees! And so on and so forth (or not).

Comments

See also the Forum topic.

I think a slight twist to this would be better. While trapped in the crystals, the Spirit/Gods Tried their hands at creation again, but this time separately. Within each crystal a new world was created, made entirely out of a single element (the element of the spirit in the crystal). When the crystals shattered, The planes escaped with the Gods, causing the damage to the landscape. As they continued to spread (away from the world) and encountered each other, the other four planes were created and the original planes were altered so they each had some of the other elements in them, but were mostly their original element. — Jaxad0127 16:27, 28 December 2007 (CET)