Manual of the Planes

CHAPTER 6:THE INNERPLANES82Death HeartThe best-known location within one of the major doldrums,Death Heart is an entire spired city constructed within ahollow metal sphere one mile in diameter that drifted infrom some long-dead alternate Material Plane. While theexterior of the sphere has a minor negative-dominant trait,its interior is free of the baneful negative energy of theplane. That protection failed to save the city’s inhabitants.The city was founded as an experimental utopian community.Originally called the Heart of the Void, it wasdesigned by its mysterious masters to be a place untaintedby other beings and schools of thought. In reality, it wasquickly overrun by the undead, who feasted on the flesh andsouls of the students within. Now its towers and plazas areempty except for the undead invaders. Here may be foundall varieties of undead, including not only energy-drainingcreatures such as wraiths, wights, and spectres, but moremundane skeletons, zombies, and mummies. Several lichesand powerful vampires claim this sphere as their home.Rumors carried by the mercanes state that usually thevarious evil factions within the Heart of the Void areengaged in perpetual war with one another. But now aparticularly dangerous individual, a vampiric minotaur,has brokered peace among the factions and has encouragedfurther research into the nature of the city and theplane itself. The mercanes believe that the vampiricminotaur’s eventual goal is to steer the city to anotherplane and use his undead minions to wreak havoc there.Castles PerilousGiven the large number of undead creatures in residenceon the Negative Energy Plane, there is less tendency touse the Negative Energy Plane as a repository for evilprisoners and dangerous items. However, good-alignedprisoners and benevolent items are often imprisonedhere, usually in towers of pitted iron with sealed gates.These prisons are well trapped and often heavily guarded.Some hold celestials or good-aligned artifacts noteasily destroyed, while others contain paladins in stasisand other items and individuals baneful to the undead.The presence of these castles perilous is often a reasonthat Material Plane travelers (especially those of goodalignment) come to this plane.NEGATIVE ENCOUNTERSThe Negative Energy Plane is a generally empty place,hostile to the extreme. Few things are encountered here,and the chance of hitting them by blind chance is minimal.The Negative Energy Plane is considered slightlymore deadly than the Positive Energy Plane because ofthe presence of undead creatures.The table below is suitable for typical travelers, but theDM can also use it as a springboard for encounter tablesfor specific areas by adding new creatures or changingthe percentages.On a d% result of 100, characters encounter somethingon Table 6–5: Negative Energy Plane Encounters. Rollonce per hour.Table 6–5: Negative Energy Plane Encountersd% Encounter Number CR At EL01–30 Doldrums — — —31–45 Energon, xeg-yi 2d4 5 1046–55 Spectre 1d4+2 7 1156–65 Vampire spawn 2d4 4 1066–80 Voidstone — — —81–90 Wight 2d6 3 991–100 Wraith 2d6+1 5 12POSITIVE ENERGY PLANEIt is power incarnate.It is radiance beyond compare.It is life realized to the fullest.The Positive Energy Plane is best compared to theheart of a star. It is a continual furnace of creation, adomain of brilliance beyond the ability of mortal eyes tocomprehend. Its very being wavers and ripples as newmatter and energy is born and swells to full power like abursting fruit. It is a vibrant plane, so alive with itself thattravelers themselves are empowered by visiting it.The Positive Energy Plane has no surface and is akin tothe Elemental Plane of Air with its wide, open nature.However, every bit of this plane glows brightly withinnate power. This power is dangerous to mortal forms,which are not made to handle it.Despite the beneficial effects of the plane, it is one ofthe most hostile of the Inner Planes. An unprotectedcharacter on this plane swells with power as positiveenergy is force-fed into her. Then, her mortal frameunable to contain that power, she immolates as a smallplanet caught at the edge of a supernova. Visits to the PositiveEnergy Plane are brief, and even then travelers mustbe heavily protected.POSITIVE ENERGY PLANE TRAITSThe Positive Energy Plane has the following traits.• Subjective Directional Gravity.• Normal Time.• Infinite Size.• Alterable Morphic.• Major Positive-Dominant: Some regions of theplane have the minor positive-dominant trait instead,and those islands tend to be inhabited. Optionally, youcan make minor positive-dominant the default trait forthis plane if you want a gentler Positive Energy Plane.• Enhanced Magic: Spells and spell-like abilities thatuse positive energy are maximized (as if the MaximizeSpell feat had been used on them, but the spells don’trequire higher-level slots). Spells and spell-like abilitiesthat are already maximized are unaffected by this benefit.While cure spells are maximized, not all healingspells are affected. The Positive Energy Plane does notaffect cure disease, for example, because the beneficialenergies of the plane aid the disease as much as theyhelp the victim. The spell is thus no better or worsethan on the Material Plane.