Ethereal Plane

The Ethereal Plane is a misty, fog-bound dimension that is coexistent with the Material Plane and often other planes as well. Travelers within the Ethereal Plane describe the plane as a collection of swirling mists and colorful fogs. The Material Plane itself is visible from the Ethereal Plane, but it appears muted and indistinct, its colors blurring into each other and its edges turning fuzzy. Ethereal denizens watch the Material Plane as though viewing it through distorted and frosted glass.  While it is possible to see into the Material Plane from the Ethereal Plane, the Ethereal Plane is usually invisible to those on the Material Plane. Normally, creatures on the Ethereal Plane cannot attack creatures on the Material Plane, and vice versa. A traveler on the Ethereal Plane is invisible, incorporeal, and utterly silent to someone on the Material Plane. This makes the Ethereal Plane very other occasions when it's handy to move around without being detected. The Ethereal Plane is mostly empty of structures and impediments. However, the plane has its own inhabitants. Some of these are other ethereal travelers, but the ghosts found here pose a particular peril to those who walk the fog.

Ethereal Traits

The Ethereal Plane seems almost a nonplane in that it is tightly wedded to the Material Plane. It can be thought of as a fourth physical dimension or a vibration slightly out of tune with the rest of the universe. It has the following traits.

• No Gravity
• Normal Time
• Infinite or Finite Size: The Ethereal Plane's size depends on which plane is adjacent to.
• Alterable Morphic: There is little on the plane to alter, however.
• No Elemental or Energy Traits: Even if the coexistent plane has one or more of these traits, the Ethereal Plane does not.
• Mildly Neutral-Aligned
• Normal Magic: That is, spell function normally on the Ethereal Plane, though they do not cross into the Material Plane, though they do not cross into the Material Plane. Arcane Magic does not work unless the caster is a deity or dragon.

Ethereal Links

The Ethereal Plane is strongly connected to its coexistent plane. As a traveler moves through the Ethereal Plane, he perceives the Material Plane alongside it every step of the way. Portals from other planes may open onto the Ethereal Plane, rather than the corresponding point on the Material Plane. Such portals appear as curtains of shimming colors (rather than the Astral Plane's color pools). These portals create conduits through the Astral Plane to reach their destination, just like any other portal, but their entrances are on the Ethereal Plane. Travelers from elsewhere become ethereal once they reach the Ethereal Plane by means of a curtain, and they must pass through another such curtain (or have some other means of manifesting themselves) to reach the Material Plane. It is possible to plane shift (as the spell) into the Ethereal Plane. In such cases, the body becomes ethereal upon reaching the plane. Similarly, travelers who open gates onto the Ethereal Plane and individuals accidentally thrown there become ethereal (as the ethereal jaunt spell) when they arrive. Unless they have the ability to somehow leave the Ethereal Plane, or they find a curtain leading out of the Ethereal Plane, they're trapped there.

Ethereal Inhabitants

The Ethereal Plane is much more populated than the Astral Plane. It boasts a great variety of natives as well as frequent travelers. Magical beasts such as the ethereal marauder, phase spider, and ethereal filcher use the Ethereal Plane. These are not true outsiders, but rather Material Plane creatures that have adapted to use the Ethereal Plane to hunt prey. Travelers to the Ethereal lane include outsiders that have access to magic portals or curtains onto the Ethereal Plane. As stated above, moving onto the Ethereal Plane by means of a gate or plane shift spell turns the traveler ethereal. It takes a second spell to return travelers to their plane of origin.  One great danger of the Ethereal Plane is ghosts, which often call this plane home. Such creatures have a deep and abiding hatred of living and no love for those travelers who impinge upon their realms.

Movement and Combat

One moves through the Ethereal Plane as one would move on the Material Plane. However, due to the misty nature of the protomatter of the plane itself, a traveler can move up and down just as easily as along solid surfaces. However, all movement is at half speed, both for travelers and for creatures native to the Ethereal Plane. There is a definite "down" to the Ethereal Plane that corresponds to the gravity of the coexistent plane it is attached to. However, there is no danger of falling. Because the Ethereal Plane is coexistent with the Material Plane, most travelers walk normally along the ground of the Material Plane. Creatures on the Ethereal Plane can move through solid objects on the Material Plane, but they cannot move through solid objects on the Ethereal Plane. Unlike the Astral Plane, the Ethereal Plane offers no quick way to move great distances. A traveler normally moves physically between the Material Plane and the Ethereal Plane, unlike travelers to the Astral Plane, who sometimes project a duplicate form. The most common way to reach the Ethereal Plane is with spells such as ethereal jaunt or magic items such as armor with the etherealness special ability. There is no inherent danger when moving from the Material Plane to the mostly empty Ethereal Plane. Even if there is an ethereal object in the way, the traveler is painlessly shunted to the nearest open space in the Ethereal Plane. Moving back to the Material Plane poses a risk if a solid object or creature is present. Travelers who overlap with a Material Plane object or creature are shunted to the nearest open space, taking 1d6 points of damage per 5 feet so moved.