Plane of Water

The Plane of Water is a vast realm of deep mysteries, shadowed darkness, and wondrous life, all combined into one of the most recognizable elements across the multiverse. Life flourishes in this plane, which many travelers can relate to on some level – after all, most Material Plane worlds have seas and oceans, so it isn't too hard to imagine a vast, endless version of it.

But the Plane of Water holds so much more, and it is one of the most hospitable of the Inner Planes to natural life. With a little magic, travelers can dive into the Sea of Worlds and seek out the wonders and treasures of the Great Coral Forest, the wrecks of lost ships in the Graveyard of Sails, the reckless and arrogant halls of the marid genies in the Citadel of Ten Thousand Pearls, or even trade goods and services under the icy dome of the City of Glass. Deeper still lies dangerous lairs of cold, unyielding monsters, such as the Fathomless Caves and the Trench of Death.

Sahuagin, marid genies, kuo-toa, merrow, and all manner of other creatures occupy the Plane of Water, and some have built cities and bases beneath the waves. While most of the planar activity is underwater, contrary to most beliefs, the Plane of Water has a surface, and this surface is broken by several islands. The most famous of these islands is the Isle of Dread, surrounded by a fierce storm that extends to many Material Planes, which has the capability to draw in ships and strand them. The island itself is a dangerous, jungle-filled wilderness with great dinosaurs competing for food.

The treasures and sites of the Plane of Water are there for travelers willing to brave the monsters and dangers of an endless sea of unrelenting change.

Lay of the Land

The Plane of Water is made of several distinct regions.

Sea of Worlds

The first is actually above the waters of the Sea of Worlds, where the sun and stars sit, similar to most Material Planes. Ships that inadvertently travel through a portal to this Inner Plane can drift forever on the waves, though it is more likely they run afoul of one of the many terrible storms that rock the region. This elemental realm is a plane of constant change, with seas shifting dramatically from calm to stormy in the blink of an eye.

Islands comprised of rock, earth, and even coral break the surface of the Sea of Worlds, though few are permanent. The nature of the watery plane breaks down hard surfaces, eroding them and sending them back to the depths. Few things last above the sea, as super storms are known to suddenly appear without warning to drag everything back down. There are no native creatures that do not swim in the Plane of Water, though swarms of winged quippers break the surface of the sea to ride the stormy winds.

Sea of Light

The upper region of underwater is known as the Sea of Light. Here, much of the sunlight from above the sea filters down, creating a brightly lit aquatic wonderland. Great swaths of coral reefs clinging to unanchored rocks dot the Sea of Light, and within these are found the fortresses, strongholds, and cities of the most common planar natives, including the sahuagin and kuo-toa. Nominally, the marid genies rule over much of this layer, but they care little for the machinations of non-marid.

Even at night, the Sea of Light is illuminated, bathed by a soft green light that seems to infuse the water. The water temperature is near perfection at all times, not too hot and not too cold, though pockets of intense heat, slime, and chill float through the currents. Throughout the waters, “up” is considered to be towards the surface of the Sea of Worlds, while “down” is considered away from the light. In all portions of the Plane of Water below the surface, however, it can be difficult to easily determine “up” from “down.”

Darkened Depths

The deepest sections of the Plane of Water are reserved for a lightless realm known as the Darkened Depths. It is here dwell the greatest and most monstrous of creatures, including elder krakens and the lairs of the elemental lords of water. Olhydra, the Princess of Evil Water Elementals, is the best known among these primordial powers, and she is fickle and without mercy. Light from above the Sea of Worlds does not filter down to the Darkened Depths, and whatever infusion illuminates the Sea of Light above is lessened here.

Sea of Ice

The Plane of Water borders two other Inner Planes at its extreme edges. Where it borders the Plane of Air, the Sea of Worlds grows frigid and great icebergs bob slowly in the water. This is the Sea of Ice, and travelers that continue through it eventually reach the Frostfell (also known as the Plane of Ice). White dragons and remorhazes are known to lair in the icebergs of the Sea of Ice. Particularly large rogue icebergs have been known to break from this area to float into the Sea of Worlds, though the warmer waters ensure the massive ice formations don’t last forever.

Silt Flats

At the other end, the sea grows shallower where the Plane of Water is near the Plane of Earth. This area is known as the Silt Flats before giving way to the Swamp of Oblivion (also referred to as the Plane of Ooze). In the Silt Flats, the water is thick and sludge-like, and it is not uncommon to have acidic globs float out into the Sea of Worlds to wreak havoc on all life. Unnaturally large and aggressive insects, such as mud mosquitos, are known to occupy the Silt Flats. Because of its thick, shallow water, most regular inhabitants of the Plane of Water avoid the Silt Flats, though travelers have been known to scour the region looking for lost treasure sites, such as the Mud Tombs.

Cycle of Time

A sun rises and sets over the Plane of Water in a regular 24-hour cycle, similar to most Material Planes. Thick storm clouds often obscure it, but when it passes in the azure sky overhead, it creates light and very little heat. Some planar scholars theorize it is a massive portal to the Plane of Fire, though no definitive research has been done to prove this. Attempts to reach it have been thwarted by the unnaturally intense thunderstorms that gather. At night, a deep blue twilight settles over the Sea of Worlds, and the night sky is covered in twinkling stars. Unfortunately, the night sees no change in temperament for the storms.

Surviving

The Plane of Water offers normal, breathable air above the water. Many sailors have passed into this Inner Plane during a freak storm and didn't even notice a difference! Beneath the water, the greatest threat (besides monsters and natural hazards) is drowning, so traveling without the aid of magic is ill-advised. However, considering most Material Planes have their own oceans and seas, the availability of water breathing magic is generally considered high.

Getting There

There are likely more portals to the Plane of Water than any other Inner Plane (with the possible exception of the Plane of Air), though opening them can be tricky if the traveler is not prepared. Many portals are two-way, and thus opening a portal to a realm of endless water can create a real drowning hazard for the unprepared.

Permanent portals to the Plane of Water are known to exist in enchanted waterfalls, in the mouths of deep rivers, and in the lowest trenches of seas and oceans. Sudden storms on oceans can create spontaneous portals, and one such storm ravages the Isle of Dread at all times. That portal is capable of pulling in entire vessels and depositing them on the shores of the famed island, stranding the sailors on another plane of existence entirely.

Most wild portals lead to locations in the Sea of Light or, for the really dark ones, to the Darkened Depths. However, many stable portals are known to lead to the City of Glass, the trading hub for all of the inner planes (and some would say all the planes). These portals typically lead to one of the many market squares in that city, tightly patrolled and governed by the Aquatic Council so as to ensure goods and services are brought in fairly and recorded accurately. However, secret portals are rumored to exist, leading to the shady underbelly of the City of Glass, a frozen region known as the Freezer. Officially, the Aquatic Council does not recognize the existence of the Freezer, but for those in the know, it can be a place to acquire goods that people don't want tracked or monitored.

Traveling Around

As long as a traveler can swim, traveling around the Plane of Water isn’t difficult, though navigating can be tricky. Some of the advanced aquatic races, such as merfolk and sahuagin, have developed echostones to help locate common locations. Echostones are magical devices attuned to each other so that a sahuagin raiding party in the Sea of Light can use one to return to their fortress in the Great Coral Forest.

Using a mount is a common means of transportation for non-natives in the Plane of Water, and herds of seahorses are known to swim wild and majestically across much of the Sea of Light. In the City of Glass, such mounts can be purchased with little difficulty, though taming one out in the wild can be a real challenge for a non-native.

Powerful & Mighty

Like the might of the ocean itself, the Plane of Water is wild, powerful, and above all else, untamed. That doesn’t stop powerful creatures and entities from trying to exert control over it, but the most intelligent among them understand that the mercurial nature of the water element works against their best efforts. The most successful of the powerful and mighty on the Plane of Water learn to move with the tide and adapt to the inevitable changes.

This creates interesting opportunities for adventuring groups willing to deal and negotiate with unsavory characters of all nature. The marid genies, while not wholly evil, are certainly selfish, but through powerful emissaries and the Padishah herself, a party may find information, secrets, and the dirt on what’s happening in this watery realm. Other beings, such as the shark god Sekolah or the eldritch entity Great Cthulhu, offer potential villains to thwart and work against.

Azure Council

In the cosmopolitan City of Glass, no individual king or queen rules over the factions that inhabit the area. Instead, the rule of law has been given over to the Azure Council, a semi-secretive group of merchants, traders, and demagogues representing the diverse nature of the City of Glass. The Azure Council was created in response to the absence of the marid who were responsible for building the magnificent city but to whom the responsibility for governing became too tedious. In their absence, some merchant princes stood up to assume responsibility, and in response, the marid placed a magical decree over the council’s true power – monitoring and controlling the many portals that lead in and out of the City of Glass. This decree ensures no two councilors can be of the same species and that the Azure Council must consist of at least five members.

Since that original proclamation by the marid in the distant past, the Azure Council has had representatives from the following Plane of Water native species– merfolk, sahuagin, kuo-toa, locathah, and sea hag. The marid hold a seat on the council, though a representative rarely attends, even when the great padishah visits on her irregular vacation from the Citadel of Ten Thousand Pearls. Recently, the Azure Council has welcomed an aquatic elf as a member, but to date, the petitions of the lizardfolk community in the City of Glass for representation have gone unheeded.

The Azure Council appoints a speaker from its ranks to act as the voice of the council’s will to the citizens and visitors to the City of Glass. The role of the speaker rotates every three years, and it is the speaker who approves new topics and rules for the council to consider. In the case of a tie vote, the speaker is the one to determine the final result, though in most cases, a consensus is reached long before a motion gets to that point. Laws and decrees by the council are recorded in the Book of Records and made available to all city citizens.

The Azure Council meets on a regular basis in the Glittering Tower, which sits in the heart of the Royal District of the City of Glass. For their time on the council, each councilor is given well-furnished accommodations in the Glittering Tower with enough room for a reasonable sized support staff. Intrigue and subterfuge in the tower is commonplace, though the councilors each treat each other with respect in public. The commander of the Knights of Glass, the peacekeeping guard force in the city, has an advisory role on the Azure Council and takes guidance from the speaker. Large scale deployments or mobilizations of the Knights of Glass require full council approval, however.

Eadro, God of the Merfolk

In the Sea of Light, Eadro is a shining beacon of hope and bounty in the aquatic paradise of Shelluria. As a god, Eadro created and is revered by the merfolk and locathah, who both live freely together in the bright, warm waters of Shelluria, where thousands upon thousands of fish swim and eat peacefully. Though he doesn’t take an active hand in the activities of the Plane of Water very often, Eadro is well-regarded among the marid and a hated foe of the sahuagin.

Unfortunately, he’s also missing. Clerics worshipping Eadro still receive spells and can channel his power, but in the paradise city of Shelluria, he has been absent for many years. In his place, a trio of powerful servants makes decisions. This trio is comprised of the most senior merfolk and locathah in Shelluria, along with a good aligned kraken who acts as Eadro’s voice in the god’s absence. What happened to Eadro? The trio have gone to great lengths to hide his disappearance from the residents of Shelluria, but it gets harder all the time.

Elemental Lords of Water

The greatest manifestation of the natural power of the Plane of Water are the Elemental Lords. Some sages believe these entities to be the highest form of elementals that inhabit the plane, but there are others who doubt this theory. They are all universally incredibly powerful, intelligent, and attuned to the Plane of Water, though only three have been documented or encountered. Others may exist, especially in the shadowed corners of the Darkened Depths.

The three that are known as Olhydra, Ben-Hadar, and Alvolvoy. Olhydra is the best known among them, as her evil machinations have reached the Material Planes on multiple occasions. Wicked cults and dangerous priests worship Olhydra as the Princess of Evil Water Elementals and seek to drown cities and kingdoms in a tidal wave of destruction and death. On the Plane of Water, Olhydra dwells in the Black Coral Citadel in the Darkened Depths.

Ben-hadar is known on the Plane of Water as a force for good and wages constant war against the powers of Olhydra, but his influence is limited. He is rumored to command a flotilla of enormous dragon turtles with which he patrols the Sea of Light, seeking out Olhydra's minions and keeping her in the Darkened Depths. Least is known of Alvovoy, though references in ancient Olhydra texts refer to him as a subjugated elemental lord in the princess' command.

Great Padishah of the Marids

The marid are the greatest power in the Plane of Water or any of the elemental planes, or so they would have you believe, and none hold more influence than Kalbari al- Durrat al-Amwajs ibn Jari, Great Padishah of the Marids, the Keeper of the Empire, the Pearl of the Sea, the Mother of Foam, the Maharaja of the Oceans, and Emir of All Currents. She holds elaborate court in the Citadel of Ten Thousand Pearls, a magnificently appointed structure in the Sea of Light that functions as the heart of the marid empire. Or it would, if there were a marid empire or even functioning government to speak of.

The marid are boastful, proud, even arrogant genies, and while there is only one Great Padishah in the Plane of Water, she doesn’t hold much sway over other marid. Like many marid, she has slaves, but these slaves do not perform menial labor (the genies have magic and aquatic beasts to do that). Instead, the slaves are meant to entertain, though the whims of the Great Padishah are as wild and fluid as the ocean itself. Dozens of marid outposts, castles, and settlements lay scattered across the Plane of Water, but never has a Great Padishah assembled or commanded them all towards a single goal. They are all free to do whatever they like, which suits the Great Padishah just fine.

Physically, Great Padishah Kalbari is a beautiful marid by any standard, tall and imposing but lithe and flexible at the same time. Her brightly colored garments are made from the finest silkweed and serve only to accentuate her enchanting form. While in the Citadel of Ten Thousand Pearls, she has trained schools of multicolored fish to dance around her constantly, accentuating her actions and moods. Her generosity can be legendary, as can her sudden wrath. Those willing and able to endure her constant grandstanding, boasting, and showmanship find Great Padishah Kalbari charming, elegant, well-versed, and a shrewd negotiator.

At random times, Great Padishah Kalbari and her trusted court appointees and confidants leave the Citadel of Ten Thousand Pearls to travel the Plane of Water on a tour of her “kingdom.” A favorite stop on this tour is the City of Glass, which throws the Azure Council into a frenzy every time. They have little power to stop her and her followers, however, so they simply try to endure her visits, which can last weeks or months depending on her mood.

Sekolah the Joyful Hunter

Sharks are the ultimate expression of purity according to the sahuagin, and no being embodies this belief more than their god Sekolah. Known as the Joyful Hunter, Sekolah is one of the largest sharks in the entire Plane of Water, measuring hundreds of feet long with black, cold, calculating eyes. He seeks only to hunt and he moves through all the waters of the plane with single-minded determination. Sahuagin priestesses chart his path and derive meaning from his actions, but truly Sekolah is a monster of the oldest order with little thoughts towards the sahuagin that worship him.

Woe be to the prey that finds itself in Sekolah’s sight, though normally the great shark occupies itself with hunting the largest krakens, octopi, and other massive creatures in the Darkened Depths. He is a solitary hunter and his drive inspires the sahuagin to greater acts of savagery and barbarism.

Creatures & Denizens

The Plane of Water is home to a multitude of monsters and inhabitants. Because of the plane’s infinite nature, sea creatures are allowed to grow as large as they can, so it is not uncommon to find massive squid, octopi, and sharks swimming in the Plane of Water.

Beasts

The Plane of Water is home to a larger variety of commonly encountered Material Plane creatures than any other Inner Plane. Sharks of all sizes prowl the endless waters, and the immense megalodon is a terror to behold for any denizen. Giant octopi, including some specimens that can reach gargantuan proportions, also lurk in the darker depths. Dolphins, giant sea horses, crabs of all kinds, and great schools of quippers can all be found in the Plane of Water. All manner of aquatic beasts can be encountered, whether they’re freshwater or saltwater, and there are many that move between the Material Plane and the Plane of Water without even realizing it.

Sea worms are found in abundance on the plane as well, and they are often used as mounts by the humanoids living in the waters. Electric and elder variations are more rare, and the vast herds of sea worms move about the endless sea in a meandering, grazing lifestyle.

Elementals

The living extension of the Plane of Water are the primordial water elementals, which are found in all shapes and sizes across all layers of the plane. Most are simple creatures concerned only with survival and finding food, though exactly what they eat has been the subject of some debate among planar scholars. They can be trained, and many of the native sentient creatures use them as trained guards. Water weirds are also native to the plane and naturally attach themselves to sites all across the ocean.

The greatest and most feared elementals are the leviathans. These creatures are living walls of water that can drown ships or settlements, and some serve the Elemental Lords of Water – but just as many are simple agents of the natural flow of the Plane of Water. Merfolk tribes make offerings to the leviathans but it is unclear if these actually work to appease the great elementals.

Marids

Of all the genies of the Inner Planes, marids are the most wild and capricious. They can be cruel or kind, gentle or harsh in the blink of an eye, often rapidly shifting between powerful emotions in the course of a single conversation. They are the most arrogant of the genies, and they love to adorn themselves and their immediate surroundings with gaudy displays of wealth and status. Their natural form is piscine but most tailor this look to suit their own whims, sculpting their features like a crafter working with clay. They are greatly respected by the other intelligent denizens of the Plane of Water for their wrath and generosity are both legendary, and the Great Padisha of the Marids in her Citadel of Ten Thousand Pearls nominally rules over them all. Most secretly (some openly) believe themselves to be superior.

Humanoids

Any humanoid that can breathe underwater can be found in abundance in the Plane of Water, including sea elves, locathah, merfolk, and sahuagin. The City of Glass is one of the great metropolises of the multiverse, far more welcoming than the oppressive City of Brass and more open to lucrative trade from merchants regardless of their origin. This cosmopolitan trait attracts people from all across the planes, including the Material Plane.

Elf

Sea elf cities and colonies are found through the Plane of Water. They tend to settle in coral forests or drifting aquatic stone islands, crafting their buildings to blend in perfectly with the surrounding terrain. This natural camouflage keeps them safe from the numerous predators in the ocean, though the sea elves hold a special hatred for sahuagin. The two races have been at war since time immemorial and their connection has created a special variant called a malenti. Malenti are sahuagin that look like sea elves superficially but have shark-like teeth and a wicked disposition, and are often sent into sea elf communities as spies and undercover agents.

Genasi

Flamboyant and gregarious, water genasi inherit much of their personality from their marid parentage. Unlike other genasi in the Inner Planes, most marids welcome their offspring with mortal creatures as family members, and most marid citadels and courts have numerous water genasi nobles and counts among them. Despite this welcoming attitude, many water genasi choose to take up the life of an adventurer, seeking out the new experiences and wonders that the multiverse has to share.

Locathah

Locathah are the wandering nomads of the Plane of Water, rarely settling down in any single place, letting the currents of the great ocean carry them to their next destination. They have a strong belief in destiny and fate and honor the currents of the plane as living entities to be respected and thanked. Locathah are skilled traders with a keen eye for things that others want, and they often drift into the City of Glass to trade their goods before letting the waters carry them out again.

Merfolk

There are fewer merfolk settlements in the Plane of Water than most realize, mainly due to the incredible ocean depths. Merfolk prefer to keep their homes closer to the surface, and on the Plane of Water there are only a handful of ideal locations in the Sea of Light. Submerged islands and coral shelves provide the best places for merfolk to live, though they are found in abundance in the City of Glass. Their difficulty in walking and moving on land makes their out of water presence scarce, though the inherent magic in the City of Glass that allows swimming creatures to fly allows them to move about freely.

Sahuagin

Dangerous, territorial, and voracious, sahuagin are one of the most feared forces in the Plane of Water. They are cruel expansionists who believe the entire ocean is their birthright, and they war with everyone else. Sahuagin communities are found usually in the Darkened Depths within black caves, but they’ve been aggressively expanding into the Sea of Light as well. Their clashes with sea elves are the most noteworthy, but they are avoided by almost all other creatures as well. A small enclave have established themselves in the City of Glass but even these relatively peaceful groups are treated with suspicion and fear.

Triton

Tritons see themselves as the first and last line of defense against the evil things that dwell in the Darkened Depths. They take pride in this, but it also tends to create a sense of self-importance that grates on non-tritons. Nonetheless, they are proud of their long tradition of guardianship and watchfulness over the potent monstrous evils lurking in the darkness, and they often go on quests and missions across the multiverse to stop the spread of evil aquatic monsters such as aboleths and underwater incursions from the Far Realm.

Hazards & Phenomena

There are many natural hazards in the Plane of Water that can derail or end a traveler’s journey. Even the native creatures of the realm know to avoid some of these dangerous phenomena.

Powerful Current

The waters of the Sea of Light and the Darkened Depths are pushed and pulled by random, chaotic forces, creating currents that act like roads. Canny planar natives learn to detect these currents and use them to get to one place or another more quickly (or to avoid them altogether if they happen to be flowing in an undesired location).

Slime Water

Sometimes the never-ending tide of Sea of Worlds pulls large swaths of the Swamp of Oblivion away, sucking them into the sea. There, they are sometimes picked up by currents and pulled further into the sea’s depths, creating large pockets of dangerous slime water. The mud from the Swamp of Oblivion mixed with certain aspects of the Sea of Worlds creates a corrosive mixture that harms creatures caught in its path.

Red Tides

Red tides are dangerous patches of fungi and spores that drift through the Plane of Water, causing panic and chaos where the current takes it. Native creatures know to avoid red tides with all possible haste as the consequences of being inside of one can be deadly. As rare as they are, a red tide can cover a substantial area.

Sites & Treasures

To the planar traveler, the Plane of Water holds a multitude of wondrous sites, dangerous lairs, and mysterious treasures to seek out, explore, and possibly plunder. From the magnificent Citadel of Ten Thousand Pearls and the seat of the great padishah of the marids to the unplumbed depths of the Trench of Death, opportunities for adventure are as boundless as the sea in the Plane of Water.

Black Coral Citadel of Olhydra

In stark contrast to the marid’s Citadel of Ten Thousand Pearls, Olhydra keeps a lair in the Darkened Depths known as the Black Coral Citadel. This imposing structure is a tall, twisted spire made of pure black coral, a rare form of coral in the Plane of Water that holds great evil. Most of the interior of the Black Coral Citadel is reserved for prison cells – the elemental minions of Olhydra enjoy torturing the multitude of aquatic elves, locathah, and merfolk locked away in the dark citadel.

The top of the citadel is reserved for Olhydra’s royal throne room where she plans her conquest of the Plane of Water and all the seas of the Material Plane. She and her followers work to drown all the worlds in a torrent of black water to wash away all traces of life, leaving her to claim ownership of the abandoned lands. A handful of favored cultists across the Material Planes have been allowed to visit the Black Coral Citadel, and in each case they were gifted with some portion of Olhydra’s watery power. A handful have stayed in the Plane of Water to serve the Princess of Evil Water Elemental Creatures and act as her proxy or spy on the plane. The Azure Council of the City of Glass has worked long to make sure the destructive followers of Olhydra do not succeed in their various plots to destroy the crystalline dome that gives the city its name.

In the Black Coral Citadel, Olhydra keeps an unusual pool of silver liquid. Through it, she can view nearly any ocean or sea on the Material Plane, and she uses it to keep tabs on her servants and underlings. The pool can act as a portal, but doing so requires a portion of Olhydra’s mighty elemental power that is forever sacrificed, so she usually refrains from using it.

Citadel of Ten Thousand Pearls

The home of the great padishah of the marid is the fabulous Citadel of Ten Thousand Pearls. Here, the pride and vanity of the marid is put on full display, with hundreds of beautifully carved air fountains, multicolored curtains of rare kelp, and splendidly appointed pearl-studded housing domes filling the aquatic halls. In the center towers a spike of gilded coral wherein rests the great padishah herself and her royal court. Throughout the citadel, glowing orbs of various sizes and hues illuminate the darkness, and from a distance, they appear as pearls in the sea, thus giving the magnificent palace its name.

Normally, the Citadel of Ten Thousand Pearls is occupied by about two hundred marid genies and one thousand servants. Even for marid, the ones in the citadel are haughty and pompous, and every action must be announced and honored by someone in a higher station. While visitors are welcome in the citadel, they must be polite and operate within the bounds of marid etiquette. Offending a marid within the Citadel of Ten Thousand Pearls is a capital offense, and a marid can take offense at anything given the right mood and circumstance.

The great padishah’s treasure room, however, is said to house the most splendid collection of valuable and rare pearls ever to be found in the Plane of Water, along with the prized possessions of dozens of defeated foes and conquered heroes. While the marid do not put much stock in large-scale military offenses, duels are common, and it is customary for the winner to take something valuable from the loser. This can be their life, but most often it’s a valued possession that the marid wanted in the first place.

City of Glass

Without a doubt, the greatest metropolis on the Plane of Water is the City of Glass. It is by far the most populated city on the plane, with roughly 30,000 residents and visitors at any given time. The city takes its name from the titanic dome of translucent crystal that hangs over the interior, all resting on a great disc of eternal ice. This dome holds trapped air, and by a natural process of the eternal ice disc the air is constantly refreshed and recycled. Buildings constructed of ice, waterblocks (a kind of melted ice cube that retains its shape), fortified kelp, and coral sprawl about beneath the dome, with many being completed filled with water to accommodate occupants.

The City of Glass was constructed originally by the marid long ago, but they quickly abandoned it after the project was complete. But even then, the nature of the city drew many to it, as the marid worked with planar architects to make sure the City of Glass could be accessed from anywhere in the multiverse. Dozens upon dozens of permanent portals were constructed which the marid held control over, and when they left they did not leave the portals ungoverned. The great padishah of the marid at the time decreed that a group of representatives from the city would rule with control over the many portals. Thus the Azure Council was born.

Since then, the Azure Council has guided the City of Glass to become a merchant paradise where all manner of goods and services could be bought and sold. The city’s position as a neutral ground, free of the hostilities of the outside seas and worlds, is maintained by a peacekeeping force known as the Knights of Glass. Like the council itself, the Knights of Glass are made up of many representatives of the city’s inhabitants, and the high commander takes orders from the speaker of the Azure Council. The delicate balance of peace has been broken several times in the past, but the knights have always managed to restore order with minimal issues.

Over the years, the Azure Council has enacted many laws to govern trade and commerce in the city, and they do that by controlling what passes through the many planar gates. Merchants delivering goods have them inspected thoroughly by the Knights of Glass and the entire system has become a bloated bureaucracy – but one that works, albeit slowly. Although nearly any good or service can be purchased in the City of Glass, merchants that wish to avoid the scrutiny of the knights and the council have created a “black” market for those who know where to go. This illegal marketplace operates in the Freezer, the poorest and least patrolled area of the City of Glass that exists in the disc of eternal ice itself.

Dozens of marketplaces sprawl about the City of Glass, with many devoted to one type of good or another. The Steel Market buys and sells weapons and armor, the Seabed Market trades in the natural resources of the Plane of Water, the Chain Market deals with the selling of slaves, and many others. While nearly any good or service can be bought in the city, the Azure Council long ago decreed that the buying and selling of souls was strictly prohibited. Possessing a soul in a vessel was not a crime, but the Knights of Glass keep a watchful eye on anyone detected as possessing them.

The markets are scattered about the four districts of the city – the Royal District, containing the richest and most well-appointed manors and villas, including the Glittering Tower of the Azure Council; the Crystal District, the largest of the city’s regions, holding the major trade companies and guild houses that keep coins coming in and out; the Flow District, a hub for travelers, transients, and nonmercantile guilds in the city; and the Tide District, home to the most warehouses. Unofficially, the Freezer sits in the disc of eternal ice below the city’s streets, though the Azure Council does not recognize it as an official city district.

Open hostilities are discouraged by the presence of the Knights of Glass, but in any city of this size, crime and murder become an issue. Gang warfare spilling out of the Freezer and mercenary companies competing for business in the Flow District keep the knights busy enough with maintaining order. Travelers are advised to keep to themselves and steer clear of any trouble that might involve the Knights of Glass – they have a reputation as ruthless enforces of the Azure Council’s will.

Fathomless Caves

The Darkened Depths hold any number of lightless, dangerous sites, and one of the most notorious are the Fathomless Caves. It is widely assumed that the Plane of Water has no bottom, but the further down one travels the more rocks and earth debris are encountered, and a great shelf of black rock holds the series of tunnels that make up the Fathomless Caves. Aquatic dragons, krakens, aboleths, elder sea worms, morkoth, and more lurk in the shadowed darkness of these caves. Rumors persist of certain caverns holding air, though it is agreed that most of the Fathomless Caves are flooded completely.

Several portals to the Plane of Earth can be found in the Fathomless Caves leading to flooded areas of that neighboring Inner Plane. Earth elementals, mud mephits, and other border elemental creatures wander the caves as well, and the dao genies regularly send teams of slaves through to steal away pearls and other treasures of the Plane of Water. Most slave teams do not return alive.

The Freezer

Inside the great disc of eternal ice that the City of Glass rests upon squats a region known as the Freezer. The Freezer is an open secret among the city’s residents, and it contains a myriad of frosty tunnels dug into the ice over the course of hundreds of years by malcontents, gangs, and people who didn’t want to live under the thumb of the Azure Council. The region spread quietly until it became too big to ignore, though the Azure Council still does its best to ignore it. Many attempts have been made to shut down the Freezer, including collapsing the entire sheet of ice and crushing all within it, but the ancient marid magic has kept most options out of reach.

There are several secret portals from other worlds and city’s that lead directly into the Freezer and these portals exist outside of the City of Glass network that the Azure Council maintains. One such portal is known to exist in the City of Brass on the Plane of Fire, though agents of the council have been trying to shut them down for countless years. In the Freezer, merchants sell their ways away from the prying eyes of the council and the knights, and though the prices might be higher, many buyers are willing to pay the extra for the discretion. The main commodity that can be found in the Freezer that is strictly unavailable in the markets of the above city are souls. Yugoloth merchants, bargaining devils, and unscrupulous demons seek out specialized soul traders in the Freezer.

Graveyard of Sails

Floating in the Sea of Light is a mass graveyard of sunken ships and broken debris. The entire mass is held together by a swirling vortex leading to the Plane of Air at its center, and this whirl is what pulls in the wreckages like a magnet. Dozens upon dozens of wooden ships have sunk and collected in this Graveyard of Sails, and because of the water’s nature the wood does not break down naturally. Undead pirates, fierce elementals, and countless scavengers prowl the great wrecks, but for the brave traveler a wealth of treasure and information can be plundered.

Great Coral Forest

In the Sea of Light, the sprawling Great Coral Forest stretches out for hundreds of miles. Some property of the coral forest keeps it from rising or sinking too far from its position, which is only several miles below the surface of the Sea of Worlds. The entire mass of brightly colored coral rests underwater where it provides food and shelter for countless native creatures. Schools of fish swim in and out of the natural coral “caves” along with predators, such as sharks, eels, and numerous elementals. Several outposts rest on or in the forest, including a sahuagin settlement and an aquatic elf village.

Isle of Dread

The legend of the Isle of Dread has been spread across the seas of the Material Plane for generations. Most sailors believe it to be an island somewhere on a distant ocean, but the truth is that it exists on the Sea of Worlds on the Plane of Water. Powerful storms surround the Isle of Dread, and these storms become so violent that they create planar vortexes to the Material Plane on a regular basis. These planar vortexes exist only during similarly violent storms on the Material Plane, and they are big enough to pull through a sailing vessel. Ships that pass through find themselves on a planar ocean looking upon an island of danger and death.

A steamy jungle fills most of the Isle of Dread along with a rough chain of mountains. Great monsters inhabit the island – dinosaurs and their like dominate the food chain at every level. Several tribes of savage humanoids eke out an existence as well, and the center of the island holds a large mysterious lake. Travelers that make it ashore find that they must fight to survive but that a greater secret sits on that central lake. There are some captains that have found the Isle of Dread and returned back home to tell their tale, passing through another vortex by some stroke of luck or providence, but most that find it are never heard from again.

The Pearl of Blood

Among the sahuagin, few stories invoke such reverence and awe as the ones that involve the Pearl of Blood. This massive pearl is blood-red in color and is said to hold the wisdom of the most powerful sahuagin priestesses that have died in the service of Sekolah the Joyful Hunter. Legends about it claim that it can summon a great tornado of sharks in the ocean to devastate opponents, or that it can serve as a beacon for all megalodons in a ten-mile radius. The possessor of the Pearl of Blood is said to be able to control the megalodons, commanding a near-invincible army of titanic sharks. The relic itself was formed by a drop of Sekolah’s blood that crystallized and formed a perfect sphere, if the stories are to be believed.

But these are all legends. The truth likely is somewhat different, but the item has been lost for generations. Nobody knows the current location of the Pearl of Blood, though sahuagin priestesses are always on the hunt for signs and portents to its eventual return. Did the powerful relic get swept up in a storm and pushed to one of the Material Planes? Does it sit somewhere in the Great Coral Forest? Perhaps the marid found it and are keeping it locked away in a storeroom somewhere in the Citadel of Ten Thousand Pearls. Or perhaps Thrym, god of frost giants, found it and it sits now in his secret vault in the Sea of Ice. Wherever it is, if the Pearl of Blood were to return to sahuagin hands it would herald a sweeping invasion of much of the Plane of Water.

Raftland

Many ships have been pulled into the Plane of Water, and most of the time they do not find their way back. Most are boarded by sahuagin or other vicious planar raider or sunk by one of the many storms that rock the Sea of Worlds, but some manage to survive on the ruins of their boats. Over the years, these survivors that pulled together other flotsam and wooden debris, and they pulled these together to form a massive floating “island” of broken ship parts known as Raftland.

Raftland travels with the tide and its size has helped it survive the storms that continually appear in the volatile skies overhead. Through it all, sailors and fishers of all races have managed to survive and even thrive in Raftland. They fish for food and the lack of salt in portions of the Sea of Worlds creates plenty of drinking water. They’ve been floating long enough on the Sea of Worlds that they’ve developed into a small kingdom. King Atwood the Gray Beard is the latest in the line of succession to rule the Independent Kingdom of Raftland, and by all accounts he is a murderous thief and a liar. Unfortunately, most of the residents of Raftland are bloodthirsty pirates, so infighting and bickering is common. But when the storms roll in, they put aside their differences and work together to keep their own slice of freedom from breaking apart and floating away.

Reef of Nightmares

The most populated city of the sahuagin in the Plane of Water is a dangerous region known as the Reef of Nightmares. It sits in the Sea of Light close to the surface, where the sahuagin raid ships pulled through portals for food and treasure, and it stretches out for several miles. Hundreds of sharks prowl the waters, and more than a few megalodons are known to swim between the broken coral pieces of the reef in search of food and prey. Several sahuagin outposts rest on the Reef of Nightmares, each competing with one another for total dominance and the favor of Sekolah the Joyful Hunter.

Trench of Death

Without a doubt, the deepest portion of the Plane of Water is a great crevasse in a massive shelf of rock known as the Trench of Death. Deep, deep in the Darkened Depths, this pitch-black hole is cold and lightless (the entire region function as an ice pocket). What monstrous entity dwells in this trench? The marid avoid the region above all others, and certain legends among them speak of a creature that existed before time. This creature, a titan of the highest and oldest order, created the Plane of Water by ripping a hole in the fabric of the world, spilling the contents of another realm entirely and filling up this one. Does this legend hold any truth? And if it does, what does it have to do with the Trench of Death?

The Trench of Death does hold some inhabitants, but they dwell in the caves and niches along the slope leading down the endless abyss of darkness below. Many eyes of the deep keep lairs along the trench’s walls, along with morkoth and a handful of degenerate krakens. Even these great monsters refuse to swim into the darkness of the trench mouth itself, where a strong current can suddenly pull swimmers down into is gulf of endless night.

Vault of Thrym

One of the massive icebergs floating in the Sea of Ice is not like the others. This is the Vault of Thrym, created by the god of frost giants to house some of his most secret and powerful possessions. Rumors say that the only way to access the vault is to possess a special key also crafted by Thrym, though few know any details on this key. What wondrous treasure rests in the Vault of Thrym? The guardians of the iceberg vault are said to be among the deadliest creatures from the Frostfell, and even inside the halls and passages hold traps, dangers, and creatures beyond death itself. Many travelers have died scouring the Sea of Ice for this lost storehouse.