A magical construct designed to provide information on all aspects of the Planescape D&D multiverse
Outlands
Planes
Outlands
Being the Plane Balanced at the Centre of It All
Planes

Outlands

[ Outlands ] [ Spirelands | Ringlands | Gate-Towns | Hinterlands | Splinterlands | Underlands ]

The Outlands

Also known as — (by Planewalkers) The Land; (by Primes) Concordant Opposition

Welcome to the Outlands! It’s a good plane to begin a tour, cutter, for it’s located bang at the centre of the Outer Planes—a fact which, for once, nobody disputes. The Outlands border all the other planes of the Great Ring, touches the Astral and has Sigil, the City of Doors floating above its heart.

Today’s Date on the Outlands is:

Please see the Outlands Calendar for more information…

A map of the core Outlands [click to enlarge]

More is known about the Outlands than many other planes put together, but there are also a great many mysteries to be encountered here. Not least is the Spire itself, an infinitely tall tapering pillar of dark rock that rises from the flat plains of the Outlands both suddenly and with eyewatering proportions.

The Outlands themselves can be divided into three portions: The Spire, the Gate Towns, and the Hinterlands. The first of these applies to the vast area, called “the Disc” by some locals, and the Spirelands by others, radiating out from the Spire. It’s here that staunchly neutral communities make their kips, bloods who choose not to choose radical beliefs dwell, and the rilmani, that mysterious grey race of the Outlands, hold sway. It’s also the largest magic-dead area in the Multiverse, for the Spire apparently draws all magic into itself. The closer you are to the Spire, the more the arcane weave is affected. This effect weakens as you walk with your back to the Spire towards the second part of the plane. Near the Spire, even the powers lose the ability to use magic, which means it’s a good place for them to meet and parlay but it’s a rare god who will put themselves in this position.

Further out from the Spirelands, a planewalker will come to the Ringlands. Here you’ll find a cluster of divine lands where many powers have combined their efforts to create giant shared realms. Tir na Og is the home of the Celtic Tuatha de Dannan, the Dwarven Mountain of three of the Morndinsamman, and the Marketplace Eternal of the alliance of mercantile powers.

Clinging to the brink of the Outlands are the Gate Towns, burgs that perch on the precipice of belief between neutrality and some other philosophy. There’s one for each of the Outer Planes, (that’s sixteen in all, berk), and all have permanent gates to their respective planes within their walls. The area surrounding the ring of gate towns is generally called the Brinklands.

Beyond the ring of gate towns lie the untold mysteries of the Hinterlands. Nobody really knows for sure what they contain, for they have a nasty habit of never being the same twice. Thing is, it’s not the churning chaos of Limbo, or the ever-moving revolving discs of Mechanus; the landscape appears perfectly normal. Well—normal for the planes, that is. You could walk for years and never see the same thing twice, they say. But turn around, and within an hour or two you’re right back where you started again. Travellers have told tales of waking in a different place to where they fell asleep, or of cities there that change shape and location hourly. But they also tell of lost civilisations, uncountable riches, and weird creatures called the Strangers who have taken the concept of balance to extremes. Maybe that’s why people go out there—and why they get lost there…

The Flavours of the Outlands

  • The Outlandish Lands — Being an exploration of what makes the Outlands unique and, well, outlandish‡
  • Bestiary of the Outlands — In which we meet the creatures that lurk, flutter and wander the Outlands
  • Calendar of the Outlands — In which we discover an account of the months and seasons of the Plane of Balance, helpful to both local and planewalker alike.‡
  • Magic and the Spire — Being a map of the magical flux distortion created by the Spire
  • Outlandish Folk — Being a balanced look at the cutters who call the Outlands their home plane‡
  • Tales of the Outlands — In which we hear the stories of travellers who’ve been here first, who’ve perhaps seen it all before, or never want to see it again‡
  • Terrain of the Outlands — Being a journey through the surreal terrain of the Outlands, where opposites collide‡
  • Talk Like an Outlander — Being a glossary of the lingo that is peculiar to the Outlands‡

The Gate Towns of the Brinklands

Itharin, gate town to the Astral
  • The Great Road
  • The Gate Ring
  • Automata (gate town to Mechanus)
  • Bedlam (gate town to Pandemonium)
  • Curst (gate town to Carceri)
  • Ecstasy (gate town to Elysium)
  • Excelsior (gate town to Mount Celestia)
  • Faunel (gate town to the Beastlands)
  • Fortitude (gate town to Arcadia)
  • Glorium (gate town to Ysgard)
  • Hopeless (gate town to the Gray Waste)
  • Itharin (wandering gate town to the Astral)‡
  • Plague-Mort (gate town to the Abyss)
  • Ribcage (gate town to Baator)
  • Rigus (gate town to Acheron)
  • Sylvania (gate town to Arborea)
  • Torch (gate town to Gehenna)
  • Tradegate (gate town to Bytopia)
  • Xaos (gate town to Limbo)

Sites of the Ringlands

Ceras

Planar Pathways Touching the Outlands

In which we learn about the many planar pathways which touch the Outlands.

The Rilmani

In which we learn about the staunchly neutral race of monitors who make their home at the centre of the Great Ring.

The Divine Alliances

Tir na Og

In which we discuss the Power Groups who are Alike in Mind, Body or Spirit

Powers of the Outlands

In which we discuss the myriad of Powers who lay claim to their own little patches of land, their goals and aims, and what not to say if we want to stay in their Good Books rather than the Dead Book.

  • Aengus (Celtic power of poetry and love)‡
  • Áine (Celtic power of summer and wealth)‡
  • Airmed (Celtic power of herbalism)‡
  • Andraste (Celtic power of victory)‡
  • Annam (leader of the Ordning [giant] Pantheon)
  • Apshai (Eqygptian power of insects)‡
  • Bes (Egyptian power of luck)‡
  • Boccob (Greyhawk power of magic)
  • Brandobaris (Halfling power of adventure)
  • Cailleach (Celtic power of winter and winds)‡
  • Ceridwen (Celtic power of inspiration)‡
  • Cernunnos (Celtic power of beats, wild places and the hunt)
  • Chronepsis (Draconic power of time)
  • Cú Chulainn (Celtic power of war, challenges)‡
  • the Daghda (leader of the Celtic pantheon, power of weather and crops)
  • Dalt (Suloise power of doors)
  • Deep One (Grippli power of that which is beyond comprehension)
  • Diancastra (Ordning power of trickery)
  • Dian Cécht (Celtic power of medicine and healing)
  • Dugmaren Brightmantle (dwarven power of innovation)
  • Dumathoin (Dwarven power of mining)
  • Dunatis (Celtic power of mountains and peaks)
  • Epona (Celtic power of horses and riding)‡
  • Erik (Cerilian power of forests)
  • Fharlanghn (Oerdian power of travellers)
  • Geshtai (Oerdian power of oases)
  • Gilean (Krynnish power of knowledge)
  • Goibhniu (Celtic power of smiths and healing)
  • Gond (Faerûnian power of craft)
  • Gzemnid (Beholder power of deception)
  • Hapi (Egyptian power of floodplains)‡
  • Ilsensine (Patron of illithids)
  • Lugh (Celtic power of arts, travel, and commerce)
  • Manannan mac Lir (Celtic power of oceans and sea creatures)
  • The Monkey Scribes (Maya powers of scribes and artisans; wandering)†
  • The Morrigan (Celtic power of battle)
  • Mouqol (Oerdian power of trade)
  • Nehalennia (Celtic power of seafarers)‡
  • the Norns (Norse powers of destiny)
  • Nuada (Celtic power of war and warriors)
  • Obad-Hai (Flan power of nature)
  • Oghma (Celtic power of speech and writing)
  • Perun (Slavic power of thunder, leader of the pantheon)‡
  • Ramman (Babylonian power of storms)
  • Rosmerta (Celtic power of wealth and abundance)‡
  • Ruornil (Cerilian power of the moon)
  • Semuanya (Lizardfolk power of survival)
  • Sera (Cerilian power of wealth)
  • Sheela Peryroyl (Halfling power of nature)
  • Shekinester (Patron of the nagas)
  • Shinare (Krynnish power of wealth)
  • Skoraeus Stonebones (Ordning power of stone)
  • Silvanus (Celtic power of nature, forests and druids)
  • Svantovit (Slavic power of divination and war)‡
  • Thoth (Egyptian power of knowledge)
  • Tirag Thunderhooves (Bariaur power of fellowship)‡
  • Tvashtri (Vedic power of invention)
  • Ubtao (Chultan power of dinosaurs)
  • Ulaa (Oerdian power of gemstones)
  • Untamo (Finnish power of dreams)
  • Vasthu (Orc power of scouting)‡
  • Waukeen (Faerûnian power of wealth)
  • Vergadain (Dwarven power of luck)
  • Xan Yae (Oerdian power of stealth)
  • Zagyg (Oerdian power of eccentricity)
  • Zilchus (Oerdian power of money)

Movers and Shakers

In which we learn of the folk and creatures that inhabit the plane, and how best to approach — or avoid — them.

Source: Jon Winter-Holt, mimir.net. Outlands Calendar javascript by D’Arcey Carroll and Brian Mooney. Canonwatch: Entries are from D&D canon unless otherwise marked, although when the canon is sparse I’ve got creative with the details; † adapted from a 3rd party publication; ‡ homebrew.

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