Gzemnid’s Realm
Location: Outlands / Ringlands
Why such an unimaginative name? Well, cutter, Gzemnid prefers to keep his domicile a bit of a mystery, wrapped up in fog and secrets. If y’push an old-timer like me for an answer, I’d say the realm ain’t got a proper name, see, ’cause giving something a name, well, that’s half the chant to bindin’ it, ain’t it?
Gzemnid’s a crafty one, a deity that lives and breathes deception. Naming his realm? Nah, that’d be like paintin’ a target on his back, a beacon in the mists for all the bashers and powers lookin’ to do him in. It’s all about staying one step ahead, and this beholder deity’s no different. But word is that his followers, those rare few who worship the Gas Giant, refer to his hideaway simply as “The Obscured Haven”. A place not just hidden by mists and gases, but fundamentally unbound by the norms of reality, a place of illusions, distortions, and never-ending mazes, where nothing is as it appears.
But mind ye, the name’s more of a descriptor than anything official. A moniker used in hushed whispers, with a fearful glance over the shoulder. It’s like calling a secret meeting spot “the hidden alcove” or “the shadowed nook.” It’s less of a proper name and more of a way for his followers to reference that enigmatic place without attracting unwanted attention, without really spilling the dark of where or what it truly is.
So I’ve never been there myself — do I look like an addle-cove to you? — that was a rhetorical question by the way. I’ve heard stories though, and here’s what I’ve mangled to piece together. But you’ve gotta understand, describing the realm of a deity of gases, fog, and deception is like tryin’ to catch smoke with your bare hands. But you asked, so let’s venture into the thick of it.
Imagine stepping into a realm where the ground beneath your feet is ever-changing — one moment you might be treading on solid ground, and the next, you’re wading through a bog thick with mist and unseen dangers. The air’s heavy here, filled with a swirling mix of gases that play tricks on your eyes, creating illusions that can be both wondrous and terrifying. It’s a landscape of ever-changing clouds, sometimes thin and wispy, allowin’ ya a glimpse of what might be real, and other times dense and obscuring, hiding all truth from view.
Rumor has it, the atmosphere is alive, breathin’ and shiftin’ with a mind of its own, guided by the whims of Gzemnid. Cutter, it’s a place where reality is constantly being rewritten, a canvas that’s never finished, always morphin’ into something new. You’d see landscapes forming and dissolving in the blink of an eye, castles built from clouds rising and collapsing, and forests of vapour growing and retracting with every breath you take. Then the realm takes a turn for the chthonic and dives underground, with labyrinthine tunnels and passages that wind through the earth like drunken worms. Watch out for the deadly gasses that are heavier than air, and pool in the deep caverns. They’ll snuff out your torch and then shortly afterwards, your life. Make sure you use a natural flame torch and not a magical light and you’ll have a few moment’s notice. And then you only have to content with the exploding gasses that are triggered by natural flames and not magical light. Oh, what’s a planewalker to do? Apart from avoid the realm of course.
Another good reason to avoid Gzemnid’s realm is the rumour that the deadly caverns connect up to Ilsensine’s Caverns of Thought. Quite why these two awful powers, so unalike in terms of philosophy—apart from being unfathomable otherworldly evils—are huddled together on the Outlands is dark.
Now, there’s word that amidst this chaos, there’s a sort of order, if ye could believe it, places where the fog lifts and reveals havens of stability, pockets of reality amidst the illusion. But don’t get too comfortable, because in Gzemnid’s domain, even the safe havens are laced with deceit, areas designed to lure you into a false sense of security before the ground disappears beneath ya, sending ya tumbling into a new hallucination. It’s said that venturing too deep can drive a body mad, as they lose all sense of what’s real, trapped in a never-ending cycle of illusion and disillusion.
So, if you’re plannin’ on payin’ a visit, you’d best go prepared. Arm yourself with spells of true seeing, and even then, be ready to question everything ya see, because Gzemnid’s Realm is a wild, untamable place, a reflection of the deity himself — elusive, enigmatic, and wholly unpredictable.
Sources: Jon Winter-Holt, mimir.net
