Gzemnid’s Realm
The Obscured Haven
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, deliberately see, ’cause giving something a name, well, that’s half the way to bindin’ it, ain’t it? Now Gzemnid’s a crafty one, a deity of aberrations 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 power’s no different. But word is that his followers, those rarified few who worship the Gas Giant, refer to his hideaway simply as The Obscured Haven. But mind ye, that 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.
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.
Gzemnid’s realm is a place not just hidden by mists and gases, but one fundamentally unbound by the norms of reality. It’s a swirling mess of illusions, distortions, and never-ending mazes—where nothing is as it appears. Imagine stepping into a cursed valley 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 danger. The air’s supernaturally heavy here, filled with a swirling mix of gases that play tricks on your eyes, creating illusions that can be wondrous or terrifying, or even worse, both at once. It’s a landscape of ever-changing clouds, sometimes thin and wispy, teasing ya with a glimpse of what might be real, and other times dense and obscuring, hiding all truth from view. Landscapes form and dissolve in the blink of an eye, castles built from clouds rise and collapse, and forests of vapour grow and retract with every breath you take. Rumour has it, the atmosphere itself is alive, breathin’ and shiftin’ with a mind of its own, guided by the whims of Gzemnid.
Then the realm takes a turn for the chthonic and dives underground—this part is called the Tyrant’s Spiral. It’s a sprawling mess of labyrinthine tunnels and passages that wind through the earth like drunken worms. The passageways sprout fungal growths which bristle with eyestalks and maws. Chant is that Gzemnid is able to see everything that happens down here. And better believe he likes to get involved. He watches through the eyes and whispers through the mouths, mocking intruders, spinning webs of deceit and proclaiming his own supremacy. Even worse, he can manifest enormous eyes in the cavernous ceilings, using magical rays to attack those he deems unworthy of travelling in his realm.
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 so close 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 into the Spiral 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 trueseeing, and even then, be ready to question everything ya see. Gzemnid’s Realm is a wild, untamable place, a reflection of the power himself—elusive, enigmatic, and wholly unpredictable.
Sources: Jon Winter-Holt. Gzemnid’s realm is barely mentioned in the official canon, so details here are largely homebrew. The Tyrant’s Spiral is a setting for one chapter of the 5e adventure Turn of Fortune’s Wheel.
