Field of the Planes
Location: Sigil / Market Ward / Great Bazaar
The basher who runs this stall—who’s also confusingly called Field-of-the-Planes (loxadon merchant [he/him] / Merkhants / N) is a loxadon who’s trying a bit too hard to become a regular of the Great Bazaar market scene. You can find him here fairly regularly, as well as at markets in Tradegate, the Marketplace Eternal, Dis and the City of Brass. Apparently it’s the toughest in Sigil as there’s so much competition for planar cuisine. On any Prime world—sure—his goods would delight the wealthiest of bashers. But here in the Cage, you got to try a bit harder than ‘Shift-Spice’ to nab our attention.
Here’s a selection of the delights Field of the Planes had for sale when I stopped by today.
Arborean Fire seeds: Brightly coloured (ranging from pale yellow to deep red) seeds that resemble small jewel-like beetles. They burst into a harmless flame when combined with liquid; and have an enticing smoky, yet floral spice – known to pair very well with Firewine or whisky.
Gar-Bar Root: A root from a tree that is native to a lush humid forest on one of the many worlds of the Prime Material. Processed by twisting and mashing the root until its fibrous structure breaks down, leaving a stiff rubbery sap. It tastes sweet and irony – like molasses, and its flavour can be enhanced easily with other ingredients (think fantasy bubble-gum).
Crimson Lotus Petals: The petals from the Crimson Lotus flower; a plant that grows exclusively on battle-field swamps, where the blood of those who fought there lies thick in the mud. The petals can be dried and used for various curative alchemical procedures, but when consumed on their own can send you into a mild trance (think whatever the pain-subduing effect of a barbarian rage might be). The petals themselves have an acidic, rusty tang
Elysian Pears: Appear to be simple pears, but they are perfect. Think the most pear-like pear that could ever pear. When you taste it, it tastes exactly like a pear. It’s simple, but it’s precisely what it should taste like. Not too sweet, just the right texture, just the right juiciness – nothing more.
Shift-spice: A spice cultivated by the Githzerai on the plane of Limbo. Finding the balance between the ordered and methodical nature of agriculture and the spontaneous, protean nature of imagination is no mean feat; but the Githzerai are masters at balance. Ingenious farmers in Limbo found a way to create crops that could retain a little of their chaos even when shipped to other planes. The flavour of shift-spice is limited only by the consumer’s imagination.
Bytopian Shepherd’s Bread: Usually baked into neat, rectangular loaves, this delightful loaf is a perfect treat on a well earned break from honest labour. Sweet, surprisingly light in texture, packed with nutritious nuts, seeds and dried fruits and -importantly- can be packed away and easily transported for those days on the job.
“He carves you off two thick slices of spiced nut-bread. They are very aromatic, smelling of carrots and almond. It tastes much as you had expected, but it is light and slightly sweet, leaving you hungry for more of the stuff.“
Sea Plums: A favourite amongst pirates, sailors and of course the various marid and merfolk. These ‘plums’ are actually glands of a species of floating seaweed. The glands contain a fibrous gel, giving the plant buoyancy and allowing it to float on the surface of the water, where it can get the light and nutrtients it needs. The gland’s flavour is tart and citrusy with just the barest tinge of saltiness (think a really gooood margarita).
“He hands you a small plum of an odd, blue-green colour. “Don’t worry, they’re pitless. Eat the whole of it.” The plum’s rind is slightly bitter and extremely sour – enough to make one grimace and shudder—but the fruit’s meat is remarkably sweet. Eaten together, they complement each other well.“
Sources:
- Written by RevocerGM, creator of the podcast Planescape: Torment the Unofficial Audio Series — Goodpods | Apple Podcasts
- Arborean Fireseed https://rilmani.org/timaresh/Arborean_fireseed
- Crimson Lotus Petals — https://www.ginx.tv/en/conan-exiles/crimson-lotus