Hidden Vale
Realm of Gilean
Location: Outlands / Ringlands
The Hidden Vale, the domain of Gilean in the Outlands—a place as enigmatic as the power himself. Picture this: A realm that’s both everywhere and nowhere, nestled betwixt the Dome of Creation and The Abyss. It’s like riddle tied up with mystery, floating in the cosmic soup of the multiverse, and somehow it’s also here in the Outlands.
Now, the Hidden Vale, it’s a special place, the home of the gods of Balance from Krynn’s Cosmology. Think of it as a sort of cosmic weighing station, keeping the scales of balance tipped just right. And surrounding this elusive vale is the forest of Zhan, a heavenly sylvan realm where the elves deemed worthy find their eternal rest. It’s a place of beauty and tranquility, a stark contrast to the wild and woolly nature of the Outlands.
But here’s the rub: the Hidden Vale ain’t just a pretty valley. It also contains the beating elemental hearts, pumping out the raw stuff of creation like a great cosmic wellspring, feeding the Gray and all the Inner Planes connected to Krynn.
The high-up of this joint is Gilean himself. He’s the watchman, the keeper of the scales, making sure everything’s ticking along as it should. Mortals looking to pop in for a visit? Good luck with that. The only way in is through the Gate of Souls or if one of the gods gives you the nod. And believe you me, that ain’t a common occurrence.
The Hidden Vale’s chock-full of critters too – formians, elementals, inevitables, slaadi, maruts, kolyaruts, zelekhuts, you name it. It’s a regular menagerie of some of the multiverse’s most curious beasts. And here, somehow, they all serve the balance, no matter their original natures. Perhaps Gilean has something on them; he’s using their true names as collateral, perhaps?
And so the Hidden Vale reaches out, somehow touching both the Deep Ethereal and the Astral. It’s like Gilean’s got his fingers in every pie, making sure the balance is maintained, not just in his own backyard, but across the whole of the planes. And whole doing it, he’s stretching all the laws of the planes to breaking point. This is a place of cosmic importance for the Prime Material world of Krynn, a nexus of power where the paths of the gods and the flows of the elements converge.
Canonical Source: On Hallowed Ground [2e] p165,180 (brief mention)
Source: Jon Winter-Holt