Mrityulok (3.5e Location)



=Mrityulok=

Known as the Plane of Infinite Swords, the World of Death, the Battlegrounds, and many other names, Mrityulok is a vast multilayered plane littered with artifacts of war lost within the folds of the other traditional planes. Not only do physical artifacts end up here, but mental artifacts as well. The memories of warfare, the knowledge of battle, and the widespread use of martial arts affects and shapes this plane. Among the many layers here exist several which seem somehow related to the martial maneuvers of initiator disciplines. Did the use of the disciplines shape these planes, or did the planes inspire the disciplines? The answer may never be known.

Each layer of Mrityulok has its own unique environment. No theme unifies the many layers, ranging from vast burning deserts, planes of steel and stone, to shadowed lands in eternal twilight. The only unifying theme is that they have all once been the site of great battles between cosmic forces.

Planar Traits
Mrityulok is composed of countless layers figuratively stacked on top of each other, much like the Abyss. Layers can be small, layers can be large, but one major feature defines them all. A massive cosmic sword blade known as Durandel cuts through each layer, its blade seeming to stretch out infinitely in each direction and eventually vanishing into the vague mists which surround the borders of each layer. It would be unidentifiable as a blade if not for the hilt end existing on the agreed upon "top" layer, the Battlegrounds. Here the sword ends, a weapon so massive, only ancient primordial gods could have wielded it. The other business end of the blade has never been found.

It is said the original layer was the site of the very first battle, before good and evil, before the gods as we knew them took form, way back when law and chaos first clashed. The concept of battle took the form of a sword and pierced through the ground, forming the land and its layers many. While once home to armies of various sorts, Mrityulok is fairly abandoned now in this time of relative peace. However when opposing forces of pure good and pure evil, or pure law and pure chaos attack and do not directly invade the planes of others, they come here to settle their differences.

Physical Traits

 * Gravity: Variable. Most layers have normal gravity.


 * Time: Variable. Most layers have normal time.


 * Size: Variable. Most layers are finite or self-contained shapes.


 * Morphic: Variable. Most layers are alterable morphic, like the material plane.

Elemental, Energy, Alignment and Magic Traits

 * Elemental Dominance: Variable. Most layers have no elemental dominance.


 * Energy Dominance: Variable. Most layers have no energy dominance.


 * Alignment Traits: Variable. Most layers are mildly-neutral aligned.


 * Magic Traits: Variable. Most layers have normal magic.

Planar Connections
Mrityulok connects to the Astral Plane, and possesses its own Ethereal and Shadow Planes. Some gates exist between certain outer planes, notably Acheron and Ysgard, both known for their love of battle, and to the city of Sigil. Access is typically done by passing through the Infinite Blade Fields accessible by stepping into the body of the cosmic sword Durandel. Other layers typically have links between themselves both through the shard of Durandel piercing them all, and unique links and portals each layer might possess. Typically layers link to other related layers, such as a link between the metallic and steady Golem Heart layer and Stone Dragon layers.

The known layers of Mrityulok are below, with new ones being discovered as they appear:

The Battlegrounds: Top layer of Mrityulok, an ancient cosmic battlefield said to be the location of the first war between Law and Chaos.

Infinite Blade Fields: Inside Durandel, and bridge between layers.

Wouranos, the Sky Kingdom: Layer associated with the Aerial Ace discipline. Similar to Plane of Elemental Air, notably full of birds and other flying lifeforms. A sky whale city exists here, and actual weather. Seemingly inside a giant tube shaped gas giant, with mist at the edges.

X: Layer associated with the Amaranth Eclipse discipline.

Hiranyagarbha, the Golden Land: Layer associated with the Anima River discipline. Egg of Creation world, positive aligned, lots of life. Energy takes on physical form. Large golden "sun" illuminates the area.

Qanu, the Shrapnel Wastes: Layer associated with the Black Rain discipline. Iron-rich land full of natural verneshots and rains of bullets. Everything seems to explode and/or send shrapnel out.

Kamaloka, the Eternal Dancing Wheel: Layer associated with the Dancing Goddess discipline. Takes place on a giant disc with many smaller associated discs, full of music and constant partying, but rest is difficult. Entrapping effect.

Kralizec, the Howling Desert: Layer associated with the Desert Wind discipline. Very hot, massive sun, high winds, extreme temperatures.

Har Megiddo, the Clashing Souls: Layer associated with the Devoted Spirit discipline. Strongly aligned different ways in different places, lots of battles between them. Hilly terrain. Alignment bubbles try to dominate you into their way of thinking, or empower those already thinking that way.

Kairos, the River of Time: Layer associated with the Diamond Mind discipline. Time is warped here, time stops or fast time occurs all the, er, time. Large river flows there here, and there is a "frozen" sea, a zone of rapid entropy, among other things.

X: Layer associated with the Domestic Tarrasque discipline.

X: Layer associated with the Eloquent Speech discipline.

Talos Nova, the Living Machine: Layer associated with the Golem Heart discipline. One part Mechanus, one part Cybertron/Primus, one part World Turtle. The environment will borgify and assimilate you if you stay too long, and inanimate objects come to life if struck by life sparks.

X: Layer associated with the Infinite Lotus discipline.

Damaskinya, the Steel Mountain: Layer associated with the Iron Heart discipline. Terrain is very metallic with a large mountain of steel, hardness goes up here, things are durable and hard to break. Forging is common here, prized for their superior quality though it is also more difficult to craft.

Maya, the Empty Sunset: Layer associated with the Setting Sun discipline. Fairly barren land, but you would barely know for it is cloaked in illusions of a normal world. Those who succumb might be fall to a terrible fate, those that can see it realize it is not as dangerous if you know what you're doing. Always at sunset, but this truth is also cloaked.

Dämmerung, the Enshadowed Land: Layer associated with the Shadow Hand discipline. Covered in eternal twilight, places are dark, strong ties to the shadow plane. Don't go into the darkness as THINGS will grab you away to god knows where. Light keeps you safe here, but light is limited. Minecraft at night with maximum monster mode on.

Katachthonios, the Rumbling Depths: Layer associated with the Stone Dragon discipline. Top layer under constant rock-fall and low-temperature but explosive volcanos, lower levels caves, eventually compresses into a solid layer of hyperdense material infinitely deep.

X: Layer associated with the Surreptitious Bandit discipline.

Physis, the Dire Wilderness: Layer associated with the Tiger Claw discipline. Feral land covered in wild beasts, forests, and everything is out to eat you. Effect which slowly drives intelligent beings into animalistic but dire forms.

Munus, the Common Union: Layer associated with the White Raven discipline. Compulsive effect which eventually brings your will and actions in line with the plane. Everyone does the same thing like clockwork, both utopian and terrible. Like a genius loci on crack.

Inhabitants
Those that live on the layers of Mrityulok tend to be wild monsters somehow related to the disciplines the layers mimic, or soldiers and other martial masters who have come for training or battle. Occasional warcamps of various aligned forces can be found, treating the plane as a midway point between their home plane and the one they fight against. On the Battlegrounds, most live in the City of Mars (see below), and usually they exist there only temporarily, the population always changing. Only the Peacekeeper Organization is ever constant.

Besides the discipline-related creatures, wild animals and beasts can be found. All animals are either advanced or dire forms of themselves, for only the toughest can endure here. There is no known outsider native to the land as one would associate angels, devils, or demons with their plane. However some deities of war and battle have been known to set up shop on various layers of Mrityulok. Because the top layer is not divinely morphic, they are not found in the Battlegrounds, only deeper.

Mrityulok Petitioners
Because not many deities exist in Mrityulok, mortal souls drawn to Mrityulok primarily arrive based on philosophy, living a life of battle without strong alignment ties, instead basing their fights on which fighting styles lead to victory. They usually live in small communities on layers which are most comforting, and within the edge of the City of Mars in clusters of like-minded individuals. They often become smiths, crafting weapons and armor to continue the fight for future generations.

Movement and Combat
Mrityulok is a varied place, but the top layer itself does not present any worse penalty to movement than any Prime Material plains or wasteland. Trees, forests, and other normal features exist sparsely, mountains usually no larger than hills and terrain neither too hot nor too cold, too wet nor too dry. The Battlegrounds do not present any inherent benefit or penalty to combat, though this may not apply to other layers.

Features of Mrityulok
Each layer has its own features and locations. The top layer of the Battlegrounds is surprisingly barren except for four places of note:

City of Mars: Built in an oval around the hilt of Durandel, Mars serves as both an entry point for visitors from the plane and as a massive trading city. Those who seek weapons and armor best trade here, for they can be found in the Martian markets. It is policed by a group of powerful warriors known as the Peacekeepers who maintain law and order between often vigorously opposed sides while in the city. Duels and battles are common, and heavily ritualized. Those who die in combat are seen as honorable, a fate better than falling to old age.

Necropolis of Kyöpelinvuori: A massive graveyard exists in the wastes, build around the fossilized bodies of some unknown dead god whose mountainous form remains charged with energy. The ghosts of dead heroes and villains of war haunt here, offering secret and lost knowledge, but also threatening the living with terrible violent death. It is haunted by a particularly powerful spirit known as the Black Warrior, who some say is an incarnation of death itself.

Sea of Sunken Ships: A large body of water known as the sea of sunken ships spreads across 1/3rd of the landscape, linking into the cosmic waters from which both the River Styx and River Oceanus flow into. Small islands dot the edge of shore, eventually becoming smaller and smaller and fading into the mists. The bottom is littered with sunken and lost ships which seem to have vanished from other worlds and ended up here. Tales of ghost ships are common, and ships appearing from other spaces and other times. One might run into a small craft of primitive men, or an future aircraft carrier which slips from your view and vanishes once more.

Victory Tower: On the edge of the shore of an island within the sea of sunken ships, the victory tower stands glowing like a light house. The insides are filled with powerful and violent monsters which seem to boil from some source deep below and unexplored. However what interests most is the light on top. It is said that the light grants enlightenment on how to be victorious in all things. However those who are not strong enough of spirit, and those who stare into the light too long face a terrible fate as their bodies fight against its own cells, slaying the victim. It is said only one man has ever survived this process, reborn from a single dominate cell who then immediately ascended to godhood and vanished. All others who try have failed or become monsters of their own...

Encounters
Info.

Using Mrityulok
As the battlefield for many ancient wars between opposing planar forces, Mrityulok is rich for finding ancient relics lost in those times, or seeking out legendary swords and other McGuffians for your games. Perhaps a massive war actually breaks out in your campaign, taking place on the battleground here.

Initiator-using campaigns of course benefit from this plane, and swordmasters of various schools can seek out their associated planes for enlightenment on the various disciplines and their rich histories.