Mount Celestia
| Outer Plane | |
|---|---|
| Layers: | Lunia Mercuria Venya Solania Mertion Jovar Chronias |
| Primary Faction: | None |
| Sect: | Order of the Planes-Militant |
- It is the land of splendor.
- It is where ultimate goodness is idealized.
- It is law and good, understanding and mercy.
The single sacred mountain of Celestia rises from an infinite sea of holy water to incomprehensible heights. Here, justice, kindness, order, celestial grace, and mercy are the rules. Here, watchful eyes hold the ramparts against evil in all its many forms. Here, all things are beautiful. The Seven Mounting Heavens are the planar home for mortal souls of kindness and empathy for their fellow creatures, but it is a paradise that fiends of the lower planes would conquer if they could. Mount Celestia is a promise of betterment and ultimate union with the powers of good and law for those worthy, so supplicants of every snipe ascend the layers, one after the other, to the ultimate height of the Heavenly City and from thence into the Illuminated Heaven. Bahamut, lord of kindly dragons, resides on Celestia, as well as Heironeous, the god of valor, Moradin, the lord of dwarves; and Yondalla, the goddess of halflings.
Traits
- Normal Gravity.
- Normal Time.
- Infinite Size: Each layer of Celestia is infinite, though each layer is but one portion of the greater mountain, each higher than the last.
- Divinely Morphic: Celestia is morphic for entities of at least lesser deity power. It is alterable in the normal manner for more ordinary creatures.
- No Elemental or Energy Traits.
- Mildly Good-Aligned and Mildly Law-Aligned: Evil or chaotic characters on Celestia suffer a –2 penalty on Charisma-based checks. Chaotic evil characters suffer a –4 penalty on Charisma-based checks.
- Normal Magic.
Links
The only way to reach Celestia is by entering its first and lowest layer, Lunia, also called the Silver Sea. Visitors always find themselves in the surf of an ocean surrounding Mount Celestia. Very few portals from other planes lead anywhere on Celestia other than to the Silver Sea. A sequence of portals connects Celestia's seven layers. Each portal to a higher layer sits at the highest physical point of the next lower layer. Moving through the layers is one and the same as ascending Mount Celestia. But what makes ascending Mount Celestia more than just a matter of climbing is that each layer has many paths leading to the next layer. Only those who have found some truth regarding law and goodness can find the path. Thus, attaining the pinnacle involves a series of trials during which the supplicant is slowly washed of ideals that do not conform to the plane. However, there are rumored to be nonspiritual shortcuts for the traveler who knows where to look or whom to talk to.
Inhabitants
Celestia is home to many creatures of good, such as aasimars, devas, planetars, and solars. In addition, several groups of good-aligned natives of the Material Plane have set up residence on the lowest slope, along the beach of the Silver Sea. Celestia's primary residents, the archons, are to Celestia what the devils are to the Nine Hells: natives of the plane and purveyors of its ideals. Archons come in many types; most common are lantern archons, hound archons, and trumpet archons (see the Monster Manual). Most petitioners of Celestia are lantern archons. More so than most petitioners on other planes, they are graced with both knowledge and power. Every petitioner's goal is to ascend through the layers of Mount Celestia and evolve into a more glorious archon type. Other archons treat lantern archons like children, forgiving their errors and guiding them onto paths of virtue. Lantern archons appear as floating balls of light that glow like a torch. Lantern archon petitioners have the following special petitioner qualities:
- Additional Immunities: Electricity, petrification.
- Resistances: None.
- Special: Hit Die d8, Improved Initiative feat.
- Other Special Qualities: Damage reduction 20/+1; light ray; spell-like abilities, celestial qualities, no planar commitment.
- Light Ray (Ex): A lantern archon can attack with two light rays as +2 ranged touch attacks that deal 1d6 points of damage each, with a range of 30 feet.
- Spell-like Abilities: At will—aid, continual flame, detect evil. These abilities are as the spells cast by a 3rd-level sorcerer.
- Celestial Qualities: Aura of menace (save DC 11), magic circle against evil, teleport, tongues, +4 racial bonus on saves against poison.
- No Planar Commitment (Ex): Unlike most other petitioners, lantern archons can leave their home plane.
Features
From the seashore at the bottom of the first layer to the heights of the seventh, paths wind up the many peaks, ridges, canyons, and passes of Mount Celestia. Somehow, every incline looks up to the next layer, which shines like the sun on the layer below. Each rift eventually leads down past arching waterfalls and rushing brooks to the Silver Sea. Even from many layers above, the ringing chimes of each wave breaking on the shore of Lunia are faintly, reassuringly audible.