Cosmology and planes
Published setting reference only. Forgotten Realms material does not establish Everterra geography, history, or faction membership unless explicitly imported.
On this page
Scope: General D&D overview as described in the System Reference Document 5.1; individual campaign settings may arrange or interpret the planes differently.
The Material Plane is the home of mortal worlds and the reference point for the wider multiverse. Other planes are distinct realms with elemental, spiritual, or philosophical qualities, rather than simply distant places within one physical world. The SRD groups the planes broadly into the Material Plane, transitive planes, Inner Planes, and Outer Planes.
The four Elemental Planes—Air, Earth, Fire, and Water—are associated with raw elemental substance. The Ethereal Plane overlaps the Material Plane at its Border region, while the Astral Plane serves as a route through which travelers can reach more distant realms. Outer Planes are spiritual domains shaped by thought and ethos. These are high-level categories, not an exhaustive guide to every setting’s planar map.
In the SRD account, planar travel may occur through magic or portals. Such access is exceptional and does not imply that any particular portal or route exists in Arcfall.
Source
- System Reference Document 5.1 (Wizards of the Coast PDF), Appendix PH-C, “The Planes of Existence,” beginning on PDF viewer page 363.