Astral dominion

Astral dominions, sometimes simply called dominions or more archaically the Outer Planes, were distinct planes connected by the Astral Sea which were inhabited and maintained often, but not always, by one or more gods. In many ways an astral dominion was a plane in and of itself, and sometimes contained its own demiplanes. Nonetheless, each dominion was a part of the greater Astral Sea as described by the World Axis cosmology model.

Each Astral dominion was unique and shaped by the will and nature of its creator and ruler. Some dominions were planet-sized, while others were far smaller&mdash;no bigger than small cities or even singular structures&mdash;although in general dominions were depicted as wondrous isles floating in a vast and infinite sea. Because each dominion was within the Astral Sea, none of the dominions were infinite in size, though they were often so large as to seem limitless.

Often, astral dominions were viewed as places of divine reward or punishment, though this was not strictly true. Although most gods, evil or good, rewarded their faithful in the afterlife, some beings such as the githyanki inhabited various dominions but did not participate in the running of the afterlife at all. Deities did commonly retrieve the souls of their faithful from the Fugue Plane and bring them to their dominion, though some were lost in the Shadowfell, ensnared by demons, bought by devils, or even sentenced to divine punishment in the Wall of the Faithless or the City of Judgment by Kelemvor.

Prior to the Spellplague, the Astral dominions were known collectively as the Outer planes and were connected in a tree-like structure by an equally tree-shaped Astral plane, as described by the World Tree cosmology model. The collapse of the Weave resulted in a loss of cohesion and the reshaping of the Astral plane into the amorphous Astral Sea. The dominions went flying freely through the Astral Sea, undergoing their own, sometimes catastrophic, transformations. Some dominions were merged into old ones (as the Golden Hills did with Arvandor), some split apart, (like Celestia was from the House of the Triad), and some were destroyed entirely, like Dweomerheart.

The connection map of the planes changed as well. Many astral dominions had connections with new planes, either other dominions or entirely separate planes such as the Prime or even some elemental realms.

Known Astral Dominions
As of 1479 DR, the 18 known Astral dominions of the World Axis Cosmology model were:
 * Arvandor
 * Banehold
 * Celestia
 * Cynosure
 * The Deep Wilds
 * The Demonweb Pits
 * The Dismal Caverns
 * Dwarfhome
 * Eternal Sun
 * The Fugue Plane
 * Gates of the Moon
 * Green Fields
 * House of Knowledge
 * The Nine Hells
 * Nishrek
 * The Supreme Throne
 * Towers of Night
 * Warrior's Rest