Cubic gates were legendary magical devices of planar travel, allowing users to create gates to a set of five different planes of existence and the Prime Material.[1][2][5][6]
Description[]
As their name implied, cubic gates were small cubes.[1][2][5][6] They measured roughly 3 inches (0.076 meters) across,[2] were fashioned from carnelian,[1][5][6] and radiated a palpable dweomer.[2]
Powers[]
Each side of a cubic gate was keyed to a specific plane, though one of the six would always be keyed to the Prime Material plane.[1][2][5][6] The selection of planes each side was keyed to would be purposely selected during a cubic gate's creation.[1] When a side of a cube was pressed upon once, a gate would open to a random point on its keyed plane,[1][2][5][6] whilst pressing upon it a second time would then close the gate.[1] There could never be more than one gate opened at a time and,[1][2][5][6] much like the gate spell,[2] the gates a cubic gate created were two-way and thus always had a small chance of something coming through from their other side.[1][5][6]
Pressing a side of a cubic gate twice in quick succession would instead cause an effect similar to the plane shift spell,[1][2][5][6] opening a gate that forcefully pulled in the side-presser and all other creatures within a 5‑foot (1.5‑meter) radius.[1][5][6]
Following the Second Sundering, cubic gates could only be activated three times per day.[2]
Variants[]
- The Cube of Location a.k.a. Transforming cubic gate
- A cubic gate that was modified by Damien Nuren. It was keyed solely to the Shadow Plane and was also designed to transform nearby creatures into either a shade or shadow, but while the gate opened, the transformation function failed to work when tested.[7]
Notable Owners[]
- These were among the magical items commonly used by planewalkers and could be purchased in the markets of Sigil at prices lower than those on the Prime Material.[8]
- Ahghairon, a powerful mage of Waterdeep, owned a cubic gate.[9] His was created by the wizard Hilather and covered on each of its sides in Alzhedo characters. In addition to the Prime Material plane, the cubic gate's sides were keyed to Arborea, the Elemental Plane of Fire, the Far Realm, the Nine Hells, and the Outlands.[10]
- On the Isle of Evermeet, the fourth floor display room housed a cubic gate that was considered to be an antique by the 14th century DR.[11]
- Mordeia the Great, a famed planewalker.[12]
History[]
Around 1368 DR,[13] a gelatinous cube in the Maddgoth's Castle level of Undermountain had a cubic gate within it from one of the victims of a gorgon.[14]
Sometime in the late 14th century DR, a group of adventurers traveling to the city of Ravens Bluff were attacked by a group of bandits led by the wizard Astrid. Among their ill-gotten loot the adventurers found a cursed cubic gate that instantly transported them to the Elemental Plane of Air and eventually the Negative Material Plane.[15] There the planewalker Rowan Darkwood rescued the adventurers with a word of recall from death by negative energy, taking them to the Astral Plane. Rowan quickly surmised that their cubic gate was cursed and that the adventurers would have to meet a certain requirement at each of its keyed planes if they wanted to get back home. He beseeched his patron deity Heimdall for guidance on the matter, but received only riddles as to how they had to progress.[16]
After treating the adventurers to a heroes' feast, Rowan let them on their way. They proceeded to be taken by the cubic gate to the planes of Baator, Bytopia, Ysgard,[16] and finally the Prime Material world of Athas. There they were thrown into a gladiatorial arena and fought many strange creatures, such as braxat and b'rohg. When the adventurers began their next big match against a team of half-giants the cubic gate finally activated for the last time, plane shifting them to a road just outside of Ravens Bluff.[17][note 1]
Appendix[]
Notes[]
- ↑ An exact name for the Prime Material world visited in Plane Speaking is never given, but everything shown about the world indicates it is most likely Athas, such as the prevalence of psionics, sorcerer-kings in power, a scarcity of metal, a mention of preservers, and the appearance of creatures from the Dark Sun setting.
Appearances[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 Monte Cook, Jonathan Tweet, Skip Williams (July 2003). Dungeon Master's Guide v.3.5. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 254. ISBN 0-7869-2889-1.
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 Mike Mearls, Jeremy Crawford, Christopher Perkins, James Wyatt (2014). Dungeon Master's Guide 5th edition. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 160. ISBN 978-0786965622.
- ↑ Gary Gygax (1979). Dungeon Masters Guide 1st edition. (TSR, Inc.), p. 123. ISBN 0-9356-9602-4.
- ↑ slade et al (December 1994). Encyclopedia Magica Volume I. (TSR, Inc.), p. 349. ISBN 1560768428.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.8 Gary Gygax (1979). Dungeon Masters Guide 1st edition. (TSR, Inc.), p. 142. ISBN 0-9356-9602-4.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 6.8 David Cook (April 1995). Dungeon Master Guide 2nd edition (revised). (TSR, Inc.), p. 221. ISBN 978-0786903283.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood et al. (December 1988). Lords of Darkness. Edited by Scott Martin Bowles. (TSR, Inc.), pp. 29–30. ISBN 0-88038-622-3.
- ↑ Monte Cook (1996). The Planewalker's Handbook. Edited by Michele Carter. (TSR), p. 136. ISBN 978-0786904600.
- ↑ Jocelyn Koehler (2019). The Tower of Ahghairon (DDAL08-17) (PDF). D&D Adventurers League: Waterdeep (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 4, 10.
- ↑ Jocelyn Koehler (2019). The Tower of Ahghairon (DDAL08-17) (PDF). D&D Adventurers League: Waterdeep (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 13, 18.
- ↑ Anne Gray McCready et al. (March 1994). Elves of Evermeet. (TSR, Inc), p. 58. ISBN 1-5607-6829-0.
- ↑ Allen Varney, ed. (June 1994). Planescape Monstrous Compendium Appendix. (TSR, Inc.), p. 62. ISBN 978-1560768623.
- ↑ Steven E. Schend (September 1996). Undermountain: Maddgoth's Castle. (TSR, Inc), p. 4. ISBN 0-7869-0423-2.
- ↑ Steven E. Schend (September 1996). Undermountain: Maddgoth's Castle. (TSR, Inc), p. 11. ISBN 0-7869-0423-2.
- ↑ Tom Prusa (January 1996). Plane Speaking. Living City (RPGA), pp. 2, 4, 8.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Tom Prusa (January 1996). Plane Speaking. Living City (RPGA), pp. 8–9.
- ↑ Tom Prusa (January 1996). Plane Speaking. Living City (RPGA), pp. 16–21.