Introduction

Likely the first thing any pilot will tell you about aetherspace is that it is large. The swirling aether which cradles the Basin of Life is indeed unfathomably vast. Aetherspace is what separates the places habitable for we mortal adventurers and denizens from the Void. It is what fills the space between the planes of existence. It is comprised of the aetherways, where we can fly, of which there are many varieties, and the shoals, which are impenetrable barriers which we cannot traverse.

Colloquially, the term itself is used by adventurers in a few ways. It may refer to this all encompassing space on every plane, or simply to the space which exists around the prime material plane. It's sometimes used to refer to the aetherways specifically, or collectively. Without getting caught up in the specific terminology, it's simply a way of referring to what is 'out there.' There are the places we can reach by foot or by rift, and then there is what is beyond.

Aetherspace is teeming with life! There are many types of creatures to be found out there - from the monsters that lurk among the cloudy aethers, to those only drawn to the power of vortexes, to insidious parasites. There are the sentient creatures known as extradimensional algontherine entities, which form the souls of our aetherships, allowing us to travel beyond, and there are those who pilot them.

Among this vast beyond are many varying pockets of existence, known as aetherbubbles. The aetherbubbles vary between themselves quite considerably, both in their terrain and their inhabitants. Most of them are no bigger than the villages we find at home. The most well represented race among these bubbles, and in aetherspace itself, are the gnomes, whose ancestral home is found on the Facility. We may also find the home of the finks, and several species of fae and other creatures completely alien to those we find in the Basin.

The Aetherbubbles

It's been said that aetherbubbles might be considered no differently than the outer planes, but for being unconnected to an edifice of power, and this is quite true. Indeed, from the outside looking in, the Basin of Life itself, and all of the planes, are simply a series of interconnected pockets in the aether, differing from others only in scale. As we learn more about aetherspace and the planescape, and as Gnomish technology continues to improve planar travel, it becomes increasingly difficult to differentiate between the various places those of us who live on prime call the outer planes, spheres, realms, manifestations and bubbles. From the outside looking in, these are much the same.

We commonly accept that there are eleven aetherbubbles. The seven on the prime material plane are Crumkindivia, Bottledowns, Mucklemarsh, Cankermore, Dramube, Frosticia, and the Facility. The Workshop of Xion resides on the elemental plane, while the manifestations of Spirit Moon, Mother Night, and the Tree of Trees rest on the ethereal plane.

There are dozens and dozens more of isolated locations spread out among all the planes, single locations where ships can dock, and there is breathable air and land to stand upon, if little else to see. These are almost entirely unremarkable. They are formed with the use of anchor modules onboard algontherine ships, where reality is forced to take hold, and evidently, sometimes loathe to let go. Of these, one is much like the next. The one exception of note to these isolated, tiny bubbles of reality is located on the astral plane, just north of the astral sphere of Sagittarius.

Known as 'the thirteenth sphere,' this tiny pocket seems to be in some way connected to the astral sphere of Aries, despite its position in space being nowhere near that sphere. Some have speculated that this piece of land was once part of its own larger sphere, a thirteenth astral sphere, the rest of which was destroyed by the soulless god Kethuru. Others have suggested that Almighty Kethuru, upon his imprisonment, so thrashed against the land that a portion of the sphere of Aries broke apart, and landed here. A less fanciful theory suggests that a portion of the sphere was jolted free during a particularly sharp collision during Aries' usual orbit. We may never know the truth of the matter, but this tiny bubble remains as a floating rock amidst the astral, a curiosity, and a destination of some interest among scholars and explorers.

Prime Aetherspace

Prime aetherspace is by far and away the largest and most populous area of all known aetherspace. With a variety of environments and aetherbubbles, prime aetherspace offers a lot to explore. The whole of the Basin is contained within a central ring here, with seven docks surrounding it, one to each of the six organizations and one for the neutral aetherplex. An aethership must be specifically attuned to an organization's nexus in order to dock there. These privileges are generally quite costly, and are only infrequently granted to those outside of any given organization. The central ring is well shielded from the surrounding aetherspace by vast shoals, with only narrow passages leading out into wider aetherspace.

Near each organization's dock is a manifestation of that organization's nexus of power. These are the Manifestation of the Master Ravenwood, near Glomdoring, the Manifestation of the Moonhart, near Serenwilde, Nosfydra, the Heart of the Megalith, near Magnagora, the Manifestation of the Pool of Stars, near Celest, the Manifestation of the Matrix, near Hallifax, and the Manifestation of the Living Flame, near Gaudiguch. These are collectively known as the nexus worlds. Every individual's connection to his or her nexus gives them a certain amount of power upon their nexus world. They may travel there through the nexus of power, and back. They may freely communicate on the various aethers, hearing and being heard, as though they were on prime. Should they die there, they will conglutinate back at the prime nexus, just as they might if they died in their prime organization territories. Yet for any foreigners visiting these nexus worlds, they are as isolated and unconnected - perhaps even more so - than any other aether bubble.

Moving outward from the central ring, through the slipstream and flux, we reach the 'proper' aetherbubbles. One thing to note about these is that almost without fail, the aether environments surrounding these pockets of reality grow extremely dense. They are each, just as the central ring is, encircled in the dense, impenetrable shoals. This has led to some speculation about the nature of the aetherways, and aether itself. Could it be that what we fly through is the very stuff of creation, gradually coalescing into reality? Are these shoals not some separate barrier material but merely the same aether so dense as to be solid wall? The best authority on the nature of aetherspace is regrettably not this author, but the gnomes, and they remain tight-lipped on this subject.

Crumkindivia - Candy, Cookies, and Conflict

Located southeast of the central ring, the aetherbubble of Crumkindivia is one of the strangest places in all existence. Made by Lord Crumkane, an elder god of the fourth circle, it is home to his favourite creations. Imbued with the spirits of Crumkane's fae servants, the Licorice Dynasty and the Pastry Rebellion reside amidst a confectionary landscape. These creatures are collectively known as the sugarplum fae.

While wiccans of both communes do accept these creatures as fae, neither the Moondancers nor Shadowdancers maintain any sort of affinity for the residents of Crumkindivia. Isolated from the forests of the basin, and dwelling in an environment that is anything but natural, these fae are an oddity, even apart from their more obvious attributes.

Crumkindivia itself is constructed primarily of baked goods and candy, though only portions of the land remain potable, among these, the sugarplum fae themselves. While the denizens here all remain devoted to their creator, no small amount of conflict exists between the Candies and the Pastries. Under the reign of Queen Licorice, and Lord Necco, the Candies stand accused of subjugating the Pastries, by threat of a rain of terror (milk). The Pastries, under the leadership of Ladyfinger and the Muffin Man, are rumoured to be plotting a violent uprising in the form of a monstrous doughboy. The perpetual conflict in Crumkindivia plays out with no discernable impact on the world outside this aetherbubble.

Cankermore - A Holy War

Located far to the west of the central ring, the Cankermore Battlegrounds can be found just east of the rift to the elemental plane. Cankermore is a swamp, home to a species called the allisaurs which resemble a zombie version of the alligators common to swamps on prime. A further species of aggressive molds, grown from the bones of these allisaurs, considers Cankermore to be their homeland, and defends the bubble in an eternal battle against the undead forces which also inhabit this place.

Lord Urlach, a Vernal God famed for marshalling the undead in the fight against the Soulless gods as well as for his skill in manipulating multidimensional gateways, left a battalion of undead forces on the aetherbubble to train for the fight to come. The undead forces, mistakenly believing Urlach to have been an Elder God (perhaps confusing him with Orlachmar), toil tirelessly in their training for what they refer to as the Day of Returning - the day they believe their Lord will return and call them to their duty. They consider this to be their holy mission, and do not regard themselves as the invasion force that the mold battalions do. They are wholly unaware of the events which transpired concerning the Vernal Gods in the Basin of Life, and appear uninterested in learning of them.

Atypically, the undead troops that Urlach left to train on Cankermore are comprised of mugwumps, taurians, igasho, and loboshigaru, and not the orclach which he is known to have more commonly employed. Perhaps the absence of his favoured soldiers is what inspired their need for the intensive training. Highly adaptive, the mold battalions are able to take forms which nearly identically match these invaders, so that their perennial struggle becomes a game of shrewd strategy, rather than one of mere brute force.

Frosticia - Icebourne and Exiled

The aetherbubble of Frosticia is located northwest of the central ring. This land of ice and snow is divided into several areas. The village of Snowy Acres lies to the south, adjacent to the Eiswein Vineyards, while the Glacierford Keep lies to the north, near the Iceflow Terminus.

The residents of Snowy Acres, also referred to as Snow Rise, are as distinctive in appearance as they are in personality. Amiable snowmen, women, and children are formed of literal snow, with the characteristic coal and carrot accoutrements. Known formally as the snoelorae, they are a notably cheerful and welcoming people, in high contrast to their neighbours in Glacierford. These icemen, iceladies, and icelads, are haughty creatures made of ice who fancy themselves aristocrats, looking down on both the snoelorae and any visitors to Frosticia. They are collectively known as the eissfaasia.

Though now existing in two separate factions, the eissfaasia and snoelorae are both descended from the race of the Icebourne. They believe they were exiled to Frosticia by their creator, as a punishment for a crime of their existence. Little is understood either by researchers or the residents of Frosticia themselves, about the nature of their supposed crimes or that of their creator, who they do not name, yet both curse and revere.

Like the candies and pastries found on Crumkindivia, both the eissfaasia and the snoelorae are presumed to be a type of fae. Unlike the sugarplum fae however, they are more highly regarded by the commune wiccans, for their ability to create the Snowflake of Snoefaasia, which may be planted on the prime material plane. The snowflake will grow into the snoefaasia orchid and the snoefaasia itself - a proper fae which may join a wiccan's entourage and serve him in combat.

Mucklemarsh - The Blight on the Finks

Mucklemarsh is located far to the west or east, nearly on the opposite side of the world from the central ring. It is north by northwest of the rift to the elemental plane. Mucklemarsh is a swamp, and is most notable for being the racial home of the finks, a race familiar to every child raised in the Basin of Life. The finks found in Newton's Caverns are weak and feeble in comparison to those on their home world, however the finks in Mucklemarsh are rather weak in comparison to the other denizens in aetherspace.

A blight on the finks has been caused by the crash of the gnomish aethership Divinity, which, infested by slivven parasites, collided with the aetherbubble. Though the finkish leader, the Great Bog Mother, survived, along with her attendants and a handful of the village's young people, death and illness have plagued these people so that even the baby allisaurs found here present a real threat to their hunters. The Great Bog Mother is determined to see her sons wax strong again, and is constantly training the village youths to become proper soldiers for the finkish cause, while the local alchemist works tirelessly to find a permanent cure to the blight.

The wreckage of the Divinity may also be explored, but is overrun by parasites. The slivven queen resides in the bowels of the ship, where she inhabits the corpse of a long dead gnomish crewmember as a host. Though the precise origin of the slivvens remains unclear, evidence from the ship's log has suggested that they appeared on or about the time when Project Cosmic Hope brought about the taint's release upon the Basin - with the consequent infection of the crew resulting in the catastrophic collision with the aetherbubble. With the rediscovery of the bubble of Mucklemarsh and the slivven queen's apparent success in enlisting further help with finding new hosts for her children, slivvens have become an epidemic in aetherspace, attacking both the monstrous creatures which dwell within the aetherspace, and transferred via the monsters' attacks, the algontherine entities which travel them.

The Facility - The Science and Society

The Facility is the racial home world of the gnomes and is located west of the central ring. The gnomish race often stands aloof of the other sentient races in Lusternia, preferring to maintain their separate society in aetherspace rather than joining us in the bastion of the Basin of Life. It is true that a faction of gnomes does dwell in the Basin. Investigation on Mucklemarsh has suggested that Newton was able to escape the wreckage there and bring part of his surviving crew to the Basin, landing at the caverns which now bear his name.

The gnomish influence on the culture of the Basin has been gaining in momentum in recent years. Trade relations with the gnomes are long established. It is the gnomes of the Facility who harvest the eggs of the algontherine entities and who taught us to use them to build ships for aetherial travel. The gnomes have long operated the aetherspace trading cartels, and employed those looking for work at the Facility as well as Dramube. Recent events have brought the gnomes and the people of the Basin closer together, and while much of their society remains secret to us, we are benefiting hugely from the technologies they have developed and share.

Gnomish society appears to fall into an orderly hierarchy which we might easily call business oriented. Tasks of daily life are rigidly specialized and a strict adherence to rank and leadership is enforced. This is evident in the structure of the public operations at the Facility, as well as on the gnomish trader ship the Starhopper, which now maintains a permanent portal to our aetherplex.

Specific to the Facility it becomes obvious that the gnomes have a considerable interest in scientific research and the development of new technologies. While many gnomes are known for an interest in tinkering (indeed, they have taught the skill to the Basin's bards), the projects undertaken on the gnomish home world tend to be larger and more mysterious. Of particular interest is their utilization of auronidion spheres and particles and glaetherial dust. These substances are of no use to us, yet are highly prized by the gnomes. It remains unclear precisely how these substances are employed.

An interesting subsection of gnomish society which has recently come to attention is the gnomish Gnafia, a criminal organization which has utilized the Facility gnomes' far reach in aetherspace to undertake considerable illicit and some highly dangerous activities. An ongoing struggle exists between the two factions, as the Facility gnomes have sought to root out this corruption from their ranks. The people of the Basin have provided the Facility gnomes with considerable assistance on this front, further improving relations between their race and those of our own home.

Dramube - The Gnomish Diamonut Trade

A far isolated aetherbubble, the Dramube Triangle is located east of the central ring. Dramube is a roiling sea of sand and stone. Traversing these sand waves is not terribly dissimilar to the push of the waves one might experience in the seas on prime, or upon the elemental planes. By contrast, we have thus far been able to find no way to counteract them as we have done at home. Neither has gnomish technology made progress on this score. Instead they employ a specialised ship, the Sandspeeder, for easy travel.

The climate of Dramube is much like we would consider of the desert, and it is dotted with a series of oases. While not always easily apparent, the place is quite full of life in the form of animals of stone and crystal which swim in the sands the way proper fish swim in the ocean.

The gnomish interest in Dramube relates primarily to the huge deposits of diamonuts which can be found there. Diamonuts are extremely valuable when refined and even the dross supply has been known to sell for up to seven hundred fifty gold per one. Diamonuts may be employed to augment the modules of an aethership, making their operation faster and more effective. Such artefacts are highly valued among ship builders and aetherspace enthusiasts.

The majority of the diamonut trade between gnomes and the inhabitants of the basin is done through Trader Bob's cartels. Recently, the gnome Pinky Puddlegum began selling specific diamonuts directly from the Star Hopper. A further notable point on gnomish trading is that it seems apparent that the preferred currency of the gnomes is the Dingbat. Recent bounties issued by the gnomes have been paid in dingbats, and almost all the direct sales of their merchandise are conducted in this currency. In correlation to the increase of trade between gnomes and the people of the Basin, the value of dingbats as a currency has stabilized at one and a half credits per dingbat, while prior to this trade influx dingbat valued varied wildly, ranging from one to four credits per dingbat.

Bottledowns - Tragic Contrivances

The Bubble of Bottledowns is a gnomish settlement located east of the central ring. In appearance, Bottledowns is very little different from a village one might find anywhere in the Basin. Begun as a colony of crafters and tinkerers, Bottledowns is the home of several well known figures in gnomish society, including the master artisan, Boddynottin, and the toymaker, Geleto. Once famous among the gnomes alone, the Toymaker is now infamous in all of Lusternia.

Geleto's skill in constructing life-like animated figurines had been highly prized, and he and his wife Amana resided on Bottledowns in peace and great prosperity until her death. Stricken with grief, Geleto created a porcelain figurine in her likeness. The figurine Amana once had designs on taking over the Basin of Life, but she was stopped through a joint effort of the gnomes and the peoples of the Basin. Furious to have been foiled, Amana and her figurine army seclude themselves in the Shadowbox Castle in the southern portion of Bottledowns, plotting their revenge on the gnomes of the Facility. The villagers have formed the Bottoms Up Rebellion in an effort to counteract such schemes, should they arise.

Geleto's skill in creating toys and figurines was truly amazing, and there has not been a gnome to take his place as a master toymaker though he is no longer working. Among his creations have been found several which are modelled off notable people from the Basin, and these remain a curiosity which draws many visitors to the aetherbubble. Other notable residents include Great Lord Penguin, the Magnificent, an animated toy penguin noted for his early rebellion against Amana's plan to subjugate the Basin, and his brave efforts to warn the Glomdoring Commune of the impending danger of her attacks.

Also established on the Bubble of Bottledowns is the Headquarters of the Aetherspace Trading Coalition. This mysterious enterprise has no known legitimate trading activities in aetherspace or in the Basin, and is widely suspected to be a Gnafia front.

The Elemental Plane

Elemental aetherspace is surprisingly large, and the most common terrain there is by far the pure aether which also provides the northern and southern bounds of prime aetherspace. Pure aether is a treacherous environment in aetherspace inhabited by six-headed scyllus or the altogether more terrifying black dragons. Dragon hunting is one of the biggest draws to elemental aetherspace, though primarily by members of the cities. The pure aether environment is more easily accessible from the elemental docks here, and the plane in general is far less trafficked than the prime material plane. The latter is important as dragon hunts are extremely dangerous with very slight margins of error at their best. Interference, either intentional or accidental, is most assuredly deadly to one or both crews. The cosmic plane is also favoured for dragon hunts for similar reasons.

Upon the elemental plane there are four sub-planes, known simply as earth, air, fire, and water. We accept that these are indeed unique planes of existence within the single elemental plane rather than mere aetherbubbles for several reasons. Their connections to the edifices of power of the cities are one solid designator, while the presence of elemental lords and ladies is another. Most distinctively, each is surrounded by a unique aether environment specific to that plane. These 'elemental aethers' are found nowhere else in all of aetherspace but in the immediate vicinity of their respective planes. There are creatures specific to each elemental environment as well. Oceanic elementals may be found near the water plane and gargantuan earth elementals near the earth plane. Storm elementals guard the plane of air, while inferno elementals guard the plane of fire.

The layout of elemental aetherspace consists of one long looping corridor of pure aether, ringed in shoals, which surrounds and encircles three distinct pockets. In one we find the planes of earth and water as well as the gateway to prime aetherspace. Until relatively recently in modern history the planes of fire and air, which are near neighbours in the second pocket, were inaccessible to aether pilots. It is unclear whether the rifts between the planes were formed naturally, by the gnomes, or else by some other entity. The position of the rift on elemental leads to easy travel between earth, water, and prime, leaving the other planes far more isolated. Nestled in the third pocket is the Workshop of Xion, regarded as a formal aetherbubble.

A final point of interest regarding the elemental plane, and in truth, all of the planes excepting prime, is the absence of a gnomish presence of any sort. On very rare occasions, gnomish aetherships have been sighted on the outer planes, notably the Gnafia flagship, the Bondshredder, known to attack hunting parties, and which once utilized the thirteenth sphere as a hideout. Aside from this, the gnomes show no visible interest whatsoever in any plane beyond prime.

The Workshop of Xion

Formally known as the Workshop of Xion, the aetherbubble may be referred to as simply Xion or else the workshop of Xyl. Xyl is a notable figure in Lusternian history. An elder god of the fifth circle, he played a prominent role throughout the Elder Wars. The lover of Trillililial and the divine from whom the lucidian race descended, Xyl is credited with a number of accomplishments which we mortals would consider to fall into the realm of the scientific. Located far to the northwest of the gate between elemental and prime aetherspace, Xion is extremely isolated and the flight to reach the aetherbubble is quite a long one from any starting point, leading through many narrow, dragon infested corridors.

Rediscovered in 162 CE after a malfunction caused its existence to become known in the Basin of Life, Xion had long been a secluded and highly protected pocket of existence. To this day, the security systems protecting Xion are extremely complex, and the project of bypassing them requires several days' concentrated effort. The workshop itself is powered by the elemental energies of the plane focused through four logic crystals, each attuned to a specific element. As explained, it is only recently that the air and fire sub-planes have been stably re-established on the elemental plane. Their long absence left a residual effect on Xion by forcing the water and earth planes to carry the full load of the power supply. This, combined with the introduction of tainted energies flowing in from the plane of earth, has caused corruption in both the earth and water crystals on Xion. Though it is possible to repair one or the other, and though the fire and air crystals have begun to function normally once again, the workshop of Xyl remains forever damaged, and its true power unknown to the mortal coil, and unable to be harnessed by them.

The default state of the workshop is lockdown mode, during which almost all system power is disabled to protect it from intruders of all sorts. The most common types of intruders, besides mortals of course, are a number of species which the workshop's central control unit classifies these as aetherial detritus. These grodaks, mordraths, and hynxes must be thoroughly exterminated before the central logic crystal will restore power to the workshop. Upon the restoration of power, all proper security systems are enabled. Mortals with a keen interest in puzzles have enjoyed spending time in the workshop of Xion, finding it both engaging and beautiful. The crystal golems which exist as a part of the workshop's security, as well as the magnificent moving model of the full planescape are two features not to be missed.

Repairing the workshop to partial functionality is possible, though this requires harnessing one and disabling the other of the corrupted elemental logic crystals. This inelegant solution is extremely temporary, although doing so yields a pure seed of elemental energy which may be planted on the prime material plane to create a temporary rift between prime and the elemental plane. As direct traverse to the elemental planes from prime is a rare ability among mortals, being limited only to skilled mages, such a seed is considered a very valuable prize.

The Ethereal Plane

Ethereal aetherspace is a relatively tranquil portion of the planescape. The ethereal aether environment is by far the most common on this plane, formed of burgeoning emerald clouds which swirl and shift in shape to resemble the forestal features of trees, flowers, and fae which are common to the entire plane. Inhabiting the ethereal aether are forestal gargantuans, which are widely hunted by commune and city aethercrews alike. Gargantuans are of middling difficulty to kill by hunting crews, quite easy in comparison to the black dragons found in the pure aether environment.

Where the elemental plane is dominated by the presence of the Basin's cities, the ethereal plane is dominated by the presence of the communes and the great spirits of nature. Unlike the elemental plane which is characterized by its isolated sub-planes, the planescape of ethereal aetherspace consists of one interconnected ethereal plane in three parts, as well as three aetherbubbles. Finally, in the far isolated northeast portion of the ethereal planes are the realms of those gods with specific affinity to the forestal communes. The god realms will be further defined in a discussion of cosmic aetherspace to follow.

The central area of the ethereal plane is dominated by Faethorn, more formally known as the Realm of Faethorn, where reside the high fae and their Queen, Maeve. Maeve has evolved in her current form from the collective consciousnesses of all of the fae. Once known only as the maeve or the maeve consciousness, her personality gradually emerged as more and varied types of fae were assimilated, until she became the regal and tempestuous figure who now reigns over Faethorn. The interconnectedness of the entire ethereal plane is notable in her person. Queen Maeve is at peace with the two dominant nature spirits on the plane, Moon and Night, who while at inherent odds with one another, coexist in an equitable division of the entire plane and all of its assets.

The rift between ethereal and prime aetherspace is located close to the southeast of central Faethorn and the ethereal forests of Glomdoring and Serenwilde are located south and north respectively. Flying through the ethereal aetherways, these appear to be quite distant to one another, a curious matter as one is able to walk from the Avatars of Mother Night through Faethorn and reach the Ethereal Serenwilde in a matter of seconds. Ethereal aetherspace is quite large and considerably spaced out. Historically, the ethereal plane has been a battleground in the struggle against the Soulless gods. The realm of Faethorn was once known as the Fields of the Maeve, a battlefield in this fight. The efforts of the elder gods as well as the great spirits to defend the forests of the plane from these attacks, and later, from the release of the Taint, has resulted in the plane's general stretched and secluded feel.

A number of pockets of the ethereal plane remain isolated and are inaccessible from ethereal aetherspace. The ethereal plane is the closest of the outer planes to the prime material plane. Unique to the ethereal plane, there are a number of interdimensional pockets which appear to have been formed from the prime material plane outward - rather than being made manifest within aetherspace as so much of Lusternia's terrain on the whole seems to have been. This is of course merely a theory, but it rather elegantly explains why areas such as the Catacombs of the Dead and the Crystal Meadows cannot be found in the ethereal planescape. By contrast, an area like the Wydyr Glade is assumed to have once been accessible through the aetherways, but was deliberately isolated from the rest of Ethereal to prevent the spread of the corruption which tainted that forest.

Roughly east of Faethorn and beyond a thick ring of shoals reside the Manifestations of Moon, Night, and the Tree of Trees. Though each is considered a formal aetherbubble, these pockets of reality are distinctly different from any of those found in prime aetherspace. In terms of their surrounding environments, these manifestations are not immediately adjacent to the shift, but rather to the ethereal environment. They are distinctly not neutral areas, either, being instead specifically attuned to the forest communes of the basin.

The Tree of Trees

The manifestation of the Tree of Trees, also known as the Great Tree Spirit, is that from which all of the Great Trees - those that become the edifices of power in the nature communes - descend. The Ravenwood of Glomdoring, the Moonhart of Serenwilde, the Honeysap of lost Ackleberry, and countless other great trees which have grown and died have all been connected through and to the Tree of Trees. It must be stated that this connection is an ethereal one, rather than a physical one. The only way to reach the tree of trees is via flight or the employ of a gnomish transplanar contrivance in the form of a glowing emerald leaf.

The bubble is characterised by pure forest and the terrain cannot be altered by mortal means. One feature of the ethereal landscape in general is its resistance to elemental magics. Pure forest is common to Ethereal Serenwilde as well. There, so long as Queen Maeve lives, the terrain cannot be altered either by elemental magics, or those of the Blacktalon Druids. It will always be pure forest. The same is true of the wyrden woods found in Ethereal Glomdoring. The natural terrain of the Faethorn Realm is the sylvan forest and this may shift between pure and wyrden forest but may not be imprinted upon by elemental magics.

It is not known whether the terrain at the Tree of Trees is protected by virtue of the Great Tree Spirit itself or by same powers imbued in Maeve which protect the rest of the ethereal forests. In modern history there have been thankfully few periods of time where Faethorn directly has come under assault by mortals and during these times of strife the Tree of Trees has never stood as a target. Apart from the manifestation of the Tree itself, this aetherbubble is quite small and seemingly offers very little to see or do. The matter of its terrain is arguably its most intriguing feature.

The Serenwilde and Glomdoring communes exist in a state of perpetual conflict owing to the relatively simple belief of those from Serenwilde that wyrden forest is tainted and unnatural, and must be sacrificed to preserve the purity of nature. Glomdoring believes that its forest, altered as it is, is true evidence of the power of nature to reclaim and adapt, and that this should be spread. The fact that the terrain in the immediate vicinity of the Great Tree Spirit is resistant to the wyrd is the most compelling tangible evidence that the Serenwilde commune may present in favour of their side of the argument. Regardless of this, both communes address the physical manifestation of the Tree of Trees with equal reverence.

The Manifestation of Mother Night

Mother Night is one of the great spirits of nature, a consciousness awoken primarily by Lord Nocht of the sixth circle of Elder Gods. The manifestation of Mother Night is located southeast of Faethorn and the Tree of Trees on the ethereal plane. Mother Night is worshiped in the Glomdoring commune, where the Night Coven bears her specific reverence. Night's avatars are seated in the ethereal Glomdoring forest, and she may be summoned before the Master Ravenwood during a new moon. Despite all of this, the manifestation of Mother Night is quite isolated from the forest. The connections of the forest to this aetherbubble exist in three places.

The Tenebrous Altar of Shadows is a construct built upon Glomdoring's nexus world which imbues the commune's members with the guise of nightwraiths. Nightwraiths have the power to teleport directly to the manifestation of Night from anywhere on the prime, ethereal, or astral planes. The Realm of Shadows, a location in Limbo (a space between the planes, sometimes regarded as its own plane of existence), can also lead to the manifestation of Night, among other places. The Realm of Shadows may be accessed by those Dark Savants who have earned the right to wear a Fingerblade of dha'Wyrden-Cree. Finally, should the shadow glass located on the manifestation be repaired, a temporary portal will be created in it, leading into Glomdoring's ethereal forest.

The manifestation of Night is inhabited primarily by Night's daughters. Also residing here are the Keepers, charged with maintaining those sacred items which appear in the event that Night's Avatars are slain - those which may be imbued with shadowy essence to draw them back. The daughters of Night reflect aspects of the seasons, with Nyoro, of the Summer Solstice, representing the day with the shortest duration of night, seeming a most reluctant servant. Mother Night herself may be glimpsed upon the aetherbubble descending onto her throne of Darkness.

The landscape of the manifestation of Night is a paragon example of what members of Glomdoring consider to be wyrden splendour. Dark and strange though with breathtaking ethereal beauty, the isolation of the manifestation makes it a place of silent reverence for commune members.

The Manifestation of Mother Moon

The great spirit Moon bears affinity to the Serenwilde commune, having been awakened primarily by the elder goddesses Lisaera and Elfenehoala, of the sixth circle. The manifestation of the spirit is located east of the Tree of Trees, far to the east of Faethorn in Ethereal Aetherspace. The relationship of Serenwilde to this aetherbubble mirrors that of the Glomdoring commune and the manifestation of Night. Though formally isolated from it, The Living Altar of Lunar Glory, constructed upon Serenwilde's nexus world, enables moonchildren to teleport to the manifestation while the Flame of dae'Seren grants access to a portion of the forest in limbo which exits to the aetherbubble directly.

Among other similarities to the manifestation of Mother Night, the Moon Bubble, as it is commonly referred to, is inhabited by Keepers charged with preserving those relics linked to Moon's Avatars. The sterling mirror of Luna is kept by Gian, the silver basin of Selene by Kyraj, and the silver cauldron of Albion is kept by Hyshan. In addition to numerous ladies devoted to the spirit Moon are eight Grand Lords and Ladies, which represent the eight phases of the moon - the waxing crescent, the first quarter, the waxing gibbous, the full moon, the waning gibbous, the last quarter, the waning crescent, and the new moon. Just as Nyoro of the Summer Solstice upon the manifestation of Night finds herself a reluctant servant of her mistress, so too does Kailak of the new moon. Both secret themselves in hidden parts of their respective bubbles, yet both remain intricate components of the cycles they belong to.

Another key feature of the Manifestation of Mother Moon is the Mirror of Dangerous Visions. Like the Pool of Blood and Shadows found on the Night Bubble, the mirror reflects images of the astral plane, which shift intermittently to show different locations on all of the spheres. By touching the mirror, one is transported to the location depicted. As edifices of power, the great trees do not pierce the outer planes beyond the ethereal, being wholly incompatible with elemental, cosmic, or astral energies. Aside from those powers possessed by individual wiccan astrologers, these mirrors provide the communes with their only link to travel to the astral plane.

Ethereal aetherspace provides a unique view of the forest communes and their natures. While a busy life within the Basin can easily lead one to be perennially caught up in the differences and animosity which exists between the communes, looking in from aetherspace one sees only the similarities. The communes share far more in common than any two cities, regardless of current politics. They share ownership and dual guardianship of the ethereal plane with an inherent camaraderie unparalleled by any other organizations.

The Cosmic Plane

The rift extending to the Cosmic plane is located far to the northwest of the central ring in and isolated portion of prime aetherspace. The Cosmic plane itself bears some similarity to both the elemental and the ethereal planes. A ring of pure aether surrounds the entire plane, though where on elemental it is bounded by shoals at either side, in cosmic aetherspace it is bounded by shoal and slipstream, making for jarring and uneasy flight owing to the highly different consistencies of these two aether environments.

Not to be confused with the 'outer planes,' a term which refers to the whole of the planescape beyond prime, the many sub-planes of the cosmic plane are formally referred to as the 'higher planes.' The higher planes are the divine creches, those pockets of reality created by Dynara to act as the cradles of incubation for the entities which we know as the elder gods. In a very literal sense, the cosmic plane is the birthplace of the gods. We must assume that there are many and more of the higher planes which have existed or do exist beyond our reach, but at the time of this writing there are only four which are accessible via travel through the aetherways.

The planes of Celestia and Nil reside near the rift to prime aetherspace in the southern portion of the plane. Residing within each of these creches are divine beings whose development was never completed. They are creatures of great power, though not near that of the elder gods, who are known collectively as the 'half-formed.' The half-formed of Celestia are known as the Holy Supernals. The cosmic plane of Nil has been altered and corrupted by the taint. Once known as Shallamar, the home of the Holy Emanations, the half-formed of Nil are now referred to as the Demon Lords.

Northwest of Nil and Celestia are the planes of Vortex and Continuum. Continuum is regarded as a dead plane - its purpose as creche or cradle served, the gods there formed and departed. The plane is characterized by the cold emptiness of its crystalline appearance. Sharply contrasting Continuum is the Vortex, a creche created but never utilized. Burgeoning with proto-life and seething pots of flesh, the Vortex can be extremely unsettling for visitors. Uninhabited as they are, the planes of Vortex and Continuum were notably employed by the divine during the Elder Wars. As very isolated planes, meetings and various secretive enterprises could be conducted in the utmost privacy.

God Realms

In common with the Ethereal Plane, the Cosmic Plane is host to a number of god realms. Typically those who bear some affiliation with cities make their realms here, while those gods with affinity for the communes establish their realms on Ethereal. A god realm is an extension of a divine temple into the aether. Formed by the Elder Gods themselves, the realms are populated by creatures or denizens affiliated with the gods, generally in a very familiar way. The realm of Eventru, presently the largest of the god realms, is populated by merian priestesses, while the realm of Shikari, one of the smallest realms, is inhabited by leopards. Notably, it is fairly common for the commune-affiliated divine to employ fae for this purpose, though this trend is certainly not universal.

Denizen or beast, the number of occupants in a given realm is relative to its size, thus the largest realms are often the easiest to defend against invaders. God realms must grow in size in concert with a divine's temple. They may not be more than twice as large. The god realms are linked directly to divine temples, which themselves are linked to prime, however these temples also exist in a type of limbo specific to no plane. They are perhaps planes of existence unto themselves, every one.

The god realms are multifunctional. As places of worship, they are often created with spectacular and thought provoking landscapes. Praise of the realm inhabitants yields blessings for those devout who take the time to engage in this activity. The realms are also a key battleground in formal order wars, large-scale conflicts which are extremely rare. Consisting primarily of mounting an invasion campaign inside an enemy realm, order wars are brief, bloody affairs which result in truefavour rewards for the victors at the expense of the losing god's essence. The gods themselves do not participate in these wars, rather they are conflicts between each divine's worshippers and their allies. Order wars are one of the few ways in which mortals can do meaningful harm to an elder god, in the form of depleting large amounts of their essence. The risk of such a prospect to both sides, and the fact that those who are challenged are not compelled to accept, account for the rarity of these disputes.

The realms also act in aetherspace in a similar manner to the way shrines function within the material world, as a place where offerings may be made to that divine. Algontherine entities are able to absorb some small amount of essence from any creatures killed by the turrets mounted inside them, something which is indicated by the glow which may be seen to surround the creatures. The extent to which the entities may absorb essence is dictated by the size of the ship, with the largest ships having the capacity to absorb essence into the millions. This essence may be offered at the docks of god realms and the credit for these offerings is divided among the crew members on board.

The Astral Plane

From prime aetherspace, the rift to the astral plane is located to the far north, in the outer ring of pure aether, where dwell the black dragons. The astral plane consists of a series of twelve zodiac spheres as well as the thirteenth sphere, which orbit around each other in a predictable, if irregular pattern. Their positions in aetherspace however, are fixed. The Astral plane is famed for being the prison of Almighty Kethuru, most powerful of the Soulless gods. When Emperor Ladantine led the party which first breeched the veil to the Astral Plane as part of Project Cosmic Hope, it caused the release of vast amounts of the Soulless god's energy into the Basin of Life. The resultant damage and corruption is what we know as the Taint.

The spheres of the astral plane stand as twisted and deformed landscapes rife with monstrous creatures with no impulse but to kill and devour. What the spheres were like before Kethuru was imprisoned here by the last nine Vernal Gods, we have no idea. And yet despite all this, astral aetherspace has an incredibly benign appearance. One might expect to transverse onto the plane and be immediately besieged by horrors untold, yet they would be mistaken. Thin, commonplace slipstream is the most abundant environment on the plane, and second to that is the swirling tempest. Astral space itself can be found in the immediate vicinity of the astral spheres and when viewed on the horizon has a deceptive appearance which closely mimics that of flux.

Astral space is anything but benign, however. An immediate, high pitched keening rings ceaselessly here, mingled with hideous, blood-curdling screaming that shrieks of rage and madness. The algontherine ships are able to bear existing in this place, but shudder constantly, either in resonance with corrupted energies of the space or else in fear. Though they rarely appear in the course of normal flight through astral space, the tendrils of Kethuru which lurk here are among the most fearsome creatures one can encounter in aetherspace. While the tendrils do not move as fast as dragons nor hit quite as hard, they do hit very hard, and incredibly quickly. The nature of the Soulless gods to devour any and all things unthinkingly results in the tendrils' being the only type of creature found in astral space.

The only exception to this rule is the rare appearance of vortex karibideans, creatures that feed specifically on dying vortices. A vortex in aetherspace is an object similar to a power node. Just like on the astral plane, these vortices can be linked to (siphoned from), but this flow of energy attracts local creatures, which must be fought off. Vortices also function as plane-localized rifts. Ships can tunnel through them and emerge at a semi-random, though usually nearby, spot within the same plane. Vortices are extremely ephemeral objects, and become highly unstable once they are nearly drained of power and near to collapse. Ships which siphon extraordinary amounts of power from vortices while they are destabilizing run the risk of being flung unwillingly to a random location within that plane.

Karibideans, uniquely, may be found in any aether environment in the immediate vicinity of these dying vortices, and only there. It is speculated that karibideans exist in general in the space between the planes, feeding on the energy of vortices which run through this space. One theory regarding them suggests that they only emerge onto the known planes of existence, and into aetherspace, in defence of their food source. Their attacks, which drain power directly from an aethership's reserves, are further evidence to support this theory regarding their nature.

On Aetherships

With so much to experience and explore in aetherspace, it seems fitting to close with a more comprehensive look at aetherships. Aetherships are made via the introduction of an algontherine entity to an aether manse. As noted, the algontherine are harvested as eggs by the gnomes of the Facility, and are sold through Trader Bob at the Algontherine Hatchery, just south of the Aetherplex. The process by which the algontherine breed and nest remains a secret closely guarded by the gnomes, and given the apparent profitability of such a trade, evidenced by the high prices the eggs fetch, it is no wonder. We of the Basin must resign ourselves to being grateful for the free trade of these entities.

Algontherine entities bond with the aether manse environment to create living ships. While it is often easy to forget that they are living entities, the personalities of algontherine entities will adapt to their commanders' wills, should the proper attention be paid to this. Once an egg is hatched and the command chair formed, an aether manse is then technically a ship, but such a ship is yet quite incomplete. At minimum, a ship will require an empathic grid as well as a shield orb for safe travel. When docked, an aethership will slowly recover from any damage it has received to its hull or its modules. This process is extremely slow, however, and so the active healing mechanism granted by the grid is highly desired. In addition, those learned in the skill of aethercraft may use the grid to form communications links both with other ships, and with the material planes.

The shield orb is required to activate a ship's forcefield. Aether creatures may attack a ship's hull at range, and if the creature should be invested with slivven parasites, there is a chance for transference to the algontherine ship. Slivven parasites attach themselves to the modules of aetherships, where they slowly attack. If not addressed quickly, slivvens can cause considerable damage to a ship, causing the modules to operate more slowly with intermittent malfunctioning. These effects are magnified the longer a slivven is permitted to remain alive. For this reason, most hunting parties designate a crew member whose only job is to fend off the slivven parasites. When not engaged in aggressive actions however, a ship's forcefield will act as a shield against ranged attacks and thus to slivvens as well.

As noted throughout this volume the creatures found in aetherspace are highly variable in strength. The lixin and slanikk found in the slipstream are the least deadly, while the black dragons and tendrils of Kethuru are most dangerous. Those flying through the aetherways simply to travel or explore will almost always be able to simply fly past aetherbeasts without incident. Forcefields protect from ranged attacks, and the creatures must be allowed to remain in the same immediate area of aetherspace to do any real harm. While normally it is possible to move quickly past any aetherbeasts that may be blocking your way before they strike, it is common enough for them to get in a lucky hit as you pass. For this reason, it is recommended that aetherships which will be in frequent use be expanded so as to strengthen their hulls.

The hull strength, or size of an aethership is directly proportional to the amount of rooms within the ship. A one room ship with a command chair has a hull size of one thousand, and every additional room on the ship increases that hull size by fifty. Every module requires its own room. Aetherbeasts have several types of attacks, which may do damage directly to the hull, directly to one module with a lesser graze to the hull, or a broad attack which damages several modules as well as the hull. The single strongest attack to the hull is made by a black dragon, a whopping two thousand damage. Of course, it is incredibly easy to avoid black dragons for the most part, by simply not flying through the pure aether environments which they inhabit.

Additional hull strength also carries with it the caveat of reduced flying speed, an effect which is magnified should the command chair module be damaged in any way. Small ships are incredibly fast, capable of breezing through vast swathes of straight-away within the slipstream in the blink of an eye. Many pilots find this effect overwhelming, and may deliberately throttle their speed by engaging the ship's far horizon viewing mechanism, which allows them to take in a greater range of the surrounding environments while sacrificing flight speed. It is left to the commander to determine the amount of hull strength that is appropriate for a ship's purposes, however this author suggests that twelve to fifteen hundred hull strength is appropriate to a vessel used primarily for travel, while those which will be used for hunting should be at least in the range of twenty-two hundred with more margin of error suggested for less experienced pilots. Larger ships may certainly be employed for hunting too, as long range speed is typically of no concern in the popular methods, however these larger hull sizes are most commonly found in war ships, those vessels which have been fully outfitted for ship to ship combat.

Hunting and Exploration

Ships designated for hunting require, in addition to the grid and orb modules, three turrets, as well at least one energy collector. When slain, aetherial creatures leave behind glaetherial dust in amounts that vary by the strength of the creatures. Dust may be collected and stored in aetherholds, from where it can be traded with the gnomes. Aether trading can be a considerable effort for varying profit, however. Many people simply do not bother, and so aetherhold modules are decidedly optional. Each aetherhold will store up to fifty tons of glaetherial dust, and unlimited amounts of trade goods and auronidion particles. The dust and particles have a relatively short life-span and will decay at a rate of ten percent per month either when stored in hulls or simply left in aetherspace.

Ships designed for hunting and exploring may or may not be outfitted with the various diamonut upgrades, as determined by the owner's needs and budgets. Those ships which are frequently used for travel and exploration are most benefited by the spiderweb and antenna diamonuts, both modifications made to the empathic grid. The antenna diamonut extends a ship's visible field into the surrounding aetherways, exceeding even the farhorizon view in a standard ship. Of course, the far horizon may still be enabled for an even greater scope of the surrounding environment. The spiderweb diamonut boosts the grid's healing capabilities, including notable passive hull repair. This allows a solo pilot to continue uninterrupted flight should the ship be grazed incidentally by an aetherbeast without the need to stop for repairs.

Hunting ships benefit most greatly from the spiderweb diamonuts, as well as turret modifications. Lightning diamonuts, those which increase the rate of fire on a turret, may be prioritized before the starburst diamonuts, which boost damage. Aetherbeasts are all large, with the exception of gorgogs, who are merely oversized but appear in massive swarms. Owing to this, they will all require many consecutive turret blasts to be taken down. Turret blasts may be compounded with critical hits, the frequency of which comes from both a gunner's skill in aethercraft and any bonuses to this rate non-specific to aethercraft in general. For these reasons, it is frequently the rate of fire, rather than the strength of any one standard hit, that has the most bearing on the time it takes to eliminate an aetherbeast.

The expensive anchor module is another which is favoured by hunting ships. As hunting grounds tend to be far out of the way of the docks, crews are often loathe to be running back and forth between them to retrieve fresh crew members. By creating a temporary dock, which is the function of the anchor module, one can use an algontherine whistle to call up a second ship to the location where they can board the hunting ship. Anchor modules are also useful in providing a safe area to rest in should the pilot's attention be drawn temporarily away from the flight. Despite these useful utilities, the anchor module is decidedly a luxury item on any ship.

The hourglass diamonut for an energy collector is another such optional hunting accoutrement. This modification allows collectors to siphon double the amount of energy from a vortex at every turn. This particular technology is still somewhat crude. Rather than refining the energies drawn from a vortex to increase the power yield, it literally draws double the power from the vortex, resulting in its faster depletion and consequently the more frequent need to find new vortices from which to siphon as well as the more frequent appearances of karibideans. Since the accumulation of power in the ship's collectors is more often a by-product of aether hunting, rather than its goal, this modification is often deliberately omitted from ship design.

War Ships

War ships are the largest type of vessel, though this is an informal designation. The war ship category may be further subdivided into the categories of flagships and battleships. War ships are perfectly adequate vessels for exploration and hunting, however their large hulls and consequent slower speeds tend to leave them unfavourable for sheer travel. In general, warships will be comprised of at least thirty rooms, yielding at least twenty-five hundred hull strength. They will be fully outfitted with all of the diamonut upgrades mentioned, with the exception of the optional hourglass diamonuts, and sometimes with the addition of a cloaking cube. War ships are very rare in the aetherways for a couple of obvious reasons. They are extremely expensive to construct, and as they are typically manned by a full and competent crew, there is simply no need for there to be many more than there are - there would be no one to man them.

A ship's cloak enables it to move through aetherspace undetected, avoiding all blanket scans and even able to move past other ships without their notice. Cloaked ships are unable to be targeted. Attempts to directly locate individual ships, by triggering the algontherine's astralsense, will confirm a cloaked ship's presence in the aetherways, but not its whereabouts. Another ship with its own active cloaking mechanism will be able to detect the whereabouts of other cloaked ships, as well as target them. A wheel diamonut may or may not be utilized to modify the command chair depending on the hull strength, the pilot's preference, and the ship's intended usage. This diamonut augments the ship's speed allowing the larger ships, which would otherwise be considered lumbering, to fly more quickly through the aetherways. War ships which are not used for actual flight have no need for the wheel diamonuts.

Flagships are the larger of the war ships, and typically have between three and four thousand hull strength, though with some variation. Ships of this calibre are almost always deeded to organizations. The Great Arachnid of Glomdoring, the Midnight Keep of Magnagora, Nierrta, Gentle Winged Beauty of the Wilde of Serenwilde, New Celest's Methrenton's Hammer, and Enigma's Gambit of the Order of Elostian are five such ships. Their larger hulls can be attributed to several factors. As semi-public vessels, flagships will frequently be operated by crew members of less skill and experience, and a larger hull allows a larger margin of error. In combat, these ships are used to deal damage with capacity to withstand significant damage.

One notable feature of the shield orb not yet mentioned is its ability to absorb the damage of turret fire leaving the hull untouched until it is either considerably damaged or disabled. Its capacity for doing so is directly correlated to the size of its hull. Unless the shield orb is permanently or temporarily disabled due to a clarion blast, the presence of dead space, or turret stripping, these flagships are able to stand up to huge amounts of damage.

Battleships are sleeker and more agile than flagships. These ships typically have hull strength in the range of twenty-five hundred, and which allows them to maintain speed while still having substantial hull strength. Battleships are typically privately owned by true aether enthusiasts, and have been carefully constructed to fit the needs of their commanders. They are fully outfitted with artefact diamonuts, and despite their smaller hulls are often more deadly than flagships owing to skill and experience of their owners and operators. Notable battleships in current use include the Widow's Web, the Judgement of Carrion, and the Aether Wyrm.

Each type of war ship requires a significant investment, and the building of aetherships can often be a long term project into which one's excess funds can be funnelled. Small ships and those under construction can be of significant use during the battles which occur during eruptions of the aether flares or any large scale conflicts in aetherspace. A third and minor type of war ship is the bombardier. These tiny ships are often equipped with no more than a chair and a turret, though often also with a grid and orb. They are generally employed for the sole purpose of bombarding the aether rings, and joining with the rest of an organization's armada in assaulting enemy ships. They are extremely vulnerable to attacks, but can be quite useful in speeding up the sequence of bombardments if the area surrounding a dock has been secured during these conflicts.

Implosion

Should a ship's hull be reduced to nothing, the ship will implode upon itself. The same is true if a ship's active energy reserves should be entirely depleted. Ship implosion kills everyone on board instantaneously. This effect is particular to adventurers. Just as mortals can reform from death, however, ships reform at the aetherplex following implosion. Any corpses or miscellaneous objects that do not remain with the body through death reform with the ship, as do any creatures on board at the time of the implosion. This includes slivven parasites, who will continue to damage modules even while ships are docked, and so it is important to destroy these creatures even if the ship does not intend to launch again immediately.

The consequences of an implosion are fairly minimal. The ship is emptied of most of its active power reserves, as well as all of the contents of its aetherholds. Half of any glaetherial dust and all of the auronidion particles that were in the holds remain at the implosion site. Any trade goods that were on board are destroyed. Any power stored within the ship's energy collectors remains intact. The algontherine entity requires a few minutes' recovery time before it is ready to launch again, though it can be moved to a dock besides the Aetherplex with the use of an algontherine whistle during this time. Implosions and their causes are visible to everyone who is sensing death.

Conclusion

Aetherspace offers a remarkable amount of things to do and experience and yet surprisingly few ever really see them. So many people believe aetherspace to consist solely of aetherhunting, with the aetherbubbles and their surrounding spaces only a battleground during eruptions of the aether flares. The advent of aetherspace transplanar contrivances has been a great advance in travel to the aetherbubbles, yet sadly has contributed to something of a decline in the fancy of aetherspace generally. With less need to learn to fly, few do, and so fewer come to appreciate the scale and intricacy of the multiplane aetherways. This book hopes to inspire in others the love for aetherspace shared with the author. Thank you for reading.

Author's Notes:

One question I was asked by my editors in the writing of this volume was why I chose to address the elemental plane before the ethereal, while the rest of the planes are addressed in their proper order moving outward from the prime plane. The reason for this is two-fold. First, it was my desire to address Xion as near as possible to the rest of the aetherbubbles proper - those neutral territories we contend over during the aether flares. Secondly, it is my opinion that the ethereal and cosmic planes have more in common, despite their energies being wildly different, and I wished to pair them closer together.