The Anchors

What Are the Anchors

The Anchors are the stable, physical realities of the cosmos. They are the planes where matter is dense, physics hold steady, and life can exist. Unlike the Harmonics, which are abstract and conceptual, or the Resonant Zones, which are local anomalies lasting anywhere from minutes to, rarely, indefinitely, the Anchors are permanent, self-sustaining worlds with their own ecosystems, inhabitants, and physical laws.

All Anchors share certain properties:

• Physicality: Matter is real and tangible. Objects have weight, mass, and volume.
• Causality: Cause and effect function consistently, though local variations may exist.
• Permanence: Anchors do not appear or disappear at random.
• Connection: All Anchors are connected via the Veil, with the Material Plane serving as the central hub.

The Material Plane

The Material Plane is the central Anchor and the primary setting for mortal life. Scholars who hold it to be one Anchor among many often call it The Equilibrium, because it exists in a state of balance between the extremes of The Deficit Planes and The Surplus Planes.

The Balance

The Material Plane possesses a precise balance of scarcity and abundance:

• Resources are limited but renewable. There is enough food, water, and energy to sustain life, but not so much that growth becomes uncontrollable.
• Danger exists but is not omnipresent. Predators, disasters, and conflicts occur, but there are also periods of peace and safety.
• Truth is attainable but not forced. Secrets can be kept, but lies can also be uncovered.
• Connection is possible but not mandatory. Individuals can form bonds, but they can also choose solitude.

The Significance of Choice

The Material Plane is the only Anchor where free will truly functions. In the Deficit Planes, behaviour is dictated by survival pressures. In the Surplus Planes, behaviour is dictated by environmental saturation. Only in the Material Plane can a being choose to be cruel or kind, generous or selfish, honest or deceptive.

This makes alignment with the Primes on the Material Plane a matter of choice. Mortals who align with them do so freely, making that alignment a deeper and steadier resonance than the instinctual resonance of the extreme planes.

Connection to Other Anchors

The Material Plane serves as the hub of the Anchor network. Travel between any two non-Material Anchors almost always requires passing through the Material Plane first. This makes it a crossroads for interplanar travellers, exiles, and invaders.

Thin spots in the Veil are most common in the Material Plane, particularly in locations that resonate with specific Anchors:

• Battlefields resonate with The Scourge.
• Deep caves resonate with The Frost-Bound.
• Ancient libraries resonate with The Silence.
• Lush forests resonate with The Verdant Expanse.
• Courtrooms resonate with The Gilded Cage.

The Deficit Planes

The Deficit Planes are Anchors defined by the absence of a vital element. Inhabitants are shaped by the need to acquire, hoard, or endure. They are often labelled "Hells" by Material Plane cultures, but this is a misunderstanding. Their inhabitants are not evil; they are adapted to extreme scarcity.

Summary Table

The Gradient of Scarcity

The five Deficit Planes exist on a gradient of deprivation:

• The Scourge is the most active. Violence is constant, but at least there is motion and struggle.
• The Ashen Wastes is the most depleted. Energy itself is dying, leaving only cold and decay.
• The Parched is the most visceral. The thirst is physical, immediate, and overwhelming.
• The Frost-Bound is the most still. The cold preserves but prevents all growth or change.
• The Silence is the most existential. It attacks not the body but the mind, identity, and Pattern coherence.

Inter-Plane Borders

The borders between Deficit Planes are harsh gradients:

• Scourge / Parched: A violent badland where predators compete for scarce resources.
• Ashen Wastes / Frost-Bound: A gradient of cold and decay where energy and warmth are both absent.
• Frost-Bound / Silence: A frozen void where even thought ceases.

The Surplus Planes

The Surplus Planes are Anchors defined by the excess of a vital element. Inhabitants are shaped by the need to contain, share, or stagnate. They are often labelled "Heavens" by Material Plane cultures, but this is also a misunderstanding. Their inhabitants are not good; they are adapted to extreme abundance, and their "virtues" often come at the cost of individuality, freedom, or growth.

Summary Table

The Gradient of Abundance

The five Surplus Planes exist on a gradient of saturation:

• The Verdant Expanse is the most vital. Life overflows, but individuality is consumed.
• The Gilded Cage is the most structured. Safety is guaranteed, but freedom is forfeit.
• The Radiance is the most revealing. Truth is absolute, but privacy is impossible.
• The Weave is the most connected. Empathy is perfect, but the self dissolves.
• The Apex is the most complete. Perfection is achieved, but nothing can ever change.

Inter-Plane Borders

The borders between Surplus Planes are blending gradients:

• Verdant Expanse / Weave: A zone of collective growth where the network of life and the network of minds merge into a single, pulsing organism.
• Gilded Cage / Apex: A gradient of order becoming perfection. The Cage enforces rules; the Apex makes them unnecessary.
• Radiance / Weave: A zone where truth and connection merge. Every thought is known, and every feeling is shared.

The Deficit-Surplus Axis

The Deficit Planes and The Surplus Planes are not opposites; they are complementary extremes. Each Deficit Plane has a corresponding Surplus Plane that represents the same concept in its saturated form.

The Material Plane sits at the centre of each axis, balancing the deficit and the surplus.

Travel Between Anchors

Via the Veil

All Anchor-to-Anchor travel requires passing through the Veil. The Material Plane is the central hub, making it the easiest point of access to all other Anchors.

Direct Connections

Direct travel between two non-Material Anchors is rare and dangerous. It requires:

• a powerful artefact attuned to both planes,
• a natural thin spot at the border of the two planes,
• or assistance from a being native to the Veil.

The Hub Rule

Because the Material Plane is the hub, most interplanar travellers must pass through it. This has several consequences:

• The Material Plane is a crossroads. Beings from all Anchors can be found here.
• The Material Plane is a battleground. Rival factions from different Anchors may clash on Material soil.
• The Material Plane is a sanctuary. Exiles from extreme Anchors often flee to the Material Plane for its balance.