The Gray Wastes

The Gray Wastes are an Outer Plane home of the daemons. Located at the midpoint of the Lower Planes, it is a plane of evil balanced between Law and Chaos. Vorandor the Defiler's realm, the Rotted Tower, is also situated in this plane.

The four layers of the Gray Wastes are called glooms for they are realms devoid of emotion, hope, and peace. Gray land and gray sky throughout, with no sun, moon or seasons to break the monotony. Any color other than shades of gray is obvious against the background but fades to gray in a week or two. And like bright colors, beings begin to fade also. At first they feel the drain of emotions leaving only sadness, ennui, and defeatism. In a tenday or two they are trapped in the Wastes and their existence begins to fade until finally they become larvae.

The daemons are the presumed rulers of the Gray Wastes, but are actually outnumbered by the bird-like diakk and the greater powers have no trouble carving out realms for themselves. Factions of demodands carry on a low-level insurgency, sniping at the daemons but generally avoiding large-scale conflict that might attract the attention of the resident deity. Also known to inhabit all layers of of the Wastes are achaierai, nightmares, mephits and night hags.

The first layer of the Gray Wastes, Othrys, is the land of disease with stunted and withered plants amid gray rocky terrain. The river Styx flows through this layer. Anyone walking this land or floating on the river Styx has a chance of contracting a major disease. Many of the daemons and some of the other creatures from the lower middle planes who are immune to disease make their home here.

The second layer, Porphatys, is covered by a shallow ocean. The water is cold and acidic. People can die from bathing in it. The ocean has small islands of the height of sandbars. They have a lot of caves and were desired living space for the inhabitants, who generally want to leave the entire layer. Another feature of Porphatys is the constant black snow, which is also acidic. It is especially dangerous to organic matter and makes travel extremely dangerous because giant clouds that would occasionally gather.

The third layer, Agathys is one covered in black ice. Apart from the dangers of a minor negative-dominant layer, Agathys is also dangerously cold for unprotected people. The air is quite thin and makes it hard for people to exert themselves. Staying in one place is dangerous for anybody. People can become embedded in the ice through freezing.

The fourth layer, Minethys, although consisting of rock that is of volcanic origin, is geologically dead and devoid of any signs of life. There is no wind, no source of light or heat, and no natural sounds. The only pervasive smell is that of brimstone. The only times wind blows on the slopes are when an occasional portal shifts the air. The only sounds heard are distant footsteps of visitors.