Heaven

The soaring mountain of Heaven towers high above the Outer Sphere. This ordered realm of honor and compassion is divided into seven layers. Heaven’s slopes are filled with planned, orderly cities and tidy, cultivated gardens and orchards. Though they began their existences as mortals, Heaven’s native archons see law and good as indivisible halves of the same exalted concept, and array themselves against the cosmic perversions of chaos and evil.

Heaven is a realm of pure righteousness, where the forces of good gather to aid those on less virtuous planes and help worthy souls find rest. Though inconceivably large, most viewers perceive the plane as a mountain with a mysteriously floating peak. Heaven is as much a realm of law as it is one of goodness, and visitors unversed in its regulations may find themselves detained by its guardians. The archons who protect it are compassionate, but they also view any who have not earned their place within Heaven’s borders as lacking sufficient moral grounding to be trusted to wander freely. A visitor invited by a specific deity or other heavenly power might be welcomed and escorted to the proper realm, but told not to venture outside it. Other guests are often confined to Heaven’s Shore—sometimes called “Heathen Shore” by its residents—a city built to allow celestial beings to trade and consult with creatures from other planes without endangering all of Heaven. Heaven’s residents see law and goodness as largely the same force. Order is the greatest good, and goodness is the greatest order. They recognize the good intentions of the azatas of Elysium, but view them as misguided children. Similarly, they oppose the lawful evil forces of Hell, but credit them with intelligence and believe that they can at least be reasoned into truces and stalemates—and, perhaps, even redeemed—while chaotic and neutral evil forces must simply be eliminated or neutralized.

Structure
Heaven appears to most mortals and recently settled petitioners to be a great mountain. While mortal minds may conceptualize Heaven as a geographic region with familiar hallmarks like trees and buildings, it does not obey the same physical laws as the Material Plane. Mortals from vastly different worlds may even perceive the same location differently based on the environment in which they lived on the Material Plane.

Distances between areas are based as much on their philosophical affinity as they are on actual locations, and two locations may, paradoxically, be both extremely close and far away from one another at the same time.The mountain slopes slant downward, yet also host flat plains that seem to go on forever. One glance might reveal a stately city on the other side of a shining lake, while the next shows a lush forest. From its base, Heaven rises in seven tiers. While each tier technically exists above or below another, higher tiers do not represent greater authority within Heaven’s hierarchy.

Rather, each tier houses souls that fit its particular theme and carries out prescribed functions to ensure Heaven’s continued operations. A number of locations exist within the mountain or are otherwise not considered part of any layer. Six of the levels are governed by one or more powerful entities called stewards—leaders who do not rule in the traditional sense, but rather help organize and serve as the official authority for matters concerning their respective levels. Over time, different beings cycle in and out of terms of service as their tiers’ stewards—while an archon acting as steward might be weaker than some of Heaven’s other residents, even the gods recognize the role of government in lawful society, and thus grant the office proper deference. Though the governors are collectively called stewards, each has a unique honorific related to her tier’s focus (such as High Preceptor or Chief Moderator).

Residents
As with all the planes, Heaven’s residents may come from any number of worlds and realms of existence, though most fall into three distinct categories.

Petitioners: Mortal souls who have received Amna's judgement and travel here are greeted by lesser archons at the foot of the mountain and taken to the region that best suits their personality. There, they are, if possible, reunited with deceased loved ones who eagerly await their arrival. A few souls are called by what they claim to be a voice calling their name from the top of Heaven's mountain. They undertake the long climb to the summit, and if admitted to the Garden, are miraculously transformed into archons themselves, forever to serve others.

Deities and Other Powerful Outsiders: Gods, empyreal lords, lawful angels, and other powerful good-aligned outsiders often maintain homes or even entire realms on Heaven’s slopes or inside the mountain. Each deity’s realm is sovereign, and may bear no resemblance to or continuity with the areas around it. Heaven’s Native Inhabitants: Heaven’s most numerous native creatures are the archons, lawful good outsiders who serve as soldiers and administrators for the plane. Some archons are ascended petitioners, while others are generated spontaneously by the plane in the Garden. Numerous angels also reach their angelic status here, or are formed by the raw energy of the plane, and lawfully aligned celestial creatures roam Heaven’s landscapes.

Physical Traits
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 * Divinely Morphic: Deities with divine realms in Heaven can alter the plane at will.
 * Strongly Good-Aligned: Heaven is home to forces of good, and a –2 circumstance penalty applies to all Intelligence-, Wisdom-, and Charisma-based checks made by creatures that are not good-aligned while such creatures are in Heaven. These penalties stack with those inflicted by the plane’s strong lawful alignment.
 * Strongly Law-Aligned: Heaven is a place of law, and a –2 circumstance penalty applies to all Intelligence-, Wisdom-, and Charisma-based checks made by creatures that are not lawful while such creatures are in Heaven. These penalties stack with those inflicted by the plane’s strong good alignment.
 * Enhanced Magic: Spells and spell-like abilities with the lawful or good descriptor are enhanced, because they are in sync with Heaven’s nature. These spells function as if the caster level was 2 higher than normal.
 * Impeded Magic: Spells and spell-like abilities with the chaotic or evil descriptor are more difficult to cast because Heaven’s nature interferes with such spells. To cast a spell with the chaotic or evil descriptor, the caster must make a concentration check (DC = 20 + the level of the spell). If the check fails, the spell does not function but is still lost as a prepared spell or spell slot. If the check succeeds, the spell functions normally.

The Seven Heavens
Starting at the base of the mountain and going up, the Seven Heavens are: Source
 * 1) The Threshold, tasked with hospitality and defense
 * 2) Proelera, the mustering ground of Heaven's armies
 * 3) Clarion, dedicated to duty and self-purification
 * 4) Requius, the final resting place of virtuous souls who did not follow a particular deity in life
 * 5) Illumis, where residents gather to discuss philosophy and the nature of goodness
 * 6) Iudica, Heaven's administrative center
 * 7) The Garden, the peak of the mountain is flattened and contains somewhat of a mystery. A golden wall with a single gate provides access to the beautiful Garden. The gate to the Garden always remains open, its doors having wasted away eons ago.

The Threshold
Threshold is the bottommost level of Heaven. Most of its structures, inhabitants, and organizations are tasked with defense and hospitality. It is cooperatively overseen by two stewards: the Lord of the Wall Arqueros and the Lord of the Gate Julera Twice-Crowned.

It is also the location of the Field of Serenity, which is where petitioners who first appear in Heaven appear, part of massive lines of others who seek to gain access to their eternal rewards. The fields are covered in waves of rippling grain whose stems sound like wind chimes when they collide. Patiently waiting in line is said to please the powers of Heaven, who see it as dedication to the plane's lawful ideals.

A watery shore known as Heaven's Shore (or Heathen's Shore) also greets the Threshold and is the international trade district. Visitors of peaceful intent who lack a personal invitation to anywhere else on the plane may interact here with Heaven's inhabitants.

Finally, the Fortress of Ragathiel is here next to the Prime Vallation. It is a magnificent steel structure built to withstand a thousand-year siege if need be. The fortress serves as the home to the General of Vengeance, Ragathiel, empyreal lord of chivalry, duty, and vengeance. Its defensive nature protects against any advances from the Abyss or the Maelstrom.

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Proelera
Proelera is the second level of Heaven (as seen from the metaphysical bottom of Heaven's mountain). It serves as the mustering ground for armies of archons, angels, and other lawful and good celestials, and is overseen by its steward, Coreniel Stormcaller, the Voice of the Shining Host. Iomedae's Realm is located here as is Sandalphon's Court, the court of the empyreal lord who oversees the second Heaven.

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Clarion
Clarion is the third level of Heaven, where those who prefer to spend eternity meditating on duty, learning, and self-purification find their home. Its steward is the High Preceptor Homani.

It is here you will find Alabaster Passage, a path of white flagstones lined with black crystal pillars and surrounded on all sides by a small city of petitioners and archon guards. Most mortals who use magic or a gate to travel to Heaven find themselves at the Alabaster Passage. Visitors of good intention and with a valid reason for visiting are always well received here, while those with less pure motives are immediately detained.

The Citadel of Might Righteous' golden spires rise from h is the primary facility tasked with training Heaven's archon guards. Finally, The Grand Hall of Righteous Heralds is on this level, a museum dedicated to works honoring the heralds of various righteous deities in Heaven. The main, open air wing of the museum houses works of art honoring current heralds, while a smaller wing focuses on those who have held the position in the past.

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Requius
Requius is the fourth level of Heaven, and is a realm where the virtuous petitioners who do not hold with any particular faith or philosophy find their eternal rest. It is also a place for pacifist souls who are not interested in taking part in Heaven's ongoing crusade against the forces of chaos and evil throughout the Great Beyond. Its steward is known as the Shepherd, a role currently held by the empyreal lord Andoletta.

The personal realm of the god Erastil is located here. It appears as an expanse of gentle sloping farmland, forests, and quiet rivers, interspersed with small villages of petitioners and three larger trade cities.

The verdant Field of Opsimathy is the realm of the empyreal lord Andoletta, located on Requius. Here Andoletta makes her home in a villa surrounded by fields, libraries, and shops. The realm is open to any celestial recovering from battle, whom the empyreal lord encourages to learn and study while they recuperate. Here, also, happy families play in Andoletta's garden behind her feathered home and one can catch the smell of freshly-baked bread on the air.

Ghenshau's Grove is the personal realm of the empyreal lord Ghenshau, located near Erastil's Real. The empyreal lord can often be found talking or sharing a smoke with visitors and inhabitants of his realm.

The Great Library of Harmonious Scripture is the largest depository in Heaven of knowledge on the laws, cultures, inhabitants, and histories of other planes. Located on Requius, the Great Library also contains Heaven's plans for all of the planes, and is overseen by the empyreal lord Winlas. It is also served by the angel Ambrethiel. It is said that Jack of All Worlds often visits here and has spent many hours reading the books in its halls and speaking with Ambrethiel about them.

Mirialin, City of the Justice-Seekers is a shining metropolis located on Requius and is one of the level's largest cities. Like the rest of the tier, Mirialin is a haven for those of Heaven's inhabitants who do not hold with any specific deity, and is inhabited by large numbers of agnostics in particular.

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Illumis
Illumis is the fifth level of Heaven, and is the home of philosophical and moral debate and study. Here, the constantly evolving concept of what good is, is constantly tested, refined, and explored. Its steward is known as the Chief Moderator, a title currently held by Xokariel.

The Half-Empty Palace is a galena-walled structure located on Illumis. It is inhabited by the empyreal lord Falayna and her followers, who spend most of their time training in the wide courtyard at the heart of the palace. Most of its chambers are empty and silent, as its inhabitants spend the majority of their time in training or battle.

Despite owning the highest tower—the Winding Tower of Salaphiel—on the whole Illumis, Salaphiel is a mortal, elven wizard. Salaphiel achieved this accolade through a contract drawn up after he successfully aided the forces of Heaven.

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Iudica
Iudica is the sixth level of Heaven, located metaphysically just below the Garden. Iudica is tasked with administrating and governing all the countless beings of Heaven. It has no single steward, but rather is overseen by the Council of Vision. The Council of Vision acts as the steward of Iudica, the sixth level of Heaven. It is tasked with the monumental task of overseeing the government and administration of all of Heaven itself. Its three members are known as the Head, the Heart, and the Hand, which respectively embody knowledge and wisdom, love and salvation, and righteous military action. Even though it is no secret which archon currently holds each position, each is only referred to by his or her title when acting in an official capacity.

The Courts of Accord is located in a stately white building on Iudica where its leaders periodically convene to discuss important issues and patiently weigh ethical decisions. Such concepts would likely be regarded as impossible paradoxes to mortals. It is the home of the empyreal lords Damerrich, who resides in the southern wing of the Courts, and Olheon, who occupies the northern wing. Their proximity to one another helps these two empyreal lords work closely together. Between them lies the Hall of Thrones, the meeting chambers of Heaven's most powerful beings. At the back of the Courts of Accord, the Red Rotunda is a reminder that Heaven's justice sometimes involves execution.

The Empty Palace of Melek Taus is an enormous, empty steel-walled castle on the slopes of the celestial mountain of Heaven on Iudica that once was the home of the empyreal lord Melek Taus. Beautiful silver flying buttresses adorn its ramparts, decorated with gemstone murals showing Heaven's greatest victories against the forces of the Abyss and the Maelstrom. The palace now lies completely empty and open, with no archons patrolling its walls, but her former servants believe that Melek Taus will one day return.

The officers of the Grand Court of Heaven are the ultimate arbiters of goodness and law in Heaven. Located on Iudica,, the Grand Court is a complex of courtrooms, libraries, scriptoria, and classrooms focused on judging the qualities of virtue, justice, and benevolence throughout the Great Beyond. The staff is composed of 71 angels, archons, empyreal lords, and deities who hear cases appealed from the 77 circuit courts that search for unresolved ethical issues throughout the planes. The officers of the Grand Court spend most of their time refining the laws of Heaven, but occasionally hear disputes between the plane's inhabitants, or direct appeals brought by fallen paladins or apostate clerics. The libraries of the Grand Court contain all of Heaven's laws, as well as records of its majority opinions, concurrences, and dissents, as well as those from the circuit courts. The empyreal lord Zohls locates his palace within the Grand Court of Heaven

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The Garden
The Garden is a walled realm situated at Heaven's mysterious Summit, surrounded by round walls and an open, broken gate. It mysteriously changes its appearance depending on each visitor: no one sees precisely the same thing when arriving and peering though the gates. Some see a simple garden tended by unknown hands, others a small and sheltered orchard with a solitary fruit-laden tree, or even a golden throne, empty and waiting for a worthy occupant. Nearly nothing definite is known of the Garden except that it is the birthing grounds of new archons from petitioners that had made their way to the Summit. Within its walls, each newborn archon undergoes a strange transformation, though none can entirely recall what has transpired. The Garden has no steward. The Summit is the highest peak of Heaven and is only few square miles in size. The location has no lord and no residents aside from the occasional petitioner. Such visitors never arrive at the same time. Beyond the transient spirits, only one thing exists there: the round walls and open, broken gate of a small garden at the center of the Summit.

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