I know that last time I posted a blog post on my own vision of the planes for Pathfinder and 5e, I promised the chaotic neutral plane. Well, after thinking on my vision more, I realized that it was not Chaotic Neutral at all but Chaotic Evil. Since I am still trying to put my ideas for CN into focus, I will go ahead and share with you my idea for the Chaotic Evil plane, or as I like to think of it, the Lands of Eternal Chaos and Destruction.
Before I begin, I want to reiterate why I am doing this (incase you missed it on my various social media posts). Angels and devils and demons are a solid class imagery of good and evil … that I hate using. First off, they are ripped from a Judo-christian tradition. While there is nothing wrong with taking from real world mythology and putting it into your game, I do not feel it right to set one religion apart and say that religion feels are symbols of pure good and evil should be a fantasy world’s symbols for pure good and evil. So I want to change them into something that would be both unique and understandable to those in our own reality today, those 1,000 years ago, all the while still making sense inside of a fantasy setting. All that said, here we go.
There is a quote I absolutely love from the TV Show MASH.
War is war. Hell is hell. Of the two, war is worse. … In hell there are no innocent bystanders. Everyone there deserves to be there.
And this, more than anything else is my guiding light for my vision of the plane of chaotic evil. This plane should be a war-torn hellscape. Imagine the images out of Syria. That is this land of unreason. Constant fighting. Constant warfare. The element of fire’s forces are burning down the fey forests who are in turn fighting the air force’s sail barges, who are … you get the idea. Through it all are the mercenaries. These creatures of pure evil with no regard of loyalty or order care not for what they destroy as long as they get to destroy something. They join one side and help them for however long they are paid to do so and once they are done will gladly fight against their former employers if paid by someone else.
What is worse, this is where the worst weapons are first created. A people so obsessed with warfare are always looking for an edge over those they fight against. Military people that become consumed with the thought of destroying their enemies will be more than happily make whatever bargain the mercenaries are asking for, no matter how perverted, cruel, or conniving if it means they get a hold of the means for triumph.
Be sure to revisit JonBrazer.com frequently to see the next in our series of reimagining the outer planes. Next time we will do one of the good ones.
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