Hey everybody my name is Jorphdan with a silent PH in the middle and I talk about D&D lore.
Let’s chat about the Plane of Air and the Court of Ice and Steel.
I’d like to name this video the Court of Ice and Steel which is the grand palace in
the Plane of Air, but I feel it’s not as well known as say the City of Brass.
Either way you’re here, you clicked on this video so thank you.
Let’s dive into the basics of the Plane of air, talk about notable locations and the
Djinn!
The plane of air is probably the most hospitable for humanoids, especially those that can fly.
It’s a popular place for Wizards to have their wizard towers for isolated research.
It is across from the elemental plane of earth and is beside the planes of water and fire.
The planes intermingle a bit with each other, and with the planes of positive and negative
energy.
This creates the quasi-elemental planes of Lightning and Vacuum, and the para-elemental
planes of Ice and Smoke.
On the prime material plane vortices occur when there is a high concentration of that
element.
At the center of that hurricane you’re character is fighting might be a vortex to the elemental
plane of Air.
The elemental plane of air is an eternal sky.
It is completely filled with air, with small pockets or bubbles of fog, steam, mist, smoke,
and poisonous or acidic vapors.
There can also be rare intrusion of elemental fire, which is the fire that burns without
fuel.
There is very little earth, which would be land chunks, sand, ash, salt.
What is found here is usually brought in by intelligent creatures to form habitats.
Or they are remnants of attacks from the Elemental Plane of Earth.
The elemental plane of Air is very blue, there is a light that radiates throughout the plane,
but it doesn’t have a specific source.
Perpetually looking like a clear summer day.
There is wind, tornadoes, hurricanes, and lightning.
Extreme weather is common and storms occur frequently.
There is a complex web of air streams within the plane of air known as the Labyrinth Winds.
These range from stiff breezes to powerful gales, flying creatures must navigate this
web carefully.
There is no up or down and groups of creatures tend to agree on what is “down” and other
non-intelligent phenomena tend to follow that.
Rain falls, rocks rolls etc.
Air elementals live here, as well as invisible stalkers, and wind walkers.
However any creature with a flying speed can make a home here in the Plane of Air.
Hippogriffs, pegasi, sphinxes, air genasi as well as the Djinn.
The Djinn rule over a small number of lands within the Plane of Air.
These are small and scattered settlements with maybe half a dozen households living
on one earth mote.
Each household is about 15 djinn with a few jann servants and other elemental creatures
of low intelligence.
The Djinn have a mighty citadel that is their home and cultural center; their city of brass
if you will.
Called the Citadel of Ice and Steel it is a gigantic chunk of elemental ice and earth
that has been smoothed over time by the winds.
It now stands as a nearly perfect oval.
Apparently the princess of Elemental Evil known as Inix once had claim over the citadel
but a powerful Djinn overthrew her and claimed it for their race.
The great Caliph Husam al-Balil ben Nafhat al-Yugayyim, also known as the Master of the
clouds, and Son of the Breezes rules over all djinn.
He rarely leaves the Citadel of Ice and Steel, which his palace is located in the center.
The Djinn battle the Efreeti often and the two have a strong dislike for each other.
The two genies battle over slaves, with both sides enjoying and collecting slaves.
However with the Djinn, their servants who are technically retainers, who may leave at any
time, most stay though because it is considered an honor to serve.
Sometimes noble djinn will undertake a raid to free slaves from the efreet or the dao
(earth genies).
However it is well understood that the Dao and Efreeti are more powerful than the Djinn
so these assaults must be done with surprise and stealth.
Visitors marvel at the fabulous floating cities of the djinn, and the Citadel of Ice and Steel
is by far the greatest of these cities.
The Caliph lives here with his six times six advisors.
Curiously enough the citadel is constantly falling, or moving forward depending on how
you view “down.”
The constant motion creates a rush or air and nobody can force their will to set which
is down except the Caliph.
The entire place is made for flying creatures, there are no stairs to navigate the varying
levels.
The citadel of ice and steel is partially made from eternal or unmelting ice.
A substance transported from the paraplane of ice.
This ice is carved like rock; with archways created from steel taken from the quasi plane
of mineral.
The citadel is so big that smaller chunks of rock and ice orbit it.
These chunks also house visiting djinn nobles or the Caliph’s own court.
The overall population is 15,000 djinn and 50,000 jann.
Jann being the weakest of genies who reside mainly in the prime material plane, in Zakhara
the land of fate, but djinni will take them as servants.
There is little production occurring in the Citadel of Ice and Steel.
They produce decrees, rulings, and collect taxes but it is not a merchant hub like the
City of Brass.
However some djinni weave silk or create feather headdresses, sashes, and cloaks.
Most of the riches that come into the Plane of Air and thus the citadel come from the
Prime Material Plane.
Djinn will send their servants to seek treasure and goods, bringing them back to the citadel.
There is a militia that protects the citadel, but in general it is lightly defended.
There is little ground so most troops are archers, or fast flying aerial type creatures.
When needed this militia can be called upon to protect the city.
The Teeth of the Wind, the Azure Legion with their wands of lightning, the Monsoon Legion
of it’s 1,000 elite djinn soldiers and the Silver Turban Legion of 250 griffon-mounted
troops.
Hidden deep in the Citadel is the mysterious Invisible College.
A group of sorcerous djinn who use deception and illusion magic to defend the Citadel.
They wield a magic that is unknown to much of the multiverse, but perhaps it’s possible
for your air genasi sorcerer to infiltrate their ranks and learn.
Pending approval from the Caliph of course.
If you enjoyed this video consider giving it a thumbs up and sharing it with your gaming
group.
There is a sorcerer class within the second edition Al-Qadim supplements called Sha’ir.
You’re basically a sorcerer that got their power from a genie and have a small jann that
follows you around.
I think it would be a great subclass to come to 5e.
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