“The Eternals are fortunate beyond mortal understanding. Their paths were forged before the first spire turned. They embody ideals so pure that uncertainty cannot touch them. Justice does not question itself. Wisdom does not wonder whether it is wisdom. Mercy does not debate its own purpose. Mortals are not granted such certainty. We walk among infinite shades where virtue and vice mingle like colors in water. A king may save a nation through cruelty. A murderer may perform a single act of grace that echoes through generations. Between perfect order and absolute chaos lie countless possibilities, and it is within this uncertain middle ground that souls are tested. The Dream Plane reflects these possibilities, while the Nightmare Plane reminds us of every failure that might have been. Together they shape the journey of mortal existence far more than any sword or spell.”
— As recorded by Eolon of Oemon, from the journals of King Iandor Greymon, called Dreamwalker, and from my own studies of the hidden roads between worlds.
Among all the planes that surround Ancestral, none reveal the nature of existence more clearly than the realms of Dreams and Nightmares.
To the unlearned they appear as simple opposites: one a refuge of comfort, the other a prison of terror. Yet the truth is more subtle.
Dreams and Nightmares
Dreams are not merely pleasant illusions, nor are nightmares simply fear given shape. They are reflections of the oldest struggle in creation, the eternal contest between Harmony and Entropy, between becoming and unmaking. Every sleeping soul walks unknowingly upon this battlefield.
| The Dream Plane | The Nightmare Plane |
|---|---|
| Gathers hopes, memories, desires, and possibilities not yet born | Feeds upon doubt, despair, and the countless paths that lead to ruin |
| Without fear, becomes complacency | Without hope, becomes emptiness |
Between them stretch the Mantle and the Coil, veils separating order from chaos, creation from oblivion, yet neither side can exist without the other. Thus the cosmos remains suspended between the two.
The Void
Many sages believe this duality extends beyond the dreaming realms and into the very structure of reality. The Void, that endless absence between worlds and planes — waits eternally beyond creation. It possesses neither purpose nor malice, only a silent hunger to return all things to stillness.
Against this emptiness stand the worlds born of Harmony, each one a fragile light against an infinite darkness. Dreams inspire creation, nightmares challenge it, and through their struggle existence itself continues. Were either side to triumph completely, life would cease: absolute order would freeze all change and possibility, while absolute chaos would shatter every law until nothing endured. It is the tension between them that allows the spires to turn and history to unfold.
Ancestral, the Shield
For this reason the Loremasters teach that Ancestral is not merely a world but a shield. Like a great bastion raised before a city, it stands at the forefront of countless realms scattered across the cosmos. Here the armies of Heaven and the legions of Othmog clash generation after generation; here angels and demons contend not merely for land or souls but for the fate of creation itself.
The mirror worlds bear witness to what awaits should either side achieve complete victory:
| Mirror world | What it has become |
|---|---|
| Flawless order | Every thought, action, and destiny predetermined beneath the gaze of triumphant angels |
| Endless anarchy | Demons reign over ruin, and meaning itself has perished |
Between these dreadful certainties stands Ancestral, imperfect, and ever-changing. It is the final battleground of souls, the place where freedom survives, and perhaps the last fortress preventing the darkness beyond the stars from swallowing all worlds into silence.
“Between the dream that dares and the void that waits, every sleeping soul chooses which world to wake into.”
Iandor Greymon · the Dreamwalker
