Illustration by Wayne Reynolds

Close your eyes and imagine a magician drawing upon ancient forces and casting a spell, bringing magic into the world. What spell do they cast? When you think of magic, what do you see? Conjured torrents, exploding fireballs, pillars of stone—these spells, by my estimation, are precisely the sort that never stray far from our minds. The elements are quite inseparable from magic and, indeed, from all life. Our reality could never exist without them; there would be no water in the creeks, no forests of trees, no sun shining in the sky if the elements had not been shaped into being at the dawn of creation.

For me, exploring the Elemental Planes shares much in common with exploring different parts of my personality. I am a jann, a genie of the Universe who embodies all the elements simultaneously. They infuse my form, shaping my mind and body, and I can find aspects of myself within all of them. When I visit the Plane of Fire, I rediscover my passion and warmth. When I sail across the Plane of Water, I chart the vastness of my own heart. So too it must be for mortals, I think, who I’ve always imagined possess a unique ability to look into any plane they fancy and find a facet of themselves reflected back, a sort of universal empathy.

If you journey across the Elemental Planes, I believe you too will discover much about yourself, as well.

Illustration by Matsya Das

Think of each element as a friend, each with their own unique strengths and peculiarities. Examples of each element’s character abound, easily observed across the Elemental Planes and in the power wielded by elementalist spellcasters. A brief primer on the six elements follows, but there is much more that can be learned, and many secrets waiting to be discovered.

Illustration by Matsya Das

Air: Adrift among the Elemental Cycle, air possesses a breezy aura of defiance. It’s frenetic and excitable, suited to creating sudden bursts of energy that leave nothing behind, though air magic can also be unpredictable. Like the elemental lord Hshurha, air is also invisible, and often used when an elementalist hopes their efforts can pass unnoticed.

Illustration by Matsya Das

Earth: Earth is methodical, reliable, and steadfast, but some criticize its slow pace and focus on contemplation over action. It is life-giving and nurturing, making it an excellent choice for protection magic or spells to support and empower what strengths a target already has.

Illustration by Matsya Das

Fire: Passionate but not always rageful, fire burns with intensity but quickly devours its fuel, left smoldering thereafter as it struggles not to go out. In addition to its destructive potential, fire is warm and joyful, and like the elemental lord Atreia, fire can be illuminating, revealing hidden intentions and banishing away frightful shadows.

Illustration by Matsya Das

Metal: Metal is a melancholic element. It carries a sense of finality with it, like a play whose sad ending is clear from the opening scene. Metal never destroys with speed or passion; instead, it brings gradual but ensured destruction, like a rusty hinge that eventually becomes stuck.

Illustration by Matsya Das

Water: As you’ve no doubt felt while sitting by a quiet pond, water can be soothing and peaceful, and is suited to magics that slowly bring stillness and calm. Of course, water can also channel the great ferocity of the tsunami and reshape terrain with rivers and waterfalls. It’s a fluid element, highly mutable and able to shift and change to take on the form of any vessel.

Illustration by Matsya Das

Wood: Purifying and always growing, wood is an element of spring storms and rising tempers. In the Elemental Cycle, wood feeds into fire, providing the fuel that stokes great infernos. Elemental wood is a bountiful source of energy, perpetually replenishing its reserves, and can burrow through any barrier with ease.

The book you hold presents my understanding of the elements and Elemental Planes, as much as it can be conveyed in writing. As I am well versed in the elements as a whole, but not each on its own merits, I have acquired texts from experts on the six individual elements, which you will find bound in this collection. I will return to describe the Churn of Elements at the end, the little-explored combinations of elemental magic and zones where the planes intersect.

Illustration by Ivan Koritarev

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Aziza Amani al-Fasih was born in the Universe to a family of avid jann travelers. She delights in tours of the Inner Sphere and especially in sharing her favorite spots with the many new friends she meets along her journeys. Her best travel tip is to never be cheap with your luggage! A solid, waterproof trunk with flame-resistant runes is essential for enjoying any tour through the elemental planes.

Pathfinder Rage of Elements releases August 3^rd at Gen Con, on paizo.com, and at your FLGS! Preorder yours today!

Yoon was only eight when she learned of fire; the power to command and control flames awoke within her, as it had within her grandmother, and her grandmother's grandmother before her. Fire was a good friend to have, for Yoon was on a journey across Tian Xia, fleeing her old home of Minkai and heading down the coast to Hwanggot, the land her parents had left decades ago. Her flame kept her warm at night and protected her from monsters and bandits, and she had friends she met along the road to teach her survival and point her toward the next village or inn.

But on a night trekking across Hongal, the cold winds blew down from the Crown of the World, and even Yoon's flame wasn't enough to keep her warm. With precious little wood to be found on the arid steppes, Yoon broke her wooden walking club in half and set it aflame with a wave of her hand. It had been a gift from her parents, one of the last things she had left of them, and though Yoon was loath to lose it, she knew they would rather she be safe.

Sitting by the campfire, Yoon thought of them. They had been immigrants in Minkai, with precious little to sustain themselves. Her mother had been an explorer and a warrior, sacrificing time with her family to bring good coin home from jobs on the road. Her father had stayed home to work the fields and to take care of Yoon and her grandmother, though he had aspirations of becoming a court scribe. But though they had little, her family made sure Yoon's life was as happy as possible, providing a good education, the freedom of childhood, and what little presents they could afford—her favorite being a stuffed animal named Gom-Gom. Though the little toy was clearly stitched together from what mismatched, discarded pieces of other dolls her parents could buy cheaply, they had made it with love, and Yoon loved it in return (even if one of his eyes had gotten stolen by the Risucho in the Forest of Spirits).

When Yoon's mother fell in battle to monsters from the deep, her father fell too into a great depression, increasingly ground down by the ill treatment of a corrupt local government official. When Yoon’s father tried to organize a resistance, he was cut down by soldiers, and Yoon would have been as well, had her grandmother not protected her by summoning the flames, trading her life for Yoon's safe future. Now, Yoon had only Gom-Gom left. But her grandmother had told Yoon of uncles and aunts and cousins back in Hwangott, the land her family had emigrated from. Yoon would find them.

As Yoon traveled south, she grew into an experienced explorer, just like her mother had been. She fought off oni in Chu Ye, evaded the fanatical Tidecallers in Wanshou, and protected merchants from lingering spirits in the lands of Linvarre newly reclaimed from the ghosts of Shenmen. Along the way, the etiquette and poise that her grandmother had labored to teach Yoon fell away, replaced by a rugged survivalism, a brashness (and sharp tongue) learned from traveling with all sorts of miscreants, and the unassailable confidence of adolescence.

Yoon, the iconic kineticist. Art by Wayne Reynolds.

In the city of Mallaru, Yoon reached the sea, and she was presented with a choice. She could continue her journey on foot, passing through yet more armies, monsters, and dangers along the road. Or she could board a passenger ship from the harbor, making her way to Hwanggot safely. The old Yoon would have balked at a journey across the water—it had almost drowned her in childhood and its monsters had taken her mother. She hesitated, for long enough that the ship cast off and began to disappear out of the harbor.

Yoon was tired. Her fear had cost her a decade. A decade spent wandering Tian Xia, and while the journey had forged her into the warrior she always wanted to become, it would keep her from her homeland no longer. Why should it? There was water in her blood just as sure as there was air in her lungs. There was metal and wood lodged forever in her skin from countless scraps along her journey. There was earth under her nails from ten years on the road. But above all else, there was fire in Yoon's heart—the fire of her family, her strongest weapon and most steadfast ally, driving her to cross half a continent to make her way home.

The heart is a gate, her grandmother had said, and as the emotion gripped Yoon, she saw for the first time what lay on the other side: a world of endless and purest flame, the Plane of Fire sharing the tiniest of its embers. Yoon felt her connection to the realm surge with the realization, and with it, her power. Fire overflowed, burning its way through Yoon's body. An explosion bloomed, blackening the cobblestones.

Yoon soared through the air in a trail of sparks, whooping with the joy of a teenager flying for the first time. The harbor grew smaller underneath her, then held in place as she reached her apex and gravity gripped her. Yoon refused to fall—she had always loved heights. She summoned her flames anew, blasting herself higher still, then again, shooting herself over the water toward the ship. She wasn't the least bit tired. The Plane of Fire was inexhaustible, so why shouldn't her flames be as well? Allowing herself to hang in the air one last time, Yoon aimed herself at the ship and struck the deck like a shooting star, the morning mist glittering in her waning sparks.

The ship would soon reach Yoon's homeland, and Yoon would then have a new adventure to set off on. She would fear nothing again.

James Case
Senior Designer