planes question

[Guang]

I'm thinking of combining a few of the planes in my game. At least First world combined with Elysium, and the Material plane replacing the Boneyard as the neutral plane.

What parts of the rules is this going to affect? Am I messing everything up by doing this?

[Starglim]

First World combined with Elysium - not much, unless a PC or creature has game abilities related to the First World. Possibly there would be less distinction between magical beasts and spiritually-empowered animals, allowing more magical beast companions and supernatural abilities for animal companions.

Material Plane replacing the Boneyard - Where on your Material Plane is Pharasma's audience hall? I'd expect this to have pretty significant effects on raise dead, etc. spells and incorporeal undead, since the souls or spirits involved are now travelling a certain distance (and maybe passing through some described locations) rather than plane-shifting.

[Guang]

Starglim wrote:

Material Plane replacing the Boneyard - Where on your Material Plane is Pharasma's audience hall? I'd expect this to have pretty significant effects on raise dead, etc. spells and incorporeal undead, since the souls or spirits involved are now travelling a certain distance (and maybe passing through some described locations) rather than plane-shifting.

What would happen if I just got rid of Pharasma's audience hall altogether, and the rivers of souls in the Astral naturally flowed towards the proper planes by themselves? Psychopomps don't actually need her hall, I would guess. Fighting might be a bit increased over questionable souls, since there would be no fight-free zone to advocate for them.

[Nearyn]

hmmmm tricky.

I guess if you essentially took Pharasma's plane out of the equation, there'd be an issue with where bad guys go? Abaddon, The Abyss and The Pit, basically lay claim of the different kinds of evil souls, yet there are evil gods(with no ties to the 3 lower planes), who might expect to get their servants brought to their halls, once they die?

-Nearyn

[Guang]

So the problems are all in background and story, rather than in game mechanics?

[Starglim]

It should affect game mechanics, otherwise your players may not much notice or care. If they decide to travel to the land of the dead it will have a large effect on the game mechanics for that place. I don't think there is much else that's within the purview of the Rules forum, no.