Krigala

Krigala was the first and topmost layer of the Beastlands in the Great Wheel cosmology. It was called Selera's Empire, because it was bathed in perpertual sunlight from the Beastlands' sun, Selera.
==Description==
Krigala was a heavily forested layer with trees of all sorts of varieties. The main way in which Krigala differed from the other two layers was its sky. It was perpetually noon in Krigala, with the bright sun directly overhead and never moving. The sun appeared to be at its highest point in the sky no matter how far one might travel. Time did pass, but the sun gave no indication of this; instead, time could be tracked by the fact that precipitation of some form fell exactly once per twenty-four hour period.
Despite the fact that it was always midday, the layer had a variety of climates, and these climates cover the layer with no apparent organization. Deserts and savannahs were cooked by Selera's heat. Other areas were in the shade of massive and thick jungle canopy. Some regions were covered in fog; others even had snow. For the most part, however, it was just warm enough for all of the vast plant life. The temperature decreased as one climbed higher in altitude, as on the Material Plane.
The River Oceanus flowed through the center of Krigala in a relatively straight path, from Elysium and to Arborea. When the river did curve, bayous and oxbow lakes were formed. Some of the largest trees were able to bridge the river with their massive branches. Similarly, some of the largest herds and most powerful predators lived close to the waters. The current was strong, and the river was marked in places by white-water rapids.
It was possible to physically move from Krigala to Brux, the second plane. Such portals were invisible and seemingly random. The layers overlapped each other in a similar manner to how the Transitive Planes overlapped the Prime Material plane, so one could be walking beneath an archway formed by a large branch and suddenly find her- or himself in the twilight of Brux instead of the eternal day of Krigala without any other change in the immediate environment. Some such portals were found along narrow cliff trails, and these cliffs were sometimes considered the border between the two layers. The interlayer portals tended to be one way, so turning around to walk back under that same branch or up that same cliff path would not likely return the noonday sun. Fortunately, interlayer portals were very common, so it was not too difficult to find an alternate path back to Krigala.
Portals to Arborea, Elysium, and the Outlands were also present, usually appearing as openings in large, hollow trees. The same type of tree always led to the same plane. For example, silver-plated beech trees that were portals always led to Arborea, as did lightning-blasted oaks. Sequoias connected to Elysium. The portals shifted frequently, so what used to be a portal on one day might be nothing but a dead tree on another. Branches of Yggdrasil also touched this layer, hidden in deep forests atop high mountains. Here also, a gate to Ysgard was rumored to be guarded by a per servant of Heimdall, while other pers guarded color pools around Yggdrasil's branches and ratatosk protected the mystical tree itself.
To reach Krigala with the plane shift spell required a gold planar fork tuned to the note of F.
==Locations==
The Deeping Pool was a small lake hidden deep within a broadleaf forest. The leaves cast a shadow of green twilight over the whole area, except for the very center of the lake, where light from the sun caused the waters to sparkle like a bowl full of diamonds. No one knew how deep this lake was. It was the only lake for hundreds of miles, and so it was a common drinking spot for the many animals of Krigala. It was said by some that sharing a drink from the pool's waters with one of the native animals granted the visitor temporary animal-like abilities, such as enhanced night vision or scent or improved skill at climbing.
A three concentric circles of menhirs, fittingly called the Standing Stones, stood upon a tall hill in a rugged region of the layer. The Standing Stones were believed to have once served as a shrine to a nature deity. Herds of grazing animals frequented the area around the hill and its Stones, and predators hunted them. A tiefling known simply as the Warden defended the herds from would be hunters who were not natural animals.
The town of Signpost was a frontier settlement located on this layer. One of the only settlements on the entire layer, it was governed by a tiefling priestess of Deneir named Sarazh. It was founded as an outpost for the Sign of One faction. The town was considered as wild as the environment around it by many, but it was frequented by many seeking the grand view, as it was located near the cliffs that served as one of the borders to Brux.
===Realms===
* Filchnest was the divine realm of the kenku deity Quorlinn.
* The Forbidden Plateau was an isolated ecosystem full of dinosaurs and other large, "prehistoric" life. It functioned as the second divine realm of Ubtao, Father of the Dinosaurs. Thard Harr, lord of the jungle dwarves, also resided here between his wanderings.
* Goldenroost was the realm of Remnis, god of the giant eagles.
* The Grove of the Unicorns, the divine realm of Mielikki, was located here.
* The High Glade, Shiallia's realm, was nearby.
* The Pridelands of Nobanion, King of the Beasts, contained a portal connecting Krigala with the Gulthmere Forest in Faerûn.
* Skerrit, god of centaurs also ruled in this layer, his actual realm called Skerrit's Glade almost unnoticeable from the surrounding woods.
==Inhabitants==
All manner of diurnal celestial animals inhabited this layer. These animals were more intelligent than animals from the Material and able to speak, but they were still animals in their outlook and manner of life. Most of them knew how the interlayer portals worked and could instinctively avoid them if desired.
Skerrit's centaur petitioners also were found on this layer, living in small huts or lean-tos.
==Appendix==
===References===
===Connections===
Category:Locations on the River Oceanus
Category:Locations in the Upper Planes
Category:Locations in the Outer Planes
Category:Locations in the Great Wheel planes
Category:Locations on Yggdrasil