There are no elemental planes of air, earth, fire, water, etc. in the traditional sense

>there are no elemental planes of air, earth, fire, water, etc. in the traditional sense
>instead, we handle this Spelljammer-style

>the "Elemental Plane of Air" is the collection of all gas giants in the Prime Material Plane
>the "Elemental Plane of Earth" is all earth-dominated worlds, and all Underdarks
>the "Elemental Plane of Fire" is all suns/stars and magma-dominated worlds
>the "Elemental Plane of Water" is all water-dominated worlds, and not just Earth-like worlds, even more water is necessary to qualify
>the "Elemental Plane of Cold" (it exists) is all ice worlds

>all of them are mystically linked together, and anyone who can survive in them can teleport across them (e.g. from sun to sun, or gas giant to gas giant) in a series of linked portals
>all of them spawn appropriately-themed elementals, genies, mephits, etc.

>there are still the Positive Energy Plane (merged with the Feywild), the Negative Energy Plane (merged with the Shadowfell), and the Elemental Chaos

Would this be cooler than the 1e/2e/3.X/4e/5e setup of the elemental planes? One ramification of this setup is that spaceships are still necessary for people who want to travel from one type of world to another, and most mortal worlds are non-elemental.

This is unnecessary and dumb.

Failure.

What seems to be the problem?

Everything. The idea is just shit.

The idea seems different just for the sake of being different. If anything it sounds like it would discourage planar travel. What's easier, a single casting of plane shift, or acquiring a god damn space ship?

I don't understand the hostility, OP. I think it's a neat idea. At least it's something different.

Why have this AND the elemental chaos? You don't need two quirky elemental plane sets. I could see one or the other and I could even see one with the classic elemental planes. But both just seems excessive.

IT's only as good as you can make it by appropriately integrating it to the campaign and creating cool mechanics around it. If it's just lorewank, then I guess it's cool too, but not that interesting.

Such spells still exist, but I prefer to restrict their usage in comparison to portals. I tend to run Planescape/Spelljammer hybrids in terms of setting, so there is plenty of planewalking and worldwalking regardless.

Generally, because there still needs to be a space for a completely surreal and eldritch locale where all of the elements mix and mingle together in totally unnatural ways.

The Elemental Plane of Air can be compared to one of the million and one "floating island" settings, or perhaps a gas giant, and the Elemental Plane of Water is not too different from an extremely deep ocean. There is no real mortal analogue for the Elemental Chaos's "rivers of ice and lightning and trees of magma and flowing water."

I dunno Veins of the Earth implies that the planet's core is the elemental plane of fire, and the classic book Jack of Shadows implies that fire elementals live in its planet's core too.

Think we can expand on this idea as well as yours. If the core is the plane of elemental fire, where then are the planes for the other 3-4 elements?
What if there was no outer space, and its just clouds and storms all the way up? That could be the plane of air, and make for interesting adventures for any character that learns how to fly.
Maybe certain sinksholes, seas caves and abzus lead to a vast sea-beneath-the-sea, home to water elementals.
Can't really think of anything for earth elementals.

>If the core is the plane of elemental fire, where then are the planes for the other 3-4 elements?
Perhaps the core really would fall under the banner of the "Elemental Plane of Fire."

>What if there was no outer space, and its just clouds and storms all the way up?
I am not too great a fan of the idea. That effectively turns the entire mortal universe into one giant "floating islands on a sea of clouds" setting, and I think that should be reserved for gas giants and the like. There should still be a space for a more classical black void dotted by stars and nebulae.

>Maybe certain sinksholes, seas caves and abzus lead to a vast sea-beneath-the-sea, home to water elementals.
The oceans themselves are likely part of the Elemental Plane of Water.

>Can't really think of anything for earth elementals.
The Underdark of various worlds, presumably.

Ok, what if the Plane of Air was a layer just before the void, a protective bubble if you will. It exist in the clouds and any wishing to just sail for the Void must first avoid or gain permission from the King of Air.
I like the idea of the undedark being the plane of earth. Maybe earth elementals of various shapes fight against invaders like the Drow or other deep races who mutilate the kingdom of earth with their "buildings" and "mines".

Most atmospheres being part of the Plane of Air is plausible enough, yes.

Who are you and the hell are you even talking about?

I think I prefer the BECMI take on the cosmology, where each elemental plane is basically a parallel universe that only contains that element. Also, movement and positioning of things within those universes correspond to the "real" one.

The Plane of Fire has celestial bodies at the Sun, the Earth's core, and Io, but the equivalent to the Moon would be tiny since the core is so small.
The Plane of Earth has celestial bodies at the terrestrial planets, but not so much at the gas giants or the Sun.
The Plane of Water has a lot going on at Earth, obviously, but less so on, say, Mars.
The Plane of Air has some things near Earth and a whole lot of things near Jupiter.

But, of course, all this is also in a greater batshit multidimensional (5D, specifically) cosmology where there's also other actual alternate universes and demons are three-dimensional beings who only share one dimension with out own and the fabric of the universe occasionally contracts into three dimensions and kills everything magical and the entire setting is Earth during the Jurassic and Earth (or Urt) is alive and has, like, a million hit dice or some shit.

I am not too great a fan of such a setup, because it makes the universe seem rather empty, and there is little to be done with it that could not be accomplished by the Material Plane alone.

Check out Mentzer's Immortals Box Set sometime. It's some crazy shit. Mostly because you're playing Dr. Strange-level superheroes who are definitely not gods, no sirree.

Also, I like how much like in the 1E Manual of the Planes there's portals to the elemental planes all over the place - walk into an active volcano and you're in the Plane of Fire, fly into a stormcloud and you'll find yourself in the Plane of Air, etc. etc.

Could you please explain what could be done with the above elemental plane layout that could not also be accomplished by the Material Plane alone?

You step into an active volcano and enter a parallel universe that is just like the Material Plane, except that only sources of fire exist. What then?

Could something similar not occur by having an active volcano not lead to a nearby or distant sun?

I'm just a faceless dude on a Tuvan Knitting Forum

If your campaign doesn't feature a chance to acquire a spaceship way before plane shift becomes available, your campaign sucks.

>Could you please explain what could be done with the above elemental plane layout that could not also be accomplished by the Material Plane alone?
It lets you get away with having the Material Plane just be a lost magical past of the real world, and lets you have stuff like godlike rulers of the elemental planes or Immortals who cannot interfere with the Material for political reasons but can try their hands at wreaking havoc on the elemental if they need to.

Also, well, it lets you do fun stuff with alternate states of matter. A planet on the Plane of Water where there are rivers of water, beaches of ice and the air is steam - or a planet on the Plane of Fire where the Elemental Ruler sits on his throne of solid flames and offers you a drink of liquid embers.
A world where everything - yes, including that - is composed purely out of a single classical element. Where you learn alternate spells, so that you can Flesh to Ice or Earthball your opponents.

I'm probably not explaining this very well.

Mostly I just find it all very evocative in a way that just making them into Star Trek planets doesn't, although BECMI kind of squandered the cosmology. Alternate earths always fascinate me.

>Also, well, it lets you do fun stuff with alternate states of matter. A planet on the Plane of Water where there are rivers of water, beaches of ice and the air is steam - or a planet on the Plane of Fire where the Elemental Ruler sits on his throne of solid flames and offers you a drink of liquid embers.
A world where everything - yes, including that - is composed purely out of a single classical element. Where you learn alternate spells, so that you can Flesh to Ice or Earthball your opponents.

This is not what you had explained earlier, however.

>The Plane of Fire has celestial bodies at the Sun, the Earth's core, and Io, but the equivalent to the Moon would be tiny since the core is so small.
>The Plane of Earth has celestial bodies at the terrestrial planets, but not so much at the gas giants or the Sun.
>The Plane of Water has a lot going on at Earth, obviously, but less so on, say, Mars.
>The Plane of Air has some things near Earth and a whole lot of things near Jupiter.
This implies that a planet along the lines of, say, Earth would simply be *just* Earth's water.

>a planet on the Plane of Fire where the Elemental Ruler sits on his throne of solid flames and offers you a drink of liquid embers.
A world where everything - yes, including that - is composed purely out of a single classical element.
>Mostly I just find it all very evocative in a way that just making them into Star Trek planets doesn't
I fail to see how this would be impossible in a scenario of visiting some efreeti lord in their palace in the heart of a literal sun.