Planetary gate (Pluh - ayne - uh - terry / Gate is pronounced typically)

Credit to Isreal Palacio for image of circuitry

to The Smithsonian for the image of an Apollo command module

and Florian Wehde for image of the gate.

Taking a deep breath, you reach the end of the line, the security officer calls, "NEXT!" you step up to the immense gate, and listen to the shame shpiel you heard when you came to Terra on vacation. Finally, you step through and feel the cosmos fold and shift around you, just for a second, then the hot air of Hell stings your skin in that familiar way once again. You breathe a sigh of relief as the unnerving ritual is finished.

Traveling across Planes of existence is a complex endeavor that has been attempted long before the age of Magic. In the modern era, it is typically done via complex planar gates, who's design has long since been forgotten. Well I suppose forgotten to all except me. As a point of clarity: Planetary gate refers to any mode of transportation between planes, with the design described here being the safest and most common, utilizing magic for instantaneous. There are other types and methods.

Development

Early pre-magic development

In approximately 4000 BM the first successful inter-plane mission succeeded, between Terra, and the nearby plane of Celeste, which is now used as a mining and storage plane by many sovereign nations of Terra.

One such rudimentary design. At the time they were referred to as "Spacecraft" or "Shuttles."

This was a rudimentary mission utilizing technology, most of which is now lost to the memory of Terra.

Period of non-development

For a variety of reasons that bear no real importance here, Terran planar travel as well as most other other inter-planar travel efforts ceased up until the era of the Deitic War.

Inter-planar travel during the Deitic war

During the Deitic war inter-planar travel had some minor uses, with the Saints invasion of Hell and the transportation of all parties to Terra being primary.

This is where early designers of Planetary gates as we know them today got their ideas, accrediting The Weaver of Fates' technique in creating planetary gates as their inspiration.

Observing the weaver as she worked, I could see the way the threads interacted, and the way I could make technology do the same

— Alfred Nol-inventor of the fold method of Planetary travel

Invention

The original design, using the fold method is attributed to Alfred Nol, who would go on to build several of his gates across terra before his death in 272. Later other inventors produced designs of similar measure, and allowed for the majority of the public to gain access.

Modern

In the modern day there are many Planetary gates spread across the cosmos, allowing for travel from plane to plane almost effortlessly. The original design and mechanisms that these vehicles use has been forgotten, but sects of devout maintain them in an almost religious fashion.

Vehicle design

Please note that as my privileged readers you receive special insight that most in the cosmos would not, such as in the bellow section. The majority of sentient people in the cosmos do not understand the power source of gates, only the ritualistic cleaning and maintenance that they do.

Power source

The power source of a gate draws on the innate magical energy of the surrounding area, leading to these regions being often drained of magical energy.

A component in the power source. Difficult to understand why this was needed, isn't it?

The complex alchemical formula for this also utilizes its own passengers to maintain its power level, draining small pieces of magical energy from them. Once this process is complete, the energy is stored in several basic alchemical batteries, and is used when needed.

Propulsion

The system of propulsion utilized is primarily magical, the system takes the large amount of magical energy it has stored up, and uses that to break the laws of physics in certain ways. Gates can actually do this in three different ways though, fold, speed, and true teleportation.

Fold

Fold is the simplest to employ, and the one that breaks the rules of the cosmos only slightly. This type of gate uses similar principles to a wormhole to reduce the distance between the gate's two points temporarily, allowing the person to literally step through the gate.

Speed

The magical principle behind speed simply breaks the formula; E=MC², forcing the universe to have an object travel faster than light without having any negative affects. This one is slightly more dubious than the other methods, as it has the highest fatality rate and the worst customer satisfaction rating.

True teleportation

True teleportation utilizes an interesting principle, the law of conservation of matter. It breaks this law by having your form simply cease to exist momentarily and then exist again on the other side of the gate, and then stuffs the "you" back in.

A note is that there are some similar gates that attempted to achieve this process that simply break down your matter and create a clone which your "you" is then stuffed into. This is not a True Teleporter, and I have consulted with The Reaper of Souls in gem form, and he agrees that this counts as a death and resuscitation in the eyes of the cosmos, whereas the other doesn't.

They should be reaped, that is all I will provide in comment.

— The Reaper of Souls after insistent prodding

One of the most ancient landmarks on terra has been repurposed to serve as a gate. It is a popular hub for travel.

Typical price range: 1.2 million to 700 million gold. (Price dictated by size, reliability, and number of planes it travels to)

Rarity: Extremely rare

Dimensions: Varied

Speed: Magical - near instantaneous linked travel

Required staff: Typically 20 - 30 staff.

Cargo and Passenger capacity: Can send about 1 item of 150 pounds per minute, if larger transmissions are needed, it requires a greater charging period.

Referenced in: Summercamp 2026