Rath

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Rath
Information
First seen Tempest
Last seen Nemesis
Rabiah Scale 9[1]
Status Overlaid with Dominaria
Demonym Rathi[2]
Scryfall Statistics
810 artworks
{C} 11.7% {W} 16.4% {U} 16.4% {B} 19.3% {R} 16.2% {G} 16.4% {M} 3.6%
636 originated from
{C} 8.6% {W} 16.8% {U} 15.7% {B} 17.3% {R} 18.2% {G} 19% {M} 4.2%

Rath was an artificial plane utilized by the Phyrexians as a staging point to invade Dominaria. Created out of flowstone generated in the central Stronghold, the plane slowly expanded over centuries until it was the same mass as Dominaria itself, at which point it would transpose atop the target plane, carrying its armies directly into the field. As Rath grew, regions of the two planes would overlap briefly, bringing Dominarian inhabitants into this new, hostile environment. Rath was ruled as a Phyrexian fiefdom by appointed evincars, though an effective uprising was led by Eladamri just before the planar overlay.

Rath was the setting for the Tempest, Stronghold, Exodus, and Nemesis expansions.

History

The origin of Rath was never fully explained. It was said to be created by Yawgmoth, sometime after the fall of the Shard.

Yawgmoth ordered the use of Rath for the storage of Phyrexian troops and the formulation of his plan to attack Dominaria. It was hidden in a small pocket plane attached to Dominaria, making it hard for planeswalkers to find it.[3]

Rath was sustained by a massive machine in its center called the Hub, which had the appearance of a giant, three-mile tall volcano. This device spewed a somewhat intelligent substance known as flowstone, which the plane was mostly made from. Flowstone expanded and would be used to increase the plane's mass consistently until it merged with Dominaria. The Hub also housed the Stronghold, the seat of power on Rath where the evincar ruled. Rath's evincars were Phyrexian agents under the command of Yawgmoth. These rulers had to put down the revolts of Rath's inhabitants, the Kor, the Vec, and the Dal, as well as the elves of Skyshroud. Most of the peoples of Rath were left grasping for survival under the neglectful tyranny of the Rathi leaders since they were of no concern to the evincar and a nuisance to the Ineffable's plans.

The skies of Rath were a maelstrom of energy that was dangerous to fly ships. A planar barrier enveloped the pocked plane about a thousand feet off the ground.[3] Rathi skies changed elevation and could be raised higher — or dropped to ground level — at any point in time. Anything caught in the barrier of energy when in Rath would be torn apart or pulled into a place called the Shadows, the void between Rath and Dominaria. Creatures were also pulled from Dominaria during this disturbance, and that is primarily how those dwelling on Rath aside from Phyrexians came to be there.

Another phenomenon known as the Parallax appeared as a jagged line of light that grew in brightness and intensity until it resembled a miniature sun.[4] Once it had reached its peak, the sun would explode, sweeping a blinding light outward that saturated everything it touched in arcane energy. All solid objects - living and dead - melted, broke up, and floated away as a collection of soft globules. It is unclear if the parallax was related to Rath's other phenomena or if it transported its victims to Dominaria, the Shadows, or simply destroyed them.

Locations on Rath

  • Chireef - a Stronghold outpost on the plains, which was raided by Eladamri and all Rathi troops were killed.[5]
  • The Cinder Marsh {B}{R} - An area where vents from the Stronghold sprayed waste and thermal excess. There was a lot of pollution in this area.[6][7]
  • The Flowstone Desert {R} - A desert area of rolling crevices of flowstone. Many Vec lived here.[8]
    • Alc-en-Vec Province[8]
      • Ekzea - a subterranean grotto east of Tabala[8]
      • Ematzin Fortress - the nearest fortress to Tabala, six days of percher flight away[8]
      • Galgal Basin[8]
      • Qa {G}{W} - a lone Vec village[8]
      • Tabala Fortress - a keep on a pleateau in the flowstone desert, half a world away from the Stronghold.[8]
    • Mogg Hollows {R}{G} - breeding grounds for the Mogg goblins of Rath.[9]
  • The Heartwood {G} - A forested region, populated by Dryads, Giants and Treefolk.
  • Bluefire Mountain - a single three-mile high volcano, hollowed out inside to house the base of the plane's Evincar and its adjoining structures.[5]
    • The City of Traitors {C} - at the bottom of the Stronghold, home to outcasts from the Rathi Tribes[7]
    • The Death Pits {B} - ooze-bound undead massed in these dark chambers below the Stronghold, just past the Furnaces.[6][7]
    • The Furnace of Rath {R} - The former temperature and environmental control center of the plane, later a burning caldera below the Stronghold.[6][7]
    • The Hub - a huge circular device pulling the skies of Rath down and making the blue beam of energy at the top of the mountain. Responsible for the plane's winds.[7]
    • The Stronghold {B} - seat of the Evincars, a massive fortress between two sides of a volcanic chasm, supported by large beams and foundations running into both walls. Near the top blue-hot flowstone is released.[7]
      • The Dream Halls {U} - where past memories and future desires can be played out.[10][7]
      • The Evincar's Quarters - the personal quarters of the plane's evincar.[10]
        • Window to Phyrexia - a communications device in direct link with Phyrexia[5]
      • The Flowstone Bridge {C} - a high arch of flowstone, capable of reforming itself to attack any who attempted to cross it.[7]
      • The Map Room - a large chamber with a globe-shaping mechanism at the center.[10][7]
      • The Menagerie housed many unusual animals captured from Dominaria. Volrath performed experiments on them, reworking them in the hopes of finding a place for them in his schemes. [11]
      • Moggtown - the mogg warrens at the edge of the stronghold, housing thousands of moggs.[5]
      • The Portcullis {C} - the gate of the Stronghold, historically a symbol of oppression. During the reign of Volrath, the Portcullis was shaped to resemble the evincar's face. When he was succeeded by Crovax, the gate was altered to resemble the new evincar by simply welding shark-like teeth onto Volrath's image.[12]
      • Volrath's Gardens {G} - a pair of gardens flanking the docking carapace.[11][7]
      • Volrath's Dungeon {B} - where the Evincar kept and tortured his prisoners.[7]
      • Volrath's Laboratory {C} - where the Evincar placed many of his experiments.[7]
    • The Sliver Lair {M} - A series of tunnels where the hordes of slivers are kept, near the Stronghold. They were led by the Sliver Queen, which could direct the actions of the slivers through its hive mind.[7]
  • Khorin - A Dal village where Takara stayed with her uncle when Starke left to recruit Vuel as the new Evincar.[7]
  • Kor Haven {W} - the home of the Kor on Rath
  • Peximir - origin of Light-General Rogur[8]
  • Portal Canyon - where the Erratic Portal was located.[5]
  • Rootwater {U}{B} - a large swampy body of water forming a network of mangroves, home to the Riptide merfolk.
    • Skyshroud {G}{U} - a large forest straddling most of the Rootwater, home of the elves.[7]
      • The Eye of Korai - A small artificial island hill in the swamps, acting as both a burial ground and assembly place for the Skyshroud Elves. This was where Eladamri was pronounced as the Korvecdal.[5]
      • Mossbridge - the village of Raydon[5]
      • Sweetwater - the village of Eladamri[5]
    • Travec {G}{W} - a Vec village on the very edge of Rootwater, in view of both Skyshroud and the Stronghold[13]
      • The Tower of Travec a clock tower with a forged chain that could be rung each noon.[13]
  • Sawtooth Hills - area quite far from the Stronghold.[5]
  • Thalakos Lowlands {W}{U} - home of the Thalakos[14]
  • Three-Toe Hill - a promontory a mile east of the Stronghold, with a basin at the bottom where the Predator could lie unseen from the ground.[5]
  • The Weblands - area quite far from the Stronghold.[5]

Natives

The Kor, Vec, and Dal

Main article: Rathi Tribes

The Kor, the Vec, and the Dal were the three tribal peoples of Rath. They each primarily lived as nomads battling for survival throughout Rath. The Dal and the Vec founded and attempted to protect some towns, however, the threats that resided on the plains and the Phyrexian rule posed a strong challenge to the safety of these settlements. Dal are humans, dressed in crude leather, living in scattered villages. The Vec are similar to middle-eastern folk of Medieval times and were the most civilized of the three, living in cities around Rath. Kor are catlike, blue humanoids and lived in small, reclusive tribes in the deserts and plains. The three peoples split again into two groups--en, and il. The en were members of any of the three races that resisted and lived separately from the evincar's control. The il were members that either sold their services to the Phyrexian rule lived as slaves under evincar control, or simply gave the evincar their allegiance.

The Dauthi, Thalakos, and Soltari

Three other peoples from Dominaria, now generally known as Etherics, were taken from their home plane: the Thalakos, the Dauthi, and the Soltari. During the time of their planeshift, the Soltari were at war with the Dauthi, and the Thalakos remained entrapped in the conflict, despite their neutrality.

None of them ever successfully made it to Rath. They were all trapped within the "Shadows," the extraplanar space between Rath and Dominaria. They were left in an incorporeal state, unable to communicate with people on either plane, yet able to see into both the Dominarian reality and that of Rath. This predicament led the Thalakos and the Dauthi to lose their sanity. The Soltari maintained a stable mental condition by following a religion that offered them peace and solidarity.

The Elves of Skyshroud and The Rootwater Merfolk

Two more races from Dominaria, the Rootwater merfolk and the Skyshroud elves were originally at peace on a large construct floating in the oceans. However, this peace was shattered when the floating home of the elves and the merfolk was transported to Rath through the Rathi transplanar distortion, along with a large body of water. Once in the new land, the elves and merfolk began to run out of resources and eventually faced each other in armed conflict. The elves then used magic to create Skyshroud, a massive forest of mangroves that grew up from the sea that covered most of the water's surface, growing so dense that little sunlight came through. The merfolk were left to live in the deep swamps under Skyshroud. The body of water from Dominaria came to be known as the Riptide Sea. Skyshroud elves made their homes in the new forest, while the Rootwater merfolk descended into savage, carnivorous, and animalistic lifestyles warped not only by the lack of sunlight, food, or space but by secret experimentation from the evincar as well.

Languages

  • Rathi[15]
    • Lin Sivvi translates to "Striking Viper".[5]

Planeswalker visitors

Non-planeswalker visitors

In-game references

Represented in:
Associated cards:
Quoted or referred to:

References

  1. ↑ Mark Rosewater (November 29, 2016). "The Rabiah Scale". Blogatog. Tumblr.
  2. ↑ "Rathi" is derived from the card names of Mercenaries in Nemesis.
  3. ↑ a b Pete Venters (December 1997). "Dominian Chronicles: A Dark Corner of the Multiverse" (archived) The Duelist #20, 38-39
  4. ↑ Scott McGough. "Nemesis Novel Guide (archived)". wizards.com.
  5. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l Paul B. Thompson (2000) - Nemesis, WotC
  6. ↑ a b c Pete Venters (January 1998). "Dominian Chronicles: Stepping Into Darkness" The Duelist #21, 36-37
  7. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Peter Archer, ed. (1998) - Rath and Storm anthology, Wizards of the Coast.
  8. ↑ a b c d e f g h Paul B. Thompson, J. Robert King, ed. (2003.) "The Voice of Command", The Monsters of Magic, Wizards of the Coast. ISBN-13 0-7869-2983-9.
  9. ↑ As seen on Mogg Hollows
  10. ↑ a b c Pete Venters (March 1998). "Dominian Chronicles: The Lurker's Guide to the Stronghold." The Duelist #24, 26-27
  11. ↑ a b Pete Venters (March 1998). "Dominian Chronicles: The ❤️ of Rath: The Art of Darkness." The Duelist #23, 24-25
  12. ↑ J. Robert King. (2001.) Planeshift, Wizards of the Coast. ISBN-13 0-7869-1802-0.
  13. ↑ a b Stephen D. Sullivan, J. Robert King, ed. (2003.) "Crucible", The Monsters of Magic, Wizards of the Coast. ISBN-13 0-7869-2983-9.
  14. ↑ As seen on Thalakos Lowlands
  15. ↑ Francis Lebaron. (1999.) Mercadian Masques, Wizards of the Coast. ISBN-13 0-7869-1188-3.
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