Editing Planescape (section)

== Publication history ==
=== Development ===
[[File:Giovanni Battista Piranesi, Le Carceri d'Invenzione, planche XI, L'Arche aux gradins.jpg|thumb|''Le Carceri d'Invenzione'', [[Giovanni Battista Piranesi|Piranesi]], 1761. One of a series of etchings that inspired the visual look of the setting.]]
''Planescape'' is an expansion of ideas presented in the ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'' ''[[Dungeon Master's Guide]]'' (First Edition) and the original ''[[Manual of the Planes]]''. When ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'' 2nd edition was published, a decision was made not to include angelic or demonic creatures, and so the cosmology was largely ignored. However, fan demand for a 2nd Edition ''Manual of the Planes'' was strong enough to justify its expansion into a full-fledged [[campaign setting]], and so in 1994 Planescape was released.

[[David Cook (game designer)|David "Zeb" Cook]] developed Planescape when he was assigned to create "a complete campaign world (not just a place to visit), survivable by low-level characters, as compatible with the old ''[[Manual of the Planes]]'' as possible, filled with a feeling of vastness without overwhelming the referee, distinct from all other TSR campaigns, free of the words 'demon' and 'devil' and explainable to Marketing in 25 words or less".<ref name="WW43">{{cite journal|last=Alloway|first=Gene|date=May 1994|title=Feature Review: Planescape|journal=[[White Wolf Publishing|White Wolf]]|publisher=[[White Wolf Publishing]]|issue=43|pages=36–38}}</ref> For inspiration, Cook listened to [[Pere Ubu]], [[Philip Glass]] and ''[[Alexander Nevsky (Prokofiev)|Alexander Nevsky]]'', read ''[[Dictionary of the Khazars|The Dictionary of the Khazars]]'', ''[[Einstein's Dreams]]'', and ''[[Oku no Hosomichi|The Narrow Road to the Deep North]]'', and for fun at "Bad Movie Nights", watched such films as ''[[Naked Lunch (film)|Naked Lunch]]'' and ''[[Wolf Devil Woman]]''.<ref name="WW43"/>

Cook came up with the idea that all of the activity in [[Sigil (Dungeons & Dragons)|Sigil]] would revolve around [[Faction (Planescape)|factions]], each of which would be built upon ideas taken to their extreme. He also felt that Sigil was necessary as a crossroads for the planes and a campaign center which could be both an adventure location itself and somewhere to hide out, which characters could quickly get to and from. Cook decided to adapt the ''Manual of the Planes'' because the older material made survival on the planes too difficult or complex, so he ignored anything that made gameplay more complicated, which left the "descriptions of twisted and strange creations".<ref name="WW43"/>

Cook conceived of the look for the setting from images such as "the gloomy prisons of [[Giovanni Battista Piranesi|Piranesi]]'s ''Le Carceri'' etchings, and [[Brian Froud]]'s illustrations and surrealist art", and [[Dana Knutson]] was assigned to draw whatever Cook wanted to see. According to Cook, "before any of us knew it, [Knutson] drew the Lady of Pain. I'm very fond of the Lady of Pain; she really locks up the Planescape look. We all liked her so much that she became our logo".<ref name="WW43"/>

=== 2nd edition ===
The ''[[Planescape Campaign Setting]]'' was released, for ''AD&D'' 2nd Edition, in April 1994. The campaign setting was followed by a series of expansions detailing the ''[[Planes of Chaos]]'' (by [[Wolfgang Baur]] and [[Lester W. Smith]]), the ''Planes of Law'' (by [[Colin McComb]] and Baur), and the ''[[Planes of Conflict]]'' (by McComb and [[Dale Donovan]]). From 1994 to 1998,  "''Planescape'' was a major setting" for ''Dungeons & Dragons''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Appelcline |first=Shannon |title=Planescape Campaign Setting (2e) {{!}} Product History |url=https://www.dmsguild.com/product/17267/Planescape-Campaign-Setting-2e |access-date=July 22, 2022 |website=[[Dungeon Masters Guild]]}}</ref>

The setting also had a small number of novels.

=== Later editions ===
Upon the release of 3rd Edition, Planescape, along with most other settings, were discontinued, although fan sites such as planewalker.com were allowed to continue to use the material and update it to the new edition. The 3rd Edition ''[[Manual of the Planes]]'' (2001), the 3.5 Edition ''[[Dungeon Master's Guide]]'' (2003),<ref name="DMG3.5">{{cite book |last1=Cook |first1=Monte |url=https://archive.org/details/dungeonmastersgu00mont |title=Dungeon Master's Guide |last2=Williams |first2=Skip |last3=Tweet |first3=Jonathan |last4=Adkison |first4=Peter |last5=Baker |first5=Richard |last6=Collins |first6=Andy |last7=Noonan |first7=David |date=July 2003 |publisher=[[Wizards of the Coast]] |isbn=0-7869-2889-1 |edition=3.5 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/dungeonmastersgu00mont/page/166 166]–167 |chapter=5: Campaigns |type=hardcover |author-link=Monte Cook |author-link2=Skip Williams |author-link3=Jonathan Tweet |author-link4=Peter Adkison |author-link5=Richard Baker (game designer) |author-link6=Andy Collins (game designer) |author-link7=David Noonan (game designer) |url-access=registration}}</ref> and the ''[[Planar Handbook]]'' (2004) also used the general layout of the planes and some of the details from the setting, including Sigil, but these are not part of the Planescape line.

Sigil is described in the 4th edition ''[[Manual of the Planes]]'' (2008)<ref>{{cite web |date=5 December 2008 |title=''Manual of the Plane'' Excerpts: Table of Contents |url=http://www.wizards.com/dnd/files/excerpts/MoP_ToC.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090602223127/http://www.wizards.com/dnd/files/excerpts/MoP_ToC.pdf |archive-date=June 2, 2009 |access-date=5 December 2008 |publisher=Wizards of the Coast}}</ref> and expanded upon in ''Dungeon Master's Guide 2'' (2009). Shannon Appelcline, author of ''Designers & Dragons'', commented that while Sigil "had been largely ignored during the 3e era", it "was faring better in 4e, despite the large-scale restructuring of D&D's cosmology" due to small inclusions in the ''Dungeon Master's Guide'' (2008) and ''Manual of the Planes''.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Appelcline |first=Shannon |title=Dungeon Master's Guide 2 (4e) {{!}} Product History |url=https://www.dmsguild.com/product/144108/Dungeon-Masters-Guide-2-4e |access-date=2022-07-23 |website=[[Dungeon Masters Guild]] |language=en}}</ref>

Appelcline highlighted that it was the 4th Edition ''Dungeon Master's Guide 2'' which "saw the return of the fan-favorite setting of Sigil" which "was laid out as a full paragon-level setting. There's not much new here for old-time fans of ''Planescape'', but there was one ''big'' change as a result of ''Faction War'' (1998). The factions that caused much of the conflict in ''Planescape'' are now gone. [...] The ''Dungeon Master's Guide 2'' also contains 'A Conspiracy of Doors', the first Sigil adventure to see print in many years".<ref name=":2" />

The [[Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition|5th Edition]] ''Player's Handbook'' (2014) also contains a section explaining the planes and briefly mentions Sigil.<ref>{{cite book |title=Player's Handbook |date=2014 |publisher=Wizards of the Coast |isbn=978-0-7869-6560-1 |edition=5th |page=302}}</ref> There is also some information on Sigil in the 5th Edition ''Dungeon Master's Guide'' (2014).<ref>{{cite book |title=Dungeon Master's Guide |date=2014 |publisher=Wizards of the Coast |isbn=978-0-7869-6562-5 |edition=5th |page=67}}</ref> In July 2022, ''Unearthed Arcana: Wonders of the Multiverse'' was released as part of the [[Unearthed Arcana#Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition|Unearthed Arcana]] public playtest series for the 5th Edition. Both ''[[Polygon (website)|Polygon]]'' and ''[[ComicBook.com]]'' highlighted that the new [[character race]] – the Glitchling – and other references to the Planescape setting might indicate a [[Reboot (fiction)|reboot]] of the setting for 5th Edition.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Hall |first=Charlie |date=2022-07-19 |title=Dungeons & Dragons teases a return to Planescape |url=https://www.polygon.com/23269997/dnd-planescape-reboot-unearthed-arcana |access-date=2022-07-23 |website=Polygon |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=July 18, 2022 |title=Dungeons & Dragons Teases Planescape in New Unearthed Arcana Playtest |url=https://comicbook.com/gaming/news/dungeons-dragons-planescape-unearthed-arcana-multiverse/ |access-date=2022-07-23 |website=[[ComicBook.com]] |language=en}}</ref> Charlie Hall, for ''Polygon'', commented that "this wouldn't be the first time that Wizards used playtest materials to tease a reboot of a classic setting".<ref name=":0" />

Christian Hoffer, for ''ComicBook.com'', wrote that "while described as a collection of material from around the Multiverse, many ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fans noticed that it contained multiple references to Mechanus, Sigil, the Outlands, and other areas explored in the popular Planescape setting. [...] Based on the last handful of public playtests, it appears that ''Dungeons & Dragons'' is gearing up for some sort of multiversal book in the near future. Whether this is a true Planescape re-launch or just a book that uses the D&D cosmology remains to be seen".<ref name=":1" />

A three-volume box set titled ''Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse'' was released in October 2023 for 5th Edition.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://dndstore.wizards.com/us/en/product/820944/planescape-adventures-in-the-multiverse-digital-plus-physical-bundle | title=Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse Digital + Physical Bundle &#124; D&D }}</ref>