Heaven (Pathfinder)

Heaven (also called the Holy Mountain, Paradise, or the Realm of the Righteous) is the Lawful Good plane in the Pathfinder Great Beyond cosmology.

Heaven is where "goodness" is expressed through law and order. "Righteousness" requires structure, and "Structure" requires an end goal, otherwise it is meaningless.

Heaven is a realm of crusaders; it is quite possibly the most militant of the "upper planes" in that its inhabitants strive to spread their ideals across the multiverse. Contrasted with those from Nirvana who tend to be quite passive, or from Elysium who are individualistic.

It's D&D counterpart is Celestia.

Locations

Much like Celestia, the Realm of the Righteous is depicted as a seven-tiered mountain surrounded by an ocean. Each tier is considered "holier" than the last; with the pinnacle of the mountain representing an unattainable level of goodness that even the deities cannot comprehend.

1. Threshold

The first layer at the bottom of the mountain incorporates the shoreline and the border fortresses against invasion and intrusion. Threshold is the only layer that tolerates foreigners to the plane and makes for a thriving trading hub, catering to various well meaning sorts ranging from Djinn to Axiomites, though mortals do thrive here too.

Anyone who wants to try to travel further up the mountain must either wait in long lines to make petitions to the Archons and Empyreal Lords to be granted access. If they don't want to wait, they can attempt to skip the queues and follow the "Alabaster Passage", which is essentially just a white path up the mountain. Though it is heavily guarded and is only passable for people of truly Lawful Good character. Else you'd just get arrested for trespassing.

Beneath the mountain is the deific realm of Forgeheart, belonging to the Dwarven god Torag and his servitors. Strictly speaking it is not considered part of any tier, but geographically it cannot be placed any higher on the mountain. Forgeheart crafts the weapons and arms for the armies of Heaven, as well as protecting the plane from Abyssal incursions who might try to tunnel up from below.

2. Proelera

The second layer is the mustering ground for heaven's armies of crusaders. It contains the realm of Swordhome, the fortress-nation of Iomedae that draws heavily from Aroden's realm in Axis. Iomedae's realm is endorsed by many others within the plane, granting her a huge expanse of territory. Within Swordhome, the Petitioners are more likely to ascend to Archons themselves for some reason, quite possibly to do with Iomedae's forces constantly drilling for battle.

7. The Garden of Mysteries

Strictly speaking, the seventh tier does not actually connect to the mountain. It exists as a small, untended garden that floats just above the peak.