Great Wheel cosmology in Stranger Things
I found an image from the forgotten realms and I think it links into ST season 5
If the stranger things 'multiverse' is anything like this then I believe the Material Plane to be Hawkins right side up, Shadowfell = Upside Down, and Dimension X could be the abyss as Dustin refers to it (Pretend this text is yellow, I'm lazy. Also Dimension X will later be associated with purple for diagram purposes).
Or the Duffers have another twist up their sleeve... The Material Plane is still Hawkins right side up(HRSU) and the Shadowfell is still the Upside down. Now instead of Dimension X being the abyss, I think it could actually be the one of the elemental chaos realms.
In the forgotten realms there's a plane of storms located within the elemental chaos called Thraotor. Here's a quick look at Dimension X
Looks like a plane of storms to me... I think this was also hinted at by the storms in the upside down as well. Like a sign the two were bleeding into one.
Now, I know Dustin explicitly calls Dimension X the Abyss but this show is full of twists. The show also hints at Dustin, despite being one of the smartest characters, being wrong about stuff (Rubik's isn't an accurate measurement of intelligence). So, what now?
Well, In the show the Material Plane and Shadowfell have already been connected through portals. If I'm correct about Dimension X being Thraotor, then we know that the Shadowfell and Thraotor are also connected.
Diagram:
I've also been noticing the spider imagery with the mind flayer and when Dustin mentioned the Abyss... Immediate alarm bells to Lolth the Spider Queen and Vecna's title of Master of the Spider Throne. Then I began to wonder why the Mind Flayer would even be hanging out in Dimension X and I don't think it originates from there.
Now, I know the D&D isn't a 1 to 1 of the plot of ST but these patterns keep jumping out at me. Maybe I'm a little delulu , but with all of the spider imagery present in ST, I believe the Mind Flayer to be heavily inspired by Lolth the Spider Queen. Lolth also happens to reside in the Abyss. Specifically the 66th layer of the abyss but I'm not too sure it matters. Also before people come at me, IM VERY AWARE THE MIND FLAYER IS ALSO BASED OFF OF ACTUAL DND MIND FLAYERS. Also just want to mention the portals between worlds somewhat look like spider webs in the middle... just very orange and gooey.
Anyways, so what if the Mind flayer had escaped the Abyssal plane (ugh, it's dark blue in the diagram... blue is blue god dammit), and fled to Thraotor (Dimension X) where it took over, found Henry and turned him into Vecna. When the Mind Flayer read Henry's mind I'm sure it was quite happy to find out there are other planes to dominate, if it didn't already know. That would solve the mystery of the origins of the Mind Flayer while having another twist in the plot.
Diagram:
If you haven't read my other theories, I highly recommend it as I break down some previous D&D lore relevant to this post. I'll link them below.
A breakdown of Vecna's DND lore, Luz the Old/Will the Wise, some Lolth connections, and how Will is actually already being puppeted by Vecna:
💬 0 🔁 3 ❤️ 4 · Oerth · Looking even further into Vecna's DND lore using this: https://fraternityofshadows.com/wiki/Vecna#NPC_Game_Statisti
💬 0 🔁 0 ❤️ 1 · Lolth and Stranger Thing's Mindflayer (arachnophobia warning!!!) · There are a few things needed to be established before t
Sources:
Thraotor was the divine realm of the giant god Memnor.[1] In the World Tree cosmology, it was said to be a massive thunderhead cloud that ro
The Elemental Chaos was an Inner Plane in the Great Wheel cosmology, located at the far reaches of the elemental planes, where the elements
The Great Wheel cosmology was the prevalent cosmological model in which the world of Toril was said to exist during the mid-14th century DR
The Shadowfell, also known as the Plane of Shadow, was one of the planes of existence in various cosmological models. Its purpose and charac












