At certain places in the Material Plane, the barriers between worlds are thin, and some characteristics of another plane can bleed through into the material world. These places are called manifest zones, and the nature of each one is strongly shaped by the plane it connects to. The city of Sharn is located in a manifest zone linked to Syrania that keeps its towers reaching toward the sky and aids flight. Ghosts might linger in a manifest zone associated with Dolurrh, while a manifest zone tied to Lamannia might have wild vegetation and enhance druidic magic. See each plane's universal properties for more ideas on how a plane can directly influence the Material Plane.

A manifest zone might include a portal that allows free passage from either plane to the other, but might only be open when the planes are coterminous, when the moon associated with that plane is full, or both. Most manifest zones have reliable, persistent effects. Some have only weak connections to their planes, and their properties influence the world only when the plane is coterminous.