Kushdu Snake Oil

Borangani believe, that snake oil from lake Kushdu has healing powers and buy it for a high price when they are ill or in pain and hope that the oil will bring them (at least some) relief.

Properties

Compounds

Lake Kushdu and the surrounding region have an abundance of snakes. Hunters catch the snakes in large numbers and produce the vile-smelling base of the snake oil product, which has a dark greenish-brown colour and is a very sticky mass. Traders buy that gooey material from the hunters, transport it in big barrels to Boranga City and mix it up with lots of water and herbs or fragrances to get rid of parts of the smell. The oil gets filled into small clay jugs and sold for a leg and an arm.

History & Usage

Everyday use

Kushdu snake oil is only being drunk in very small doses because of its price. Usually, it gets mixed with other "medicine" or "rub-on" herb potions. Traders claim it also helps against headache, toothache and general unwellness, it also should be used for clean skin and against hair loss.

Distribution

Trade & Market

Traders sell the snake oil directly from their carts and never have a long stay at one location.

Storage

Snake oil is being stored in its thick, gooey form and only thinned right before the sale, minimizing transport and storage costs, maximizing profit. There has been a cart accident once in Boranga city, with two barrels of snake oil involved. The area was evacuated for a week, until heavy rainfalls flushed away the stinking, gooey mass.

Law & Regulation

There is no proof that snake oil actually has any positive effect on a person's health, therefore snake oil traders are not allowed to sell their wares at markets, nonetheless people buy it as if there is no tomorrow.

SC2020: Write about a material that is considered sacred or culturally crucial in your world.

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Type

Elemental / Molecular

Taste

The snake-oil tastes as bad as it smells, therefore people only add a drop or two of it to a larger amount of water.

Related Locations

• Boranga