Great Sh'Maari
The Great Shmaari is the largest and hottest desert in the known world. It lies in the southern regions of Mahador, occupying nearly half of the entire continent.
Geography
Located in the southern half of the vast Mahadorian interior, the Great Sh'maari is a large and relatively flat expanse of endless dunes and sun-baked rock pillars, hills and canyons. It is flanked in the north by the Great Goraani Mountains. The Brimstone mountains and the Athaban and Sulfur seas flank its south. To the west, the Southern Vursan mountains separate it from the Near Sh'maari desert before turning south, along the shores of the Khartian sea, before dissapearing under the marching dunes, which slowly advance towards the ocean and expanding the desert. To the east, beyond the Juh'tan hills, the endless sandy dunes slowly transitions into the Tarankema, a vast area of grasslands, fed by the seasonal rains of The Great Eastern Sea
Notable Locations
The Bone Pass
The bone pass is a small, dusty and steep canyon that cuts through the Vursan mountains, separating them between a north and south section. It links the Near Sh'maari desert, to the Great Sh'maari desert. A valuable trade link passes through here, and Qyn Desha, a trading town, was built along that road, at the pass's eastern exit.The Whistling Hills
Near the centre of the Great Sh'maari desert, and just north of the ruins of Ayashaan, is located a large string of rocky hills. Their red and orange coloured rock are covered in strange holes, possibly dug by Occomors thousands of years ago. Nomads passing by or camping during the night say they can hear strange whistles in the wind.The Marching Sands
North of Cape Morn and south of the Whistling hills, is located a very large region where the chaotic carpet of dunes begin to arrange themselves in thousands of near perfect rows, in much the same way as soldiers marching to battle. It isn't war these dunes face, but the sea, as over the years, they are steadely pushed west by the strong winds. Eventualy, they end up sinking into the ocean, along the Khartian sea coast, pushing the continent slightly further west, inch by inch.The Ruins of Ayashaan
Abandoned many thousands of years ago, by a civilisation forgotten by history, the ruined city of Ayashaan is a very large metropolis built in the centre of the Great Sh'maari desert. Large archways, towers and more curiously, many bridges and canals as well, are found throughout the city, which is itself surrounded by a ring of thick stone walls. The sea of dunes around Ayashaan have long since scaled those walls, leaving most of the city half burried in the sands.The Black Sands
Located at the south-east corner of the Great Sh'Maari, the black sands, known by the local tribes as Mhga Nis, litteraly meaning "Leaking Sand", is a region that contains large amounts of sticky black tar, which leak profously from the soil and forms large ponds amongst the dunes.Ecosystem
The climate of the Great Sh'maari is very harsh. Temperatures are sweltering during the day, and freezing during the night. This, as well as the widespread chronic lack of water and the high-energy electric sandstorms that blanket the whole region for weeks at a time makes this one of the most extreme environment in the known world.
Because of this, the Great Sh'maari desert severely lacks in biological diversity compared to the rest of the continent's regions. However, that doesn't mean that no animals or plants live there. The local ecosystem contains a few plants, reptiles and insects, but lacks any large plants like trees or bushes, or large animals.
Localized Phenomena
Electric Sandstorms
During the wet season in the Tarankema, thunderstorms regulary form, fueled by the humidity of the Great eastern sea. As they move west, they dump most of their rain before reaching the edge of the desert, where they start to collapse, creating powerfull downward winds. These winds are particularly strong towards the west as they follow the movement of the storm. These strong winds can disturb the loose sand of the regions, causing it to rise above the ground. Small pebbles can even be carried within the cloud if the winds are strong enough. The static energy of the sand grains is amplified by the presence of Lycanite crystal dust, which causes even more sand and dust to be lifted as well as amplify the static energy present within the clouds. All this energy creates very intense lightning of an orange or reddish colour. Pushed by the prevaling winds of the region, the electrified yellowish-brown cloud moves west through most of the desert, including the Marching sands region, before reaching the western edge of the continent in about a week. Some of the dust continues on above the Khartian sea, even reaching as far as the Continent of Viuzhul.Roaring Dust Clouds
In very intense versions of these storms, the constant lighting generates near endless thunder. This sound, mixed with the sound of the winds and the millions of sand grains colliding with each other creates a roar-like sound, which is powerful enough to be heard even before the dust clouds appear on the horizon, serving as a warning sign for the nomadic tribes of the region.Climate
Daytime temperatures in the interior regulary reach values above 60°C, while they plundge close to zero during the night. Rain in the interior is non-existent, while it is very rare even on the desert's boundaries is very rare and only occurs during the wet season, as rain clouds more over the continent from the The Great Eastern Ocean. During most of the year, humid air from the Khartian sea forms fog as it reaches the edge of the continent, and are the only source of moisture for the region.
Fauna & Flora
Silver Grass
Silver Grass is a species of heat and drought resistant grass that grows on top of the large dunes along the Khartian sea coast. When fog clouds form offshore and drift onto the land, the tall, grey blades of grass are able to condence the water into droplets, which then drop to the ground where they are aborbed by the plant. It is the only food and water source of the Fire Beetle.Fire Beetles
Like their name suggests, these beetle-like insects are able to produce fire, and are thus one of the few known species of elemental animals found in Hysal. These large insects, about the size of a man's fist, can be found clustered into large swarms all over the Great Sh'maari desert, as they can be carried by sandstorms. However, their natural habitat seems to be along the south-western coast of the continent, roughly within the same regions as Silver Grass.Graxin Spiders
While Graxin Spider seem to be native to the Near Sh'maari desert to the north-east, they can also be found in the western regions of the Great Sh'maari, where they feed on the Fire Beetles. Since their food source here is much more limited than in the Near Sh'maari, they usualy grow much smaller than their counterparts in the Near-Sh'maariNatural Resources
The Great Sh'Maari, despite being an immense territory, isn't a very ressource rich region. Timber and agriculture are obviously out of the window, and mining is limited by the harsh terrain and climate. Most mines are concentrated near the western half, near the Vursan Mountains and the Whistling hills, where large deposits of Lycanite crystals, as well as Iron and copper ore. The sand of the region, which contains a high percentage of Lycanite dust creates a unique ressource to the region, called Fulgurite, these fuzed, glassy sand tubes, which are dug up in the wake of an electric sandstorm, cut into smaller pieces and traded as Talismans, by the sand walker tribes with the Kingdom of Hedah, who in turns trades it with other nearby countries, such as Tomboraan, Khartia Khartia and Asderaan.
Alternative Name(s)
The Great Sand Sea / The Boiling Sands
Type
Desert
Location under
Inhabiting Species
Comments