The Gleaming Wastes
Geography
The Gleaming Wastes is a vast, scorching desert that stretches across the eastern border of Zola and the western edge of Durrozhonth, forming an immense natural barrier between two very different cultures. The land is composed of shifting dune fields, sun-scoured plateaus, and wide expanses of fused glass and scorched earth, believed to be remnants of arcane catastrophe or forgotten divine judgment.
Waves of heat ripple across the terrain, and jagged ridges of crystalized sand rise like frozen tidal crests. The Wastes are largely impassable without experienced guides, and even then, the land is untrustworthy. Dust devils whisper across the flats, and mirages regularly disorient even seasoned desertwalkers.
Ecosystem
The environment is harsh and unrelenting. Temperatures soar during the day and plummet at night. The rare flora and fauna that survive here do so through unique adaptations: subterranean root systems, reflective skin, nocturnal behavior. The desert ecosystem is delicate and sparsely populated, dominated by creatures and plants that thrive on extremes—predators that can lie dormant for months, and blossoms that appear only after rare moonlit rains.
On the Zolan side, small fortified oasis towns guard the desert’s edge, while the Durrozhonth side is more chaotic—home to wandering warbands and half-buried shrines lost to time.
Localized Phenomena
While not a consistently magical region, patches of the Wastes exhibit arcane instability. These locations—often around dense glass plains—can reflect magical energy unpredictably. Spells may echo, fragment, or twist slightly, leading to both fascination and fear among mages.
It is said that in certain places, reflections in the glass show not your face, but your past or future self—an effect poorly understood and often dismissed as hallucination. Some believe the Wastes are a memory of the world, caught between timelines.
Climate
- Day Temperatures: Reach above 110°F (43°C) in peak months
- Night Temperatures: Drop below freezing in the deep desert
- Rainfall: Exceptionally rare and highly localized
- Winds: Carry fine glass particles, making travel without protection dangerous
Sandstorms, some infused with trace magical energy, sweep the region during the change of seasons. These storms can obscure the horizon for days and leave behind bizarre new formations of sand and glass.
Fauna & Flora
Glassthistle, Nehket Ashu|Gift of the Mirage or Tharz-Grak|Mind-Shatter
Sandveil Adder, Tazir’metekh|Whisper Beneath Sand or Vrashk|Vein-Killer, Sunlatch Lizard, Irrsatekhet|One Who Clings to Light or Kravshik|Glass Fang, Sootcrow, Karnehet|Ash-Eyed Messenger or Vrakk|Flamepicker, Ashwurm, Nekhazuret|Wrath of the Earth or Gralkh|That Which Buries
Natural Resources
Despite its dangers, the Gleaming Wastes are mined for rare and valuable materials:
- Crystalglass, Nerusetem|Sun-Cleared Eye or Skarn-Breath|Flame’s Last Stillness
- Driftmetal, Nehm’sharun|Sky’s Mercy or Tharg-Muul|Unchained Iron
- Burnstone, Sekhem’etek|Wrath-Seed of the Sun or Kraazthar|Death Ember
- Suncaged Ore
- Dustgold
- Oasis Pearls, Al'kireth|Heart of Hidden Waters or Droth-Kuur|Thirst’s Secret
Zola regulates mining fiercely, with elite sandwardens controlling access to the known harvesting grounds. Durrozhonth's warbands tend to take by force or scavenging raids.
History
The Wastes serve as a natural divide between Zola’s order and Durrozhonth’s chaos. Zola considers the Gleaming Wastes sacred—an extension of their divine punishment myths and a proving ground for spiritual strength. Fortified outposts mark its edge, guarded by desert priestesses and spirit interpreters.
Durrozhonth’s perspective is far different. Their tribes and warlords see the Wastes as a crucible—those who survive its trial are worthy, and those who vanish feed the land’s legend. Scattered across their border are ceremonial cairns and fire altars used to mark blood rites or victories in desert skirmishes.
Tourism
- Zolan Pilgrim Routes connect oases, shrines, and fortified resting points with engraved sunstones.
- Durrozhonth nomads use instinct, oral maps, and the stars to navigate ever-shifting dune fields.
- Explorers speak of buried ziggurats, crystal forests, and sand-swallowed cities—though few return with proof.
Despite these dangers, the Wastes remain a point of fascination for researchers, treasure hunters, and those seeking to disappear. It is said that if one spends 13 days in the center of the desert without speaking, they will hear the Wastes speak back.
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