<div align="center">(https://elliquiy.com/elluiki/images/a/a6/Great_Dune_Sea3.png)</div><br/><div align="center"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>Great Dune Sea</strong></span></div><br/>The Great Dune Sea is an area of high sand dunes and raging winds. The dunes radiate outward from the center of the region. Thus, whichever way one approaches the center, one is always forced to climb the steep face of the dunes. The tallest dunes are those on the edge of the Dune Sea, which can rise to heights of over 500 yards. Near the center, the highest dunes rise 100 yards, but the majority are half this height.<br/><br/>Many great empires have risen from the sands of the Great Dune Sea only to sink beneath them again. Kingdoms of the gatormen, ophidae, Cakali,  and the Hekatic Empire (who once controlled virtually the entire region) are just the ones remembered today. Who knows how many smaller realms were conquered by these great builders, their memory erased from history?<br/><br/>Today there are no major powers in the core region of the Great North Desert, aside from the various Bedu Tribes and the Djaffir merchants of the Crimson Fortress, though the ruins of those who came before are still here, a fading reminder of days of glory now consigned to the deepest depths of history. Until such time as a new empire rises, as surely one will, the desert is the domain of nomadic tribes and fearsome beasts.<br/><br/>The jinn erected several small outposts in the region, and Northern Trade Road actually marks their old border. Although many of the ruins are buried beneath hundreds of feet of sand, storms do sometimes expose an area, revealing the structures beneath. Adventurers seeking to explore the ruins are urged to be quick, for they are quickly concealed again.<br/><br/><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 10pt;"><strong>Major Locales</strong></span><br/><br/><strong>Blue Water Oasis</strong><br/>Population: 1,323 (90% Bedu, 7% jinn blooded, 3%<br/>mixed others)<br/>Ruler: Sheikh Akbar of the Almari tribe<br/>Religion: Faithful (Apsu, Duamutef, Upuaut)<br/>Imports: Trade<br/>Exports: Trade<br/><br/>Blue Water Oasis lies roughly halfway along the Southern Trade Road, close to the edge of the Great Dune Sea. The oasis gets its name from its unusual water. Visitors quickly find that the water is not just blue when viewed in the oasis, but retains its vibrant sky-blue color when taken out.<br/><br/>The Almari tribe, led by Sheikh Akbar, controls the oasis. Blue water is priced at 5 dinars per quart. Although this is more than double the standard rate, Akbar reminds travelers that since the waters have such marvelous properties, they need to carry less, so sparing their camels a heavy burden. Surely, he says to protesting merchants, such a blessing is worth a few extra dinars?<br/><br/>Blue Water: Every pint of water drunk from the oasis counts as two pints, which makes it a favorite stop for those exploring the Great Dune Sea.<br/><br/><strong>Lost Tomb Oasis</strong><br/>Population: 592 (100% Bedu)<br/>Ruler: Sheikh Hadi of the Sabur tribe<br/>Religion: Asaheem<br/>Imports: Trade<br/>Exports: Trade<br/><br/>The Sphinx Road, which takes a dogleg at Lost Tomb Oasis, once marked part of the border of the Hekatic Empire. Originally the Empire stretched further east, but a series of disastrous wars against the newly emerged Kingdoms of the Sphinxes forced them to cede land to the new power.<br/><br/>The ruins of a Hekatic town, a former trading colony, lie ten miles west of the oasis. Eight miles east, along the Sphinx Road, are the remnants of an old sphinx outpost, built after the early wars with Hekata to safeguard against further incursions.<br/><br/>Legends of a lost tomb in the region have circulated the desert since before the War of Copper Jars. Every tale claims the tomb belonged to a powerful sphinx lord. Sphinxes give the site a wide berth, for a ghostly sphinx haunts the site, bringing death to any of its kin who sleep there for even a night.<br/><br/>The nomads claim the sphinx is Hamapta, the first sphinx pharaoh, who briefly united the warring factions. According to legend, Hamapta had many children, all of whom plotted against their father. When he died, Hamapta was buried in secret, taking his vast treasury and many powerful jinn-created relics with him. His children tore the desert asunder looking for the tomb, but were never successful. According to legend, Hamapta’s ghost still protects the land around his tomb from his descendants, which in his eyes includes every sphinx.<br/><br/>The Sabur enjoy the protection of “Hamapta” and leave offerings in the desert to appease the ghost. All those who visit the oasis are warned never to walk the desert at night and never to dig in the sands, less they anger the spirit. Not all of the Sabur are happy with the arrangement, however. The sheikh’s wizir, Karif abd-Hadi, seeks more power. He believes that if he can locate the tomb and recover the artifacts, the sphinxes will shower him with gold and elevate him to a position of power. He secretly hires small adventuring parties to comb the desert sands for evidence of the tomb.<br/><br/><strong>Oasis of Dreams</strong><br/>Population: 684 (100% Bedu)<br/>Ruler: Sheikhah Fayruz of the Abraha tribe<br/>Religion: Ashstart<br/>Imports: Trade<br/>Exports: Trade<br/><br/>At the juncture of the Northern Trade and Snake Roads lies the verdant Oasis of Dreams. A decrease in trade along the Snake Road and general decline in overland trade has not gone unnoticed. Indeed, thanks to the current trade shortage the Abraha are on the verge of giving up their ancient lifestyle and becoming settled.<br/><br/>The land around the oasis is very fertile, but at present only around 5% if actually cultivated—more than enough to meet the tribe’s needs. By encouraging settlers to move here and expanding the irrigation system, the oasis could quickly become a major agricultural exporter. Sheikhah Fayruz, the only child of the previous sheikh, actually proposed the change, but she is having a tough time convincing her people it is the only way to guarantee their continued survival.<br/>While Fayruz could easily force the change by making a decree, she has no wish to see her tribe divided. Until she can persuade the conservatives to adopt the new way of life her plans cannot be carried out. All the while the sands creep closer, consuming what could be a great source of wealth.<br/><br/>There have been two recent attempts on her life. Fayruz now goes everywhere with one of her handmaidens, a very powerful guardian wizir with the sense of humor of a corpse. Although Fayruz’s plans remain a dream, they are not the source of the oasis’ name. Her family has ruled the oasis since the old dynasty was expelled in favor of the worship of Ashtart. Ever since, the eldest female of the sheikh’s family has always suffered from strange visions and dreams, usually involving a battle between five dragons. One has white scales of a type unknown in to the desert. Arrayed against it are marsh, sand, storm, and sun dragons.<br/><br/><strong>Oasis of Fish</strong><br/>Population: 556 (100% Bedu)<br/>Ruler: Sheikh Saqr of the Othman tribe<br/>Religion: Asaheem<br/>Imports: Trade<br/>Exports: Fish, trade<br/><br/>Unusually, the oasis is not a single pool or spring, but a dozen pools, spread out over an area of 30 square miles. The Othman tribe claims the entire region as their territory, which stretches the ancient law of “one tribe one oasis” as far as neighboring tribes are concerned—they see each pool as a separate oasis.<br/><br/>As one might guess, the Oasis of Fish is named because its waters are teeming with fish. The fish are caught by great nets, smoked or salted to preserve them. These are then sold to passing merchants. Guests staying at the oasis are free to catch their own supper if they so desire, but any fish they catch must be eaten before they leave—if they want preserved fish for the journey, they have to buy it from the locals.<br/><br/>The sheikh has a personal cook, Fazir, who is a master of fish recipes. His centerpiece, served only when the sheikh has honored guests to dine, is fish glazed in honey and stuffed with minced lamb, figs, and palm leaves. Fazir always catches his own fish. Strangely, he does not use a net or hook—he simply wades into the water, sticks his head beneath the surface, and fish swim to him, willingly allowing him to carry them to his pot. Jinn mages with knowledge of marids claim this is nothing special, for they too can communicate with aquatic beasts. However, what makes Fazir unusual is he is mute—his former master cut out his tongue.<br/><br/>Sheikh Saqr has had the pools explored by marid jinn mages, who report that not only are the pools linked together, but the waters actually descend deep into the bowels of the earth. One mage returned with hideous bite and claw wounds. With his dying breath he described how after swimming through a series of tunnels he emerged into an air-filled cavern. There, on a shore of crushed shells, stood a wondrous, intact city. He died before he could reveal any more. Saqr fears the city might be home to a powerful marid lord. He has ruled that the city must remain undisturbed.<br/><br/><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 10pt;"><strong>Places of Interest</strong></span><br/><br/><strong>The Bronze Horseman</strong><br/>Bedu speak in awe of the Bronze Horseman, a 20 feet tall statue cast in solid bronze. Although words of mouth legends indicate it is undoubtedly many centuries old, it shows no sign of weathering or tarnishing. The statue appears to show an armored warrior mounted on a horse. Strangely, the rider has no legs, giving the impression the human upper body is sprouting directly from the horse’s back. In its right arm is couched a long lance, while its left grips a shield on which are inscribed instructions in the language of the jinn telling how to activate the spirit within. The statue has proven resistant to all attempts to damage or move it, whether by mundane or magical means.<br/><br/>Faithful nomads believe the site is sacred to Upuaut, for the spirit that resides here is a guide to those lost in the sands. Worshipers of Asaheem argue it is a mighty majin, an abomination that was both man and horse, a general of the jinn army transformed into bronze by Asaheem. To both creeds, it is a sacred place.<br/><br/>Regardless, what both agree on is that the statue is capable of movement, for each night it thunders across the desert, halting its progress at sunrise. Faithful believe that Upuaut cannot abide to remain still for long, hence his constant movement.<br/><br/><br/><strong>Plateau of the Damned</strong><br/>Rising steeply from the sand is a wide, flat plateau, its sheer sides a more formidable defense than any castle or Sultan’s palace. A narrow trail, treacherously thin for most of its length, winds up and around the southern face to the summit.<br/>The remains of a great city, long abandoned by the living, stand atop the plateau. Stone blocks as long as a man and weighing many tons were used to build the city, which has given rise to the tale of the builders being a race of giants. The rest of the plateau is barren rock. Rain has not fallen here in many centuries—nothing grows or lives here.<br/><br/>Dragon-Demon Temple: In the center of the ruins stands a great temple, its sloped roof held aloft by immense pillars of basalt and black granite.. Within the temple stands a colossal statue of a humanoid with four draconic heads—the heads are those of a marsh dragon, sand dragon, storm dragon, and a sun dragon. According to stories, the giants who lived here worshipped a powerful demon servant of the Hungering Dark who took the shape of a dragon. In retribution for their blasphemy, the gods struck down the inhabitants, turning them into the darkness they so craved. Stains on the walls of many buildings have an eerie resemblance to shadows, perhaps the victims of divine anger.<br/><br/><strong>Mirah, City of Traps</strong><br/>The deserted city of Mirah has lain empty since before the jinn came to power. According to legend, Mirah was once called the City of Wealth, for its citizens were wealthier than the other cities combined. No one in the city knew poverty—even the beggars were said to wear gold rings and dress in expensive silk robes. Yet for all their riches, the citizens grew more and more covetous and more and more fearful of thieves.<br/><br/>History has left no record of how it began, but storytellers speak of how fear turned to true paranoia. In a bid to safeguard their riches, the citizens began constructing traps around and within their homes. The practice spread across the city like wildfire. Soon leaving one’s home became a gamble with death—pits, spear traps, falling blocks, slicing blades, and magical glyphs covered every square yard of the city. So the story goes, the trap building pandemic reached such heights that no one could leave their home and merchants avoided the city for fear of the deadly, concealed devices. Crops withered in the fields, food stores ran out, and the entire population, save those who did not meet their deaths trying to escape, died of starvation.<br/><br/>Mirah has sat silent ever since. Its paved streets remain clear of sand, for even the great desert seems fearful to enter the City of Traps. Countless stories exist of the fabulous wealth of Mirah, but just as many stories exist of curious or greedy souls who entered the city and never returned.<br/><br/><br/>