The Barrans
A vast desert located on the eastern edge of Veila and north of The Frontier, it was once thought to be completely devoid of life. The vast sea of sand and the overwhelming heat keeping out any who would enter its depths, the unbreaking rolling dunes the only thing visible as far the eye could see.
However from inside the unforgiving desert arose the Mert Nezreg, a nomadic tribe of Ethieans of unknown origins. With their knowledge of the Barrans they provided a faster route of trade between Veila and the Frontier. The two regions no longer needing to travel around the desert by sea with the nomades visiting both sides twice a year.
Over time the tribe grew and began splitting into multiple groups, each of them taking their own paths through the sands and visiting different settlements. Eventually the nomades become more open, welcoming strangers into their groups and guiding travelers across the wastlands. The secrets of the Barrans center became known, the sandy dunes giving way to more solid ground and opening up into a lost paradise.
It is here that the Regus make their home, small huts and white washed buildings with thatched roofs making up the villages. Found nestled inside the larger oases the villages are filled with those resting between journies, those to sick to travel, and those whoes profession keeps them at home. Fires are scattered through the villages at night to stave off the fridged temperatures, and to help guide anyone late coming home.
Out in the desert are groups of two to five houses, way points for the nomads and homes of the more solitary Regus and farmers. Larger fire are kept burning outside these, visible for miles to avoid people freezing in the night, and formerly used to produce smoke signals as communication.
Geography
Vast canyons carved out by long dead rivers, soaring mesas, jagged cliffs, and high rocky platues make up the vast majority of the Barrans creating a varried landscape. Wide salt flats with mirror-like surfaces and mineral deposits dot the area inbetween the rocky spires and landforms.
Small oases are scattered throughout the central area of the region, hidden in canyons and under rocky outcroppings. The larger oases sometimes spaning a few miles in length, large clear springs providing them with ample amounts of water for the lush greenery.
While the high walls of rock and stone provide some protection, the desert remains a dangerous place. Huge sandstorms that streach for miles can spring up seemingly without warning ingulfing everything in skin splitting winds and clogging the air with sand, leaving everything in near darkness broken only by flashes of lightining. After the sun goes down the temperatures plummet, falling well below freezing leaving the region just as cold as the day is scorching. Any caught out in a storm or after dark unprepared are often lost to the desert, killed by the harsh conditions or disorinted and left to wander until they colapse.
Fauna & Flora
The drnacr mnuri (der-nak-cur nur-I), Regus for desert gem, is the most notorious feature of the Barrans. A medium sized bird about thirteen inches tall, a wingspan of four feet, and tail feathers ranging on average anywhere from three and a half to four feet long. Apptly named the drnacr mnuri is adorned with irridesenct plumage that comes in a variety of bright colors and flecks that glint like melted gold in the sunlight.
Extremely social animals they're often seen following the nomadic tribes as they travel, and flying with the aircrafts brave enough to attempt flying over the vast expanse, usually in pairs of two or three. They're beautiful trilling song is said to be good luck, a relaxing melody that means the weather is calm. Burrowing in the sand one will find a variety of insects and also the timihds, a small lizard only one inch in length and covered in dusty tan scales. The main staple of the drnacr mnuri, they're found around the cacti that they eat or hidding in their burrows durning midday to avoid the intense heat. A variety of ferns, clumps of short tough grasses, short thin trees with long fiberous leaves can be found scattered sparsely through the region become more frequent closer to the oases. In the oases are lush green grasses, brightly colored flowers, reeds, and even some fruits and vegetables.
Extremely social animals they're often seen following the nomadic tribes as they travel, and flying with the aircrafts brave enough to attempt flying over the vast expanse, usually in pairs of two or three. They're beautiful trilling song is said to be good luck, a relaxing melody that means the weather is calm. Burrowing in the sand one will find a variety of insects and also the timihds, a small lizard only one inch in length and covered in dusty tan scales. The main staple of the drnacr mnuri, they're found around the cacti that they eat or hidding in their burrows durning midday to avoid the intense heat. A variety of ferns, clumps of short tough grasses, short thin trees with long fiberous leaves can be found scattered sparsely through the region become more frequent closer to the oases. In the oases are lush green grasses, brightly colored flowers, reeds, and even some fruits and vegetables.
Natural Resources
Cacti of all shapes and sizes are one of the main resources of the Barrans, the Regus harvest the fruit, flowers, and even parts of the cacti to be used in food and medicine. A rich purple flower, called the haas, glows at night and is used to create a dye with the same properties.
The parts of the cactus that are harvested are usually roasted on the open fires, but can be grilled, boiled, or used in a salad. Cultivated and grown on farms, and in personal gardens, are fruits and vegetables suited to the arid climate, these include melons, cucumbers, onions, pumpkins, and squash. Herbs such as mint are also grown by the farmers, planted closest to the springes to insure they get plenty of water.
Rashi is a small brownish-gray plant with wide flat leaves that are gathered and left to dry in the sun before being ground up. Used in smoking pipes and sometimes brazziers, rashi induces a gental head high without being addictive making it popular with many inhabitants of Ethiea.
Crafted in the small stone forges of the Mert Nezreg tribes is an extremely durable metal they use to make weapons and jewelry. Often touted as one of the strongest metals the pieces made by the Regus are of high value, the exact recipe known only to a handful of master craftsmen.
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