Saltglass Wastes
Description:
A desolate, blazing expanse of fused salt flats and glassy dunes, the @Saltglass Wastes stretch like a bleached scar at the heart of the @Emberflow Sea . Once the site of a cataclysmic volcanic eruption, @The Brimvault Caldera at its center vented such intense geothermal force that it flash-evaporated the sea and left a permanently exposed basin. What remains is a sun-blasted, razor-sharp wilderness of salt shards, obsidian ridges, and scorched sand.
Appearance:
An endless shimmering plain of brilliant white and searing blue. The salt floor glitters like shattered diamond under the sun. Twisted formations of glass and brine-scarred coral pierce the landscape. Dunes of powdered salt roll in slow tides, driven by screaming thermal winds. At night, the salt glows faintly, phosphorescent from embedded mineral traces. Ships cannot sail here—only windskiffs and tread-haulers can cross the scalding surface.
Natural Barriers:
The Brimvault Dome: A geothermic anomaly beneath the Wastes causes a constant updraft of superheated air, forming a convection dome that physically repels seawater. Ocean waves crash around its ring but never enter.
Saltlash Effect: Crystalline residues in the terrain create ambient anti-flood magic—accidental remnants of old brine rites and melted tidewards that repel moisture like oil on water.
Notable Features:
@Skiffbone Dunes : A bone-littered ridge where raiders race salt-skimmers and duel over salvage rights.
@Brinefang Monastery : A fortress-shrine to the sun gods and war spirits, carved from basalt and obsidian. Hosts martial rites and pilgrimage duels.
@The Glassborne Scar : A canyon of cracked crystal and fused coral, where treasure-hunters risk heatstroke and collapse for volcanic gems.
Factions & Influence:
Ferrum Charter: Operates salt-mines and material extraction rigs under brutal contracts.
Brineward Sunpriests: Warrior-priests who protect the Monastery and guide pilgrims through sacred trials.
Ridgeclan Raiders: Nomadic windskiff tribes who prey on transports and settle vendettas in ritual duels.
Hazards:
Superheated air pockets that can ignite sails or lungs.
Razor salt crusts that shred boots and sleds.
Salt scorpions, brine drakes, and mirage-worms—adapted to the dry furnace.
Role in the World:
The @Saltglass Wastes are @Aethertide ’s great inland mystery—unreachable by sea, untouched by memory-magic, and teeming with raw material and primal heat. They are a forge for warriors, a tomb for fools, and a goldmine for those with no fear of burning alive.