Region: Northeast desert | Patron faith: Sevanna (caravans), informal Old Growth worship at the oasis | Governance: Aethel's Springs is self-governed by a small council of long-standing families; the wider desert has no formal authority
A vast golden desert dominated by a single active volcano, entirely unrelated to Mournspire's furnaces — this one is simply geological, longstanding, and well understood by locals. At its base sits Aethel's Springs: a lush, turquoise-watered oasis settlement with villa-like architecture, genuine beauty built deliberately in the shadow of real danger.
Aethel's Springs treats its proximity to the volcano with a mix of practical respect and dark humor rather than anxiety — generations of stability have made residents more relaxed about the danger than newcomers usually expect.