Exploring the Shifting Deserts of Akhaemia

To most in the Empire of Azerai , the lands beyond the Ashen Wastes are little more than rumour and blasphemy. The Church of Azerai dictates the lives of the faithful, and its armies, the Penitent Crusade, guard the borders with fire and conviction. But not even they patrol beyond the Wastes. Those who travel there must either be desperate, reckless, or profiting handsomely.

The Ashen Wastes themselves are a corrupted scar to the east, blasted by storms of arcane energy that twist the land into treacherous shapes. Sand is fused into brittle, glass-like crusts that conceal deep hollows. Lightning storms roll without clouds, striking stone and flesh alike. There are things that follow travellers for days without showing their forms, and ruins where whispers answer your own voice. Caravans of the Alchemic Order are some of the few to cross them, ferrying goods and secrets across the continent. Their wagons are drawn by stitched, half-living beasts and protected by mysterious means.

Beyond this fractured expanse to the south lies Akhaemia, a desert vast enough to swallow empires.

Akhaemia is not a lifeless waste. Beneath its burning skies, life moves in many forms.

Towering from its golden sands, the monumental Templums overlook the Wastes, ancient and silent, said to house the alien Seraphim, god-like beings who appear to wait in meditation for some unfathomable event. Few dare approach, yet their looming presence is felt in every shifting dune.

Along the sandstone crags bordering this expanse, harpies nest and raise their foul avian-like offspring, pillaging the surrounding lands until it cannot sustain them any further.

Journeying deeper into the desert, the elusive Vaalakeri or Sand Whisperers can be encountered riding colossal Haast birds, their wings casting shadows upon this otherwise shadeless expanse. They appear without warning, their allegiance as shifting as the sands themselves.

To the far south, the desert gives way to the bone-strewn savannah of the Sekhaton, reptilian warrior clans who live among the remains of their colossal forebears. Of late, travellers whisper of a strange pull drawing them toward their swamp-ridden ancestral homelands farther south.

And in the northeast lies the true, vigorously beating heart of this land: Balazar’s Dominion.

Balazar’s Dominion is ruled from Ashurr, a city of silks and scars, where beauty and horror are not opposites but intimately entangled with each other. It is a place where the flesh is perfected through the Rites of Binding, mortal and demon fused in a dangerous equilibrium. Those who succeed become Eidolons, graceful and deadly. Those who fail are left broken, soulless, or mad, yet still wandering the perfumed streets.

Ashurr is not chaos without order. The city is arranged in spiralling districts, each closer to Balazar’s palace more lavish and more dangerous. The outer quarters are a riot of markets where mortals trade relics, narcotics, and living curiosities. Further in, the districts become more resplendent and are complimented by lush gardens, where days pass in rites of pleasure and pain, each act a celebration of their Prince. Within the palace itself, the most influential courtiers whisper bargains behind screens of silk, and a single insult can lead to a duel before the court by nightfall.

Beyond Ashurr’s walls, the Dominion stretches into fortified pleasure-villas, demon-haunted oases, and roads patrolled by the Exalted Hosts . Bekhetur’s raiding bands sometimes return here in triumph, their captives paraded through the Grand Coliseum before they are tested in the sands for Balazar’s amusement. In contrast, Atraxes’ legions march in precise formation, their discipline a rare constant in a land built on indulgence.

The Cabal of Languor maintains temple complexes scattered throughout the Dominion. Their sanctums are filled with chanting acolytes, perfumed smoke, and the slow cadence of preparation for the Rites.

The Demons of Ecstasy are the least predictable element of the Dominion. Some are bound servants within Ashurr, drifting through court like living nightmares. Others stalk the fringes of the Dominion and beyond, drawn to acts of extreme sensation: a battle that turned into an orgy of blood, a mortal who defied excruciating pain to reach a vision, a courtier who willingly burned away their skin in an act to cleanse their soul.

The Dominion does not simply expand by sword and siege. Its influence spreads like perfume on the wind. Nobles far from Akhaemia whisper of forbidden rites. Bekhetur’s warbands sometimes strike villages leagues away from Ashurr. Cults, knowingly or not, call down the attention of the Demons of Ecstasy.

That wraps up this brief overview of Akhaemia. Hopefully, this article has managed to showcase the character of these lands, from its remote reaches to the heart of Ashurr, and to show how its many factions fit into this single, ever-shifting landscape.

While much remains to be explored, including its deeper histories, its hidden alliances, and the secret societies outside the Dominion’s reach, this guide should provide a solid reference for anyone looking to move their party into the blazing sands of this exotic region. If you'd like to learn more about Balazar's Dominion itself and those who dwell there, the Faction Book contains a wealth of detail and lore for you to sink your teeth into.

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