The Dead Sands

Desert Travel Rules

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Overland Travel

Until recently traveling the Sahwat proper was an activity limited to the desparate and the outcast, and nearly none of it had been mapped. This is changing, though, with the discovery of buried wonders of the Yanrin Didan. Now every faction, bandit crew, hedge wizard and treasure hunter is descending on the desert and racing to uncover its secrets. When you undertake a journey into the desert, the party will need to contend with Provisioning, Survival, and Regional Effects; these are described below.

Provisioning

Every creature that requires food and water to live must consume a certain amount of each daily according to their size. We will assume that an adventurer with their pack always has enough rations to survive (nobody is counting jerky strips in this game), but water must be tracked and accounted for. A gallon of water is approximately 4 pounds and is sufficient for 1 medium creature to survive the desert per day. The table below refers the "Water Ration" inventory item on D&D Beyond and its retail cost in Tano's Edge.

Size	0.5 Gallon Water Rations/Day	Weight (Lbs)	Cost
Tiny	0.5	1	2 Silver, 5 Copper
Small	1	2	5 Silver
Medium	2	4	1 Gold
Large	3	6	1 Gold, 5 Silver

A creature that fails to consume enough water in a given day will take one point of exhaustion, and that point will remain until they consume a full day's water ration.

Creatures can survive a day on half rations without incurring a point of exhaustion by avoiding strenuous activity and traveling at half-speed.

Creatures may also survive on a half ration of water per day by sleeping during the day and traveling at night, provided they have shelter; see Shelter below.

Magical Provisions

The unnatural and unstable arcane effects of the Sahwat desert make consuming food and water conjured into existence while in the desert dangerous. Water created in the desert by magical means will be potable and suitable to avoid taking points of exhaustion when consumed in quantity, but may have side effects ranging from poison to disease to too many tentacles.

Water conjured by magical means outside the Sahwat and carried in is generally immune to these effects, as is water from naturally-occurring sources within the desert: ponds, streams, wells, mirages, underwater lakes, and so on.

Mounts and Pack Animals

Since we will be using encumberance rules and managing the party's water supply, you may wish to make use of mounts or pack animals to add your desert adventures. Two animals are used most commonly: Camels, which can carry a heavy weight and need less water but are useless in a fight, and Axe Beaks, which move faster and can be helpful in a scrap but carry less and drink more. The differences are summarized here:

Mount	Carry	Tow	Daily Water Rations	mi/day	Combat?
Sand Strider	500	5000	0 (up to 2 weeks)	15	Y
Camel	300	3000	8*	10	N
Axe Beak	150	1500	12	15	Y

* A camel can survive 5 days without water before incurring points of exhaustion, but must consume a full day's rations for each day before losing accumulated exhaustion.

Mounts towing carts or sleds move at half speed.

Fast Travel

A party riding Sand Striders can fast travel through any region of the Sahwat where they have previously completed a full survey. When fast traveling, the party skips Survival skill challenges and completes each half-day of travel automatically. Water rations must be consumed at the normal rate daily. Remember that Sand Striders ignore difficult terrain, so may cross the region in half as many days.

The party cannot forage, track, or evade while fast traveling.

Survival

Even with basic provisioning and water, exploring the Sahwat will require adventurers to be both hardy and resourceful. The party can choose to spend a portion of their time in the desert on activities beyond Traveling: Foraging, Tracking, Evading, and Surveying.

An activity is performed with a skill check, the DC for which will depend on the region, the weather, and any special conditions set by the DM. Activities may succeed, succeed with a complication, or fail outright.

The preferred skill checks required for each activity are listed below; adventurers may attempt to complete an activity using a different skill, but the DC will be set by the DM.

Each activity consumes a half-day and the attention of at least one adventurer. A second adventurer may choose to assist with one activity, conveying advantage on the skill check. Activities besides Forage cannot be repeated by other players on the same half-day.

Travel

Preferred Skills: Survival, Athletics

The Sahwat is considered difficult terrain unless specified otherwise by the DM; a party moving at a normal pace on foot will cover around 10 miles per day. The party may also choose to move at half-speed or quick-march:

Speed	mi/Day	Water	Effects
half	0.5x normal	half	stealth possible, +5 bonus to Travel
normal	10*	normal	disadvantage on stealth
quick	2x normal	double	no stealth, -5 penalty to Travel

* See also Mounts, below.

Note that a successful Travel activity is required for Surveying; Survey below.

Forage

Preferred Skills: Alchemist's Tools, Nature, Medicine

The desert is home to any number of strange flora which can be used in alchemy, medicine, spell components, or traded for materials or gold. Foraging allows players to look for whatever they wish, though they will learn that not every region contains every resource in abundance. The more they know about a region, the better their chances of finding exactly what they're looking for (or not wasting a half day on a fool's errand); see Survey, below.

On a successful check, the DM will determine what you are able to find, and how much. Once you have completed a region's Survey, you may choose one resource to harvest from those available in the region.

Example:

• Gormak the Mighty forages for redfoot using a Nature check and rolls a 16.
• DM declares Gormak has found 11 bundles of redfoot (value 2 GP).
• Gormak adds "22 GP of Redfoot" to her inventory.

Track

Preferred Skills: Animal Handling, Investigation, Insight

The best way to find water, shelter, settlements, and other interesting locations in the region is to study the movement of those who survive in the desert, whether beast or man. By tracking the movement of others, the party can find water sources to replenish their supply, a Shelter for safer rest, or getting the drop on competing factions.

Once you have fully surveyed a region, on a successful skill check the party may choose which known location to return to.

Evade

Preferred Skills: Stealth, Deception

The party is not the only group of skilled trackers in the Sahwat. Use this activity to evade your pursuers or stalking predators. Whether you are aware of being pursued at all will depend on the maximum Passive Perception of the party.

Survey

Preferred Skills: Cartographer's Tools, Perception

Making a detailed map of a region takes time, but completely surveying the region unlocks details about its size, terrain, weather, and flora. A completed survey also grants a permanent +5 bonus to all Travel, Tracking, Evading, and Foraging checks in the region. Players must still succeed on these skill checks to gain their benefits, even with a completed survey.

A player can only Survey when the party successfully completes a Travel check; you cannot create an accurate map if you're lost! A second player can assist on a single Survey skill check, but you cannot survey multiple times on a single successful Travel check.

Regional maps are highly prized and an original can be sold for a significant sum -- it will also draw the attention of thieves and bandits.

Shelter, Rest, and Night-Time Travel

Long Rests and Shelters

The party can only take a long rest in a Shelter. A shelter is any structure, natural or constructed, which creates shade sufficient to cover a character and provide wind cover on at least two sides. Some examples include:

• tents
• lean-tos
• caves
• a grove of trees
• hidden amongst rocks or boulders
• tiny huts
• magnificent mansions

Shelters can be found by Tracking, though lucky hoppers may discover one in the course of travel, foraging, etc.

Short Rests

A short rest can be taken anywhere as part of a half-day spent on any activity besides travel. Parties that take short rests are more likely to pick up one or more trackers.

Traveling at Night

The party may choose to travel in the cooler air of night instead of during the day. Doing so has the following effects:

• Party can survive on half-rations of water
• -5 penalties to Travel, Forage, and Track activities
• +5 bonus to Evade activities
• Surveying not possible
• Hostile encounters more likely at night

Regional Effects

The Sahwat was the result of an arcane cataclysm, the effects of which are still felt today; besides basic survival hoppers must contend with unpredictable conditions, bizarre weather, and wild magic storms. At the start of each day, the DM will roll on a weather table which may create additional challenges for travelers. Certain regions also have persistent effects. Over time, the party may gain access to skills that allow them to predict these weather patterns and use that knowledge to their advantage.

Examples of regional effects may include:

• A sandstorm that seems to follow the party conveys disadvantage on skill checks involving sight
• Unnaturally hot temperatures double water consumption
• The soft sands glow blue whenever spells are cast; all creatures have advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.

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