Here's me taking a stab at a settlement in a place that most people wouldn't assume there to be anything to
settle. Here's a look at the oasis of Nekrepet, in Sebua.
Nekrepet
Favored oasis of the Sebuan nomads
When one thinks of the Amber Wastes, at first, they may think of Har'Akir. The tales of ancient treasures and even more ancient monsters that guard it, from the sphinxes to the mummies to the more unknown to the layman, like the ammits, griffins, uraeuses or serpopards that are depicted in hieroglyphs on the long-forgotten tombs within the mountains that overshadow Muhar. Or perhaps, they may think of Pharazia, of the angelic being that lives within the great city of Phiraz and of the religious zealots that give out the law in that land, while the people begin to trade with Hazlan and the Core through the Road of a Thousand Secrets. But seldom spare a thought to Sebua, beyond a customary shiver at the very notion of crossing such a doomed wasteland to get from one end of the Amber Wastes to the other.
But Sebua, despite its appearance, is not completely void of inhabitants. Sure, some may know of the abundance of wildlife that thrives within the human-deficient land, from the mischievous baboons to the highly aggressive mosquitoes and strigoi of the Red Oasis. Sure, some may also know of the mysterious wild children that skulk about the equally mysterious mud-huts and primitive dwellings near and within the abandoned oasis-city of Anhalla. Sure, there have been settlements by outsiders before, such as the oasis where the fiend Al-Khymer was bound (close to the border with Pharazia) and Tawiel Akhdar and its werejackal situation*. And, sure, monster hunter like Dr. Rudolph Van Richten have reported on the various mummies that prowl the Sebuan wastes, greatest of all being Moosha the Scabrous One and the Darklord, Tiyet. But none have ever known that Sebua has its own small settlements, that belong not to the dead or the destitute living, but to its own native nomads. Nekrepet is but one such place.
As mentioned in RR1 Darklords (page 86), "The only remaining residents of Sebua are nomads, traveling from water hole to water hole with their herds of camels. (It is rumored that they may even leave this domain. If this is so, they travel only to Har'Akir, another desert domain in Ravenloft.) A small group of the nomads comes to Anhalla perhaps once each month, staying no more than a day. They can be seen by the oasis, gathering dates, slaying a wild goose, or milking their camels." Additionally, "[T]he nomads dress entirely in black. Their robes hang to the ground. Their headcloths are drawn across their faces, concealing all but their dark eyes. These people are not friendly. No matter where they are encountered, they are unlikely to speak to anyone who approaches. Though they will allow a stranger to take water from a source, spears are raised in defense." While one would certainly assume that these nomads are merely Pharazians from across the border (perhaps the people of al-Rashaan or some other tribe), from a Doylist/out-of-universe perspective, these nomads were described long before the Amber Wastes were united into one (as
RR1 Darklords came out before Domains of Dread and detailed Sebua as an Island of Terror, while Pharazia was detailed as an Island of Terror within
Islands of Terror, with the former preceding the latter by roughly 10 months according to their respective release dates). So who are these nomads? What relation do they have with Sebua, being natives of the land alongside the wild children? How do they avoid having their hearts eaten by Tiyet, and ultimately survive? Nekrepet may answer some, but not all, of these questions.
Nekrepet is simply the name given by the Sebuan nomads to the oasis commonly labeled on maps as the "Southern Oasis" of Sebua. In relation to Anhalla, they are only a day's camel-ride away from Anhalla, and a day's camel-ride away from the Mists into which they disappear, only to reappear in a backwater thorp in Har'Akir to trade their wares. Since the conjoining of the Amber Wastes, they take the long way to Har'Akir, through tough-to-traverse but otherwise safe (if a bit foreboding) mountain passes that connect the large mountains and subsequent tombs of the Valley of Death of Sebua to the Valley of the Pharaoh's Rest in Har'Akir. In terms of architecture, Nekrepet is mostly a collection of tents surrounding the oasis, with the tent of those in the tribe who hold power (temporal or religious or otherwise) being closest to the carefully constructed
igoudar mud-and-stone granaries (detailed below). Aside from the recently made
igoudar, there is a remnant of whatever culture used to dominate the region. An old temple to forgotten Akiri gods rests but a mile away from the Southern Oasis, and it is from the stone hieroglyphs taken (temporarily) from its entrance and shown to the Akiri of Har'Akir that the name Nekrepet was given to the nomadic settlement. A long hallway, lined with sphinxes, crosses a series of pylons and arrives to the proper temple. This was originally surrounded by a lake, now long-gone, and presumed by the nomads to have been connected in some way to the Southern Oasis. Returning to the matter of the tents, some of the tents are covered with animal skin, and some are with mats. The closer one gets to Pharazia, the more mats and mugs are prominent, while Nekrepet, situated in Sebua's south, is far more traditional, and has no issues in hunting the animals of Anhalla to create more nets. Tents themselves tend to be constructed during the marital rites between one Sebuan nomad and another, with the phrase "making a tent" being a metaphor for being married (
source: Wikipedia article on the Tuareg nomad group of the Sahara).
The Sebuan nomads are only a little over 100 when fully gathered, which is a rare occurrence. Usually, Nekrepet has 25-30 Sebuan nomads year-round, while the others either travel to distant wells in Sebua or towards the oases claimed by the Pharazian foreigners, such as Tawiel Akhdar and al-Khymer's Oasis. The Sebuan nomads have shaky relations with their new foreign neighbors to the east, and have been on cool, neutral terms with the Akiri to the west. For the Sebuans, the Pharazian encampments are doomed to fail at some point, so there is no use in speaking to what will soon be dead men. That doesn't stop them from trading with the 'doomed men', something which many an old soul within the nomad camps complains about, believing that it will bring ill fortune to their tribe. As for the Akiri, the Sebuans have traded with the people to the west long before the two lands were glued together. But the relationship stops at that; any attempt by the Akiri to learn more of the strange, black-robed and fully-veiled nomads from another desert were and are still met with silence. The Akiri themselves believe Sebua to be an even more forsaken land than their own, with some among them wondering if, due to the Akiri language scrawled in Sebuan ruins, Sebua itself is merely the future of the Black Land (and Har'Akir by proxy). Whenever the Sebuan nomads are altogether, it is both to discuss matters relating to their continued survival (what little water the rains have brought this season, what casualties have been taken in each tribe and how many births to offset that, where the animals have gone this season to feed, where the ancient dead have been spotted, etc.) as well as lighter, more jovial pursuits. The nomads compared jewelry and other valuables amongst themselves (usually attained from one of their trading partners), of which silver was highly sought after. The youth would engage in their own games, with more than a few being subtle ways of teaching them both how to fight and how to survive on their own. Sometimes music would be played from Nekrepet in these gatherings, though the volume would be carefully monitored by the elders, lest the sound attract any unsavory visitors.
In terms of food, the Sebuan nomads, as mentioned above, "can be seen by the oasis, gathering dates, slaying a wild goose, or milking their camels" (
RR1 Darklords, page 86), at least when in proximity to Anhalla. They are wise enough to have stockpiled a significant portion of their food, whether it be caught game or grains, and have stored it within makeshift mud-and-stone granaries, known as
igoudar. These
igoudar have been built over time by the Sebuan nomads through the course of years, as the tribal elders knew that Sebua, even with its size, was still constrained; they could not simply migrate to a better ground as they wished, at least until recently. Nekrepet serves as the largest collection of
igoudar, with the Sebuan nomads having built 4 and are in the process of building a fifth. But the most important source of food to the Sebuan nomads does not come from the harvesting of resources in Anhalla and their transportation back to Nekrepet; it comes from the dreaded Valley of Death, where even the most battle-hardened and courageous among them fear to tread. As mentioned in
RR1 Darklords (page 85), " Once the bed of a river, the valley's floor is now a red, barren expanse that bleeds into the desert. The earth is dry, cracked, and scattered with stone. An occasional small flower, dark and thorny, pushes up from between the cracks." This flower, despite its thorns, is the Sebuan blue lotus, and it is venerated by the Sebuan nomads for two reasons. One, it is considered (by the Sebuans, and unsurprisingly to those who believe the Amber Wastes to be connected by time, the Akiri) to have emerged in the world from the primordial mud deposit before the dawn of creation. It was a potent symbol with a connection to life, death, rebirth, creation, healing, and the sun. Two, it is the very reason that the Sebuan nomads have survived for so long with their hearts still in their chest: much like how the Necropolitan Amaranth can ward against the Shroud of Necropolis, a single petal from this plant, when consumed, slows the user's heart rate while keeping them alive. The plant, through properties unknown to scholars (but that the nomads don't care about, so long as it's working) allows for the body to effectively be in a state similar to the spells "Feign Death" and "Gentle Repose" (though without the incapacitation and blindness of "Feign Death") while still functioning. They are effectively hibernating, while still piloting their bodies. Some believe that it is perhaps through the sheer force of will of the nomads, but that cannot be the case for all of them: even the children among them, who have not been through battles like the older ones, are obliged to consume the blue lotus' petals. It is through the harvesting of this plant that the Sebuan nomads thrive without attracting the Heart-Eater's attention; she has nothing to detect. While Tiyet may know from her mummy minions that they exist, they are like ghosts to her, unless she chances upon one of their camps on the horizon whenever she decides to roam the ruins of Sebua.
It is thus the harvesting and distribution of the Sebuan blue lotus that gives Nekrepet its purpose: every Sebuan nomad tribe must come to Nekrepet to receive their tribe's share of petals. Of course, the amount of petals available in a given year can fluctuate with how harsh the land decides to be, and the people of Nekrepet are guaranteed to always have the lion's share of the petals...
Compared to the many quiet and unquiet tombs and monuments that dot the landscape, Nekrepet is young and new. It was only in 664 BC, a century after the land's arrival in the Mists, that the tribe which would found Nekrepet as a semi-permanent settlement would linger by the Southern Oasis for more than the usual week, thanks to a harsher-than-usual sandstorm. At least, that is the history told by the nomads to their children. It was in the immediate years following the forced settling-down of the nomads by the Southern Oasis that a brave and blessed few among their number found the blue lotus flower that keeps their population safe from the predation of (circa 665-675 BC). The development of Nekrepet as a distribution center (and as de facto capital of the desert nomads) occurred after that (circa 675-680 BC), and from then until the Great Upheaval, life continued as it always did for the nomads, but with the (historically new) benefit of not being hunted by the Heart-Eater and her minions as vigorously and viciously as before. The formation of the Amber Wastes cluster has led to both increased trade but increased risk for the nomads; as far as they're concerned, the more people overlook Sebua and believe it to be worthless, the better off they are. The more that people start poking and prodding around the ruins (gods forbid the Valley of Death), the more danger that they may face, especially if they have to share their sacred supply of the Sebuan blue lotus with anyone else.
The current leader of Nekrepet is Umeyda Ult Tissi. As the nomads are a matrilineal society, Umeyda commands the respect of all within Nekrepet, and thanks to Nekrepet's supply of the Sebuan blue lotus, this easily extends to all the Sebuan nomads in the domain. She is an old but wizened and grizzled woman, having tragically lost all her sons and daughters either to harsh desert conditions in the latter case or to the ancient dead in the former case. While she treats all of Nekrepet like her family, the loss of her own flesh and blood still stings her deeply. As the leader of Nekrepet, she also knows the most regarding the nomads' view of history. Namely, that they do not belong; they were never in Sebua during its golden years and are only a civilization that has decided to live within the abandoned ruins and feed off the scraps that remain, much like the blood-sucking insects of the Red Oasis. Much like her mother and grandmother before her, she continues the policy of silence when met with outsiders, especially in regards to any Akiri desiring to know more about them. Should the Akiri know that they are imposters and
not the inheritors of the Black Land, Umeyda reasons, it will not take long for the Heart-Eater and her ancient dead hordes to scour them from this world. As born in superstition as this idea may be, Umeyda's word is still law.
The most prominent hunter (and all-around handyman) is Mellou Ag Rezkou. He is the most experienced in Nekrepet in regards to hunting the wildlife of Sebua, and the first to train other men in either handling the livestock or in performing the necessary tasks of nomadic life (with hunting being his personal favorite). He is usually the first to volunteer to go to Anhalla to get the necessary furs and pelts for the nomads' tents. It is well known to all the others in Nekrepet that Mellou, despite having found the silent oasis-city disturbing at first, has grown somewhat attached to it, and will often muse aloud of what it would be like to squat in its abandoned residences instead of having to put up with the harsh conditions outside (if it weren't for that damn Heart-Eater). Some will joke and jest that Mellou volunteers to go to Anhalla if only to gaze upon its fallen splendor, a notion he does not contest. What
isn't well-known to others at all, is that Mellou has struck up something of a friendship with the wild children of Anhalla. Perhaps because he never had the time to have children of his own (and thus proved his worth to the tribe in other ways like hunting), but he has a fondness for them, and will try to get them to come near him with offers of food, like one would do with a cat on the street. If Umeyda found out, she would either have a heart attack in horror on the spot (as almost all--save Mellou--believe the wild children to be a bad omen and are to be left alone with no exceptions) or banish him to the wastes.
The primary trader in Nekrepet is Ourzig Ag Beh. He and his wife, Shemama Ult Salla, are responsible for leading a small contingent of their tribe to the mountain passes that connect Sebua and Har'Akir, so they may trade with the Akiri. They are also responsible, with the help of Mellou Ag Rezkou, in traveling to the Valley of Death after the rain has seeped into the dry river bed, when the Sebuan blue lotus is ripe for harvest. They are traditionalists, and while they appreciate the wares the Akiri give them, they keep their interactions with the Akiri brief and cool. As the two most responsible for acquiring the Sebuan blue lotus, it is Ourzig and Shemama who are the first to notice a dire portent: with every passing year, the harvest is beginning to diminish in quantity, and in quality as well. More and more do other tribes have to make do with less of the petals than they would like, effectively leaving one or two of their number with their hearts beating loudly in the ears of the Heart-Eater, and therefore leading to preventable losses. And of those that do, the duration of the Sebuan blue lotus has decreased gradually; what once gave them a year's worth of time until the next harvest has shortened into 11, then 10, then 9 months. The only difference between a usual Sebuan blue lotus and a diminished one is the amount of thorns, with the thornier ones yielding the best results. They have reported these findings to Umeyda, but she does not care what may happen to the other tribes; so long as Nekrepet, her children can still survive, then the others can join the old ones of this forsaken land. Ourzig believes this to be madness; the more numbers they have, the more likely the Heart-Eater and her ancient dead hordes are to waste unnecessary time trying to find their settlement in order to eat their hearts and flesh. With no other tribes around, and with all of them clustered by the Southern Oasis, extinction would be a matter of ill fortune, of a wandering mummy scout or the Heart-Eater herself, out on a walk away from Anhalla, stumbling upon their camps. It is this scarcity and this tension that has led to Ourzig and Shemama taking matters into their own hands; with their unsupervised travels to Har'Akir, they ponder more and more about taking a detour to the fledgeling Pharazian oasis encampments, and seeing if they can either trade something to help their plight, or beseech their help, thus breaking their traditional policy of silence.
Adventure Idea: Scholars of anthropology from the Core have heard of the Sebuan nomads, and one plans to do an in-depth survey and academic study on the differences between the Sebuan nomads and the Pharazian nomads. She'll need an escort to take her to the Southern Oasis (where they reputedly dwell), but things go awry when she sees that the nomads have left Nekrepet all but abandoned. There are tracks in the sand that can be followed. Had she arrived at the wrong time of year? What has spooked the settlers of Nekrepet to leave--and is it still out there, in the Sebuan sands?
* Tawiel Akhdar is detailed in pages 84-85 of the Ravenloft Dungeon Master's Guide for 3e.
Sources of Inspiration