Oasis of the White Palm

The Oasis of the White Palm was an oasis in the Raurin. The wizard Martek had entrusted its ruling bloodline with an amulet and an enchantment that would guide adventurers to the Lost City of Phoenix, and grant them a word to release the djinni vizier Aeraldoth.

Description
The oasis was about a mile across, with dense growth at the center, and more scattered trees and shrubs at the edges.

History
The oasis had existed since at least the 4 century DR, when the wizard Martek sealed away the efreet Khalitarius and the djinni Aeraldoth. In order to ensure that the djinni was released in time, the wizard granted the Durpari rulers of the Oasis an enchanted mark, which would appear on the hand of the woman whom Fate chose to marry the Sheik, and two amulets, one for the sheik and one for his heir, with the power to cause great pain to Khalitarius.

In the mid-14 century, the efreet, Khalitarius, was released. The Oasis of the White Palm became the only remaining stronghold left in the area that hadn't yet fallen before his power and his minions. The oasis was ruled by the Sheik Kassim Arslan, who had held the position for more than 20 years. Recently, a slaver ring had infiltrated the Sandvoyagers' Guild, using them to mask their activities. Those slavers had attempted to join forces with a local dervish cult to the old gods, proscribed by the Durpari worshippers of Anu that were in control of the Oasis. Khalitarius had sought the cult's help in kidnapping the bride of the sheik's son, and the cult in turn had sought the slavers' help to carry out the kidnapping; in the night when they decided to try, the efreet decided to do the deed himself, never bothering to inform the cultists. This had led to widespread suspicion, rendering the oasis quite politically volatile.

Oasis
The location had been raised around an oasis pool surrounded by luxuriant palms; it was several hundred feet long and wide, with a calm and reflective surface, though the clear water was slightly brownish. The watering pool itself had eight guards. Those guards collected a toll of gold from thirsty travelers: the price for filling a large jug was twice that of a small vial, and watering a camel cost four times as much, or almost half a pound of gold.

Nomad Camp
Most of the tents were northwest of the center in a nomad camp about 1000 feet wide and half that deep. There were approximately 100 tents inside. Two bands of cloth encircled the camp, one green at 50 feet from the tents, and one red at 30 feet from the tents. The green band had a smell to repel mosquitoes and most animals, while the red one would burn for about half an hour if lit, allowing for a makeshift defense. The Sheik Kassim Arslan, his bodyguards, wives, slaves, his sons Hassan Arslan and Korus Eikoth, Korus' slave Kerina, the cleric Nadron Ilanis, and his two apprentices, Larith and Baris all lived in the nomad camp.

White Palm
The eponymous palm was a sacred tree, whose bark was bleached white, laying about 400 feet due north of the pool; it formed date fruits in dark brown clusters. Whenever one of its dates was planted near water, they would grow up to a full-sized tree within a week, which granted the oasis easy shade at all times. Absolutely no one in the oasis would permit it to be threatened, and in fact, not even the airlancers or most travelers would allow it to come to harm.

Sandvoyagers' Compound
A wall of white, lime-covered bricks fortified a compound southwest of the oasis pool, about 320 feet long by 120 feet wide. This was the Sandvoyagers' Guild compound; its wall was capped with one-inch long spikes, poisoned with a green-tinged substance.

Inside the wall, there were a number of buildings. The northwestmost buildings included a common room and a washing house; the rooms around the common room were for rent. There was a bazaar inside the compound, though its prices were highly inflated. Happy Hogan's Desert Igloo occupied half a dome on the eastern side of the compound; there were two large mirrors around the door on the wall. The space behind the dome had a roof; it was used as a stable. The southern side of the compound hosted an ancient temple with six columns inside; though the ceiling had caved in, there was a runic inscription from Martek behind the altar.

The House of the Sandvoyagers' Guild occupied the southwestern corner. As of its double doors were often closed, with a sign reading "members only". Its main warehouse had mostly empty boxes, except for three boxes marked cutlery, with 50 scimitars each, and two boxes labeled plates, with 20 sets of plate armor and chainmail, all of them stamped with the Durpari army symbol in them. The room also held a trap door, leading into the Recreation Room of the Temple of Set underneath the oasis. Eight guards kept watch over the lounge room at the entrance. The records office held a number of records, and one, more recent, set aside; that one had obvious signs of tampering. Finally, the kitchen was manned by a single slave; she was aware that the guildmaster of the Sandvoyagers' Guild, Tolnus Granicus, was not only ill, but also captive beneath the building. She was also aware that the Guildmaster, Thurnas Netmaster, had his own trapdoor to somewhere beneath.

The sellers in the bazaar had a small selection of wares, including: Scrolls, books and tomes, leather and tents, dried meats, fresh meats, grain, rugs, cloth, a smithy, fortunetellers, tapestries, statues, trinkets, and a stall selling fruits, nuts and dates.

The inscription on the Ancient Temple read: "I, Martek, have laid for you a great power and treasure for when you return to wrestle with the awakened evil. No man knows the time, but the place' is Set - not at White Palm, yet neither far from it."

Monolith
A monolith, 25 feet tall, and seven feet across was North of the Sandvoyagers' Compound. It had a secret entrance to the Temple of Set underneath. There was an inscription on it, reading:

"This oasis, guarded by the white palm, belongs to all who enter. This we claim in the name of the many gods."

Other Features
Other features of the Oasis were a headless statue of a regal figure sitting on a throne; its head, fifteen feet away, weighed 500 pounds, but was of no value. It lay about 1500 feet northeast of the oasis pool. A burned camp about 500 feet south of the oasis pool had a sign warning onlookers not to displease the sheik as of.