Re: Wonderful weather

From: Jeff <jakyer_at_...>
Date: Sat, 13 Dec 2003 17:24:24 -0000

> Somewhat tangential to the winter thread...
>
> I must admit that I gave up believing any of the canonical
Gloranthan
> meteorological or climatological details when I noticed _Drastic :
> Prax_ quote one of the earlier sources about the Wastes to state
that
> they had a 20" annual rainfall, mainly distributed through the
> winter season.
>
There are places in the real world where that sort of rainfall still results in deserts and poorly fertile areas.

Runoff. If there's hardpan or clay at the surface (baked nicely by the sun) the water is not absorbed by the soil and simply runs off in great floods. The Serpents of Prax and the Wastes represent this. Also, if the soil is infertile, there's no way its going to grow anything. Parts of the US southwest are like this. Lots of sun. Lots of rain. But to get any sort of crops requires extensive fertilizer and effort (which DOES pay off though).

And in a more mythic "Gloranthaworld" sense - the fertility entities of the Wates are dead, mutated or crippled. They can't do their job properly even with water and sun and prayer. Only at places like the Paps or in Prax or in the River of Cradles vally are there much in the way of fertile areas. If the wastes were returned to something like normal fertility, these areas would be hugely fertile (think Esrolia) but they are but shadows of their fomer selves now.

Just sayin'

Jeff