The Badlands

Dead, twisted husks of trees and other plant-life. Towering shards of rock, rising from empty and burnt sands. A sparse and lifeless plane, watched by a sun which glows with supernatural heat, but gives off little light- these are the trademarks of the Badlands. The Badlands are a demiplane of sorts, a minor location where the edge of the Elemental Realm of Fire touches that of the Realm of Earth, situated very near to the Negative Energy Realm. A location of very little hope and life, but one still filled with great and untapped potential. Because of its unique location at the conflux of three very different and very powerful planes, the Badlands are a source of great energy to those who know how to draw upon it.   Both elemental summoners and necromantic sorcerers are able to gain benefit from being near to this plane, and those able to master the art of both will find much to work with. All spells cast here which deal with the fire and earth elements are treated as being cast using a spell slot of one level higher. A spellcaster who casts a spell from the Necromancy school has advantage on spell attack rolls made with the spell, and any targets affected by a spell from the Necromancy school have disadvantage on their saving throws to resist the effects. The closeness of the Negative Energy Realm also affects the ability of magical healers to draw upon the positive energy necessary for closing wounds and mending injuries. Any spells cast in this location that restore hit points do so at half effectiveness, their energy drained away by the proximity of the Negative Energy Realm.   The environment of the Badlands is incredibly hostile to most planar travelers except those accustomed to either the Realm of Fire, the Realm of Earth, or both. Temperatures in the Badlands far exceed the limits of survivability for most creatures, though still distinctly below the constant heat of the Realm of Fire. The rocky surface of the Badlands is prone to sudden shifts, with razor-sharp spires of hardened rock growing and shrinking, and suddenly breaking forth from the surface at random. Avoiding one of these sudden spires requires a DC 20 Dexterity saving throw, dealing 2d12 piercing damage on a failed save, and half as much on a successful one. In addition, any living creature that sets foot here automatically suffers one level of exhaustion while they remain in the Badlands, due to the close presence of the Negative Energy Plane. This level of exhaustion can not be removed while the creature remains in the Badlands, and even after leaving, the exhaustion remains until the creature receives magical treatment or takes a long rest.   The Badlands is home to only one known form of native life, a small blue flower which grows only infrequently on any surface in the area. The flower does not seem to need water or soil to survive, and will grow straight from bedrock in some occasions. However, the plant is unable to survive for extended periods outside of the Badlands, unless frequently maintained using regular offerings of negatively-aligned arcane energy. This would imply the flowers are a result of the proximity of the Negative Energy Realm, rather than the Realm of Fire or Realm of Earth, making these flowers a paradox to planar cosmologists. By all known rules, the Negative Energy Realm sucks away energy, thereby destroying life. But these flowers seems to thrive on negative energy instead, presumably granted to them in their natural habitat by the “sun” which sits above the Badlands at all times.   Despite appearances to the contrary, the dead trees and shrubs which populate the environment of the Badlands are not actually the remnants of burnt plants. Instead, they seem to be some sort of mineral which mimics the shape of plant life, appearing almost indistinguishable from dead plants except upon close inspection. This allows them to be affected by spells which are able to alter the shape and substance of stone, but not those able to control plants.   Creatures from the Realm of Fire and Earth are known to wander into the Badlands on rare occasions, usually in order to seek escaped slaves and prisoners, or hold duels with each other in neutral terrain. Creatures from either plane never travel to the Badlands to parley, only to fight, as the hostile terrain usually isn’t very agreeable to natives from either elemental plane. Thankfully, for any trying to escape the clutches of creatures from one side or the other, the Badlands offers a potential place to flee to. Assuming the fleeing creatures can survive the hostile conditions of the Badlands themselves. But otherwise, the Badlands are mostly a remote, empty, and above all, desolate location.