weather
The two weather concerns of Zalanthans are the wind and the blowing sand which the wind drives. The wind can sometimes reach up to 90 miles per hour (roughly 150 km/h in real life), building into enormous gales across the flat wastes. When high winds pass over areas such as the Red Desert or the Sea of Eternal Dust, they invariably pick up huge amounts of gritty sand which they carry as mighty storms across the world.
The greater the wind velocity, the greater the chance will be of sandstorms developing. Sandstorms cut down on visibility and can tire even the hardiest traveler in seconds. During the harshest storms one cannot even see one's hand in front of one's face.
The wind itself can blow hot winds from the Salt Flats across the world, raising the temperatures in cities such as Allanak to well above 140 degrees (Fahrenheit, which is roughly 60 degrees Celsius).
Two things may help against these forces of nature: one, that the weather is almost always worse downwind than upwind, and second that the worst conditions can always be found on the lee side of places such as the Red Desert. Careful attention to the winds and weather will assist travelers greatly.
Syntax
weather (direction)
Example:
> weather
It is a warm day.
Gritty sand blows in from the the south, piling in small dunes.
The thick, waxing gibbous of the red moon, is high in the eastern sky.
> weather south
Peering into the next room...
It is a warm day.
A harsh sandstorm from the the south fills the air with whirling sand and dust.
Bright and full, the red moon, is high in the western sky.
> weather out
Peering into the next room...
It is a hot day.
The sky is clear.
The air is as silent as the sand.
The thin, waxing crescent of the red moon hangs low in the eastern sky.
Notes: