The typical Barren Waste should include at least one of these features:
Often, the journey across the Barren Waste appears mid-adventure or in the second half, and represents a coming-of-age moment for the protagonists, as well as an occasion to consolidate their goals and friendship. By facing the desert and meeting those who have learned how to coexist with it, Player Characters learn to appreciate and respect even the cruelest and most inhospitable parts of their world—and how certain thresholds should never be crossed.
Some Villains might use the Rocky Desert as their hideout or lair, or plan to use local resources, precious yet unstable, to the detriment of its people. A particularly ancient Villain might even remember when this was a prosperous land and become obsessed with mirages of past glory—or they might be a spirit born of the desperation of those who witnessed the catastrophe that made this territory arid and inhospitable.