6 Natural Resources for Better Fantasy Series

In fiction, greed often motivates conflict. Whether the evil empire wants gold, silver, iron, or even just land, villains are often motivated by a desire for things. However, those previously mentioned resources are overused. Novelty is an important tool in a writer’s arsenal, as it’s one of the reasons we read fiction. So, using the natural resources below can be a way to spice up your fantasy writing and inject just a little bit more novelty.

1: Salt

This one probably won’t come as a surprise. Salt is in the top 10 for any list about under-appreciated resources. But that’s just because of how important salt is. Salt is essential for life on Earth. It’s also one of the most abundant minerals on the planet, and a key ingredient in everything from food to medicine.

In the past, people would die from a lack of salt. (Well, from sodium, a component of salt.) It is recommended that a person have at least 1500 mg of salt per day. Of course, we don’t need to worry about that. In the modern era, we should be more concerned about having too much salt, not too little.

Still, in ancient times, salt was quite an important commodity. Salt routes stretched across the globe. Salt travels all around northern Africa, and boats carrying salt filled the Mediterranean Sea. It was one of the world’s foremost commodities.

After all, there are many important uses for salt. As previously said, it’s necessary for human survival. But, it’s also an excellent preservative as the salt dries out food. This means that it’s useful for civilizations that experience harsh winters. Lastly, it tastes good. People will do a lot to improve how something tastes, especially back in the day when everything was much blander. Monks, many of whom had taken a vow of silence, even had a gesture, just for asking for salt.

There are two main ways an ancient fantasy civilization may produce salt: boiling or mining. On the first note, coastal civilizations would have ready access to one excellent source of salt- the sea. If the temperature was hot enough, the water could be boiled away, leaving the salt.

However, boiling seawater costs fuel and is can only be taken advantage of by the coast. So, the most prevalent form of getting salt, even today, is mining. Veins of salt can run through rock and could prove an interesting feature for a fantasy fight to happen over.

To learn more about salt.

2: Dyes

Dyes have long been a source of power and prestige. The color is associated with royalty because only the rich could afford such luxuries. One example of this is Tyrian Purple. This purple was a shellfish dye made from crushed sea snails, historically one of the most expensive dyes in the world. Many civilizations all across the Mediterranean held Tyrian Purple in high esteem. It was the most valuable dye of antiquity.

And, never estimate how far people can go just for a bit more status. Sumptuary laws dictated who could buy expensive items, perpetuating certain forms of class discrimination. Because of the aforementioned Tyrian Purple, wearing the color purple was illegal in Rome to all besides the royal family and certain other officials.

Other dyes have also played a part in history. For example, people used cakes of indigo as a currency during early America when state-backed money was floundering. People have found old indigo dye in many places from Egypt to Britain to Japan, with the oldest being in Peru. Such dyes were rare and expensive – and precious.

I can see many uses for such dyes in fiction from them signifying royalty, to people stealing indigo supplies, to people wearing an illegal dye as culture/revolution. Dyes have had a storied history, and it may be time to get it onto the page.

3: Pepper

Pepper may not be as necessary as salt, nor quite as rare or precious as certain dyes. However, it isn’t any less coveted. After all, it tastes good, and people relish things that taste good. Currently, pepper is the world’s most used spice, an essential ingredient in every kitchen.

And, it still is quite rare. Pepper is only able to be grown in certain climates. This means long supply lines. For example, there is evidence of a route to bring pepper from India down to Egypt. These supply routes will be of great importance to merchants and any commerce-based civilization. For example, one important fact about the East India Company was that it brought pepper back to the British Isles.

Because of its value and rarity, communities that can grow pepper will do everything they can to diminish its spread. They will want to keep their monopoly. For example, Arab traders created a myth that pepper grew in trees guarded by poisonous snakes and that people had to burn the trees to harvest the pepper.

Though pepper started, like dyes, as something reserved for the aristocracy, it soon spread to people of all social classes. From there, it became a precious resource. In a fantasy novel, it could easily serve as a motivation for conquest, securing one of the few places where pepper was easy to grow.

4: Sulfur

Salt, dyes, and pepper all have obvious uses from antiquity to the industrial era and further. Sulfur, on the other hand, is mainly useful for one thing: gunpowder. While it does have many other uses, some of which will be covered later, its role in the making of gunpowder is one of its most notable. So, it may not seem as if sulfur isn’t as important. However, sulfur has many properties.

And, though guns such as rifles and muskets are relatively recent inventions, the Chinese had created gunpowder as early as the 6th century. They would extract the sulfur from pyrite and put it to use. One of the most notable examples is how they would combine arrows with tubes of gunpowder. These miniature rockets would sow confusion among opposing raiders. 

If the fantasy world is advanced enough, then characters will use guns in battle. I believe that fantasy gun fights bring a lot to the fantasy genre. If the author includes firearms in the setting, then sulfur will be a vital resource indeed.

In any case, even without including firearms, sulfur is a resource with many applications. 

• Medicine. Civilizations used sulfur as a rudimentary medicine in ancient times. Notably, people used it as an antiparasitic and, people used it for its antibacterial properties. Of course, it was often commended with mercury, creating devastating results.
• Insecticides. People often used it as an insecticide and general pesticide. Burning sulfur was said to help rid a place of mice or roaches. People also used sulfur powder to get rid of ticks and mites.
•  Food. Sulfur Dioxide, a compound using sulfur, helps with wine-making practices, some going back to the 15th century.

Sulfur is a rare element and can be quite hard to find. However, it lies in large deposits that are almost pure sulfur. These large deposits were all found underground, and the people retrieved sulfur via mining. Interestingly, sulfur often appears in veins near volcanos. That fact could provide a challenge to any fantasy civilization taking advantage of the sulfur.

5: Timber

Timber was necessary for making almost anything in the ancient world. After all, it’s one of the world’s oldest building materials, and if the fantasy civilization doesn’t have ready access to other resources. After all, timber is a good, sturdy material, the first timber home dating back to over 10,000 years ago.

One example of the importance of timber comes from the 1600s, in Ireland. During that time, England was dominant because of its large navy. And, boats take a lot of material, with some warships needing hundreds of acres. England essentially deforested Ireland to fund their navy.

The type of wood also matters. For example, the English longbow is made of yew, a relatively rare type of wood. Because, though there was yew wood in Britain, there wasn’t nearly enough. Long supply lines brought yew would to Britain, and this yew was a component in many British victories. After all, wood is vital.

6: Jade

Jade is precious. It’s been thought to have spiritual properties dating back to ancient China. There, jade had certain properties and associations. So, just as purple dyes were a signifier of royalty in Rome, Chinese emperors would use jade. The Chinese character for jade is near identical to that of the Emporer.

Of course, jade, like any precious metal or gemstone, is useless in and of itself. It is not necessary to live and does not benefit the wearer. But, its rarity and beauty have helped fuel belief in its spiritual connections.

And, jade is a unique item, as, because of its interlocking structure and impurities, each piece of jade will be different. These differences can determine the kinds of things able be made from jade and can impact the price. Because of its perceived purity, people use jade to make all sorts of intricate sculptures and depictions. This is possible because of the strength of jade, and the objects made of jade are beautiful.

Jade may have no intrinsic value. But it is steeped in history and can be used to make many beautiful things. Wars have been fought over it. Because of its spiritual connotation, any fantasy series with a magic system could have a connection to it. Jade is a precious material that more stories should take advantage of.

So, these six resources are sadly neglected. Using these natural resources can help with worldbuilding and would add just a little bit more depth to the world. It could help the author stand out from all the worlds using gold or silver and iron. And really, I just think it would be really cool to include these things.