How to Deserts/Wastelands/Barrens

[MrJokee]

Hello there! First, I apologize if this is a duplicate. I searched the forums but couldn't find any threads regarding deserts, wastelands and barrens.

So here I am, asking for advice on how to imply on my map that there is a desert somewhere. The first thing you need to know to be able to help me is that I am doing this map old school, ink pen, and paper, therefore any sort of color is out of the question. I've drawn what I believe to be an fairly accurate depiction of dunes, but I don't want to fill up the whole area with just dunes. I'm trying to use those to symbolize where the dry, hot wasteland begins, but as you know (or I hope you do) deserts begin long before you start trudging through shifting sands.

I have considered to dot the area with small dots, and that seems to work fairly well, however, when using your own hand, it is very complicated to achieve randomization of the dots and not get stuck with lines of dots. I hope by now you understand my problem and will be able to offer suggestions.

Thanks in advance.

[Ascension]

Dunes and dots is how I've always done it with an oasis here and there and some camels and pyramids - you give the brain some cues and it fills in the rest. You could use some little cacti, cracked mud, or craggy mesas for chaparral areas (American southwest). Craggy and folded hills like the Badlands of the Dakotas. Volcano and lava field would also work. You'd have to practice drawing those on scratch paper first.

[MrJokee]

Right, thanks. I practice everything on the side cause with ink and paper you don't get second chances. Plenty of hiccups as it is anyway. What I'm wondering about misc objects like cacti and such, is the scale of the map to these objects. I mean, I know that they wouldn't be up to scale, obviously, but I have to wonder how they'd look in a map that covers 2000^2 Miles.

Thanks though, I will draw a practice desert and try some of these options.