Quote Originally Posted by Sarithus View Post
I was thinking about creating a thread on deserts as my latest map might have one and my weakness is very much on the geographical side of things. I remembered this thread though and noticed number 8. 'Deserts form in middle latitudes, not equatorial' Perhaps that could answer some of the questions I had. Could someone elaborate on that one, please?
Due to the way the atmosphere circulates vertically, regions of the Earth around 30 degrees N and S latitudes are very dry, and regions around the equator are very wet.

http://2012books.lardbucket.org/books/regional-geography-of-the-world-globalization-people-and-places/section_04/2767c17964cb3ae62ec0e4ad304d2ef4.jpg

If you want to research why, look up "Hadley Circulation".

There are other effects due to nearby ocean currents

http://myweb.cwpost.liu.edu/vdivener/notes/gen_climate_zones.gif

but you will do just fine if you put your deserts around 30 degrees and your rainforests around 0-20 degrees.