Shrouded Woodlands

*This article contains spoilers!* Outer Wilds and Echoes of the Eye should be played with minimal spoilers, knowing too much will hinder the experience!
Please play the game before reading any of this! (Or don't, I'm not your dad.)

## Shrouded Woodlands

"Uhhmmm... He's right behind me isn't he?"

### Creator

The Stranger's inhabitants

The **Shrouded Woodlands** is a location on The Stranger, located inside of The Simulation. It is a dark swamp or forest-like area that is surrounded by a large lake.

## Features

The Shrouded Woodlands feature two main isles separated by the river, and a main house.

### First Isle

The first isle is the one the player is teleported to if they enter the simulation. It's primarily candle-lit and can be explored without any danger.
The majority of this isle is hidden behind a wall. The key to opening this wall is to blow the candles lighting it. A passage will be revealed.

After walking down the passage, the player can find stairs leading up to what is supposedly a resting place for the Inhabitants, featuring a musical instrument and a hand which brings them to the second isle.

There is also a hidden bridge which can be lit up. Upon walking that bridge, the Protagonist will find themselves on the second isle.

### Second Isle

The second isle is primarily dark and unlit and doesn't feature many candles to be lit up.

It features the dark forest, in which inhabitants can be seen walking around with their artifact in one hand. It is a stealth section. The Protagonist must hide their presence by concealing their artifact and not emit light in the direction of the inhabitants, while following their tracks.

After following the inhabitants's tracks for a while, the Protagonist will see them walk down a narrow and dim underground staircase. This staircase leads to a passage and ultimately to the final part of the second isle, the house.

### The Party House

The house is a big building situated on the second isle. You can hear music coming from it when close enough or while riding the boat.

After following the inhabitants in the house and entering the house, the inhabitants stop playing music and the main door closes behind you, trapping you in the main room with multiple inhabitants. One of them will run towards the Protagonist and force them out of the dream. Entering the house from the main door is a trap and has no meaning in the story.

#### Fireplace

The house also contains a fireplace. One of the inhabitants is fixated on the fireplace at all times and won't move from this position.

The fireplace contains an elevator which goes down towards a Forbidden Archive hidden behind the fake fire. It is however not possible to run past the inhabitants while they are alive and reach the elevator. The player must wait for the dam to burst and then enter from a different campfire in order to reach the elevator.

## History

13 minutes into the loop, the dam will break under the pressure and the Shrouded Woodlands will be flooded, snuffing the artifacts of all the Inhabitants inside and waking them up to their dead bodies, killing them. If the player is connected to The Simulation from the Island Tower or Hidden Gorge, they will be able to access Shrouded Woodlands and explore without inhabitants present.

## Trivia

* The song that plays in The Party House is called "Elegy of the Rings", and is track number 9 in the OST.
	+ The title is due to the fact that the song is an Elegy for their homeworld (hence, the rings of the ringed planet.)
* There is a shortcut to the dark forest that can be accessed by going up the stairs to the left from the spawn location, and then using a hand to your right.