Western Shadow

## Introduction

Many continents lay scattered throughout the known world, most inhabited with civilizations striving and trying to survive. Some are more fortunate than others with the Realm of Enîa being a prime example; it could even be classified as a thriving civilization in this period of history. Intellectual scholars and renowned archeologists of this age of the world alike consider much of it explored and documented with extensive samples and evidence to back up their claims.

There is one continent, however, that continues to elude scholars of all types: mages, wizards, researchers, and explorers. It is situated in the utmost western side of the world as we know it today and has hitherto never been explored by any known living being with the ability to document it. By all accounts, this continent is completely mysterious in nature and has eluded even the most daring of adventurers since recorded history. It is only through hundreds of attempts that explorers were able to discover the distant, blackened shores of the shadowy landmass that can be found in the west.

It goes by many names. The Abandoned Continent. The Black Lands. The Lands of Darkness. But the name it is known by the most is the **Western Shadow**, and it is the namesake for which our world centers around...

## Description

Described by daring and borderline suicidal explorers to be a blackened and foggy wasteland where nothing but death awaits, the Western Shadow is almost completely unassailable.

It appears as an almost pitch black landmass on the horizon as a ship approaches it, if it is not sunk by the many "light-meteors" that seem to target any ship that draws too near. What causes these light-meteors to appear is unknown, however ever since the first recorded sailors took to these seas they have always recorded beams of light and fire crashing down onto ships that did not sail fast enough or dodge them in time, rendering them to a blazing inferno of splinters and flame.

There are ships that are able to outmaneuver these dreaded missiles however and make it near the shore, just close enough to draw a rough sketch of what it looks like before being assaulted once more by a barrage of missiles. It is recorded that the closer a ship gets, the more intense the volleys of light-meteors become.

Sailors who have braved the light-meteor shower describe the continent as being almost entirely surrounded by steep cliffs which present themselves as impossible to land on or near. They are dozens of feet tall, towering above any ship that even remotely dares to make landfall on the black rock.

The only landmark that has been recorded for certain by explorers who have managed to get close to the Western Shadow are the shipwrecks that litter the cliffy coast beyond count. A name is not given to this demoralizing place because one has not yet been decided by the many sailors who have dared those waters. When a reference is made to the shipwrecked cliffs however, any sailor will quickly recall what it is they are mentioning, for seeing such a sight is an unforgettable experience in the worst way possible, especially when sailing oneself.

During modern times, most journeys to the Western Shadow have ceased, as they yield absolutely no reward and all the risk and almost all sailors are sane enough to realize that their lives are worth far more than being able to catch a glimpse of a distant continent they will never land on before being blown to smithereens. There are the occasional voyages to these dread shores, however they never return and are often called out for their stupidity by those back home.

There are no known records of sailors making landfall on the Western Shadow and living to tell the tale. If any have landed on the continent, none of have returned.