- For the zone from an alternate universe, see Shadowmoon Valley (alternate universe).
 Shadowmoon Valley | |
|---|---|
| Level: 25 - 50 Battle Pet Level: 20 - 21 | |
 | |
| Capital(s) |
 Black Temple |
| Races |
    Night elf  Fel orc  Naga    Blood elf  Orc  Draenei Broken  Wildhammer dwarf    Demon  Netherwing Dragonflight |
| Ruler(s) |
 Elder Sage Akama |
| Former ruler(s) |
 Lord Illidan Stormrage |
| Major settlements |
 Shadowmoon Village Wildhammer Stronghold Legion Hold Dragonmaw Fortress |
| Affiliation | Sha'tar, Illidari, Burning Legion, Aldor, Scryers, Sons of Lothar, Kor'kron, Alliance, Horde |
| Former affiliation(s) | Shadowmoon clan |
| Location | Southeastern Outland |
| PvP status | Contested territory |
The Hand of Gul'dan.
Shadowmoon Valley is found in southeastern Outland, east of Terokkar Forest. It is the location of the Black Temple (where Illidan Stormrage resides), and also houses a dwarven settlement named after (and led by) Kurdran Wildhammer, as well as the prison where Illidan's former jailor, Maiev Shadowsong, is held captive. It is one of the darkest, bleakest, and most fel-affected regions in the Warcraft universe, second only to Argus. The sky is always black and ghastly yellow, lightened up by the never-ceasing rain of infernals.
History[]
Concept art
Shadowmoon Valley was once a lush moor engulfed in eternal night and lit by Draenor's two moons. This gave the entire land a relaxing, bluish hue that was reflected by its plant life. Roughly 800 years before the First War, the orcs began to migrate out of Gorgrond. Some of them gathered in the region, naming themselves after the valley and creating the Shadowmoon clan.[1] For centuries the orcs peacefully charted the stars and practiced their shamanistic and runic magic.
Six-hundred years later, the draenei crash-landed on Draenor aboard the Genedar. During the crash the naaru K'ara was injured, which caused it to enter the Void state of the naaru lifecycle. K'ara's final act was to convince the draenei to eject it from the vessel. K'ara was ejected from the Genedar and came to be known as the Dark Star to the orcs of the valley. Because of both the Void's power to defile the dead[2] and that those few who accessed K'ara's shadowy power directly had their minds shattered,[3] the ancient chieftain of the Shadowmoon clan outlawed its powers after the discovery of the Dark Star.[2] After settling properly on Draenor, the draenei built their sacred Temple of Karabor on the coast of Shadowmoon Valley, making the region the spiritual capital of draenei society.
All this changed, of course, when the Burning Legion made contact with Gul'dan and Ner'zhul centuries later. The orcs became more aggressive, attacking innocent draenei for no apparent reason. Under demonic influence all the orc clans were united as the bloodthirsty Orcish Horde; backed by powerful Void and Fel magic, this Horde assaulted and destroyed the draenei settlements all across Draenor; Shadowmoon included. Gul'dan also used his mighty warlock magic to raise a fel-tainted volcano in the middle of the valley to sever the orcs' link to the elements. They then converged on the Temple of Karabor. To overcome its defenses, the Shadow Council performed a ritual to summon the power of the dark naaru K'ara. A great column of Void energy crashed down upon the temple, warping its architecture, causing the instant deaths of hundreds of draenei, while driving others to madness as the Void lords' whispers overcame them. When the Void energy dissipated, the Horde easily dispatched most of the stragglers and the site was renamed the Black Temple, and served as the base of the Shadow Council.
The volcano, called the Hand of Gul'dan, and the Black Temple's chain of fel rulers has transformed the lush valley into a blackened wasteland under a perpetual haze of black and green smoke and dotted with flows of green lava and green-tinted water.
Invasion of Draenor[]
The Alliance Expedition attacked the Valley in order to destroy the fortress of the Shadowmoon clan and its dark order of death knights.[4]
The Burning Crusade[]
Once Draenor was transformed into Outland and the Legion began to see potential in these shattered remnants, Shadowmoon became perpetually bombarded by infernals summoned by the demon lords seeking to scour any remaining life from it. When Illidan defeated Magtheridon, the leader of the Legion's efforts in Outland, and returned from his failure to destroy the Frozen Throne, these demons converged on the Black Temple and began to lay siege to it on orders from Kil'jaeden who wished to see Illidan punished for his failures. Some of these demons turned on the Legion and began serving Illidan, thanks to a mysterious source of magic within the temple and Shadowmoon became the center of a demonic civil war. Ironically, the Burning Legion began making anti-demonic weaponry themselves in order to fight the Illidari.[5]
Even after Illidan's death and the return of the temple to the draenei under Akama, it seems Shadowmoon is unlikely to recover the twilit beauty it once possessed and remains one of the grimmest reminders of what the Burning Legion is capable of. However, the valley still retains some waning lunar energies from before Draenor's destruction.[6]
Geography[]
Shadowmoon Valley is a barren wasteland of rock and ash, with little vegetation. The Hand of Gul'dan volcano dominates the center, from which green lava erupts.
The Alliance and Horde each have a settlement here, as do the Aldor and Scryers.
The valley contains one raid instance (the Black Temple) and several elite areas.
Maps and subregions[]
Map of Shadowmoon Valley.
Concept art.
Shadowmoon region prior to the destruction of Draenor.
Shadowmoon region as it may have appeared in Warcraft III.
Original design layout for World of Warcraft
Instances[]
| Dungeon Name | Level Range | Group Size | Approximate Run Time |
|---|---|---|---|
 Black Temple |
70+ | 25-man | Unknown |
The Altar of Sha'tar in art.
Elite areas[]
Travel hubs[]
Adjacent regions[]
| Zone Name | Faction | Level Range | Direction | Access |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Terokkar Forest |
|
62-80 | West | Normal |
Notable characters[]
Old draenei bridge
- Main article: Shadowmoon Valley NPCs
Quests[]
- Main article: Shadowmoon Valley quests
Resources[]
Shadowmoon Valley is where most Nightmare Vines grow, and was previously the only place where they did.
Ruins of Baa'ri, a draenei dig site.
- [Fel Iron Ore]
- [Adamantite Ore] (both normal and rich veins)
- [Khorium Ore]
- [Nethercite Ore]
- [Eternium Ore] (found when mining the other metals' nodes above, even Nethercite)
- Illidari Point ( draenei)
- Eclipse Point ( draenei)
- Coilskar Point ( draenei)
- Warden's Cage ( orc)
- Ruins of Baa'ri ( draenei)
- Dragonmaw Fortress ( orc)
Other
- Felmist → [Mote of Shadow] - Can only be harvested by Engineers with a [Zapthrottle Mote Extractor].
Inhabitants[]
Notes and trivia[]
A card back themed after Shadowmoon Valley in Hearthstone.
- Traditional flying mounts can be purchased at Wildhammer Stronghold for the Alliance and Shadowmoon Village for the Horde. The nether drakes are also purchased here from the Netherwing faction on Netherwing Ledge. Other places to purchase a flying mount include Blackwind Landing in Terokkar Forest from the Sha'tari Skyguard faction or Cenarion Refuge in Zangarmarsh from the Cenarion Expedition faction.
- The map of Shadowmoon Valley is the only Outland-map in World of Warcraft which doesn't show any stars in the Twisting Nether. It's most likely just a slip overlooked by the game developers.
- The zone's name comes from the massive moon in the sky.[citation needed] Usually obscured by the clouds, it is clearly visible from the Black Temple.
- In Hearthstone, the Shadowmoon Valley card back was rewarded for achieving Rank 20 in Ranked Season 26, which took place during May 2016. The flavor text reads: "After Outland became what it is, Shadowmoon Valley has always been full of demonic energy. Gul'dan's favorite spa destination!"
- The The Burning Crusade Flash site had this to say about the zone: "This valley is a grim spectacle of demonic magic run amok. Day and night, molten fel energy erupts from the land and lights the sky with bilious green flame. To the east lies the Black Temple, Illidan Stormrage's seat of power. With the Dark Portal reopened, Illidan and his allies struggle to hold off Legion reinforcements and keep all other Outland portals closed."[8]
Gallery[]
Concept art.
Patch changes[]
- Patch 7.3.5 (2018-01-16): Level scaling implemented, previous zone level: 67 - 70.
- Patch 2.0.3 (2007-01-09): Added.
References[]
- ^ Rise of the Horde, chapter 18
- ^ a b [10-40] The Dark that Blinds Us
- ^ World of Warcraft: Chronicle Volume 2, pg. 54
- ^ Coast of Bones (WC2 Human)
- ^ [25-30G3] Capture the Weapons
- ^ Moon-Touched Netherwhelp
- ^ a b Lord of Outland (WC3 BloodElf)
- ^ The Burning Crusade Flash site
[25-30G3] External links[]
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