Blasted Lands



The Blasted Lands bear that name for a reason: they were twisted by the magic that brought the Dark Portal into being, spewing the rampaging Horde into Azeroth.

This wasted desert of red clay is home to the original Dark Portal. The portal still stands, and leads to Outland — the remains of the orcs' sundered homeworld, Draenor. Nethergarde Keep, a Stormwind fortress of dour mages and paladins, and the Horde forces of former Rockard, now named Dreadmaul Hold keep watch over the portal and the demons and ogres that would abuse its power and send the aspiring warriors to aid the war effort, that is still raging on the other side.

Now, the wretched land hosts few inhabitants and no significant settlements. Magic that leaked through the Dark Portal warped the Blasted Lands, leaving an infertile desert landscape. Hardy desert species like Basilisks, Scorpions and Hyenas have since colonized the area. The red rocks of the region do not come by their color naturally. The original tan color was transmuted into the unearthly crimson by searing heat and chaotic energies when the Dark Portal was destroyed.

There is but one usable road in the Blasted Lands, guarded at the north by Nethergarde Keep’s grim mages. They have the unenviable task of watching the Dark Portal, guarding the rest of the continent from the demons in the south and protecting themselves from the ogre tribes that roam the desert, not to mention the recent incursion of Horde's Okril'lon forces. The weather here is dry and hot during the day and bitterly cold at night. Mountains block any moisture that may come from the Swamp of Sorrows to the north, and the only signs of life can be found within the Tainted Forest on the southwest, but it was corrupted by demonic powers that have taken hold over the mastermind behind the revitalization of the scorched scar, the Gilnean druid Marl Wormthorn. His followers have built a small fishing village, Surwich near the edge of the forest.

The conflict between the Alliance and Horde rages in the northern part of the region, and is focused mainly on the Nethergarde's supply base located between Dreadmaul Hold and Nethergarde Keep, destabilizing the fragile situation in this region even further.

History


This foul desert was once a dark fen of marshlands called the Black Morass; a sort of sub-region of the Swamp of Sorrows. This is the area where the orcish Horde first entered Azeroth through the Dark Portal, followed soon by their attack on the human lands to the northwest. The lands around the former Dark Portal are burnt and dead, forever warped by the powers that followed its destruction. Lightning strikes are constant, and the inhospitable land is home to groups of especially vicious and powerful creatures. A sizable remnant of the Burning Legion has taken refuge within the Tainted Scar. It is still watched over by the wizards of Dalaran within the Fortress of Nethergarde, established by the Archmage Khadgar after the second war. The unique and dangerous opportunities presented in such a harsh landscape has also attracted the notice of the Blood Elves and the Horde.

As if the Horde weren’t enough, Dreadmaul ogres also came through the Dark Portal. Unlike the orcs, they remained in the Blasted Lands. Nethergarde’s mages tell that the ogres serve Lord Kazzak. Whoever their master is, he orders them to attack the Alliance’s keep on an uncomfortably regular basis.

The Blasted Lands were once littered with gold mines, and heavily populated with centaur.

Getting There

 * Walk, Ride, or Fly south from the Swamp of Sorrows, which is East of Deadwind Pass and Duskwood.
 * Portals are available to the Dark Portal from the mage trainer areas of capital cities. (Portals are not available from Shattrath and Dalaran.)

Added in Patch 3.2
Portal to the Blasted Lands in Alliance capital cities:
 * Wizard's Sanctum, Mage Quarter, Stormwind City
 * The Mystic Ward, Ironforge
 * Temple of the Moon, Darnassus
 * The Vault of Lights, The Exodar

Portal to the Blasted Lands in Horde capital cities:
 * Valley of Spirits, Orgrimmar
 * Spirit Rise near Pools of Vision, Thunder Bluff
 * Magic Quarter, The Undercity
 * Sunfury Spire, Silvermoon City

At the Stair of Destiny in Hellfire Peninsula:
 * Alliance side: Stormwind City
 * Horde side: Orgrimmar

Geography
This desolate and barren land has very little in the way of flora and fauna (the only exception is the Tainted Forest) barring the demons which now wander the plains. The region is particularly notable because the Dark Portal leading into Outland can be found here.

There are no instanced dungeons or battlegrounds in this zone, though several micro dungeons can be found here.

Maps and subregions



 * Topographic map of Blasted Lands

Flight paths from Nethergarde Keep

 * Stormwind, Elwynn Forest
 * Darkshire, Duskwood
 * Morgan's Vigil, Burning Steppes
 * Marshtide Watch, Swamp of Sorrows
 * Surwich, Blasted Lands

Flight paths from Dreadmaul Hold

 * Stonard, Swamp of Sorrows
 * Sunveil Excursion, Blasted Lands

Flight paths from Sunveil Excursion

 * Booty Bay, Cape of Stranglethorn
 * Dreadmaul Hold, Blasted Lands

Flight paths from Surwich

 * Booty Bay, Cape of Stranglethorn
 * Nethergarde Keep, Blasted Lands

Resources



 * Herbs
 * Black Lotus
 * Dreamfoil
 * Golden Sansam
 * Gromsblood (One of the few regions where you can gather it)
 * Mountain Silversage
 * Leather
 * Warbear Leather
 * Thick Leather
 * Rugged Leather
 * Ore
 * Truesilver Deposit
 * Small Thorium Vein
 * Rich Thorium Vein

Dig sites
Blasted Lands has two dig sites:
 * 1) Dreadmaul Post; contains Fossil Archaeology Fragments.
 * 2) The Red Reaches; contains Fossil Archaeology Fragments.

Wild creatures



 * Basilisks
 * Black dragons
 * Doomguards
 * Dreadlords
 * Ghosts
 * Felbeasts
 * Fel Boars
 * Felguards
 * Fel Orcs
 * Hyenas
 * Lost Ones
 * Ogres
 * Scorpids
 * Vultures

Lore
These barrens are littered with gold mines and populated by centaurs. The tileset is called "Barrens".