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Mordor, surprisingly gentle on your allergies.

One does not simply walk into Mordor. The Black Gates are guarded by more than just Orcs. There is evil there that does not sleep, and the Great Eye is ever watchful. And if by some miracle you slip past the Morannon, what then? There is nowhere to hide on the plain of Gorgoroth. It is a barren wasteland, riddled with fire, ash, dust; the very air you breathe is a poisonous fume.
Boromir, Fellowship of the Ring (movie version)

Ahh, look! How lovely! The black clouds of twilight are so fetching today...
Midna, The Legend Of Zelda: Twilight Princess

The environmental opposite of Ghibli Hills. Mordor is black, bleak, and the sun is always hidden behind endless dark storm clouds. What little vegetation there is (if any) will be withered and rotting or mutated into an "evil" variety that's covered in sharp thorns and/or liable to eat people. Poisonous marshes and swampland are also quite common. Expect frequent volcanoes and/or ice storms.

In a Fantasy Setting, Mordor is often this way because the evil of the Big Bad who rules the place radiates throughout the land. Often, this land was once a beautiful place before the Big Bad got hold of it, and it's presented as a stark example of what could happen to the hero's world should he or she fail in stopping the Big Bad. Should the Big Bad be defeated and the good king restored, often the skies will clear up and the birds and bees and flowers will return at warp speed.

In more realistic or Sci-Fi settings, Mordor is an Aesop against abusing resources. Its inhabitants stripped the land of everything good, and polluted the air. Defeat of the Big Bad won't necessarily return the land to its pristine state. Quite often, this also involves big sprawling cities that somehow became something worse than the run-down ghettos of São Paulo, or big sprawling industrial zones that breathe smoke 24/7.

It's not clear how anything can actually survive in Mordor for any extended period in time. Perhaps everyone lives Beneath The Earth and eats mushrooms (or people who wander into their land), or else all their resources come from conquering others. Expect its inhabitants and plants to be part-monster as a result of adapting to survive the conditions there.

Series that take place After The End will often be set in a version of Mordor (though usually not quite as harsh). Sometimes Mordor is Where It All Began.

As noted above, One Does Not Simply Walk Into Mordor (but it is usually the best way to get there.)

Not to be confused with the Glaswegian pronunciation of "murder".

Mordor is one form of Shadowland.


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