The Scoutsbane Wastes, named so because scouts who enter them seldom are ever seen again, was once a verdant and fertile land inhabited by millions of elves, dwarves, men, and gnomes. It was, through unknown means, intentionally destroyed and rendered uninhabitable by the Grand Imperium thousands of years ago to stop the Southlander invasion. At some indeterminate point after the destruction of this region, creatures began to be sighted in its wreckage. Dozens of races of foul beasts began to come north into the habitable regions of Edar, murdering and destroying all that they came across. These creatures are called the Wastelanders, and they are the greatest threat to the continuance of Edari life.

After the Dark Ages, the nations of Illien, Nasaad, and Salidar banded together to defend their lands against the constant raids and invasions that came from the Wastes. They began sharing resources and knowledge about the Wastelanders, often coming to each other’s defense when an overwhelming force was advancing north. Eventually, with the help of Gnomish engineers and Dwarven craftsmen, these nations began construction on the Great Wall. This marvel of engineering is a solid wall that stretches from Illien to Salidar, with ramparts behind it and watchtowers every 500 feet. Since the construction of this wall, no Wastelander army has crossed into Edar, however that achievement has come at the cost of innumerable lives.

The creatures of the Wastes exist in varying levels of society. Some of them, such as orcs and goblins, have created actual societies and towns, albeit ones of immense horror and violence. Other species, such as gnolls, scrape out a nomadic and tribal existence throughout the wastes. There have always been legends of humans or elves that live in the Wastes and are able to control the Wastelanders, but there has never been any evidence of such an occurrence. Edar is incapable of advancing armies into the Wastes, as the land itself cannot support large numbers of northern races. Most of the vegetation and wildlife that exists in the Wastes is toxic to the Edari races, and the land itself seems to resist habitation by northern life. The Wastes are pocked with small areas that will kill a northerner who simply enters it. There are no indicators whether an area is deadly or safe, but when a deadly area, called a Black Spot, is entered by a northerner, they almost immediately suffer nausea, vomiting, confusion, and a burning sensation of their skin. Unless the area is left immediately, they will die within minutes. The Wastelanders do not seem to suffer the same fate in these areas, and as such many orc villages lie on top of these invisibly deadly areas.