Shadows were a type of incorporeal undead.[2]


Shadows were incorporeal and were hard to see in dark areas but were easy to see in brightly lit areas.[1]


Shadows hated life and light. Against living creatures, shadows were very aggressive and quick to attack,[6] they were known to hesitate briefly when confronted with someone wearing a silkstone.[7] Their favoured victims were innocent creatures, who lived morally good lives.[2]

Their touch sapped the strength of living creatures.[1] They didn't need to do this to exist, for they entirely existed on negative energy, but they suffered from a craving for the strength of living creatures and if denied this too long, they were driven into a frenzy that made them charge enemies even if was detrimental for their long-term survival.[8]


The touch of a shadow was painfully chilly and sapped the target's strength away. Every time they sapped the strength of their victim, the victim's shadow darkened. On death, the shadow split away, if the victim wasn't evil[2] and rose as a shadow enslaved to the killer.[1]

As an incorporeal creature, a shadow could fly. It had acute senses and a shadow's normal strategy was to hide in a dark place and attack bypassing creatures.[6]

While in dark areas, a shadow could hide away from view. and it could also move through cracks of only 1 inch width.[2]


Shadows were encountered alone, in gangs of two to five or in swarms of six to eleven individuals.[6]

They hid in dark places and attacked creatures who passed by.[6] Shadows could be found anywhere.[6] They hid from the sun in the depths of the world or within buried ruins and crypts.[citation needed]

The drow god Vhaeraun was served by shadows, and they were sometimes sent by him to aid his followers.[9] Shadows were also known to serve Eshowdow of Chult, where they played a central role in the sinister rituals of the Eshowe.[10]

Notable ShadowsEdit


Anastrianna Galanodel and her raven familiar Tillatal.

Anastrianna Galanodel was an elven adventurer slain by a shadow some time after the Fall of Netheril. She became an emancipated spawn when the shadow was destroyed by her companions. In the Year of the Wan Shades, −306 DR, she joined an army of similarly freed "wan shades" to strike against the many undead of Netheril.[11][12]



Video Games

External LinksEdit


  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 Skip Williams, Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook (July 2003). Monster Manual 3.5. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 221–222. ISBN 0-7869-2893-X.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Wizards RPG Team (2014). Monster Manual 5th edition. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 269. ISBN 978-0786965614.
  3. Mike Mearls, Greg Bilsland and Robert J. Schwalb (June 15, 2010). Monster Manual 3 4th edition. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 173. ISBN 0786954902.
  4. Doug Stewart (June 1993). Monstrous Manual. (TSR, Inc), p. 312. ISBN 1-5607-6619-0.
  5. Gary Gygax (December 1977). Monster Manual, 1st edition. (TSR, Inc), p. 86. ISBN 0-9356-9600-8.
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 Skip Williams, Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook (July 2003). Monster Manual 3.5. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 221. ISBN 0-7869-2893-X.
  7. Ed Greenwood, Eric L. Boyd (1996). Volo's Guide to All Things Magical. (TSR, Inc), p. 50. ISBN 0-7869-0446-1.
  8. Andy Collins, Bruce R. Cordell (October 2004). Libris Mortis: The Book of Undead. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 8–10. ISBN 0-7869-3433-6.
  9. Sean K. Reynolds (2002-05-04). Deity Do's and Don'ts (Zipped PDF). Wizards of the Coast. p. 15. Archived from the original on 2016-11-01. Retrieved on 2018-09-08.
  10. Eric L. Boyd (1997). Powers and Pantheons. (TSR, Inc), pp. 81–84. ISBN 0-7869-0657-X.
  11. Jennifer Clarke Wilkes, David Eckelberry, Rich Redman (February 2003). Savage Species. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 76. ISBN 0-7869-2648-1.
  12. Brian R. James and Ed Greenwood (September, 2007). The Grand History of the Realms. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 50. ISBN 978-0-7869-4731-7.