Status: Player guide and reference up to Eternal Shadow Reflection
To get started you will first have to find Traces of the Shadows in the Nether. Defeating a Lesser Shadow drops Shadow Energy Orbs. Collect these with an Empty Essence Bottle. Essence Bottles are crafted by combining glass bottles with Energy Shards. Energy Fragment Ore is found across the Nether. Once you have collected Shadow Energy you unlock knowledge of using the Altar of the Shadows.
Find an Altar of the Shadows. Altars generate next to Abandoned Shadowlands Portals in the Nether. Use a Tracker of Abandoned Portals crafted from an Eye of Ender and Metallic Bones. Metallic Bones drop from Depths Skeletons, Depths Golems, or Depths Titans. The tracker does not break.
At an abandoned portal you will encounter Depths Ghosts. Obtain at least 6 Fiery Ritual Stones. If you broke the spawner too early, ghosts can still spawn around the structure and elsewhere in the Nether. To activate the portal you need a Key to the Shadowlands. Before you have Shadowlands resources this key only comes from defeating Baelzor, the Gatekeeper of the Shadowlands.
To summon Baelzor, perform a ritual in the Altar combining Fiery Ritual Stones, Charged Energy Shards, and Metallic Bones. Charge Energy Shards by collecting Shadow Energy Orbs while holding them in your off hand or by combining them with 30 Shadow Energy in the Altar. Fuel the Altar with a filled Essence Bottle or other items.
Fast Shadow Energy farm: search Crimson Forest and Warped Forest for Metallic Flowers, Jalapenos, and Energy Flowers. Harvest and grow them like crops.
Defeat Baelzor to get the Key to the Shadowlands. Use it to activate the abandoned portal or place a new one. Baelzor drops his Heart used to craft your first Heart Extension.
The Shadowlands have stronger mobs and powerful gear such as Scepters, Runes, and multiple Armor Sets.
First bosses are in the Shadow Forest. Use a Tracker of the Faded to find a castle of Royal Faded Shadows. Sources of Structure Aura force entry through the main entrance. Inside you will find the Faded Shadow King and Faded Shadow Queen. Consume Royal Faded Shadow Energy to unlock Using Structure Portals.
Next progression boss is a Real Shadow. Find a Real Shadow Castle in the Wasteland or Infested Fields. It is guarded by Shadow Skeletons. A Reappearing Door blocks progress. Watch the guards for the trick to get in.
Use Structure Portals to navigate. Get a Teleporting Essence and look for an exposed portal. There is one on the main entrance tower. Alternative entry: use an Ender Pearl through a broken window on a tower side. Shadow Fruits or Chorus Fruits can also work for teleporting through walls.
Once inside, reach the top layer of the second tower.
The second tower has no Structure Portals. Use Lava Sponges to pass broken iron bars behind an Altar. Lava Sponges are found in the hidden prison below the castle or in chests across the Shadowlands. Access the prison by processing the presented item in the Altar. The prison center holds the last Source of Structure Aura that prevents breaking the castle.
Summon the boss by switching the correct lever in the top room.
Defeating a Real Shadow or getting its Semi-Real Bone unlocks Opening Reappearing Doors. You can now navigate any Shadowlands structure.
Recommended step before the final Shadowlands boss: locate an Eternal Dungeon hidden below the Shadowlands in any non-frozen biome. Maps can appear in a tall tower secret room. The dungeon is full of Shadow Reflections. Prepare by collecting Reflective Constants.
The dungeon center is guarded by an Eternal Shadow Reflection, a powerful reflection that manipulates its attributes and bends time.
Defeat it to unlock Altering the Flow of Time. This knowledge lets you use a Reversal Machine crafted with the Core of Reversal it drops. Reversing Unreal Energy produces a Pure Essence Bottle of Reality Energy. Consuming this allows trading with Unreal Priests in an Unreal Village.
Weapons for melee and ranged. Charged with Shadow Energy, no arrows needed. Many scepters upgrade via Smithing Templates traded from Frozen Villagers after defeating Thorvald and getting Pure Essence Bottles of Destructive Icy Energy.
* Stores and executes multiple Runes in one item. * Add runes by crouching and right-clicking the book. Consumes runes from inventory. * No duplicates unless runes carry custom data like a teleport target. * Switch runes with the keybind Shadowlands abilities / Use next Rune of Book. Works in main or off hand. * Use runes by holding right click until cast. * Remove runes in the Essence Bottle Extractor.
| Rune | Effect | Energy | Cooldown | Cast |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Armor Abilities | Removes all armor ability cooldowns | 90 | 10s | 2s |
| Elementary Devastation | Projectile calls meteors on nearby entities | 500 | 10s | 2s |
| Extinguishing | Fire Resistance 12s | 10 | 1s | 0.5s |
| Fertility | Projectile grows plants in 10 blocks | 15 | 1s | 1s |
| Freezing | Turns lava and Shadow Lava into packed ice, water into ice, extinguishes fire in 10 block radius | 30 | 5s | 1s |
| Glowing | Applies Glowing to up to 16 entities in 32 blocks for 16s | 20 | 5s | 1s |
| Healing | Heals 3 hearts | 60 | 15s | 0.5s |
| Infestation | Projectile with lingering Shadow Virus 2 for 5s | 40 | 8s | 1.5s |
| Night Vision | Night Vision 3m | 10 | 1s | 1s |
| Pushing | Pushes up to 8 entities in 4 blocks | 30 | 3s | 0.5s |
| Reflections | Projectile turns up to 4 entities in 6 blocks into Shadow Reflections | 200 | 20s | 2s |
| Shadow Manifestation | Converts nearby blocks to Shadowlands variants in 8 block radius | 120 | 8s | 1.5s |
| Slowing | Projectile with lingering Slowness 2 for 4s | 20 | 5s | 1.5s |
| Vanishing | First use stores a location, later teleports to it across dimensions | 50 | 10s | 2s |
| Warping | Allows teleport to another player who primed the rune, across dimensions | 50 | 10s | 2s |
Charge and release to long jump at Shadow Energy cost. Range increases with Belt of the Faded.
Multiple shields with higher durability. Unbreaking compatible.
* Flaming Scale Shield pairs with Flaming Scale Armor to ignite attackers.
Transports entities. By default seals passive entities, villagers, and tamed mobs. Hostiles require Soul Containers or the Amulet of Eternal Chains.
Instantly teleport to the block you look at. Default range 50 blocks. Range increases with Mage Armor Helmet. Needs valid landing space. Works in hand via right click or as a Curio with keybind Use Eye Ability (default V). Also accesses Structure Portals. Crouch to go down.
WIP.
Grants a temporary shield like Mage Armor but weaker. *Duration:* 24s *Shield Health:* 100 HP
Some foods grant Shadow Energy or effects.
| Food | Shadow Energy | Effects |
|---|---|---|
| Heart of Baelzor | - | Regeneration 2 for 40s, Resistance 40s, Fire Resistance 4m |
| Energy Charged Jalapeno | 35 Herbal | Regeneration 10s, Fire Resistance 10s |
| Jalapeno | 5 Herbal | 33% chance to set you on fire 3s |
| Energy Flower | 30 Herbal | |
| Moon Flower | 20 Herbal | Blindness 4s |
| Energy Charged Pear | 60 Herbal | Regeneration 2 for 7s, Absorption 2 for 15s |
| Shadow Pearl | 40 Shadow | |
| Shadow Booster | - | Speed 5 for 15s, Jump Boost 7 for 15s, Nausea 7s |
| Energy Charged Unreal Flesh | 50 Unreal | Regeneration 3 for 8s, Absorption 2 for 30s |
| Suspicious Cookie | 4 Herbal | Clears all active potion effects |
| Infested Energy Fruit* | 30 Herbal | Clears Shadow Virus |
*Infested Energy Fruits grow on an Infested Cactus after the cactus collects 30 Shadow Energy worth of orbs via direct collision.
Obtained by freezing a Frozen Soul in a Freezing Machine. Projectile that prevents Shadow Reflections from swapping targets.
Respawns bosses in Unreality via Elementary Portals or the Elementary Power Source. Does not respawn Bragadonth. Included here for reference even though Unreality progression is cut in this page.
Each piece gives 10% protection against Shadow damage. Set bonus: Resistance 2 and Speed 1 when below 25% max health.
Upgrade of Shadowforged. Each piece: +10% Shadow, +5% Magic, +5% Unreal protection. Set bonus: Vengeance counter grants free Infestation ability use. Ability: Infestation. Applies Shadow Virus to nearby entities and buffs the player. Cooldown 24s. Costs 85 Shadow Energy per piece. Scales with pieces worn. *Key scaling:* Reach 4–8 blocks, instant Shadow damage 1–1.6, targets 5–14, virus potency scales to Fatal at full set, player buffs scale with pieces.
Charge with Shadow Energy to increase magic protection. Chest and leggings up to 10% magic protection. Boots and helmet up to 5%. Boots give 40% fall damage protection.
Upgrade of Energy Infused. Each piece +7.5% Unreal protection. Charge to reach up to 15% magic protection per piece. Boots give 80% fall protection. Set bonus: Gain Resistance 1 and Regeneration 2 when collecting Shadow Energy. Duration stacks. Ability: Health Drainage. Damages nearby entities, chance to apply Reality Bound, heals player. Cooldown 24s. Cost 75 Shadow Energy per piece. *Scaling:* Reach 5–9 blocks, instant Unreal damage 2.3–7.7, heal 42–78% of damage, targets 6–12, Reality Bound 14% above level 2.
Leggings increase swim speed. Boots push you out of lava. Increased knockback resistance per piece.
Upgrade of Scale. Chestplate protects from all fire damage. Leggings increase swim speed. Boots protect against Freezing Ice. Each piece +5% Unreal protection and more knockback resistance. Set bonus: When in fire, water, or rain you get Resistance 2 and Strength 2. Grants water breathing and fire resistance when needed. Ability: Fire Storm. Ignites nearby entities and can summon Eternal Flames. Also ignites the player for beneficial effects. Cooldown 28s. Cost 70 Shadow Energy per piece. *Scaling:* Reach 4.5–8.5 blocks, instant Unreal damage 0.5–1.4, targets 6–15, fire duration 6–15s, Eternal Flames 8% with full set.
Each piece: 15% magic protection, 6.25% Unreal protection, more knockback resistance. Helmet increases Eye of Bragadonth range by 50%. Boots block all fall damage. Ability: Mage Shield. Temporary shield that blocks damage. 50% more magic reduction than Shield Essence. Cooldown 45s. Cost 120 Shadow Energy per piece. *Scaling:* Duration 6–24s, shield 40–160 HP.
* Heart Extensions: Permanent max health increase. First is crafted in the Altar using Heart of Baelzor. Levels up via boss defeats. Kept on death. * Charm of Reality Bound: Weakens lesser Unreal entities by reducing projectile damage to Shadowlands values. When charged, blocks up to 25% Unreal damage. * Wings of the Ascended: Creative-like flight at Shadow Energy cost. * Amulet of Eternal Chains: Improves sealing hostile entities. Prevents dropping held tools even against Infernal Mobs effect. Tools can still be dropped from inventory UI.
Very rare melee enchant. Chance to apply Reality Bound.
| Level | Duration | Chance |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1.25s | 5% |
| 2 | 1.5s | 10% |
| 3 | 1.75s | 15% |
Obtain by combining Book + Pure Essence Bottle of Reality Energy + Fragment of Reality in the Altar.
Rare melee enchant. Increases Shadow Energy drops and lets regular mobs drop Shadow Energy. *Drop multiplier per level:*
| Level | Multiplier |
|---|---|
| 1 | 6% |
| 2 | 12% |
| 3 | 18% |
| 4 | 24% |
| 5 | 30% |
*Drop chance on regular entities:*
| Level | Chance |
|---|---|
| 1 | 10% |
| 2 | 20% |
| 3 | 30% |
| 4 | 40% |
| 5 | 50% |
Amount: 1 + (max health / 10) Obtain by Book + Reflective Essence + Shard of Unreality in the Altar.
Rare for any Shadow Energy item. Reduces energy consumption.
| Level | Reduction |
|---|---|
| 1 | 10% |
| 2 | 20% |
| 3 | 30% |
| 4 | 40% |
| 5 | 50.1% |
Rounded. If an item would consume 1 energy, level 5 makes it consume 0. Does not apply if base cost is more than 1. Some Curios still require a charge to function. Armor ability costs are not reduced. Obtain by Book + Dark Organic Metal Ingot + Ghost Powder in the Altar.
Use Shadow Energy to power Scepters, Charms, Runes, Armor, machines, and more.
Two sources:
Priority when collecting orbs:
1. Essence Bottles already holding only that energy type 2. Other Essence Bottles, including empty 3. Your chargeable item with the lowest percent charge 4. The player
Essence Bottle sizes
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Undefined | Generic energy not tied to a category |
| Herbal | From plants like Metallic Flowers, Jalapenos, Energy Flowers, Shadow Fruits, Moon Flowers |
| Depths | From Depths Skeletons, Golems, Titans, Ghosts. Also from Fiery Ritual Stones |
| Shadow | From Lesser Shadows, Shadow Skeletons, Fading Shadows, Shadow Reflections, Shadow Executors. Also from Shadow Pearls |
| Ice | From Icy Ghosts, Frozen Souls, Mutated Spiders, Mutated Scorpions, Ice Titans. Also from Frozen Souls |
| Unreal | From Unreal Shadows, Priests, Golems, Meteoric Titans. Also from Unreal Energy or Energy Charged Unreal Flesh |
| Reality | From reversing Pure Essence Bottle of Unreal Energy in the Reversal Machine |
| Light | From reversing Pure Essence Bottle of Shadow Energy |
| Fire | From reversing Pure Essence Bottle of Ice Energy |
| Destructive Icy Energy | Dropped by Thorvald |
| Royal Faded Shadow Energy | Dropped by the Faded Shadow King and Queen |
| Real Shadow Energy | Dropped by a Real Shadow |
| Flowing Time Energy | Dropped by an Eternal Shadow Reflection |
| Magical Shadow Energy | Dropped by Bragadonth |
| Unreal Infinity Shadow Energy | Dropped by Myreirth |
Types matter when filling bottles. A Pure Essence Bottle is 100 of one type. Use the Essence Bottle Extractor to split mixed bottles.
Unlock knowledge like advancements. Some knowledge gates mechanics.
| Name | ID | Unlocked by | Usage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shadow Energy | 0 | Collect Shadow Energy in an Essence Bottle | Access the Altar of the Shadows |
| Collecting Shadow Energy | 1 | Enter the Shadowlands | Store energy directly as a player |
| Using Structure Portals | 2 | Consume Royal Shadow Energy | Access Structure Portals |
| Opening Reappearing Doors | 3 | Defeat a Real Shadow or get a Semi-Real Bone | Open Reappearing Doors |
| Travelling between Realities | 4 | Defeat Bragadonth or collect Magical Shadow Energy | - |
| Altering the Flow of Time | 5 | Defeat an Eternal Reflection or get a Core of Reversal | Use Reversal Machine |
| The Definition of Reality | 6 | Consume Pure Essence of Reality Energy | Trade with Unreal Priests and activate Elementary Portals |
| The Unreality | 7 | Enter the Unreality | - |
| Infinite Shadow Energy | 8 | Consume Pure Essence of Unreal Infinity | Infinite energy for tools |
Vertical elevator between structure layers. Requires Using Structure Portals knowledge. Use by clicking the block and spending 5 Shadow Energy, or by using tokens like Teleporting Essence or the Eye of Bragadonth which consume durability. Crouch to go down, otherwise go up. Default vertical spacing 80 blocks, radius 4 blocks. Does not need perfect vertical alignment. Paralyzing Aura 2 prevents portal access.
Build by placing 1 Altar Center with 1–8 Altar Energy Sources on Altar Pillars within 3 blocks. Recipes require a minimum Altar Level. All Energy Sources must be at or above the level. A single lower source reduces total level. Fuel with Shadow Energy via Essence Bottles or consumable items. Tools cannot be burned for fuel. More and higher level sources speed processing and reduce fuel cost.
*Recipe messages in GUI*
Soul Containers Some recipes require captured souls in Altar Soul Sources placed like Energy Sources. Holds up to 3 soul containers. Souls weaken with use and can be re-captured to refresh. Hostiles: use Activated Soul Cage projectile. Base seals entities up to 60 HP. Amulet of Eternal Chains adds 60 HP.
Special recipes
Splits energy from one bottle into many to produce Pure Essence Bottles. Top left input is the mixed bottle. Top right holds target bottles. Can process up to 9 outputs per run. Also removes Runes from the Book of Runes.
Cools items. Powered by Shadow Energy. Main use: Cooled Shadow Fragments from Burnt Shadow Fragments.
Creates opposites. Powered by Shadow Energy. Main use: reverse Pure Essence Bottles to create new energy types.
Protects itself by summoning Arms. Defeat the Arms to expose the heart.
Spawn in the Faded Castle. King resists projectiles by teleporting. Queen resists melee by teleporting. They swap positions during the fight. Ranged and magic attacks, scepter projectiles, fireballs, potions, and minions.
Summoned in a Real Shadow Castle by lever at the top of the left tower. Strong melee. Uses gravity to pull ranged attackers. Boosts lesser shadows it summons.
*Boost effects while a Real Shadow is present:*
| Entity | Effect |
|---|---|
| Lesser Shadow | Higher chance to apply Shadow Virus |
| Shadow Executor | Stronger virus effects like Alpha Executors |
| Shadow Reflection | 20% stronger mirroring of attributes |
| Shadow Skeleton | More projectiles and higher projectile damage |
Has all Shadow Reflection abilities with higher base stats. Wields Blade of Eternity. Summoned reflections use fixed equipment. Manipulates Eternal Flames that ramp damage and ignore Fire Resistance and water. Only Unreal Magic Damage resistance reduces it.
Uses Eternal Chains to seal targets for 200 damage if it can see them continuously. Interrupt chains by attacking it.
Time manipulation: sets a timeline point using the Eternal Eye. On reset, locations and health revert. The more it uses the power, the longer the interval. Attack right after a reset. Use Reflective Constants to force an early reset 33% of the time. Flame particles indicate a timestamp is set.
On death, spawns an Eternal Flame that never goes out.