The lands surrounding Shayol Ghul are said to have borne the brunt of the War of Power, and are thus known as the Blasted Lands. Dead and lifeless, they are kept that way by the increasing influence of the Dark One, as they are the location of the mountain of Shayol Ghul, and thus more susceptible to it than even the Great Blight. The valley of Thakan'dar is part of the Blasted Lands, and in Thakan'dar lies Shayol Ghul.
To the south lies the Great Blight, and to the north, an icy wasteland which none have explored. Few have even reached the Blasted Lands. Jain Farstrider is the last known to have tried—without intention of suicide, at least—and in his attempt he was captured by the Shadow. The army of Lain Mandragoran, uncle of al'Lan Mandragoran, was said to have been destroyed in the Blasted Lands, though it is more likely that they fell in the Great Blight. However, the fact that the Blasted Lands even have a name indicates that people have seen it in the past.