Ondu

Ondu
[[File:{{#setmainimage:Ondu Skyruins.png}}|250px]]
Information
Plane	Zendikar
Formerly part of	Makindi Empire

Ondu is one of the seven continents of Zendikar, only a short distance away from Akoum. It is composed of one central landmass with three major islands off its coast: the large, southernmost island of Agadeem, the smaller, temperate Beyeen, and the tiny, sea-swept Jwar.

General

Ondu is located in the southwestern quadrant of Zendikar and juts into the Silundi Sea. The region of Ondu is composed of one central landmass and three major islands off its coast.

The geography of Ondu is dominated by a sense of sweeping verticality. The precarious Makindi Trenches, the skyscraping trees of the Turntimber, and the depths of the Crypt of Agadeem all contribute to the strange sensation that travels in Ondu occurs up and down rather than east and west.

History

The great capital city of Makindi, which gave its name to an ancient Kor empire, was located in Ondu. A civil war tore the empire in half; the Ondu Skyclave turned against the capital. Makindi was destroyed (and its lands transformed into trenches), and the Skyclave fell onto Jwar Isle.

Notable locations

• The Makindi Trenches, a maze of high-walled canyons crisscrossing the mainland. Birds, reptiles, goblins and kor make their homes on the trenches' sheer surfaces. Fast-moving whitewater rivers course through many branches of the Trenches.
  • Throughout the canyons and plateaus of Makindi are famous boulders perched in unlikely, precarious, gravity-defying positions. They're called the Teetering Peaks, even though Zendikar's irregular gravity keeps the boulders stable.
  • The Prison of Omnath, a site on a high mesa where the deity Omnath was imprisoned. Religious pilgrims from across Zendikar traveled here on a twice-yearly basis to perform the Ritual of Lights, a ceremony designed to protect the world from the release of Omnath. Pilgrims placed 77 candles in a binding circle surrounding the deep pit housing the Prison; those who entered the circle were killed by its surges of power. The Prison was destroyed when the plane's increasingly volatile mana caused land elementals to disrupt the Ritual, releasing Omnath on the plane.
    • The Soul Stair is an infinitely-long spiral staircase into the pit of the Prison that leads to the surreal void where Omnath was contained.
• Turntimber, the Serpentine Forest, a vast temperate forest. Named for its enormous, corkscrew-shaped trees that support many dangerous creatures including baloths and snakes.
  • Mosscrack, home tree of the Tajuru Nation.
  • Graypelt or Greypelt, a small settlement of druids, hunters, and trailblazers on the outer edges of Turntimber. Its name comes from the tents made from the woolly grey hide of Turntimber warthogs. Greypelt explorers have developed a method to temporarily store small, stable quantities of primal mana from Turntimber's trees.
  • Wolfbriar, a haunting glade, home to the elf beastmaster Zalek.
• Agadeem, the largest island. Littered by broken hedrons. The laws of nature warp strangely around these hedron fields, causing bizarre and unpredictable thaumaturgical and gravitational phenomena. Visitors to the island occasionally witness a vision of three immense masks floating in the sky.
  • Kabira, a community of humans and other races encamped near the hedron fields. The settlement's architecture mimics the shapes and glyphs of Agadeem's hedrons.
    • Kabira Conservatory, a small academy run by the merfolk Viniva which sponsors research of the hedrons.
  • The Crypt of Agadeem, a natural cavern converted into a heavily trapped burial site. At the back of the Crypt is a massive stone sculpture known as the Cryptlock. The lock opens rarely, but a few individuals who call themselves "witch vessels" claim to have entered and spoken to the thousands of dead held within.
    • The Crypt Maw, the entrance chamber to the Crypt, is a cavern the size of a cathedral. It is home to thousands of bats and is believed by to be haunted.
• Beyeen, a smaller, temperate island. The island consists of several small volcanic landmasses connected by bridges of clinging vegetation. The kor call the small range the Crown of Talib, after their god of the earth. Smaller peaks on Beyeen once hovered over their mountains through geomancy, but Zendikar's unpredictable mana has since caused the peaks, now known as "pistons," to rise and smash down at random. The island's lowland valleys are a temperate rainforest, supporting a variety of wildlife.
  • Mount Valakut, the "Molten Pinnacle," the largest and most active peak of the Crown range.
  • Zulaport, a community on the coast, consisting of mages, explorers, and artisans of mixed races and origins. Zulaport's economy is controlled by the powerful vampire Indorel, who uses a network of goblin, human, and ogre thugs to ensure herself a cut of all of Beyeen's trade.
  • Boilbasin, a group of massive hot tide pools that stair-step down the mountainous slope toward the sea on Beyeen's western coast. The pools combine seawater with geothermally heated hot springs, creating basins that seethe with steam. The tide pools are said to be a favorite location for dragons, who use boiling water to cleanse their scales.
• Jwar, the tiny, sea-swept Isle of Secrets that lies near the southern coast of Ondu. Huge granite heads known as the Faduun loom half-buried in the earth. Some religious pilgrims bury their dead on the island, as bodies buried there, if watered often, eventually disappear completely.
  • The Strand of Jwar is a beam of concentrated aether that appears as a pure blue light shooting straight upward out of a seawater-filled pit on the island. Some kor believe it connects Zendikar to the afterlife, while Zendikar's merfolk consider it bad luck to even look upon the Strand. No explorer has yet uncovered the source or function of the light.
  • The Skyclave above Jwar isle, an ancient Kor city filled with laboratories.
• The Serpent's Maw, the stormy waters surrounding Jwar Isle.
• Cliffhaven? (location uncertain)

Gallery

• 

  Turntimber concept art.

• 

  Piston Mountain concept art.

• 

  Agadeem concept art.

In-game references

Associated cards:

• Ondu Champion
• Ondu Cleric
• Ondu Giant
• Ondu Greathorn
• Ondu Inversion
• Ondu Knotmaster
• Ondu Rising
• Ondu Skyruins
• Ondu Spiritdancer
• Ondu War Cleric

Referred to:

• Aether Tradewinds
• All Is Dust
• Beast Hunt
• Desecrated Earth
• Expedition Map
• Farsight Adept
• Jwari Ruins
• Kabira Outrider
• Kitesail
• Ogre Sentry
• Prairie Stream (Battle for Zendikar)
• Puncturing Light (Rise of the Eldrazi)
• Shoreline Salvager
• Shrivel (Rise of the Eldrazi)
• Teeterpeak Ambusher

Sources

• Magic Creative Team (November 11, 2009). "A Planeswalker's Guide to Zendikar: Ondu". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.