Sauron's bastions in Middle-earth are many and varied, for it can be argued that any darkhold is at his command and an undeniable strand in the net of shadow he has cast across the world. In the north, the shadow of Angmar and Carn Dûm still hold sway in remote places. In the centre of Middle-earth, Dol Guldur casts a malign influence over the whole forest of Mirkwood, bringing corruption and despair to one of the greatest realms on earth. In the east and south, the towers of Karandar and Azkahar provide the Dark Lord with influence over the realms of Harad and Rhûn. In Gondor, the people curse the forsaken citadel of Minas Morgul, the lost Tower of the Rising Moon, whose rotting grin reaches across the Anduin to freeze the hearts of those who defend Minas Tirith.

Yet, evil as these places are, Sauron's chief stronghold has ever been the land of Mordor, a place of ill-fortune and fell reputation that lies between Gondor and Khand. Mordor is a ruined and evil place, a land that has endured too long under the shadow. History does not tell of Mordor before Sauron began to dwell there at the start of the Second Age – no name from earlier times is known. In the years of Sauron's power it has become the most feared realm in Middle-earth, a shadow that can yet stretch across the face of the world.

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