As the Shadow’s armies spread across Golarion, there were issued a series of edicts designed to deny their new subjects the ability or will to resist their rule. The edicts have been enforced by whip and sword; even orcs fresh from the breeding grounds in the north understand that to appear weak before the cattle is to invite a stampede. There are no appeals, no mercy; judgment is swift and brutally efficient, with innocents suffering as often as the guilty. In the case of serious violations, whole families are enslaved or sacrificed for the crimes of a single individual. The harshness of these punishments is designed to turn brother against brother, father against son.

Foremost among the laws of the Shadow are these: elves are to be killed on sight or reported immediately; none but the servants of Izrador may bear weapons, even simple hunting tools like knives and bows; and none but the Order of Shadow may teach others to read or write.

The subjects of Izrador also live in fear of the Shadow’s enforcement of unwritten laws, which can change at the whim of a local legate or garrison commander. Even those proclamations that are declared with posted writs and notices are sadistic excuses to punish the ignorant, as few in Golarion have the ability to read. This lack of certainty breeds fear and indecision, with villagers seeking approval for even simple repairs or everyday movements, yet fearing to draw attention to themselves lest they earn a beating for their trouble. Survival skills in these dark days are passed from generation to generation, and among the most valuable things a child can learn are how to anticipate a legate’s whim, how to predict an orc’s rage, and most importantly how to remain unnoticed by both.