Endias

This article contains speculation.

Labeled map of the land of Valleria within the world of Endias.

Endias (エンディアス, Endiasu), also referred to as the Fantasy Continent (夢幻大陸, Mugen Tairiku), is the world in which the stories of the Shining series take place. First described in Shining Tears, the concept as presented in Shining Wind unifies the different continuities presented by the series^{[disputed – discuss]} as occurring within the pages of books that serve as portals to Endias. Characters are able to move between Endias and a parallel world similar to a real-life modern Earth named Erd (エルデ, Erude) through these books.

It is not known whether the world of Endias allows for multiple continuities to exist in separate realities or if Endias suggests a single physical setting. If Endias is one location shared by all the series' settings, then the contradictions between the events presented in each game remain unresolved.^{[citation needed]}

The notion of the story in each Shining game being a fictional tale or legendary historical account read from the pages of a book traces back to the earliest games in the series with the old man on the title menu of Shining and the Darkness and the file girl of Shining Force. The framing device of opening each game with some kind of storyteller has persisted in different contexts throughout the series.

Connection to Classic Continuity

Endias is identified by name as the setting of Shining Road to the Force and Shining Road 2, the second of which involves a plot to resurrect Dark Dragon, an entity whose earliest incarnation is connected to the Ancients of Rune in the first Shining Force.^{[citation needed]} Shining Blade, also set in Endias, features the same version of Dark Dragon found in Shining Road 2. If this Dark Dragon shares its history with the Dark Dragon of Shining Force,^{[dubious – discuss]} this would place Rune and by extension the rest of the the classic Shining continuity within the realm of Endias.^{[citation needed]}

Etymology and Development

The End Earth book shown in the first episode of Shining Tears X Wind.

In the first episode of the anime Shining Tears X Wind, a book is shown with the title End Earth, suggesting the derivation, but the name "End Earth" is not spoken by the characters. The Japanese pronunciation of "End Earth" would more typically be Endo Āsu (エンドアース). Although the name is always written in katakana as Endiasu (エンディアス) in the games and related publications, series producer Tsuyoshi Sawada has also offered the "End Earth" derivation in an interview published in a Shining Wind art book.

[Interviewer] So what does Endias mean anyway?

[Sawada] "End Earth" means "the Earth that has ended". Unfortunately, I can't talk about it in any more detail than that right now. While I haven't planned out every corner of the world, you can think of it as being roughly the same size as Earth.

[Interviewer] What races live there?

[Sawada] Humans, elves, centaurs, dwarfs, and beast people—those sorts of things.

[Interviewer] Is the influence of Darkness no longer a factor?

[Sawada] No, it exists in some places. Baleguard would be an example of that. There are black elves—elves who have been corrupted by the influence of Darkness and turned into dark elves . . . and there are goblins, too.

Shining Setting and Story Directory

Locations
Endias[disputed]	Storm	Stormsang・Ancient Temple
	Rune	Guardiana・ Altarone・Yurt・Runefaust
	Parmecia	Granseal・Ark Valley
	Valleria	Crantor・Shieldia・Runevale
Erd	Tatsumi	St. Luminous
	Alfheim	Astoria・Lombardia
World Concepts
Constructs		Legacy of the Gods・Metaphaluna
Metaphysics		Magic・Great Intention