The Badlands is a region in Khaz Modan accessed via the Searing Gorge to the west and Loch Modan to the north.

The Badlands are a cracked desert of dry earth, scattered boulders, and winding canyons. Dark Iron dwarves clash with ogres and drakes, while Horde orcs man a fortress to keep watch on their renegade brethren in the eastern lands. Ironforge prospectors search this desolate land for Titan artifacts, inspired by the recently unearthed Uldaman an immense ruin that held the first clues to the dwarves' lofty origins. Stonevault troggs, released after millennia of slumber, slaughtered the explorers and viciously defend their stolen city.

Only the hardiest of creatures can survive in the arid wastes, such as feral coyotes, cougars and buzzards. In the far east is a region inhabited by black dragon spawn. Scattered across the Badlands are camps of ogres of the Dustbelcher tribe. In the northwest is a tiny Horde outpost. The northern reaches of this rugged land are home to ruins that were the workings of the ancient race, the earthen. These ruins are known as Uldaman. Dark Iron dwarves also have a large fortress just south of Uldaman.

The fall of the orcish Horde at the end of the Second War left its remnants scattered and downtrodden. The Orcs who once controlled Khaz Modan were nearly annihilated in a massive push by the Lordaeron humans. The ogres and Horde settlement in this region are the remains of the early Horde forces stationed there. Aid and reinforcements have arrived from the current Horde, much to the relief of the Orcs. In the interest of tactics they dug a path through the mountains to reach the Searing Gorge, unwittingly releasing the Dark Iron Dwarves from their "prison". There also seems to be a buried troll temple to the northwest of the Dustbowl's middle part. The "troll temple" has two snake head statues that are similar to those found in the Hinterlands.