The Voice of the World

The Voice of the World is an overwhelmingly loud and continuous type of pseudo-white noise which emanates from a crater called the Throat of the World (shown above), on Vox Island, off the south eastern coast of Utterland in the realm of the Lost Retreat. It is not a natural phenomenon, but rather a consequence, probably a side effect rather then the primary intention, of a strange arcane weapon of war from an age and time long forgotten.
In the northern continent of Idalka there is a region known as the Silent Kingdoms where all sound is dampened, whether its origin is natural or human. The wind that blows through its trees, the mighty rivers and their waterfalls that flow through its lands, the clash of hammers on steel, the sound of thunder and of rain on water, the song of birds, the buzz of bees, the chatter of human speech, all of them are hushed to the point where a stranger to the Silent Kingdoms might imagine they had gone deaf. But as it transpires, none of those sounds are entirely lost. Instead they emerge here at the Throat of the World, concentrated in one place in a cacophony which is called the Voice of the World but might more properly be called the Voice of the Silent Kingdoms.
The Throat of the World is an arcane sink for the sound suppressed in the Silent Kingdoms and as far as can be determined, Vox Island lies on the exact opposite side of the world to their centre.
The Voice of the World has some profound effects on the neighbouring regions. On Vox Island itself, animals have begun to evolve to lose their sense of hearing since it is of so little use amidst the great ambient noise that drowns out all local competition. Oddly enough this is a similar effect to the one seen in the Silent Kingdoms if for completely opposite reasons.
On the mainland of Utterland, the sound has attenuated sufficiently to allow human cultures to function without requiring ear defenders, but the land of Bellow, the closest to Vox Island, is home to an unusual species of semi-humans known as the Bellowfolk. The species compensates for the high ambient noise level with a wide, gaping mouth that can produce a deafening range of vocalizations. The hearing of Bellowfolk is weak, protecting their minds from the sensory overload that might otherwise result from proximity to the Voice of the World.

Bellowfolk (male) by DMFW with Night Cafe

More traditional human cultures occasionally send expeditions to Vox Island for various reasons. Some venerate the Voice of the World and see it as an oracle. Even a relatively short exposure to the naked sound, close to the Throat of the World is enough to produce permanent hearing damage, so unless this is the intended effect (which is the case for cultists from the True Voice sect) visitors must always wear strong ear defenders.