[Dolalin]

They were added in the September 13th/14th patches. Posts about them in the newsgroups start shortly after that:

Sep 14, 1999, 8:00:00 AM

Since people here are too busy bitching about the patch, I figured I
would mention that there is a new mob that roams the commonlands and
karanas...they are the Shadowed Men. They are a mid 20s mob and they
drop warrior only magic weapons.
Thought you would like to know.

https://groups.google.com/g/alt.game...m/tUjVWeqP1gwJ

Sep 14, 1999, 8:00:00 AM

Big patch yesterday, with a big list of changes in it. They missed
quite a few things, though, it would seem. From AllaKhazam's website
at http://everquest.gamestats.com/ --

o There is now a monster called Shadow Man, a 20-ish necro creature
that inhabits many of the mid-level outdoor areas. They carry shadowed
weapons, which are warrior-only magical weapons. This gives warriors
easy access to magic weapons, which is something people have complained
about.

https://groups.google.com/g/alt.game...m/yp9GcKtNaRoJ