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Generally tall, fair and with pointed ears, Elves are unmistakable in their noble bearing and complex history. The ancient race of Elves has, through the ages, been known as a stable and thriving race. The great Elven Empire stood stable for thousands of years, spanning many of Aloria's continents far and wide. Since the stemming of the last Void Invasion by the Elven Empire however, the Elves have faced civil strife, Orc invasions, and widespread instability among the many factions of Elves. More than ever are Elves not only warring with the Orcs, but also one another. From the Isldar in the far north, to the Talar in the south, the Elves are a proud and strong race. Despite the many recent hardships, many Elves stay true to their ideals and their search to restore the splendor and grandeur that was taken from them by the Orc invasion and the collapse of their social system.
Origins of Elves
The Elves originally descended from the great Seraph civilization, remnants of the last Void Invasion fleeing to Daendroc. Over the many thousands of years, the Elves developed a distinct culture, dominated by druidic rituals and worship of nature. The Elven culture developed many different deities over time, but the most important by far was the goddess of nature, Estel, often referred to as “Faith” in Human languages. Early Elven civilization revolved around Faith of Estel, and the powers of nature. Estel was seen as the guide of the souls of the dead to transcendence. As many hundreds of years went by, however, Elven society changed. The Elves became more populous, thriving to greater heights than any of the other races. A great Elven Empire was formed when Emperor Gwângalad unified the many Elven Kingdoms. For nearly 2000 years the Elven Empire stood stable, ruled by the descendants of Gwângalad. The Empire expanded onto other continents, establishing great cities of white marble and quartz. The most wondrous of all was the capital of the Empire, Ríë. The Imperial Palace was the largest made structure ever built, its main Ivory Tower higher than any mountain ever seen.
Rise of the Elven Empire
With all the increasing splendor, Elven society became more decadent. As the Elven population moved away from groves and nature and into large monumental cities, their habits changed. Many of them forgot the old ways, destroying nature itself to feed the population or expand cities, and engaging in dangerous acts of magic. The Elven Empire also waged numerous wars against Human and Qadir kingdoms across Farah'deen and Ceardia. With every defeated kingdom, the Elves took thousands of slaves to serve them at home. The Tigran race, especially, suffered from the expansion of the Elves. At the peak of the Elven Empire nearly 95 percent of the total Tigran population was enslaved in Daendroc.
Void Invasion
Something dark and evil was stirring on the other side of the veil however. The Archdemon Behesael was gathering his forces for another invasion of Aloria as he had done before during the high days of the Seraph Civilization. As the veil tore open, millions of demons from the void poured out and washed over the lands, catching many of the human kingdoms by surprise and quickly overrunning them. The Elven Empire was slow to react, losing most of its northern dominions to the advancing demonic hordes. Wave after wave of demon pushed against the Elven Empire, but after several years Emperor Medui was finally able to bring the invading army to a standstill at the Battle of Estel.
Emperor Medui brought a brave group of adventurers and mages, with just enough time to break through to the Forsaken Continent where the invasion had started, and tear down the veil to destroy the gateway from which the demons could enter Aloria. Despite their victory however, Emperor Medui was slain on the battlefield leaving behind a power vacuum between his three sons and one daughter. Estel had a vision of what was to come and tried to act, but was quickly barred from intervening by a new dark force that had arisen from the Elven Empire. The so called Shadow Elves, corrupted and tainted by the Void demons had begun their works to unravel the Elven Empire and destroy the defenses of Aloria. It was their dark mages that bound and imprisoned Estel in a location unknown to any but their darkest Shadow Council.
Fall of the Elven Empire
The Yanar first appeared shortly after the defeat of the void demons. They attempted to warn the Elves, but they had lost the old ways, and did not heed the warnings of the Yanar. The power vacuum left behind by the death of Emperor Medui caused friction between the many factions within the Elven Empire, leading several to break off into their own clans. The Isldar, fair blue-white skinned Elves of northern Ellador were the first to secede from the Elven Empire. They simply completely and utterly disappeared without a trace, and have not been seen since those days. The second to leave were the Drowdar Elves. They were cast out by the Eldar as scaremongers who wished to control the population with fear of the demons – though in truth, all they wished was to continue the fight on the forsaken continent. The Drowdar left in masses, sailing to the forsaken continent where to this day, they still fight a losing battle against the demons that wander the continent. Over time the Drowdar’s fair skin turned black and dark blue, and their hair pure white. Many often believe they are corrupted by the demons, but they simply changed over a long period of time, their close proximity to the Veil affecting their appearance. To this day they keep their vigil, as an incorruptible force against the Demons.
The remaining factions within the Empire, the military Vicari, the druidic Lothar and the populous Talar started a civil war amongst themselves, each favoring a different son of the late Emperor. Cedril led the druidic factions in the North, Cedral led the military factions in the center, and Cedron led the populous factions in the South. Cedril and Cedral brokered an alliance to defeat Cedron in exchange for independence for the druids. Cedral betrayed Cedril however and strangled him during a negotiation. And working behind the scenes, the Shadow Elves had placed a plan in motion, killing Elven oracles and grove tenders all over Daendroc. Their final targets were the Nenya, colossal magical trees which were the emissaries of Estel. With axe and fire they assailed the colossal trees and with dagger and sword they entered the Elven Temples. A night of terror that would forever be known to the Elves as the Night of the Fallen Star, many claimed they could hear the forest itself cry out, wailing in the wind for the death that was caused.
Meanwhile Cedral marched on his other brother, Cedron which had fortified himself in a coastal citadel. Too distracted to see what was really going on, or perhaps a partner to the Shadow Council’s plans, Cedral drew all forces away from the cities and centers of magic. As the soldiers left, the Shadow Elves started corrupting the population and turning them into mindless servants of the demons. They would have succeeded in their plan if it wasn’t for the surprise Cedral ran into when he first laid eyes on his brother’s citadel. Instead of seeing Elven banners, he saw Orc warships, sounding the drums of war as the citadel was wrecked casting large pillars of smoke far into the sky. Cedral charged the Orcs with his entire army, but was soundly defeated and slain on the battlefield.
What followed was nothing short of an all-out invasion of the Elven Empire by the Orc Hordes. With great speed and cruelty they spread trough the Empire, destroying what little groves were left, pillaging cities and mass murdering Elves. Nearly 90 percent of the Elven population, millions upon millions, died at the hands of the Savage Orcs. The Shadow Council’s plans were completely foiled as they themselves were also slain by the Orcs, along with many of their accomplices. In one final life-shattering event, the Orcs decimated Ríë with an enormous bomb, reducing it to a pile of rubble and sending it into the sea. The advancement of the Orc Hordes only ended when the Orcs began fighting amongst themselves, arguing over the division of their spoils of war.
Many Elves fled to the Northern jungles of Daendroc, setting up new groves and forming the Lothar tribes. These tribes believed they could only reclaim their old grandeur by returning to the old ways of nature worship. They support the status quo between the Elves and the Orcs, not favoring attacking or defending against them. Many of the Vicari took up arms in the middle plains of Daendroc, forming tribes of soldiers which had survived the massacres. They renamed themselves to Unqualë, wishing only to bring death on the Orcs as an act of revenge. These Elves now favor hunting, guerrilla warfare and a tribal way of living, constantly hunting for Orcs. Many more Elves lingered in their destroyed cities, decaying husks of their former glory. These Elves have trouble accepting their fate. The Talar, as they are now called, often exist in a sad state of denial, still acting the same way they did before the Empire collapsed, unable to accept reality. Some others fled underground, becoming even more savage and brutish than the Orcs that caused them to go there to begin with. The Grodar are considered dangerous to all, even to the many Elven groups. The Grodar have simply gone insane underground and survive through scavenging or ambushing surface dwellers. Few Shadow Elves remained after the Orc invasion, but they still continue their plans for corruption on the many islands of Daendroc, hiding in the dense jungles to find new ways to corrupt the land and the people living on it.
Elves Now
Recently the Elves found Human settlements on the eastern shores of Daendroc. The Unqualë valued their presence, using the Human settlement for trade to aquire human forged steel and war machines, which they find extremely useful in their continued fight against the Orc hordes. Recently the citizens of Daenshore and smaller towns have allied themselves with the Unqualë, forming a strong alliance to fight back the Orcs. The Lothar however fear the presence of the humans, as they destroy the forests around their towns to fuel their growth. The Talar in turn believe the Humans are settling vermin and avoid contact with them at all times. However, despite the multiple mindsets and differences of the numerous factions of Elves, they all remain proud and assured of themselves and their race.
Subraces of Elves
- Eldar: Common Elf, divided among the Talar, Lothar and Unqualë. Fair and pale skinned beings, Eldar are generally tall and have bright blonde, blonde, or brown hair. The most common Elves on Aloria, the Eldar Elves are represented by extremely different mindsets that all revolve around the reforming of the grandeur of the Elven race, in some form or another. While the Lothar and Unqualë are more commonly seen in forest and plains tribes, the Talar almost mimic human nobility in their continued quest for grandeur and opulence. The Eldar are the most easily accepted of all the sub-races of Elves, due to their relatively normal appearances.
- Isldar: Ice Elf, known to be fair in appearance and with white-blue skin, white hair, and generally tall bearings. Having broken off from the Elven Empire more than three hundred years ago, the Isldar vanished off the face of Aloria, and only recently have a very rare few shown back up in the world view. Inquires of the rest of the Isldar, however, have discovered nothing, and the fate of this sub-race as a whole remains shrouded in mystery. From the few seen through Aloria, the Isldar are thought to be rangers and survivalists, living simply and plainly. These few have also shown high physical and weapons prowess, supporting the idea that the Isldar are used to rough living.
- Shendar: Shadow Elf, otherwise called Island or Blood Elves. Grey skinned tall beings with white hair, the Shendar are fairly rare. Ever since the Shendar turned to demons in an effort to gain an advantage over the other Elven factions, the entire sub-race has become warped, both physically and mentally. A Shendar elf is almost always possessed by a demon, and are considered highly dangerous because of such. Living in wild and primitive tribes that are carefully sheltered in dense jungles, they habitually practice demonic possession. Shadow Elves are unwelcome in major cities, and shunned by other Elves for their dangerous walk with demons.
- Grondar: Cave Elf, distinctly different from other sub-races with their yellow skin and lack of hair. Driven insane by underground living, the Grondar are considered feral and near non-sentient, too dull and unintelligible to even think of communicating with. Finding one that can speak is extremely rare, as is surviving an encounter with a Grondar. They live deep underground or within caves and survive by scavenging for food, or by ambushing and killing the unwary traveler who ventures too deep beneath the surface.
- Drowdar: Drow Elf, perhaps the rarest of all sub-races, due to their willing containment on the Forsaken Continent. With black or dark-blue skin and white hair, Drowdars are highly militaristic, avoiding magic and its use at all costs. Fierce and passionate in their fight against demons, any sign of weakness in a Drowdar results in abandonment of the individual. Having barred themselves on the Forsaken Continent to continue their unending battle, very few Drowdars are ever seen in the rest of Aloria, and fewer still have any desire to give up their fight against the demons. Due to their prolonged exposure to demons and the torn Veil, Drowdars are considered extremely dangerous and unpredictable by most others.