Shiv
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Post by Shiv on Nov 12, 2010 19:41:57 GMT -5
”Sylvanaran and his one thousand and one lieutenants see you stranger. You have trespassed into his domains and by his will we will feed you to the maw of Zhunfbaram should you not turn your steps back this instant.”
- Common Wood elven threat, usually delivered as a whisper on the wind.
The Sylvan Elves
The wild Sylvan Elves are perhaps the least numerous in the world. Leading nomadic lives in the deeps of the largest forests, very few of the other races ever set eyes on one in their lifetime. Still pockets of them exist outside their homeland of Kathil-Binas, inhabiting the wild places of the land where few others would dare settle. The name ”wood/sylvan elf” is slightly misleading as they can settle in most any environment but, due to the large areals needed for a single tribe to sustain itself, this is rarely close to civilization. As with the two other elven races, the wood elves are easy to recognize by sight. They are shorter and stockier than other elves, though seldom fat, with tanned skin and brown or blonde hair. A nomadic people by legacy and with a seeming inherent liking for physical challenge a sylvan elfs body is lean and muscular, usually standing at the same height as a human. The wood elves favor durable clothes, often skins, due to their lifestyle and otherwise adorn themselves with heavy tattoos, exotic hairstyles or trinkets traded from other races to distinguish themselves. Of course the elves see the benefits of not offending their hosts when visiting, so it is not uncommon for the few who have had dealings with the other races in the past to don garments appropriate for the race they interact with.
Wood elves live in harmony with nature, viewing the needless talking of life with very unkind eyes. Being sensitive to the workings of the world around them they will settle an area and live off of it until such a time as they start ”sensing” (much thanks to druidic magic) that they are having to great an impact on their environment. They will then pack up and move on, finding new land elsewhere. One of the main reasons why few wood elves live alongside other races is due the stagnation that they perceive happens when adopting the customs “of the still-dwellers”. This is not true for all of course, some have found the easy life of the towns and cities to their liking, but they are few, and frowned upon by their brethren.
To truly understand the workings of elven ”society” one has to look at the core beliefs of the sylvan folk. According to the wood elves everything alive (or indeed anything) is endowed with a spirit. The older the object the more powerful a spirit probably resides within it. The elves worship all these spirits, beckoning and giving offerings to different spirits at different times of need. Even though this leads to a myriad of different deities surrounding elven culture there are seven major spirits recognized by all sylvans as the most powerful of their kind.
Sylvanaran, the tree king and ruler of the deep forests.
Sachala, the moon queen, protector of life
Zhunfbaram, the stone god, creator of dwarves and blackbloods (orcs, trolls and goblins)
Balathoz, the wild, embodiment of the beasts
Ghanis, the sun goddess, renewer and destroyer of life
Syn, the uncaring, lord of the skies
Salmaridon, the dark tree, violator of existence
All these spirits are revered, foremost of these being Sylvanaran, Sachala and Balathoz. Zhunfbaram is as an evil trickster god who created dark and twisted children to challenge the elves (a view that often puts the more orthodox elves in great trouble with the dwarves) while Ghanis is seen as a necessary evil, a goddess who destroys all, yet gives space for new things to grow. The only spirit that no wood elf wood pay homage to unless in dire need or insane is Salmaridon, the god of the dark elves. In general the dark elves are seen with an even greater deal of mistrust by the sylvans than the other races since they willingly submit to the corruptor of life. Syn is acknowledged but rarely prayed to, as he is seen as aloof and uncaring about the lives of ”sentient” beings.
This world view shapes almost every aspect of the wood elves society. The druids and spirit-talkers of a tribe are nearly as powerful as the tribe chief, as only a fool would go against the wishes of the spirits. Social and political status is given to a certain tribe in accordance with two factors: besting another tribe in martial games/combat or by the power of the spirits backing the tribes themselves. It is not uncommon for the most powerful tribes to seek out and persuade powerful spirits to watch over them in exchange for worship and whatever else may interest the local deity. When the clan moves it is uncommon, but not unheard of, that they pry the spirit from its living place bringing whatever fetter that the spirit has to the physical world with them, it is unadvisable to do this without the spirits blessings of course, as any spirit strong enough to bring is also strong enough to quite possibly wipe out the clan if angered. Great care is always taken by a wood elf to make sure he is not angering any spirits with his actions. When entering a new wood, or a cave, it is customary to place a small offering at the edge to appease at least the first (and maybe the strongest) spirit of the place before entering.
The sylvans make use of many holy places and symbols believed to channel energies from the spirit world. These nexuses are most likely to be found at natural occurring features such as large stones, glades or waterfalls but also in constructs like stone henges, sacrificial trees and the like. Many of the other races fear the elves and their practices of mysticism since to them, the elves are in essence calling down daemons and imps to our plane, while to the wood elves themselves they are only briefly giving the spirits shape in our realm to aid them with their tasks. Nevertheless a full scale sylvan summoning pentacle is a frightening sight indeed, with large jagged pillars/standing stones forming the dots of a five pointed star, often with blood sacrifices littering the ground around it. Likewise, the spirits seldom understand ”appropriate” forms for this plane and can sometimes take nightmarish appearances when arriving to this world. These occurrences have led to many misunderstandings in times past and often branded wood elven shamans and druids as daemon worshippers and heretics, a view that is sadly still widespread amongst the other races.
Wood elven adventurers are, like the rest of their kind, quite uncommon unless near an area where they have settlements. The few there are though are highly prized outdoorsmen, hunters and trackers and will often be able to demand a higher price for their services than the other races. Sylvan mystics are also sometimes found travelling the land (though seldom openly for fear of prejudice), keeping an eye on the changes wrought by the other races inhabiting the lands and “ordaining natures/the spirits justice” upon those who would upset the balance too far.
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