The Menhansánë

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ikadian
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The Menhansánë

Post by ikadian »

Here is the fluff for my Native American themed Wood Elves, operating out of the forests of the Empire. They are inspired by the Woodland Indians of North America, particularly the Iroquois and the Huron, but with a large dose of fantasy thrown in. I cannot wait to get started on them, and model them killing some Redcoats (Talabeclanders/Hochlands), as it should be!
“The men come, in their red coats, in their blue coats, holding their steel swords and their smoking muskets. They cut through the wailing forest with their crude axes, carving out land, destroying the roots ancient trees here since before man graced the earth. They force feed cattle to satiate their ever hungry, bawling infants and impure women, who follow them like a horde of flies. They unearth saplings, born into this world to make it pure once more, and burn their boughs, choking the sky with a thick smog that makes it weep. They wage a war on our homeland that will never end until their rotting corpses nourish the newborn forest, until shoots sprout between their broken bones. As long as men shall live, our task will never be over. We must take the war to them!”


- Racáohtar Wolfspirit, Sulécaun of the Menhansánë

My Lord Von Rauffenstien,

In my many months of research, which have taken me to the depths of many libraries in this great Empire, I have only managed to find so much about the fabled elven warriors who seem to have been mercilessly attacking the villages under your protection. Most reports do not have any details of such a band, or at least only contain rumours which offer any insight into their existence. I did however, stumble across an ancient scroll in the Great Library of the University of Nuln, translated from Elvish and dating back at least a thousand years which shed some light on their purported origins. It is this information I wish to impart to you now.

Before you sent me away, you told me to research the meaning of the word Menhansáne, a word apparently uttered to one of your Captain’s by a dying villager, his chest pierced by a poisoned arrow. According to experts in linguistics that I have met with, Menhansáne, in the language of the Elves, roughly translates to, ‘the glade beyond the pines.’ Based off this suggestion, and providing this word is indeed related to the attacks, this gives some suggestion as to the Elvish band’s origins.

As you well know, a pine forest surrounds the Middle Mountains, and comprises some of the Forest of Shadows, and merges too into the Drakwald Forest, just north of the River Talabec. Perhaps this is the area from which these Elves come from. It would not be difficult to assume this, as it is not far from the well known Elven establishment of Laurëlorn Forest, where the quasi-mythical Laurëlornim reside. However, the accounts and testimonies given by survivors from your lands do not correlate to reports of the behaviour of the Laurëlornim that I have garnered from witnesses in Nordland. The Elves who attacked your lands appear to be much more brutal and savage, and much wilder, whereas the Laurëlornim seem to share a certain nobility with the Elves of Ulthuan who sometimes grace our lands.

The reports seemed to corroborate more so with reports of they Fey of Athel Loren. I visited Parravon in Bretonnia and certain aspects seem to coincide with their reports on the ‘Wild Hunt’ which takes place in those lands. However, once again, I was drawn by the savagery of the attacks, which, although closer to those of the Fey of Athel Loren, are markedly more savage. For instance, the Fey are not known for scalping their enemies, not for brutal hand to hand murders. They are more known for their deadly bow-armed ambushes.

In reports I found about Elvish history, it could be that this band are a remote band lost after the retreat of the Elves to Ulthuan during their civil war. I would hypothesise that these Elves who hound your villages are a remnant clan, or ‘kindred’ left behind after the war, who have descended into barbarism without regular aid. This is certainly true of the Fey of Athel Loren, but their larger community seems to have maintained some of their Elvish tradition and nobility. Perhaps, if these elven savages have been competing for survival with the dark and foul creatures of the Drakwald and the Forest of Shadows then they have adapted to become as violent and barbaric as them.

It seems we are not the first to experience these attacks. In my travels around areas I have hypothesised could indeed be close to this ‘glade beyond the pines’ I have heard many tales, myths and legends about savage elves. It seems they have been around for hundreds, if not thousands of years. The testimonies all attest to one common element, their barbarism against men. However, one or two stood out. In the Drakwald, they have been known to aid men against rampaging hordes of beasts, fighting alongside the men until the foe was driven off, before melting back into the forests. One such report, recorded only five years ago, read:

"They came out of nowhere. The first we heard was their shrill, but melodic cries that pierced through the darkness. We were terrified, believing we were to be attacked on all fronts. However, these warriors, many bare chested and painted in terrifying warpaint cut through the beasts with a terrible wildness. They sang and screamed as they cut through them, it was enchanting but shook us to our core. We were stuck rooted to the ground, watching the butchery as it unfolded. Finally, their murder was done. They skinned the beasts and war their bloody pelts. Then they stared down at us with blood crazed eyes and we thought we were next. But one stood forward, wearing a wolfs pelt and carrying a staff that jangled with trinkets. He spoke crudely in our language. He said “Remember me men, Racáohtar, Sulécan of the Menhansánë. You will meet your fate at my hand. The Great Hunter wills it.”

The report ends their, but the Captain who wrote it was found dead three months later, his scalp removed from his skull, his men brutally cut apart. It seems this Racáohtar lived up to his promise. The linguists told me that Racáohtar translates to ‘wolf spirit’ and that Sulécan translates to ‘Spirit Leader.’ From what I can devise, he is their, for want of a better word, chieftain, but also performs some kind of religious role within the society. His mention of the Great Hunter could refer Kurnous, one of the Elvish pantheon. Reverence of this hunter god could explain their savagery, as the aforementioned ‘Wild Hunt’ in Bretonnia is also dedicated to this deity. The mention of spirits is also interesting, as the Elven Pantheon does not mention spirits. Perhaps, in their corruption into savagery and barbarism, these Elves have forgotten their true origins, and have their own pantheon, or theology. This would be particularly interesting to explore.

Finally, one other report I garnered makes reference to another elf, this time a maiden. A similar maiden has been mentioned in several other reports, but this testimony was the most revealing and most reliable.

"She seemed to glide through the air itself. It swirled around her in many colours, dazzling, majestic, hypnotising. Her black hair floated around her as her animal skins flapped in the mystical breeze. Everything was still around her, but she moved with the full force of the elements. Her eyes glowed bright white as she sang a enchanting melody, the sweetest, most haunting song I will ever hear, which contrasted to the brutal war songs and battle cries of her kin. As she sang, saplings seemed to sprout from the earth and the forest seemed to come to life.

Such references are not uncommon with the Fey of Athel Loren, who are said to enchant the trees themselves with their voices. Indeed, many of the villages burned have quickly become overgrown, often within days after an attack of this kind. Everything is destroyed in their wake and replaced with a new grown forest. Perhaps this reveals their true purpose? Perhaps they wish to drive us from their woodland like the Fey of Athel Loren protect theirs? We cannot but guess at the motives of these Elves, not without more evidence, but I advise you, my Lord, to treat them with caution.

I will continue my research and divulge what I can. I pray to Sigmar that our villagers will stay safe, and will not offend these savages. The reports I have read have been most grisly, and I would not wish that fate upon any many who loves the Gods.

Yours faithfully,

Siegfried
"When it comes time to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled with the fear of death, so when their time comes they weep and pray for a little more time to live their lives over again in a different way. Sing your death song, and die like a hero going home." ~Chief Aupumut, Mohican
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