On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 32-36
I’ve got so much campaign prep to get done that if I don’t do it here, I’ll never get it done in time…
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Chapters 34 to 36 were mostly already in first-draft form when I started the series, but I’ve since realized that there’s a lot more that needs to be said as background to the events described. Filling in the blanks required that they be revised and extended from the versions that existed going in, and the addition of a couple of additional chapters (32 and 33).
One of the changes that would normally be made in converting these first drafts into a finished form would be the re-designation of directions – the first draft uses familiar terms such as “North” and “South”, directions that don’t exist in Fumanor, as described in the preliminary articles of this series. This is because while lodestones exist, magnetized by lightning strikes, Fumanor has a relatively weak magnetic field, so lodestones cannot be reliably used as compasses. Directions are oriented around sunrise and sunset – which of course are far less reliable and accurate, since they change in the course of the seasons – but are close enough for general use. Officially, the directions are set at Dawn on the Winter Solstice, which marks the dividing line between one year and the next on the calendar.
It may also help in making sense of Chapters 31 and 32 if you note that Fumanor lies in the southern hemisphere, with the deserts and tropical regions to the north of the continent and colder regions to the south.
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Dwellers In Stone
Many races other than Dwarves and Drow make their homes beneath the earth, from Reptilian Troglodytes to Gnomes, from the Half-bull Minotaurs to Halflings, and more besides. In fact, several of these races shared volume in the same mountain range as the Dwarves and Drow. The histories of many of these are unknown; Dwarves were never great record-keepers, and they were already in place when the Drow migrated from the surface.
After the invasion of Elvarheim by the “Alliance of Fallen Races”, Lolth had largely ignored the “alliance” she had sponsored; it had been a stratagem that had been partially successful, but they were of no further use to her, and the Elvish creation of the Verdonne had then sundered the lines of communication between the “alliance” . In truth, it was an alliance in seeming only; the Drow had subjugated the Fallen Races through the power of Ogrish cat’s-paws. Without the guidance of the Drow, the Ogres – even the more intelligent Ogre Magi – were unable to maintain the unity of their Tribal Empire.
At first, the Fallen Races were novices at the game of Revolution, incapable of the levels of subterfuge and intrigue required to successfully stage a coup against their Ogrish masters, but in time they learned, even as they absorbed the fundamental tenets of the Ogres and their tutors, the Drow. Using the ubiquitous Goblins as their intermediaries and puppets, they slowly coordinated a revolt of the enslaved races. At a prearranged time – the first full moon after mid-winter, when Blue-vein stocks were at their lowest and the Ogres (relatively) weak and sluggish, the Revolution of Independence began.
With each Ogre tribe under the independent control of its own Ogre Magi, and little cooperation between them, the results were as anarchic as it is possible to conceive. In some cases, the Ogres were driven out or killed, with Bugbears stepping into their shoes and seizing command through sheer brutality – only to discover that while others had fought, the Orcs subject to that tribe had departed. In others, Goblin archers succeeded in wiping out the stronger races. Most frequently, the Orcs won the day, overcoming the other races. Some Ogre tribes succeeded in quelling the revolution, only to find themselves and their subjects surrounded; they fled into the valleys of the Eastern mountains, pursued by Orcish hunting parties, using their natural engineering abilities to reinforce the defensive qualities of the terrain. The next summer, they discovered a vast network of tunnels beneath the mountains, and became the first race to encounter Troglodytes.
The Troglodytes are a standoffish race in times of peace and warlike at all times. Legend holds that they are the stunted offspring of different Dragon breeds, though this has never been established as fact. Their primary domain lies to the north of the Dwarven realm, and their strongholds are much farther removed than that. Now that domain had been invaded.
Prior to this contact, they had no conception of the existence of other races. They believed themselves the absolute pinnacle of creation, the only sentient species in existence. The discovery that the surface world was infested with lesser species infuriated the savage race, and they emerged with great violence, falling apon the Ogres from within their defensive constructs. Many of the surviving Ogrish tribes were killed, while others were again uprooted and forced to flee. Only the Ogre Fortress of Nakre succeeded in defending itself and sealing off the tunnels to the Troglodyte Kingdom, because – by chance – the Troglodyte tunnels emerged on the outside of the Fortress’ defenses.
The Troglodytes, aroused to mindless fury by the invasion and slaughter of the Ogres, swarmed down from the mountain peaks into the warm rolling plains to the East of the Mountain Range that was their home, falling apon the Orcs without warning, and shattering what unity had been achieved in the course of the revolt against the Ogres. The battles raged for weeks, until the approaching winter drove the Troglodytes back into the warmth of their subterranean tunnels; many stayed too long, and found the passes back into the valleys where their tunnel entrances were located chocked with snow. Sluggish from the cold, they were easy prey. This became an annual feature of live on the northern plains – every year, spring brought the return of the Troglodytes, and every autumn they were forced to flee to the sanctuary of their tunnels and hot springs.
After centuries of unremitting violence and bloodshed, stability slowly emerged from the chaos. The Goblins had fled the larger races and spread like a plague through the westernmost regions (traditionally shown at the bottom of Fumanorian Maps), where they quickly became the most numerous of all races. Spreading North from these regions beyond the mountain range which contained the various subterranean Kingdoms, and then East, Goblin tribes settled throughout a U-shaped region. As the Eastward expansion continued, they encountered the expanding human Kingdoms, who had no idea that they had not always been there.
Where Goblin territory abutted the semi-arid and desert regions to the North, Gnolls ruled. They had never been conquered by the Ogres, who could not survive the treks between waterholes and were also confronting Human Kingdoms expanding northwards.
As one travelled south across this part of the continent, the next region encountered were the temperate central plains, which were home to many established species. to the East and to the South of these plains were rolling foothills, also temperate and hospitable. Further south again, a traveler would encounter the Mountain Ranges of the Dwarves and the Valley Forest of the Elves. Further south again lie the wooded plains that were formerly the home of the Plains Elves, which in turn give way to a wide east-west belt of grassland and the occasional pocket of coastal tundra. It was this vast grassland that was occupied by the Fallen Races when the Drow conquered them by Ogrish Proxy.
In this vast belt, the regions just East of the Goblins were held by Bugbears, who also thrived in the colder tundra regions here and there along the coast. This was also their traditional homes, so they were well satisfied to reclaim them – with only the occasional push against the Goblins or Orcs. East of the Bugbears lay the traditional lands of the Ogres, from which they had been forcibly displaced by the Revolution. These regions had been conquered by the Orcs, who were now easily the second-most numerous of the Fallen Races, outstripped only by the fecundity and opportunities for growth of the Goblins. A few lone Goblin Bands managed to hold fast in forested pockets nestled against the mountain ranges, but in truth, the Orcish domain was then – and is, now – larger than the Human lands of Fumanor, several times over.
Unbeknownst to the surviving Ogres who had resettled in the sunset regions of the mountain range that divided the Fallen Race’s lands from mainland Fumanor, there were tunnels under their feet as well. These tunnels were occupied by Minotaurs. Had the Ogres known of the experiences of those Survivors who had fled to the sunrise range, they might have been more wary of the tunnel entrances which emerged within the fortifications that they instinctively erected. Without the benefit of that knowledge, it was some time before they got around to exploring the tunnels.
Within, they found a colony of humanoid bulls which would eventually come to be known as Minotaurs, but which the Ogres named Zazhashum, or “Antler-heads”. Minotaurs are not terribly intelligent, but they are fiercely territorial. The presence of strangers, even though they were a breed of being they had never encountered before, drove them wild, and they attacked immediately, even attacking their own to get at the intruders if their way was blocked. Since the Ogres had explored out of curiosity, with no territorial intent, they were happy to retreat. When the Minotaurs reached the entrance to the tunnel, they stopped and bellowed, but proceeded no further. Cautiously, the Ogre Magi approached the mouth of the tunnel.
Communications between the two were difficult; the Ogres with whom they usually dealt were no more intelligent than the Minotaurs, but at least they had a language in common. But, with a lot of grunting and pointing and hand-signals, the Ogre Magi managed to convey the notion that the tunnels belonged to the Minotaurs, and the Valleys to the Ogres; that the Ogres would protect the Minotaurs from interference by the inhabitants of the world above, while the Minotaurs guarded the Ogres from attack via the world Below. The Ogre Magi then attempted to introduce the Minotaurs to the Bluevein berries, but the concept of what the berries did was too far for the limited communications to reach, and certainly not sufficient to persuade the carnivorous Minotaurs to add the berries to their diet.
With the conclusion of a mutual defense treaty – even if nothing was in writing, and neither party had a language in common – the Ogres were settled in their new environs, and that is how they survived the misadventure with Lolth.
The Ogres had settled a few dozen isolated small valleys. The Minotaurs had settled a vast system of shallow-depth tunnels. One tribe of Ogres negotiated the defense agreement, but the Minotaurs did not realize that the Ogres in the different valleys were not in communications with each other. So the “treaty” was violated almost as soon as it was made.
Fortunately, the Minotaurs had little memory, and the pantomime negotiations were able to be repeated time and time again, until each of the Ogre tribes had negotiated the same agreement with the Minotaurs.
Dwellers In Earth
There are also races that dwell in the earth beneath hills rather than in the stone beneath mountains – Halflings and Gnomes.
Gnomes were no better at record-keeping than were Dwarves; indeed, there is a great deal of similarity between the races. They value similar things, at least they did until the Drow began interfering in Dwarven society; it was only a matter of degree. Where Dwarves have a sense of honor, Gnomes have a sense of humor, and Dwarves lack the love of mechanism and intense inquisitiveness of the Gnomes, which are traits more in common with the Elves. Had they but known it, Gnomes could have made a fortune as the perfect intermediaries between Dwarves & Elves. They would never get the opportunity to do so, because the Gnomish settlements were located in foothills and low mountains a continent removed from either. They were already settled and in place when Humans first reached the vicinity and discovered them.
Somewhat closer to the Dwarves and Elves were the inhabitants of the foothills between the Human Kingdoms and those of the Mountain Races. Human settlers had been in the region for almost 50 years, accumulating legends and rumors about a small race that could become invisible in the twinkling of an eye, before the Halflings finally revealed themselves. It had been clear from the start that the land around them was being farmed, but the inability to locate the farmers had made the humans exploring the region uncharacteristically hesitant about simply moving in and helping themselves. Instead, they settled outside the regions being farmed and beyond.
The farmers then began to notice that from time to time, produce or a piglet or some small goods or tools would go missing overnight, and nearby would be found a barrow-load of produce from one of the mysterious farms. Sometimes the trade would favor the human, sometimes the mysterious farmer would get the better of the bargain. Over time, the humans began leaving things out in the open if they were interested in trading them, and locking them up if they wished to retain them. Not that this stopped the appropriation of the “protected” items; there did not seem to be a locking mechanism in existence that these mysterious farmers could not overcome. But it was soon noticed that better trades were made for those locked-away items that were appropriated.
Produce was followed with handicrafts, and handicrafts by gold nuggets and the occasional uncut gemstone, and a tradition of trade became established with the parties never meeting each other, but an eventual face-to-face encounter was inevitable. That encounter, when it finally occurred, was something of an anticlimax. A pair of human boys from one the local farms was out exploring the many small footpaths and trails, obviously made by one of their mysterious neighbors one afternoon when a chuckle sounded from behind them. “You don’t look so scary,” a voice said from behind. “I was about to have a cup of tai and some seed-cake, and perhaps some scones and cream, followed by a little ham and then honey on fresh bread. Perhaps you would like to join me?”
What the boys saw was a figure about their own height, perhaps a little shorter, but one clearly middle aged, and somewhat rotund, wearing an improbable green and red garment of thick cloth woven into a checked pattern with bright yellow threads woven into it. A waistcoat with brass buttons, a pair of heavy black leather boots sporting large brass buckles, and a blue-hooded cape completed the improbable ensemble. In one hand, the bizarrely-dressed stranger held a long, curved stalk with a bowl at the end, from which puffs of smoke issued forth each time the figure sucked on the end of the stalk, while in the other he had a gnarled walking-stick.
“Our father won’t let us talk with strangers, but that sounds awfully nice,” replied the more forthcoming of the boys; the other could only stand and gape.
“Very sensible, too, I’m sure. My name is Radbrook Hasbury Thistlethwaite, but me friends call me Brooky, and now we aren’t strangers any more,” the stranger replied. “Rest assured, no harm will come to ye, and afterward I’ll be happy t’escort ya home, safe and sound. ‘Tis high time that we neighbors were gettin’ to know each other, anyways, now that the Mayor has granted permission for we small folk ta do so.”
Enticed by the description of the feast on offer, the boys stammered their way through introductions, and then attended the promised ‘afternoon snack’, eating better than they had ever done before in their lives, for it was all delicious. Afterwards, as promised, ‘Brooky’ walked the boys home, carrying a brace of stuffed pheasant, an apple pie, and a bottle of ginger wine as a welcoming gift. En route, he fascinated them by mimicking bird calls so expertly that the birds he was mimicking flew down to see what he was singing about.
Over the family’s evening meal of stewed vegetables and barley, supplemented by the pheasant, apple pie, and ginger wine provided by their guest, the stranger related the tale of the first encounter, much to the amusement of the family. So began the process of the Humans of the district getting to know their Halfling neighbors; they never explained how it was that they were able to vanish in a trice, or how they had hidden their homes from casual discovery.
The gold, it transpired, was washed down from the mountains, occasionally finding its way to shore. The gemstones were occasionally unearthed, especially from the farms closest to the mountains. They also revealed that the road through the centre of their domain was not of their making, that long ago a large expeditionary force of tall pointed-ears and merry laughs, accompanied by dour thunderclaps of doom on short, stubby legs, had passed this way, constructing the trail as they passed. The significance of this escaped the humans, who knew little of Elven Lore and still less of Dwarves; but in time it was established that the pursuit of the Prince Of Lies had passed straight through Halfling lands. They had hidden from the strangers, as was their way, and so the races had not met.
When the Halflings learned from human officials of the Dwarves and their homes deep beneath the bones of the mountain, they were astonished. They would not have believed that anyone could live in such conditions. They immediately set out to establish trade relations by the same means that had been so successful with the humans, but Dwarves were a very different race, and reacted with great anger to the unasked-for exchanges. Following the Second Great Dwarfwar, as the Elves began trading with both Dwarves and Humans, they began gathering lore from their trading partners, and when a Dwarven Trader happened to describe the strange thefts, the Elves grew interested. Who could be so at home in the Dwarven Tunnels that not even a Dwarf could detect them coming and going?
In time, an Elf described the mystery to a human, who told another, who in turn passed it on to another. In time, the story made its way to someone who knew of the Halflings and the history of their relations with Humans. He sold the solution to the puzzle to the trader, who sold it to the one who had asked him, and slowly it made its way back up the chain, appreciating in expense as it did so. By the time it reached the Dwarvish trader who had offhandedly asked the question in the first place, the asking price was seven gem-quality diamonds of at least 4 carats each!
The Dwarven trader had to think long and hard on the question of whether or not an answer to his original question could be turned to a profit – or at the least, how to minimize the financial risk he was undertaking. If there was a new trading partner, and he alone had the secret of trading with them, exclusivity would more than recompense him for his investment, but if there was not, or exclusivity was not available as a choice, he would be beggared by the transaction. Ultimately, Kalzareth B’Triallek decided to take the risk, but seek to offload it to the Royal treasury in return for a modest commission on trade transactions for the extent of his lifetime; if the Crown decided not to take the risk, he was no worse off than if he had made the decision to carry all the risk himself, but in the more likely situation in which the Crown acceded to his proposal, his risk was far reduced. And there was also the chance that the throne would buy him out directly – no risk and a quick profit, which was also acceptable as an outcome.
So it was that he purchased the secret from the Elven trader, and learned of the Halflings, and more importantly, how trade between the Halflings and Humans had evolved. More confident than ever that the situation could be turned to profit, and certain that the question of exclusivity was the sole remaining hurdle, he then offered his bargain to the Throne, couching his proposal as something he was “honor-bound” to propose.
By this time, King Veldergrist had joined his ancestors, succeeded by his son, who had proclaimed his Royal Name to be Elbareth I, in commemoration of the Elven Prince who had risked – and lost – his life for the mutual preservation of both Elven and Dwarven peoples. King Elbareth refused Kalzareth exclusivity, but granted him a 2% commission on all trades for 20 years, and refunded his expense in obtaining the secret for his people. This was a fair price, given that his own wealth was no longer at stake.
Following the advice gleaned from the Human experience, the Dwarves placed anything they really did not want to lose behind a locked door guarded closely by a warrior. Anything they were willing to trade but demanded a premium for, they placed inside a container with a difficult lock; anything that was available for trade, but was to be expensive in price was placed in a container with a more difficult lock; and anything that was simply for trade for general commodities was left in the open in amounts appropriate for exchange of a barrow-load of fresh produce. All these arrangements were located in an open area near the mouth of the caverns that led to the Dwarven Kingdom from the Halfling farms. Now that they were setting the terms of the trades, the Dwarves were far more comfortable, though still mystified by the Halfling ability to bypass their patrols and penetrate the locks unnoticed.
In due course, an invitation was extended by a “passing stranger” to a group of Dwarves who were restocking the trade offerings, and trade relations between the Dwarves and Halflings were normalized to everyone’s satisfaction. Some of the trade goods thus received from the Dwarves found their way, by way of the Halflings, into trades with Humans, and prosperity promised a new age of peace through cordial commerce and mutual interest.
But then the Cult Of Stone arose…
The Fall Of The Halflings
Dwarvish Belligerence emerged into full bloom in an unexpected direction, as the Cult Of Stone targeted most of the other races who chose to live underground, seemingly with the full support of the Dwarven King. These were given a simple choice: subservience and Conversion to the Cult Of Stone or destruction and enslavement. Some capitulated, others resisted, but it made little difference in the long run. Just as an Empire was forming through war amongst the Human Kingdoms, one Kingdom rising to conquer all before it, so a subterranean empire was taking shape beneath the mountains of the World.
Only four races living beneath the surface remained unbound to the Cult Of Stone: The Drow, who remained too strong for the Dwarves to contemplate as a conquest; the Troglodytes and Gnomes, of whose existance the Dwarves were ignorant; and the Halflings. Accordingly, an ultimatum was sent to the Mayor of the Halfling community, as it had been to so many others.
The reaction was not what had been expected. Halflings may live beneath the soil, but they have no love of cold stone, and the notion of revering it as a god was, to them, just plain silly. Besides that, no Halfling Community had any authority over any other; Halflings didn’t think along those lines, they just wanted to be left alone. Nor do they grow hair apon their faces, considering the practice uncouth and barbaric – though they will usually not make a point of it, out of politeness, unless provoked. Consequently, when the Dwarven Envoy returned for his answer, the response was not what he was expecting; the Halflings started by mocking the Dwarvish intelligence, ridiculing Dwarvish Bravery, scoffing at Dwarvish beard styles, ridiculing the whole concept of “Talking Stones”, and concluding by suggesting that the entire race had “rocks in their heads”.
What possessed the normally gregarious Halflings to deliver such a mortal insult is unknown, and probably always will be. The Dwarvish reaction was everything that one would expect of such a hot-tempered race under such circumstances; they launched a Holy War, a Kunzacke Tazaní, with only two outcomes deemed to be satisfactory: the capture and enslavement, or the destruction, of every Halfling in existence, to be followed by extensive pogroms of mutilation and dismemberment of the entire race. Everything that the Dwarves owned was to be expended in fulfilling this crusade, if necessary.
For fifty long years, the Dwarves bribed anyone they had to in order to carry out this monstrous programme of systematic butchery. Human Kings were gifted with Royal Treasuries to look the other way while death squads roamed freely through their domains – valuable assets during their own war, enabling the purchase of arms and training of armies. While never numerous, it is estimated that some 50,000 Halflings were slaughtered. To all intents and purposes, the race ceased to exist, save for a few hidden and terrified examples darting furtively between the Shadows.
Heirlooms Of Elvenkind
The elves of the time knew nothing of these events until Rodoland Westland, one of the few survivors, made his way to Elvarheim and appealed to the King Of The Elves for Sanctuary. The Elvish Council convened almost immediately – well, within a week or two – and considered the proposal. Before a decision could be reached, Dwarven Death Squads were fortifying positions on all sides of the Elven Forest, while simultaneously, those who had been marauding throughout the Human Empire in a fruitless search for more Halflings began to march to reinforce those fortifications.
This level of coordination was not immediately apparent, but within a few days it was known to a certainty, and it greatly puzzled the elves. It suggested that the entire Halfling Campaign had been a pretext to surround Elvarheim – but why? What could justify such profligate bloodshed? What could persuade the Dwarves to spend so wastefully?
The most obvious answer was that the Dwarves simply wanted to ensure that their “cover story” was believable, but this did not have the ring of truth to it. The obvious alternative was that the Dwarves had undertaken their Halfling Genocide ‘legitimately’, but had some form of arcane communication with their roving Death Squads, and had simply ordered them to deal with this ‘new’ enemy; but that also rang false, and failed to explain the uncharacteristic behavior of the Halfling Elder that had triggered the holocaust. Nor, as some suggested, could it be that the Dwarves were again being manipulated by Lolth’s Children; if that were the case, the Dwarves might have used a Halfling Purge as a pretext, but would have begun to emplace their forces against the Elves immediately. The sheer size and scope of the slaughter, and the profligate spending of the Dwarves in conducting the Halfling Campaign, made this improbable at best.
This was a puzzle whose solution would clearly influence the conduct of the self-evidently-declared War. The Elves had learned that ascertaining enemy objectives after the conflict left them open to tactical failures that they could not afford. The Dwarves had shown that they could not be trusted; while Elvish numbers had not yet recovered from the previous conflict, the Elves were determined that this time would be the last time that this particular threat had to be endured. Using the power of the Circle Of Harmony, they would weave a spell to wreak a destruction on the Dwarves as complete as that which had been visited on the Halflings. Their Final Solution would obliterate every last Dwarf, young or old.
But this could not be justified if, as some suggested, the Dwarves were not behaving of their own volition. The Elves needed an answer, urgently, before they found themselves committed to a course of action that could not be undone. No source of possible information could be ignored; accordingly, those who were naturally gifted at stealth in moving through woodlands were dispatched to seek answers and return; any possible explanation was to be reported, as quickly as possible.
To aid them in their mission, the Circle Of Harmony was employed to create Boots and Cloaks to augment the natural gifts of stealth and concealment of these Elvish Agents. Normally a decade’s work, through the use of the Circle, the production of twenty sets of these Boots and Cloaks of Elvenkind was completed in mere hours. These would become family heirlooms, though others would be produced in later years. The name for these objects derived from the objective: objects that could enhance a skilled human’s natural stealth to that of Elvenkind. In the possession of a skilled member of the Elves, they could lift skills to near-divine levels.
Utilizing their augmented talents, these scouts, rangers, and hunters crept between the Dwarven emplacements, one by one, and scattered throughout the known lands, seeking out the wise and learned.
Dwarfwar III: The Siege Of Elvarheim
The Dwarves had learned first-hand the power of Elvarheim’s defenses during their previous conflicts, but during their years of trading with the Elves, had learned the locations of many of them, spying out safe routes into the inner realm. A series of targeted raids commenced on multiple fronts, each penetrating farther than the Elves had ever thought possible. The tactics of the Huyundaltha were all based on the assumption that their defenses would channel attackers into ambush positions; but time and time again the Dwarvish offensive trapped the elvish defenders on the wrong side of these protections.
The Bladedancers quickly recognized the nature of the Dwarven Tactics, and began to plan accordingly, but they were attempting to match decades of planning by a naturally warlike race with hours of planning, amounting to little more than instinct and guesswork, by a race that was not. Victory after victory came to the invaders, who peeled back the defenses of Elvarheim layer by layer. Always, they seemed to know how far and how hard to press, never over-extending themselves; they would advance as far as was possible, stop, and again dig in, while a different group probed inward from a different direction, catching the defenders who had been fighting the first incursion out of position to respond.
The elvish defenders had only three advantages: firstly, the Dwarvish advance was slow, calculated, and deliberate, giving time to those seeking answers beyond the siege; second, the closer to the core of the forest city the battle lines came, the more quickly the Bladedancers would be able to react and shift from one position to another; and thirdly, the closer the Dwarves drew to the conquest of Elvarheim, the less they knew about the defenses. They also labored under one increasing disadvantage: the closer the invading force came to the heart of the city, the fewer the protections and defenses to be overcome. There would come a point of equilibrium at which invading force and the defenses of the city were evenly poised, and the true conflict could begin; but rather than occurring at the outer limits of the Elven Lands, with a healthy buffer between battle and the civilian population, the true war would be fought right on the doorsteps of the civilian population.
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The Ongoing Elvish Glossary
- Alkaith: Curved 14-inch dagger favored as a weapon and general cutting tool by Elvish Spellcasters and some High Elves.
- Arnost: Simple Speech (Modern “Common”, a human tongue)
- Arrunquessor: Plains Elves
- Ayer: Nuthanori word meaning “Squat”. Mont Ayer is the name of one of the two peaks that define the traditional elvish lands.
- Calquissir: High Elves
- Comesdhail Osfadara Litrithe Congress Of Spellweavers
- Corellan: The First
- Drow: “Those Who Dwell Apart” (in Nuthanorl). Added to Ogre by the Drow with the meaning of “Smart”.
- Ellessarune: The “Shining City” of the Tarquessir, home of the Elvish King and capital of the Elven Lands to this day.
- Eltrhinast: “Guiding Spirit”
- Elvarheim: “Blessed Leafy Home”: The Elven Forest, homeland of the Tarquessir and the centre of Elven Power in modern times
- Gilandthor: “The Gathering”, the formal title of the Elvish Council.
- Hithainduil: High Elven Language
- Huyundaltha: “Masters Of The Ondaltha” (literal), “Bladedancers” (colloquial). Formerly Noletinechor, now Guardians Of Elvish Society.
- Illvayssor: “The Other”, a mythical race
- Isallithin: “The Sundered”, a name applied to Aquatic Elves
- King: A human title interpreted by Elves as “speaker to others” and defined as such within their language.
- Magi: A corruption of the Zamiel word “Machus”, which means “of the wise.”
- Mithryl: the Elvish name of an extremely fragile metal given in trade by the Dwarves to the Elves. The word is imported from Dwarven, who in turn obtained it from the Zamiel Tongue name of the metal, “Mithral”. “Mithryl” means “Moonsilver” in Elven. The word also enjoys popular usage as a metaphor for a treasure found which appeared initially worthless.
- Mithral: the Drow name for Mithryl. A literal translation from Zamiel is “Shadowsilver”.
- Mont: Nuthanori word meaning “High Place”. Used human-style in the naming of Mountains.
- Noletinechor: “Lore Shields”, an elvish historical vocation
- Nuthanorl: Low Elven Language, Common Elven
- Ondaltha: A two-weapon combat style based apon Elvish Dance, practiced exclusively by Huyundaltha.
- Osfadara Litrithe Spellweaver, literally ‘Weaver of Harmony’.
- Sarner: A human abbreviation of the Hithainduil word “Saranariuthenal” which means, literally, “Swift and Wide”. The River Sarner runs through the central valley of Elvarheim.
- Tarquessir: Forest Elves
- Thuyon: Nuthanori word meaning “Tall Spires”. Mont Thuyon is the name of the taller of the two peaks that define the traditional elvish lands; Modern Elvarheim lies between the foothills of Mont Thuyon and the River Sarner.
- Verdonne: “Quickbranch”, an artificial race created by Elves to be “The Guardians Of The Forest”.
- Zamiel: Drow Language
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This doesn’t look like it is going to end well, does it? Next time: The truth behind the Cult Of Stone is revealed! Will the discovery come in time to avert tragedy? Chapters 37-39 hold that answer and more!
- Inventing and Reinventing Races in DnD: An Introduction to the Orcs and Elves series part 1
- Inventing and Reinventing Races in DnD: An Introduction to the Orcs and Elves series part 2
- Inventing and Reinventing Races in DnD: An Introduction to the Orcs and Elves series part 3
- Inventing and Reinventing Races in DnD: An Introduction to the Orcs and Elves series part 4
- Inventing and Reinventing Races in DnD: An Introduction to the Orcs and Elves series part 5
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 1-4
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 5-10
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 11-14
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 15-17
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 18-20
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 21-23
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 24-26
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 27-28
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 29-31
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 32-36
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 37-40
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 41-43
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 44-46
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 47-51
- Inventing and Reinventing Races in DnD: An Orcish Mythology
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 52-54
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 55-58
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 59-62
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 63-65
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 66-68
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 69-70
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 71-73
- Who Is “The Hidden Dragon”? – Behind the curtain of the Orcs and Elves Series
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapter 74
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 75-77
- On The Origins Of Orcs, Chapters 78-85
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April 28th, 2013 at 5:55 pm
How embarressing.
It seems that I have been so frantic to get the content produced that a couple of editorial errors have crept in.
Like having two Chapter 23s, which threw off the chapter count for every post in April. And copying an old version of the ongoing Elvish Glossary which left out several key terms. And having some of those entries be out of Alphabetical Order (suggesting that I had gotten part way through preparing the last one that was anywhere near complete.
A consequence of these errors are that the post URLs will have changed, breaking any bookmarks that people may have made to the affected chapters.
Mea Culpa. It’s all my fault. I humbly beg forgiveness.
These errors have now been corrected, and hopefully won’t have detracted from anyone’s enjoyment of the series. The fact that no-one else seemed to have noticed is a promising start!
Mike recently posted..Refloating The Shipwreck: When Players Make A Mistake