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Elf, Tenerthor

Appearance

The Tenerthor, or wild elves as they are sometimes called by the other elfin races, have colorful painted bodies. Each different from the next, the symbols, drawings, tattoos, paint, and "jewelry" which adorn the Tenerthor body is unique from one elf to the next and tell of the elf's history, stories, beliefs, social standing, and more. One with a trained eye and who knows the symbols can learn a lot about another elf just by looking at his decoration. A minimal of clothing is typically worn as well, being made from a animal pelt or weave. Most Tenerthor do not wear armor unless they plan in advanced to be fighting dangerous foes. Anything which a Tenerthor might eat on a regular basis, including dangerous grizzly bears and the like, are not considered dangerous even though terrible wounds or killings result from the hunts of these creatures.
    The decoration, lack of clothing, and the easy manner which the Tenerthor speak of the most intimate or terrible topics are all part of their belief in open acceptance of each other and their path of life. Most people, once past their initial shock of seeing these scantily clad and heavily decorated elves, find them to be a charismatic and enjoyable people. Their spontaneity and zest for experience sometimes can be overwhelming for those unused to the Tenerthor ways, but the fierce companionship and valor with which these elves conduct themselves makes their presence powerful and appealing.
    Tenerthor are wirey and taller than other elfin races, they also tend to be stronger and more rugged. Underneath, or highlighted by, their painted bodies most adult male Tenerthor have numerous scars criss-crossing their bodies. Their hearty and dangerous lifestyle has bred them to be more healthy and sturdy then their other elfin cousins. They have strong jaw and cheek lines from the tough dried foods, nuts, and stringy meats which they eat.
    The Tenerthor tend to have dark features. Their eyes range from a light almond to a deep black. Their bodies, what skin can be seen, is strongly tanned and weathered from exposure. Their hair grows down from the tops of their brows, long below the neckline, is typically black or brown colored, and filled with trinkets.
    The only Tenerthor who are not painted or otherwise decorated aside from a single tattoo or two are the Wintran Cailis, the "noble cast." These elves, unlike their brethren are pale, slightly taller, and tend to have light colored hair. Should one of the noble cast stand next to one of the other Tenerthor it would seem they are not even of the same race, but both steadfastly insist that they are the same. The nobility of the Tenerthor live in fantastic magical palaces. These majestic palaces are grown from the earth with magic and the elements available.
    Not only do the nobility travel unadorned, but they wear an excess of clothing quite different from the other Tenerthor. Proud jackets, colored to match the regalia of their palace, with golden trim and cords, golden torcs inscribed with runes of secret meaning and colored to match their clothing, billowing silk weave shirts with carefully threaded weaves and patterns barely visible in their cloth, pantaloons that fall far below the knees and that are equally styled as their shirts and jackets, and swords of the finest steel and magic which would be the jealous possession of any warrior. Truth be told, the Cailis are just as impressive to behold as their wildly clothed brethren.
    Despite their exquisite clothing and how one might think that the Cailis are weaker than the other Tenerthor, they are actually just as healthy, are longer lived, and highly trained in martial armsmanship. These leaders of the Tenerthor society are rarely seen far from their beautiful palaces.

Combat

The Tenerthor fight valiantly, bravely, but only fight when they must. Only those hostile to the Tenerthor are greeted by weapon point. It is said that one can tell how comfortable a Tenerthor elf is by how close he allows himself to be to you.
    The Tenerthor fight with small weapons and bows. First they will weaken an opponent at range and then move in as a group, using weapons that allow them to fight close to each other without too much fear of striking one another accidently. When using bows the Tenerthor gain a +1 bonus to their attacks due to their steady hand and superior eye precision.
    Some Tenerthor are capable warriors when fighting mounted either on horseback, Din, or atop of some other beast. Aside from the nobility which prefers longer weapons, when mounted is usually the only time that Tenerthor use longer reaching melee weapons.
    Low-light Vision (Ex): Tenerthor can see twice as far as a human in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. They retain the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions.
    Pass Without Trace (Ex): A Tenerthor can move through outdoor environments with such careful movement that they leave no sign of their passage. Traveling in this manner lowers the Tenerthor's movement rate to 20 feet and requires a successful dexterity check, improved by their Move Silently modifier and altered by their Armor Check penalty, against DC 15. A successful check indicates that the Tenerthor has left no tracks to mark his passage.
    Resistances: Tenerthor receive a +2 racial saving throw bonus against Enchantment and Charm spells or effects.
    Weapon Familiarity: All Tenerthor are proficient in longbows, shortbows, and composite bows. Tenerthor gain a +1 racial bonus to their attack rolls with bows.
    Skills: Tenerthor receive a +2 racial bonus to Listen, Move Silently, Spot, and Survival skill checks.

Habitat/Society

The Tenerthor society is dominated with legends, stories, and tales. All fantastic in their many varied tellings and filled with fanciful feats of cunning, strength, and broad scope. There are countless minor godlings, spirits, ghosts, creatures, demons, villains, heros, and other beings which fill the Tenerthor pantheon of belief and story. And depending upon whose version of a tale you hear, the names of these heros and other beings frequently change.
    Called "wild" for their vast passion, the Tenerthor would fit in very well with Lupinal worshipers of Acerak. The Lerether, the nearest neighbors to the Tenerthor, consider the them to be barbaric in their custom. The way they paint their bodies, move about nearly unclothed, the way that nothing is sacred among them, and the openness with which they conduct themselves are strange and undesirable to the elitist and refined Lerether. Despite this uncomfortableness with the habits and customs of the Tenerthor, many Lerether and other elfin races believe that this rare and out of touch race of elves are the original elfin race. This may be a popular legend or belief in the northern parts of the world where the rare appearance of a Tenerthor from beyond the Evermounts confirms their existence, but in the south, most elves (most elves in the south being the Galiadre) believe that the originators of elvenkind to be the elusive Earinai.
    The Tenerthor occasionally appear from beyond the great wall of mountains called the Evermounts. It is said that beyond this impenetrable barrier, which only a Tenerthor ranger could cross, lays a vast kingdom of the four Tenerthor clans. The clans are each named after something of the physical universe which influences the daily lives of the Tenerthor and are known as The Forest Wards, The Sun Chasers, The Night Moons, and the Ice Lords. Each clan is led by a regal society called the Cailis who are considered noble, divine, and are believed to be the originators of each clan. Many stories surround and obscure the truth of the Cailis' origins, or any of the Tenerthor's origins for that matter. The Cailis live in breathtakingly beautiful and huge castles grown from the earth, elements, and magic. These fantastic structures are older than anything known by the Tenerthor and have just as many stories to match their age. Even though they may be old though, they are still fantastic to behold and shine as new as they ever have through-out the eons.
    The Cailis of the Forest Wards live in a great tree-fortress of titanic proportions, grown from the earth to a height that reaches into the clouds. The Sun Chasers live on the shores of the Sea of Lost Souls, in a valley walled on three sides with great waterfalls through whose mists dance rainbows. The Sun Palace's moat is a deep chasm in whose depths flicker lava and from whose walls pour more lava which cascades down to the lakes below and light up the walls of the great towers above even in the darkest of nights. The Night Moons palace is deep in the mountains that lay beyond the Evermounts. Atop of the highest peak it rests, made of strange magic. Its walls sparkle and are vaguely transparent so that if one were to look they could see the great height above the earth at which they stand. Motes of light dance in the air and light up the place like the lights of thousands of stars and many braziers of white fire are placed along the walls. Will-o-the-wisps dance through the hills nearby, and when the moon rises in the distance, an erie melody of faint wind-chime music can be heard drifting through the air. The Ice Lords have an equally magnificent fortress. A great cluster of towers grown right from the ice of the Jharik Glacier itself. It sparkles even in the dusk, with its sharp, pointed minarets reaching for the sky. High catwalk-like bridges connect the remote tops of the towers and beautiful lakes and rivers of snow and ice slowly move between the bases of the great towers far below. Any one of these four great structures is immense enough to house all of the Tenerthor at once. None of the great halls have even fallen, even when attacked by other clans in times of Tenerthor unrest.
    It is the duty of the Cailis to be a seat of central knowledge and inspiration. They are the political leaders and arbiters of justice when justice is called for. Their duty is also to guard the four corners of the Tenerthor society and to be safe holds in times of trouble. Despite the distinct separation of the four clans of Cailis, the rest of the Tenerthor society is more homogeneous and mixed, moving unrestricted from one land to another and for the most part owing very little in the way of fealty to the various Cailis clans.
    Of the Tenerthor who personally revere gods, Illustree and Baeast are common choices. Most outsiders would not realize this though because of the multitude of names which either god has been given by the Tenerthor. Priests are very rare though because of the Tenerthor tendency to reject the idea of holding one being above all others.
    The Tenerthor, aside from the Cailis, are a nomadic society and build very little in the way of structures. Most common among those buildings of Tenerthor craftsmanship are the Houses of the Dead. These buildings are made from dead trees and house the bodies of the fallen upon their wooden rafters. Generally, the Tenerthor live out of tents or a small and easily dismantled lean-to.
    Tenerthor are perhaps the most fertile of all the elfin races. Their families are quite large and closely knit. Families usually live far apart from the next family. Mornings usually begin with the youth and adult men of the family leaving for the erie hours to hunt. When they return, their catch is used to feed the family for the rest of the day, or longer if it was a large catch. There is no formal time for doing various activities like eating and most Tenerthor do things when they feel like it or when the mood strikes them.

Ecology

Tenerthor tend to have even less impact upon the land around them than other elfin races, except for the occasional House of the Dead which is left behind. These places are universally sacred to the Tenerthor, though for various reasons depending upon which clan or family one speaks with. Tenerthor do grow small crops from time to time. Typically these are things like roots, potatoes, or other things which can be left behind and which keep for a long time in case they should return. Tenerthor move to wherever the hunting is best and the lifestyle is easiest. It is not uncommon for short disputes to erupt between one family and another as to who gets to live on some particularly fertile land, though these arguments rarely involve bloodshed. The land though is vast enough that the population of Tenerthor beyond the Evermounts has never had a difficult time supporting itself. It is said that vast stores of provisions are kept in the great halls of the Cailis in case times of need should ever come to pass.

History

The Tenerthor history is buried in story and legend. Other elfin races believe that groups of Tenerthor, or of the Cailis, traveled over the Evermounts and founded the Lerether and other elfin races. Aside from these musings, very little is known of the Tenerthor history and very little can be said of their affairs in the lives of the rest of the world because contact with them is so rare due to the mighty wall of mountains and other physical barriers that keep them separate.

Variants and Resources

Tenerthor Player Characters