Also known as Wood-elves and East-elves, these are the Elves who, like the Sindar, did not undertake the journey across the Sea, preferring to remain in Middle-earth. Those of the Teleri who ceased their journey before even crossing the Misty Mountains became known as the Nandor (Q., said to mean ‘those who turn back’); some of the Nandor later pressed on as far as Ossiriand (the Laiquendi). Others alto- gether refused to seek the light of Aman and were labelled as the Avari (Q. ‘the Unwilling’, ‘the Refusers’) when the Eldar departed from the original Elven homeland during the Elder Days. Collectively, the Nandor and Avari are also known as Moriquendi (Q. ‘Dark-elves’) because they have never seen the Light of the Two Trees.
The Moriquendi were left to fend for themselves during the days when Morgoth’s Shadow swept over the East. In these dark times they were forced into the secluded safety of the forests of eastern Middle-earth, where they wandered and hid from the wild Men who dominated most of the lands. Hence, they became known as Silvan or Wood-elves.
Accounted of less wisdom, learning, and majesty than ei- ther the Noldor or the Sindar, the Wood-elves outnumber their cousins. During the Third Age they often live in realms, such as Lórien, ruled by Noldorin or Grey Elves.
NOTE: When creating a Wood-elven character of Avarin or
mixed Avarin-Nandorin origin, use the racial adjustments and physical description given below. If you wish to create a Nan- dorin Wood-elf (i.e., one hailing from the Teleri), use the Sin- dar’s racial adjustments and physical description (page 37). However, for any other aspects (i.e., racial abilities, culture, youth development, and so on) refer to the information presented below. Note that by the Third Age, most Silvan Elves are of mixed an- cestry and should be created according to the below guidelines.
R
ACIALA
DJUSTMENTS ANDA
BILITIESREQUISITE: It is recommended that only experienced play-
ers with merits in character-play be allowed to create an El- ven character.
ADJUSTMENTS: +2 Deftness, +3 Nimbleness, +2 Vigour,
+3 Awareness, +1 Will, +2 Bearing, +2 Insight.
THE ART: All Elves possess ‘magical’ qualities, though
they do not think of them in those terms. These qualities are simple, natural abilities most often used for crafting and joy, not domination and power over people and things. The Art of the Elves is delivered from many of the limitations of Sor- cery and passes into all that they make, such as lembas, miru-
vor, ithildin, cloaks, ropes, boats, and the like. What is more,
the Art allows them to achieve almost any magical effect that Sorcery could produce, but it is nearly effortless and untaint- ed. A Silvan Elf may acquire any desired rank, up to 60% of his Fëa score, in any realm of the Art. Upon completing ini- tial character creation, he gets to add 5 free ranks to the Art
of Thought, Speech, and Perception and starts with Mind- speech and Sense Power in his repertory. See Chapter Eleven
for details. Furthermore, when using Craft skills, all Elves can imbue the objects they create with minor, but often quite useful, enchantments. They automatically have the edge Ar- tificer (see page 150). They only need a Craft skill at 9+ to use it, and they can create more powerful items than a non- Elven craftsman can. See ‘Enchanted Items’ on page 319 for more details on how to create such items.
BEAST-SKILL: Elves have great rapport with good animals,
such as horses and eagles. They can sense their feelings and thoughts, and call on them for service at need. They receive a +4 bonus with Ride and other animal-related tests.
COMFORT: Elves feel no discomfort in hot or cold weath-
er, and they suffer no ill effects (either test penalties or dam- age) from it.
ELVEN-SLEEP: Elves do not sleep as other peoples do. They can obtain all the rest they need through simple relaxation or by letting their minds wander ‘in the strange paths of Elvish dreams’. They recover lost Weariness Levels within but one third of the time a mortal needs to rest (see page 238).
FAIR: All Silvan Elves start with one level of the Fair tal- ent.
FARSIGHTEDNESS: Elvish eyes see farther and better than
the eyes of Men, Dwarves, or Hobbits. All Elves have the Keen-eyed talent at level two. Moreover, they can discern de- tail—such as the number and armament of riders—at up to ten leagues (30 miles) away, if nothing blocks their view.
GHOST-SCORN: The ghosts of Men hold no terror for the
Elves, who are immune to any fear effects they create.
LIGHTFOOTEDNESS: The Elves move swiftly (+4 bonus to
Run tests) and silently, even when running (+4 bonus to Sneak tests, with none of the standard penalties for moving faster than a walk). They step lightly (–4 penalty to Track tests made to follow them) and can walk on such fragile sur- faces as snow, unbent grass, and narrow branches without difficulty. Moreover, they have superb balance, rarely falling off even the slenderest branches or narrowest ledges (+4 bo- nus to Acrobatics (Balance) tests).
MUSICAL GIFTS: Silvan Elves of Telerin origin receive a
+2 bonus for Dance, Musician, and Sing tests.
STAR-SIGHT: Elves see as well on a star-lit night as Men
would at the height of the day. This ability allows an Elven character to ignore any modifiers for partial darkness, but it does not work in absolute darkness, or when no light of the stars or the Moon (or some light made out of it, like the phial of Galadriel) is available.
SWIFT HEALING: Elves heal with great speed. They all
have the Swift Recovery talent. Also, they do not become sick or catch illnesses.
WOODSY: Silvan Elves receive a +2 bonus for Hunt, Sur-
vival: Forest, Weather-sense, and Track tests.
P
HYSICALC
HARACTERBUILD: Most Wood-elves of Avarin descent are slight of build, and all are thin by mannish standards. Males average 145 pounds at a height of 5’11”; females weigh about 122 pounds at 5’7”. See page 28 for the guidelines on determining an individual character’s height and weight.
COLOURING: Ruddy of complexion, with sandy hair and blue or green eyes. Generalisations are difficult, however, since they are many groups of Silvan and there is wide varia- tion among them.
ENDURANCE: They do not carry great burdens, but are
capable of travelling 16 to 20 hours a day.
LIFESPAN: Like all Elves, the Silvan Elves are immortal
and will only die due to violence or if they weary of life and lose the will to live. Not before the age of fifty do they reach maturity, and for some a hundred or more years must pass before they are fully grown. When allowing a player to create a Wood-elf who has long passed the typical starting age, the Turambar must be aware that he might qualify for receiving a tremendous (and maybe unbalancing) amount of additional development picks (see page 74).
C
ULTURECLOTHING & DECORATION: Their preferred clothes are
usually forest green, grey, or brown, and range from func- tional designs to fanciful expressions of individual creativity. Their garments lack the formality and pomp typical of Nol- do garb.
FEARS &INABILITIES: As a group, the Silvan Elves suffer
from no particular weaknesses.
LIFESTYLE: The culture of the Silvan Elves is best charac-
terised as unstructured and rustic by Elven standards, but rich and relatively advanced when compared to the ways of Men. They have always been independent, but as of late many have settled in kingdoms ruled by the Noldor or Sin- dar. Still, all the Silvan folk enjoy a good journey or adven- ture and most look at life much as a game to be played. Music and trickery are their favourite pastimes. The Silvan Elves are also masters of the wood and know much of wood-craft and wood-lore.
MARRIAGE PATTERN: Like all Elves, the Moriquendi wed
once only in life, and for love or at the least by free will upon either part. They marry for the most part in their youth and soon after their fiftieth year. See the Noldor’s description for more details on marriage customs and child-birth. Rumours have it that in the Elder Days, when Men and Silvan Elves lived close to one another in parts of Middle-earth, there have been a few unions between Wood-elves and the noblest houses of the Edain. Refer to page 48 for creating Elven- blooded characters.
BELIEFS: There is no formal religion among the
Moriquendi. Therefore, their ritual customs are centred on
informal communal celebration and personal meditation, just as those of other Elves. Like all Elves, they worship Varda as giver of light and maker of the stars. The principal difference is their strong attachment to the Vala Oromë, the Huntsman and Tamer of Beasts.
O
THERF
ACTORSDEMEANOUR: The Wood-elves are a fun-loving but
guarded folk. Outward mirth often hides their grim inten- tions. They tend to distrust strangers and outsiders, at least until they get to know them.
LANGUAGES &HOBBIES: Multiply your Silvan Elf’s Wits
by 3 and assign the total in skill ranks to language, lore, and hobby skills appropriate for his people. See the box on page 36 for details on what skills may qualify as a hobby.
Native Tongues: Silvan tongues, which are often called
Wood-speech (Bethteur) are their favoured languages. The Silvan Elves of Mirkwood and places further west, however, generally use Sindarin as their native tongue. Because all Elv- ish has a song-like quality, however, the slightly unique Sil- van vocal pattern betrays their racial origin, even when they employ the tongues of the Eldar. Most know Westron (up to rank 8), and a little Quenya (up to rank 4).
Foreign Tongues: Depending on their homeland, Silvan
Elves also have the opportunity to learn Adûnaic, Atliduk, Logathig, and Nahaiduk up to the number of ranks indicated in Table 4.2 on page 73. Ranks in these tongues can only be acquired with development picks.
PREJUDICES: The Silvan Elves seclude themselves more
readily than the Eldar, for they have a less friendly history of relations with Men. They despise Orcs, dislike Dwarves, and are suspicious of Men.
RESTRICTIONS: Consciously or not, all Elves ‘know’ about,
or rather feel, the tainted and corrupting nature of Sorcery. Since the fëar (Q. ‘souls’) of the firstborn Children of Ilúvatar are strong enough to practise a different form of magic—the Art—they do not normally learn any spells of Sorcery.
Generally, an Elf neither needs to take up an occupation to earn his living, nor does he usually enjoy to limit himself to but a single trade. Therefore, Elves rarely acquire occupa- tional training packages (see page 320 on occupations).
O
UTFITTINGO
PTIONSFAVOURED WEAPONS: Melee, Class A: Dagger,
Longknife, Longsword, Shortsword, Shield; Melee, Class B:
Hatchet, Broadsword, Spear, Whip; Ranged, Class A: Long
Bow, Short Bow; Ranged, Class B: Dagger, Javelin, Spear.
ARMOUR: Silvan Elves are a varied group. Some favour light leather armour (which often is enchanted), while others prefer to go without a protective garb, instead relying on their surpassing reflexes.
CLOTHING:Weapon-users: Silk or cotton blouse (white,
beige, pale green, or pale grey); trim-fitting tunic (length var- ies from mid-calf to mid-thigh) of heavy silk and cotton or leather, worked so finely as to drape like fabric (bark brown, leaf green, storm grey); bandoliers crossing the chest, belt around the waist, straps around the limbs to accommodate weapon sheaths; leggings of sturdy canvas or supple leather;
sandals or soft boots. Non-weapon-users: Flowing gauze
blouse or smock (white, beige, pale green or pale grey fabric with embroidery from a similar colour spectrum), sometimes restrained by a gauze or silk sash, otherwise hanging free; silk leggings, flowing gauze pants similar to a divided skirt, or a many-gored gauze skirt (matching blouse or smock, or bark brown, leaf green, storm grey); heavy silk or gauze mantle fashioned like a cloak with sleeves or elongated (shoulder to waist) arm openings, usually falling to the ankles, often em- broidered all over to create a leafy texture; sandals ornament- ed with gems or carved wood.
STARTING WEALTH: Equipment and possessions worth a
total of 2d6 silver pieces (SP). See page 180 for modifications due to Social Rank.
DWARVES
warves (or Khazâd in their own tongue) are a short and stocky folk, standing between four and five feet tall, by the measure of Men. Strong and hardy, they endure pain, fatigue, and suffering more readily than other races. At need, they can push themselves hard to cross rough terrain quickly or to come to grip with a foe.
The Dwarves are descendants of the Seven Fathers, the original lords crafted from the earth by the Vala Aulë. He is the Smith of the Valar, the giver of mountains and master of crafts, and the Dwarves call him Mahal (Khuzdul for ‘Mak- er’). They were created first, but Eru forced his servant Aulë to delay their awakening until after the coming of the Elves. The Seven Fathers awoke from sleep in pairs, even as the Maker had laid them, beneath tall mountains in far-sundered places across the Northlands of Middle-earth. All, that is, ex- cept for Durin, the Eldest of the Dwarf-kings. He awoke alone, before the others, and wandered the as yet nameless and unpeopled world under the wheeling stars of heaven.
In the course of his wanderings, Durin chanced upon others of his kind, now awakened as he was. These are the names of the Six, given, according to the later custom of Durin’s folk, in the ancient northern speech of Men: Úri and Linnar, who awoke in the Blue Mountains of the West; Sin- dri and Thulin in the Far North; Var and Vigdís in the East of East. With each of the Fathers Durin also found others gathered, both male and female, whereas to Durin there were none he could call his own. Glad was the meeting of the Dwarves, and the folk revered Durin as First and Eldest.
Some, indeed, took leave of their own Fathers to join Durin in his wanderings, and in time they grew into a great following. Thus it came to pass that the Seven Houses of the Dwarves were established. Although these Seven Houses have since spread across Middle-earth, each delving mansions for their own abode, they have remained close and have spawned a universal reputation for ruggedness, practicality, and unwavering loyalty. Most groups favour the rocky high- lands and deep caverns of the mountains, for the Dwarves, perhaps more than any race, remember their origin and her- itage.
NATURE: As the Seven Houses vary in nature, history,
and attitude, so do their racial adjustments. Therefore, this section provides a brief description of each of their Houses, followed by a general overview of their common features. Note that a Dwarven character from North-western Middle- earth usually hails from one of the first three Houses. For more information on Dwarves, please refer to Dwarves of
Middle-earth: Seven Houses of the Khazâd, a book contained
in the Moria boxed set published by Decipher, Inc.
THE LONGBEARDS
The Dwarf-kindred best known to Elves and Men of the Westlands of Middle-earth is Durin’s folk. Also called the Longbeards—not only for the length of their beards, but also for their peculiar longevity—Durin’s people are the most physically diverse of the Seven Houses. This is in part be- cause of their eclectic origin and in part due to later influxes of other kindreds into their number, most notably from Ûri’s and Linnar’s folk. They pride themselves less on the purity of their breed than on the aura of reverence they enjoy thanks to their illustrious ancestor.
Still in the days of Durin the Deathless, yet long after they had begun the vast delving of Khazad-dûm (Moria), the Longbeards colonised all the mountains encompassing Rho- vanion: east from Gundabad to the Iron Hills, and south as far as the Dimrill Dale. By the late Third Age, most of these lands have been lost. Only Erebor and the Iron Hills remain to them. Following the desolation of Moria by the Balrog, many of Durin’s folk have also migrated west to the safety of the Blue Mountains, though no great mansions were delved there.
ADJUSTMENTS: +1 Deftness, +3 Strength, +3 Vigour, +2
Will, +1 Bearing.
THE FIREBEARDS
The kindred of Úri are instantly recognisable by the fiery hue of their beards. Úri’s folk take great pride in their beards, weighting them with silver ornaments that clink and chime as they walk, making themselves all the more conspicuous. The weighting of beards is a mark of status among this tribe, and strict rules of precedence and honour are observed in the matter of their comportment. Beard-weights denote age, lin- eage, and deeds of renown, and they can only be bestowed by the king or the eldest living male of a household. Dwarves of Úri’s folk whose beards are so weighted suffer a –1 test modifier to Hide and Sneak tests per 5 points of Renown (or fraction thereof) they have.
Úri woke from sleep alongside Linnar, the father of the Broadbeams, in the northern reaches of the Blue Mountains, and his descendants have always called that range home. His people have a temper to match their appearance: quick, haughty, and vengeful, all beyond the normal share of these vices apportioned to the Khazâd. At their worst, Úri’s folk embody the worst that Dwarves are capable of, as was seen in their murder of Thingol and their war with the Elves of
Doriath. Yet, the boastfulness of the Sons of Úri is not emp- ty of content. Their house has produced the greatest blade- smiths in Middle-earth, and their axes have won glory upon many battlefields in defence of the Free Peoples.
ADJUSTMENTS: +2 Deftness, +4 Strength, +3 Vigour, +1 Will, –1 Insight.
THE BROADBEAMS
Dwarves, as a race, tend to be heavily set. This is doubly true for Linnar’s folk. The Sons of Linnar take corpulence to new levels, gluttony being their only apparent vice. (Bombur was one of the Broadbeams.) This makes them the butt of many Dwarf-jokes, but they take it in stride. They have little reason to fear public disgrace from other houses, for Linnar’s people are the greatest armourers the Dwarves have ever produced.
Despite their unwieldy girth, the Broadbeams do not shirk their duties either in peace or in war. No less forward than their fire-bearded neighbours and friends, Linnar’s war- riors merely advance with slower steps. In fact, if the Khazâd were made immovable in will, Linnar’s folk are but the physi-