Is it sadder when an elf dies than when a human dies?
- Thread starter tonym
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Dark Jezter
First Post
tonym said:
Every team needs a walking target... er... I mean pointman.
Sejs
First Post
Pfft, nah. I mean he takes one hit and he's out the rest of the game because his alergies are flairing up or he buises easily. The little glade-prancer would be more of a liability than an asset.
Fun to shoot in the back though.
Mmmhm. Ratling snipers, please. Small size, high dex, racial bonuses to sneaky type skills and such? Now that sounds more like it.
Lonely Tylenol
First Post
Haldir's Doom
The thing about the elves is that they don't die naturally. So, unlike a human, they are not forced to ruminate on their inevitable end, because theoretically they could last forever. When Haldir is killed, he doesn't die right away, but instead is given a few seconds to go through all the realization of "I'm going to die" that a human must deal with in an entire lifetime. He suddenly understands both the urgency of the mortal races and the loss he is about to suffer, as well as his complete inability to do anything to stop it.
I think that's what Peter Jackson wanted to get across with that scene. The elves do not understand death, but Haldir learns, and this moment has meaning to anyone who has ever had to come to terms with the inevitability of their own death...which is practically everyone over a certain age.
The thing about the elves is that they don't die naturally. So, unlike a human, they are not forced to ruminate on their inevitable end, because theoretically they could last forever. When Haldir is killed, he doesn't die right away, but instead is given a few seconds to go through all the realization of "I'm going to die" that a human must deal with in an entire lifetime. He suddenly understands both the urgency of the mortal races and the loss he is about to suffer, as well as his complete inability to do anything to stop it.
I think that's what Peter Jackson wanted to get across with that scene. The elves do not understand death, but Haldir learns, and this moment has meaning to anyone who has ever had to come to terms with the inevitability of their own death...which is practically everyone over a certain age.
tonym
First Post
diaglo said:
Cool. I am no longer the lone penguin adrift on this vast, featurless ice floe.
dreaded_beast said:Yeah, so I could have the pleasure of shooting him in the back!![:]](http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/devious.png "Devious :]")
Hey, all LotR elves have the feat, Never Trust a Human, giving them a Reflex save versus any human backstabbery.
*rolls die*
HA! The elf springs into the air, lands on a tree branch and disappears into the leafs.
A minute later you sniff the air....and become puzzled. Apparently you are surrounded by the odor of Lambas bread.
Tony
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Calico_Jack73
First Post
I guess it depends on the setting.
In Warhammer 40K the Eldar are doomed to have their souls devoured by Slannesh (one of the Chaos Gods) upon their deaths. All Eldar warriors wear Soul Stones into battle so that should they die their souls are trapped in the stone rather than going into the warp to be devoured by the god. Considering the "best" ending for someone is for their soul to be imprisoned in a stone for all time is defintely a reason for sorrow... at least humans don't have a god waiting to gobble up their souls when they die.
In Warhammer 40K the Eldar are doomed to have their souls devoured by Slannesh (one of the Chaos Gods) upon their deaths. All Eldar warriors wear Soul Stones into battle so that should they die their souls are trapped in the stone rather than going into the warp to be devoured by the god. Considering the "best" ending for someone is for their soul to be imprisoned in a stone for all time is defintely a reason for sorrow... at least humans don't have a god waiting to gobble up their souls when they die.
Dr. Strangemonkey
First Post
I do think it's sadder when an elf dies.
Or at least sad in a different sense.
I mean I am mortal man doomed to die. It's heavy burden, but it's something I and all my loved ones have always had.
One of the Valar refers to it as a gift at some point.
When an Elf dies it's pretty tragic simply because they don't have to and, in some sense, they shouldn't.
On the other hand, in some sense it's all their fault anyways so the whole situation is pretty abysmal.
Ah, LotR it all seems so bright and shiny...
Or at least sad in a different sense.
I mean I am mortal man doomed to die. It's heavy burden, but it's something I and all my loved ones have always had.
One of the Valar refers to it as a gift at some point.
When an Elf dies it's pretty tragic simply because they don't have to and, in some sense, they shouldn't.
On the other hand, in some sense it's all their fault anyways so the whole situation is pretty abysmal.
Ah, LotR it all seems so bright and shiny...
Gez
First Post
In D&D, I don't care.
In LOTR? No, it's not sad at all. After all, them elves are going to leave for Valinor, so dead or gone, he wouldn't be there anymore. What's the difference?
Beside, if an elf is dead, you can naturalize him, or at least put its skeleton on display, so that you can show to future generations that there was another species of sapient monkeys there once upon a time.
In LOTR? No, it's not sad at all. After all, them elves are going to leave for Valinor, so dead or gone, he wouldn't be there anymore. What's the difference?
Beside, if an elf is dead, you can naturalize him, or at least put its skeleton on display, so that you can show to future generations that there was another species of sapient monkeys there once upon a time.
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