Hey, everybody. Sorry for the recent delay. Consider it our summer hiatus.
We've got the next update almost ready to go, but in the meantime, here's a preparatory sidebar. Before our heroes reach the Miyen Elves, it might be helpfuly to know a thing or two about Elven culture. Thus...
Sidebar: Elves of the Halmae
(Or: everything you wanted to know about your pointy-eared neighbors, but were afraid to ask)
Elves in the Halmae are quite unlike standard fantasy elves. They are more based in Native American culture. They are a nomadic people, living in small, extended family units. These units, called a tribe, generally consist of fifty to one hundred elves. Large groups of tribes, often interrelated, form nations.
For the most part, elves live in unclaimed lands around the Halmae. They tend to eschew human cities and settlements, though individual farmers may be on good terms with nearby elves. There are some small number of elves living in human cities, but the majority of these are slaves. Dar Pykos is virtually unique for its community of elves living in the city itself.
Elven culture is also generally matriarchal. This is not to say that there are not male elves of stature and influence, but there is a subtle cultural lean towards the feminine. This is most obvious in the use of “she” or “her” as the default third-person singular pronoun.
Religion
Elves in the Halmae do not generally choose to venerate one god over any of the others. They understand, better than most humans, that the four gods are inextricably intertwined in the natural order of the world. Generic elven ceremonies invoke all of the gods at once. There are specific ceremonies that invoke specific gods, but only because that god’s sphere is most related to that particular prayer. Where a human cleric would pray to his one god for whatever he needed, an elven cleric would pray separately to Alirria for healing and Kettenek for strength.
Leadership
An elven tribe has not one but four leaders, each with a well-defined sphere of responsibility. Each leader is preeminent in her sphere, and no position is considered stronger than the others. The positions are:
The Hand of the Tribe- the hunt and war leader, and in religious ceremonies she represents the presence of Ehkt.
The Heart of the Tribe- responsible for all domestic affairs within the tribe. She speaks for Alirra.
The Head of the Tribe- the representative of Kettenek. She is responsible for enforcing tribe law. The Head also settles any questions that arise over which tribe leader has jurisdiction.
The Voice of the Tribe- responsible for the tribe’s religious traditions, for speaking for the tribe at Elven gatherings, and for guarding the long-term future of the tribe. If the tribe leaders are ever split two to two over something, it is the Voice who has the deciding vote. The Voice represents the presence of Sedellus.
Most Elven activities are divided between the four spheres, but many overlap. For example, the Head and the Heart preside over marriages, but the Heart and the Voice preside over births and naming ceremonies. Trade is split between the Heart and the Hand, and the education of young elves is the responsibility of all.
In addition to the tribal leaders, each elven nation has a Hand, Heart, Head, and Voice. These leaders have the same responsibilities as their tribal counterparts, but they also hold responsibility for all inter-tribal conflicts.
Culture
Elves have a mostly oral tradition. There is a huge litany of stories that make up the total of elven traditions, although elves do also have a primitive writing system, utilizing knotted rope as characters.
Elves mark their accomplishments with extremely intricately stone and wooden carved beads that they wear braided into their hair. Extremely involved and complicated traditions govern the beads, and if you know what to look for, you can tell a great deal about an elf from her beads and her hair.
Every elf is given a bead signifying her tribe and a bead signifying her mother when she is first born. She will wear these on a string around her neck until she reaches adulthood, at which point she is allowed to braid them. The Elven saying “everyone begins with two beads” refers to the idea that everyone starts at the same level, and must earn additional honors on their own.
At the age of sixteen, elves are given a father bead, and at the age of sixty-four they earn a name bead of their own. At this time, they braid the beads in and are considered full adults. Additional beads are earned through extraordinary accomplishments, or given to mark particular social obligations.
Marriage and Children
Because they live so long, elves do not commit to a partner for life, and there is no stigma attached to ending a partnership. Marriage beads are always made of wood to reflect this impermanence. Furthermore, marriages are not limited to opposite sex couples or to two people, although the most common variant is still a man and a woman. For the duration of the marriage it is a full partnership, and when it ends the partners divide their belongings equally and return to their own tribes. Children below the age of sixteen always stay with their mother, and children over the age of sixteen may choose which parent to accompany.
Fatherhood is less of a biological concept with the elves than a social one. Because a child belongs first to its mother and its tribe, there is no stigma attached to an out of wedlock birth. Indeed, the mother does not even name the father until the child’s sixteenth birthday. This is the man who has been most involved in the child’s upbringing, and although it is usually the biological father (especially if the couple is married) it does not have to be. Frequently an uncle or a grandfather is given father right. Although a female elf is given a mother bead when she bears a child, a male elf does not earn a father bead until he is given father-right.
Game Mechanics
Because of the changes in their culture, wizard is not the favored class for elves in the Halmae. An elf may choose at character creation whether Ranger or Druid will be her favored class.
