Velris the Blade
Okay. The following post will be long:
Valenar:
Short Summary: In contrast to the ancient kingdom of Aerenal, Valenar is a young, expansionist, and aggressive elven nation. Originally mercenaries brought to Khorvaire to fight in the Last War, the elves of Valenar are renowned horse breeders and riders seeking to make a new nation seperate and apart from the stoic Aerenal. Elves native to this region treat the Valenar double scimitar as a martial weapon rather than an exotic weapon.
HISTORY (Here's the long part):
When the Last War began, Cyre came under attack from all sides and quickly sought allies. While the Undying Court of Aerenal had no interest in returning to Khorvaire (Their attempted settling of the southern shore of the continent 10000 years ago met with failure), the Cyrans drew the interest of the Valaes Tairn. These militant elves had long sought an opportunity to test their blades in epic battle, and they were only too willing to enter the fray.
For decades the elves fought on the side of Cyre, battling Talenta warbands, hobgoblin mercenaries, and the forces of Breland and Karrnath. They fought for teh love of battle and gold, not loyalty to Cyre. Then, in 956 YK, the elves took action that suprised the Cyrans and the other Five Nations. War leader Shaeras Vadallia proclaimed that his people had ties to the land from a time before human feet touched the soil of Khorvaire, and that his soldiers had restored those ties with spilled blood. Vadallia declared himself high king of the new nation of Valenar, and his warriors have been fortifying their position and slowly expanding their borders ever since.
The Valenar elves have no interest in peace, but they participated in the talks at Thronehold to gauge measure of their enemies and to gain acceptance in the human courts. Today, Valenar warbands continue to clash with Karrnathi forces, and raids into the Talenta Plains and Q'barra occur on a regular basis. Now that the Last War has come to an end, it remains to be seen whether the Treaty of Thronehold can end this elven aggression.
INDUSTRIES
The Valenar elves demonstrate an uncanny knack for the art of war and the breeding of horses. The bloodline of Valenar horses can be traced all the way back to the warhorses of ancient Xen'drik, and the creatures have no equal among the native horses of Khorvaire. The weaponsmiths of Valenar create masterwork bows and fine densewood weapons. Beyond this, Valenar primarily exports the service of its warriors, brokered through House Deneith. Few people trust the Valenar elves or are comfortable hiring them in large numbers. Valenar elves, however, are the most talented calvary troops in Khorvaire, and small units are often hired for specific tasks.
LIFE AND SOCIETY:
The elves of Valenar venerate the memories of their warrior ancestors, the giant slayers of ancient Xen'drik. Where the elves of Aerenal honor their ancestors through devotion and prayer, the Valaes Tairn believe that imitation is the truest form of flattery. Heroic deeds and glory in battle are the two goals of the Valaes Tairn, and their society revolves around this principle. The primary social unit of the elves is the warclan, a group of two hundred to five hundred elves, subdivided into smaller tactical units called warbands that consist of 8 to 12 individuals. Unless assigned to guard an area, a warclan remains in constant motion. The Valenar elves slowly seek to expand their territory, but they are more interested in battle than land. Q'barra and Karrnath remain frequent targets of raids, and Karrnath has established forts in the Talenta Plains to engage the elves before they reach their borders.
A member of the Valaes Tairn values his horse and his patron ancestor above all things. Determined at birth by the clerics of the Valaes Tairn, the spirit of a patron ancestor watches over the warrior, and the elf does everything in his power to emulate and honor his patron. Males and females hold equal positions among the elves of Valenar and both ride into battle. The Valenar elves have a taste for art, music, and dance, but everything revolves around war. Their fine weapons and delicate armor are their works of art, and their songs recount the great deeds of the elf warriors of Xen'drik.
Humans still live in Valenar. Once citizens of Cyre, they now serve the high king of the Valaes Tairn. The elves have no desire to farm, so the humans provide food for the elves in exchange for protection.
RELIGION
The Valenar elves share the religious beliefs of the elves of Aerenal, but with a slightly different focus. They respect the councilors of the Undying Court, but have a greater reverence for the elven heroes of Xen'drik. Each warrior has a patron ancestor and seeks to emulate his ancestor throguh deeds that let the ancestor live again, after a fashion.
The spiritual leaders of the Valaes Tairn, the Keepers of the Past, include both clerics of the Undying Court and bards.
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There, that's a lot of it. I cut out some unnecessary stuff, but thats most of what the Eberron Campaign Setting says about them.
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