Lore Post: The Eliandre

Royal Entry #2276 – Eliandre

Common Name - Elves

Report Status – Completed 629 D.C. 

The Legend – The legend claims that a race known as the “Eliandre” rose to such power as to challenge the Divine Gods themselves. It is said that even in defeat, the Eliandre managed to slay two Divines—Ga’a and Aquinia. Overwhelmed with grief at the destruction of their brethren, and of their most prized creations, the Divines withdrew from Talyron and formed the Divine Council. For those interested, scholars believe the Bryannia translation completed in 572 D.C. to be the most complete version of the legend to date.

A Scholar’s “Eliandrean Years” – The ultimate prize for every scholar, the true golden whale. Nobody can say for sure how much of the legend is based on truth. Did the Eliandre really exist? Do the Divines truly exist? Could a mortal race wield such power? 

There’s a time in nearly every scholar’s life, informally referred to as the “Eliandrean Years,” when they dig into the evidence and try to make their mark answering just those questions. Very few artifacts remain from that ancient age. Yet, there is some strength in the fact that no scholar has been able to disprove their existence and the more that is discovered, the more evidence points to their existence.

Notable Discoveries (In order of importance):

453 D.C. – The discovery and translation of the Elven Marker. The Elven marker is a pentagonal prism made of stone that stands one-and-a-half men tall. Each side holds countless inscriptions in a different language, including Common (Man), Urya (Goblin/Orkish), Grunna (Dwarvish), Sissean (Kataria), and what is believed to be Elvish. The marker was found southeast of Rivella during an excursion into the Rivellan Forest. Mostly underground when discovered, it took nearly a full cycle to unearth and transport out of the forest. Once the 5th language was discovered, scholars flocked to Rivella and our knowledge of the Elves increased tenfold as artifacts across Talyron were re-examined and what was once believed to be intricate patterns became Elvish writing.

10-25 D.C. – Morgranth the Bard. The first recorded telling of the Eliandre. Morgranth, a playwright and performer, put three plays to parchment. One of those was of the Elves, titled “Noble Tragedy.” There is no record of who discovered Morgranth’s works, and scholars deduced the time period based on Morgranth’s musing in the columns.

472 D.C. – Arguably the most significant of the post Elven Marker discoveries was the “Gilded Rug.” This large golden tablet was encased into the Trellion throne room floor. Considered to be nothing more than a priceless golden artifact, a Trellion scholar named Fertran realized that some of the intricate engravings matched the newly discovered Elven language. The tablet was ultimately identified as a map of sorts, and Trellion led and expedition into the Rivellan Forest in 475 D.C. in an effort to find the location. The expedition did locate a number of artifacts that fit Elvish design, but were ultimately unsuccessful in finding whatever the tablet led to.

The Eliandrean Race – Based on what little is written about the race, scholars believe that Elves were tall, muscular, and strikingly beautiful. Wall drawings attributed to men often show them as near God-like in their qualities. The Eliandre themselves write with a seeming disdain of anything not elvish.

Information is severely restricted, but there is near universal agreement that the elves possessed long, pointed ears. This is prevalent in all variations of the legend itself, and a few artifact etchings even refer to elvish ears. 

No elvish settlements have ever been discovered, and the Elven Marker is the only sizable structure ever recorded. It is believed that the Eliandre were a nomadic race that primarily resided in and around the Rivellan forest. 

Musings – While is remains unknown how powerful the Eliandre were, or whether they truly challenged the Divines, evidence suggests that they did exist at one time. There is no indication as to why they no longer inhabit Talyron, and many scholars believe they merely developed advanced seafaring techniques and crossed the Sea of No End.

Regardless, it is indisputable that this race dramatically impacted Talyron in many ways. Our entire calendar seems to stem from early Elvish principles, and our dating system is founded on the fabled end to the Great War and the formation of the Divine Council (D.C.). The Divine Church’s Book of Divinity lines up well with the legend, but it is unknown if the book was influenced by the legend. It is telling though that the legend has been one of the few constants found throughout historical works. Note: consult the royal entry #177 detailing the Divine Church for more information

My conclusion is that the Eliandre did exist, and were a developed people. There would be value in investing resources into further examining Eliandrean texts in an effort to learn more. There is a significant possibility that we may discover weaponry or other technology that would be of great value to Kavidan. Additionally, there would be a high level of prestige associated with any further discoveries.

A footnote is scribbled on the bottom:

638 D.C. – It is rumored that an Eliandre was spotted in Zalran! Multiple sources confirm, even if it sounds ludicrous. Hypothesis is that the commonfolk are merely confused and the subject in question has an ear anomaly of some sort. A set of Kavidian scholars have been dispatched and the entry will be updated accordingly.

Sudoh Lu’Kear

Royal Cartographer and Historian