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The Wood Elves
In ages past when the Upper races first began their colonisation of the Nether World, the Elves chose to depart the known realms and find lands they could call their own. Some of that race elected to stay, and moved into the great forest that bordered the old Elven realms in the Nether World. This forest was a realm little touched by evil, Orcs and Goblins had never found their way into the wood and monsters were only encountered at its margins and at the foothills of the Bronze Mountains. Dwarf prospectors had passed it by as they ventured to the mountains in search of ore. The forest remained a place where Treemen and Dryads dwelled undisturbed. Possibly it was due to these guardians that the forest was such a tranquil place of beauty. The forest is known as The Forest of Anorinien by the Humans, and as Taur’anorinien by the Elves. Those Elves that remained in the Nether World relinquished all ties with the High Elves of Ulthain and declared themselves independent of their King and began to evolve a new society of their own, becoming Wood Elves.
The Elves that settled in Taur’anorinien populated parts of the forest that appealed to them. Typically this was in one of the larger glades, near to springs and to ample supplies of fruit and game for food. The number of clans that settled in the forest was said to be seven in all, so few was the number of Elves that settled and remained in the Nether World. This fact is generally used by the older clans for political objectives to set up a tiered system of leadership. Some of the clans dispute the claims and they may be partly right due to the lack of written records and the fact that the past is recorded in songs, plays and dances.
The Wood Elves soon adapted to life in the forest, living and roaming among the trees, hunting game and gathering the fruit of the wild. Some of the Elves explored the lands further to the west and settled in the forests of what is now the Kingdom. Isolated from the wealth and resources of Ulthain, the Wood Elves avoided the temptations of wealth and luxury that turned some of their distant kindred towards an evil path, and became a hardy and simple folk. They took to the worship of Kaldaron and Iarda, gods that were not quite so revered in Ulthain, but were important to those who lived in the wild.
The Wood Elves clans, through exploration, nomadic movements or divination, gradually made themselves known to each other. Leaders from each clan met in a council to work out clan borders and the sharing of resources without the need to resort to costly skirmishes. Marriages were made between the kinbands and new bonds were forged. It was decided that no clan should rule over the other for fear of kinstrife.
Over the centuries, Wood Elven Shaman have become skilled in the arts of 'tree singing', whereby the growth of trees is accelerated and trained in particular ways. The branches of great oaks can be entwined to form walkways and canopies, galleries and vaults. Even beneath the earth, the same methods have been used to create great hollow chambers walled by interwoven roots. Access to these vaults is made through hollow trunks of still living trees.
Wood Elf settlements are protected by the enchantments of Shaman. These can take the form of subtle illusions so that a traveller is unaware of any housing, the only thing the traveller could be aware of is the enchanting sound of Elven laughter and singing coming from all around him and yet from nowhere in particular. It is even rumoured that some powerful Shaman can distort time so that the unwary wander aimlessly for days on end, without hint of any Wood Elf, until they find themselves emerging from the forest. The forest of Taur’anorinien is surrounded by open heath and scrubland. Here and there can be found standing stones, marked with carvings and painted designs. These were erected to mark the outer borders of the realm and act as wards to encircle the forest with protective enchantments. For it is known that none may enter the realms of the Wood Elves without their consent.