What is the difference between a wood elf envoy and a high elf envoy? Are the wood elves truly de-evolved "nature creatures" and so are their dealings with humans quite different from those of the high elves?

jh

Cultural context?

Are the Wood elves often at odds with humans in terms of forest land?

Also, whether both parties like it or not, Wood elves probably have had more encounters with humans (positive or negative), while High Elves are probably very alien and ignorant?

Good question... Hmm....

What's the difference between a Pictish envoy to the later Holy Roman Empire and an envoy from one of the Greek city states during the early Republic?

The former would be less envoy and more tribal delegate, likely with a specific goal in mind and plenty of disdain for the weak urban-centric lifestyle of the Empire Imperials, by turn, would probably consider him a throwback and savage.

The latter would be an embedded spy, negotiator, and diplomat with a bitter streak at being forced to interact with a lesser facsimile of his own, declining, culture. I'd imagine Imperials would treat him as something of a rock star or cultural father figure, or with American/Roman style disdain for older, more established cultures.

Laden or unladen ?

I'd say that human and wood elves are seldom at odds over forest land - wood elves consider chopping down a tree for lumber to be murder. As such most nations bordering the wood elf forests quickly learn to respect the trees and leave the elves alone – that’s normally all the wood elf nation wants. An important geography note is that the Empire doesn’t border wood elf lands. Most wood elf interaction with humans in the warhammer setting is with Bretonia.

A wood elf envoy is something of an oddball actually. Diplomacy isn't really a wood eleven strength. They tend to shoot first and ask questions later ... if at all. However, they do know what the real threats are and if roused to the dangers of chaos or through their own divinations they may send some envoys out of the forest. I'm sure their reception in human courts would be warm if often frustrating to both parties. If I had a wood elf envoy in my game I'd encourage the player to play up the spy aspects more than the diplomat aspects.

High Elves are probably a more common sight in the courts and I'd imagine most court etiquette concerning elves would have evolved from their standards as I seem to recall High Elves and The Empire having official relations.

As a side note a mercenary captain may have more dealings with wood elves as scouts than the average merchant prince would have at formal dinners (and consequently the wood elf probably better understands the captain of the guard than his imperial host).

If one were looking for historic comparisons I’d consider the wood elves to be more like medieval Scotsmen and the High Elves the Turks. In a scenario like that The Empire would be about as common to both as they are to the Chinese.

Emirikol said:

My initial reply addressed how relations would be different, but as to the question of the nature of wood elves using the term devolved is a bit rougher than I would.

Long long ago there were just elves. They were happy in Uladan and expanded filling first their islands then exploring and founding colonies in distant shores.

Then bad things happened.

Mostly involving the group that would be called Dark Elves and the chaos god of pleasure Slanish. The elf nation barely survived that time of chaos and was forced to abandon many of its colonies to fend for themselves.

The wood elves finding themselves adrift and abandoned by their kin turned from the lofty towers and tomes and cabals of the high elves and found peace and serenity in nature. They realized that if the Dark Elf marauders found them they would be slain or worse so they moved from the cost inland until they encountered Orion the Hunter and Ariel (whose title I now forget). These powerful spirits of the forest took in the cast off elves and taught them to live at one with the woods and to hide from an overwhelming foe and how to lure the unwary into an ambush. And so these wood elves lived for thousands of years in peace and wisdom while the races of man were still savages.

They don’t believe themselves to be declining but rather living in harmony with their surroundings and stable for longer than any human nation has existed.

Most of this is rough memory from my time playing the wood elf armies about a decade or so ago.

cetiken said:

There are actually Wood Elf lands that are within The Empire borders. The Lorelorn forest is in The Empire province of Nordland, and there is a Wood Elf court there that dictates to the Nordland elector count where new settlements may be founded, and strictly controls what resources the empire may harvest from the forest, and in what quantity. The citizens of Nordland, of course, do not like this arrangement. This seems like it would be an ideal situation for a Wood Elf envoy.

-Thorvid

Yes, specifically I am referring to the Wood Elves of the Laurelorn. What Imperial really care's about the Athel Loren as it's outside the empire and pretty much Bretonnia's problem?

jh

morskittar said:

I think that's a brilliant comparison. With wood elves being so "non-civilized" in comparison to humans and high elves, it seems a good fit.

jh