LE Dungeons And Dragons/Tolken Overhaul

[SaturnFX]

You people know nothing, as a native scandinavian I can tell you what the ORIGINAL elves looked like. See below:

 

The elves or älvor as they are called by the native people. Are fair white dressed women who appears on open fields when there is fog. They dance in circles and sing songs to lure people into the fog never to return. Ävla is the singular form of älvor, and if one would translate it it would mean river. They are tall blonde women very beautiful but very dangerous.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/%C3%84ngs%C3%A4lvor_-_Nils_Blomm%C3%A9r_1850.jpg

They appear when there is fog like below:

http://atomsforpeace.blogg.se/images/dimma_1170235090.jpg

These are the original elves that Tolkien copied more or less. Skyrim's elves and Tolkien's elves are way off if you look at the original elves.

 

Although not a native Scandinavian, I am British of Celtic/Norse heritage and can identify with that kind of view. In most British myths, elves were also portrayed as tall. It was pixies, knockers and boggarts that were small.

 

Depends on how far back you want to go.

 

Scandinavian elves are a merged christian and norse mythos..but to truely find the roots of an elf, look at the old nordic understanding:

 

"The earliest preserved descriptions of elves comes from Norse mythology. In Old Norse they are called álfar (nominative singular álfr).

 

Men could be elevated to the rank of elves after death, such as the petty king Olaf Geirstad-Elf. The smith hero Völundr is identified as 'Ruler of Elves' (vísi álfa) and 'One among the Elven Folk' (álfa ljóði), in the poem Völundarkviða, whose later prose introduction also identifies him as the son of a king of 'Finnar', an Arctic people respected for their shamanic magic (most likely, the sami). In the Thidrek's Saga a human queen is surprised to learn that the lover who has made her pregnant is an elf and not a man. In the saga of Hrolf Kraki a king named Helgi rapes and impregnates an elf-woman clad in silk who is the most beautiful woman he has ever seen."

[SaturnFX]

I completely agree with you about the elves they, in my opinion, look horrendous in Skyrim. I want my elves to look like this:

 

http://www.teralevelingguide.com/wp-content/gallery/characters/HighElf_1.jpg

 

Or This

 

http://www.cuded.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/20101115_card_image___high_elf_ver__1_0_by_reaper78.jpg

 

NOT THIS:

 

http://www.subjectivemonkey.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/high-elf-150x150.png

 

 

Well, the first one is an elf. bit long in the ear, but within acceptable limits I suppose

 

The second is some sort of donkey woman with a kickarse bod...but not an elf. Some different race entirely...her face is slightly elvish, but the ears are just ridiculous.

[Hermoor]

Scandinavian elves are a merged christian and norse mythos..

Not really, this is more folklore than mythology. Just like people in scandinavia believed in trolls and forest spirits they believed in these elves. They never got it from christianity, it's folklore. There is a small difference between folklore and mythology. As for elf ears being pointy, tha is a Tolkien invention.

Edited November 25, 2011 by Hermoor

[llidd]

This is about using AD&D and tolkien to mod the Universe and Game engine.

So Far I weigh in with the notion of Orcs. They ought to be a EVIL Right mean and beligerent. And there should be bands and caves full of them. The half orcs should civilized enough that they are crimminal (every empty prison cell is two mean aggresive ork) but they should be often found as bandits - this much is true: I had a band of Orks just yesterday. They dressed and identified as imperial soldiers, I came out of the woods to the road and we saw another, They ask, "100gold because you uh... broke the law." Haha. For fun I asked them What law? Right Then they leader got f'd up with waiting and pulled his weapon at me. having 7000 hard earned gold meant i was going to fight him dead. Later i found the naked bodies of three imperial guards men.

Great scene.

 

I am all about having meaner creatures.

 

My position for MOD or Overhaul is Creatures! The creatures are great. But we need MORE. It ought to be cleverly placed and I would NOT write the entire monster manual into the Overhaul. Just the best and most suiting creatures who fit skyrim and the scope fo the mod. Some that best fit caves. Some that best fit basements. Some that best fit woods. Something awful in long lost dungeons. (Falmer are great! But it would be nice to run into an entirely populated underground city. With a way to sneak through.)

 

My monster manuals aren't here now. Or I would simply read, then list and make a case for my top 5.

 

I do have imagination So... Off the cuff.

1. Centaurs > they are hunting giants in the remote "blank" region > MEAN, Really Really Mean when they catch you gathering.

2. Goblins. > Swamps > Hunting droves of Boar

3. Bugbear. > Caves > Living off Slimes

4. pixies > night > rare > can be captured (like bugs and gives "pixie in a jar") alcemeic super boost for magic. Plus a Hidden Super curse for killing a pixie. Other wise, they fly around, swarm and do one damage spells(like little evil lightning bugs) the queen pixie can disease or curse you. Like an area of effect for say 1000sec duration randomly all over the map once each night.

5. Meaner or varied giants. (some huge ones toss boulders) some are smaller and intelligent enough to talk to given your alignment.

 

 

Five off the cuff.

 

 

 

Disclaimer

TLDR: Keep the thread focused and on topic please

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Lets not get hung up about where the zebra and giraffes (Elves and Ears) came from and ruin a perfectly good thread!

Example Thread Here

Maybe, If you want to discuss elves - start an elf thread? I was hopeing this could be for DND and Tolkien Overhaul.

I couldn't really give a hoot about the TES race debate.

It isn't obvious I guess, but we all have a very well thought out opinion on where and what the races should be and how they ought to operate. When I offer my opnion - My opinion is formed and from my family and fellow friends (roughly 25 people who influence my view of the lore)

What doesn't work is then the thousands on this web site from various places in North America with Various Families them selves with their own 25 people to influnce their view of what lore IS couldn't agree with me. We are all different with different imaginations and influences.

So lets just work at taking the best of our creativity and not hurt feelings or get hung on Debate.

 

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Edited November 25, 2011 by llidd

[VreyAar]

Scandinavian elves are a merged christian and norse mythos..

Not really, this is more folklore than mythology. Just like people in scandinavia believed in trolls and forest spirits they believed in these elves. They never got it from christianity, it's folklore. There is a small difference between folklore and mythology. As for elf ears being pointy, tha is a Tolkien invention.

Again, Tolkien NEVER EVER mentioned pointy ears on elves. NEVER!!!

 

"I am afraid, if you will need drawings of hobbits in various attitudes, I must leave it in the hands of someone who can draw. ... I picture a fairly human figure ... fattish in the stomach, shortish in the leg. A round, jovial face; ears only slightly pointed and 'elvish'; hair short and curling (brown)."

JRRT - Letters #27, writing to Houghton Mifflin circa March-April 1938

 

Thanks google and 3 seconds.

Tolkien envisioned pointy ears as envisioned in this letter about hobbits determining the hobbit look. it was simply taken for granted they have pointy leaflike ears, like in the name legolas as noted:

"The first root is found in 'Legolas - Greenleaf' while the second appears in 'Amon Lhaw - hill of hearing'. As such the dual meaning of 'las' as both 'ear' and 'leaf' apparently due to the similar shapes of the two things is carried over into The Lord of the Rings."

 

I suppose we can then reflect on who may have been Tolkien's literary guides. Ole Shakespeare more than likely gave him influence

"The influence of Shakespeare and Michael Drayton made the use of elf and fairy for very small beings the norm. In Victorian literature, elves usually appeared in illustrations as tiny men and women with pointed ears and stocking caps. An example is Andrew Lang's fairy tale Princess Nobody (1884)"

 

Face it, they have pointy ears...but what a small and inconsequencial matter to get stuck on. really? we want to debate on ears? -sigh-

So he said in some letter that hobbits have slightly pointed ears.

The rest of that post is just a pile of crap.

 

There is nothing to debate.

Edited November 25, 2011 by VreyAar

[SaturnFX]

So he said in some letter that hobbits have slightly pointed ears.

The rest of that post is just a pile of crap.

 

There is nothing to debate.

 

You may leave the thread...your not required to post here.

 

Anyhow, back on topic. Tolkien/D&D overhaul. Minotaurs, centaurs, angry orcs, elves with pointy ears and highly attractive, etc. I think a short list should come together for most wanted.

Centaurs..well, thats tricky. They are found in Valenwood, but not sure if there is enough foresty areas in skyrim to truely support a population of em...perhaps a small tribe or something that wandered up, but such a thing would have to be done well considering the awesomeness of the creature to begin with.

 

Tree ents would be quite cool, but a big project. highly resistant to physical damage, all but immune to frost...but fire is obviously the trick here.

 

I miss goblins. sure, they are level 1 creatures, but in swarms, they can be quite annoying...so, swarms of goblins hopping around...and/or kobolds

 

Eventually, I would love a tribute to Salvatore's dark elf trilogy and someone do a deep, deep, nearly endless cavern that leads to a very evil dark elf city...but that is a huge project..still, it would be legendary if done properly...especially if the dark elf overhaul is done to make them look like drow.