Saturday 28 June 2014

Meadows of Heaven

Don't worry everyone I'm not dead. Well not yet at least. The small eternity since I last posted is due to a combination of the annual mid-year university assignment dump taking longer than anticipated to burn through, good old fashioned forgetfulness and the fact that painting terrain is really long hard work.

And with that, a short while ago I finished my first ever piece of terrain, ever, a Citadel Wood.


And here, with some of my Hobby Minions(tm) in it.


And finally with it some backstory about my growing Wood Elf army.

The Meadows of Heaven 






Deep within the forest of Athel Loren lies the shifting realm of the Meadows of Heaven, a secret place known to few outside the Asrai. Though it is a prosperous and stable realm, it's leaders hold little sway over the rest of The Forrest, for the realm has in recent years declared itself independent of all of the 12 eternal realms of the wood.

Geography

The location of places within Athel Loren hold little meaning, for the glades and pathways within the great forest frequently shift and move. This is especially prominent with the Meadows of Heaven, for the entire territory regularly changes it's position within Athel Loren, appearing near the Pine Glades one week, and being near the edge of the Wild Heath the next, and it is as much for this reason as the territory's recent political estrangement that the Meadows of Heaven is not marked on most maps of Athel Loren. As a general rule of thumb however, the Meadows of Heaven tends to follow a rough orbit of the Oak of Ages, and never enters the region of the Wildwood.

As well as this constant shifting within Athel Loren, the various provinces within the Meadows of Heaven often shift and move as well. However, they never stray particularly far from the 'centre' of the territory, at the heart of which lies an artefact whose origins and purpose are a mystery even to this day. The object itself is a massive sphere partially surrounded by a crescent like border, not unlike the blade of a large pendulum, and is covered by intricate designs. It is known to hold vast magical power, and it's discovery marked the founding of the Meadows of Heaven, and so its silhouette forms the royal insignia of the Meadows of Heaven to this day.

If one were to look upon a map of Athel Loren with the Meadows of Heaven marked upon it, they would notice that the territory itself is tiny, barely a fraction of the size of even the smaller Eternal Realms. Despite this, the various areas of the territory hold a diverse array of specialisations and capacities, almost creating a miniature form of Athel Loren, and so the Meadows of Heaven are largely self-sufficient, which has proven fortunate in recent times. Some of the more notable provinces within the Meadows of Heaven include:

Imaginaerum
The Capital of the Meadows of Heaven, Imaginaerum is the only province within the territory that never changes location, as it is centred around the great object at the heart of the area, which itself dominates the front of the royal hall of the Meadows of Heaven, the seat of government for the Meadows of Heaven and a grand place that also holds the great emblems of each of the noble households that a Wishmaster may be from, as wells as countless treasures. Other features of interest within Imaginaerum include the royal treasury of the Meadows of Heaven, the largest concentration of the territory's wealth (though in truth much of the territory's wealth is highly decentralised and just as much of it is dispersed amongst numerous secret caches to prevent theft), and the royal armoury of the Meadows of Heaven, a vast stockpile of arms and armour, including a magnificent collection of magical items, some common throughout the world, and some which are barely heard of outside it's confines.

The Glade of Poppies
The Glade of Poppies is the largest centre of learning and knowledge within the Meadows of Heaven. It was devastated during Cyanathair's first assault on Athel Loren, but has since largely recovered, though the prized poppies that give the area it's name have yet to reach their original height. This area is also the primary site of manufacture for much of the weapons and armour and the magical items used by the Meadows of Heaven. Of interesting note is that many of these magical items still use older designs no longer in use by much of the rest of Athel Loren, and so many of them are subtly different. A Bow of Loren made within the Meadows of Heaven, for example, will not deliver as many shots as one made from elsewhere in Athel Loren, but instead will be more accurate, and can be used in combination with enchanted arrows. The enchanted arrows themselves use designs less well-suited for large-scale production, and so are limited in use only to individuals of significant status, but include varieties not used by other territories of Athel Loren.

The Celestial Heath and the Fey Glades
The Fey Glades are the centre of magical knowledge and lore within the Meadows of Heaven, and are strange and wondrous places filled with fantastical occurrences and creatures of magic, and it is said that at night the glades glow with faerie light. This area is centred around the Celestial Heath, a grassy hill upon which grows a single tree, the Celestial Tree, from which the twisting skeins of fate can be seen amongst the stars and the passage of the moons with uncanny clarity, and so the Celestial Heath is the primary place of scrying and fortune-reading amongst the Meadows of Heaven, and home to it's greatest seers and prophetesses. Magic study and lore within the Meadows of Heaven is tightly controlled, with many lores of magic being illegal within the territory, and so study around these outlawed lores mainly centres around ways to dispell them. The Meadows of Heaven never took part in the study of Dark Magic that many of the other realms of Athel Loren conducted during the Season of Lunacy, and while this shielded the territory from the Dark Magic's corrupting effects, it also means that to this day mages from the Meadows of Heaven are unable to make use of Dark Magic. At the same time, the lore of High Magic has almost completely been forgotten amongst the Asrai of the Meadows of Heaven, but the territory is also one of the last remaining places that retains knowledge of the fabled Lore of Athel Loren, a strange fey strain of magic said to come from the very power of the forest itself.

The Dead Gardens
The Dead Gardens are the main burial ground in the Meadows of Heaven, and are the final resting place for many of it's greatest heroes, as well as every Wishmaster that has ruled over the territory. At the heart of this area is a large artefact much like the one within Imaginaerum, but partially shattered and half-buried in the ground. Unlike the rest of Athel Loren, the spirits of fallen Asrai in the Meadows of Heaven never form into Tree-kin, and indeed rarely linger within the world at all, with those few who do remaining largely confined to the Meadows of Heaven. Though this makes the area a darkened and haunted place, even more so than the rest of Athel Loren, it also means that Asrai who journey there can sometimes communicate with these spirits of the dead, though this is not a common occurrence. The area is thought to hold powerful magic, and has in recent times become a target of a number of corrupt individuals.

The three rivers
There are three rivers that run through the Meadows of heaven. It is believed that they run mostly underground from the mountains near the forest, for while they sometimes appear in other parts of Athel Loren, they are only consistently found within the Meadows of Heaven. One of them, the River of Riches, is filled with an abundance of metals, gold and precious stones that line its bed, and is the primary source of mineral wealth within the Meadows of Heaven. Another, the Ghost River, is a stream of immensely potent magical energy that flows all around the world, and is a dangerous and terrible force. A contingent of Waywatchers from the Meadows of Heaven has taken up guarding this river as their mission and duty. The final river, the Iskalia or the Singing Maiden, is largely an ordinary river and provides the Meadows of Heaven with a source of fresh water as well as the occasional fish.

The Glade of Twilight
A small and secretive glade within the Meadows of Heaven, those who reside here are extremely isolationist, even by the standards of the Meadows of Heaven (which is itself one of the more isolationist-leaning parts of Athel Loren). The Asrai who dwell within the Glade of Twilight are predominantly a Warrior Kindred, and hone their skills in combat to an incredible degree, and also practice limited amounts of divination and scrying, though not to the same extent as those of the Celestial Heath. Exactly why the Asrai of this area are so secretive, and what they mean by 'mastering the darkness', remains a mystery even to the rest of the Meadows of Heaven...

The Invisible Fortress
The Invisible Fortress surrounds the boarder of the Meadows of Heaven, and is the territory's primary line of defence against attack from enemies. It is a dense network and gauntlet of sentry posts, war-camps, strongpoints, bastions and walls formed from intertwining trees, deepwood alters that drive nearby trees into a killing frenzy, traps and other such defences that extends for some length into the Meadows of Heaven itself, and is notorious for its strength against even the fiercest assaults. Indeed, in the entire history of the Wood Elves, the Invisible Fortress has only been breached once, during Cyanathair's first onslaught at the start of the Secret War.

The Elvenpath
The Elvenpath is a long and winding trail through Athel Loren and forms the main point of passage into the Meadows of Heaven, and indeed with the Invisible Fortress in place its only point of entry without magical assistance. Though it's exact locations change, it stretches throughout all of Athel Loren, and always ends at the Meadows of Heaven, regardless of the territory's current position. Because of this the Elvenpath forms the main link between the Meadows of Heaven and the rest of the forest, though in times of war it's entry point to the Meadows of Heaven will often be blocked with tree-sung woods.

As well as these there are numerous small halls, shrines, streams, springs, glades and other such places scattered throughout the Meadows of Heaven. Despite its name, the territory is largely dense woodland, with only a few small meadows being present, most of which are used as stable glades.

The same mystical force that binds the various parts of the Meadows of Heaven together also acts as an equalising force in regards to the magic that permeates the rest of Athel Loren, such that the Meadows of Heaven will always follow the time of day and seasonal passage of the outside world, regardless of where in Athel Loren the territory currently presides. It will remain daylight in the Meadows of Heaven for the entirety of the day in the rest of the world (or rather the entirety of the day percieved through Athel Loren) even if the territory is currently within the bounds of Modryn. Likewise, if the world is in the clutches of Summer and the Wild Hunt rides across the lands surrounding Athel Loren, the Meadows of Heaven will also be in Summer even when in Atylwyth. This effect also extends to the area immediately surrounding the Meadows of Heaven, and so Asrai from other realms in Athel Loren can sometimes experience this difference themselves, to varying opinions and reactions.

Society

The Meadows of Heaven was originally founded by a large portion of social misfits and independent-minded souls, and so Asrai from the territory have a tradition and reputation of being both very individualistic and extremely stubborn. They are also occasionally known to be highly emotional, leading to them becoming extremely passionate about subjects dear to them as well as quick to anger or offend. The Meadows of Heaven is one of the few territories of Athel Loren that still retains the older system of kindreds, and examples of every kindred from the past of Athel Loren can be found within it's dominion.

The ruler of the Meadows of Heaven is known as the Wishmaster, a regional title, and this individual will carry both the royal crown of the Meadows of Heaven and the King's Longsword. Unlike many other places in the world, the royal crown of the Meadows of Heaven, a slender thing made from silver and bronze, holds little value, and the primary symbol of office is the King's Longsword, a large two-handed sword forged by Daith himself on commission many seasons before the Meadows of Heaven politically distanced themselves from the other Eternal Realms. Though there is usually only a single Wishmaster, their partner, if there is indeed one, is known to be able to command great sway with them, and the couple of Moenaeron and Lyraelle famously shared the title of Wishmaster throughout their reign.

The Wishmaster will also appoint a royal court, which will include a number of mages from the Fey Glades and the Celestial Heath (Aneaeth Ollissin has traditionally been one of these, though there are instances of her not being part of the royal court), a royal standard bearer to carry the Wishmaster's personal standard, a number of other nobles, and a King's Executioner. The King's Executioner is a title unique to the Meadows of Heaven, and acts as the Wishmaster's avatar in personal combat should the Wishmaster decide not to partake in a challenge, as well as dispatching enemies the Wishmaster harbours particular wrath towards. Because of this the King's Executioner will always fill in the role as champion of the Meadows of Heaven during disputes between realms, instead of the Eternal Guard usually appointed this task. While such an unorthodox action is not universally accepted by the other realms of Athel Loren, they are often forced to resign to it, as the response is usually a second challenge to address the matter, of which the King's Executioner is again appointed as representative and whom often proves the victor in both matches.

Strangely, despite their famously independent mindset, the Asrai of the Meadows of Heaven still use the older leadership titles of Noble and Highborn rather than the names of Glade Lord and Glade Captain used by the rest of Athel Loren. Magic practitioners are however still known as Spellsingers and Spellweavers.

Asrai from the Meadows of Heaven use a slightly different dialect than those from the rest of Athel Loren. While it is largely the same as the more common form of Asrai language, and similar enough that Elves from the Meadows of Heaven and the rest of Athel Loren can usually understand each other, a number of words have slightly different meanings in the Meadows of Heaven, and the Asrai from the territory have a number of unique quirks, colloquialisms and idioms in their speech.

There is also a strong tradition of storytelling in the Meadows of Heaven, and nearly everyone who dwells there will have a favourite tale to tell or hear. Because of this the Meadows of Heaven are one of the few places besides the nymiad court to retain written histories and records, though in this instance these tend to focus mainly on the Meadows of Heaven rather than the greater part of Athel Loren. Likewise, skalds from the Meadows of Heaven also tend to be very accurate when retelling histories of the Wood Elves, though there are still a fair number who will twist the truth to their own ends and so the ceremonial dances of Loec are still the only way to guarantee an accurate historical retelling.

The Meadows of Heaven have traditionally been isolationist even by the standards of the Asrai, almost never interfering in the affairs of other lands unless it was of paramount importance to Athel Loren's safety, though it's armies have frequently mounted sorties into foreign lands to conduct various secret missions. The territory also nonetheless holds strong ties with a large number of the Great Eagles that ally themselves with the Elves, as well as many of the forest's other creatures, though the number of forest spirits within the Meadows of Heaven has historically been much lower than the rest of Athel Loren. It is also then strange to note that the Asrai of the Meadows of Heaven will on occasion accept individuals from other areas into their domain and treat them with genuine hospitality, though they are rarely allowed to return. Perhaps most notable of these individuals are the Bretonnian Damsel Sharon D'adele and the human girl Alicia Liddenell. Needless to say, this is always treated with a large amount of suspicion by the rest of the Asrai in Athel Loren.

Unlike the rest of Athel Loren, the Asrai of the Meadows of Heaven do not worship the entire Elven pantheon, having long ago concluded that most of the Elven gods had abandoned them. Only Isha and Kurnous are still worshipped, and even then the exact practices are often different from the rest of Athel Loren. For example, the Talon of Kurnous is not practised by the Asrai of the Meadows of Heaven, who instead prefer to honour the great hunter by unleashing a first strike of a hundredscore arrows, considering the enemy army itself to be prey more than any individual in it. Many of the Asrai in the rest of Athel Loren consider this to be heresy, but many others grudgingly condone it, provided that such teachings do not leave the bounds of the Meadows of Heaven.

History

The Meadows of Heaven gains it's name from two factors. The relatively constant distance between it's various areas allowed early Elven colonists to gain a point of reference when first navigating Athel Loren, and the historically low numbers of forest spirits in the territory made it something of a sanctuary for Elven colonists menaced by Dryads in the early days of settlement, making it something of a heaven for those early settlers.

While largely following the same conventions of time keeping and historical reference as the rest of Athel Loren, the Meadows of Heaven does hold different names for four great seasons. The Season of Withering is known in the Meadows of Heaven as the Season of Fire, the Season of Retribution and the Season of Redemption are collectively known as the Season of Lunacy, and the Season of Doom is known as the Season of Tears.

The Season of Fire

"HELL TO THE HEAVENS!!"
-warcry of the Beastmen assailing the Meadows of Heaven during Cyanathair's first attack (translated from Dark Tongue)

Though Cyanathair's first assault on Athel Loren, at the very start of the Secret War, affected all of Athel Loren, it remains particularly strong in the Meadows of Heaven, for it is the one time the territory has truly felt threatened. Initially it was thought that the Invisible Fortress, first created during the Winter of Woe some time earlier, would be sufficient to hold back any incursions on the Meadows of Heaven, as the Invisible Fortress was at the time believed to be invincible. Nonetheless the Meadows of Heaven sent several armies to aid in the greater defence of Athel Loren, where they fought with distinction.

This security was brought crashing down when The Corrupter turned it's baleful gaze upon the Meadows of Heaven however. The creature sent titanic hordes to bring the territory to it's knees, and while they were at first deterred by the Invisible Fortress, Cyanathair's innate madness and chaotic nature spoke to the trees and spirits of the Invisible Fortress, as it did to many other parts of Athel Loren, and caused large sections of the defence line to rebel against the Elves, allowing the Beastmen to circumvent the Invisible Fortress and gain direct access to the Meadows of Heaven. Those detachments fighting in other parts of Athel Loren were forced to be recalled, and for the rest of that terrible conflict the entirety of the Meadows of Heaven was consumed by total war. Glade Guard and Eternal Guard cut down thousands of Gors and Ungors in brutal ambushes and raids, Scouts fought running skirmishes with Ungor Raiders, Waywatchers fought a lethal shadow war hunting down Beasts of important status and the terrible monsters unleashed on the Meadows of Heaven while Warhawk Riders and Eagles fought a deadly battle for aerial superiority with flocks of Harpies and winged monstrosities. The Elves of the Glade of Twilight slaughtered through entire warherds unsupported, Spites assailed the enemy with every trick and power they had, the Arboreal Legion smashed it's way through rank after rank of vile creature, and the few Treemen of the Meadows of Heaven fought an unyielding defence of the most sacred glades and trees in the Meadows of Heaven, while the mages of the Fey Glades and the Celestial Heath unleashed the cataclysmic power of The Silent Force, one of the great and terrible spells known only within the Meadows of Heaven, the use of which is forbidden save for the direst emergencies. The Glade of Poppies was left devastated in some of the bloodiest fighting of the entire conflict, and such was the ferocity of the warfare that many of the Glade Guard kindreds in the Meadows of Heaven were wiped out, such as The Light of Dawn and Spellbound Night. To this day their halls remain empty, left preserved as a memorial to their sacrifice. Countless heroes of the Meadows of Heaven were forged in this conflict, and hundreds of tales abound recounting their deeds. In the end the Beastmen horde was broken in an enormous battle that left the Wishmaster of those days slain along with his Eagle companion and mount, and the leader of the Beastmen dead at his blade. Two individuals of note that fought in this battle included a lesser Beastmen Chieftain named Belphegor, who would go on to escape the war, and a young Elf noble by the name of Maxamaron.

The Season of Lunacy

Unlike the rest of Athel Loren, the Asrai of the Meadows of Heaven consider the Season of Retribution and the Season of Redemption to be a single season, which they call the Season of Lunacy, as it is at this time that they consider the rest of the forest to have gone mad. For much of this period and those before it since the aftermath of the Season of Fire, the Meadows of Heaven were largely quiet, focusing mainly on rebuilding their territory. As a result they did not take part in the campaign in Naggaroth, nor did they share in the knowledge of Dark Magic that came back from it, which the Asrai of the Meadows of Heaven would later go on to claim was a wise decision indeed. Because of this the territory was unaffected by the chaos that the rest of Athel Loren was thrown into during this time, and largely looked upon it from without with a mixture of sorrow, confusion and bemusement. It was also during this time that Maxamaron rose to become Wishmaster, and was afflicted by the Winterheart.

During this time the Bretonnian Damsel Sharon D'adele made her journey into Athel Loren, and was rescued by Elves from the Meadows of Heaven and brought there, where she was kept for some time out of fear she may be killed in the madness overtaking the rest of Athel Loren. During her time there she was tutored by the Spellsingers and Spellweavers of the Fey Glades and the Celestial Heath, and came to be on good terms with Tir'j'aelle Taerynen, the Winter Storm. A second 'visitor' into the Meadows of Heaven during this time was a young dark-haired girl named Alicia Liddenell, believed to originally be from somewhere within the human Empire, who twice fell through the Worldroots and landed in Athel Loren close to the Meadows of heaven, where she was brought to and kept. On her second stay she was allowed to settle there permanently, and was awarded a small knife of magical metal after becoming welcomed by the Spites of the Meadows of Heaven. To this day her blue and white dress has become well known in the Meadows of Heaven, and within the territory she is considered something of a mascot or pet.

It was in this time that the great exodus of the Spites began. The overt use of Dark Magic within the bounds of Athel Loren came to terrify many of the Spites that had long since resided within the forest, and many of them fled to what refuge they could find. One such place was the Meadows of Heaven, as the non-use of Dark Magic there had made the territory something of a sanctuary for the nature spirits. And so it was that hundreds of Spites migrated into the Meadows of Heaven, their fear of the growing use of Dark Magic greater than their unease around the Wishmaster. Even now the Meadows of Heaven remains even more infested with Spites than other areas of Athel Loren, and the Spites have formed close ties with the territory, such that Asrai heroes may still make use of them even when many other Elves in Athel Loren cannot.

Throughout this long season the Asrai of the Meadows of Heaven began to grow disillusioned with greater Wood Elf society. Seeing the havoc wrought by the introduction of Dark Magic, and how the other Elves acted with it, as well as Ariel's absence afterwards, began to make the Elves in the Meadows of Heaven think their kin had lost their way. Evidence found in this time that the other Asrai of Athel Loren had allowed Beastmen to lurk the forest, and the untimely demise of Adanhu and Gruarth only brought further disdain, and so it was decided that the Meadows of Heaven would separate from the Eternal Realms of Athel Loren. As the season came to a close, the leaders of the Meadows of Heaven left their places in the councils of Athel Loren, renounced the leadership of Ariel and Orion, and declared themselves independent of the 12 Realms of Athel Loren.

The Season of Tears

The present times have been a mixed blessing for the Meadows of Heaven. The territory is now the most prosperous it has been since the start of the Secret War, but it must now contend with enemies from within as well as from without.

The other Asrai of Athel Loren have a wide range of opinions regarding the Meadows of Heaven and their split. Some consider them dangerous renegades or treacherous deviants, and would love nothing more than to invade the territory and bring it to heel. Others do not necessarily agree with their ways or methods, but do not have any ill intent towards them so long as they continue to aid the forest. Others still share their sentiments and provide them with aid or even flock to their banners. The Eternal Realms are likewise divided in thought. Talsyn is the most unaccepting of the Meadows of Heaven and its independence, with Araloth being the most prominent voice of those who consider those in the Meadows of Heaven to be traitors. Arranoc is likewise staunchly opposed to the Meadows of Heaven, as they both divert guests away from their fate as sacrifices and bring winter into the otherwise never-ending summer. Both these sentiments are mutual, with the Meadows of Heaven considering Talsyn to be something of a centre for the corruption they perceive in Athel Loren (and the Wishmaster considering Araloth to be unfit to lead), and Arranoc to be duplicitous and dishonourable to outsiders. On the other hand, Modryn and Anmyr are both largely supportive of the Meadows of Heaven, for bringing a rare glimpse of daylight and great amounts of aid in trying to heal the land respectively, and the Asrai of the Meadows of Heaven feel quite close to those of Anmyr, with both groups feeling a common bond in their suffering at the hands of Cyanathair. Torgovann and Argwylon both largely consider the Meadows of Heaven to be backwards and rustic fools, while those in the Meadows of Heaven consider both realms to be playing with fire, meddling with dangerous forces best left undisturbed. These sentiments are not universal however, and Asrai of every opinion regarding the Meadows of Heaven can be found in any of the Eternal Realms, albeit in varying amounts. Even the forest spirits are divided, with some considering the Meadows of Heaven to be an aberration, while others believe it to be a seed of renewal and the salvation of the forest. Orion himself would be happy to make war upon the territory, as he and the current Wishmaster have never been in agreement on most things, however Ariel is, for now at least, content to allow the Meadows of Heaven to continue on their way, understanding that those who dwell there still serve the forest in their own way.

Tensions remain high, but for now an uneasy peace remains between the Meadows of Heaven and the other realms of Athel Loren, and so the Asrai of the Meadows of Heaven have turned their attentions outward. While no longer officially following the mandates of the King and Queen in the wood, the leaders of the Meadows of Heaven agree with the need for greater action against Chaos in the wider world, and so armies from the Meadows of Heaven frequently travel abroad to hunt down the children of Chaos, though their deeds generally go unrecognised and unrecorded by others, even more so than other Wood Elves. Belphegor, survivor of the Beastmen assault on the Meadows of Heaven during the Season of Fire, has risen to become a powerful warlord, and is currently amassing forces for another attack on the Meadows of Heaven in the name of the Master of Skulls. Another evil now covets the territory however, in the form of the countess Justine Favole, who has tasted the power that resides in the Dead Gardens and craves to command it's entirety, and so her followers and minions now assail the Meadows of Heaven in ever-increasing numbers and ferocity. The Asrai of the Meadows of Heaven have also come into conflict with the servants of the accursed Chaos God Slaanesh, though their intentions still remain a mystery.

The Glory of Days Long Past

The methods of battle and war used by the Meadows of Heaven are best described as old but effective. Their armies are frequently well-trained and equipped, though the equipment itself is often different to that now used by the rest of Athel Loren. Glade Guard, for example, continue to use the Glade Guard Longbow, which has been largely phased out of the rest of Athel Loren in favour of the Asrai Longbow. The older Glade Guard Longbow has less power at longer ranges than it's newer cousin, but much greater power at short ranges, and Glade Guard from the Meadows of Heaven train heavily in Asrai Archery techniques to effortlessly fire on the move, allowing them to quickly get into shorter ranges to make full use of this power. Other units tend to use the lighter Scout Bow, a design almost exclusive to the Meadows of Heaven that is less powerful than either the Asrai Longbow or the Glade Guard Longbow, but is considerably lighter than either and thus better suited for easily and quietly moving through dense woodland, or as a sidearm for high ranking nobles. It is also cheap and easy to produce, allowing any Elf from the Meadows of Heaven to own one. Eternal Guard, likewise, still practice extensively in Eternal Guard Fighting Styles, allowing them to rain down much more blows than their compatriots in the other realms of Athel Loren, while the Wardancer Weapons used by the Wardancers of the Meadows of Heaven hit much harder than those used by other Wardancers. Warhawks from the Meadows of Heaven tend to have less brute strength than those from other areas, but are much more nimble, allowing them and their riders to conduct quick hit-and-run attacks to disrupt enemy forces. The few forest spirits greater than Spites that reside in the Meadows of Heaven are far more brutal than in other parts of Athel Loren, with Dryads from the territory eschewing close-packed formations in favour of viscous attacks in combat, while the Tree-kin of the Arboreal Legion are known to strike with far more force than Tree-kin formed from the departed spirits of fallen Elves. All Elves from the Meadows of Heaven still train extensively in firing while moving, though this comes at the expense of developing the lightening-quick reaction speeds other Elves are known for. While the magical support of the Meadows of Heaven is more limited in it's application, the territory boasts a far greater array of magical items than the other realms of Athel Loren, which when combined with the affinity Spites have for Elves in the territory, ensures that leaders of the Meadows of Heaven can be equipped to deal with an extremely wide array of threats.

Where the Asrai of the Meadows of Heaven go, the glory of days long past travels with them. 

(Please ignore the colour of some parts. They're things or places mentioned in the new Wood Elf army book that I've forgotten the official name for, and I'm currently unable to access my copy of the new book to check, so I made them blue for easy reference when I go back over it after checking in the new book). 

And to finish everything off here's a picture of the road still to go. The rest of the year is going to be very busy...