High Forest

High Forest
Flag of High Forest
Goverment
Type of Goverment	Senatorial Dictatorship
Head of State	Malfurion Stormrage
Secondary Leaders	Druid Leadership Brann Bearmantle Taflarion Stormrage Flagril Staghelm Sentinels Tyrande Whisperwood Vareesa Windrunner
Geography
Location	The Forests of Athel Loren
Capital	Fraitenhoom
Population
Languages	Sindarian
Demonym	High Sindarian
Religion	Elven Pantheon
Races, and Ethnicity	Sindar Elves
Population	Placeholder

“That is the fairest of all the dwellings of my people. There are no trees like the trees of that land. For in the autumn their leaves fall not, but turn to gold. Not till the spring and the new green opens do they fall, and then the boughs are laden with yellow flowers; and the floor of the wood is golden, and golden is the roof, and its pillars are of silver, for the bark of the trees is smooth and grey.”

— Legolas Windrunner

High Forest is a massive kingdom that is the Home of the Sindar Elves of the forest of Mirkwood. It lies just north of Gondor, and is located in the large Mirkwood Forest of Central Europe, and borders the eastern half of the Rhine River for a long stretch, while being mainly within southern Westros. High Forest is the most powerful truly Sindar Civilization that remains in the world, and the forests of Athel Loren have come together to create a civilization that is glorious for the Sindar Ancestors and has become truly powerful.

The forest holds one of the fortresses of the reclusive Sindar Elves, and within the trees is the largest population of Sindar Elves outside of perhaps the Lothlorian Elves or remaining Sindar Elves of Ulthuan of which both are questionable. The Sindar Elves arrived in Athel Loren a broken people and have grown steadily in population since their arrival in Athel Loren to the point that they are much less an endangered race as they once were. The Sindar Elves have blossemed as well through their belief and thus advantages gained by their relationship with the forest. Alongside the Sindar Elven population of the land their is a sizeable number of Centaurs that live within the forests of the eastern plains. This Centaur population is one of the few remaining populations in Europe after their steady decline following the Eternity Wars and the racism they have faced outside of forests ever since.

High Forest has little in the way of an economy although they have become a heavy trader in wood to the outside alliances they have created in order to recieve back certain resources that they cannot recieve. This trading has allowed them to precure much in the way of an increased industry without the worry that they will be selling out their ancestors the way the ancient High Elves did, or the way the Lothlorian Elves have done.

The Sindar Elves of High Forest are very close with Gondor, and more recently have opened up a diologue with the Kingdom Of Lucerne. These two relationships are basically the only contact that the KIngdom of High Forest has with anyone outside of their fellow Sindar Elves of Quel`Thalas, and their ancient relatives in Lothlorian, or Ulthuan. Most of this openess is in counter to what their leadership under Furion Stormrage has been known to be about since the exodus of the Sindar Elves from Ulthuan. This forest is the closest it comes to the old glory days of the Sindar Elves of Ulthuan, and for this reason the isolationism that they have went into is seen by the culture as a neccessary evil and a new born Sindar Elf is simply brought up to understand that the forest is his home and they will love it till the day they die for it. Although a slow growing people the Sindar Elves of High Forest have become quite large due to their low death rates, and growing population base. This makes them the second largest concentration of Elves in Europe behind only the huge Kingdom of Lothlorian in actual numbers.

High Forest was founded as a kingdom during the Exodus of the Sindar Elves, and its founding was supposed to be an extremely open and simple expansion. The original information that they had recieved about High Forest was that it was a beautiful forest teeming with gentle forest life, but when they arrived they discovered a nest of Trollocs that was in the hundreds of thousands. Fighting against the Trollocs the Sindar Elves would form an alliance alongside the spirits of the forest, and the Centaurs and through all of this they defeated the Trollocs and forced them eastward out of the forest. Following this there was a massive buildup of the population of High Forest and from there the growth of the two would expand to the point that their safety was more then secure. High Forest would exit their isolation to further an alliance with Gondor and Lucerne and took part in the Battle of Minas Ithil, and the Second Battle of Tree Hill. Following these victories they would attempt to secure more Dragonbone Root for the making of a sort of superweapon, and in return for the assistence of Gondor, and Lucerne in gathering this they would trade massive quantities of wood which their wisps are able to gather without harming the trees.

Geography

High Forest is located in Central Europe within the subregion of Westros in the deep south of Westros. The Kingdom itself lies north of Gondor, and Mordor. Lies east of The Kingdom of Lucerne. Lies west of the Trolloc forests of Mirkwood. Along the western border of High Forest is the mighty Rhine River of which allows the Sindar Elves to trade with their allies in Lucerne through the use of the small port of Auberdine.

The forest of Mirkwood that High Forest lies in is one of the largest and most dense forests in Europe, only eclipsed in size by Drakenwald, and Athel Loren.The Star Mountain, and the lost peaks are extremely large mountain peaks that exist within High Forest, and it is at the top of the Star Mountains that lies Talonreach the great city of the Druids of the Talon. At the top of the Lost Peaks lies the nest of the Great Eagles, and it is from here that they fly and make their homes.

History

Early History

In the early times of High Forest the land was ruled by the Woses, and when they fled the Woses allies in the Centaurs took control but they were beaten back by many external enemies.

“I think now that all of us were looking for something different. Alleria wanted something she could settle down in and be at peace. Sylvanus wanted strength. I wanted to find something that was different.”

— Vareesa Windrunner

High Forest was a forest that had been sighted by many Sindar Elves while they took part in the War of Vengeance. When these Sindar Elves returned and the talk amongst the Sindarian people turned to leaving Ulthuan and the moral failure of the High Elves, one of the first and most popular talking points was High Forest. Above this talk it would be the scouting done of this forest by Vareesa Stormrage during the War of Vengence that would come to make High Forest defined by the Sindar Elves.

War of Vengeance

Main Article : The War of Vengeance

During the War of Vengeance the Sindar Elven elements of the High Elf army were deployed mainly in areas with large forests that would assist in their ability to act according to their strengths. But it was not these large armies that would discover High Forest instead it would be Vareesa Windrunner who would discover it as she scouted eastward on a personal mission for Malfurion Stormrage. It was during the War of Vengeance that the life of Vareesa along with her family would change completely. She went along with her sisters when the call of the Pheonix King went out for all Elves to assist the war effort in France against the aggressive and monsterous Dwarves. As the conflict continued the four siblings began to show a split in what they were interested in. Vareesa followed the teachings of Maflurion Stormrage and looked for a forest that teemed with the life that the world was made of. Her siblings though went to different forests, and in this way the four siblings begin to grow apart as the war went on. This devide in which forests they all were visiting would have little importance during the war but when the Elves were forced to return to Ulthuan following the attack by the Dark Elves the three siblings found themselves serperated for the first time on how to move forward. Vareesa was direhard in her devotion to the high Druid in Furion Stormrage, and because of this she wished to follow whatever command Furion told them to do. This was different then Sylvanus who had become involved in a minor off shoot of the SIndar Elves led by a prince named Laera Sunstrider and she wished to listen to his teachings about the forest. In the center of this debate were Alleria, and Legolas who simply wanted to be a part of the forest as they had always been.

The Exodus of Ulthuan

See Also : Sindar Elves

"There comes a point when all things end. A time in the lifeline of a people when the glory, and honor of the past are replaced by the greed and coruption of the future. I shall not sit by and watch as the island of Ulthuan burns around me. I shall not watch as the people I have loved and cared for since my birth are destroyed by the madness of our failings."

-Malfurion Stormrage

Eventually the coruption of the High Elves reached a point where no longer could Malfurion or the vast majority of the Sindar Elves in Ulthuan accept the madness of Ulthuan and in this way Malfurion began the exodus of the Sindar Elves of Ulthuan to the shores of France.

Founding High Forest

When the Elves arrived in Mirkwood Forest they found it wasn't as unihabited as it once was. The forests now teemed with the darkness brought on by the coming of Trolloc to the forest. These Trolloc were led by a powerful Myridrrim, and due to this they were growing quite powerful. The Sindar Elves devided themselves along the western portion of High Forest and at first Malfurion entered them into a battle of attrition while they attempted to find a way to understand why the Trollocs were so organized. The battle raged for years and the Elves founded themselves their first settlement in the settlement of Nonatar where the vast portion of the Sindar Elves came to live while they battled themselves against the Trolloc.

Awakening the Trees

See Also : Myridrrim It was during this stalemate that the Sindar Elves were visited by Coeddil of whome was an ancient Ent or spirit of the forest. Coeddil told them of how at the center of the forest lay the grandfather tree which was a tree of unimagenable power if used in the wrong way. He told them that a Myridrrim had made its lair there and was calling thousands of Trollocs to the forest where they were defiling the beauty that was High Forest.

"If you do not act this forest and everything in it will fall into darkness. That may matter little to the humans but in you I sence a caring for the trees that I have no senced for many years. Prove the rest of my people wrong and save this forest. Prove your people wrong and do the right thing for the right reasons. If you do this the forest will stand beside you."

-Coeddil

Following this meeting the Sindar Elves undertook a massive invasion of the central section of High Forest where Malfurion led the forces of the Sindar Elves against the numerically superior Trolloc. The battles were fierce but eventually the Elves were within the lair of the Myridrrim and it was here that the forest would make itself known once again. As the Sindar Elves invaded the lair of the leader they heard a massive howl go throughout the forest and following this the owl scouts they were using gave dire warnings that unimagenable numbers of Trolloc were moving against the Sindar Elves. As the Sindar Elves were preparing to be overwhelmed Malfurion battled alongside many of the leaders against the Myridrrim who had become nearly a god by eating from the Grandfather Tree. As the battle raged and the Trolloc begin overwhelming the Orcs the forest turned on the Trollocs and came to the aid of the Sindar Elves.

Founding of Grandfather Tree

The Forest unleashed themselves on the unsuspecting Trollocs in numbers that were in the thousands. Ents, Eagles all manner of creatures came out of hiding and poured against the Trollocs in a massacre that killed tens of thousands of Trolloc and left the forest utterly clear of Trolloc. Inside the Lair of the Mydrrill the forest sent two of its greatest in the form of Coeddil, Treebeard, and Quickbeam of whome took the fight over and destroyed the Myrdrril who found he couldn't damage the tree spirits because of how much of the Grandfather tree that he had injested. With the death of the Mydrril and nearly all the Trollocs the forest was cleared of the darkness that had plagued it. Malfurion stood alongside his leadership cohort and prepared to find out what the forest would do now, and he was much happier when Treebeard stepped forward and told him that the Elves were now in control of the forest until such point when they turned against it. The decision was made that the Sindar Elves could live amongst the forest and asisst the forest in its defence and in return the forest would make sure that the Elves always had a place in the places of High Forest. With them coming together the Sindar Elves constructed a vast palace defence amongst the once destroyed ruins of Grandfather Tree and from here the center of the religion of the Sindar Elves was constructed around Grandfather Tree.

Gondor Civil War

Main Article : Gondor Civil War

When Mordor caused the civil war in Gondor, one of the main points of the war was the northern section of the battlefield near the fortress of Cair Andros. Cair Andros was something that throughout the entire conflict was being continuesly attacked by both the forces of Mordor, and their vassals in the region. The forces of Gondor were being pushed back and drained to the point that they were nearly destroyed and this was getting worse when a massive Orc force came and besieged the city with the obvious approach of ending Cair Andros. Calls for aid went out to Gondor's main army but they were pinned down in southern Gondor between Mordor, and Umbar and thus couldn't assist. When the call came back that they were not going to get any assistence the commander of the fortress who at the time was the Gondorian General Melian Pasen gave the basic order that they were going to die in the fortress. The siege continued for weeks and the garrison was wittled down over this time and was preparing to fall when a large force of Sindar Elves from High Forest appeared in the north flanked by a small force of Gondor Cavalry led by Edrion Elessar the brother of the King. The Elven Force had been convinsed by Edrion Elessar to assist Gondor and when noone had volunteered to go the Elven commander Glorifindal had led a massive army eastward towards Cair Andros. The Elven/Gondor force took Mordor completely by suprise and the Mordor force was nearly completely destroyed.

Garrison

Following their victory the forces of Gondor watched as the Sindar Elves of High Forest poured forces into the Cair Andros region and went about rebuilding the defences and using their massive force to make sure noone attacked while this was underway. For the remainder of the Civil War the Sindar Elves of High Forest led by Glorifindal would remain in Cair Andros and make the northern front a complete victory for Gondor and thus allowing Gondor to pull forces out of the north and into the center.

The Journey

Main Article : The Journey

Meeting with High Forest

See Also : High Forest

``I tried not to let my men and son know that it had been decades since I had seen Malfurion and we were basically entering a forest that our only relationship with was that we dropped off rare earth for them, and they dropped off massive numbers of wood for us. In the end my experiance with Malfurion was a mystery to me. Did it mean anything to him the talks we had. You just never knew whether we`d be greated by a handshake or an arrow.``

-Aragorn Elessar

Following the promising meetins that Aragorn had with William Lovie III. he truly believed that he was dealing with someone that would be able to be trusted. Aragorn understood that the forces available to him were not going to be enough to take the Orcs on one on one, and when he had discussed the troops that would be available to William he knew that they would need more solders and thus he decided to go to his silent ally in High Forest. It had been decades since he had spoken to Malfurion, and almost that long since he`d had any reports about the so for all he knew they could all be dead. Either way though he took a small cohort of his Palace Gaurd alongside his son Eldarion of whome had often talked of the mystery of the Elves. As they reached the outskirts of the forest Aragorn understood that their arrival would have been detected by the Elves so they waited on the outskirts for many hours before they were finally approached by Shandis Stormrage and a large group of Sentinels.

Talking to Malfurion

See Also : Malfurion Stormrage

``Walking into a forest where all you have heard of leads to death. Talking to an Ent of whome you`ve heard of in legend eats children who misbehave. All of this and yet most of me believed that there was little hope they actually would join us in the fight.``

-Aragorn Elessar II.

Aragorn was able to use the connection between he and Malfurion to convinse Shandis to get her father so that the two leaders could meet. Shandis would leave and her rangers would remain unmoving in a sort of watchful patrol of the force of Aragorn. When Malfurion stepped out of the forest and into the camp all the men assembled were shocked outside of Aragorn who had already met the great Druid. Malfurion was a Druid of the Sindar Elves and thus stood around eight feet tall with large antlers, and a general feeling that gave you both dread, and confidence. Malfurion bid Aragorn to take a walk for him, and when he agreed he watched with silent fear as Malfurion walked into the forest. Aragorn knew he had no choice and thus begin to follow him into the forest when he was stopped by Eldarion of whome didn`t want anything to happen to his father. Aragorn ashured him that he and Malfurion were friends and that nothing was going to happen. As he walked into the forest he finally came into a clearing where he saw Malfurion standing beside a tree but as he got closer he realized he was talking to the tree, and then when he spoke his first word he fell to the ground in fear and suprise when the tree got up and moved in his direction. As he waited for death the tree stopped and picked up Aragorn with its massive limbs and introduced himself as Coeddil the keeper of the grove of the ancients. The three would talk for a time and come to an agreement that High Forest would come to the assistence of Gondor and Lucerne and attempt to relieve the city of Minus Ithil.

Points of Interest

Major Settlement

Malanaar

See Also : Malanaar

Malanaar is a massive Tree City in High Forest that is in size only exclipsed by the capital of HIgh Forest in Fraitenhoom. The city is located in the south of High Forest, and is Mirkwood's first line of defence against the rampaging hordes of Mordor that often threaten southern High Forest, and more recently the forces of Bolten as well.

Malanaar was first constructed as one of the original settlements of the Sindar Elves entering Mirkwood Forest. From Malanaar they engaged the Trollocs, and during these years of fighting Malanaar was badly damaged by the firest of the Trollocs of whom got quite near the settelement during the fighting. Once the Trollocs were defeated the settlement of Malanaar grew faster, but still many chose to settle instead within Fraitenhoom, or Gail Alenia where the threat of Trolloc attacks was not constant and dire. When the forces of Bolten begin harassing the Sindar Elves of High Forest they would kill many Elves of Malanaar as the defenders were not prepared for the Boltens to dress as Gondor soldiers so that they could get close to the sentinels defending the border.

Gail Alenia

See Also : Gail Alenia

Gail Alenia is a large Sindar Elven settlement within High Forest, and located the closest to Grandfather Tree as any of the High Forest cities. Gail Alenia was founded briefly after the construction of Grandfather Tree and its creation was mainly due to the fact that they knew there would be many pilgrims who wanted to see Grandfather Tree and this would act as a stopping point.

Gail Alenia is the site of the construction of the Grandmother Tree where the Sindar Elves are following the wishes of the Grandfather Tree in attempting to construct a massive Tree through the use of Dragonbone gathered by Lucerne and Gondor. 

Gail Alenia is perhaps the least defended city within High Forest and this has a lot to do with the way its construction was planned. As the Sindar Elves moved out from Grandfather tree and towards some of the growing settlements throughout Mirkwood they found that some went to the spot that would become Gail Alenia due to its beauty. These early settlers grew quickly due to the fact that this area had absolutely no threat to it from Trollocs. As this became common knowledge the area became a hotbed of industry where they Sindar Elves would create their clothes, and weapons within the relative safety of Gail Alenia.

Talonreach

See Also : Talonreach

Talonreach is a large Sindar Elven city within High Forest that has become the center of the Druids of the Talons due to its location. Talonreach is located in the extreme altitude of the massive Star Mountains, and its construction took many years and only finished due to the growing alliance with the Great Eagles.

Talonreach was first invisioned by Taflarion Stormrage as he was flying across the skies of High Forest and saw the massive hieght of the Star Mountains and took a group of his Talon Druids to its hieght where they became forming meetings on. As time went on they begin constructing a temple at the peak of the mountain and from here it grew from a Temple to an entire Palace ground, and then a surrounding housing element. The Temple has created a massive Tree from its roots, and this has become the centerpiece of their citizens living spaces. Talonreach is basically unaporachable from any position, and because of this it has continued to grow past the Beast Wars, and now sits as one of the largest concetrations of Sindar Elves in High FOrest as they have come to Talonreach in droves due to its safety and beauty.

Dolanaar

See Also : Dolanaar

Dolanaar is a city in High Forest controlled by the Sentinels. The Tree itself which is the center of the city, is located on the extreme northeast of the Mirkwood Forest, and because of this it has been the first stop for most encroaching Trolloc forces.

Built into a massive tree the city is home to nearly 3,000 elves, and is the home base of the Sindar Elves on the western side of High Forest. The city of Dolanaar has long been the first branch of the High Forest defences and for this reason the forces present at Dolanaar are trained with the greatest of care, and no expenses are spared in arming the soilders of this area. For this reason the Trollocs have long taken massive casualties in their attemptes to bypass the city, and get into High Forest.

Fraitenhoom

See Also : Fraitenhoom

Fraitenhoom is the capital of the Kingdom of High Forest , and the largest city of the Sindar Elves, of the Mirkwood forest . The City was one of the later foundings by the High Forest Sindar Elves , but it grew the quickest due to it's protective site, and the deep roots of the internal Tree. The city is protected because it is surrounded by a massive chasm of unknown origin and this means that the only way across is the fallen white tree, or the numerous bridges that they have constructed.

Fraitenhoom is one of few places that have never been seen or entered by anyone outside of the Sindar Elves or their Centaur allies, and thus it is extremely unique to the outside world.

The city is the home of the main center of Goverment for High Forest, and because of this there is a heavy amount of defences built in the surrounding regions. Inside the city is as well the Circle of Nature , which is a powerful communium spot for the Sindar Elves and the forest of Mirkwood. Deep in the roots of the tree are also a Barrow Dens of which contains hundreds of sleeping Druids of which are protected from the darkness of the outside world by the deep roots of the tree of Fraitenhoom.

Fraitenhoom was founded originally by the Sindar Elves as they entered the area as they found it secured from anything that might harm them. Expanding the city into a true city through the construction of hundreds of platforms throughout the trees surrounding the cliff the city bloomed into a true population center. The chasm that surrounded the great tree would become more open as the Elves constructed numerous bridges allowing entry from all angles but all of these were able to be destroyed at a moment notice so that any force attempting to enter would still have to cross through the mighty White Tree Bridge in the front of the city.

Barrow Dens

See Also : Barrow Dens

Forts

Norant'har fortress

Unique Spots

Grandfather Tree

See Also : Grandfather Tree

Grandmother Tree 

See Also : Grandmother Tree

Lost Peaks

See Also : Lost Peaks

The Forest

Main Article : Athel Loren

Noteable Ents

See Also : Ents

Treebeard

See Also : Treebeard

Coeddil

See Also : Coeddil

Goverment

The Sindar Elves are as spoken of earlier devided into two different societies. The first being the Druids, and the second being the Sentinels. Both groups group together to lead the Elves of High Forest .

The Druids

The Sindar Elves of High forest are ruled by a Druid Council. The druid council is made of the 5 most honorable druids of the day, and the five then appoint one of their member to be the Arch-Druid and the leader of High Forest. The Druids while serving a front line military role, as well as command role in the military are more commonly taken to the task of administration of the Kingdom.

While in Sindar Elven society the main skill in preserving the Kingdom militarily is usually handled by the females, while the internal development issues are handled by the Males.

Arch Druid

The Arch Druid is the leading member of the Druid council and is the main decision maker when it comes to the overall direction of the Sindar. He works in consort with Ranger General when it comes to the defence of High Forest, but as for foreign relations, and internal development the Arch Druid is responsible not the Ranger General. The current Arch Druid of High Forest is Malfurion Stormrage.

See Also : Malfurion Stormrage

Malfurion Stormrage is the Arch-Druid of High Forest, and the wife of Tyrande Whisperwood. Malfurion Stormrage has one sibling in the form of Illidan Stormrage and Malfurion's brother Illidan Stormrage is a hated figure amongst the Elves, and although Malfurion feels shame for what his brother has become, he has been unable to kill him on the two occasions that he had. With Tyrande Whisperwood he has three children in Talflarion, Helion, and Shandis Stormrage. For centuries Malfurion Stormrage has been the spiritual leader of the Sindar Elves, and in this position he is directly responsible for the found of Athel Loren, and Mirkwood by Sindar Elves, as well some might say the growth of the Sindar Elves into a rival power to the High Elves.

Malfurion Stormrage was born into the powerful Stormrage family of the Sindar Elves, and in this family he and his brother were destined to be powerful members of the Sindar Elves. As he grew up he was very close to his brother and a female Elf from the Whisperwood family in Tyrande Whisperwood. These relationships would define him while he begin rebuilding the Sindar Elves within Ulthuan, and though he didn't know it as he was doing this his brother begin to hate him because Tyrande picked Malfurion over him. Malfruion spent his time gathering the Sindar Elves to him, and making sure that the Sindar Elves were actually being the way in which they were meant to be, and in order to further control them he begin creating a large independant military within the Sindar Elves that was seperate from the overall High Elven culture that he begin to despise. Malfurion spent centuries attempting to control the growth of the Sindar Elves and the manner in which they were living their lives. Eventually the Dwarves and the Elves became in conflict and he saw the way in which his people were losing their soul and decided that the time to move on was upon them and he set several of his people to scout Western Europe for places they could leave Ulthuan for.

Druid Chiefs

The Druid cheifs are very similar to a Lord of most Human Kingdoms except for the fact that they rule over a Druid Aspect and the specific region that Aspect might control. Each Chief is responsible for a specific area of High Forest and because of this they are the main advisors of the Arch Druid when it comes to the matters of their area. Of course the main purpose of these Druid Chiefs is not a logistical commander of whom rules over the land but instead their main purpose is to rule over their specific Druid Aspect and in this role they are supremely powerful.

Druid of the Bear Aspect

Main Article : Druid of the Bear Aspect

The Endless Caverns regions is the home of one of the five chiefs of the Druid Council in the Druid of the Bear Aspect. This regions main base is the Barrow Den which is a large underground settlement in southern, and it is here that the Druids of the Bear Aspect make their main base. Deep within the caverns they practise their trade, and it is within these caved that they come from when the need arises. The Druids of the Bear Aspect are a special grouping of Druids that have communicated with the ancient Bear spirit of High Forest and through this have channeled the ancient powers of the Bear Aspect. The Druids of the Bear are most often seen at the front of the ranks of the armies as they are the most heavily armored, and elite troop with a front line presence within the High Forest Army. The Druids of the Bear Aspect could be described as the Sindar Elven counterpart to the humans version of a very heavy cavalry force.

See Also : Brann Bearmantle

"The main reason I fear the rise of humanity is their violent disregard for the kindness, and honor of the wild. The humans destory and kill that which they believe is weaker then they are. This logic works only when you are at the top. The humans had best hope noone rises above them on the food chain or else they may feel the pain of the forest. I say this not out of hate or hope that the humans fail. i simply say it as an omen to what shall occur if they continue on their path."

-Brann Bearmantle

Brann Bearmantle is a high ranking Druid Chief, and the master of the Druid of the Bear Aspect of High Forest.

Brann very early in his coming to Europe found a great connection with a Bear that attacked him during one of their forays into the forest. After remaining calm for enough time the Bear realized he meant no harm and became Brann's loyal companion.

Druid of the Talon Aspect

Main Article : Druid of the Talon Aspect

The Druid of the Talon Aspect is the Druid Aspect that has taken the council of the ancient Talon Lord of High Forest, in the form of a Talon Bird. In this way the Talon Aspect is the flyers of the High Forest Army, and are the main scouts, rear assault, and elite stealth force within the High Forest heirchy. They take as their totem the storm crow, and by extension, ravens, hawks, and other birds of prey. They are not frontline soldiers, as the druids of the claw are; their roles are in a support capacity. Their shapechanging abilities allow them to perform valuable espionage, and their abilities impose a variety of disadvantages on their enemies.The Druid of the Talon Aspect rules over the fortress of Norant'har of which Norant'har is the western region of Mirkwood Forest and is the centerpiece of the second Chief of the Druid Council. The seat of the Chief is the Fortress of Norant'har which was obviously named after the region that it inhabits.

See Also : Taflarion Stormrage

Taflarion Stormrage is the son of Malfurion Stormrage and Tyrande Whisperwood. He has two sibling in Shandis, and Helion Stormrage of whome Shandis is a legendary Sentinel within High Forest who has a reputation far larger then her age would imply, and his sister Helion is a sentinel as well but far less known then her sister Shandis. He is married to Helian Stormrage, and the two have a young child together. Taflarion Stormrage is also a Druid Chief, and a master at the Druid of the Talon Sect. This sect of the Druids is mainly responsible for the overall scouting and long range damage that High Forest launches. He was the first of the Talon Sect, and this was a moment of great proudness for his father Malfurion as it was the moment that solitified his son would be able to take the mantle of Druid leadership from him one day.

Taflarion Stormrage was born on Ulthuan, and he grew up with his father and him being very close to eachother. He was sent by his father during the War of Vengeance to France to attempt to find a place to found the new home of the Sindar Elves. When he was in France he found several forests but each one didn't seem to strike a cord that would imply they could all move their. He eventually met with Alleria Windrunner who told him about Athel Loren, but when he saw the forest he didn't think it was a proper place, and when he was about to give up hope when Vareesa Windrunner took him to High Forest and he saw the place they would move to. Being a member of the Talon Sect is the position that he spends the most time with, and he often says that he spends more time as a Talon then he does as an Elf so he forgets the customs of his own people.

Druid of the Cat Aspect

Main Article : Druid of the Cat Aspect

See Also : Flagril Staghelm

The Sentinels

Main Article : High Forest Sentinels

Along with the druid council, their is the Sentinels. The sentinels are the all female military force that defends the forests of High Forest. The Sentinels are led by the Ranger General, and she in turn appoints commanders beneath her. Given the threat of invasion that constantly looms, few roles are as critical to the defense of the land as the sentinel. "Sentinel" is an ancient title, its skills are rooted in ancient tradition from even before the time of the war of Vengeance.

The Sentinels were established shortly after the War of Vengeance , and all of its soldiers are Sindar Elven women. They were created in order to replace the old army. Sentinels are elite archers and skirmishers, capable of doing tricks with the bow that few others can hope to match.

Ranger General

See Also : Tyrande Whisperwood

Tyrande Whisperwood is the Ranger General of High Forest, and the wife of Malfurion Stormrage. With Malfurion she has three children in Taflarion, Helian and Shandis Stormrage of whome Talflarion is the leader of the Druids of the Talon Sect and a greatly respected Druid, while her daughter Shandis is an extremely respected Sentinel within the High Forest Kingdom, and her final daughter Helian is another Sentinel within the forces of High Forest and perhaps the least known of the Whisperwood family.

Tyrande Whisperwood was someone that was born into the high culture of the Sindar Elves and she very much got along with the two Stormrage brothers because of their rejection of the direction that the Sindar Elves were going. She spent a large part of her life in love with both Illidan and Malfurion Stormrage, and in the end her decision to marry malfurion caused illidan to go into a tailspin and dramatically change the course of Sindarian society. This is a decision that has dramatically affected Elven history in that it led to Malfurion leaving Ulthuan due to the corupting effect that Illidan had on its culture following the collapse of their relationship. When they arrived in Europe nothing was the way they were told in that the forests were not teeming with happiness but instead the land was overrun with Trolloc and all other manner of evil creatures. Together with Malfurion she would fight in the beast wars in an attempt to clear the Trolloc out of High Forest and although it took a long time they were finally successful. Since then she has taken on a more administrative role within the Sentinels and from here she has become the true leader of the Sentinels, but this has caused her to miss some of the old way she lived.

Ranger Lieutenants

Vareesa Windrunner

See Also : Vareesa Windrunner

Vareesa Windrunner is a Sindar Elf who lives in High Forest, and is a Sentinel Luitenant. She has three siblings in the form of Alleria, Legolas, and Sylvanus Windrunner of which Alleria leads the Kingdom of Quel'Thalas military, her brother Legolas joined Alleria in Quel'Thalas but is often in Gondor or High Forest assisting either Vareesa or Aragorn Elessar, and her final sister Sylvanus is a near Dark Elf under the service of the Kingdom of Lothlorian and married to the brother of the King of the Lothlorians. She maintains contact with Alleria but her relationship with her sister Sylvanus is strained. She is married to Haldir Minheer of whome she has two children with in the form of Halline Windrunner, and Jaeli Minheer.

Vareesa was born a member of the powerful Windrunner family, and she would be very close with all of her siblings during her youth. As they grew up they joined many of the Sindar Elves that joined the High Elves in going to France to fight the Dwarves in the War of Vengeance. Her role here would be less combat and more about scouting as before she left Malfurion Stormrage would make it known to her that they may leave Ulthuan and he needed her to find them a new home when she got there.Vareesa Windrunner left Ulthuan with the rest of her family but on the journey over she grew close to Haldir Minheer and through this relationship she made the tough decision to leave her family and follow Haldir to his destiny in High Forest where he felt the weakness of the Lothlorians would not exist. Since her arrival in High Forest she has gained an immense hatred for the Trolloc, and has become known as one of the most brutal Sindar commanders in High Forest for her lack of control in fighting the Trolloc.

Mereneena Swifteern

See Also : Mereneena Swifteern

Mereneena Swifteern is a Sindar Elf, who lives in High forest and is a Sentinel Lieutenant. Born in Ulthuan before the Exodus she left the Island home of the Sindar Elves and travelled to Europe where she made herself a home in High Forest. She has been in a long term relationship with Legolas Windrunner and with him she has three of her seven children in the form of Feiner, Gringolhom, and Teurgen Windrunner of which Fiener is a Druid of the Bear Aspect and one of the higher rankings members of that Order, her son Gringolhom is what the Sindar Elves call a "Piele" of which means a wandering elf and he goes throughout Europe but has become attatched to a small forest in northern Europe called Lorien of which he has formed a small kingdom within, and their final son Teurgen is valliant Elven fighter that returned to Ulthuan following his abandonement by his mother and now fights in northern Ulthuan against the Dark Elves.

Mereneena has gathered quite the reputation amonst her people, and this reputation has begun to lead to calls for her to be removed from High Forest. This reputation has been built through her continued and growing love for sex. She was born late in the War of Vengeance which makes her rather young and yet she has seven children which is extremely high for someone her age. She has 3 with the prince of the Quel'Thalas Elves Legolas Windrunner. She doesn't keep any of these children and thus they are left to the care of the society at large, or in the case of Legolas for him to take care of. During the Rise of Lucerne she visited Quel'Thalas and while she was there she discovered that she was not allowed to return to High Forest on orders of the Druids. This fractured her mind, and she left Quel'Thalas and her current whereabouts are completely unknown.

Shandis Stormrage

See Also : Shandis Stormrage

Shandis Stormrage is the daughter of Tyrande Whisperwood, and Malfurion Stormrage and a loyal resident of High Forest, along with being a Sentinel Luitenant. Shandis has two sibling in the form of Taflarion Stormrage of whome is the leader of the Talon Druid Sect within the High Forest leadership caste, and Helion Stormrage of whome is a fellow sentinel just like her and her mother.

Shandis Stormrage was forced to be placed into a fighting role within the Sentinels very quickly in her life as the conflict with the Trollocs was boiling out of control. A very young girl she has proven herself many times throughout the nearly continues conflict with the Beast of the Easts. In one instance during the Battle of Meadow's Row she held the watchtower alone for nearly three weeks against a nearly constant wave of Trolloc following her units death. These events have only increased the importance placed on her by the leadership of High Forest, and in the most recent conflict with the forces of the Kingdom of Bolten she has been the leader of the defenders who are assigned to defeat the forces of Bolten. In this role she has become very intertwined with the military forces of Gondor who are also dealing with the movement south of the Kingdom of Bolten. Alongside this growing conflict she is still being forced to deal with the Trollocs who are very numerous in this area.

Glorifindal

See Also : Glorifindal

Glorifindal is an ancient Sindar Elf that was born on Ulthuan during the ancient days when the Elves still controlled the island of Atlantis making him one of the most ancient of Elves alive. Glorifindal leads the male section of the Sentinels of which are massive in number as they form the basis for the melee Sentinels and are far more heavily armed, and armored then the other sections of the Sentinels.

Glorifindal was born on Ulthuan during a time when the Sindar Elves were still the majority of the Elven population, and thus over the youth of his life he fought in the Atlantian Rebellion, and following this he watched as the High Elves became the dominant Elven culture on Ulthuan. He became a loyal soilder of Malfurion Stormrage and followed him willingly when he took the Sindar Elves into France. Glorifindal would become famous amongst the Gondorians after he took a large army of Sentinels and relieved Cair Andros during the Civil War in Gondor. He proceeded to hold the fortress for the entire conflict and is seen as very responsible in Gondor's suvival.

Name	Rank	Role	Status	Location
Lylandris	Huntress	Commands a squad of Sentinels that roam south High Forest	Alive	Southern High Forest
Sain Lonevin	Sindar Rogue	Leads a segment of the Sindar Elves drawn to assasinations	Alive	Southern High Forest

Demographics

Religion

Main Article : Elven Pantheon

Isha

Goddess of the Harvest

Description: Isha is the goddess of the harvest and is worshipped by most farmers throughout Ulthuan, but is also seen as the goddess of fertility or Earth Mother and thus one of the three gods of the Sindar Elves. The farmers often give offerings to her temples in the hope of a good harvest. She is a merciful god who lends succour to those in need of it. Isha is commonly depicted as a gloriously beautiful young elf woman with immeasurably long, golden ponytails flowing about her. She is the daughter of Asuryan and Lileath.

Symbol: Commonly a stylised eye with a single tear below it. Mage-Priests of Isha are usually female and they wear robes of pure white.

Temples: There are no temples to Isha as such but some elves have small shrines dedicated to her in their houses. Her worship is most popular among Wood Elves not least because she is the wife of Kurnous the Hunter and is immersed in their theological histories.

Torothal

Goddess of Rain and Rivers

Description: Torothal is the goddess of rain and rivers and is principally a Wood Elf deity and little known outside their woodland realms except by some Human woodsmen and trappers. Torothal is said to bring rain and control the currents courses of rivers. It is said that when the rivers rage and flow strong Torothal is angry. Torothal is often portrayed as a very young and beautiful Elven woman. Sometimes she is given fish scale patterns on her skin. It is said that Torothal can assume the form of any fish or river-dwelling creature and can also become a rain cloud at will.

Symbol: Torothal's symbols are stylised designs of rain clouds and wave emblems to symbolise her as patron of rivers. Mage-Priests of Torothal do not wear any special attire and are clad in the normal clothes of Wood Elf society.

Area of Worship: Torothal is almost entirely a Wood Elf deity and is worshipped in all the main woodland realms. However, there are some Human fishermen and boatmen that worship the river goddess believing that she will provide them with plentiful fish and calm riverboat journeys.

Temples: There are no temples to Torothal. However, there are certain holy places dear to her devout followers and these tend to be very special rivers and lakes or areas in the woodland realms that are especially wet due to incessant rainfall and showers.

Kurnous

God of the Hunt, Lord of the Beasts

Description: Said by some Human theologians to be an aspect of Taal, the Old Worlder god of nature and wild places, Kurnous is one of the major deities of the Wood Elf pantheon, being the master of the forest animals among which Wood Elves live. He is the patron of Beastfriends, and is worshipped by some Elven Scouts and Hunters. Kurnous is normally portrayed as a composite being, over ten feet tall, with an Elven body but the head and tail of a stag. It is said that he can also take the form of any forest creature at will.

Symbol: Like Taal, Kurnous is represented by a stag's head with branching antlers. Mage-Priests of Kurnous dress in the same way as other Elves.

Temples: The whole of the forest is Kurnous' temple: wherever his beasts wander, he is present. However, there are places which are more special to his worship than others: certain natural clearings, rocks, trees and so on. A Wood Elf automatically recognises these places: members of other races cannot. Elves will almost always try to keep other races away from holy ground.

Population

Main Article : Sindar Elves

The forest holds one of the fortresses of the reclusive Sindar Elves, and within the trees is the largest population of Sindar Elves outside of perhaps the Lothlorian Elves or remaining Sindar Elves of Ulthuan of which both are questionable. The Sindar Elves arrived in Athel Loren a broken people and have grown steadily in population since their arrival in Athel Loren to the point that they are much less an endangered race as they once were. The Sindar Elves have blossemed as well through their belief and thus advantages gained by their relationship with the forest.