Here is the history of my Eldar's Craftworld. I designed my own color system, so I decided that I had a need of a new name for my new Craftworld. And here it is.
I originally posted this story over on
Astromonican and received positive feedback. I may have posted this here, but I am unable to find it, and I'm relatively certain that I posted it in the wrong place, anyway.
I appreciate anyone who reads it, and is willing to leave any feed back.
Pictures to come once I figure out how to use my wife's digital camera.
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The soft sound of bare feet could be heard as the young warlock quietly made her way down the spacious hall. The wraithbone pillars lined the crystalline walls, offering the only reminder of being separated from the shining sea of stars. Majesty, even beyond the mind of the Eldar, was momentarily ignored as the young warlock quickened her pace. She bit her lower lip as she tried to calm her mind. Her robes softly whipped around her ankles as she walked. Soon, the warlock stopped, finally standing at her destination. She stood before a set of large double doors which had been gracefully crafted to depict a lone moon amid the cold stars. She took a deep breath then quietly knocked on the doors.
“Enter,” a soft feminine voice said from within. The young warlock swallowed and slowly pushed the door open. Warmth and comfort quickly washed over her, doing much to relax her agitated mind. Across the large room, a woman sat at a large desk. Tall book shelves lined the walls, giving the study an aura of an ancient library. The owner preferred the archaic theme, as it often calmed the mind during times of meditation. Soft carpet soothed the warlock’s bare feet as she made her way to the center of the room and stopped.
“Did you summon me, Farseer?” the young warlock said, standing still with respect. The woman behind the desk smiled and nodded.
“Yes, Elynn, I did.” The Farseer stood up and walked around the desk. She was dressed in a simple black gown that simply outlined the lithe form of her Eldar body. “Please, sit.” The Farseer motioned to two large chairs. The young warlock did as she was told and made her way to one of the chairs. Elynn waited until the Farseer was seated before sitting down herself.
“Thank you, Farseer Mangwé,” the warlock said, trying to make herself comfortable in her leader’s presence.
“It has come to my understanding that you are concerned with some of our records. Mainly in reference to how I came to be here and have risen to Head Farseer.” The young warlock blushed and looked down at her hands.
“Yes, mistress,” Elynn said quietly. She felt ashamed, now that she was sitting in the Farseer’s presence, to have felt any doubt, let alone to have expressed it.
“Lift your head, child. There is no need to be ashamed. It is only through our inquiry that we learn and grow. You have every right to the questions that you have. Unfortunately, our own recent histories are limited. I have been working with our scribes to try and expand those records, but it is a slow task to make sure that each part is accurate. However, I have come to understand that you would like to know about the missing parts of our recorded history, is this not so?”
“Yes, mistress,” the young warlock said, now eager to learn.
“Very well,” the Farseer said, smiling. She adjusted herself in her chair. “My name is Saanah Mangwé. I was born and raised as part of Craftworld Ulthwé. Though that was many years ago.” The Farseer’s eyes seemed to glaze over as she looked off into the distant past, to a world and a life that was long taken from her. “As was typical of my people, I had spent a number of years as a Guardian. I felt it was my duty to serve my Craftworld, but I did not enjoy that part of my life. I had witnessed many of my friends’ deaths, and seen, first hand, the many horrors that lurk in the darkest corners of the galaxy. Fortunately, I was given the opportunity to pursue the Witch Path, much like your self.” The Farseer smiled warmly at the young warlock sitting in front of her. Elynn hung on every word as she listened closely. “It was one of the proudest moments of my life, when I was finally recognized as a Warlock of Craftworld Ulthwé. My own sister, Q’sandria, many years older than myself, had been pursuing the Witch Path for quite some time, and had even been personally asked by Eldrad Ulthran to be one of his Protégés. I wanted so much to be like her; to follow in her foot steps. So when I finally achieved the title of Warlock, I truly felt worthy of being her sister.
“Not long after, I was assigned to lead a unit of Guardians, due to my previous experience. We had received word that a group of mon-keigh, dedicated to She Who Thirsts, was massing a force far from the Eye of Terror. We were sent to halt their progress. The whole of the Craftworld did not go, but instead sent a small fleet to handle the situation. I was part of that assignment. When we arrived, we were quickly surprised to learn that we weren’t simply dealing with the mon-keigh, but rather, the Space Marine Legion known as the Emperor’s Children. I was sent, along with a unit of our Rangers, to move around the enemy’s open flank. However, the battle quickly turned against us, and the main body of our force was fighting a loosing battle. My own unit was ambushed, and although we had the aid of the Rangers, we were vastly out numbered. My dear kin fought bravely and followed my every command with acute precision. I do not remember much of what happened, I’m afraid. At one point I was struck unconscious. I later came to my senses and found myself in the company of only two of my Guardians and one of the brave Rangers. I came to later learn that it was the remaining Rangers that provided a distraction allowing the one Ranger to drag us to safety. I owe my life to him and what was left of my butchered command.” The Farseer brushed away the moisture from her eyes as she took a deep breath.
“The decoy met an ill fate, I’m sad to say. They were eventually caught and by the end, only I and my small group remained. We had lost contact with the main body of our forces. As we made our way back to our own lines, we found nothing but an empty battle field. It was clear that the battle did not go as planned. We were able to surmise that our own forces were pushed back, and did manage to eventually retreat with the remaining survivors.
“When I asked how long I had been out, I was told that I had been unconscious for many hours. By the time I came around, the Ranger had been able to scout ahead and learned that our fleet had already left. We could only assume that we were thought to have been killed along with the rest of our group. We had been left behind.” The young warlock stared in disbelief.
“How did you survive?” Elynn asked, her eyes wide with confusion.
“Just the same as anything else, I suppose,” Farseer Mangwé said, shrugging. “They looked to me for guidance. I relied heavily on the skills of our Ranger. He managed to keep us sheltered and fed, and the two Guardians kept their courage as we managed to defend ourselves from the various dangers of the wild. We stayed clear of the Space Marines, however. We knew we didn’t have a prayer of a chance in any kind of conflict. Our ammunition was low and we had limited resources. We were not about to throw our lives away needlessly.
“We were on that planet for many months. We had tried several times to acquire communication equipment from the mon-keigh, but we were unable to lay hold of anything powerful enough to contact the Craftworld. We lost both of the Guardians in our last effort.” Saanah’s voice dropped to a whisper. “We had started to loose hope. There were only two of us left.
“Eventually, we were found, by other Eldar Rangers. We were shocked beyond belief, as you might imagine. They had been scouting the planet for various supplies when they found our encampment. They came from Craftworld Ath-Ethonis. Their story was even more bizarre than our own.
“Craftworld Ath-Ethonis had answered the call of help from Craftworld Iyanden when they were beset by the Tyranid hive fleet of Behemoth. However, before they were able to reach Iyanden, Ath-Ethonis was attacked by a separate branch of the hive fleet. They were unprepared for the sudden engagement and never made it to the aid of Iyanden. Their Craftworld had taken severe damage and was sent spinning out of control and far off course. The Ath-Ethonis Eldar were left drifting aimlessly with minimal lives left to tend the failing life support. Their Craftworld drifted into a nearby solar system and ended up crashing into a small moon of one of the outer planets. The collision was devastating and managed to knock the small moon from its orbit. In addition, the Craftworld was fused with the small moon, and both drifted aimlessly for many years.
“Their fleet was all but destroyed, leaving only small fighters and transport shuttles in working condition. It was by these crafts that the Rangers were able to scout nearby planets, when one came close enough, and search for any supplies or means of communication whereby they might contact one of our other kin’s Craftworlds. It was during such a mission that their Rangers were able to find us.” The young warlock shook her head in wonder as she listened to the Farseer’s tale.
“My self and my Ranger companion were taken back to their Craftworld, or what was left of it. It could hardly be called such, for the Eldar living there were barely able to keep the life support working. All communication equipment had been destroyed, and their leadership was minimal. All Eldar of the Witch Path and the Path of the Seer had been killed during the battle years previously, or died shortly after. They were left with the few remaining Exarches to lead them the best they could. When I arrived, they quickly turned to me for guidance. I have to say that I was overwhelmed by the task and felt unworthy of such a role. However, my kin were resolute in their choice with following my direction.
“I was very happy to find that the Infinity Circuit was still intact. It was there that I often retreated for my answers. I had no one to turn to when I was faced with a problem. I had no mentor to guide my steps, and worst of all, I had no way of progressing along the Witch Path. I had spent many long hours in deep meditation within the groves of the Infinity Circuit. I soon found that my petitions for guidance were heard and answered by our long-passed kin.” The eyes of the young warlock widened with wonder as she listened to the Farseer’s story.
“I was trained by the spirits of our ancestors along the Witch Path, growing steadily in might and power. Along with my own training, I was given advice to the guidance of our Craftworld. I was soon able to live up to the expectations of the diminishing Ath-Ethonis Eldar.
“Over time, my power grew and I was then trained in the arts of the Seer. Thanks to the wisdom of those long passed, I was able to achieve the understanding and power to become a worthy Farseer. It was during this time that I realized my love for the Eldar here was deep and true. I felt as one of them. I no longer felt of myself as a warlock of Ulthwé, but rather a true Farseer for these people. I had been given the task to train new warlocks under me, passing on my own knowledge and wisdom to those coming up under me. It was with these young warlocks that I counseled with, and decided to finally rebuild our world, rather than simply limping along just to survive. My warlocks were overjoyed by my plans, and the excitement soon spread throughout all of the Craftworld.
“We started with the decision to rename our home. I offered the name Lu-nasai, meaning Forgotten Moon, as a possibility. It was accepted almost instantly. I asked the spirits of the Infinity Circuit how I could train new Bonesingers, and was blessed with the knowledge to teach them. It was not long before we were able to repair our world, and hope began to blossom throughout the Craftworld. The warlocks came to me, asking to redefine our colors, to offer new respect to our new home. They asked if they could use a variation of my old home, to pay a type of tribute to the place that raised their future savior. I was deeply moved by the gesture, and humbly gave my permission. I was about to suggest that they try not to mimic Ulthwé too closely, but the thought came to me to wait and watch. So I did, and was happy to watch them design a wonderful array for Craftworld Lu-nasai. Our black and white colors, trimmed with a deep red and grey proved to be very impressive.
“We were soon able to regain control of our Craftworld’s navigation systems and sang joyfully as our Forgotten Moon sailed straight and true among the stars once more.” Farseer Saanah Mangwé let her voice trail off in quiet reminiscence. The young warlock sat quietly for a while, pondering on what her mentor had shared with her. A quiet reverence came over her.
“I’m sure you have much to think about, Elynn,” the Farseer said with a smile. “You are free to leave whenever you like.”
“Thank you, mistress,” Elynn said, rising to her feet. The young warlock closed the large double doors behind her as she left. She took a moment to look at the relief that had been carved into the wood. A lone moon stood proud among the cold stars. Elynn smiled to herself, proud to be part of such a wonderful place. She walked down the halls of her home, Craftworld Lu-nasai, the Forgotten Moon.
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Saanah Mangwé is my own rendition of Eldrad. It makes no sense, story wise, to have Eldrad leading my Craftworld. Saanah Mangwé is the leader of the Lu-nasai Eldar.