Eldar

An Eldar officer in battle armor

The Eldar are a species of sapients in the Warhammer 40,000 universe. Once the dominant race in the galaxy, they are now on the road to extinction.

Attributes

Eldar are humanoid and look very much human, but are distingishable by their slender build and pointed ears. Eldar have extremely long lives, high metabolisms and posses inhuman agility and speed. All Eldar possess some level of psionic ability, ranging from basic telepathy to powerful psycokinetic powers and precognative abilities among the most powerful psionics in eldar society. Psychologically, Eldar are extremely emotional and have extreamly sensitive senses. They are -- for all practical purposes -- space elves.

Due to the circumstances of the fall of their civilization (see History), the souls of the Eldar are vulnerable to the Chaos god Slaanesh. To avoid having their souls entrapped, Eldar wear psionic devices called Soulstones that contain their souls when their bodies die. The souls in the stones remain sapient, and the stones can be installed in various kinds of Eldar equipment as advisors, operators, or both.

History

The Eldar were genetically engineered about 60 million years ago by the Old Ones to fight against the Necrons and their C'tan masters.

The Eldar were once the dominant species in the Warhammer 40,000 universe with a galaxy-spanning empire. Decadence began to spread in Eldar society, however, and various cults emerged dedicated to experiencing everything the world could offer, beginning with simple hedonism and then moving towards cruel and sadistic rituals involving torture and murder. These acts and those who died from them sent out powerful psionic emanations into the Warp that coalesced over time to form the Chaos god Slaanesh. The birth of the new Chaos god wiped out most of the Eldar civilization, laying waste to the worlds at the core of their empire and leaving only scattered remnants.

Organization

The remains of the Eldar civilization live mostly as refugees on massive spacecraft called Craftworlds. Among the more notable of Craftworlds are...

• Alaitoc
• Biel-tan
• Iyanden
• Saim-Hann
• Ulthwé

Craftworld Eldar tend to revolve through an array of different professions or "Paths" during their long lives. One of these professions is the Aspect Warrior, in which the Eldar explores various aspects of the Eldar war god, Khaela Mensha Khaine. Obviously a variety of non-combatant professions exist, including Bonesingers, who shape the material known as Wraithbone that is widely used in Eldar construction.

Eldar military forces are divided up into various groups. Most Eldar adopt the Path of the Warrior during some portion of their lives, and in time of need, former Aspect Warriors return to service as Guardians (comparable to modern military reserves or national guard forces). Guardians make up the bulk of the military assets that the Eldar have at their disposal. The active-duty Aspect Warriors handle missions that don't require the full mobilization of a craftworld.

Eldar society is often led by precognitive figures known as Seers and Farseers who plan group action specifically to protect the group's members from Chaos, especially Slaanesh.

A few Eldar -- who call themselves Exodites -- have settled on former frontier worlds of the Eldar empire which were being terraformed when the Eldar civilization fell and have since become inhabitable.

A small subgroup of Eldar have dedicated themselves to the Eldar Laughing God (the only other Eldar god to have survived the birth of Slaanesh) and have dedicated themselves to eradicating Chaos; they are known as Harlequins.

Finally, a renegade faction of Eldar descended from the pleasure cults that brought about the Fall still exist; these are known as the Dark Eldar.

Threat Assessment

Despite their small numbers, the Eldar remain a surprisingly powerful faction in the Milky Way galaxy. They have superior technology to that of the Imperium of Man, more experienced psionics, and a safer method of FTL travel than most other factions through their Webway. In particular, the precognitive powers of their Farseers allow them to use their limited resources to maximum effect.

Eldar of Note

• Farseer Eldrad Ulthran: Eldrad Ulthran was, until his recent death, the leader of Ulthwe Craftworld. He is said to have provoked the second Armageddon war (a conflict in which millions died) to spare the lives of 10,000 Eldar.

See Also

• Weapons and Vehicles of the Eldar