Editing Eldar (section)

==Relationship with the Imperium of Man==
:{{topquote|Make no mistake mon-keigh, we do not fight for you, or for your corpse-Emperor. We are allied here today because destiny has seen fit to bind our fates together. We do not relish that our futures are intertwined, but if you would live to see another day, then you will do as I say. Order your soldiers to cease firing their primitive artillery upon the ridge line, for it is there the Asuryani warhost will arrive. My kin will drive the tainted ones back towards your lines, where you would do well to be prepared. And please, above all else, stand downwind from me.|Beac-dair, Ranger of Alaitoc, liaison to Imperial forces}}
[[File:Eldar Human interactions.jpg|300px|right|thumb|Pretty typical interaction between the two]]

The relationship between humanity and the Eldar is complicated to say the least, varying dependent on sector, the local culture (of both parties), the specific needs of each side at the time of contact, and (at least partially) undisclosed fluff concerning human-Eldar relationships during the [[Dark Age of Technology]].

Due to the variability of these factors, the Eldar are one of the only races for whom there's no consistent pattern of relationship with the Imperium; they can be hated enemies and invaders, desperate allies against a greater foe, marauding pirates, begrudgingly necessary trading allies, and everything in-between. For every Imperial world sacrificed to save the lives of a handful of Eldar, for every grand scheme orchestrated to dick over the Mon-Keigh and put them in their place, another world is saved by their timely intervention or an Inquisitor made aware of the existence of a terrible threat by their warning. Where the Blood Ravens go to war with them at one time, at another the Grey Knights return the salvaged spirit stones of Malan'tai to Iyanden and lay the Craftworld to rest by way of a solar viking funeral.

During the [[Great Crusade]] the official policy of the Imperium, as mandated by the Emperor, was to kill Eldar, and individual attempts to contact them by Primarchs such as Fulgrim were protested by their men as breaches of Imperial policy. This could be seen as a (very warped and twisted) justified course of action during this time given the numerous human worlds ravished throughout and after the Age of Strife. Although there are no actual records of any Eldar being involved in these actions there was still Eldar radicals, who during the twilight centuries of their empire sort out conflicts among the primitives, as a form of entertainment; then there's also the proto-Dark Eldar who were already doing what they do so well, so there is a lot of room to play with; also potentially the first appearance's of something similar to the Corsairs, formed from those seeking out a more thrilling form of entertainment (ultimately these potential incidents are down to the actions of individuals, not the Eldar dominion itself). Also, the Emperor would no doubt have been fully aware of what causes The Fall and probably deeply hated them for the Age of Strife as well as concern that the Eldar species existing would keep empowering Slaanesh. Remember that he had a very poor understanding of Chaos at the time; although it has been mentioned that both Eldrad and the Emperor had known each other, although they had some kind of falling out, so lots of room to play with there. Earlier lore stated that the reason the Emperor waited so long to Launch his crusade, was that he needed for the Eldar to fall from their position of dominance in the galaxy, if they were still a galaxy spanning superpower then his crusade could never succeed. The Craftworlds themselves, although they would have no need to come into conflict with humanity over resources, as they are completely self sufficient, may have come into contact with the expanding human realms during their exodus; these interactions may have been humanity primary source on contact with the Eldar species. What ever actually happened during the Age of Strife, whenever they encountered each other during the Heresy and beyond the inevitable always happens, such as the time when the Salamanders, Iron Hands and Death Guard sought to rescue the enslaved human population of an Exodite World. It turns out that the Exodites had rescued and sheltered the human population from raids by their Dark kin. After realising their mistake did the Imperials seek out a possible peacefu- nope, instead they slaughtered the human population, seeing them as having been corrupted by their xenos companions and turned the world to ash. Lorgar also encountered a fledgling Craftwold during the Great crusade, he was invited aboard as a guest where they discussed, among many other things, the nature of the warp and its dangers. Lorgar and his legion then thanked them by killing them all and reduced their home to rubble. Which is unsurprising given how “my thinking is bestest” Lorgar was/is. Then again, one must remember that the Humanity was recovering from a horrid period of downfall, where they found themselves assaulted by both aliens and humans alike. The realms of Humanity consumed themselves, and due to the horrors humanity experienced during this time humanity become something far less them what they had been. The result of such dickish behaviour, whether it be inflicted by others or entirely self inflicted, was the roots for mankind becoming outright genocidal towards everything nonhuman. We are not saying that it was right or wrong, just that it was natural, due to situation at time. Lorgar thought that they had nothing to offer as they had been the catalyst for their own fall from grace, and given that the Emperor had standing orders to exterminate the Eldar, who would trust them about things related to the Warp after they broke reality? well it's called hindsight and learning from experience, sometimes learning from someone else's mistakes can actually be useful in not doing it yourself.

In a wider perspective, the Eldar-Imperial relations is a case of each side using each other for their own ends. The Eldar manipulate humans (and everyone else in general) for their own survival, they'd happily put human lives and worlds to the torch if they needed to avert some grave threat like an Ork WAAAGH or Tyranid fleet, but also aren't completely above saving said lives and worlds if it meant it'd be a more efficient way to keep them around. Likewise, humans would scream "[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3jt5ibfRzw burn the witch]" the moment they see the Eldar due to xenophobia and well because the Eldar don't exactly have a great track-record with the Imperium, but more open minded and/or pragmatic individuals aren't above making a truce with the Eldar if it meant stopping a common enemy (like say, the forces of Chaos). For example; the Grey Knights returning the soul stones of the Malan'tai craftworld is better than destroying them since that would do nothing but royally piss off the Eldar and empower Slaanesh, plus it also be used as a bargaining chip with the Eldar during negotiations, something valuable when trying to broker a fair deal with an utterly egotistical race who see you as mere animals. Of course as humans are an equally egotistical race who see all other races as beneath them in the setting (While Eldar considers other races to be a vermin, humans actually TREAT other races like vermin, which includes, *ahem* '''''Routine Cleansings''''' (T'au were candidates to this, but unfortunately for everyone, they survived, proving yet again that the Imperium's extremism is very much justified)), both groups are on equal footing here.

There are lots in common between the Eldar and Mankind, more so perhaps, than any side would like to admit. This also includes being responsible for the crapsack world that they live in. Both are psychic races and therefore much responsible for the happenings in the warp. While the Eldar have much more effective and skilled psykers, the most powerful ones are associated with humanity, either through unknown and deliberately obscure methods such as the origins of the Emperor or warp crafted abominations such as the Primarch Magnus. This also means that their actions have led to the empowerment of malign forces in the warp: Eldar due to their collective sins and Mankind for generally being untrained retards and [[Magnus|arrogant smartasses who think that they know better]]. So both have their fair share in making things worse for everyone, including themselves. To put it simply, although neither race will ever trust the other and they're theoretically at war, they still share by far the most in common with humanity out of any of its competitors. Against the pressure of a cold and hostile universe, both sides are, at times, willing to pretend just for a second that they could put aside their differences and be allies. Extra irony points that Eldar and humans that work together for extended periods of time often end up with mutual respect for each other and even friendship. Which might even be part of why both groups avoid that as much as possible.

Since the events of the Gathering Storm, however, the Ynnari have managed to forge an alliance with the Imperium. Admittedly, this isn't a formal alliance so much as a tacit acknowledgement that neither of them can afford to waste time killing each other with the Ruinous Powers on their respective doorsteps, but it gets the job done more often than not. Some of the Craftworlds such as Ulthwe have followed suit, again with the justification that aiding the lesser races will improve the likelihood of them returning the favor in the future. While the space elves aren't happy about it any more than the Imperium would be (if it was known to the Imperium as a whole and not just a few individuals within it), they are slowly coming to terms with the fact that they have no choice but to swallow their pride to survive. Eldrad in particular is pushing for a genuine, full-fledge and permanent alliance between humans and the Eldar, believing that there are darker times just over the horizon, and that if the two species don't work together against this dark future then both species will perish.

TL;DR: In the current time period, being two of the most arrogant, egotistic and xenophobic races in the galaxy, where one sacrifices millions of innocent others to save a few of their own and another is exterminating millions of innocent lives and entire planets on a nearly daily basis, Eldar and Humans get along with each other quite well 40k. Perhaps because they're the only factions out there doing terrible things to survive whereas everyone else is doing it because they are either naive and greedy, stupid and blindly aggressive, insane, sadistic, or just plain evil. Also because the two species have far more in common to the point of hitting uncanny valley, than either side would like to admit. (Yes, this includes being responsible for ruining everything for everyone with birth of Slaanesh and Horus Heresy respectively.)

Perhaps the dick put it best:

:'''''‘You wish to be free of the influence of my kind, You see the armour as a gaoler holding you hostage to our whims. Know this – the fates of humanity and aeldari are bound together. Either both species will survive, or neither will. Your Emperor understands this. There are greater enemies than the primordial annihilator. In the times to come, you will see. The struggle is only beginning. The old war returns. Remember this conversation, and reconsider carefully, on the day realisation comes, whether you wish to stand alone.’'''''
::-Eldrad Ulthran speaking to Guilliman, ''The Armour Of Fate''.

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Not to take away from what has been mentioned above but the Eldar as a whole don't actually ''hate'' humans; they may see them as lesser beings, but they still see them as being people despite the commonly held belief to the contrary. Characters such as Lyanne have expressed that although she finds humans to be [[The Fall|brutal]] and [[Dark Eldar|disgustingly violent]], she just can't bring herself to hate them as they could still be better (and it’s not like the Imperium gives its people a good environment to become diplomatic); she has gone out of her way to save at least one human world from the Tyranids even though it earned her the attention and enmity of the Hive Mind itself. Eldrad himself has even admonished Exarchs for expressing too strong a negative view of humans; for every potential action that has cost the Imperium, he has also saved it, such as during the War of the Beast, when he created a calm path through the Warp that allowed the forces of The Last Wall Protocol to safety reach Terra in time to defend it. As mentioned the Craftworld Eldar, as a whole, don't actively hate humans. For most Eldar their feelings run from complete indifference to mild curiosity; some may go as far as to feel sorry and even pity for the state humanity now finds itself. This of course will differ from individual to individual and faction to faction, as should be expected from a species spread so thinly across the galaxy.

There is a clear distinction that the Eldar make between the likes of humans and Orks. The killing of Orks is considered something closer to pest control, the exterminating of a very dangerous and violent plague upon the galaxy (something the Orks might be proud to be called); the death of humans however is considered to be the killing of a fellow sentient being (lesser sure, but still considered to be a person whose killing can still be called murder and apparently matters enough to be potentially traumatizing to Eldar lacking a War Mask). However it is also this distinction that has earned the humans the dubious honour of being referred to as ''mon-keigh'', as the Orks actions are more like a force of nature; it is who they are, as opposed to humanity who have a choice, but have through their deeds and actions earned the title. Many mistakenly believe that the term Mon-Keigh literally means monkey (it was always meant as an in-joke for the reader), but the most accurate modern word that portrays the meaning behind the phrase is 'Nazi'; just change the word to Nazi, and you get a better understanding to the true meaning and feeling it expresses. Unlike how the Imperium calls every Eldar a "Xeno" not every human is strictly a Mon-Keigh. A better phrase might be "Imperial" because the word is targeted at the ignorant and violent mindset the Imperium breeds in its citizens. If anything, the Eldar tend to be on good terms with and helpful toward non-Imperial humans (when interacting with them at all, if ever) until the Imperium inevitably rolls in and murders everyone and brainwashes the rest. Wonder how the Eldar feel about that, if anything.

When the Eldar take action within the wider galaxy it is always to achieve a specific goal or task; this can take the form of preventing an object of importance from falling into the wrong hands, preventing the immediate loss of Eldar lives, or setting up future events to better protect what remains of their kind. Once they have achieved their objectives the forces assembled will leave and return to the Craftworld of their origin.

These actions are almost never done with the notion of violence for violence's sake, as most Craftworld Eldar have a very negative view of Khaine's work (his very domains putting war with murder and no concept of honor being part of it), with many of those who have walked the warrior path considering their actions during this time nothing short of murder, especially when they end up peeking behind their War Masks; when they confront what has been locked away behind their Masks, they are horrified by what they have done in order to protect their species from the dangers of the galaxy.

Like with most things, the idea of painting a whole species with the same brush is ridiculous. For every Eldar that demonstrates the more negative tropes there are just as many who demonstrate truly good and heroic traits, such as the Harlequin who refused to leave the humans enslaved within an Ork encampment, freeing them from their cages despite the action costing precious Eldar lives, or characters such as Asurmen who has become a legend and saviour-like figure among alien species across the galaxy including many imperial worlds spanning the entire breadth and length of the Imperium.
 
Even Biel-Tan (who are viewed by most other Craftworlds as something akin to xenophobic zealots) will still follow, when dealing with Maiden Worlds, the common practice of giving an official warning to anyone foolish enough to settle on one, and are even known to help evacuate the human populations who are sensible enough to listen by placing them in suspended animation on their own ships in order to move them to a different habitable world. This implies human populations agree often enough to be worth the effort and that the Imperium doesn’t execute them for it unlike almost any other alien interaction.

Official Imperial diplomats have even been periodically granted permission to live aboard Craftworld Iyanden for a time (there may have also been an Inquisition base in that Craftworld), where they will be hosted by an Eldar Familym, such as Ieldan Soecr (from the 3rd edition) who spent time on [[Iyanden]], even writing a book about her time there. Grease Monkey of the Last Chancers earned his place by stealing the transport of an Iyanden ambassador currently visiting an Imperial world, which indicated it was both public, no fanfare and therefore probably pretty common, and unguarded which indicates a great degree of trust and routine to the visit. The Eldar actually make use of diplomacy when they can (though actual official diplomacy such as the above is solely done by Craftworld Iyanden), such as when an Imperial governor got his hands on some soul stones that currently held the souls of dozens of Eldar, turning them into a fancy piece of jewellery. The Eldar sent a diplomat to get them back, however like in most instances of dealing with the Imperium, the governor didn't listen and instead had the diplomat killed in order to add another shiny stone to his collection. This of course didn't end well for him as the Dark Kin are said to have given extra careful attention to his care. The irony is that if the Eldar didn’t get him first, the Inquisition certainly would have been a tad upset about using alien artifacts, let alien souls, as jewelry.

The interaction between the Imperium and the Eldar becomes especially complicated when you start looking into the different factions of Eldar currently at large in the galaxy. This is further complicated by the fact that the Imperium very rarely ever listens (the idea of a mind too small for doubt is very appropriate here), usually with the excuse that aliens alway lie even when they are actually telling the truth. This state of mistrust usually has the Imperial forces constantly expecting a sudden betrayal, which normally ends with the Imperium turning on their so called allies before they themselves can be betrayed.

This is not to claim that the Eldar are the "good guys"; no one in the setting is, although there are no "good guys" there are still "good people" to be found on all sides. The Craftworlds are just as capable as anyone else of committing actions that could easily be considered evil (even if born out of necessity), but within 40k are guilty of nothing the likes of the Imperium, are not also equally guilty of; to try and claim either have the moral high ground is just funny, and a prime example of the pot calling the kettle black.

If the go to claim against them is that they are "arrogant" then that's pretty good going by 40k standards, as that can also be equally applied to every other faction in the setting as well.

An important thing to keep in mind is that any interaction heavily depends on how well informed the individuals involved are. Inquisitors and rogue traders are known to associate with members of the Eldar race, many having in some way earned a "life debt" from the Eldar involved; the Eldar will honour this Life debt until it has been repaid in full, with many of these bonds developing into genuine friendships, such as in the audiobook ''Corsair'' where every time the crew was about to enter a dangerous situation the human captain would tell the Eldar corsair that he was free to leave, as she had already freed him from his debt a hundredfold already, to which he simply replied that it wasn't up to her when the debt had been paid. The Ordo Xenos in particular have an oddly close relationship with the Eldar (some would say heretically close), and entire navigator houses are known to owe great debts to the Eldar species. Even the Grey knights have shown an oddly close working relationship with the Eldar, going so far as to stand guard over Soul Stones until the Eldar are able to retrieve them; they actually seem to work better with the Eldar then they do with other forces of the imperium. They have even helped the Dark Angels in their hunt for the Fallen and were actually the ones who stood guard over Luther's black blade; until an interrogator chaplain stumbled upon it, thinking it to be the Lion sword; it was then returned to the depth of the Rock and locked away safely (short story the "black pearl").

Although the official policy of the Imperium is to hate and despise Xenos, those at the very top are more inclined towards actions that would see anyone else burned alive, due to it being in their best interests to keep the masses ignorant and blindly dogmatic, instead feeding the public nothing but Imperial propaganda to better control their thoughts and minds, whilst at the same time making backroom deals with the very people that they are telling the citizens of the Imperium to hate and loathe (just like in real life then).

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