High Elves (Warhammer Fantasy)
In Warhammer Fantasy, the High Elves are the original elves and lived on their home circle island/continent/atoll Ulthuan. Then it all went to shit. This is mostly because of hawt magic secks and the Old Ones not closing their goddamned warp gate thingy-majigers. They ripped open a hole in space/time and Chaos flooded out like a pierced beer can. The first Phoenix King, Aenarion, got his shit together and closed the gate. Then a bunch of shit happened and Aenarion disappeared. Eventually Malekith got butthurt over not being picked the next king over his bro Bel Shanaar and started the Dark Elves. Because the Dark Elves actually knew how to fucking fight they pushed really far into Ulthuan and killed Bel Shanaar. Then Caledor I came up, Cosgrove'd Malekith back to the northern reaches of the New World. Then Malekith came back and fucked his shit up good. Then a bunch of other shit happened, the Wood Elves said 'Fuck It' and retreated into the woods. At this point the High Elves are a dying race where every citizen is a soldier because there's so few left they can't support a standing army.
New army book
8th edition High Elf book is out, and the summary is that while some notoriously overpowered things (Teclis, Book of Hoeth) were nerfed, they weren't nerfed into the ground. Better yet, with the cavalry being core again and the points and powers adjusted, the only thing that's still (relatively) useless is Shadow Warriors (although even they can be made viable at times) and possibly Eltharion. Matt Ward wrote the new book, but has unexpectedly not had the fluff raped or had characters made rapists. Females were even (re)added, the Everqueen and her servants! Overall, we got off very well and are possibly a bit stronger than before. But what did you expect from the only Fantasy army with Marines?
Fluff
The Golden Time
Golden Time was before the Phoenix Kings. There isn't much fluff on it, as it is supposed to be the lost age of myth. Only that Ulthuan's kingdoms were run by the Everqueen alone who lead out a positive if hippy-driven jive. Then the warp gates at the world poles collapsed and chaos came, which immediately came after the Elves and fucked their shit up. The Everqueen's magic was mostly for peaceful shit and her soldiers had never faced anything worth mentioning before. The High Elves prayed to their head god, Asuryan, to help them.
Aenarion, the Defender
Aenarion was a world traveler, back in the days when that meant something. He heard some crazy shit was happening at home so he went back, and shit was way more crazy than he heard. Everyone figured the world was ending, and everything that had ever been was pretty much being turned to Swiss cheese by Slaaneshi Daemon cocks while the Bloodthirsters/letters stood back and called them faggots. So Aenarion went to the Shrine of Asuryan to pray. But, as typical of gods, they didn't do a god damned thing (primarily since every god who wants to do good also has an opposite who will fuck things up, so there's a permaban on screwing with mortals apparently which gives Asuryan more time to sit on his ass and contemplate his naval). Aenarion said fuck it and jumped into Asuryan's sacrificing fire, thinking that if he jumped in his god has to do fucking SOMETHING or else it'd be a way to an hero and not be around for the heresy that was to come. However, Asuryan actually DID get off his ass for once (kind of) as Aenarion was imbued with the power of Asuryan. He went outside the shrine, saw some Daemons, and fucked their shit up good by one hitting the biggest Daemon he saw and taking it's weapon to kill the rest before Slaanesh could even jizz in his pants. Elves all over suddenly saw someone with balls and promptly started cosplaying him, and because all elves look alike Daemons started taking psychology checks every time they saw pointy ears. Caledor the Dragontamer, who was like the first Teclis (but not anemic) swore fealty to Aenarion and gave him the death star plans to fucking over Chaos by making a black hole of magic somewhere so Daemons couldn't menifest in the world. Soon everyone else asked to be on team Aenarion and gave him whatever shit they had that wasn't full of cockholes until the elves decided there'd be two rulers of their race from that point on, the elected king and the hereditary queen (one of the perks to being king is he bangs the Everqueen for a year until she gets a daughter to inherit the throne after her, but after that point they go back to their spouses and pretend it wasn't the best year of their life). However, Chaos attacked Avelorn where the Everqueen lived, and killed her in a way that is apparently beyond description, and her children were lost. Aenarion was pissed. So he went to a far off island and drew the sword from the stone. Except this sword was the Widowmaker a sword of Khaine. Khaine is kind of like Rule 63 Khorne but with a penis, and unlike in 40k where he's a giant robot the Eldar use to fuck shit up, he's pure douchebag unleaded and likes fucking with elves more than Daemons do. So the sword, which apparently shapeshifts to whatever kind of weapon you'd like to use the most (Aenarion gets points for the damn thing not turning into a katana or something else stupid) curses you to a really bad fucking end which follows your entire line. Fun, huh? So Aenarion sets off to get it, and along the way everyone from his butler to all the elf gods, INCLUDING Khaine, and even the ghost of the Everqueen tell him he's about to go full retard. He nabs it anyway, and promptly goes apeshit by transforming into a trap version of Kratos. The most fucking crazy of the elves follow him to the westernmost part of Ulthuan where he forms a new kingdom built on bloodletters and severed Slaaneshi cocks. Along the way he rescues a witch named Morathi from some Slaaneshi fighters and promptly marries the chick (whether or not she was pregnant beforehand isn't known, but she gives birth to a son he names Malekith). The Nagarythe court becomes all kinds of fucked up, to a degree nobody knows about fully. Caledor, sick of waiting for the torture orgies to end, packed up and went to actually finish beating Chaos. Aenarion was about to go full retard and start a civil war in revenge for not participating in said orgies, but then the biggest Chaos invasion ever seen set up on the other side of the map and everyone knew everything was fucked 40k style. Caledor and his bros turned an island in the middle of Ulthuan into a magic drain, but it put them outside time forever in an I Have No Mouth and Must Scream kind of way (although Caledor exists outside it immortally making sure nobody buttfucks the mages while they're standing there in magical amber). However, Aenerion got a mortal wound during a faceroll against the four Avatars of the Chaos Gods themselves. So he ran back to where he got The Sword of Khaine and puts it back in the rock. From there, his body is never found. He's presumed dead, unlike everyone else that kind of thing happens to. For three days Ulthuan gets the New Orleans treatment from the weather, and most of the elf race dies. But then it turns out the children of Aenarion and the Everqueen lived! Her last act was to make some unknown deal with nature, which resulted in Dryads being bros with elves and carrying the kids away where they'd be safe. Her daughter Yvraine succeeded her as the Everqueen, and her son Morelion played it smart and chilled in his sister's court where he married one of her maids. Thanks to Aenarion's dick move with the sword however, every one of his kids has had to roll a WILL save every decade to not go full retard and go get the sword again.
Bel Shanaar, the Explorer
So a year after Aenarion died, the Princes of Ulthuan started deliberating over who to elect to be the new king. Malekith, who had become a badass Fighter/Wizard and knew how to cheat at chess. But since Nagarythe torture orgies weren't exactly socially acceptable, nobody was too keen on the idea. Also Yvraine, one of the kids that the Dryads saved was the new Everqueen and was Malekith's half sister. The Council thought it would be a bit fucked up since by law they had to produce a daughter (despite the fact that law was passed like five minutes ago in elf-years) who would be the next Everqueen and they didn't want an Everqueen who had two left hands, extra toes, and no chin. Now he was a known as a whiny little fuck head who had the emotional stability of a sack of rats in a burning meth lab, but pinkie swore that he just wanted to be king because it'd make his pappy proud, but he'd be alright with not being picked. So naturally when they elected a war hero who was known for not wanting to slap his dick on everything for his own glory. Morathi went ballistic about her son (who she may or may not have been fucking at this point) not becoming king, but Malekith tried his hardest not to cry and went as far away from Ulthuan as he could by becoming an explorer like his father. He took all his whining over to the New World and set up a bunch of colonies, went Orc hunting on safari, and discovered Dwarfs. Bel Shanaar visited the Dwarfs too, and signed a peace treaty that was supposed to last for the entirety of the history of the two races. Yeah, we know how well that went, especially since Malekith was appointed ambassador. The elves reconstruct Ulthuan and repopulate it (in other words, an enormous amount of time passes). It's about this time that the Cult of Pleasure begins to appear. It was a Slaaneshi cult that was into crazy Slaaneshi things like sacrifice, torture, and wearing fursuits. Malekith came home to stamp that shit out since it was supposedly based in his home kingdom of Nagarythe. He found out his mother, Morathi, was a member and when he confronted her about it she revealed she was the founder and high priestess. Which overall wasn't much of a surprise to anyone. He turned them all in to everyone's surprise but then had the message spread that a meeting was needed at the shrine of Asuryan immediately to discuss how awesome he was for turning them in, so survival of the smartest went into effect as the Princes who didn't have much going on upstairs went, as well as Bel Shanaar since he had no choice. Malekith had the doors sealed, then told everyone Bel Shanaar was a furfag and poisoned him before he could say "wut?" then turned around expecting to be made Phoenix King on the spot. The Princes immediately moved to hold a vote on whether or not Malekith should investigate himself for being a cultust, so Malekith assured them everything was cool and walked into the sacrifice pyre like his father did. Asuryan was disappoint. So after coming back as a piece of elf-shaped bacon his followers killed everyone, and took off running back to Nagarythe where they sealed him in some body armor to keep his dumbass alive, complete with removable codpiece at his mother's request. That's when Malekith becomes the Witch King. What a douche.
Caledor I, the Conqueror
Caledor never liked Malekith. And he was one of the only princes not at the Shrine when Malekith killed everybody. Despite how much he and a bunch of other High Elves didn't like Malekith, lots of elves loved him. So a super fantastical fun Civil War started. It went back and forth, but lots of important folks turn to Malekith's side. Hotek, a priest to the elf god Vaul, steals a the super awesome Hammer of Vaul and runs off to join Malekith. This is probably around the time the Ring of Hotek is made, which took a lot of Douchebaggery to form. Caledor fought really hard, and chased a lot of Dark Elves back to Nagarythe. That's when Malekith pulled a 'Just as Planned' and started to mess with the Vortex in the middle of Ulthuan. What Malekith's wizards do is sink most of Nagarythe, and lots of the kingdom to the south, Tiranoc. Laughing, the majority of the Dark Elves load up in their ships and head north. Some Dark Elves remain, and continue to mess up the High Elves. Due to this, the High Elves stopped talking with their colonies in the new world due to having more important shit to do. That's when the finish the first of a bunch of defensive citadels to help keep the Dark Elves at bay. It worked pretty well. But the Dark Elves started to come back. Caledor fights back, pushes the last of the Dark Elves off Ulthuan. Thing is, on the way back, they chase him. His boat gets attacked, and surrounded. But instead of being captured, the magnificent bastard decides to jump into the ocean. He dies, of course. But the Emo Elves didn't get him.
Caledor II, the Warrior
Caledor II was the kid of Caledor I. However, as all kids are, he was a jackass. The Dark Elves shut themselves up in their home land. Mostly because Malekith plotted a scheme for epic lols. About this time, contact with the Old World and the Dwarfs was reestablished. They heard there was some crazy civil war going on, but they didn't really understand why something like that would happen. What Malekith decided to do was fuck with the Dwarfs. But not only did they attack the dwarfs, they dressed up like High Elves and fought the dwarfs. This left the Dwarf King, Gotrek Starbreaker, sending envoys back to the High Elves asking, "What the fuck, dude?" Caledor II, though, ignored them. Completely. Finally the Dwarfs began to demand stuff, which got their diplomats shaved. The Dwarfs, pissed off, spend a bit of time collecting the largest forces of Dwarfs ever seen before beginning their assaults on the Elven colonies in the Old World. This starts what is called "The War of the Beard (The War of Vengeance)". Its about this time that the item "Cloak of Beards" is created. After awhile Caledor II crosses the sea and launches an attack on the Dwarfs. He kills Gotrek's son, then goes back in time to get ready for Hunting Season. At this point it's all downhill for the High Elves. Caledor II's bro gets killed by a Dwarf whose last name is changed to "Elfbane" after the feat, and the colony of Athel Maraya is wiped off the map. The Elves try and attack a few Dorf Fortresses, but are obliterated and sent scurrying back to their colonies, pursued by a souped-up Dwarven miner. Few hundred years later Caledor II comes back and launches an attack that's supposed to kill off the dwarfs. That didn't really go according to plan. In a battle with King Gotrek himself, Caledor II is obliterated. They take the Phoenix Crown, and heads back to their mountains. The Elves try to draw them out of the mountains but the Dwarfs refuse. Just as they're lining up to kamikaze Karaz-a-Karak, the Dorf capital, they hear Malekith is trying to rape Ulthuan. The High Elves in the Old World are ordered to get their ass back to their island, but some refuse, becoming Wood Elves (who continue to get consistently slaughtered by Beastmen and Dwarfs).
Caradryel, The Peacemaker
See, while the High Elves were fighting the Dwarfs, Malekith took a bunch of his ships and made a fortress in northern Ulthuan. After a long time without a king, the High Elves decided to name Caradryel their leader. While he wasn't the jackass Caledor II was, he could barely defend his lands because of the drain the War of the Beard took. The only real thing he could do was pull out of the Old World. However, some of the colonists refused to go. During the years, some of them got awfully fond of the place. They told Caradryel to shove it, and retreaded into the woods. These guys become the Wood Elves.These guys are pretty fuckin' hardcore. After a long defensive war of trying not to get his ass kicked, Caradryel dies peacefully like the motherfucking pussie that he is.
Other Kings
Lots of other kings come in here. Tethlis the Slayer, who came after Caradryel, managed to obliterate the Dark Elves from Ulthuan. He also started a system of formal military training for all High Elf Citizens. Other kings start the Swordmasters, build fortresses across the world, and even send guys to help the Empire. Overall its a very slow collapse that's still happening to this day.
Crunch
Alright, this is the fun part.
Special Rules
First and foremost, High Elves some very nice special rules. Almost all High Elf options have the Always Strikes First rule. What's even better, is that this isn't modified by the weapon speed so a High Elf with a Great Weapon STILL Always Strikes First (all you lesser races go after we've had our turns). Then, they also have "Valour of Ages" which means whenever they go against Dark Elves, they may reroll any failed psychology test, which is awesome. Many High Elf troops have the new rule "Martial Prowess" which allows models that have that rule to fight or shoot in one extra rank, which is cumulative with any other rule that lets them shoot in extra ranks (long story short, fuck you we're better and we're gonna stab and or shoot you until you believe it). Spellcasters get a rule called "Lileath's Blessing" which adds a +1 to casting attempts from the Lore of High Magic, the High Elf specific lore. Also, it used to be the case that you needed less core units and could take more rare and special units. This is no longer the case since the arrival of 8th edition, but errata from GWs website says you can have as many multiple units as you like (other armies are now limited to two identical special or rare units in games of less than 3000 points). High Elf horses can get the "Ithilmar Barding" option, which increases armor like regular barding but doesn't affect movement speed. Finally, if you wanted Flame Attacks you've picked the best army for them.
See Also
References
- Warhammer Armies: High Elves; Adam Troke, Rick Priestly, Bill King; Games Workshop; 2007; ISBN - 978-1-84154-846-3