Shadowrun
Shadowrun General => The Secret History => Topic started by: Rockopolis on <05-10-11/1316:24>
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I keep seeing this pop up, and names getting dropped, like Harlequin, but what is an immortal elf, what's the history, and where is all this coming from? I haven't seen anything about that in my books.
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As far as I remember, there is no book in the Fourth Edition that provide any explanation. Actually, I am not even sure there was anything in the Third Edition except a one-liner in Shadows of North America about the unknown birth date of several princes of Tir Tairngire. You have to go back to Second Edition, with Threats (1996) to find something that start looking like an explanation.
Threats, page 58
Less than 25 immortal elves are known to exist, and none have been born since the Awakening. Immortal elves possesses an immortality gene that is triggered by the rise of the world's mana level. (Allegedly, the Seelie Court of Tir na nOg and Tir Tairngire's Council of Princes have perfected a genetic test that reveals the presence of the gene in an elfe.) Also, note that the immortality gene may lie dormant in an elf, so theoretically several other "unawakened" immortal elves may exist.
There is also the Earthdawn Dragons sourcebook (http://earthdawn.dragonpaw.org/ash/dragons-full-v0.10.pdf), that got released for free when FASA closed its door. Read page 63. The dragons Denairastas and Mountainshadow may be giving there one major insight on the origin of immortal elves.
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Know Your History (http://ancientfiles.dumpshock.com/Immortals.htm)
At least one Immortal Elf has been born since the Awakening, Jane "Frosty" Foster. Child of Ehran the Scribe and protege of Harelquin.
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Immortal Elves are just that, Elves that are, effectively, immortal. Even from Elven standards.
They spent the Fifth World (What we're living in right now) planning and getting ready for the return of Mana in the Sixth World and are getting ready for The Horrors along side the Great Dragons who slept while the Mana was low.
...
Well, that's the idea. The truth is that each one pretty much has their own idea on how that should be done, and we get into multi-millennial politics that made even Dunkie's head hurt. A lot.
Harlequin is the most infamous Immortal Elf in Shadowrun from the reader's point of view as he was a common poster on Shadowland (First-To-Third Sourcebooks were Shadowland posts, just like Fourth is JackPoint posts.). JackPoint member "Frosty" is his apprentice (And possibly the first Immortal Elf born in the Sixth World.), and is supposed to be taking over for him, but isn't doing that good a job.
From the point of view of John Q. Wageslave, they're not even rumors. From the point of view of Jane Q. Shadowrunner, they're rumours. From the point of view of FastJack, well, he's seen too much weird drek to rule anything out, really. :P
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Jane Foster is Ehran's daughter and Harlequin's apprentice and a powerful mage and aware of most Sixth World secrets, but I am wondering if it is ever stated anywhere she actually is immortal.
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Jane Foster is Ehran's daughter and Harlequin's apprentice and a powerful mage and aware of most Sixth World secrets, but I am wondering if it is ever stated anywhere she actually is immortal.
Harlequin's Back, p. 148:
"She carries her father's immortality trait, though Harlequin has not yet told her this."
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Cool, thanks a bunch.
Probably not possible to install with genetic engineering since it's probably on the metagenome. Pity, it'd make a pretty good character motivation. Like saving up ¥450000 for Leonization, but better.
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Cool, thanks a bunch.
Probably not possible to install with genetic engineering since it's probably on the metagenome. Pity, it'd make a pretty good character motivation. Like saving up ¥450000 for Leonization, but better.
Who says Leonization isn't based off what they have learned from an Immortal Elf's genes? ;)
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There is also the Earthdawn Dragons sourcebook (http://earthdawn.dragonpaw.org/ash/dragons-full-v0.10.pdf), that got released for free when FASA closed its door. Read page 63. The dragons Denairastas and Mountainshadow may be giving there one major insight on the origin of immortal elves.
Didn't they put something even more direct than this in Earthdawn canon once upon a time about I.E.s coming from dragons being capable of gifting immortality to lesser races (not just elves)? I can't seem to find it anywhere, but I have a vague memory of reading something more substantial than the brief Dragons sourcebook commentary. (It's possible I'm just hallucinating.)
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It's a lot harder for a Troll to blend in Low-Mana. My Grandfather had pretty pointed ears and was fairly tall, yet he went through most of Europe with no one pointing those facts out. (Although him bringing much needed supplies and hiding under the truck when he was shot at might have something to do with it. :P ).
Elves also have a better long-term view of the world than Humans do. And Dwarves... Well, Dwarves have always had major prejudices against them. On the bright side, they typically think that "They and their soul can go get their own damned pizza." ;)
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Mostly because the dwarves saw the elves as pretty boys for the most part.
And usually, the dwarves just wanted to be left to their own devices.
Mining out a living or smithing one for them and their own.
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Harlequin actually has two pupils: Jane Foster and Ryan Mercury.
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Wat?
Since when is Mercury his Pupil?
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There is also the Earthdawn Dragons sourcebook (http://earthdawn.dragonpaw.org/ash/dragons-full-v0.10.pdf), that got released for free when FASA closed its door. Read page 63. The dragons Denairastas and Mountainshadow may be giving there one major insight on the origin of immortal elves.
Didn't they put something even more direct than this in Earthdawn canon once upon a time about I.E.s coming from dragons being capable of gifting immortality to lesser races (not just elves)? I can't seem to find it anywhere, but I have a vague memory of reading something more substantial than the brief Dragons sourcebook commentary. (It's possible I'm just hallucinating.)
There was a note that one of the dragons (forget which) gifted some dwarves of Throal with 'the long view' which is an alleged reference to the immortality. Deinarastas also granted it to some of the humans in his clan (after being exiled from the Great Dragon council)
As a note, 'immortality' is a misnomer. It's actually 'Immunity to Aging' if dealing with Shadowrun mechanics, as such elves are still able to be killed via physical damage (although their experience and magical power still makes this an exceedingly difficult prospect!)
It's also possible (but as yet unspecified) that some ageless dwarves and humans may have survived to the 6th Age. Ahhh, the mystery of it all :)
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What Mystery?
Never read the Pandur Novels?
Hwaldos?
The subterannean dwarven kingdom/kaer that still had all of it's magic from the 4th world? *snickers*
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Wat?
Since when is Mercury his Pupil?
Since the end of Beyond the Pale.
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As a note, 'immortality' is a misnomer. It's actually 'Immunity to Aging' if dealing with Shadowrun mechanics, as such elves are still able to be killed via physical damage (although their experience and magical power still makes this an exceedingly difficult prospect!)
Or "Type II Immortality" (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Immortality) if you prefer.
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Man, seems like forever since TvTropes.
It appears to be an extremely difficult status to attain. Sounds like a job for the Logician!
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Weren't more of the Tir Princes rumored to be Immortal Elves? Aside from Ehran.
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Lugh Surehand, Sean Laverty, Jenna NiFairra, Sosan Naerain, Aithne Oakforest.
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All of them.
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Yeah. But they are all 'unconfirmed' in the SR world.
And there is not even as much data for Tir na nOg.
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Yeah. But they are all 'unconfirmed' in the SR world.
And there is not even as much data for Tir na nOg.
go here:
http://ancientfiles.dumpshock.com/Immortals.htm
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By 'unconfirmed' I mean people - including runners - DON'T KNOW. How many shadow posters took Lone Gunman seriously? Bugger all, IIRC. Snopes and Elijah are the current posters most likely to chase the rumours down, but they haven't to date. Frosty isn't going to do a tell-all, even of what she knows.
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FastJack probably has his suspicions. He's called Frosty out at least once on the lack of posting and items she's put up.
Which, considering that he's put up one item himself... :P Of course, Slamm-0! has only put up the rare item as well, but when about half of it had to be cut out because of how detailed he got into sports. ;)
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All of them.
It's hardly all of them. There have always been plenty of Princes that weren't Immortal Elves (and even some that weren't elves at all) -- the "big names" that the fans and writers tend to glom onto, sure. The IE thing gets certain Princes more page-space than others, so the feel is too-often one of "ZOMG, every Tir Prince is an IE!" What'd be more accurate, though, would be to say "every Tir Prince that gets much page time is an IE."
And, even then, that's all post-coup attempt. The current Council's still basically one big question mark, other than knowing Zincan, the ork, is High Prince.
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Tir Tairngire and Shadows of North America specifically stated the Princes that entered the council from August 2035 had a birth date and records before the founding of Tir Tairngire (even if Prince Maria Cinebal was a spike baby born in 1998). So, it is strongly implied Lugh Surehand, Aithne Oakforest, Sean Laverty, Ehran, Jenna Ni'Fairra and Sosan Naerain are all immortals. Novels more or less confirmed the fact for most of them (and the Harlequin adventure for Ehran).
And, even then, that's all post-coup attempt. The current Council's still basically one big question mark, other than knowing Zincan, the ork, is High Prince.
Sixth World Almanac, page 191
The first open election was held January 5, 2065. Larry Zincan, an ork Prince on the Council, was elected High Prince. Hestaby, also a current Prince, was elected to the new Council, as was Rex, the sole Sasquatch on the Council. None of the other previous Princes were elected.
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For the record, the "post" was a typo (it should've read "pre-coup"). Sorry. :-\ I still hate that we don't know any other elves that are on the council of Shadowrun's go-to elven nation. Rassin' frassin' other metahumans, screwin' everything up. *grumble grumble*
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Hestaby is still a Prince in TT. I find it hard to believe Sosan Naerain, above all, no longer plays a part. Then again she was always a behind-the-scenes player - something like the ideologue of TT.
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I figure several of the Princes wouldn't deign to hold themselves up for election. I do find it odd that Dar Varien and James Telestrian III didn't get elected, but that's fine.
I blame the humans for meddling in TT's affairs. And I mean the RL humans.
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Hestaby is still a Prince in TT. I find it hard to believe Sosan Naerain, above all, no longer plays a part. Then again she was always a behind-the-scenes player - something like the ideologue of TT.
I always thought it was because of Alachia, aka Sosan Naerain, that Tir Tairngire had a "High Prince" as head of state, instead of king. Maybe she did not want the top spot, or maybe the other IE were not to let her have it. Either way, nobody was going to replace the last Queen of the Elven Court.
In Tir Tairngire, she had to cope with the other immortal elves and the great dragon dispatched by the Council to watch over them. The loss is not that big for her, considering she still enjoys some influence in Tir na nOg, and first of all, she still has the Atlantean Foundation and the Mystic Crusaders. She mostly acts through the AF during the events of Dawn of the Artifacts (and probably the upcoming Artifacts Unbound).