Eldrazor, the Lord of Blades, is the Elven God of Battle. Obsessed with the skilful arts of war, he still seldom ranks high amongst his pantheon, for many Dark Elves, save the legendary Sisters of Slaughter, scorn his reluctance to fight save in the pursuit of honour. However, once Eldrazor decides to fight, he does so without mercy. Any tactic is permissible within his Arena of Death, and as he constantly redefines the arena's bounds in the mortal ream, it is impossible to know you're within it until it is far too late...[1a]
Eldrazor is the patron of duellists and of those who yearn to fight battles for the sake of honour. As such, his favour is often sought by warriors of the Eternal Guard - especially on the eve of a trial by combat. Yet Eldrazor’s favour is also valuable in battle - at least if the combatant fights for a just cause, rather than out of mindless barbarism.[2a]
So it is that one of the oldest traditions of the Eternal Guard is to ritually consecrate regions of Athel Loren and mark them with crossed-daggerpendants and finger-bone totems. Thus are many of the forest’s glades sanctified as mortal extensions of Eldrazor’s otherworldly Arena of Death. It is said that the Lord of Blades pays special attention to those battles fought upon his holy ground, and will even intervene if he is moved to do so. As a result, the Eternal Guard habitually plan any defence of Athel Loren around these key sites. Mortal valour and skill is all very well, they say, but only a fool passes up the opportunity to have a god join the battle.[2a]