A Ghost Strider of the Eonir Wood Elves who inhabit Laurelorn Forest in the Old World[3a]
A Ghost Strider is a masterful archer and warrior of the Eonir Wood Elves who live in Laurelorn Forest, dedicated to rooting out all Chaos and other threats to their magical forest home and the wider natural world.[1a]
Nearly supernaturally silent and fleet of foot, Ghost Striders roam over the Old World seeking out the forces of Chaos and various other threats to the natural world. They are most at home in the forest, though they can readily pass unseen over mountains and other terrain if need be. Ghost Striders are deadly archers, famed for never missing their targets.[1a]
They are usually either softspoken or taciturn and considered to be both odd and intimidating, even by their own people. They are often more comfortable with the natural world's flora and fauna than they are around other intelligent beings.[1a]
Role[]
Ghost Striders often make their own bows, hewing them from the branches of ancient trees. On occasion, they weave gold bands and bone fragments into the wood of their bows. The elfbow of a Ghost Strider is considered to be an extension of the Wood Elf warrior's very being, and each is distinct and unique to the strider who strings it.[2a]
Ghost Striders are adept at living in treetops, and often build makeshift shelters high above the ground in the strong branches of mighty oaks. These shelters resemble large and messy birds' nests. Though they appear strange, they offer the Ghost Striders both concealment and a place to survey the forest for unwanted intruders. Many Ghost Striders also decorate their cloaks with the leaves of the tree in which they live.[2a]
Although known for their solitary nature, even among the Eonir, Ghost Striders have been known to befriend extremely unlikely allies -- Dwarfen Troll Slayers. Though Ghost Striders do not care for the Troll Slayers' brutal tactics in battle, they feel a kinship towards these Dwarfs' single-minded dedication to destroying evil. When a Ghost Strider and a Troll Slayer cross paths, they may team up for a brief while, until the foes they seek individually lead them apart once more.[2a]
When Ghost Striders defeat an enemy in battle, they make a small cut in their forearms to commemorate the victory. Veteran Ghost Striders often only have to bare their heavily-scarred arms in order to drive away cowardly opponents. Some Human nobles have attempted to make Ghost Striders the wardens of their forests, in order to protect the woodlands from evil. Such appointments -- when accepted -- have virtually always ended in disaster, as what the nobles and the Ghost Striders believe to be "evil" are entirely different things.[2a]
The Ghost Striders of the Laurelorn Forest epitomise the strategic defence. Master archers, they hunt all threats to the natural world with a determination and skill that would be terrifying to behold, if not for their almost supernatural speed and silence. Ghost Striders are so attuned to the natural world that nature itself seems to hide their passage from prying eyes. Indeed, so devoted are they to their task that even other Wood Elves consider them intimidating, perhaps skirting closer to obsession than is healthy for an already intensely emotional people.[3a]
To a Ghost Strider the forest is sacred above all else, and no transgression is beneath their punishment, whether beast of Chaos or a Human peasant cutting branches for firewood. While most commonly seen scouring the forest for their enemies, Ghost Striders are comfortable in any wilderness, and will protect an unspoiled, windswept mountain just as fiercely as a woodland glade (much to the ire of many a Dwarf miner). They tend to be solitary, even preferring the wilderness to the Wood Elf kingdoms they protect, but they are ultimately pragmatic and not above working with others to achieve their goals.[3a]