Sun Elves are an elven ethnic group native to Bulwar, composed of the descendants of the Elves who followed Jaher east, instead of going to Cannor with Munas. They are found in large parts of the subcontinent; predominantly along the middle Suran plain, Imulušes, and Kinvefirel. As their population was dispersed across Halann during Jaher’s conquests and later due to the foundation of Rezekand, many different cultures emerged from Sun Elves, including: Dawn Elves, Sunrise Elves and Desert Elves.
History
Before arriving in Bulwar, much like every other elven group, the Sun elves' ancestors were part of the Remnant Fleet; modern scholars believe their ancestors to have been primarily southern Aelantiri.
The Sundancer Elves first arrived in Bulwar in the year 1001; led by the captain of the migrant ship Diranhriá Jaher ta'Diranhriá. Under his reign, the would-to-be Sun elves soon begin to campaign
They would find incredible success in this effort, pushing back the gnolls and harpies in a series of astounding victories, guided by Jaher’s tactical brilliance and aided by many Bulwari locals, who took up arms to fight for their homes and found themselves inspired and awed by this visionary who had saved their homes.
Jaher’s sudden and incredible liberation of much of Bulwar stirred sentiments in the Bulwari Sun Cult which had become popular as of the late Age of Petty Kingdoms that believed that this was the Age of Darkness and that Surakel would soon return to deliver the final strike against the Darkness. These sects within the Sun Cult began to point to Jaher as the manifestation of their beliefs, that he was Surakel, or Surael in elven, reborn. The popularity of this school of thought amongst the peasantry further rallied support behind him.
Two short years later, Jaher had won what would come to be known as the Sunrise wars, and became emperor of the Phoenix Empire, which was born out of the league of different Akal’s and human leaders which had come to support and reign under Jaher, many of whom viewed him as Surakel reborn. A point of view he would adopt, dawning the title of the Sun king and officially converting to the Bulwari Sun Cult.
During this time, the Sun elves began to settle around the liberated parts of Bulwar; primarily in the Suran Plain in more urban settlements, where they remain in large part today. This coincided with what would become the beginning of Sun elven nobility in Bulwar, as Jaher’s most trusted offers became governors of massive areas of land across Bulwar, in charge of administering the new Sun Elven settlements and to coordinate the many Bulwari petty kingdoms in their governations.
The governor of Imulušes invited many Sun Elves that couldn’t or wouldn’t fight to settle into the devastated and dispersed lands; where many of the Sun elves that did not become powerful or rich settled, to work a humble life tending to the fields.
A large population of Sun Elves would settle into Azka-Sur, as Jaher prepared for his eastern campaigns into Rahen and Haless proper. This population would remain in the region until the modern day, integrating quite thoroughly into the Akalate.
The campaigns of Jaher, and the later efforts of his successors would spread Sun Elves throughout Haless, when after the collapse of the Phoenix Empire many would face violent reprisal at the hands of the rebelling Halessi and Raheni powers. Some would settle in various locations around the continents, where they would mingle with local cultures and become the Sunrise Elves.
The collapse of the Phoenix Empire in Haless left many Phoenix Legionaries moved west, fleeing the reprisals and would end up settling in the Sahaladi desert, mingling with the local Mašnsihi populations and would take on their nomadic ways, becoming Desert Elves. The numbers of these elves would swell as Jexis’s Empire would collapse, and the Cannorian Legions would find themselves dispossessed and without a home.
From here-on, Sun elven control narrowed down to Bulwar, as the Phoenix Empire exploded into warring governorates and subjects in the First Cinder war; sparked out of the discontent which had been fermenting for much of the reign of Jexis, which for eight brutal years devastated much of the core territories of the former empire.
During this period the governorates evolved into the Phoenix Estates, with the Sun Elven kings lending large extensions of land to wealthy Sun Elves, who formed a new type of landowner nobility known as Ralkadezim.
In 1201, under the duress of Taelarios Irrliazuir, many important priests met in the city of Brasan, where he managed to successfully assert his claim that Jaher’s divinity, and duty, had passed to every Sun Elf, following his death and thus mandating them to protect and guide the Bulwari. This decision was both pragmatic and born out of faith. It drew the Bulwari and the Sun Elves closer together as it extended the same ‘favoritism’ that Surael had shown the Bulwari to them, it centralized the cult, preventing the disunity of the years prior and granted legitimacy to the Phoenix Empire’s successor states.
From here, the Sun elven reign in Bulwar was unstable, though it maintained quite some strength even through civil-conflict and unfortunate climate conditions. This would change in the latter half of the Age of Cinders, where Sun elven control began to slip more and more as their kingdoms were ravaged by crop failure, gnolls, harpies and goblins at first, and later the rising Jaddari in the east.
In 1491, many of the high nobility, important merchants and clergymen of the Sun Elven states would be annihilated as an explosive device would be detonated in the Samartal estate, during a conference to try and rally the Sun Elven states against the various threats which faced them. The immediate consequences were clear, with immense loss of life and immediate hostility and suspicion between the Sun Elven states which would cripple their ability to coordinate and cooperate.
This paved the way for the Jaddari conquests of Bulwar, where they swept in and began to conquer and convert across Bulwar; nearly eradicating the sun elf kingdoms across Bulwar, getting all the way to Brasan and beyond by 1516. Whilst this was occurring, members of the Jaherian Exemplars gathered in the city of Elizna.
They would take the migrant ship Diranhriá and use its travel log to trace a path back to Southern Aelantir, where they would settle. This group would form Rezankand and later diverge into Dawn Elves.
The Sun Elven peoples after this, would slowly acclimatize to life under Jaddari control, converting to the Jadd and integrating into it. To this day, the Sun Elves remain a notable part of the Bulwari population and are predominantly followers of the Jadd.
Culture and Faith:
Common Misconceptions:
Time and mistranslations have done much to generate misconceptions around the Sun Elven culture, particularly within their place in Bulwari society. In this section, an attempt will be made to explain and clear up the basics of the role Sun Elves held in Bulwari society during the height of the New Sun Cult’s influence.
To begin with, the concept of Sun Elves enslaving or oppressing is not theological dogma. This misconception likely is rooted in Cannorian interpretation of the ancient Bulwari concept of Gumar, which is often translated as ‘Chosen’. In ancient history, Gumar was a part of the theology of the Bulwari pantheon, where it referred to those born mortal that later obtained divinity.
The concept would evolve with the appearance of the Bulwari Sun Cult and changed to refer to those who followed in the path of Surkael with piety and loyalty. This meaning would remain in place for over three thousand years until 1201 in the council of Brasan. Here, the concept was applied to the Sun Elven people, stating that Jaher’s divine nature and obligation to guide and protect the Bulwari had been inherited by his Sun Elven kin.
This was not intended as a rational for control, and many modern scholars interpret the intention as a matter of equalization. The Bulwari Sun Cult heavily emphasizes the Bulwari and Bulwar as the favored children of Surakel and his garden and thus those who were outsiders were ‘lesser’ in a way. Thus, by this granting of Gumar status, the Sun Elves could stand on an equal footing to them, on a theological level, more effectively ‘integrating’ into Bulwari theology and society.
The exact nature of what being ‘Chosen’ meant, was incredibly personal to each Sun elf, but evidence suggests that most took to it with genuine diligence and piety. Many came to act as physicians, bureaucrats, educators and more; leveraging the advantages of their long lives to serve their homes with pride. Many others took positions within the military, acting as a literal sword and shield, for their homes, and yet more took up clerical positions, using their many years to contemplate and guide the faithful as to the will of Surakel.
However, it is important to note that abuses of this position did occur, most usually in those areas where the Sun Elves had superseded human nobility, and under the influences of particularly corrupt rulers and administrators.
General Culture
What Sun Elven culture can be characterized by is a strong and distinct appreciation for the arts and the pursuit of perfection using their long life. From textiles to horse-riding to swordsmanship and even bureaucracy, there is little that Sun Elves have not strove to perfect. Sun Elves are more inclined to magical theory and the skills inherent and necessary to such practices.
Examples of the above can be seen in the Eduz-szel-Ninezim, a temple dedicated to the principles of medicine, and once Ninu; the daughter of Surael and the goddess of medicine. They restored this temple, and many of the eldest of the Sun Elves would spend the last century of their life healing the sick and the wounded, free of charge.
Another example can be seen in the artisanal elves of the Five Western Sisters, a group of Sun elven provinces in the western areas of the Bay of Glass. Their mastery of trade, and various trades made their homes even more powerful economic centers enough to help combat against the economic strength of Aqatbar. From the wine of Agšelum to the vast shipyards of Eduz-Wez and Fajabahar, Eduz-szel-Ninezim’s incense and Pir Aíl’s carpets and textiles.
Masquerades, like the one at Samartal, are a proud tradition of the more wealthy and well-to-do Sun Elven individuals. These lavish and highly cultured events are a staple of Bulwari high life, well into the modern day.
Faith is a matter of some complexity and importance to the Sun elves. It’s an arduous task to separate their faith and culture, as they have been strongly intertwined for most of history. For many centuries, Sun Elves and the New Sun cult were synonymous; only starting to change as the Jadd spread into Bulwar.