Draft:Falmer (The Elder Scrolls)

The Falmer or Snow Elves are a race of pale-skinned and white-haired elves inhabiting the northernmost region in The Elder Scrolls video game series. At the height of their civilization, they were among the most advanced races on Tamriel, demonstrating a mastery of Ice magic and a uniquely close connection to Auri-El, the patron God of Elves. Before the events of The Elder Scrolls games they were almost entirely exterminated in a war with the Nords, with the few survivors fleeing underground where they evolved into the Betrayed.

Creative Origins
The word "Falmer" originates from the in-universe fictional language of Aldmeris, with Fal translating to "Ice" or "Snow" and Mer being "Elves". The race is first mentioned in The Elder Scrolls III: Bloodmoon during the mission In Search of the Falmer where a scholar asks the player character to find evidence of the race's existence. It wasn't until the Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim that the race made an actual appearance in game as the Falmer (Betrayed variant) enemy type, found exclusively in underground regions of the map. The Dawngaurd DLC introduced Arch-Curate Vyrthur and his brother Knight Paladin Gelebor, the only in-universe examples of living uncorrupted Snow Elves.

Snow Elven
The Snow Elves are characterized by their ethereal pale skin, white hair, and piercing silver or blue eyes, all of which are adaptions to their frozen and high altitude environment in Skyrim. Like all Elven races, the Snow Elves have pointed ears, slender and agile bodies, and angular cheek, brow, and jaw bones. The Snow Elves boast a commanding height similar to that of the High Elves, and due to the tendency for colder environments to spawn larger bodies, it is likely the Snow Elves are the tallest intelligent race on Tamriel.

Betrayed
The descendants of the Snow Elves, the Betrayed, have undergone significant physical changes due to their centuries long enslavement underground by the Dwemer. Their once-ethereal pale skin has become a rough textured and mottled. Their hair, if present, is sparse and colorless. The most striking change is their eyes, which have completely disappeared, a result of their underground environment and consumption of a blinding toxic fungi. The Falmer's ears remain pointed and have grown significantly in size to compensate for their loss of vision. Their bodies are now hunched and emaciated with limbs that are long and thin and their faces have taken on a more bestial appearance.

Fictional History
Night of tears disputed/escalation rather than spark

Nord campaign so thorough Falmer were thought to be myth

Government
Very little is known of the Falmer government that existed prior to the war with the Nords. During the war, the Falmer rallied behind the leadership of the Snow Prince, which suggests that the Falmer homeland was a principality.

Religion
The Falmer adhere to a pantheon of deities centered around the chief Elven God Auri-El and his Chantry. According to Auri-El's champion, Knight Paladin Gelebor, the members of the Falmer pantheon are as followed:


 * Auri-El - God of Time and Chief Deity in most Elven pantheons.
 * Jephre - God of Song, Poetry, and Art.
 * Phynaster - Hero God of the Elves, taught them to extend their lifespans by 100 years.
 * Syrabane - God of Magic, youngest of the Elven deities.
 * Trinimac - Elven Warrior God, Auri-El's greatest knight.

Other Elven deities possibly omitted by Gelebor include:


 * Mara - Mother Goddess and Goddess of Love
 * Magnus - Embodiment of Magic, God of the Sun
 * Xarxes - God of Knowledge of Ancestry
 * Xen - God of Labor

The Chantry of Auri-El was central to the Falmer faith, as it was a major site of pilgrimage for the Falmer as well as the residence of the Arch-Curate, their head of faith. Additionally, it is likely the Paladin Order of Auri-El was headquartered at the Chantry. The existence of the Paladin Order suggests there was a militant element within Falmer religion, either as a response to Nordic aggression, or an older tradition.