The Nephalem

Cursed and haunted by their own blood and failure

Written by Heart

Beings that even the mighty Fae fear, I never quite understood why since they seem to serve their Queen. I've never heard one talk, and yet they seem to move as if a group themselves. When one steps, so too do the others in perfect harmony. When I inquired as to who they were, I was given a simple and short response, the Oberon called them "the beings we called upon to defend us from the Royal Demons in the ancient days". For those uneducated, you would not realize how impactful this truly is. I assure you, one Daevata of true royal blood, if they wished, could level half of our great empire before we managed to kill it, even with my aid.

— Grand Scholar Magnus Everlight in "The Faera"

Information

The Nephalem are named such for one reason, they are an ancient group of Fae and Elves which do not serve an order, nor are they bound by some pact. Instead, they are bound by their teachings and by blood, as a group that was part of the "Great Rupture", thousands of years ago they hold as much experience and skill as their Queen in many aspects. However, the group also suffered for their involvement, and in battle contracted the tainting from the blood of the beasts they were slaying infecting their wounds, making them bound by the dark blood that flows through them.
In summary, they are the elite soldiers of Faedra from a bygone era with experience from thousands of years, from tens of thousands of battles, against every species and sub-species to ever be seen, that have been further augmented by this dark blood pushing them to all new levels of power.

Cultural Segregation

Though the Nephalem are called "Honored", such is only done publically. The group is despised in secret within the confines of Faedra, and this is due to the tainted blood that courses through them. They live without proper homes and are generally found underneath the continent under the roots in dark cave systems instead, far from the normal homes of other residents. They are called upon only by Inanna in great times of need and are scorned for their unnatural complexions, black wings, and twisted power that they wield.
As the people honor their sacrifice during the "Great Rupture", they also believe that they should have died in that battle. This is a delicate balance, as the Nephalem themselves also believe this to be so, and are quite literally only still alive to have a "Good Death", in order to protect Faedra to their last breath.

Equipment

The Nephalem, like many warriors of the Fae, don't tend to have much in the way of equipment that many humans tend to envision. Instead, they wield armor and weapons that they have "grown" themselves. Often they will be seen wearing armor made from woven silks from spiders, plated with wooden armor. Similarly, they tend to favor bows, polearms, and daggers instead of actual blades, axes, and so forth. The biggest step from other Fae and Elven equipment is that the materials are all enchanted with overwhelming magic, there is generally not a single item on their person that doesn't have some sort of advanced magical or alchemical use.

Rankings & Status

Within the ranks of the Nephalem, the tainted Fae are considered to all hold the ranking within the country of "Diagus", the highest ranking that a member of the Faedran military is capable of obtaining. Despite this rank, however, it is only honorary and ensures that others show them respect, and civility despite their "curse". They have forfeited any right to actually command anyone, as well as their own previous noble titles if they had any, combined with their age they have been lost to time much like their names. Similarly, they are all equals bound by their curse and blood, they instead work as a perfect cohesive unit of equals, and friends.

Tactics & Training

One day, only a few hundred years after our great failing, one of the Demons came to our homeland. We were still crippled, weak, and had exiled the Nephalem in our anger toward anything holding tainted blood. I faced the beast, but I was still weak, and quickly overwhelmed— I saw our children burn, our home that had suffered enough already, turning to ash around me. Like a flock of black ravens they came, they tore into the beast from every angle, and all I could think watching them was a great eagle, being driven off by a flock of ravens to protect their home. Only for the ravens to then later be attacked and disrespected by the other very birds that they had saved. My heart weeps for these ancient warriors that even now, despite everything, dedicate themselves to us.

— The First Queen of Sylvis, Inanna

While in battle, the Nephalem are feared more than anything, not for their powerful magic, expansive set of skills, superhuman combat speeds, durability, and so forth. But instead are feared for their cohesive movements. Due to a telepathic and empathic connection with one another fueled by magic, they are able to maneuver, attack, counter and protect one another without a single word or sign. This allows them to fight as if they were one single entity, sharing pain, mental tactics and strategies all while still in the midst of battle. In many ways, they act almost as if they themselves are a swarm that fight their opponents.
Of course, this is played out even more by their tremendous skill, magical aptitude, varying specializations such as one being a healer and herbalist, another being a ranger, one a front line fighter, and so forth. Combining their natural superior genetics, tainted enhancements, and ability to utilize the "True Magic" along with all these facts makes them one of the most feared forces to ever engage in battle. Even entire armies would stand little chance in most situations against the Nephalem.
Even now, with their great age and tremendous skill, the Nephalem never halt in their training. Constantly making new strides in alchemy, herbology, devising new tactics and formations in order to have every option available to them. They even study the ancient artifacts of the Firstborn in the hopes of acquiring even a small amount of their previous magic and technology to help their country. In essence, in one way or another, all the Nephalem do with their time in exile is to improve themselves so that they can remain a powerful defensive force for their land until the day when they can finally die, pushed to their utter limit with nothing left to give, to protect their home.

by anna-lakisova

Type

Magic

Founding

0 A.R.

Overall training Level

Elite

Assumed Veterancy

Decorated/Honored

Loyalties

• The Creator
• Faedra
• Inanna