The Barbarian Glanfathan elves

[GhoulishVisage]

Barbarians come from many of the more remote cultures found across the world. In the Dyrwood, they are commonly found among Glanfathan elf communities.

 

Now this may be reaching just slightly, but the word "Glanfathan" has a Celtic ring to it, and the Celts were famous for their berzerkers, and in fact had folk heroes who were known to go into battle frenzies:

 

http://en.wikipedia....wiki/Cuchulainn

 

 

He is known for his terrifying battle frenzy or ríastrad, (translated by Thomas Kinsella as "warp spavsm^" and by Ciaran Carson as "torque") in which he becomes an unrecognisable monster who knows neither friend nor foe.

 

And the barbarian class seems to work in a berzerker like fashion:

 

They are distinguished from fighters by their recklessness, ferocity, and their predilection to substitute raw aggression for discipline.

 

 

So, do you think it's possible that this culture of elves are based on the Celts?

 

 

[Aedelric]

Hard to say at this early stage with so little information, but things seem to indicate that they will be inspired by the aos sí.

 

I am quite happy we will have barbarian elves, I am a bit tired of the habit of developers to cast them as an oppressed, endangered weak race. I am looking forward to Elves having a bit of wrath and danger to them.

[Sarog]

It seems likely that the elves will have celtic influence. That might even become the new genre standard.

 

This might be a bit of tangent, but I am a bit hesitant about these barbarian elves. The setting is a late middle ages one, with firearms and cannons and full plate armour. For a culture to still be on a level of technological and/or intellectual barbarism at this stage in the world's history would require them to be so far geographically removed from high civilization as to have no or next-to no interaction, in the equivalent of Southern Africa or South America. Just being a little ways away on the same landmass seems a bit implausible to me at first, but we'll have to see how they are implemented.

 

Also the idea that in a world with guns and full plate armour, a barbarian companion can be equivalent in power and value to your other companions is also a bit weird to me. Soul power, sure, but it does threaten to trend towards Warcraft's example, where technology is mostly an inconsistent gimmick. That's its own conversation and has nothing to do with elves, though, and I'm sure that Obsidian won't derp it up like that, but I'm definitely not sold on that yet.

Edited October 4, 2012 by Sarog

[el pinko grande]

Also the idea that in a world with guns and full plate armour, a barbarian companion can be equivalent in power and value to your other companions is also a bit weird to me. Soul power, sure, but it does threaten to trend towards Warcraft's example, where technology is mostly an inconsistent gimmick. That's its own conversation and has nothing to do with elves, though, and I'm sure that Obsidian won't derp it up like that, but I'm definitely not sold on that yet.

 

I dunno, if soul power lets you move sufficiently fast and hit sufficiently hard, I think lightly-clad barbarians make a lot of sense. Hell, I can see a lot of soldiers choosing to go with less armor rather than more if soul abilities that allow you to pierce it are relatively common.

 

All that aside, I love elf barbarians. Played an elven barbarian/warlock in D&D once, and it was one of my favorite characters of the last few years. Wasn't the most efficient of builds, though....

[lolaldanee]

It seems likely that the elves will have celtic influence. That might even become the new genre standard.

 

This might be a bit of tangent, but I am a bit hesitant about these barbarian elves. The setting is a late middle ages one, with firearms and cannons and full plate armour. For a culture to still be on a level of technological and/or intellectual barbarism at this stage in the world's history would require them to be so far geographically removed from high civilization as to have no or next-to no interaction, in the equivalent of Southern Africa or South America. Just being a little ways away on the same landmass seems a bit implausible to me at first, but we'll have to see how they are implemented.

 

Also the idea that in a world with guns and full plate armour, a barbarian companion can be equivalent in power and value to your other companions is also a bit weird to me. Soul power, sure, but it does threaten to trend towards Warcraft's example, where technology is mostly an inconsistent gimmick. That's its own conversation and has nothing to do with elves, though, and I'm sure that Obsidian won't derp it up like that, but I'm definitely not sold on that yet.

 

think of the scotish highlanders, they gave the english some very good runs for their money in the 18th century, in a time much more advanced than late medieval age

 

one of my chars in icewind dale 2 was a moonelf barbarian, so i'm looking forward to this

[Shadenuat]

Why am I thinking about ElfQuest now.

[GhoulishVisage]

The warp-spasm that Cú Chulainn goes into as a berserker opens some interesting possibilities:

 

 

The first warp-spasm seized Cúchulainn, and made him into a monstrous thing, hideous and shapeless, unheard of. His shanks and his joints, every knuckle and angle and organ from head to foot, shook like a tree in the flood or a reed in the stream. His body made a furious twist inside his skin, so that his feet and shins switched to the rear and his heels and calves switched to the front... On his head the temple-sinews stretched to the nape of his neck, each mighty, immense, measureless knob as big as the head of a month-old child... he sucked one eye so deep into his head that a wild crane couldn't probe it onto his cheek out of the depths of his skull; the other eye fell out along his cheek. His mouth weirdly distorted: his cheek peeled back from his jaws until the gullet appeared, his lungs and his liver flapped in his mouth and throat, his lower jaw struck the upper a lion-killing blow, and fiery flakes large as a ram's fleece reached his mouth from his throat... The hair of his head twisted like the tange of a red thornbush stuck in a gap; if a royal apple tree with all its kingly fruit were shaken above him, scarce an apple would reach the ground but each would be spiked on a bristle of his hair as it stood up on his scalp with rage.

 

He attacks the army and kills hundreds, building walls of corpses.

 

Now THAT'S a berzerker.

 

(Taken from the wiki article.)

[Tale]

Now THAT'S a berzerker.

 

(Taken from the wiki article.)

No, that's a face imploding.

[Orogun01]

I dunno, if soul power lets you move sufficiently fast and hit sufficiently hard, I think lightly-clad barbarians make a lot of sense. Hell, I can see a lot of soldiers choosing to go with less armor rather than more if soul abilities that allow you to pierce it are relatively common.

 

All that aside, I love elf barbarians. Played an elven barbarian/warlock in D&D once, and it was one of my favorite characters of the last few years. Wasn't the most efficient of builds, though....

I don't know why everyone assumes that Barbarians have charge into conflict straight forward when they were actually quite good at guerrilla tactics, camouflage and ambushes. I think that the only game that portrays this was Diablo 2; even though the class still played like a classic Barbarian, the background story gave a little nod.

[Jarmo]

It took centuries to wipe out & take all land from american indians,

they were stone age while the newcomers were already in post plate era.

Who's to say what's the history here, is this "new world" or the old, who's coming and who's going?

 

And magic can be the great equalizer.

Edited October 4, 2012 by Jarmo

[GhoulishVisage]

Now THAT'S a berzerker.

 

(Taken from the wiki article.)

No, that's a face imploding.

 

Ha! Why not both?

 

 

 

 

I honestly think that something like the Warp-Spasm could be a high-level a ability for the barbarian (It doesn't have to be nearly so grotesque in game).

I like things that have a root in actual mythology, and the Warp-Spasm is basically a ready made RPG spell taken from the pages of folk-lore.

[Monte Carlo]

As long as they ain't Mel Gibson FRREEEEEEDDDOOMMMMM style elves.

[Aedelric]

Hmm, some people are mixing a berserker with a barbarian, a berserker can be a barbarian and a barbarian can be a berserker, but they are not one and the same.

 

The class is barbarian, so do not automatically assume red rage. Unless Obsidian stated otherwise, did they?

[Monte Carlo]

Obz said that a berserk type powa was a feature of the class.

[Aedelric]

Ah, a feature, so not all will be so, that is good.