Bosmer

## Religion

### Pantheon

* Y'ffre the Storyteller: Also known as Jephre, Y'ffre is the most important among the deities worshiped by the bosmer and is in fact considered their patron.  Y'ffre is the God of the Forest, of song, and patron of the ranger and the bard.  He is also a god of the present, or the Aurbic 'now'.  As a result, and aside from the old tales and the Green Pact, the bosmer tend to show little regard for the ways of the past.  He is said to have created the first ballads and song, and gave birth to nature.  The bosmer say that it was Y'ffre who gave the sounds of the sea, the songs to the birds, and blessed the elves with the beauty of their home.  He has many temples and alters in the deep, secluded glades of Valenwood.  See more on Y'ffre in the Green Pact.
* Auri'el: King of the Gods in most Aldmeri pantheons, most altmer and bosmer claim direct decent from him.
* Arkay, the 'mortal's god'
* Xarxes
* Mara: To the bosmer, Mara is an important fertility goddess. She was the wife/concubine of Auriel/Lorkhan.
* Stendarr: Stendarr is the god of mercy, compassion, and righteous rule. To the bosmer, he is simply seen as the apologist of men.
* Z'en: The God of Toil and Payment in Kind, this diety was imported by Kothringi sailors from Argonia, but his worship died out due to the Knahaten Flu.
* Baan Dar: The bandit god of cleverness and trickster spirit of thieves and beggars. Imported from the Khajiit.
* Hircine
* Jone & Jode: Jode is called Mara's Tear, and is the aspect of Masser, the larger of the two moons. Jone is known as Stendarr's Sorrow, and is the aspect of Secunda.
* The Wilderking:
* Herma-Mora: The Woodland Man, known for nearly turning the Nords to Altmer. Herma-Mora is a trickster spirit, and the Demon of Knowledge.
* Lorkhan

### The Green Pact

The Green Pact is also known as the **Treaty of Frond and Leaf**.  It has guided the bosmer's existance since the beginning of the 'great story.'

According to bosmeri legend, once there was nothing but formlessness.  The land held no shape, the trees did not harden into timber and bark, and the elves shifted from form to form.  This formlessness was called the Ooze.  Y'ffre took the ooze, and ordered it.  The bosmer now had a pleasing shape.  He taught of the Green--that is, the forest and all plant life within it.  Shifting and the destruction of the forest were forbidden.

The terms of the Green Pact are as follows:

* Do not harm the forests of Valenwood.
* Do not eat anything made of plant life.
* Only meat can be consumed.  The beasts of the land, water, and sky were made for the people to consume, and all parts of them must be used.  **This is part of the Meat Mandate.**
* No source of meat shall be wasted.  **This is part of the Meat Mandate.**
* When enemies are conquered, their meat must be eaten, and not left to rot (though this is falling out of practise).  Families may help.  **This is part of the Meat Mandate.**
* No person -- wood elf or otherwise -- down by a bosmer should be allowed to sink into the ground, and must be consumed at most three days after they are killed.  Family members may help with the meal.  This is why bosmer prefer not to fight, but if it is inevitable, a wood elf will fast before the day of battle.  **This is part of the Meat Mandate,** but has diminished since the Second Era.
* Do not kill wastefully.
* Do not take on the shape of beasts.

Those who violated the Green Pact would be condemned to return to the formlessness of the Ooze.  Their names would be scrubbed from Y'ffre's story and replaced with silence, and only the most favoured may return them from the Ooze.

Salad-eater is an offensive slang term for those who do not follow the Green Pact.  Bosmer are in fact so loyal to the Green Pact that they might allow family members to die of sickness, even with the ingredients to save them growing nearby.

#### The Wild Hunt

“It was as if a crack in reality had opened wide. A flood of horrific beasts, tentacled toads, insects of armor and spine, gelatinous serpents, vaporous beings with the face of gods, all poured forth from the great hollow tree, blind with fury.” ~ A Dance in Fire

The Wild Hunt is an exception to the rule of shifting.  In return for their patronage to Y'ffre, the bosmer may perform this ritual in dire times, a practice harkening back to the Chaos of the the pre-Merethic Era.  They see it as a necessary means of justice and defense.  Focal points seem to be a communal affair, such as a ritual at secluded temples and altars in the forest.

The Wild Hunt is a collection of constantly shifting beasts and monsters that is quite literally unstoppable.  It can hunt by all five of its senses, and is quick enough that a person falling from a tree could be torn to pieces and consumed before they hit the ground.

Whenever a person assumes the shape of the Wild Hunt, they are lost forever and can never be turned back.  When enclosed and trapped, a Wild Hunt will turn cannibalistic and consume itself.  Some sources say the Wild Hunt can disappear into water, or turn into a flowing stream.

### Spinners

Spinners are bosmeri priests and historians, and may also serve the purpose of advisors and bards.  They seek to maintain all bosmeri history, culture, and laws in the form of stories and metaphors, difficult to comprehend but ultimately correct.  They have the ability to ensane listeners with their stories as a potent illusion.  They can cast them as a character within the tale, influencing their emotions.

## Culture & Society

The bosmer are able to grow their settlements magically, via Y'ffre's blessing which grants them forest-shaping abilities.

### Law

* As per the Green Pact, the harvesting of timbers in Valenwood is a heinous crime.  Bosmer may not cut down or use any living material in their lands, but this does not stop them using externally imported lumber.  Any who harm the forest in which they live will be attacked.

### Trade

* Lumber is imported from other provinces and countries.  They may often purchase woodcrafts they have no use for, as carpentry comes of fascination to many bosmer who know little about it.
* Silk and cotton are also imported.
* Exports from Valenwood include animal goods, such as bone and leather, and crafts.

## Foods & Crafts

The Green Pact has shaped the way bosmer live, and this includes crafts and foods.  As previously stated, the bosmer will only eat meat.  This extends to their drinks as well.  Most well-known are jagga and rotmeth.

* **Jagga**: A drink created from fermented pigs milk.
* **Rotmeth**: Rotmeth is created from fermented, molded meat, and is seasoned with thunderbug organs.  It takes years to brew.  Rotmeth is a precious ritual beverage, and no wedding can take place without it.

Horn is used for smoking-pipes, and filled with grubs or caterpillars.

* **Undrape**: A specific rite that the bosmer perform when displeased with diplomats at court.  They give them a noticable bauble, and fatten them up.  Then, they kill them.  They are roasted and cooked as part of a dish named Unthrappa, and given back to their enemies with the bauble inside.

## Physiology & Demeanor

### Physical Features

* Bosmer faces (Skyrim)
* Bosmer live 100-300 years.  They are sexually mature in their 20's, and young in their 70's.
* Bosmer are very agile.
* They possess light frames.
* Petite figures, sometimes misleading others into thinking they are weak.  In truth, it takes quite a bit more upper body strength and stamina to be a successful archer, than it does a swordsman.
* Males may sometimes have horns.
* Eyes are slanted similar to other mer, and are black or brownish-red.

### Typical Bosmer Personality

* Personable
* Jovial
* Curious
* Mentally Agile

## Writing a Bosmer

When writing a bosmer, there are several things to consider.  Most of these will pertain to bosmer from Valenwood in particular, or those from other provinces who still follow bosmer culture and religion.

* **Where is your bosmer from?**A very important question, as a bosmer from Skyrim or Cyrodiil will have been raised differently from one in Valenwood, as would one from the Strident Coast, as opposed to Grahtwood.  Those from other nations may or may not follow the Green Pact, depending on their upbringing, or perhaps they wish to shun their old ways and return to their roots.
* **What is your bosmer's religion?**  The bosmer from Valenwood consider themselves Y'ffre's people.  The forest god is the one who brought them from the formlessness that is the Ooze, and gifted them with nature, making them promise not to harm it.  The bosmer religiously follow the Green Pact, lest they return to this shapelessness.  If your bosmer follows the Green Pact, then how strict is their adherence?  It is possible cosmopolitan culture might tempt them, such as Skingrad wine (made of fermented grapes).  This adds a possible and very interesting conflict to your characterization.
* **How old is your bosmer?**  The history of their home, as well as Tamriel at large, will impact them.
* **How has the formation of the Aldmeri Dominion affected your bosmer?**  In 4E 29, Valenwood unified with Alinor, and the Aldmeri Dominion was reformed.  It was in this year that a Thalmor-backed coup overthrew Valenwoods government, and the Empire and its bosmer allies were caught off-guard and slaughtered.  Purges would follow, killings of clans suspected of dissidence or opposition to the Thalmor, either in loyalties or views.
* **What are your bosmer's talents?**  In combat, the bosmer are best with the bow; they are, as said, Tamriel's top archers.  That doesn't mean you *have* to be an archer if you write a bosmer; in fact, breaking this stereotype can lead to some interesting results.  Just note that the more typical bosmer combatants are archers, and that just about any bosmer raised in Valenwood will know how to hunt and survive in the wilderness.

## Suggested Reading

### Compilations & Articles

* Tamriel Vault: Bosmer
* UESP: Bosmer
* UESP: Valenwood
* UESP: The Green Pact

### In-Game Documents

* A Dance in Fire
* The Ooze
* Pocket Guide, First Ed.: The Aldmeri Dominion
* Pocket Guide, Third Ed.: The Wild Remain: Valenwood