Wolfrider
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The Wolfriders are a tribe of elves on the World of Two Moons in the comic book Elfquest, created by Wendy and Richard Pini.
Wolfrider is also the title of an Elfquest story featuring Bearclaw, in some respects the archetypal member of his tribe.
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[edit] Characteristics
The Wolfriders, as the name suggests, are allied with wolves, which they ride while hunting, but the alliance goes deeper than mere social bonding. The Wolfriders originated when Timmain of the High Ones shapeshifted into a female wolf and mated with the alpha wolf of a wild pack.
The resulting offspring, Timmorn Yellow-eyes, was a hybrid of elf and wolf, and became the first Wolfrider chief. Over the centuries Timmorn's blood has become diluted, but gives all Wolfriders characteristics unique to their tribe. In particular, they have generally greater physical strength and endurance and have much sharper senses of smell and hearing than most elves. The presence of wolf blood makes them mortal, though they still live a considerably long time by native standards.
[edit] History
For several millennia the Wolfriders lived in a forest known as the Holt (at least three different holts are known), hunting and gathering and living in balance with nature, until a conflict with humans resulted in the forest's destruction. Led by their eleventh chief, Cutter, the Wolfriders sought refuge with King Greymung's trolls in their underground caverns, but Greymung distrusted the elves and tricked them into a tunnel leading to a harsh desert.
After several days journeying through the desert, the Wolfriders discovered the oasis village of Sorrow's End, populated by a hitherto unknown elf tribe called the Sun Folk. After an initial skirmish, caused partly by Cutter's paranoia after the trolls' betrayal and partly by his Recognition - and abduction - of the village healer Leetah, the Wolfriders and Sun Folk became friends and allies, learning new skills from each other.
Their use of magic before the destruction of the Holt was limited to utilitarian powers directly related to forested wilderness survival, such as telepathy (which the elves call "sending"), healing, plant manipulation, etc. However, after arrival at Sorrow's End, the Wolfriders learned other powers from the community's elders.
Most of the Wolfriders subsequently left Sorrow's End in order to find an unknown evil force that had caused the spirit of the Sun Folk's leader Savah to be trapped outside her body. This turned out to be an elf, Winnowill of the Gliders, a decadent and stagnating tribe cloistered within Blue Mountain. After a bitter struggle the Wolfriders temporarily defeated Winnowill, and the Gliders' leader Lord Voll, no longer in thrall to her, promised to take the Wolfriders to the lost Palace of the High Ones, where they would learn once and for all the secret of their origins.
But the Palace was jealously guarded by a warlike tribe of trolls under King Guttlekraw. Lord Voll was killed, Cutter was grievously wounded, and only the intervention of another, heretofore unknown elf tribe, the Go-Back tribe, saved the Wolfriders from being wiped out. Joining forces with the Go-Backs, the Wolfriders defeated Guttlekraw's trolls and returned to the Palace, where they did indeed learn the truth of their origins and discovered the long-lost High One, their ancestor Timmain. But the Palace was not a home, and so the Wolfriders established a new holt within the woods near Blue Mountain, but hidden from all.
This covers the events in the original Elfquest series, 1978 - 1984.
[edit] Wolfrider characters
All Wolfriders are mortal unless otherwise noted, because of their diluted blood (with wolves). Their natural lifespan may be about 3,000-3,500 years.
[edit] Current Wolfriders
Current Wolfriders are all Wolfriders who were alive and present in the story during and after the original Elfquest series, 1978 - 1984.
[edit] Goodtree's Rest/Father Tree Holt
After its restoration, the Palace of the High Ones settled near Goodtree's Rest - the Wolfrider Holt that had been burned down at the very beginning of the comic series.
Cutter (soul name: Tam): male, alive. He is the main hero of Elfquest and the eleventh chief of the Wolfriders. His name is derived partly from his skill with a sword, but also from his desire to cut through lies and deception and uncover the truth. Son of the previous chief, Bearclaw, and his wise lifemate Joyleaf, Cutter lost both of his parents to the monster Madcoil, but avenged them by killing the monster and leading the sixteen survivors to a time of quiet. Quiet, at least, until humans burnt down the forest where Wolfriders lived; alongside his soul-brother, Skywise, Cutter had to lead the Wolfriders away, and so he did. They were tricked into the Burning Waste desert by the trolls, but after a grueling three-day journey discovered another village of dark-skinned elves in which Cutter found his lifemate, the beautiful healer Leetah, as well as a lifelong rival - Leetah's suitor, the powerful magician Rayek. Later Cutter moved on, with a burning desire to find other sundered elf kin and gather them all together, which he accomplished by discovering the existence of the stagnant Gliders of Blue Mountain and the warlike snow elves known as Go-Backs (as well as, much later, the ocean-based elfin Wavedancer tribe). Reasonable and kind, Cutter is now leading his tribe back at their native Father Tree Holt after a particularly bloody war with the human ruler Grohmul Djun. Cutter and Leetah fathered one of only three known elfin pairs of twins--the mystic Sunstream (formerly Suntop) and his wolf-blooded sister Ember, who now leads a branch of the Wolfriders as her own tribe. Cutter has long ash-blond hair, deep blue eyes, and well- developed facefur in the form of sidelocks. It is rumored that Cutter will undergo some kind of psychic trauma in a later story, which will cause him to lose his mind and memory.
His wolf-friends have included Nightrunner, Warfrost, Timmain (an elf shaped into lupine form) and Holdfast.
Skywise (soul name: Fahr): male, alive, pure-blooded. Father of Yun to some unknown Go-back woman. The tribe's stargazer never knew his parents, Shale and Eyes High, and the few memories he has of his mother have been augmented by the tales of the tribe's elders about their tragic deaths. Knowing his parents were killed by humans has led Skywise to a general mistrust of humankind. Cutter's best friend and "brother in all but blood," Skywise is Cutter's soul brother as well as closest confidante, "partner in mischief," and, at times, furmate. It is suggested they Recognized many years ago. Their relationship has lasted since both elves were cubs, and Cutter's friendship surely helped fill the void left in Skywise's life by the early loss of his parents. Skywise is nonetheless generally merry and a definite ladies' man, and after the death of his first lovemate, Foxfur, at the hand of Madcoil, he has "played the field." Besides with Cutter and Leetah, Skywise has been seen sharing furs with the Sun Folk maidens Maleen, Ruffel and Vurdah; then he found a somewhat longer-term lovemate in the sad-eyed Glider scout, Aroree, and he and the Wolfrider Newstar have passed time in the furs both during ancient times and in the "present." Yet Skywise's greatest love is of the stars, whose secrets he yearns to know. This love of the stars, as well as his white-colored hair, links him to the High Ones' astronomer, Sefra, who's probably Skywise's ancestor many generations back. It has also been hinted that Skywise will find out what Recognition truly means with Timmain, the last surviving High One, who's woven an unusually deep bond with the good-hearted stargazer of the Wolfriders since the passing of Skywise's wolf-friend, Starjumper. Rumors are that the daughter of this Recognition will be Jink, a flirtatious, omnisexual, and very powerful elf of the planet's space age. When Skywise, Leetah, the twins, and the ancient rockshaper elf Ekuar were kidnapped 10,000 years into the future of the World of Two Moons (later called Abode), Skywise begged Leetah to take his wolf-blood away, asking for time after the shock of losing everyone he cared about to their mortality. Because of that, he is now immortal. However, this choice has caused him some trouble and disquiet over the years, and he's only recently managed to come to terms with the change, reluctantly accepting the probability that someday he will see his soul brother die but also knowing their spirits won't be apart even then.
Sunstream (soul name: Klynn): male, alive. He was formerly known as Suntop, the male child of Cutter and Leetah. While he and his twin sister Ember were still in Leetah's womb, Ember called the wolf blood to her, while Sunstream called for "something else." He's an immortal, due to his lack of wolf blood, and possesses incredible magic powers such as astral projection, long-distance telepathy and magic-feeling, which makes him aware whenever something or someone around him has been modified by elfin magic. He lately helped his parents to restore the Father Tree Holt by purging a pool of malevolent magic left by Madcoil, and his name was changed to Sunstream to commemorate the feat. Recently he has Recognized an elf maiden, Brill, from a seagoing tribe called the Wavedancers; the pair are now "long-distance" lifemates who will visit each other physically some of the time and on the astral plane all of the time. Sunstream is also destined to become the new Master of the Palace of the High Ones, a task for which he is preparing with the High One Timmain and the stargazer Skywise. He and his twin Ember have always been very close, despite the obvious differences between them. Sunstream has long, wavy butter-yellow hair, blue eyes and medium-dark skin.
Strongbow (soul name: Wyl): male, alive. Son of the long-deceased Trueflight and an unknown Wolfrider male, he inherited his mother's skills and is the Wolfriders' best archer. Now a respected elder in his tribe, this silent elf used to be somewhat jealous of Cutter, especially over the unusually deep bond that tied Strongbow to Cutter's father Bearclaw - his soul brother. Strongbow doesn't say much, thought he'll stubbornly fight for his beliefs and what he thinks best. Lifemated to the tribe's tanner, Moonshade, their relationship started centuries ago under Bearclaw's leadership, with the birth of a daughter named Crescent, who had apparently inherited all of her father's aim and skills; she might have been a great archer too, had humans not killed her early in her teens. Strongbow and Moonshade managed to overcome the sorrow over her loss, but it took both a great amount of grief and a second Recognition - resulting, this time, in the birth of a male cub, named Dart. Their family had just been rebuilt when humans burned the Wolfrider's holt, forcing Cutter's tribe to flee into the desert. While the three of them apparently adapted quite well to the peaceful life of Sorrow's End, Strongbow did not forget what forced his tribe to a massive flight, and when humans stumbled upon the Sun Village, he opposed leaving them alive to relate the elves' existence to others of their kind. Later on he was caught and tortured by the Gliders' Lord Winnowill until Moonshade and the rest of the tribe came to help; he resisted and recovered from the psychic wounds and torment inflicted by the Black Snake due to his great mental will and strength. Strongbow and Moonshade were separated from each other at the time of the Shards War, with Strongbow following Cutter and his warriors to fight the human dictator Grohmul Djun and Moonshade offering her counsel and (at times) difficult personality to the Wolfriders' new leader, Ember, and her splinter tribe whose mission was to continue the Wolfriders' existence. Reunited again at Goodtree's Rest, Strongbow and Moonshade play a significant (though not central) role in the 2004 graphic novel, The Searcher and the Sword, in which the receive a message from the spirit of their deceased daughter Crescent, foretelling "joy above and danger below". Shortly afterward the couple Recognizes a third time, and Moonshade bears another daughter, Chitter. Strongbow has long reddish-brown hair, dark eyes and a short beard. His wolf friends have included Briarsting, Lashpaw and Gnawbone.
Moonshade (soul name: Eyrn): female, alive. The tribe's tanner and tailor, and lifemate to Strongbow. Mother to Crescent, Chitter, and Dart and grandmother to Bowki. Conservative in her attitudes, she is completely devoted to Strongbow and defends him and follows him, even if she believes him to be wrong, as seen when they leave the Blue Mountain, thus separating themselves from the rest of the tribe. They were temporarily separated when Moonshade was chosen to follow Ember and Strongbow to accompany Cutter. She had a hard time, missing Strongbow and the fear of never seeing him again, coupled with the then teenaged Ember, whom she saw as nothing more than a half-grown cub. Disagreements soon broke out between Moonshade and the young chieftess. It took a false vision of her long-dead daughter Crescent to build a bridge between the adviser and her new chief. After the Shards War she reunited with Strongbow, and in the 2004 graphic novel, The Searcher and the Sword, they are together again. Here they receive a true vision of Crescent ('sending' from the Palace). They Recognize each other again, and she bears life to her second daughter, Chitter. Moonshade has mid-length, dark brown hair and deep violet eyes.
Dart (soul name: Dyrr): Male, alive. Son of Strongbow and Moonshade, lifemate to Serrin (now deceased), father of Bowki (also deceased). When the Wolfriders and Leetah left Sorrow's End to find Cutter and Skywise, he volunteered to stay behind to teach the Sun Folk how to hunt and defend themselves. He was successful enough to create a fighting force of mounted warriors called Jackwolf Riders (after their wolf-jackal hybrid companions. He recognized Serrin while in wrapstuff after the battle for the little palace, and she gave birth to Bowki. Later, Dart traveled to the Forevergreen Forest with Kimo, Chot, Yun, Suntop, Windkin, Dodia and Shenshen to investigate a strange sending. Dart had a relationship with his "soul brother" Shu-shen, now deceased, and is currently "close friends" with Newstar's son Kimo.
Nightfall: (soul name: Twen) - Female, alive. A close friend (and cousin) of Cutter and lifemate to Redlance. Mother of Tyleet and grandmother of Pool, daughter of Longbranch and Brownberry (in "The Blood Of Ten Chiefs", volume one, her mother is identified as an elf-woman named Amber). Nightfall is an able huntress and scout. She is "the spear, the sword, the arrow" as opposed to her lifemate Redlance, whom she once called "the flower, the tree, the vine." The two are not Recognized, but Leetah helped them to induce Recognition after they exchanged soul names at the end of the Palace War, resulting in the birth of their daughter, Tyleet. Nightfall has long, curly red-blonde hair and amber eyes. Her wolf friends include Woodshaver, Squirrel Bane and Mudmuzzle.
Redlance: (soul name: Ulm) Male, alive. Best tracker among the Wolfriders and, more importantly, a treeshaper. Originally named Redmark until he saved Bearclaw from a sabertooth tiger by way of a spear, planting it in front of the charging the animal so it impaled itself with its own momentum. Despite this kind of skill, Redlance has a gentle demeanor which the others, especially Nightfall, respect, considering they usually assign him to guard the community's children while the others go off to fight. Nightfall and Redlance are not Recognized, but following the traumatic events of the Wolfriders' battle of the trolls, Nightfall brought Redlance out of a catatonic state by joining her soul to his, so that not even death could divide them. They then persuaded Leetah to induce Recognition so that they could have a child; Nightfall then bore a daughter, Tyleet. Redlance has long red hair, usually tied in front into twin braids framing his face, and green eyes.
Newstar: female, alive. Daughter of Rainsong and Woodlock, sister to Wing and Mender, mother of Kimo. Newstar was still a child when the Wolfriders made the desert crossing to Sorrow's End, and so spent most of her early years in the village. Her lifemate, a Sun Villager named Lutei (his name was revealed by Wendy Pini only in July 2006), was killed during the battle with the Go-Backs for the Little Palace. After the elves' war against Grohmul Djun, Newstar returned to the forest with her Wolfrider kin. Newstar has rather long golden-blonde hair.
Clearbrook: female, alive. Recognized lifemate with One-Eye, mother of Scouter and a daughter (long deceased) whose name was never mentioned. Now lifemate of Treestump after One-Eye was killed in the first encounter with the trolls of the frozen north. After his death, Clearbrook became an avenger, but eventually came to terms with her grief following a time of healing and some encounters with the elf-troll Two Edge. Clearbrook is currently the oldest living Wolfrider female. Clearbrook has very long silver hair and silver eyes.
Treestump: male, alive; Recognized lifemate with Rillfisher (deceased), father of Dewshine, now the lifemate of Clearbrook. Brother to Joyleaf and uncle of Cutter. The oldest of the Wolfriders and an elder who serves as an adviser to Cutter and is usually considered second-in-command of the tribe, though leadership is not his preferred role. Originally named Birdcall, he got his present name in his young adulthood in a battle with trolls when he was caught in multiple lassos by the Trolls. However, even so bound, he was "like a stubborn old tree stump" in chief Bearclaw's words, too strong to bring down. Treestump has short, curling blonde hair and a full beard.
Shuna: female, alive, human; adoptive daughter of Leetah and Cutter, wife of Bee, briefly the wife of Nunkah. As a child she was healed from a deathly illness (probably smallpox) by Leetah. While the elves tried to reclaim the Palace shards, she led a revolution that overthrew Grohmul Djun, the dictator who ruled much of her native Junsland. After the restoration of the Palace, she joined the Wolfriders. Later she decided to mediate between the elves and the human tribes near the holt. At the conclusion of the 2006 series "The Discovery," she marries her longtime friend Bee (Ikopek), a trader and traveler from a tribe near the holt.
[edit] New Land
These are the Wolfriders who, under Ember's leadership, returned to the New Land (called Junsland by humans) after the restoration of the Palace of the High Ones at the end of Shards. The latest publication used for reference is the Summer Special 2001 Recognition.
Ember: female, alive; twelfth chief of the Wolfriders. She's the daughter of Cutter and Leetah, and Suntop's twin sister, though as different from him as day from night. When the twins were still in Leetah's womb, Ember called wolf-blood (and its subsequient mortality) to her, while her brother called for some unknown magic of the High Ones' time. As a result, the Wolfriders all saw in Ember their next chieftess, and knew someday she'd have earned the chieflock (a topknot worn only by the Wolfrider leader) from her father, Cutter. However, in her early years, this young tomboy was often jealous of how everybody's attentions seemed focused entirely on her brother; she thought he and Leetah could step on the stage whenever a magic user was needed, while she, Ember, had to stay back and wait till her own adulthood would have come - which wasn't to her taste. Redlance's support, along with Ember's very self-confident and outgoing nature, somewhat eased things; yet, by the time of her adolescence, the young daughter of Cutter was almost constantly at odds with her chieftain father (in a drama echoed, many years before, by Kahvi - and lately even the Wavedancer chief Snakeskin). When Rayek tried to answer the plea for help echoing straight from the time of the High Ones' crash on the World of Two Moons, he abducted Leetah, Suntop, Skywise, Ekuar, Ember and Trinket (a troll girl) and took them into the 'Far Ahead Time'in the Palace. Although the captives felt it had only been one night since they left the Wolfriders, they learned that 10,000 years had passed for Cutter, who had chosen to sleep several thousand years in 'wrapstuff' along with his tribe so he could meet up with his Lifemate, soulbrother and cubs in the future instead of perishing of old age. After the family was reunited for some time, Suntop was to be taken to the Sun Village via the palace guided by Rayek, to develop his powers under the tuition of Savah. Feeling left out, Ember disobeyed her father and went with Leetah and Suntop to the Sun Village as well, not understanding Cutter's emotional stress of being separated from his family again. At this time she also came across her very first lovemate, Mender the healer, and they shared a somewhat idillyac time together - she seeing him as a beautiful, trophy lovemate and he seeing in her his heroes- Cutter and Leetah. Ember, however, felt Mender was too much like her, and when her father chose to split the tribe in half to face the Shards War, she chose her mother Leetah to take care of the health of her branch of Wolfriders, while Mender would have gone fighting alongside Cutter and his warriors. They settled on a new holt to preserve the Way of the Wolfriders and hunt down the monsters left behind by Winnowill. It was there Ember met Teir, a mysterious plains-dwelling elf who enchanted her more than she'd have ever thought possible. After a somehow stormy relationship worsened by Mender's jealously and Ember's sometimes not that smart choices as a chieftess, the two are now close to the point of being lifemates and while she's probably given him her soulname, Ember still doesn't want to force Recognition, but patiently wait until the High Ones will give her and Teir a baby of their own. Much matured since her infancy, Ember has flame-red wavy hair long below her waist, blue-green eyes (though often depicted to be either blue or green) and a slightly tan complexion, paler than her mother's and darker than her brother's. Her soulname is unknown, though Teir has, for some reason, often called her "K'Chaiya". Her wolf friends include Choplicker and Patch.
Tyleet (soul name: Sohn): female, alive. Daughter of Nightfall and Redlance and the product of an induced Recognition; mother of Pool. Has a particular talent for interacting with humans, and even went so far as to adopt an abandoned human "cub" named Little Patch, with bittersweet consequences. She Recognized Scouter, a development that his lifemate, Dewshine, approved of. Her relationship with Nightfall illustrates the effect of elfin longevity, since after five centuries the age difference between them was no longer significant and they behaved more like sisters than mother and daughter. Tyleet has red-gold hair that changes slightly with the season; during the "Kings of the Broken Wheel" storyline, her parents once commented "strands of white with red-gold means an early white cold- our cub's changing pelt never lies." Her wolf friends have included Bundles and Patience.
Pike: male, alive. The product of a healer-induced conception (he is the son of Rain the healer) and named for his weapon preference for spears. Lifemated to Go-Backs Skot and Krim, although Skot was killed during the war with Grohmul Djun. With Krim he later raised a son, Sust, who likely was sired by Skot immediately before his death in battle. Howlkeeper and dreamberry lover. He carries with him a pouch of dreamberry seeds so that no matter where he ends up there can be a harvest. Pike was also responsible for helping reveal the message in the wrapstuff dreams during "Dreamtime."
Dewshine: (soul name: Lree) female, alive. Daughter of Rillfisher and Treestump, she resembles her deceased mother, which serves as a poignant reminder to her father. Lifemate to Scouter, mother of Windkin, and cousin to Cutter. Despite her frail appearance she is one of the most daring and adventurous of the Wolfriders, which has gotten her into trouble on several occasions. In Blue Mountain she Recognized Tyldak, as a result of which Winnowill learned her soul name and used it against her. Much later, when Tyleet Recognized Scouter Dewshine was not in the least jealous but was glad that Scouter now understood Recognition. Dewshine has short, curly blonde hair. Her wolf-friends have included Trollhammer, Squirrel-Bane, and Longshanks.
Scouter (soul name: Jial): male, alive. He's the son of Clearbrook and One-Eye, nephew of Longbranch and brother of an unnamed elfin girl who died before his birth. Lifemated to Dewshine and Recognized with Tyleet, he is the father of Pool. When Dewshine Recognized the Glider Tyldak, it was Scouter who offered to be a father for her son, Windkin and to love him because he was part of her. But in the meanwhile his father's death had scarred Scouter for life so that he became overprotective of his mate, verbally and physically attacking anyone who dared threaten her and the cub's safety. Many years ago he Recognized Tyleet, and became, if possible, even more irascible. For a while it seemed as though his relationship with Dewshine loosened, as he started calling her "lovemate" again. But when Dewshine chose to risk her life and face the master of the Shapechanged, Scouter and Tyleet exchanged soulnames with her, forming a deep, loving threesome. They successfully raised their son Pool together, and even though there was a time when Scouter challenged Ember for the chieftainship and took temporary charge of the tribe, it wasn't long before he gave up and came back to his role of protective father and scout. He's best known for his keen eyesight. Scouter has dark brown hair and dark eyes. His most recent wolf-friend was Scrabble.
Mender: male, alive. Youngest son of Rainsong and Woodlock, brother to Newstar and Wing, lovemate of Ember and later of Yun. He grew up in the Sun Village, but later joined the Wolfriders in the New Land, in part to find his heritage, in part to learn from Leetah to use his healing abilities to their best. Mender accompanied Cutter and the other warriors in the battle with Grohmul Djun for the shards of the palace. He has long, blond hair and crystal blue eyes.
Yun: female, alive. Daughter of Skywise and an unknown Go-Back; lovemate of Mender. She grew up as a Go-Back, but after a raid on the Sun Village decided to stay with the Sun Folk. She joined Dart's band on the expedition to the Forevergreen rain forest, and after the restoration of the Palace joined Ember's tribe. She has pale blonde hair and blue eyes. Her wolf friends include Pondwallow, Wag-Rump and Suncoat (a wolf-jackal crossbreed).
Teir: male, alive, likely pure-blooded; almost certainly the son of Kahvi (his father was not named); He was raised by his father at Howling Rock, where Ember's tribe found him while Cutter's tribe was waging war for the Palace Shards hundreds of miles away. Teir's magic ability to 'talk to' or control animals was corrupted by Winnowill, nearly leading to a disaster. He left the tribe when they joined the other Wolfriders in the Palace, but rejoined them a time after they returned. When Scouter defeated Ember and banished her, Teir followed her rather than staying with the tribe, most likely saving her life. He has black hair, gray eyes, and olive skin.
Krim: female, alive, pure-blooded; lifemate of Skot and Pike, mother of Sust. A Go-Back who joined the Wolfriders after the first war for the Palace, together with Skot. She and Skot accompanied the other warriors in the quest to regain the shards of the palace; Skot was killed and Krim later mortally wounded, but she allowed herself to be healed by Mender only because he told her she was carrying Skot's child. Two years later she bore a son, Sust, whom she raised with her surviving lifemate Pike.
Khorbasi: male, alive, human; adopted son of Yun. His history is largely unwritten; we first meet him as a street urchin of the Longrider people (in Elfquest II 32-33), and learn in Recognition that he later was accepted as a Wolfrider and raised by Yun. He currently protects the tribe from afar.
[edit] deceased
These are characters that belonged to the Wolfriders since or after the original series, but have died since.
Rainsong: female, deceased. Daughter of Rain, half-sister of Pike, mother of Wing, Newstar and Mender. Was known for being highly prolific as far as elves go. Her wolf-friend was Silvergrace.
Woodlock: male, deceased. Devoted father and mate to Rainsong. Usually gentle and placid, he became almost frighteningly enraged when he believed humans might pose a threat to his children.
Wing: male, deceased. Son of Rainsong and Woodlock, brother to Newstar and Mender. Along with his parents, he died of old age in Sorrow's End while waiting for Rayek to return with the stolen Palace.
One-Eye (soul name: Sur): male, deceased. Originally named Woodhue, he acquired his more famous name because he had one of his eyes gouged out so completely that Rain could not save it and had to settle for sealing the eye socket. He fell in battle against Guttlekraw's trolls, but before his body completely expired, Petalwing cocooned it. When his body was discovered in Two-Edge's vault, Leetah attempted to heal it, but instead left it in an effectively brain dead state that Clearbrook eventually decided to euthanize.
Skot: male, deceased, pure-blooded. Lovemate of Pike and Krim; biological father of Sust. A Go-Back who joined the Wolfriders after the first war for the Palace, together with Krim. He was killed during the war for the Shard of the Palace, when he chose to fight the peace hounds to the last on a burning bridge, rather than fleeing in time. It is somewhat ironic, considering he once mentioned fire was not the way he wanted to die. However, going down fighting is the Go-Back way, and Skot held true to his tribe and his nature to the end.
Zhantee: male, deceased, pure-blooded. Born a Sun Villager, he began as a quiet, mild-mannered potter, but later became one of several Sun Folk to learn hunting and fighting from the Wolfrider Dart. He then joined the Wolfrider tribe, partly for adventure but also because of his gallant (though chaste) love for his compatriot Leetah, the healer. He developed the magical ability to throw invisible force-shields to save people from physical harm, a skill that protected his elf peers and even allowed him to dive into the sea (his force shield doubled as an underwater bubble). While accompanying the Wolfriders who fought to regain the Palace shards from the human despot Grohmul Djun, he used his shielding skill to save his comrades, but at the cost of his own life. When a building where the elves were hiding caught fire and threatened to cave in, he used his powers to levitate the wreckage, allowing the others to escape; but in the end his strength gave out and the building collapsed on him, crushing him to death.
Little Patch: male, deceased, human. Tyleet found him as an infant tied to a tree, where his parents left him to die, probably because they considered a port-wine stain birthmark on his face as a bad omen. Tyleet raised him as a Wolfrider. He returned to his human tribe in puberty, and later became their chief. As an old man he returned to the elves' land, and died of old age in Tyleet's arms.
[edit] Historical Wolfriders
Historical Wolfriders are all Wolfriders who have died or otherwise left the storyline prior to the original Elfquest series, 1978 - 1984. Many were featured in the Blood of Ten Chiefs series or in flashbacks.
Timmorn Yellow-Eyes: first chieftain, very wolf-like in appearance, son of Timmain and a full-blooded male wolf. He sired many children, in and out of Recognition, the slightly more elfin of which became the successful Wolfriders.
Rahnee the She-Wolf: second chieftain, daughter of Timmorn and Valloa (also named Murrel and New-Wolf), lifemate of Zarhan Fastfire. Tribal history claims she died during an attack of saurian creatures called allos, but it is revealed to readers in the "Blood Of Ten Chiefs" novels that she barely survived, and was cared for by pure-blooded elves. Zarhan was reunited with her later.
Prey-Pacer: third chieftain, son of Rahnee, formerly called Prunepit, Recognized to Wreath and lifemate to Softfoot.
Two-Spear: fourth chieftain; son of Prey-Pacer and Softfoot, lifemate of Willowgreen, father of Kahvi; formerly called Swift-Spear.
Two-Spear was fierce and opposed to new ideas. When Willowgreen suggested that it was possible to grow plants for dependable food, he considered it an insult to the hunters. He is best known for his hatred for humans, that went so far as to the madness of starting a war with the aim of killing all humans. Two reasons for this hatred are that humans killed one of his wolf friends, another that he found a place of old magic, where he saw visions of the High Ones arriving on the World of Two Moons and being attacked. When Two-Spear told the tribe his plans, his sister Skyfire challenged him for leadership. She lost, but Two-Spear spared her life, and let all Wolfriders chose if they wanted to follow her or him. His wolf friends included Blackmane and No-Name.
Icetooth: An elder in Two-Spear's tribe, who can be considered the first chief of the Go-Backs. He supported Kahvi and was partly responsible for her challenging Two-Spear. After untold events he became the leader of a group of former Wolfriders who had lost both wolf blood and their wolf friends. When they found Kahvi, whom he had believed dead, he assumed the name Sharf and prepared her to be their next chief. He let himself be killed by a stag during a hunt. Appears in the miniseries Kahvi.
Huntress Skyfire: fifth chieftain; daughter of Prey-Pacer and Wreath; half-sister of Two-Spear; attained chieftaincy after a tribal schism during Two-Spear's chieftaincy. Lifemate to an elf named Dreamsinger. It is claimed in the "Blood Of Ten Chiefs" novels that she bore a daughter named Nightstar after Dreamsinger was killed by a mad elf, which leaves some readers questioning how Freefoot came into existence.
Freefoot: sixth chieftain, son of Huntress Skyfire, lifemate to Starflower. Died when, while rescuing children from a tree during a thunderstorm, he was struck by a lightning bolt. The "Blood Of Ten Chiefs" novels say he Recognized Two Shadows, an elf from a tribe of plain-dwelling elves who claimed to be Wolfriders that had once followed Two-Spear and Graywolf, but their number was small and the wolf-blood was weak. They relied on domesticated goats for travel, food and clothing, and cooked their food. Freefoot did not see Two Shadows again, and later had to kill his son, Hawkcatcher, in self-defense, when the enraged youth engaged him in battle and told him of the pain his mother had undergone, being separated from her Recognized.
Eldolil: He was the last pure-blooded elf who lived with the Wolfriders. He died of 'old age' - for an elf like him, rather being tired of the world. When he withdrew into the wilderness, Oakroot (Tanner) followed him to bring him back, but the old elf refused. Before he died he shared visions of the High Ones with the chief's son, and convinced him that he would be a better next chief than his brothers.
Tanner (soul name: Lhu): seventh chieftain; son of Freefoot, lifemate to Stormlight. He was originally named Oakroot, but earned his new name for his skill in transforming animal hide into functional, lovely leathers for his tribe, a skill acquired from much trial and error. He is also renowned for his unusually long and peaceful rule, which lasted some 800 years.
Goodtree (soul name: Neme): eighth chieftain, daughter of Tanner, lifemate to Acorn and Lionleaper; a powerful treeshaper who created the Father Tree in which the tribe lived until its destruction during Cutter's chieftaincy.
Mantricker: ninth chieftain, son of Goodtree and Lionleaper, younger brother of Speedwell, a female who was killed by humans early in her adulthood. Known for his tricks, although he eventually cooperated with the human known as Demontricker to keep the elves and humans from each others' throats; father of Bearclaw. His wolf-friend was Bentclaw.
Bearclaw (soul name: Grenn): male, deceased. He was Cutter's father by Joyleaf, and the son of Mantricker and Thornflower. The tenth chief of the Wolfriders, Bearclaw was known for having quite a temper, and led his tribe of forest-dwelling elves in a time when indigenous humans started respecting less and less the "point-eared" demons. Bearclaw followed his ancestor Two-Spear's path to war, which eventually led to the death of many fellow Wolfriders such as Shale, Eyes High and Crescent. Years later, his own lifemate Joyleaf was killed -along with four other elves- by Madcoil, a half-longtooth, half-snake monster born from a pool of stagnant magic brought to life by lightning, and the rage of Bearclaw and the humans' shaman. Devastated by grief, Bearclaw faced Madcoil himself, and was subsequently killed, but not before he could pass the chieftainship over to his son. Bearclaw had long brown hair, dark eyes and face fur in the form of a short beard and mustache. His wolf-friends included Crest and Blackfell.
Joyleaf (soul name: Dehl): female, deceased. She was Cutter's mother by Bearclaw, as well as Treestump's sister and Dewshine's aunt. Every bit sweet and loving as her lifemate Bearclaw was rogue and savage, she was often the calm to balance his most fiery side and the voice of reason into the tribe. Her relationship with Bearclaw started as a stormy one but once their son was born she slowly started melting him into a better chief than he'd ever been. She was killed years later by the monster Madcoil, while she was with a scouting group to find out the source of the bad magic pool; her death eventually led Bearclaw insane and brought him to sacrifice himself for the sake of the tribe, but it was only their son Cutter who finally succeeded in killing Madcoil and avenging both parent's deaths with the help of the mourning tribe. Joyleaf had long blond hair woven with leaves and deep blue eyes.
Rain: male, deceased. He was the healer of the Wolfriders during Bearclaw's time, and though quite powerful, he was not as strong as Leetah. With his magic he helped eased the pain of One-Eye's lost eye, but he could not restore it; the best he could do was seal One-Eye's eyelid shut to completely cover the wound. In the same way, he saved Cutter from sure death after a human attack on the chiefs' son, and did his best to guarantee new life to the tribe - eventually trying to force Recognition upon himself. Rain fathered at least two known children, Pike and Rainsong, thought the mother's name is unknown (or if indeed they had different mothers). Rumors are he was also Shale's father, judging from his despair over Shale's death. He was killed by Madcoil -alongside Joyleaf and some others- while he was on a rescue party to find out where the pool of bad magic came from. Rain had short orange colored hair, dark eyes and face fur in the form of sidelocks.
Longbranch: male, deceased, formerly called Longreach. Lifemate of Brownberry, older brother of One-Eye, and father of Nightfall. He was the tribe's storyteller and it was he who trained Pike to be howlkeeper. One of the longest-lived of Wolfriders, he lived during the rule of five Wolfrider chiefs from Freefoot to Bearclaw. He, along with Joyleaf, Brownberry, Foxfur and Rain, was killed by Madcoil. His hair and beard were black, and he preferred rust-colored clothing.
Brownberry: female, deceased. Lifemate of Longbranch, speculated to be the mother of Nightfall and thus likely related to Bearclaw, as Nightfall and Cutter are cousins. She felt the need to be a potter, and was killed by Madcoil. Her hair was chestnut, and she wore a necklace of berries and leaves.
Foxfur: female, deceased. Lovemate of Skywise, she matched his love of dreamberries and the playful side of life. She had brown hair, brown eyes, and wore browns and purples. She wore a brown fur hat and metal wrist- and armbands. She was killed by Madcoil.
Shale: male, deceased. Father of Skywise, recognized lifemate of Eyes High. He was killed by humans, stoned from the nest where Eyes High was to give birth to Skywise. His back was broken by the fall, and he was murdered in his helpless state. His eyes and hair were gray, darker than his son's, and he wore greens and browns.
Eyes High: female, deceased. Mother of Skywise, recognized lifemate of Shale. She was a loner, but asked her mate to be with her for the birth of their son. She watched her lifemate get knocked out of the tree that she sat in; the injury to his back set off her labor, as she felt the pain as if it were her own. The boys who knocked him down captured her and were to be honored by theirs elders at a feast to their god. She saw her captors stab Shale in the chest, killing him and part of her. While guarding her in their village, the youths watched her struggle to resist her labor and keep her child from being born. They could not bear to see her and the child be killed in such a way, claiming there was no honor in it, so they spirited her away. They escaped on a log raft together, and Eyes High gave birth at last, apologizing to Skywise, since she could not bring him close to the sky. She sent to her tribe to watch the river, bundled Skywise in her waterproof cloak, and then set him adrift on the river for the tribe to find; she bled to death shortly afterward. One of the boys was killed for their deed and the other was sent to live in exile. He mourned that he could not save her and his brother. Her eyes were bright blue, her hair blond, and she wore greens and browns.
