Iylari

Iylari (Iruaric: "Beauties") are the "High Elves" in Shadow World. These are fairly uncommon Elves, considered high born compared to Erlini, who are typically less mature. There are three groups within the Iylari sub-race: Linaeri (Iruaric: "Singers"), Loari (Iruaric: "Builders"), and Dyari (Iruaric: "Dark Ones") which are the Dark Elves. All are arrogant in some fashion. Their languages are Linaer, Loariki (or "Kritiri"), and Dyar respectively, which are progressively harsher but otherwise musical. Elvish languages preserve a significant amount of Iruaric within themselves. Shadow World languages ultimately descend from Iruaric. Glossaries exist for Loari and Linaeri. The Shuluri (Iruaric: "Wet Ones") resemble Iylari, except they have gills.

Strictly speaking, Linaeri were "Fair Elves" in I.C.E. Age GemStone III, with Loari as "High Elves." The Dyari are an off-shoot of the Loari, considered an extreme form of their wish for power. They are not physically darker, unlike our Dark Elves. Erlini are the "Wood Elves", much more common, who became Sylvans in the modern history. Half-Elves are Ta-Lairi (Ir: "Half-Forever"), and Dwarves are the Nom-ri. Iylari is also a contrast with the Ruyari (Ir: "Lesser Thinkers"), the word for the mortal races. Inconsistencies exist in Rolemaster and Shadow World on these issues.

Bits and pieces of the language survived the I.C.E. Age, such as the "Ilyan Cloud" or possibly the "Ta'" pre-fixes of the Elven cities. Also spelled "Ilyari", it is the plural of "Ilar", an Iruaric glottalization. Loari was shifted to "Iolaari" for the town guard Quin Telaren. "Ilvari" was presumably Ilyari before the strange children story, related to the history of the Elven Village near Danjirland, who would have clashed with Iylari of The Iron Wind. These were not written down as translations in any known spot. The Elven racial descriptions still contain traces of the old distinguishing characteristics, such as the Faendryl retaining the Loari proclivity for impressive architecture and conceit well beyond the arrogance of other Elves. The Wood Elf traits (e.g. sandy hair) were mixed into Elves rather than Sylvans.

Examples of Iylari

• "Kadaena Throk Farok" = "Kadaena, Guardian of the Forbidden"
• "Ta'Illistim" = "Of Illistim"

Behind the Scenes

While Iruaric words sometimes survive into the Iylari languages, it is actually very odd that "The Legend of the Necropolis of Etrevion" refers to "Kadaena Throk Farok" as being of Iylari origin. The Elves of Shadow World were immortal, dying only from violence and physical injury. It makes little sense for them to frame Kadaena within a death theology. What might be happening here is the Iylari being treated as a Lovecraftian "Old One" race, with the Lords of Essaence (perhaps in ascended form) treated instead as the "Great Old One" gods some of them worship or venerate as an elder religion from before the memory of mortal men. These would presumably be Dyari cultists who treat the Empress Kadaena as the guardian of forbidden knowledge, analogous to Yog-Sothoth in the Cthulhu mythos. The Lords of Essaence fashioned the humanoid races in their experiments, much as the Elder Things did, the destroyers of the trans-temporal telepathic race from "The Shadow out of Time".