A fictionized version of the meeting...

... for those who couldn't attend.

Shemkel stood almost still, leaning over the map table, seemingly lost in thoughts.

"Mae g'ovannen, Wolves." He raised his almost black eyes and gave a long, assessing look to everyone gathered in the hall.

He straightened himself and slowly, gracefully, rounded the table, then stood tall and proud, at the edge of the wooden stage.

"I am glad that all of you heeded my call to join me here, in our..." He gave everyone a slight, amused smile. "Den..."

Shemkel opened his arms and waited patiently, till everyone had a chance to take a look around.

"As you know, my name is Shemkel Mornheneb, of Imladris, the..." He frowned at the word, "...leader of the Wyld Hunt."

He waved his left hand around, pointing at the listening people.

"You also know some of the gathered here. Some you don't. Nevertheless, they are your brothers and sister, thus you shall come to know them all today."

Shemkel paused for a while.

"... to know and rely on them, as a pack of wolves does." There was a slight pause.

"Sadly, not all of us were able to make it here, tonight. I have sent most of you with tasks" He continued, his slightly predatory eyes sliding from one to another.

"Most of you have returned with news and reports, some have sent me letters, some are still out there, carrying out their orders."

Shemkel narrowed his eyes and clenched his left fist. "For it is our responsibility to vanguard the Free Peoples, to deliver critical information to our allies, and to officials of these lands."

He clenches his teeth, all tense and apprehensive. "I have recently come back from a scouting mission in Angmar..."

Shemkel waited for the murmour in the Hall to cease.

"Together with your reports from Ered Luin, the Shire, Bree-land, Evendim, the North Downs, the Lone-lands and Trollshaws, what I have seen makes me worry about the future..."

The elf sighed and shook his head. "The time of elves fades away. The fate of Middle-Earth soon will be upon the shoulders of other races. Dwarves, hobbits... and Men." He gestured towards Rokeler.

"For now, we linger still, even though the call of the Sea is ever louder, more tempting. Yet we shall not abandon you in a time of need. We will all stand together, united, arm in arm."

Shemkel saluted, hitting the left of his chest with a tight-clenched fist.

"But, even united, there are only a handful of us. Even with our friends, the Rangers of the North, all we can aim for are skirmishes, gathering intelligence, eliminating important servants of the Enemy and preparing Free Peoples for what is to come."

Shemkel nodded to himself and raised his voice a bit. "The Council of the North has been called, a concil that wishes to unite everyone against the Shadow that looms over Angmar. And it is that Shadow..." He clenched his fists again, his predatory feature became even more prominent. "That we will all stand against, stalwart as ever."

As his Wolves whispered, he continued. "Our own Shadows, our Blades, our Istyar, we all have our responsibilities. The Shadows will continue to scout, to spot orc warbands, to gather news of gathering foes. The Blades shall offer their assistance in Ered Luin, in the Shire, in Bree-land, wherever the local militia is unable to take care of the influx of brigands and other unruly... element. The Istyar may have the toughest tasks, like my daughter, Aralynia, who could not make it here on time tonight..." He paused, lost in his thoughts for a moment. "... for they are expected to protect the very knowledge, both that we have, and that we have forgotten, against the Enemy."

"Soon," He coughed and raised his voice again, "we shall issue orders, after the last reports come in. For now, I can tell you that the situation in Evendim and by the border with Trollashws is the worst and will require joint effort in order to quell the brewing storm."

"For now, though," Shemkel beckoned Rokeler to come forth, "we shall all get to know each other better. This is Rokeler, my trusted brother."

He motioned Rokeler to address the gathered.

After that, the rest followed his example.

Outside, there was the late evening silence. In the North, though, hammers clanged onto anvils, forging new weapons to kill the Free Peoples...

Shemkel's background

This is a purely information-oriented post. You can treat it as background for any interactions with this character, as the first part concerns public knowledge in Rivendell and first impressions, while the other is obvious to any member of the Wyld Hunt.

What is known to a passing traveler:

Not much at all. Shemkel is a polite, yet quiet and rather introverted. When dealing with strangers he keeps his distance, talks without unnecessary haste and does not encourage excessive familiarity. Yet another traveling elf, aware of customs of other races and providing help in need, but, as most of Eldar, unable to treat others differently, than younger brothers.

What is known in Rivendell:

The Eldar like their secrets. It's not easy to convince them to reveal, nor explain, any.

What one can hear from them, though, is that Shemkel was (and, to an extent, still is) a scout, sent by Elrond or his advisors, to gather information in the lands surrounding Trollshaws.

His wife was Laurel, his daughter's name is Aralynia - both of them scholars and lore-masters of a certain renown.

Nevertheless, the elves of Rivendell won't talk about Laurel's demise to anyone, but the most trusted allies of the Last Homely House.

There is, however, talk about the Huntsman of Enedwaith and his dealings with Shemkel.

The name of the Wyld Hunt emerges.

Now, beware of spoilers, if  you are not part of the Hunt!

He comes from Rivendell. For an elf, he's not old, but neither young. Mature, should suffice.

When approached by friendly people, he tends to be quite warm, well-behaved and gracious, though reserved when facing strangers.

When alone or in a small group of those he knows well, however, he's quite solemn and his predatory nature is very prominent. Shemkel will continue to be kind, yet it's clear, that he is an introvert, who prefers to act, than speak, even though, when needed, he's a very eloquent person.

He's lost someone, that's obvious. Since he's an elf, and has a pendant of two combined rings, it's quite obvious to deduct, that it was his wife. Nevertheless, the stare of his almost black eyes, when he is caught touching the pendant, makes almost everyone, bar the most cheerful hobbits, uneasy and reluctant to ask about it (I do not discourage you from asking, simply bear in mind that it's not an easy topic for him and your character senses it easily).

Shemkel has met the Huntsman. No, not Orome, but his servant. One day, he would love to present you all to him, but it takes time to get imbued with the original Wild Hunts ideals (that, and it requires completing a quest chain in Enedwaith, level 60+ area).

Hence, the Wyld Hunt is something completely different from its inspiration. Afterall, we don't protect only the nature and wilderness. The stakes are higher and our numbers, sadly, lower.

That's why we need allies. Rangers, town officials, adventurers. Anyone, who stands against the Shadow.

Shemkel also knows that the time of elves is ending.

For worse or for the better, the end will be the same as the end of the war against Sauron.

Either he wins and the Shadow falls, or the Free Peoples win and the Eldar are no longer needed, for the Fourth Age shall belong to Men.

Without an exception, Shemkel treats every person as an equal, often addressing people he meets as friends, and his kinsmen as either his Wolves or brothers. He seems to have no prejudice towards any of the races (except orcs and akin to them, which are abominations either way), what is more, he seems to be fond of hobbits, which he often describes as 'the last innocents of Ea'.

Against his enemies, on the other hand, he is ruthless and unforgiving. He has been known to give orders to kill those who surrendered, if the crimes committed were severe enough.

The information above is only a draft, of course, but it should give you a better look at my character.

Your truly,

Shemkel Mornheneb

We exist on Laurelin Archives!

It's not much, but it is, at the same time, a great stepping-stone into crafting our kinship into a force to be reckoned with!

There are two related sub-pages on the archives, one for the Hunt itself:

http://laurelinarchives.org/node/25773

The other for Shemkel, as a character:

http://laurelinarchives.org/profile/12903

Setting up your profile there is far from mandatory, but it may help us grow... additionally, it may enrich our RP experience and increase immersion.

The image (painting) on our kinship's website comes from flickr and all rights are reserved for Valin Mattheis, the author.

 

 

'The Wild Hunt' by Valin Mattheis

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/unforgivablerealness/6205934163/ 

Some of the sights Shemkel has seen

The Court of the Huntsman

One of the Huntsman's maidens

A wayward son's nocturnal return to Rivendell

Wanderlust begins right past the doors

A soothing fireplace, books... a weary traveler rests...

... yet his mind is already far away...

Is he thinking of the book in front of him, or the Weathertop, in the corner of his eye?

What shall it be... a good night's rest here, or somewhere far away?

The land of the Lossoth by night...

... and their majestic nightsky.

The Wyld Hunt in-game

In character, the Wyld Hunt was founded by Shemkel Mornheneb, a scout hailing from Rivendell, during his grief and sorrow-filled walkabout through Eriador.
One day, when he trusts you and you manage to convince him to open up, he might tell you the reason of the walkabout. For now, it's obvious that he lost someone. Judging by his pendant, someone very close to him.

During his travels and guerrilla-like hunts after various roaming orc bands, he found himself in Enedwaith, stranded in the unfriendly land of the Algraig. There, after dozens of years wasted on self-loathing and blind hatred towards the orcs, Shemkel met the Huntsman, a mysterious Maia of Oromë.
What was said and done during that period, shall forever remain Shemkel's secret, but the meeting changed him greatly. Or, perhaps, restored to sanity.

According to his daughter, Aralynia, when she met him after all those years of abandonment, the change went in deep. The hatred was still there, as well as the grim determination to hunt and slaughter every orc he comes across.
But there was something more. Regret, for the fall he brought onto himself. Conviction to atone himself in Aralynia's eyes. Finally, the sense of purpose.
No longer was Shemkel torn between the desire to leave the Middle-Earth or plunge himself blindly into purposeless killing.

Guided by the Huntsman, Shemkel began to seek other, like-minded free peoples, in order to form the Wyld Hunt that elves of Rivendell know today.
Though never numerous and decentralized, the Wyld Hunt proved to be a useful and reliable organization, dedicated to defending free peoples against the servants of the Enemy.
No longer single-minded focused on hunting the orcs, scouts of the Hunt, following Shemkel's example, spread throughout Eriador to seek out hidden dangers, cooperating closely with Rangers of the North.
Yet, while Rangers devoted themselves to settling in the lands they chose to protect, the Wyld Hunt always roamed, always hungry for new enemies, new skirmishes, spread and vigilant, meeting in great numbers only to hunt and kill a formidable enemy or cull a big and dangerous warband.

From Ered Luin, through Shire, Bree-land, to Trollshaws and even Angmar, the Hunt never stops, though free peoples, bar a few well-informed leaders, remain oblivious to this struggle. And even though their numbers were always scarce, Shemkel knows well, that the vanguard and scouts are crucial in every conflict. Hence, he tries to eliminate as many scouts of the Enemy, as possible.

Having surrounded himself with other, like-minded people, Shemkel drives the Hunt to help the Free Peoples in their struggle against the Shadow growing in Angmar.