The Eldar

It's often pretty easy to see the influence of fantasy on Warhammer 40K,

especially since it was created as a spin-off of Warhammer fantasy.

Humans vs. Orcs is a pretty standard fantasy trope that is also present in 40K,

but another race that was brought over to some degree are the elves

in the form of the Eldar.

In fact, with the works of Tolkien being such an influence, the term Eldar was one of the names

applied to elves in Middle Earth, meaning people of the stars.

Eldar in 40K are similarly tall and slim with pointed ears,

long-lived and superhumanly agile, but are also an inscrutable dying race. Let's take a look at

the history of the Eldar in the Milky Way, their current situation, and their potential

future. The early history of the Eldar is perhaps as mysterious as the Eldar themselves are,

and is largely lost to time. In modern times, troops of performing Eldar called

Harlequins put on theatrical shows to tell tales of the

Eldar beginning, but it's tricky to determine what is truth.

It does seem that the first Eldar were created by the ancient race known as the Old

Ones, in order to assist them in their war against the Catan and the Necrons, much

like the first orcs. While the original orcs were

created for their physical might and savagery in combat, the Eldar were created with

their psychic potential at the forefront. The old ones, of course, were mostly eradicated or

scattered, and the necrons went into hibernation, leaving

the Eldar room to expand and take over the galaxy.

...