Facial features

[Thorval]

Hi.

High elves are a somewhat strange looking race. They are probably the most ghostly and alien looking elves I have ever seen.

Strange. (http://us.games-workshop.com/games/warhammer/highelves/extras/artwork/images/heartwork5.jpg)

I thought the high elf in the cinematic was more like any general Everquest type elf, nothing original. Then there was some knight of the blazing sun screenshot with some creature, i guess it was an elf, behind him. It looked more like some purple beast rather than an elf.

I really hope that elves don't look the same as in every other game.

[dutch_gamer]

http://www.nulnhighwayboys.com/forums/index.php?PHPSESSID=b8ddbf76d278f7344ec5f9d9ca0b0a 18&action=gallery;sa=view;id=80

[Hatemonger]

They are probably the most ghostly and alien looking elves I have ever seen.

Not a huge fan of fantasy, are ya?

[Vikingkingq]

http://www.nulnhighwayboys.com/forums/index.php?PHPSESSID=b8ddbf76d278f7344ec5f9d9ca0b0a 18&action=gallery;sa=view;id=80

That looks rather alien.

Take a look at this video:
http://warhammervault.ign.com/View.php?view=Movies.Detail&id=7

Also alien.

[Lorik]

Any Druchii NPCs found yet?

That's my biggest thing. *pleasedon'tsuckpleasedon'tsuck*

[Vikingkingq]

Any Druchii NPCs found yet?

That's my biggest thing. *pleasedon'tsuckpleasedon'tsuck*

Not as of yet. According to an interviewish thing on Only WAR, they do have a model but none are in zones yet.

[The Elfologist]

High Elves aren't beautiful in the generic way. They're actually described as 'beautiful to a terrifying point' as well as 'utterly alien'. If you see a beautiful girl, you might fall head over heels for her looks. With an elf, you'll not only fall head over heels, you'll continue rolling down a steep hill and then realize that at the end of the road there's a pit filled with sharp pointy objects.

[Thoden Firehammer]

'Ey lads .. I don't know abou' yeh ... but I couldn't quite tell if that Elf was a lad or a lass.

In anycase I like Mythic's work I think they're doing a great job .. even with the Elves ... if I hard a hard tme distingushing that NPC than yeah they're doing great! XD

[Hoomberdang]

That's the thing I love about the Warhammer Elves, their alien appearence is really cool IMO.

Also, I think that all the kiddies that are expecting the Dark Elves to be 'teh ub3r hawtness' are going to be in for a shock when the screenshots are released...

[Hatemonger]

They are still supposed to be very attractive though, so I'm failing to see why these kids would suddenly break out in tears.

[Jhayden]

Well, the way I see it, most of the Elven artwork you see is supposedly taken from the human's standpoint of what these elves look like. To an average human, who has never seen an elf, they will imagine they're overly tall, alien-like creatures. This is probably due to exaggerated claims by people who have witnessed elves in action.

They'll imagine the elves have some form of feline-like appearence since they move with cat-like agility and reflexes, as well as a grace and speed unseen by humans. As quick analysis, movement 4 in game terms (warhammer tabletop) is considered normal, whereas movement 5 is pretty much like sprinting at 20 miles per hour.

So, this would translate to elongated features, which the elves do have, but would be exaggerated like I claimed before, which would lead to overly long features. Incredibly long, slanted eyes. Fine noses and pointed ears. They wouldn't even consider elves as fellow humanoids, just as a species of their own.

Elves, in actuality in this game, aren't anywhere near as fantastical as humans would claim. They stand around 6 foot on average, have light skin (usually with a golden/yellow tint), fine, soft hair which covers a myriad of different colors ranging from black to brown to silver and gold.

Their body types range from pudgy to incredibly slim, and then to well built and muscular. You won't see a muscle-bound 'roid pumping elven machine of death, but you will see them with ample build and perfect physiques. Think Bruce Lee body type.

5 fingers and 5 toes on each hand/foot. Long, delicate fingers which, combined with their natural dexterity would probably accomodate elves to being ambidextrous. Their faces are very elven but not to the extremes you see in most of the artwork. Their eyes are not black and their noses don't point to the ground. Also, their heads aren't long and thin, well, at least most of them aren't.
Think of the average human proportions on a face. Now imagine taking those proportions (of an average sized male 5'9", 150 pound body) and very slightly stretch them upwards, perhaps by a quarter of an inch. The Eyes will elongate, the lips will thin and the cheeks will stretch over the cheek bones. Add in a normal hairline and there you go, a Warhammer Elf.

[The Elfologist]

And where did you get such an accurate description from? Fluff, your own imagination/reasoning, or somewhere else?

[Jhayden]

Mostly reasoning with a helping of fluff from the Wood Elves/Dark Elves. It's a shame that both of the other races of elves have more fluff to bear then the High Elves. Dark Elves have the Malus Darkblade series which goes pretty strongly into how Dark Elf society works.
Wood Elves have some random scattered articles about their society as well as physical features.

Mainly though, it's just personal reason. My speculation as to what elves would look like.

[Anaris]

They'll imagine the elves have some form of feline-like appearence since they move with cat-like agility and reflexes, as well as a grace and speed unseen by humans. As quick analysis, movement 4 in game terms (warhammer tabletop) is considered normal, whereas movement 5 is pretty much like sprinting at 20 miles per hour.

uh... since a human can run at eight inches a turn, 5 is probably not 20 mph.

Think of the average human proportions on a face. Now imagine taking those proportions (of an average sized male 5'9", 150 pound body) and very slightly stretch them upwards, perhaps by a quarter of an inch. The Eyes will elongate, the lips will thin and the cheeks will stretch over the cheek bones. Add in a normal hairline and there you go, a Warhammer Elf.

the artwork disagrees, and i disagree - elves shouldn't just be humans with pointy ears.

[The Elfologist]

For once I agree with Anaris. Elves that look like humans with pointy ears and, perhaps, slanted eyes just aren't elves. True, they don't have to be some ubertall 'thing' that looks like it's about to say 'We come in peace', but they are not humans. Sure they have a long, slim nose, sure their foreheads are high, sure their mouths are thin lipped, why shouldn't their eyes be black if their hair can be silver?

Personally, I'm just going to put a little notch of trust in the art given to us by Games Workshop, seeing as they're like the makers/publishers and stuff of the miniatures and thus probably know what they are doing when making the art. I am, however, curious to know what Mythic will do. Will they settle for the black eyes? Or will they perhaps put in different colours ranging from light blue to dark brown, to pale green to light grey and then back to black. And hair, does it really always have to be long or short because it's cropped up into a ponytail? Meh, the hair isn't really a big bother seeing as I like it at neck length.

I just like seeing the elves being elves. Not humans with pointed ears. They needn't have ears that are about as long as their forearms *cough-night elves-cough* but just ears that have small pointed tips. Perhaps ears even smaller than 'normal human ears'.

[Jhayden]

uh... since a human can run at eight inches a turn, 5 is probably not 20 mph.


And an elf can run 10. Pretty standard thinking there bub.

Now im not asking anyone to agree with me. I've already stated this is personal speculation.

[The Elfologist]

And an elf can run 10. Pretty standard thinking there bub.

Now im not asking anyone to agree with me. I've already stated this is personal speculation.


And we disagree! Bladiebladiebla Bad! YAdaYaYadada Awful! Etc,etc,etc,etc Crud!

Heh.

Nawh mate it's cool but we're stating our counter personal speculations. :)

[Anaris]

And an elf can run 10. Pretty standard thinking there bub.

normal human walking speed is roughly four miles per hour. humans normally run at around fifteen miles per hour - top human speed for sprinters is thirtyish mph. so, an Elf moving one inch more is less like a running human and more like a slightly faster human.

[Jhayden]

normal human walking speed is roughly four miles per hour. humans normally run at around fifteen miles per hour - top human speed for sprinters is thirtyish mph. so, an Elf moving one inch more is less like a running human and more like a slightly faster human.

You don't seem to understand: comparatively it's much, much faster than a human being. It's still much quicker than the average, or in this case the fastest of humans (since in this game all humans are stuck at movement 4).

[Yarilo]

I think we need to replace pointy ears with elefant ears. That will be a truly unique looking elf!

[Athenys]

My drawing of a typical HE Mage:

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b362/aimelek/eas2.jpg

Elven eyes aren't always black and the iris should be larger than a human's:

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b362/aimelek/eyes.jpg

[Thoden Firehammer]

That looks good enough to kill Great work Athenys! XD

But really that's a good job, didn't think thy had thoes eyes though .... do they?

[Athenys]

Thanks :), I came up with that after I saw the new HE and read some descriptions of 40k eldar. Narrow heads, long faces, fine features, heavy lashes, almond-shaped eyes, slitted pupils etc. I figure if the iris is larger (between human and animal sizes) when the pupil is fully dilated it gives the false impression from afar that the whole eye is dead black. That's my personal theory behind Dainton's HE E.T. eyes, because if they were all black with no visible sclera then that would contradict the established fluff. Elves are supposed to have vaguely humanlike eyes with an even greater variety of possible colors. From catlike blue-violet, gold, copper, green etc. to more mundane shades of brown.

[Anaris]

You don't seem to understand: comparatively it's much, much faster than a human being. It's still much quicker than the average, or in this case the fastest of humans (since in this game all humans are stuck at movement 4).

uh. okay, let me clarify the maths: eight miles per hour would be a perfectly acceptable running speed, taking into account battlefield conditions and the difference between sprinting and fast marching. therefore, an Elf in GAME TERMS, which is the only bit i'm arguing - i know they're much, much faster, i'm just pointing out that the TT rules don't know that - moves at about five miles an hour. maybe, if it's an exponential scale, six or seven miles an hour.

that's like a human walking slightly faster. not an impressive speed at all.

[SirSeptin]

lol, well yes anny but the rules also give them a higher initiative to represent their 'quickness'. Or rather its supposed to. Again the rules fail. Init 5 is nothing compared to chaos. I hate chaos, has to be the best at everything just because they are GW's pet project.

:p

[Anaris]

lol, well yes anny but the rules also give them a higher initiative to represent their 'quickness'. Or rather its supposed to. Again the rules fail. Init 5 is nothing compared to chaos. I hate chaos, has to be the best at everything just because they are GW's pet project.

:p

that's exactly my point, Septin. don't agree with me in that tone of voice!

i know Elves are fast. all i was doing was pointing out that specifically, the movement speeds in the tt don't show Elves as hugely faster.

[Nerothos]

lol, well yes anny but the rules also give them a higher initiative to represent their 'quickness'. Or rather its supposed to. Again the rules fail. Init 5 is nothing compared to chaos. I hate chaos, has to be the best at everything just because they are GW's pet project.

:p

Believe me , I could rant about 20 minutes about how Chaos on the TT completely pisses me off in every aspect when playing my High Elves. :-x

[Ilairon]

To be fair, GW movement simply doesn't correspond well with RL movement then because if a normal human walks 4 mph and runs 15mph and sprints 30mph then a model running/marching/charging ought move nearly 4 times as fast as when they're walking, but they only move twice as fast. Now, let's say an elf's movement is comparative to a human's in RL, and let's even leave their base walking speed at 5mph, relative to their TT Movement characteristic; however, let's multiply by RL standards rather than GW arbitrary two (mind, the base movement of five I'm using is also arbitrary). Using those standards an elf walking is 5mph, an elf running is nearly 20mph, and an elf sprinting is nearly 40mph. Mind these are still faulty because they rely on 5mph as the arbitrary starting point and they assume that an elf running speed to its walking speed is the same ratio as a human running speed to its walking speed.

As for elf height, since it was mentioned earlier, WHFRP holds your average male elf anywhere from 5'7" to 6'5" and your average female elf from 5'5" to 6'3" while your average male human is 5'5" to 6'3" and your average female human is 5'2" to 6' tall. It describes Elves as "a lithe and graceful race easily recognized by their pointed ears and hawkish features." It also gives an equal probability of Elves having any of the following color eyes: "Grey Blue, Blue, Green, Copper, Light Brown, Brown, Dark Brown, Silver, Purple, Black."

Elves are humanoid, and I don't expect or want them to look terribly alien while at the same time they're not humans and I don't want them to look like humans. However, outside of the pointed ears, and perhaps the slant of the eyes or something, I don't think you need much more than accentuated or hawkish features. Something that resembles a blend of artistic sculpture and natural forms than something purely human. For a MMO toon, I don't know how much is possible in terms of graphics actually portraying these smaller details, but to me that's key. And no long bunny ears, glowing eyes, purple, blue, or ash skin. And Elves have corneas just like the rest of us, so while the iris and pupil may be black, there shouldn't be completely black-in-black eyes.

[Anaris]

To be fair, GW movement simply doesn't correspond well with RL movement then because if a normal human walks 4 mph and runs 15mph and sprints 30mph then a model running/marching/charging ought move nearly 4 times as fast as when they're walking, but they only move twice as fast. Now, let's say an elf's movement is comparative to a human's in RL, and let's even leave their base walking speed at 5mph, relative to their TT Movement characteristic; however, let's multiply by RL standards rather than GW arbitrary two (mind, the base movement of five I'm using is also arbitrary). Using those standards an elf walking is 5mph, an elf running is nearly 20mph, and an elf sprinting is nearly 40mph. Mind these are still faulty because they rely on 5mph as the arbitrary starting point and they assume that an elf running speed to its walking speed is the same ratio as a human running speed to its walking speed.

it's not called "run". it's a "MARCH move". it doesn't represent ultra top speed, rather a slightly swiftened movement. bear in mind that sprinting in a muddy, corpse-strewn battlefield is probably quite dangerous - also, the likelihood is that an Elf sprints much slower than that, simply because the increase in speed is likely to be... uh, i might mean logarithmic or something. basically there are other limiting factors involved, so while an Elf moves much faster than a human it is likely that they don't run much, much faster.

[Vikingkingq]

To be fair, GW movement simply doesn't correspond well with RL movement then because if a normal human walks 4 mph and runs 15mph and sprints 30mph then a model running/marching/charging ought move nearly 4 times as fast as when they're walking, but they only move twice as fast. Now, let's say an elf's movement is comparative to a human's in RL, and let's even leave their base walking speed at 5mph, relative to their TT Movement characteristic; however, let's multiply by RL standards rather than GW arbitrary two (mind, the base movement of five I'm using is also arbitrary). Using those standards an elf walking is 5mph, an elf running is nearly 20mph, and an elf sprinting is nearly 40mph. Mind these are still faulty because they rely on 5mph as the arbitrary starting point and they assume that an elf running speed to its walking speed is the same ratio as a human running speed to its walking speed.


Ok, assuming a Move of 4 is roughly equivalent to avg. human walking speed of 3mph, then your avg. elf walking speed (Move 5) is about 3.75mph. Your average human running speed is about 17mph, so your average elf running speed would be 21.25mph, which is a little bit slower than that of a professional sprinter (26.7mph).

So your average elf is a bit slower than your top-end human, and your top-end elf would be faster than your top-end human. However, it's not a blowout by any means.

[Mogdin Wrathammer]

Well, Elves being smaller and physically weaker, I'd assume they make up in agility. So, while a Human could crush an Elf hand-to-hand, I'd betcha the Elf can run faster.

I'd like to see them outrun my steam tank, though....

[Saerain]

I get a BSOD whenever someone says 'smaller' in reference to a person's body, as it could mean thinner or shorter and I'm left wondering which.

[Mogdin Wrathammer]

I get a BSOD whenever someone says 'smaller' in reference to a person's body, as it could mean thinner or shorter and I'm left wondering which.


Both I think. I'm fairly certain Elves are shorter than Humans in Warhammer. I know they're physically frailer.

[roadkizzle]

No, the average elf is a couple of inches taller than the average human, but they are also normally skinny, and I don't believe they grow horizontally to such proportions as humans can either.

[Saerain]

Yes, most definitely taller. Even before reading anything, the art shows as much. The text emphasises it further.

If you were imagining the miniatures, though, I can understand. They look rather squat and broad, as miniatures tend to, even skeletons.

[Vikingkingq]

Both I think. I'm fairly certain Elves are shorter than Humans in Warhammer. I know they're physically frailer.

Just for reference's sake, in the WFRP, the average Elf height is 2-3 inches taller than the average human height, and 14 inches taller than the average Dwarf height.

[Kaiser]

Just for reference's sake, in the WFRP, the average Elf height is 2-3 inches taller than the average human height, and 14 inches taller than the average Dwarf height.

Umm...what exactly are the averages for those hts? Im 6'4 in real life, so my perspective is a bit...different than someone elses. I know im not THAT tall, but i figure myself to be somewhat tall.

Edit: Do you think that you will be able to adjust your characters size...its kinda annoying to me when a game gives you a set ht. and wt. instead of being able to choose your own. Sure its easier to keep them all the same, but i just dont like it. Also, I dont like the whole "Elves are stronger, quicker, faster, smarter, etc... than humans." If their so GD wonderful, why are there so many more humans than those stuck up ********** ... thats why i like the poor, weak, and feeble Santa Enslaved elves.

[Nerothos]

Umm...what exactly are the averages for those hts? Im 6'4 in real life, so my perspective is a bit...different than someone elses. I know im not THAT tall, but i figure myself to be somewhat tall.

Edit: Do you think that you will be able to adjust your characters size...its kinda annoying to me when a game gives you a set ht. and wt. instead of being able to choose your own. Sure its easier to keep them all the same, but i just dont like it. Also, I dont like the whole "Elves are stronger, quicker, faster, smarter, etc... than humans." If their so GD wonderful, why are there so many more humans than those stuck up ********** ... thats why i like the poor, weak, and feeble Santa Enslaved elves.


First point, they're only faster and quicker than Humans because of their natural features. They can't help that.

Second, they're not stronger than Humans. Most Humans are stronger than them.

Three, when you live for several hundred years, you can learn a lot more. That's why they're smarter.

There's less, because Elves just aren't sexually inspired. A child is something that requires dedication and work for High Elves, so married couples will obviously be without kin for many years. Humans breed like rabbits.

There you go. A lore-reinforced answer to your question. :)

[Kaiser]

First point, they're only faster and quicker than Humans because of their natural features. They can't help that.

Second, they're not stronger than Humans. Most Humans are stronger than them.

Three, when you live for several hundred years, you can learn a lot more. That's why they're smarter.

There's less, because Elves just aren't sexually inspired. A child is something that requires dedication and work for High Elves, so married couples will obviously be without kin for many years. Humans breed like rabbits.

There you go. A lore-reinforced answer to your question. :)

You forget to take into perspective where this lore is coming from. Im taking my knowledge from the Aragon books, Raymond E. Feist, and general opinions generated by such as myself. I have not read the Warhammer lore, nor do i think i will, though ill try to I dont think it will happen.

As for your point number three, just because you live longer doesnt mean that your smarter. With more numbers to send across the world, experament, test, travel, etc... humans should be advanced in some things that the elves arnt. If you live your whole life (100 years say) but you live it in a forest, why should you know magic, technology, warfare, and some other stuff not accosiated with the forest you were in?

[Arcadox]

This is just my 2 cents on the whole Elven look in warhammer. There are a few distinct sources that the WAR team most definitely looked into to figure out how to model elves:

-Artwork from the warhammer supplement army books
-The elven figures in the tabletop game
-descriptions from the lore of the game

Here are some artwork pictures of elves:
1 - http://oz.games-workshop.com/games/warhammer/highelves/background/images/he_sepia1.jpg (http://oz.games-workshop.com/games/warhammer/highelves/background/images/he_sepia1.jpg)
2 - http://oz.games-workshop.com/games/warhammer/highelves/background/images/he_sepia2.jpg (http://oz.games-workshop.com/games/warhammer/highelves/background/images/he_sepia2.jpg)

Here are some figures:
1 - http://warhammer.us.games-workshop.com/collecting/armies/images/high_elves/minis.jpg (http://warhammer.us.games-workshop.com/collecting/armies/images/high_elves/minis.jpg)
2 - http://www.blackmoor.ca/blackmoorimages/gwhielfmage1.jpg (http://www.blackmoor.ca/blackmoorimages/gwhielfmage1.jpg)
3 - http://greywolf.critter.net/images/ahq/minis/gallery/elf-ranger.jpg (http://greywolf.critter.net/images/ahq/minis/gallery/elf-ranger.jpg)
4 - http://jestersminiaturestudios.com/images/smalls/sm_elfhero.jpg (http://jestersminiaturestudios.com/images/smalls/sm_elfhero.jpg)

The distinct difference I see between the 2 is that elven artwork seems to be more elongated and alien looking, where the figures are more human-like. The picture shown in the first post is definitely the most extreme representation though.

In figure picture 4 we see a close-up of the elf's face. You can see that the head is not overly long, and not conehead-like as some might imagine. The second picture also clearly shows this, and seeing the ear helps visualize that these are just slightly pointed ears, along the same lines of a Vulcan from star trek. You can also notice that the eyes are not heavily slanted. In picture 3 we see a more horizontal and longer eye, but not slanted heavily as well.

In my opinion, the figures are a more "real" representation of how an elf should look, and these show that elves seem to be fairly similar to how a Vulcan looks, with slightly elongated features. The helmets will certainly add an element of height to the head though.

[Vikingkingq]

Umm...what exactly are the averages for those hts? Im 6'4 in real life, so my perspective is a bit...different than someone elses. I know im not THAT tall, but i figure myself to be somewhat tall.

Edit: Do you think that you will be able to adjust your characters size...its kinda annoying to me when a game gives you a set ht. and wt. instead of being able to choose your own. Sure its easier to keep them all the same, but i just dont like it. Also, I dont like the whole "Elves are stronger, quicker, faster, smarter, etc... than humans." If their so GD wonderful, why are there so many more humans than those stuck up ********** ... thats why i like the poor, weak, and feeble Santa Enslaved elves.

In the WFRP, you start with a baseline height (5'4" for a male human, 5'6" for a male elf) and add 1d10 to that. Keep in mind that in the world of Warhammer, the average human height would be much shorter than it is in today's modern world, because humans live in a Renaissance-era level of science, technology, and economic organization.

However, from the stats, you could say that, while your average human would be somewhat shorter than your averaqe elf, but not by much, and there would be some humans who were taller than short or average-height elves, and many humans who were of the same height as average to tall elves, but almost never humans taller than the tallest of elves.

EDIT:

In more general terms, in the TT, your average elf is more skilled with hand and ranged weapons, of equal strength and toughness, and quicker to react than your AVERAGE human. They are equaled or even bettered in terms of weapon skill and reaction time, strength and toughness, and so forth by more highly trained humans (knights, warrior priests, etc).

In the WFRP, things are more equal - in part reflecting the emphasis on individuals over blocks of soldiers, and the need for balance. Elves and humans are essentially equal in all respects save ballistic skill and agility, where elves have a 10% advantage over humans.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The end result: your average elf has some things that they are better at than your average human, but there's a lot of overlap depending on the natural or trained ability of individuals in question.

Moreover, I would emphasize that most of the Elvish advantage is not from natural ability as much as it is from the Elves' obsessive nature and extremely long lifespans. Elves are not more naturally skilled with weapons, although they do have some natural advantages in terms of agility and reaction time, it's that they will train for decades to learn a single sword stance to perfection, whereas a human doesn't have the time.

[Saerain]

The figures have always reminded me of ElfQuest. Very gnomish. Not particularly befitting the text.

The art shows the world of Warhammer as it is. The miniatures don't show you anything, they merely represent it. They are icons. Like any icons, due to their miniature size, they are disproportionate and often goofy caricatures.

I mean, I applaud the skill of the individuals responsible for designing something smaller than an infant's hand that is still recognisable as to what it represents, but they are neither sculptures nor illustrations and I think they are a very bad reference for the appearance of the actual world and its people. A project like this has the opportunity to be much more accurate than tiny plastic figures, and I'd hope it uses that advantage.

[Estebar]

As for your point number three, just because you live longer doesnt mean that your smarter. With more numbers to send across the world, experament, test, travel, etc... humans should be advanced in some things that the elves arnt. If you live your whole life (100 years say) but you live it in a forest, why should you know magic, technology, warfare, and some other stuff not accosiated with the forest you were in? There are some things that the Empire are more advanced in than Elves, such as Black Powder (Gunpowder) weapons. Elves consider these types of armaments loud, crude and unpredictable, so they never touch them.

Some say the mind of an Elf is alien in contrast to, and much more complex than, the Human mind. Supposedly, this is why they are able to learn all eight lores of magic, and combine them into a greater magical force, High magic; something no human could possibly hope to achieve.

[Arcadox]

The figures have always reminded me of ElfQuest. Very gnomish. Not particularly befitting the text.

The art shows the world of Warhammer as it is. The miniatures don't show you anything, they merely represent it. They are icons. Like any icons, due to their miniature size, they are disproportionate and often goofy caricatures.

I mean, I applaud the skill of the individuals responsible for designing something smaller than an infant's hand that is still recognisable as to what it represents, but they are neither sculptures nor illustrations and I think they are a very bad reference for the appearance of the actual world and its people. A project like this has the opportunity to be much more accurate than tiny plastic figures, and I'd hope it uses that advantage.

I'd just like to point out how similar the figures/minitures have been to the models in game so far:

Black Orc:
Miniture - http://nora.embl-heidelberg.de/gallery/d/7227-3/BlackOrc_Command.jpg

In-game Model - http://warsong.eu/fansite/classes/Warboss/screenshots/220806ssBlackOrc1.jpg

In this example, you can see that they look quite similar overall, same tiny eyes, same nose, and same body type. There are differences in the "mustashe" area size and tooth size, but overall, they are very similar.

Rune Priest/Smith:
Miniture - http://oz.games-workshop.com/games/warhammer/catalog/images/Dwarf-Runesmith_med.gif

In-game Model - http://www.warhammeralliance.com/gallery/showimage.php?i=258&c=2

Again, the facial structure seems to be close to the same (although the image is small in this one and their is a whole lotta hair/beard). Compare this to the dwarf artwork:
http://uk.games-workshop.com/dwarfs/special-characters/images/art-burlok-damminson.jpg

and, in my opinion, the figure does it more justice, and is closer to how the in-game model turned out. Looking in the background of that same picture, you can see a Orc, and he looks alot different then the black orc in the game or the miniture.

Conclusion: I know this isn't a comprehensive look into this, but from some simple observations, it seems like the in-game models tend to look like the minitures from the tabletop game. That is why I believe the elves will look more like the minitures then any other source, expect maybe written lore, which I have not really looked into.

[roadkizzle]

In general, I think that the in-game models are based more on the modern artwork. It just happens that really, the only models which drastically differ from their artwork nowadays are the elves. I have no idea when that piece of artwork was made, but it definately does not look like anything I've seen around recently.

[Arcadox]

Even if the artwork is the true main source, many elven artwork portrays them as only slightly alien, and not to the extreme as some may be thinking. I believe elves will look more human-like then alien-like. Seeing the cinematic trailer also encourages this theory, as the elves look very much like LOTR elves with maybe slightly elongated features.

People like their elves looking like extra pretty humans. Most MMO's seem to support this look (EQ2, LOTR Online, Blood Elves from WoW [to an extent]). I don't think WAR will try to break this model by making their elves look like the first post picture.

[Nerothos]

Keep in mind that the only reason High Elves won't use Gunpowder is because they don't appreciate weapons that blow up in their face. Bolt Throwers don't pack the same punch, but at least they're reliable.

Although, they could at least try using Crossbows. Longbows, at least on the TT, are so weak. :(

[Hoomberdang]

The thing is though, we have already seen what the Elves are going to look like in the game. Go look at that video of the High Elf NPC on that other site and you will se that it looks like the Elves in the artwork: tall, thin with alien features and slanty, beady eyes.

Unless, of course, if Mythic decides to scrap everything they have done and start again (which could happen, but I doubt it) does this even require debate?

[Vikingkingq]

The thing is though, we have already seen what the Elves are going to look like in the game. Go look at that video of the High Elf NPC on that other site and you will se that it looks like the Elves in the artwork: tall, thin with alien features and slanty, beady eyes.

Unless, of course, if Mythic decides to scrap everything they have done and start again (which could happen, but I doubt it) does this even require debate?

Well, it's not so much that they've decided to scrap. It's that we've seen rather different builds, and it's not entirely clear which is the more current, or whether they've moved on to yet another build.

http://www.nulnhighwayboys.com/forums/index.php?PHPSESSID=b8ddbf76d278f7344ec5f9d9ca0b0a 18&action=gallery;sa=view;id=80
- this pic was dated to April 30, 2007

http://warhammervault.ign.com/View.php?view=Movies.Detail&id=7
- this video was dated to May 8, 2007

Does this mean that the pic's build was replaced by the video's? Possibly, but not conclusively.

Moreover, I would argue that the variances between the two builds suggest that, at the time, Mythic's design was very much in flux between one design that really pushed the skinny, aetherial, asexual look (which I think was somewhat problematic in the facial area), and a more hard-edged, bad- look (which I think was better in the facial area, but problematic in the body being a bit too muscular).

IMHO, I think that the best model would be blending the two approaches, going for a harder-edged face (although still keeping some of the aetherial vibe of the first) and a less sturdy frame (although avoiding an overly frail appreance).