The Definite Guide to the Echmer

>#The Definitive Guide to the Echmer >“Everything exists because it is a fact. Without facts, reality is unreal and must thus be considered null.” – Troika Trafock

####What is this Guide? This guide is meant as an introduction to the Echmer – the Bat Folk – of Yneslea. I have outlined the major points of information relating to this race, along with several other things that will make understanding them easier.

####Introduction to the Echmer The Echmer (/EK-MER/Ech-mer), which means the ‘Echo Folk’ or the ‘People of Echoes’, are a race of Betmer that inhabit the isles of Yneslea. While they never met, the Ayleids knew of them as the Echiche through contact with their Dwemer brethren. It is unknown what the Yokudans, Atmorans, or the Akaviri called them, but obscure texts that can be found in Tamriel suggests that the four groups met on various occasions in ancient times.

They are a naturally shy, prideful, loyal, factual, and intelligent race, but frown down on foreigners as they see them as intruders and meddlers in their domain. Well versed in science and academics, it is of importance to note that the Echmer as a whole frown down upon the use of the arcane arts, and prefer using their ‘reflected sounds’ instead. These Reflected Sounds are actually a mutated form of ancient Dwemeri tonal architecture known as acoustineering. The Echiche know more about the Deep Folk than anyone – even the Chimer – as they were created accidentally by Dwemeri tonal architecture.

####On the name ‘Echmer’ Echmer is the elven name the race chose for themselves through the studying of the original Aldmeri and Dwemer language, which they eventually used to create their own language known as Echi. In Aldmeri, Ech means ‘echo’, ‘mirror’, or ‘trace’. Thus, some translations can be ‘Echo Folk’, ‘Mirror Folk’, or ‘Trace Folk’, but Echo Folk is the most symbolic and chosen translation, because in a sense the Echmer are an echo of the Dwemer.

When the Tamrielics brought the islands of Yneslea under Imperial rule, Echmer began to be wrongly translated into ‘Bat Folk’. Although the Echmer are descended from the primitive bats that dwelled underneath the island, they frown down upon this mistranslation. Because of this, the Aldmeri word known as ‘Ech’ has become synonymous with the word ‘bat’ in the Empire, even amongst actual mer (except for the Altmer, who are trying to keep the Aldmeri language uncorrupted).

####Echmer Anatomy A major misconception is that the Echmer are literal elves; they are in fact Beastfolk, and only mer by ‘right’ of name (although the actual merish races do not view them as such). They do resemble elves in appearance, but are in reality the modern day descendants of ancient bats that evolved into more merish forms. This ‘evolution’ was caused by Dwemeri tonal architecture, which caused them to gain black souls and increased their intelligence and natural growth immensely.

Echmer generally stand at a height of five to six feet and weigh around two hundred to three hundred pounds. Naturally slim and well muscled, they are stronger in strength than the actual Mer races besides the Orsimer. The skin of an Echmer is usually a dark caramel tone, with light fur ranging from various shades of brown, grey, white, or black covering it. An Echmer’s face still closely resembles the face of a bat, protruding forwards in a snout. Their ears are larger but closer in shape to those of an elf, allowing them to hear exceptionally well. They have four finger hands with opposable thumbs, and four claws on each foot along with a back claw that allows them to hang from the ceiling.

The Echmer are capable of seeing through the use of their natural eyes and by the use of echolocation (their ‘reflected sounds’). Their natural eyes are more adjusted to darkness (Exul eyes become more adjusted to sunlight the longer they stay on the surface) because of their living underground. With echolocation, they are able to see things through the use of sending out mental noise in an area and receiving a black and white after image in case they enter an area of extreme darkness.

The most remarkable physical detail of the Echo People is their wings. Resembling those found on a typical Tamrielian bat, they are joined to the forearms of the Echmer and are typically folded down along their back, resembling a cloak when not in use. Although the Echmer are incapable of sustained flight, they are able to glide very well.

The Echo People give birth to live young after nine months, similar to the other races of Nirn, with one offspring at one time, although twins are common and triplets rare, with more children than three at one time being incapable amongst the race. An Echmer female can have about four children in her lifetime. The typical Echiche lives to about one hundred and fifty years of age, with their fur becoming silkier the older they get.

####Echmeri Subspecies The main populace of Echmer as a race consists of four subspecies of their kind, with each eating only a specific type of food. The Hemaechi are the only Echmeri that drink blood for nourishment. The Entoechi are the only Echmeri that hunt and kill insects for nourishment. The Pomiechi are the only Echmeri that gather and consume fruit for nourishment. The Lactechi are the only Echmeri that harvest Yak milk for nourishment.

####Where do the Echmer live? The Echmer live on Yne, Slea, and Hrahn’s Isles, with all three of these landmasses consisting of the collective Imperial district of Yneslea. The Dweech Echmer live in the massive cavern system below the two main islands (also called Dweech), while the Exul Echmer live on the surface of the islands. The Echmer refuse to migrate to Tamriel and its respected provinces, Akavir to the east, or the other Imperial territories. While the Exul live in villages of natural materials, the Dweech Echmer reside in huge cities of metal known as Urbs and leave mainly industrial lives.

####Echmer History In 1E 508, the Noraken, a Dwemeri Clan, split off from their brethren on Vvardenfell over matters of research study and sailed eastward across the Padomaic Ocean so they could conduct their experiments at their leisure. They eventually made landfall on the islands that would eventually become modern day Yneslea. As the Noraken began to construct their factories and underground fortresses, they discovered species of bats within the caverns. Not viewing them as anything particularly interesting, the Dwemer continued with their constructions.

These bats, however, were very attuned to the vibrations of sound and became attracted to the Dwemer and their use of tonal architecture, as well as the noise created by their machinery. As the years went by, these bats found themselves slowly becoming something…different. The Dwemer noticed this change, and immediately began rounding up as many of the bats that they could find and started to examine them. They found this ‘evolution’ to be fascinating, and sought to see if these bats could be considered sentient because of their newfound metamorphosis.

Staging them as Trials, the Dwemer began to teach these evolved bats how to read and write, use arithmetic practically, and the fundamentals of the universe. The bats became wiser through these Trials and their bodies continued evolving until they appeared more merish than bat. The Noraken began to use them as a workforce, teaching them how to maintain their machinery while they themselves focused on more important endeavors. As final proof of their sentience, the Noraken told the former bats to come up with a name for themselves. Using Aldmeri words, they named themselves ‘Echmer’, meaning the ‘Echo Folk’.

The mer-bats (unbeknownst to themselves) were the pseudo-slaves of the Dwemer, but were also their students as the Deep Elves taught them more complex ideals. However, the Echmer found themselves at a crossroads over many of the things that the Dwemer were teaching them as they began to think deeper about it. Like their masters, they believed that the gods were not untouchable or all-powerful but at the same time believed that they could at least be respected on a minimal level. They thought that ones ancestors should be placed in positions of highest owner. They also believed that transcending the mortal plane was a feat incapable at the time. Despite these misgivings, the Echmeri continued doing the tasks of their masters.

But then the Disappearance of the Dwarves occurred in 1E 668, and Dwemer everywhere vanished due to the events at the Battle of Red Mountain. The Echmeri continued doing their daily duties, wondering if their masters had simply traveled to another part of the caverns for some new experiment without informing them. And they waited. And they continued waiting. Not even present day Echmeri historians know how long their people waited for the Dwemer to return, but eventually their leaders revealed that they believed that their masters had abandoned them. The leaders decided that now the Echmer would be the masters, and they will create their own works and produce their own experiments. As a people, they decided they would no longer be in the Dwemer’s shadows; now, the Dwemer would be in theirs.

However, the Echo Folk soon dissolved into a civil war when they couldn’t decide who would lead their now independent nation. In 1E 672, the Council of Dull Chimes emerged from the chaos and was established as the technocratic government of the Echmeri people, with originally only three members residing on the council. One year later in 673 the Penta Wards were founded as ‘independent extensions’ of the Council, and were comprised of the Coalescent Efflux, the Shattering Fusion, the Hidden Perception, the Neglectful Acceptance, and the Confined Abyss. The heads of these respected Wards were incorporated into the Council of Dull Chimes, creating the now permanent eight-member seat.

The Echmer soon began their first excursions to the surface in 1E 675 after the government was officially secured over the populace, and started what is known as The Fourteen Years of Progress as they began to spread their influence throughout their islands. During these years, the Echmer discovered the two things that would cement their power over Yneslea: a strong silver metal ore known as solarite (which they would use to reverse-engineer Dwemeri technology and build their own cities and automatons), and the Yak. An indigenous herd animal of the islands, the Echmer would eventually use its milk to create the cream they would become famous for.

During these years, they also came across the goblins known as the Hyu-Ket. The Echo Folk saw them as primitive and only semi-sentient, and eventually decided to enslave them to work on the construction of their underground homes. The enslavement would eventually end some in the early Third Era, when the Council of Dull Chimes deemed the practice unbefitting and immoral. The Echmer continued constructing their underground cities until official completion in 1E 728.

For the first time in history the Echmer would be introduced to a foreign race in the form of an invasion in 1E 735, when the Kamal of Akavir invaded both Yne and Slea at the same time, the former by way of the Hae’macrin Mountains and the latter by way of Urroal. Echmeri records say the fleet was led by General Tala’Faal Yir-Kamal, who was attempting to annex the area under their king. Through superior battle tactics and deployment of their automatons – which the Kamal had never encountered before – the Echmer were able to drive back the invaders. This resulted in a bitter resentment towards foreigners to manifest within the Echo Folk, which would not be helped by the Kamal continuing invasions that they would repeatedly repel.

Hrahndeyl, the Echmer who would apotheosize to become the god-hero known as HRAHNDEYL, was born in the year 1E 738 under mysterious circumstances. Accounts vary on his time as a mortal, although confirmed facts are that he was banished from his home in 747 and wandered Nirn for twenty-years before returning to Yneslea to speak of the new things he had discovered. To display his new knowledge, he achieved permanence in the fabric of reality by building the Pleonastic Spire to pierce through the Black-Welkin, becoming a Genius Loci of the Collective of ATEDA. This event caused a slight reformation amongst the Echmer, with them now focusing on religious beliefs as well as scholarly pursuits.

The Echmer would live (relatively) in peace for thousands of years, braving assaults from the Kamal and internal strife until the Third Era. During Uriel Septim V’s Akaviri Campaign, the Yneslian islands found themselves being stormed by the Tamrielics. Arrogant of their winnings against the Kamal in the past, the Echmer went out to face their new foe only to be astonished to find a force to be reckoned with awaiting them. Despite fighting valiantly, the Echmer were forced to surrender to the Emperor, who met with the Council of Dull Chimes and annexed the islands as a Tamrielic territory in 3E 279.

After the Akaviri Campaign ultimately failed, the legions largely redrew from the islands. The Echmeri traded their cream with the Empire – which the Tamrielics absolutely adored – for Tamrielic books, scrolls, and animal/plant specimens for study. Yneslea remained largely uninhabited by Tamrielics until 3E 425, when the Council of Dull Chimes begrudgingly agreed to foreign settlement.

####Philosophy Like the Dwemer, the Echmer believe that all immortal beings are not all-powerful and are of the same status as mortals. Unlike the Dwemer, however, the Echmer worship (or at least, highly respect) deities known as the Genius Loci that make up their Collective of ATEDA. From a first glance, it would appear to a foreigner that the ATEDA are merely the Echmeri version of Aedra, Daedra, and other divines spirits; this is in fact wrong. The ATEDA are literally the core ideas of aurbical concepts; so the Echmer don’t worship Hermaeus Mora (a face of knowledge), but MORRAH instead (literally Knowledge). The Echmer absolutely refuse to worship Tamrielic avatars as they can’t be proven to exist, when the ‘source code’ of the deities can be; an ATEDA can appear in any form it wants to appear in. That sentence neatly sums up the Echmeri way of life. In order for the Echmer to believe in something, they must have proof that this something in fact exists. In a quote from one of their ancestors:

>“Everything exists because it is a fact. Without facts, reality is unreal and must thus be considered null.”

The ATEDA are facts, and therefore exist because they can be proven to exist. The Echmer are facts, and therefore exist because they can proven to exist. If it can’t be proven, it is not important to an Echmer; opinions and unfounded statements are laughed at in Echmeri society. Because of this mindset, lies (unless the lie is told for a good reason) and wishes are also frowned down upon heavily in Echmeri culture. They also treat promises extremely seriously; if one is made the person who swore the oath must do as they said as they would or face banishment or even death if the one promised does not receive a result.

Echmer are constantly trying to prove and propose new theories daily, feeling that the Aurbis should hold no secrets from them and that they must find every fact about the world that they live on, alongside the lands outside of the world like Oblivion or Aetherius. However, there are some mysterious that even the Echmer are contented with leaving be.

####Personality Despite being a strict people, the Echmer are very liberal in several places in their culture. However, the only thing that is not liberal is the Law. The Law is the code of the entirety of the Echmeri people, the verse that they live by; to break the Law would be like breaking off a segment of one’s mind and throwing it permanently away.

They are cynical, sarcastic, and slightly arrogant in their studies. Echmer are also extremely competitive in their Trials, however they display this competitiveness calmly and patiently, which makes them deadly. Loyalty along with strong family ties and friendship is what causes the Echmer to work so well as a race, with few conflicts hardly happening in their history. They are a naturally doubtful people, and want to discover the true facts behind everything new they encounter; because of this, they are highly curious about being in new situations.

As stated in the above section, the Echmer venerate the spheres of the gods but not the gods themselves. A recently published work by the Imperial Cult called The Echmeri Sacrilege details a (supposedly) true account of a Priest of Talos and his Echmeri Exul friend communing with the god. As Talos began to ‘speak’, the Exul raised his eyebrows and began to ask profane questions about the god’s nature, and only referred to him as War. He then, to the horror of the priest, asked Talos who was he really speaking to, and called him the Echmeri ALORKH. This caused the communion to abruptly end, and the Exul walked away with a smile on his face, laughing at a joke only he knew had been told. This story has since become a source on the Echmer’s attitudes towards foreign gods, causing the Imperial Cult to increase their missions to convert the Echmeri to the Tamrielic faith.

####In Conclusion And with that, this Definitive Guide is finished. I hope this explained the Echmer more thoroughly and fleshed out some of their more rougher concepts.