Eldari

In the Aeon of the Champion story series, the Eldari was a race of immensely talented magic users and philosophers who inhabited the planet Muspelheim many millenia ago. Led by a duumvirate (an later triuumvirate) of dedicated leaders, the power of the Eldari swelled year on year, with the magicians building the most illustrious in the galaxy cities for themselves while resisting the urge to colonise the smaller, less-developed planets around them. Approximately 25,000 years ago, however, the tranquility of Muspelheim was shattered, and the fate of its people was throw into the hands of the evil ones.

History
After the fall of the Pantheon, the demon lord Sargamon arrived on Muspelheim, looking for an intelligent race from which he could derive military commanders for his newly-formed Marching Horde, a relentless army of demons and demon-like races that sought to destroy every trace of order in the Universe. Having suffered serious losses to the Aesir during their last encounter, Sargamon realised that demons lacked strategic thinking, and he himself was preoccupied with infiltrating the Holy Sanctuary to command his armies.

At the time, the Eldari had been until recently led by two consults, Vel'naar and his brother figure, Tiz'Galaath. Tiz'Galaath was a highly-respected sorceror among the Eldari people, with his abilities surpassing anything that they had ever seen. He also had an unquenchable thirst for knowledge, often spending large amounts of time pondering the fate of the Universe. Vel'naar on the other hand, snubbed the ways of the sorceror for those of the Light, and was known to wield light magic to powerful effect. The Aesir themselves had visited him and his fellows to instruct them in the use of Light magic, and were also responsible for giving Vel'naar his prophetic eye.

Muspelheim was mostly peaceful, until the young mage Balmiszen uncovered a plot to destroy the duumvirate and install a rogue in office. Nan'Thiel, the upstart behind this plot, was promptly defeated, and the demons he consorted with to get him placed on the throne were easily destroyed as they found themselves leaderless and without a cause. As a recompense for his valiant efforts, Balmiszen was invited onto the Eldari leadership to form the Triuumvirate. Yet, this would not be the last time that demons visited the planet. A while later, Sargamon visited the planet posing as a venerable god, and offered the Triuumvirate untapped knowledge and power in exchange for the loyalty of themselves and their people. Tiz'Galaath, a knowledge-chaser, was instantly enthralled and accpeted. Balmiszen, seeking to increase his power further (he had secretly been consorting with demons himself) also accepted the offer. Vel'naar, on the other hand, wanted nothing to do with the whole plot. To him, this was a set-up and his brothers were walking right into it. When they failed to see reason, he gave up hope and fled Muspelheim, taking the sane Eldari with him. Those remaining were transformed into demon warlocks, with Tiz'Galaath handing Sargamon and his demons the keys to the Eldari's citadels. Balmiszen and Tiz'Galaath, in the aftermath, became the Dark One's left and right hands respectively.

When Tiz'Galaath realised that his brother Vel'naar and some of the Eldari had escaped, he became furious with them, and resolved to punish their treachery. At his suggestion, the uncorrupted Eldari were chased across the galaxy for the next 20,000 years, driven out of every planet they settled on. To their fortune, however, the world of Middle-Earth flashed on Sargamon's radar, and, thinking it may contain the Fusion Staff's power crystals, set his sights on that venture instead. This gave the Eldari time to regroup and find a more permanent shelter.

Exhausted from their travels around the Great Unknown, the Eldari settled on the planet Mobius, peacefully co-existing with the native Cerulean population. They were welcomed by the Cerulean matriarch, Princess Azurette, who allowed Eldari merchants to engage in trade with her people. Vel'naar announced, to everyone's relief, that the darkness was finally over, and no longer did the Eldari have to fear for their future. This, however, was untrue. The Marching Horde would once again find the Eldari, this time via the Gorgons' intervention, resulting in the jotnar led by Surtyr being deployed to destroy them. Desperate to save both peoples, Azurette, in concert with Vel'naar and his Eldari lightwielders, broke off a large portion of the planet and hurled it into the galaxy beyond, hoping that it would smash into a larger planet and create an island which they could later teleport to. While her gambit was successful, the teleportation process was still an issue. While the light-ships were being hastily constructed, someone had to remain on-planet to help hold off Surtyr's advancing hordes to buy time. Vel'naar, sensing that it was time to hand down the leadership of the Eldari, agreed to lay down his life for the protection of his companions. With his last words, he passed down his mantle to Priestess Versa, naming her the new leader of the Eldari. He then nonchalantly returned to the sundered planet to embrace his grisly fate.

Trivia

 * The Eldari in the AoC Universe are like the Eredar/Draenei from Warcraft, except the Eldari have changed leaders since fracturing as a people (Versa took over from Vel'naar during the Siege of Mobius).
 * The Eldari are also inspired by Warhammer's Aeldari/Eldar.