Illumine, Elven Tassets

Metal Leaves of the Warrior: The Elven Tassets

An oft-overlooked but no less important part of a set of armor would surely be the tassets, or thigh protection. These Elven examples aren’t just practical, but they are carefully designed to suit the style of any fabled warrior, Elven or otherwise.

Each tasset is made up of a single plate of shaped steel, which has a brass finish. These plates have an asymmetrical shape and come down to a point, resulting in a design not unlike that of a pair of leaves.

Each plate features three ridges that run in a curved diagonal down the tasset. One side of each tasset has a smooth edge, while the other is slightly jagged, following the pattern of these three ridges. Finally, both tassets are riveted to two leather loops which can be slid onto most belts.

These tassets are fantastic if you’re building a look for an Elven warrior or a similar character. This is true whether you’re LARPing, cosplaying, or adding to a collection of fantasy armor pieces. In any case, the Elven look is an iconic one. These tassets go wonderfully with the rest of the Illumine Elven armor collection, if you’re looking for the full set.

Nature in Elven Designs: Leaves, Vines, and Elven Genius

You don’t have to be enormously observant to have noticed that, in fantasy, the elves tend to be a fan of nature. But how do creators demonstrate this part of their character, and why does it show up so often?

Well, an author could just say that the elves love nature. But that’s often the least effective way of doing things, and other mediums don’t even have that option. An artist can’t just give their elf a speech bubble saying, “trees are great”, and leave it at that. Well, they shouldn’t anyway.

Instead, creators like to show these things. When they design characters and creatures, they may well make sure that the personality of who they’re designing shows through. For a nature loving elf, this shines through in plant-like designs that permeate their clothing and jewellery.

As for why elves are often found hugging a tree somewhere, there are a couple of potential reasons. The first, much shorter answer might be that “Tolkien did it.” But, as ever, there’s more to it than that.

Tolkien designed his Elves to be closely inclined to nature because their very destinies were bound to the earth and to nature. Other creators often have similarly good reasons, perhaps their elves are more long sighted and recognise the importance of nature, or they gain power from the natural world. Maybe they just live in the woods and don’t want their homes invaded.

In any case, we learn that if we’re mean to nature, an elf will probably hunt us down. In fantasy, of course.

Complete the kit! Check out the Illumine Eleven Bracers, Elven Helmet, Elven Greaves and Elven Armor!

Tech Specs

The technical specifications of the Elven tassets are as follows:

•         Materials: 19 gauge mild steel with leather straps.
•         Colour: Brass finish
•         Care Instructions: Keep away from water. Clean using a metal polish and occasionally treat with oil. Use leather-care products for the fittings.

The following sizing guide is approximate:

•         Length: 15 inches or 38.1 cm
•         Width: 8.5 inches or 21.6 cm
•         Weight: 2 lbs or 907.2 grams