The Beautiful Folk, among whom none are comely or mean. A noble race of archers and wizards that live for thousands of years. Every elf shoots a bow with deadly accuracy and knows arcane secrets that can shatter the minds of your average mortal. Though great warriors, they are as fragile as flowers, wilting at the strength of stronger races but besting them in wit and cunning. Many are either flighty or eclectic, not holding much value to the world outside of the forests. They are all snobs. Not all of this is true, and in fact most of these rumors aren’t worth their weight in copper. Still, many races have heard these things about elves, although some (notable Nibelung and dark elves) are inclined to believe rumors of their weakness and not openly admit to their strength.

History

Of all of the races, the elves have one of the longest, and most obscure, histories. Generally, elves are in the background, watching for the other races to make decisions that affect their race. If it does not affect them, elves have historically not gotten involved. They do, however, have a long connection with historical events, and themselves have a rich history. When the dark elf race was formed, it is generally believed that the dark elves formed from the already existing elven race. When the Nibelung came out of their mines, the first race they met were the elves. When humans try to cut down expanses of forest for farming or logging, elves have always been there.

Despite their connection to the histories of others, they do not have a very active historical record in themselves. There are no records of a great war between the elves, unless you count tales involving the separation between them and their blue-skinned desert cousins. There are no records involving a great conversion of government or a massive offensive military strike. There is little to evidence that elves have done much in their own history. They seem to have began, and things haven’t changed much unto this day.

Elves claim to be the first race, created by Eraen herself. When Eraen created life, the elves say, she created the elves to maintain the life she created, making the forests specifically for them. “Live in these trees, and as they thrive, so shall ye,” were the words she gave to the elven people. And so they did, and have, for several thousand years. Whenever a race has risen, whether it be the dark elves, humans, or furries, elves claim to have been there before, monitoring and maintaining the environment around the race throughout it’s history.

But the elven race has dwindled since it’s glory days. Although it’s tree-lined cities still grace some forests, most elves have died off. Humans continually cut down more forested areas, mongrels attack the elves, attempting to harm them directly. Nibelung mine out sections that once supported life-giving forest. And defending themselves and trying as they might, the pressures that the other races are putting on the natural world are getting to the elves, and as the forests dwindle in size, their numbers dwindle as well.

Society and Culture

Elven society is based on a concept of stewardship and responsibility. Although you might find an elf or two in any forest, they tend to live in large, grand cities of magnificent beauty. These cities tend to be designed more aesthetically than practically, but are all built in such a way as to work with and around the natural environment, rather than by destroying it. Some cities are built in the treetops, with overhanging bridges and natural rock formations acting as paths on the ground levels. Others are made of stone and wood, building around the forest and in clearings as not to inhibit the growth of trees. Elven cities have little in the way of defensive structures, preferring to rely on archers and hit-and-run tactics, using the forests that surround the cities to their advantage rather than by amassing huge armies, although more than one attempt to attack an elven city has met with a hail of arrows on all sides, literally resulting in the encroaching army being turned into pin-cushions.

Elven society stresses that each person makes a small difference over time, but that no one person should be given too much power unless it is assured that they have the wisdom to use it. Elves have few stories of heroes fighting monsters, but legends told to children stress that they ‘held their ground’ at this fight and ‘beat back the opposition,’ preferring tales that present a stance of maintenance to that of heroism. It is generally believed by elves that, while each person won’t make a huge difference, by a lot of people changing things slightly over time, they can calmly and smoothly change the entire world.

Although being creatures of nature, elves love deep forests and internal life, preferring art and music to foraging and survival. That said, hunting is a long affair for elves, done with great respect and reverence for the animals killed. Although somewhat for recreation, elves use every part of the animal that they can and bury the rest, and treat the hunt more as a ritual than as a task or a sport. Most elves prefer art, music, or study to martial arts, however most are skilled archers, relying on bows for hunting and defense.

Elves are very religious, but are passively so. They don’t hold many religious ceremonies, seeing life as a religious experience. Most elves worship Eraen, although Silveen has a great following among the people of the wood. Almost all elves have a hatred for Rend that they keep as quiet as an arrow leaving it’s shaft, although his tendrils of corruption have gotten to a few members of this old race as well. Garguth is respected, and Fiera is seen as well meaning but occasionally rash. Isikil is seen as a corrupt but necessary force, and Rissir is seen as a trickster to be mocked and respected at the same time. Sond is seen in much the same light as Fiera, however he is seen as too harsh and ritualized as opposed to her bouts of passion. Many elves who study the magical paths worship Orn, although more in the aspect of knowledge than the aspect of the oceans. They show their feelings toward the various gods through storytelling, a favorite pastime among older elves, and occasionally by mentioning a god’s name in a prayer or curse, but rarely build structures for the support of a deity.

Elven families tend to be smaller, each pair of parents having one to three children, as opposed to other races in which many children is the norm. In fact, many elves do not have children. This is due to the fact that few elves die from overworking or violence, so a large family is not considered necessary. In fact, many families have no children whatsoever, as elven society cares for it’s elders, rather than placing that burden on the children.

Physiology

Despite rumors that elves live forever, can hear and see for miles, and will break under a strong wind, elves are similar in build to most humans. They are often a bit lighter, and even a heavy-set elf tends to be less extreme than a heavy set human. They aren’t often very tall, although there are exceptions, and are rarely exceedingly short. Rumors of long life spans and intense beauty can be attributed to the fact that elves do take good care of their appearance, bathing daily, and that they avoid the toil that other races spend their lives doing, making them slightly longer lived.

Elves have slightly improved hearing, and they have an additional series of hollow bones in the upper ridges of their outer ear, giving it a pointed shape, similar to a cat’s ear. This allows them to hear into more frequencies of sound than a human, although produces very minimal enhancements in practical areas such as range or the ability to hear quieter sounds. Their native language also uses sounds in different sound spectrums, which the hollow bones pick up far more readily than humans, who generally can’t hear the sounds at all. These bones are extremely sensitive, and generally they try to avoid things coming in contact with them. As to rumors of other senses being enhanced, this is generally due to training that the elven scouts receive in learning to defend their wilderness homes and not due to any extra sensory ability.

Government

Elves have no singular government, each city being a country in and of itself. However, due to good relations and respect for older laws, you will find each elven government to be remarkably similar, although good favor in one city does not mean good favor in another. Each city ruled by the matriarch of the ruling family of the city, the eldest woman being in charge. Women are seen as better policy makers than men in elven society, as they are seen as more tolerant and less prone to outbursts, being ‘natural caregivers.’ What truth there is to this is often considered shaky at best, every elven city is ruled by a matriarch and every matriarch has a city. Elven matriarchs typically do not leave the office post-mortem, preferring to name their successor and step down rather than live beyond the age in which they may by effective rulers. Old matriarchs are often appointed as advisors by their successor, however, and the death of the old matriarch is a much revered and somber event, regaled with songs and speeches about her reign. Most elves feel no real difference in the change of queens, and the government is generally unobtrusive in the lives of the people. There is very little in the way of an internal police force, however most able adults are considered to be a part of the militia defending each elven community, and the citizenry can be counted on to bring a known felon to justice.

Role Play, Costuming, and Make-Up

When playing an elf, it is important to remember two things. The first, is that the other races are cutting back the forests and destroying your race. These races in general (though there may be exceptions among the members) may or may not be aware of what they are doing, and are quite far below the wisdom of the ancient elves. The second is that you are to lead by example rather than rhetoric or muscle, as people do not respond well to being told what to do and often cannot accept wisdom until it is evident that they must change their ways. Remember that both among elves and other races that one person cannot make a difference alone, and that it takes a great movement within a group to change what is going on. Vigilantism is the mark of the ignorant and foolish, and it takes a society, or at least a person of much wisdom and years, to judge a person as good or ill. If you are a female, walk with a sense of superiority, but give a kind eye to those who are in need. If you are male, think in terms of defending the elven people, but note that sometimes a kind word can do more than an arrow shot. Think in terms of long term plans rather than short term solutions, and try to do what is best for all involved.

Elves tend to dress in greens and whites. Their clothes tend to be simple, yet elegant, and even the common warrior makes sure that his clothes are clean and his armor in good repair. Warriors dress to blend with the woodland, Mages and Clerics dress in robes that denote their station, Bards and Tinkers dress practically, wearing clothing that is both well fitting and proper for their profession.

All elves also have pointed ears. The easiest way to do this is with stage ears; Woochie produces an excellent line of “space ears” that work well for playing a elf. This is somewhat expensive, although usually a single pair of ears can be acquired for less than $10 and they can be used for years before wearing out if taken care of. Ear tips can also be made with liquid latex or other substances to save money, but usually this is more difficult than the money you save by doing it (and if you mess up more than a couple times it costs as much as if you’d just bought the woochie ears in the first place) but if done well they can look better than any other type because they’re custom molded for you. Liquid latex also tends to wear out faster. Most ears and latex are a white or light flesh color, blue dye or makeup generally needs to be added to turn them the same blue as the rest of your skin.

Elves tend to avoid piercings, tattoos, and other body decorations, seeing such marks as impurities on the body. If you have piercings, you might want to take them out before the start of game, and tattoos should probably be covered up, as many elves would take great shame in having an unnatural mark on the body. The same holds true for scars in many cases, although as these are not voluntary many elves excuse a scar more than they would a tattoo.