So how do you play a Sun Elf?

[Herremann the Wise]

Hi Everyone,

It looks like our group is starting a new campaign - Silver Marches - and so I thought I might get some advice from you guys and gals out there.

I was thinking of playing a Sun Elf Wizard and would appreciate some roleplaying advice. Are they just a pain for the rest of the party or can they work with a mixed group?
Feel free to add any stories of Sun Elves that you have played.

Thanks in advance and Best Regards
Herremann the Wise

{EDIT}

Thanks everyone for giving me some insight into this topic.

Just some further information that might assist about my character:

Name: Pyranda (female - my first ever)
Class: Wizard
Race: Sun Elf (Obviously)
Attributes: (We get to assign 18,17,16,15,14,13)
STR 14
DEX 16
CON 15
INT 20
WIS 15
CHA 13

Feats: Spellcasting Prodigy

Nontypical Skill Areas:
Craft(Alchemy)
Craft(Bowmaking)
Knowledge (Local - Silver Marches)

The DM is thinking about making her an Orphan raised by the University in Silverymoon. I don't mind this but would prefer if she had a little more "Sun Elf" heritage while not being unplayably arrogant.

Any suggestions for a good storyline with which to provide the DM?

 

[Gez]

They are supposed to be like the Noldor, so passionate they're litterally burning.

However, given the poor quality of FR litterature, they end up being like moronic Nazis.

So, play them like a SS from an Indiana Jones movie. Sure of his superiority over the rest of the world, with the certainty his culture is not only the best, but also the only one deserving the name of culture, and constantly looking for old magical artifacts that could be used to create an invincible army for Evermeet. The only thing missing is the moustache. Elves being deprived of facial hairs, you can't twirl your moustache nervously.

 

[Dark Jezter]

Attitude-wise, sun elves tend to be very arrogant and condesending, even by elven standards. Most sun elves won't even speak to the "lesser races" such as humans and dwarves unless spoken to, and even then they speak in as few words as possible. They see moon elves as foolish because the moon elves try to make friends with other races instead of isolating themselves from them. Sun elves see themselves as the guardians of the elven way of life, and they also make up the elven nobility, because of that they act aloof and arrogant even to other elf subraces.

Juding by the descriptions of sun elves in Races of Faerun, the FRCS, and a few old 2e suppliments such as Cormanthor: Empire of the Elves, it sounds like most sun elves are Lawful Neutral (with a few of the more rascist ones being Lawful Evil) rather than the usual elf alignment of Chaotic Good.

 

[Kae'Yoss]

Don't go as far as Gez suggests.

Sure, they do think that their God Corellon chose them to defend and preserve elven tradition and history. They are perfectionists: If you can't do it good, don't do it at all. They tend to have a narrow range of skills, but are very good at what they do. They think that everything short of perfection is betraying the elven ideals.
They think of combat and war as necessary evils: They are trained in it, but they don't revel in it.
They don't often become adventurers, cause they much rather stay in the hidden sun elf realms and enjoy comfort, study and centemplation.

They might be arrogant, and have a certain disdain of other races (including other elven subraces, except maybe avariel), but they are not like Nazis. They don't want the destruction of every other race

 

[Derulbaskul]

... given the poor quality of FR literature...

Um, shouldn't that read "FR novels" for the very reason that you state?

To me, sun elves are subtly racist, more in a patronising sense that in a Nazi-like "ethnic cleansing" sense. Remember, they are generally good-aligned so, as a group, genocide is not really an option (of course, individuals might differ there... which is why the Eldreth Veluuthara are great villains).

For some inspiration I would read about Arcana Unearthed's giants and their sense of stewardship for both the land and its "lesser" races.

 

[Kae'Yoss]

Um, shouldn't that read "FR novels" for the very reason that you state?

Actually, most of the FR novels I read were quite good.

I can only remember seeing gold elves in Elaine Cunninghams books.

There was Nimesin in Elfshadow, who was, in fact racist, even (especially) against "grey elves", and belonged to a cabal of like-minded sun elves. But, then again, he was considered to be a villain, you can expect them to be evil.

Then, there were gold elves in Evermeet, and, once again, they were often scheming bastards who wanted to shove the grey from the throne. Once again, elitists and villains.

The only other I can think of (although, in other stories, there were a couple of other elves I can't remember the subrace of, they might well be sun elves) was the spellsinger who trainded teh young Thann. He wasn't really what you'd call "Nazi"

All the examples from above were villains, the worst (in regarod of good and evil) of their kind. Of course they are evil bastards, and you can expect them to show the bad traits their race is famous for - but amplified and further villainized. A gold elf villain is a racist, just like a dwarf villain is greedy and a gnome villain is someone who reminds you of Frankenstein.

But you can't base your racial outlook on these persons. Only a very small minority of sun elves are actually genocidal bastards, just like only a very small minority of Germans are Nazis.

To me, sun elves are subtly racist, more in a patronising sense that in a Nazi-like "ethnic cleansing" sense. Remember, they are generally good-aligned so, as a group, genocide is not really an option (of course, individuals might differ there... which is why the Eldreth Veluuthara are great villains).

I agree. It's not exactly that they hate other races. They just like their own better, and want to preserve their traditions and ways, keeping foreign influences out. More like overly conservative.

 

[Douane]

[...] just like only a very small minority of Germans are Nazis.

I sure hope so!




Folkert

 

[brun]

I've played a Sun elf in campain a few monthsago, and it was a great deal of fun. We were 2 sun elves, both coming from Evermeet on the mainland for revenge. The other character acted really superior (and kinda was, actually, as a finelly built arcane archer) and racist. He only talked to the other elves, and then only in a very patronizing way. When he was adressed by characters of the others races, it was very likely the discussion would shift into an argument, sometimes coming to threats and almost to blows.

I, on the other hand, played my character as I kind of father and wise one to the others, despite bieng a Great fighter (going on bladesinger). I naturally assumed the role of leader, and all but one character were fine with it. I treated characters of other races like misguided children, still ignorent of true culture and knowledge, as Cultures on their way to what civilization means, but not quite there yet. It was great.

So there you have it. The highly arrogant superior type, and the father-figure, protector type. We were both going for trully archtypical roles and positions of elven culture (arcane archer and bladesinger) as we saw ourselves as the true representatives of alkl that is ELF on the main continent.

 

[Kichwas]

These are basically just Grey Elves right?

Here's what I went with for a Grey Elf PC - rconciling the 'adventurer' with the 'isolationist':

Background: Tultetika is an unusual grey elf in that the call of wild grew strong in her. Distant, even for one of her kind, at some point in her youth she simply wandered off. There is a period of decades she does not fully recall. When at last the mind returned she found herself among the people of Zha-Nehzmish -where the sea called to her with an unresistable urge. She left aboard a pirate vessel -where her elven arrogance proved to make her among the most savage in her crew. A few years, maybe a decade, and in time she left them. Something to do with a wraith and betrayal by a crew grown tired of being put in their place. Left for dead in the seas and drained of her great power, she eventually found herself amongst the lesser races again. Sanano, her only true friend, found her there and awoke in her once again the spark it seems to take to get one of her kind to see the world for it's now state rather than the dream state they otherwise exist in.

[OOC: Tultetika may have been as high as level 10 at one point, but she was drained by a wraith under the control of her comrades and thrown into the sea to die. This could have been a week ago, or as much as five decades ago. When a grey elf 'loses focus' they lose time as well. Or at least as I'm playing her.]

Personalty: Tultetika can be as charming and graceful as a sylph, or as cruel and condescending as the darkest of the unseelie. She will see anything but an elf as a lesser creature, even if she learns to respect it's talents. She has a strong bond with the natural world that seems to fuel her magics, and will often lose herself in natural phenominon.

Sasano is her Parrot familiar, and Zha-Nehzmish is the wealthiest city in Kalamar - a human location.

The key points here were a disconnect with the concept of time, memory lapse issues, and the ability to go from charming to utterly cruel - sometimes both at the same time.

The time and memory lapse were used to set each other up and give an angle on how someone would bear such a long lifespan.

The arrogance allows the elf to be among the darkest of creatures and never even know it. What's the problem with being cruel when it's just an animal after all? It doesn't really have feelings or a soul, it's not an elf.

 

[Herremann the Wise]

Hi Everyone,

Frankly, I have to say that I'm a little disappointed. I could not get even get past a single response before the "nazi" word came up. I really did not think that this thread would follow such a path.

From the brief description I've read(the FR Campaign Setting), arrogant and elitist come to mind but genocidal funnily enough did not - the character is meant to be NG; perhaps I should have mentioned that.

Remember that this is set in the Silver Marches, so xenophobes will be quickly put in their place. Is this the fate of this poor elf or does someone else have a better way to play her.

Best Regards
Herremann the Wise

Edit: Thank you Brun and Arcady for getting this thread back on track.