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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Reynard" data-source="post: 3032125" data-attributes="member: 467">And now, Elves...RACES: ELVESElves were the first mortal race to walk upright, master fire, build lasting communities and delve the arcane secrets of the world.  Only the dwarves beat them to mastery of stone and steel, and only men beat them to recognition and reverence of the gods.  These are no boasts, but facts – facts well known by all elves.  Superior, aloof, mysterious, arcane, beautiful, long lived: the elves are the highest of the mortal races, and so have fallen farthest since the Great Catastrophe and suffered most in forging new homes in Abyscor.Appearance and Physiology: Elves are human-like in appearance, though they are taller and lighter than humans on average and have exotic features: high cheek bones, almond shaped eyes and long ears that taper to a point.  They are considered attractive by human standards: men are broad shouldered and lean and muscular, while women have full lips, wide hips and slender limbs.  Elven hair is usually straight and worn long by both sexes, ranging throughout the human spectrum of hair color and beyond (with greens and blues being the most common 'unusual' colors).  Their complexions range from soft cream to bronze tan, with smooth and almost glossy skin.Elves are the longest lived of the mortal races, averaging approximately 400 years before succumbing to old age.  Elves reach physical maturity at 20 and are generally considered full adults at 30.  From that age until they are over 300 years old, elves do not seem to age at all.  It isn't until the last decades of their life that aging begins anew and elves pass through middle, old and venerable age at a rate only slightly slower than do humans.  As elves age, they lose much of the physical qualities that set them apart from the other mortal races and – aside from the ears – elderly humans and elves look very much alike.  Elves are capable of having children throughout their adult lives and twins are relatively common.  It is uncommon to see large families, however, because elves tend to have and raise their children before beginning the process anew.Elves are thought to be related to the Fey – some human scholars believe they may even be a crossbreed between humans and Fey, considering the viability of human-elf crossbreeds – and possess many physiological traits reminiscent of those magical creatures.  They do tend to have relatively weak constitutions, however, and prefer vegetarian diets and lighter, sweeter wines and liquors to ales and harder liquors common among men and dwarves.Psychology and Culture: As with dwarves, elven psychology is very different from that of men, due in large part to their extremely long lives.  Unlike dwarves, though, elves enjoy a centuries long young adulthood and their outlooks and culture reflect a sense of eternal youth.Elves, by and large, are dilettantes.  They flit from one interest to the next, nearly obsessed with one trade or craft until they grow bored and move on.  However, elves' long lives mean that a 'passing fancy' might last as long as human's entire career and most often elves attain a high level of expertise before switching interests.  As a consequence elven social classes are fluid and few professions are considered more valuable than others (with the distinct exception of magical study).  Similarly, elven leadership is often fluid – politics is, after all, just another profession and an elven lord is likely to become a farmer or leather worker after five decades or so.  Without powerful castes or classes, elven society tends to be democratic and even a little anarchistic to outsiders.Long life gives elves a unique perspective on what is and is not important in life.  Elves consider anything that lasts less than a century a “fad” and are loathe to make great strides to change or address short lived issues – even those that might be considered antithetical to elven beliefs.  If a tyrannical human overlord rises to power on the edge of elven lands, the elves usually allow time to resolve the issue rather than act themselves.  The exception is if a dire threat exists for the elves – elven life is sacred and incursions and raids into elven territory are dealt with swiftly and harshly.  Relatedly, elves are planners, so much so that members of other races often consider them procrastinators.  Elves see the long view in almost all situations and are willing to wait decades to achieve their goals or enact a plan except in the most extreme of circumstances.Above all, elves value individual freedom.  While generally compassionate and generous, elves do not form codified social rules – laws – that enforce any particular brand of behavior.  You aid your neighbor because it is right and good, not because it is the law.  You support you leader and obey his commands because he is a good leader, not because he is given hereditary or divine right to lead.  These rules apply even when dealing with members of other races, which can often lead to misunderstandings and conflicts between elves and others.  Elves do not see it as a wrong to break a treaty or contract if it no longer serves their interests or if the circumstances under which the agreement was made dramatically change.  Neither words nor paper weigh more than reason, the elves say.There are no prescribed gender roles in elven society – aside from the obvious carrying and bearing of children.  Elven children tend to be raised by the community, rewarded and punished by whoever is at hand.  Elven men and women are equal in size, strength, intelligence and will and no professions are considered verboten for either gender.  While elves find life long mater, usually in their early second century, monogamy is not an elven virtue.  Trysts are common, because elven 'love' is not considered physical in nature and sexual attraction is among those things elves label as 'passing fancies'.  Husbands and wives may go decades without living in the same house or sleeping in the same bed, but they are still married.  Elven love creates a deep, almost mystical bond that cannot be broken by hedonism or distance.The exception to nearly all of the above is an elf in his Twilight.  When elves reach 300 years old and rapidly begin to feel the effects of age, those things that were considered unimportant or worth waiting for begin to haunt them.  Old debts are paid with vigor, and unresolved conflicts are brought to the fore.  Quests, projects and goals that had been forgotten and abandoned are suddenly taken up again with unmatched vigor and dedication.  Indulgences, such as infidelity, are suddenly no longer considered meaningless.  There is a saying that there is nothing more dangerous than an old elf with a grudge, and discounting dragons, it may well be true.Aside from magic, beauty and art are among the most important aspects of elven culture.  While often not as dedicated or technically skilled as dwarven artisans, and often lacking the pure unbridled inspiration of men, elves create some of the most awe inspiring, intricate works of art – be they jewelry, architecture or wines – in the world.  Elven artisans will spend years, even decades, on perfecting singular pieces or processes, easily compensating for any failings they may have in relation  to more inherently talented artists.As stated, elven law is loose at best and usually revolves around the adage “do what you will, let it bring harm to none.”  Most civil disagreements are resolved between parties with no involvement by elven society or political powers.  Duels – not for honor, but for actual damages – are relatively common, though almost never to the death.  In those rare instances in which society must intervene in criminal cases, punishment is swift and brutal.  Elves that prey upon other elves are either exiled, if practical, or executed.  Every citizen is an unofficial deputy of elven law, though most only act in extreme circumstances.  Non-elves are not afforded any rights in elven lands and are usually exiled from elven lands on pain of death; those who commit crimes against elves worthy of death never survive to reach a trial in the first place.Religion: Elves are not religious by nature.  While there is an elven pantheon and religious ceremonies do exists – usually coinciding with season or astronomical events – few elves can be considered pious.  The gods of the elves are as mercurial as their children and often change manner and outlook from one parable to the next.  As such, elven priests are rare, and zealous crusaders even more so.  Those few that choose to follow a devout path for a time tend to see the divine world in a state of constant flux that reflects and is reflected by the physical world in which the elves live.  Change is not antithetical to religious devotion and tradition, but inherent in it and serving the elven gods means serving the world and the elves that live in it at any given moment, not the idea of what the world was in the past or should be in the future.Magic: It was the elves who first codified the methods by which mystical energy could be shaped by mortal will, thus creating the art of wizardry.  Since that time over ten thousand years ago, elves have been nearly synonymous with magic, and for good reason.  Aside from their inherently magical natures – thanks to their Fey heritage – elves who study magic have centuries to do so.  This, in fact, is considered by many to be why elves were first in creating spells: elves had centuries to observe and experiment without losing time to 're-learning', and advantage in any specialized endeavor.  Many elves – even most elves – have some small talent for magic and know a few spells.  Those that make wizardry their profession, however, break the common elf stereotype of the dilettante.  By the time they reach their Twilight, elven wizards are more powerful, more knowledgeable and more attuned to arcane magic than any creatures in the world aside from dragons.  Elves were among the highest ranked of the Babyrast wizards before and immediately following the Catastrophe.  Once Babyrast decided to become a political entity and chose to indulge in the summoning and binding of demons, most elves left the Academy/City-State.  Sadly, Babyrast was considered by most elves to be one of those short lived human endeavors that time and nature would deal with.  The elves were terribly wrong in this assessment and once the Babyrast Wizard-Kings  chose to take control, of both Abyscor and magic itself, many elven wizards were killed, their libraries burned and their secrets stolen.As with their mundane artisans, elven arcane craftsmen create magical items of unparalleled form and function.  Simple elven magical items – cloaks to keep one warm in the winter, eternal flame lanterns, carafes that are ever full – fetch exceptionally high prices among other races, even the dwarves.  Elven arms, armor and other items made for war are as heavily sought after.Elves and Other Races: The relationship between elves, dwarves and men goes back thousands of years to the time when that alliance drove the orcs, ogres and giants into exile on Abyscor.  It was then that the elves taught dwarves and men the art of wizardry and for centuries that gift – along with the gifts dwarves and men bestowed upon the elves – carried their mutual friendship forward.  The millenia have eroded that friendship, however, and differences in psychology and culture have driven a wedge between the races.Elves and dwarves are far from friends.  While much of the cause lies in simple but pronounced differences between the races – elves are youthful and mercurial, while dwarves are mature and stoic – the machinations of the goblins, as that race rose to prominence in trade, did a great deal of damage to the elf-dwarf relationship.  Elves believe that the dwarves are fundamentally wrong on any number of economic, political and social issues, and are quick to say so.  They tend to view dwarves as cranky old men too steeped in tradition and responsibility to appreciate the fluid nature of life and the world.  Nonetheless, there is one place where elven and dwarven minds meet: craft.  While dwarves tend to be practical in their trades and elves tend to be artistic, both races respect the other's skill and dedication to creating things.  If an elf and a dwarf become friends, it is most often based on a foundation of mutual respect for craft.To elves, humans are almost childlike.  Their short lives make them unable to see the long view and make them prone to emotional and extreme decisions.  By contrast, elves are dispassionate when it comes to military, political and economic policies, a fact that vexes human societies to no end.  In addition, elves see the human trait of religious fervor as quaint at best, attributing it to humans' too short lives and hopes for something beyond the material.  Despite these differences, elves will ally with humans when it serves a purpose – as they have many times in the past – and appreciate humans inherent ambition and desire to act when elves are in need of allies.  Moreover, elves realize they are small in number and humans make up the bulk of the population of Abyscor: the world belongs to men and elves happen to live in it.  One point of contention between the races has been the depredations and fall of the Babyrast Wizard-Kings.  That primarily human wizards so twisted the elven magical arts has bred a distaste and distrust of humans among the elves, many of the eldest of whom remember the dark age immediately following the destruction of that empire by the Dragons.  Many human wizardly organizations have made overtures to their elven counterparts with the express purpose of healing this particular wound.Elves detest goblins, though not so much that they would be called enemies.  Goblins, with their interest in the economic and temporal, as well as their even-shorter-than-human lives, are a nuisance.  Unfortunately, they cannot be ignored: goblin influence on trade, and its resultant influence on politics and civilization in Abyscor, requires that all but the most isolationist elven communities must deal with the goblins, either directly or through dwarven or human proxies.  As such, elves attempt to have patience with the goblins when forced to deal with them.  In addition, goblins – left out of the sharing of magical knowledge with dwarves and humans – stole, at least in the eyes of the elves, their knowledge of the art of wizardry.  The fact that goblins have a natural talent for magic and have made great use of the art for economic gain only exacerbates the elves anger on the subject.Orcs were long the enemies of elves before they and their ogre and giant kin were driven to Abyscor by the alliance between the elves, dwarves and men ten thousand years ago.  Elves have long memories and even longer histories, but in the intervening eight thousand years the elves had almost forgotten about their age old enemies.  The orcs did not.  When the Great Catastrophe drove the elves to Abyscor, the orcs recognized them immediately for what they were and immediately resumed their war upon the elves.  The difference this time was the orcs were many and had the backing of the mighty Dragons, while the elves were few, displaced and short of allies.  Elven civilization almost did not take hold on Abyscor because of orcish attacks.  Early on, the elves managed to deal a telling blow to the orcish hordes, however, and since that time their has been a brushfire war between the races.  While elves battle and hate all manner of evil beasts and races, their true ire is reserved for orcs.As elves view goblins, Dragons view elves: short lived, small minded would be usurpers of Draconic power in the form of magic.  If there is one thing the elves fear, it is the Dragons of Abyscor.  Luckily, the dragons have largely slept since the destruction of the Babyrast Empire and the elves have been spared their wrath.  Elves see the long view, though, and know it is only a matter of time before the dragons wake and turn their rage on the elves.Elven Adventurers: Most elven adventurers are young – in their first or second centuries of life – and have embarked on a life of travel and adventure for no other reason that it struck their fancy.  Many choose a profession and seek to achieve mastery in it, but many others have a broad selection of abilities and seek a broad, if shallow, reservoir of experience when it comes to the adventuring life.  Some elven adventurers are wizards or their servants in search of elven artifacts and arcane knowledge that  was stolen or destroyed during the Babyrast purges.  There are a few elves whop have reached Twilight, having ignored the non-elven world for their whole lives or having put off some great (to them) quest for centuries, who become adventurers in a race against their dwindling years.</blockquote>

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