Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.
Rocket your D&D 5E and Level Up: Advanced 5E games into space! Alpha Star Magazine Is Launching... Right Now!

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Afrodyte" data-source="post: 2178239" data-attributes="member: 8713">interesting thoughtsTuranil:Looking at the responses you seem to have liked the most, I believe that what you're really doing is taking elves beyond European folklore and mythology.  This may not be your intent, but it is one of the main effects of what you're doing.  I strongly believe this is a good thing, and I don't mean simply for its novelty value.  What I have noticed about fantasy in general and fantasy roleplaying in particular is that the settings overwhelmingly default to Western European models of history and culture.  As a result, entire worlds are constructed with only that as a reference point.  The most obvious consequence of this is that such worlds generally become bland and derivative.  There are other, more insiduous aspects of this trend, but I won't get into that now.  Needless to say, as a piece of generic advice, looking beyond Western European history, folklore, and mythology is a great way to expand and invigorate a setting, especially with regards to presenting different races and cultures.With that in mind, I've been thinking about this thread alot and also thinking of ways to add interesting ideas while staying relatively on-topic.  I'm going to start by laying some of my interpretations on the table, at least so you can know where I'm coming from without having to do guesswork.First of all, what are the traits which make elves recognizable as elves?  From Tolkien to D&D to Shadowrun to every bit of fantasy literature featuring them, there are common elements that make elves, well, elves.  IMO, elves are essentially human with three main differences: magic, magic, and magic.  I say that elves are basically human because their bodies and minds function in more or less human ways.  Aesthetic differences aside, they look and move the same way we do.  Psychologically, they have the same equipment we do.  They have the same cognitive abilities.  They have the same range of emotions (though guilt, shame, and empathy may be lacking).  The triggers and expressions for these emotions may vary, but no more so than those for humans of different cultures.  Yet, with all these similarities, they generally live several times longer than the longest-lived human and are sometimes even immortal.  Their senses are often keener, especially vision and hearing.  This may influence their praeternatural agility and grace.  In many cases they are in tune with forces beyond ordinary human perception, frequently displayed by enhanced intuition.  Evolution could explain some of the advanced cognitive abilities and part of the extended lifespan (like about 200 or 300 years instead of 100, if elves are to humans as humans are to other apes).  Genetic manipulation could explain much as well, but technology so advanced that one can have "designer genes" would transcend what most would consider natural law and might as well be considered magic.Now for the really interesting part: how do we create a portrayable race from these characteristics?  There are a lot of ways, actually.  The method I favor least is the method most often used.  That is: give the player a hodge-podge of traits without context that basically amount to "how to play your character."  In other words, tell the player everything but what makes an elf an elf in the context of the setting.  I'm leaning toward thinking that such a method more often than not facilitates functional but hollow roleplaying.  Basically, if you want to do things "right," you have to follow the cliche.  The method I favor most is more akin to a toolkit than a prescription.  That is, the text (or rather, creator) provides the essential elements of the race while players and GMs apply their own creativity to flesh it out.  It takes a little more work but I think it would result in more interesting characters and cultures and more rewarding roleplaying since you're more likely to be using what you create yourself than what someone else creates for you.</blockquote>

Verification