Elves
Civilization and Culture
History
According to the Elves, they were the first Humanoid race to achieve sentience. Their history books claims that control of the plateaus of Acarn was once shared only among them and the Dwarves. Indeed, ancient and more recent ruins of Elven cities and fortresses can be found across the continent though none of them are occupied by Elves anymore. For thousand of years, Elves prefered to live the centuries of their lives in relatively small communities. According to their own records, the ideal life of an Elf was one of learning and mastery of various crafts or hobbies. At the zenith of their power, the toils of agriculture and other hard labor was seen to be beneath the grace and beauty of the eldest race. The Elves thus offered their protection and their craft in exchange for farming goods produced by the lesser races such as the humans. These communal relationships varied from simple exchanges between independent settlements up to human communities swearing fealty to Elven lords.
This golden age of the Elven Kingdoms lasted for about a millenia. Some Elven scholars did notice that the demographic growth of humans in particular, was threatening to drown their own numbers. Furthermore, the craft of the younger races in general was catching up. Finally, the younger races were expanding their territory into the virgin forest outside the reach of the Elven Kingdoms. Gradually, the younger races became more independent from the Elves. Some Elven philosopher likened it to children leaving the protection of their parents and saw this as a positive evolution. Throughout the Age of Gods, this was the dominant position. However, the appearance of the first mages and the Age of Emancipation brought the destruction of every last of the Elven Kingdoms and the enslavement of large swaths of their populations.
Three ethnic groups exist among the Elves known as the High Elves (Azuri), Dark Elves (Druki) and the Wood Elves (Asri). Each group has its own language though they all stem from Ancient Elf, making learning one from the other somewhat easier. In general, Silver Elves tend to have pale skin with hair of silver, gold or copper with blue or green eyes. Wood Elves tend to have skins of various shades of brown, with dark or brown hair with matching eyes. The Dark Elves tend to have dark purple or black skin with white or silver hair. Their eyes are usually brightly colored in any shade of the rainbow, with the occasional white iris.
During the Eldar Golden Age, the High Elves were objectively the most powerful and numerous group. Most of the large cities and citadelle were under their control. They were notorious for their pride and sense of superiority. They were also known for their craftsmanship and mastery of magic. High Elves settlements were built to exhibit their building prowess, sporting high towers, impressive arches, functional aqueducts and sewers. They favored building on hills and mountain sides to make use of the high for defense. High Elves prefered situations where members of the lesser were their outright subjects as opposed to simple trading partners.
Wood Elves, as their name implies, built their settlements in the forest. Using magic to weave the very trees and plants into functional bridges, walkways and alcoves into which they built their homes. Contrary to popular belief among outsiders, Wood Elves did incorporate stone and metal into their structure, mostly for their hearths, fireplaces and chimneys. Wood Elves were less inclined to subjugate the younger races, preferring a more distant trading relationship. Some Wood Elven tribes actually refused to deal with non-Elves and built their settlement deep within forests and violently deterred trespassers.
The Dark Elves always had a tense relationship with their Elven cousins. Historical texts on the origin of this matter are vague and allegorical. The other Elves used the derogatory term Drow to designate them and always depicted them as evil demon worshippers. It is an historical fact that one particular Dark Elf tribe did make extensive and open use of demonology and were exterminated for it by the High Elves with support from their allies. Dark Elves settlements, including a few impressive citadelles and forest dwellings, were exclusively built on the Northern Plateau. The Dark Elves also had a good relationship with most of the Dragonborn tribes. There were some situation where Dragonborns were the subjects of a Dark Elf Lord but for the most part they had positive trading relationships. The Dragonborn tribe of Thamasa was a major exception to this rule, and as they federated most of the Dragonborn tribes during the Age of Emancipation, the Dark Elves kingdoms fell to the brethrens of their historical allies.
During the Elven Golden Age and through the Age of Emancipation, the Elven ethnic groups would rarely cohabit voluntarily. They would trade, form alliances, visit each but that was the extent of it. Beyond the traders and diplomats, very few Elves of a different group were accepted as permanent resident. Marriage to an Elf of another ethnic group was either legally or socially forbidden. Of course, numerous stories of star crossed elven lovers exist in stories, but they systematically ended in tragedy. Once their kingdoms fell and most of them were enslaved, these rules became obsolete. In the post-Great War context, most of the new generation of Elves do not consider membership to one of the traditional ethnic group to be particular relevant. The same cannot be said for most of their elders. Regardless, nearly all combination of eye, hair and skin color is represented in the newest generation.
A more contemporary relevant way to divide the elves in the post-Great War era is in their lifestyle. Most of the Elves, and nearly all of the High Elves, live in or around the major cosmopolitan settlements, at best as second class residents, but are generally slaves. They are designated Urban Elves.
A few “tribes”, mostly Dark or Wood Elves, have moved to the Low Lands and have adopted a nomadic lifestyle. The competition with the Lamias and Goblinoids, not to mention the aggressive beasts, for hunting territory is fierce but they do manage to survive. They are referred to as Nomadic Elves.
Finally, some groups have managed to escape the various conflicts and slavers and established small settlements or farmstead in the most isolated of woods or hills. None of these settlements have more than a couple hundred residents. They are called Edge Elves.
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