Astral Elf

Astral Elves are ancient descendants of the high elves who turned their gaze away from the forests of the world and toward the vastness of the cosmos. Drawn by the mysteries of the stars and the ethereal shimmer of the Astral Plane, they chose to sever ties with terrestrial lands and instead embraced eternity in a realm where time flows like thought and distance bends with will.

With skin that glows faintly like moonstone or polished opal, and hair in hues of starlight—silver, violet, deep blue, or radiant white—Astral Elves appear otherworldly even among their kin. Their eyes, flecked with nebula-like patterns or radiating soft light, hold the quiet weight of centuries. Unlike their material-bound relatives, Astral Elves no longer age in the traditional sense, their souls forever anchored in a timeless stasis that gives them both an air of serenity and unsettling stillness.

Astral Elves dwell in crystalline cities that drift through the Astral Sea, atop ancient god-corpses, floating citadels, or luminous archipelagos carved from thought and memory. These cities are governed by councils of seers, philosophers, and star-priests who contemplate the mysteries of divinity, the cosmos, and the threads of fate. Many Astral Elves revere distant gods, constellations, or even concepts such as memory, motion, or silence, drawing magic from the abstract forces that echo through the Astral Sea.

Their culture prizes mental clarity, spiritual exploration, and self-mastery, with an emphasis on ritual and introspection. Art, music, and warfare are all seen as disciplines of the soul. To an Astral Elf, a single blade strike should be perfect, a note in a song should resonate with the harmony of the spheres, and every moment should be lived with deliberate intention. They do not rush. They do not forget. They are both dreamers and archivists, storing memory as sacred truth.

Though distant, Astral Elves are not apathetic. Some feel a great burden to shepherd the lesser-lived races, guiding them through cycles of war, rebirth, and decline. Others believe in a form of cosmic balance, choosing to intervene only when the scales tip too far toward entropy or tyranny. Their presence in the mortal world is rare, but always significant—often as emissaries, relic-seekers, or chosen agents of Celestial will.

Their greatest strength is also their greatest flaw: detachment. Astral Elves can become aloof, dispassionate, or numb to the turbulence of mortal emotion. To some, they are graceful beacons of higher purpose. To others, they are cold, cryptic, and unfeeling. Even so, when an Astral Elf chooses to care, their loyalty burns as steadily as a star.

Genetic Ancestor(s)

• Elf

Genetic Descendants

• Pallid Elf

Geographic Distribution

• Astral Plane

SAiS

Astral Elf

HUMANOID

Astral Elf Traits

Size: Medium (5-6ft)

Speed: 30ft

As a Astral Elf, you have these special traits.

Astral Fire

You know one of the following cantrips of your choice: dancing lights, light, or sacred flame. Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it (choose when you select this race).

Darkvision

You can see in dim light within 60 feet of yourself as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You discern colors in that darkness only as shades of gray.

Fey Ancestry

You have advantage on saving throws you make to avoid or end the charmed condition on yourself.

Keen Senses

You have proficiency in the Perception skill.

Starlight Step

As a bonus action, you can magically teleport up to 30 feet to an unoccupied space you can see. You can use this trait a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus, and you regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.

Astral Trance

You don’t need to sleep, and magic can’t put you to sleep. You can finish a long rest in 4 hours if you spend those hours in a trancelike meditation, during which you remain conscious.

Whenever you finish this trance, you gain proficiency in one skill of your choice and with one weapon or tool of your choice, selected from the Player’s Handbook. You mystically acquire these proficiencies by drawing them from shared elven memory and the experiences of entities on the Astral Plane, and you retain them until you finish your next long rest.