Sylph (silf)

Descendants of humans and beings of elemental air, sylphs are a circumspect and isolating race consumed by extreme inquisitiveness. Sylphs spend their time hiding in plain sight by being social chameleons as the watch and listen to those around them. While many races would consider this spying, to sylphs it is called, “listening to the wind,” and it can become an obsession to many sylphs. Sylphs count on the knowledge gleaned from “listening to the wind,” as well as their fine intellects to keep them from danger.

Basic Information

Anatomy

An adult sylph stands roughly 5’ 10” tall with two arms and legs. They are bilaterally symmetrical, warm-blooded, omnivores with internal skeletons. Both hands have four fingers and one opposable thumb, which allows them to grip and use tools. Their arms are jointed at the shoulder, elbow, and wrist. Their legs are similar, jointed at the hip, knee, and ankle. Sylphs walk upright.

Most sylphs are skinny and sallow often appearing fragile, but their thin bodies are usually tougher than they appear. Most sylphs can pass as human fairly easily, albeit with some effort, however, the complicated blue markings that whirl across the skin betray their elemental heritage. They often have more subtly signs of their ancestry, for example a slight breeze following them about. These manifestations become more evident when a sylph experiences intense emotions such as passion or anger, for example spontaneous gusts of wind tousling the sylph’s hair or hot blusters knocking small items off shelves.

Genetics and Reproduction

Sylphs reproduce sexually, are viviparous, and have an average gestation period of 270 days, roughly nine months. Sylphs usually produce only a single child with each pregnancy though 1 in 100 pregnancies result in twins, with 1 in 500 producing triplets and 1 in 1000 quadruplets. A sylph who mates with another sylph will bear a sylph child. If a sylph mates with a human they will most likely bear a human child, though the child will carry the trait and somewhere down the line may give birth to another sylph. However, one in ten children born by a sylph and a human will be a sylph.

Growth Rate & Stages

Sylphs age slower than humans reaching adulthood at roughly 60 years of age, and having an average lifespan of 550 years with some living as much as 850 years. Sylphs are not considered middle-aged until around 150 years and are not considered old until they reach the age of 200.

Ecology and Habitats

Like their human ancestors sylphs seem best adapted to tropical plains but can inhabit and thrive in any environment and temperature zone. Consequently, they can be found wherever humans are found. They are most common in the southern old kingdoms where there is a long history of humans interbreeding with genie-kind.

Additional Information

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Sylphs have color vision, sensing the spectrum between infrared and ultraviolet wavelengths. They have good depth and motion perception. Sylphs can see perfectly in the dark up to 60 feet albeit in black and white only. Their hearing covers a range from 16 to 27,000 cycles per second, with good separation and direction-sensing qualities. Their skin is touch sensitive. Their senses of taste and smell are not as highly developed as their sight.

Civilization and Culture

Naming Traditions

Sylphs don’t have a culture of their own, so they tend to adopt the naming traditions of the humans amongst who they were raised. Some sylphs however will choose an auran name for their own children.

Beauty Ideals

Sylphs tend to adopt the beauty ideals of the culture in which they were raised. Consequently, sylph ideals are as varied as the humans amongst whom they are born. However, sylphs tend to gravitate towards skinny folks with fair complexions like themselves.

Gender Ideals

Gender ideals tend to differ. Most sylphs adopt an egalitarian ideal of gender roles, even those raised in strictly matriarchal or patriarchal societies. This tendency stems from the sylphs tendency to feel as outsiders in human society even the one where they were raised.

Courtship Ideals

Sylphs tend to adopt the courtship ideals of the society they are in mixed with the society that raised them if they differ. One major difference is the sylph tends to discreetly observe their potential fiancé long before approaching them and continue after. Consequently they tend to know much more about their partner than their partner knows about them.

Relationship Ideals

As with everything, sylph relationships tend to mirror those of the culture they live in. One notable difference is because sylphs know their partner better as a result of their observations, they can usually anticipate the needs and desires of their spouse.

Major Language Groups and Dialects

Sylphs generally grow up speaking the language of their human parents. Most also learn Auran as well as a nod to their heritage. Sylphs also like to learn the languages of the other elements as well as the tongues of dwarves, elves, gnomes, and halflings.

Since sylphs have no culture of their own they have no language of their own. However many adopt Auran as a sort of default language for their race.

History

Since the vast majority of sylphs are born to humans they have no racial history. As mentioned sylphs are most common in the southern old kingdoms where the rameta people have a long history of interbreeding with genie-kind. However, they can be found amongst any human population albeit they become rarer the further east one travels. Being almost unheard of amongst the jouwren and iwi peoples.

Interspecies Relations and Assumptions

Sylphs enjoy prying into the affairs of most other races but have little taste for actually associating with most of them. Sylphs can relate on some level with elves, who share their tendency toward aloofness, but often spoil any possible relationship by violating the elven sense of privacy. Dwarves distrust sylphs intensely, considering them flighty and unreliable. They form excellent partnerships with halflings, relying on the short folk’s courage and people skills to cover their own shortcomings. Sylphs are amused by the annoyed reactions they provoke in ifrits, and find oreads too boring to give them much attention.

Genetic Ancestor(s)

• Humans

Lifespan

550 years

Average Height

Male sylphs average 5'11" in height with females being slightly shorter at 5'9"

Average Weight

Males sylphs weigh on average 145 pounds and females again slightly lighter weighing an average of 135 pounds.

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

A sylph’s skin tone ranges from pale, albino-like to medium-white. The exact shade depends on their human ancestry, wit the sylph’s skin usually being several shades lighter than their parent’s A sylph’s skin is covered with swirling blue or grey markings appearing as tattoos.

Geographic Distribution

• Frontier Lands