Elf, Frost
Pale elves. Icy constructions. A dislike of fire.
The town is beautful in the dawn's light, its spires throwing refractions about the thoroughfares and empty spaces. Within, hides, bone and feathers adorn sparse wooden furniture. There is no fire about; the residents seemingly unbothered by the frigid air.
As a result of their fey ancestry, elves are gently shaped by their surroundings. Those who have spent generations in particularly cold environments have become frost elves. They are usually found in small communities peppered along the ice walls at the edges of Urvén but a small number can be found residing on lofty, snow-covered peaks.
Frost elves are pale, even among their brethren and have slender frames. Their hair is usually either white or black, with very few having a shade in between, by many shave their heads. Their clothing is almost exclusively made of furs, decorated with bones and crystals of ever-ice. Those who hunt are usually garbed in the white furs of polar bears and other arctic animals while those who remain within settlements have a more varied wardrobe.
Culture
Major language groups and dialects
Frost elves speak Elvish and Common regularly while a small amount of Primordial, Sylvan and Draconic may be used to converse with troublesome neighbours. A small number of frost elves territories border with frost giants and therefore may be more likely to learn their language instead.
Common Etiquette rules
Frost elves are usually polite but quiet, preferring the peaceful sounds of the arctic winds over energetic conversation. They have a great respect for art objects created out of leftover natural materials (such as bone) or things created by the winds themselves.
Art & Architecture
Frost elves shape ice and snow into permanent constructions with high spires, angular domes and faceted panels designed to catch the sunlight. Due to a lack of many other materials, they carefully use animal skins, furs and bone to create most of their other furnishings. For example, a frost elf bed is usually a slab of ice with the furs of various creatures resting on top.
Common Taboos
Frost elves intensely dislike fire when it is used for any purpose other than cooking. Attacking using fire-based abilities or magic is considered particularly unjustifiable.
Frost Elf
Age. Although elves reach physical maturity at about the same age as humans, the elven understanding of adulthood goes beyond physical growth to encompass worldly experience. An elf typically claims adulthood and an adult name around the age of 100 and can live to be 750 years old.
Alignment. Elves love freedom, variety, and self-expression, so they lean strongly toward the gentler aspects of chaos. They value and protect others' freedom as well as their own, and they are more often good than not.
Size. Elves range from under 5 to over 6 feet tall and have slender builds. Your size is Medium.
Darkvision. Accustomed to twilit forests and the night sky, you have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can't discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.
Keen Senses. You have proficiency in the Perception skill.
Fey Ancestry. You have advantage on saving throws against being charmed, and magic can't put you to sleep.
Trance. Elves don't need to sleep. Instead, they meditate deeply, remaining semiconscious, for 4 hours a day. (The Common word for such meditation is "trance.") While meditating, you can dream after a fashion; such dreams are actually mental exercises that have become reflexive through years of practice. After resting in this way, you gain the same benefit that a human does from 8 hours of sleep.
If you meditate during a long rest, you finish the rest after only 4 hours. You otherwise obey all the rules for a long rest; only the duration is changed.
Cold Acclimatised. You automatically succeed Constitution saving throws made to resist the effects of natural cold.
Ice Magics. You know the Shape Water cantrip. When you reach 3rd level, you can cast the Ice Knife spell once per day; you must finish a long rest in order to cast the spell again using this trait. When you reach 5th level, you can cast the Gust of Wind spell once per day; you must finish a long rest in order to cast the spell again using this trait. Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for these spells.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and Elvish. Elvish is fluid, with subtle intonations and intricate grammar. Elven literature is rich and varied, and their songs and poems are famous among other races. Many bards learn their language so they can add Elvish ballads to their repertoires.
Summer Camp 2021
Article Links
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This was an article originally written as part of the 2021 Summer Camp challenge. I have edited the article since then, so what appears on this page no longer reflects the original competition entry. - Theoclymenus
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