Shadar-Kai

Bound eternally to the service of The Raven Queen, the Shadar-Kai elves originate from the Shadowfell, emerging onto the Prime Material Plane to advance the will of their divine mistress. Once fey like the rest of their elven kin, the Shadar-Kai exist between the realms of life and death, as a consequence of the violent magical banishment into the deathly realm of the Shadowfell that they underwent along with their deity during her ascension to godhood. Unlike other varieties of elf, Shadar-kai are almost devoid of emotion, exuding an ineffable, mysterious aura. Despite this, they are intensely fascinated by the emotions of others. Within the Shadowfell, to which they return to be reborn upon death to continue their service to The Raven Queen, the full effects of the terrible magic which brought them there is plain - their bodies and faces are withered and decayed, stripped of the ethereal elven beauty of their cousins, which they too possessed prior to their sundering. They often wear masks of metal or wood to cover their ravaged visages. In contrast, outside of the Shadowfell, the Shadar-Kai may take on the youthful features of their elven kin once again, although their complexion remains deathly pale. The Shadar-Kai consider death to be only temporary, as upon their death they simply return to the Shadowfell, to their deity, and are reborn once again, and may continue their service. This has resulted in what may be considered a somewhat blasé attitude to dying on their part.