Neph

Neph are an ancient race, whose origins and whereabouts currently are unknown. Some scholars believe the race to be fully myth, but others disagree, citing the many mentions of the Neph in very old histories of the ancients.
The Neph are first described in several ancient texts, speaking of a tall group of inter-planar travellers who arrived in the northwest and sought refuge among the local peoples. From there, stories become increasingly wild and divergent. Sparse historical records indicate a great advancement in magical technologies in the regions mentioned but also the bones and remnants of great and terrible monsters. Various legends speak of plagues of chimera, an incredibly powerful northern empire enslaving the world and families fleeing to other planes to escape the tyranny and corruption. Still other stories describe a golden age, great improvements in everyday life for all and a time of enlightenment. These incredibly different accounts make it difficult for scholars to understand what really happened, but the Neph are closely linked to these events.
The Neph are mentioned throughout the 20,000 years of the Age of the Ancients in a variety of ways. While their names often change depending on the culture (Nifv, Eneph, Nevvrim to name a few) they are typically identified by their descriptions: tall, fair-skinned, long-fingered, immortal men with deep magical knowledge. Notably there are no Neph women, and while the Neph are recorded as marrying and having children with the ancients, all children of Neph ever recorded were male.
The records of the Neph disappear at the same period during which an event known as the Gathering is described. There is no historical record as to why, or where the Neph went. A few religious texts, most notably the sacred text of Kádun describes their main god banishing the Neph to the abyss but as of yet these are the only hints as to what happened to the Neph that we have today.