Elf

Elves in Stildane are an uncommon species of Starspawn mostly found in Northern Stildane. They are strange humanoids, often not fully integrated into society but not entirely detached from it either. Some among them have long lifespans, but most do not - and none of them have their ancestor's lifespans, which lasted many centuries. Some elves feel a deep anxiety about this, and take it to mean that they are in a state of "decay" as a community; others simply take it as a necessary cost for freeing themselves from the magical clutches of the wasteland. The magic inherent in elves, that feeds their cantrip casting and lifespans, must be absorbed from the wasteland - and that comes with its own set of health risks (including being eaten by monsters as well as medical complications).
Elves began in the Kingdom of Dovenar many centuries ago, as humans who were taken by capricious Forest Spirits to serve as meat puppets, servants, and emissaries. These humans were shaped into thin, 'graceful' shapes by the spirits, who had a small selection of preferred appearances and aesthetics. Elves are no longer bound to such shapes, but it has changed their average body type. Modern elves are almost entirely the descendants of these original puppets, who fled in every direction after their overlord spirits were banished.
"Half Elves" make up the vast majority of the elven population. These are elves that have grown up in broader society, and often are not "pure blooded" in their ancestry. While their lifespans are lower, they tend to be better integrated into society and are known as charismatic and socially capable - their 'elven grace and beauty' is not undermined by poor socialization like it is for other elves. Half Elves have moved along trade routes to most places in Stildane, and it wouldn't be strange to see them anywhere on the continent. Half Elves are, in lifespan and biology, essentially human.
"Wood Elves" are elves who live near or in the Chaos Wastes. Their magical elven nature is fed by the wasteland radiation, but they do not embrace the wasteland for the most part - they seek to shape it into something they can live with. They live in a handful small villages and nomadic tribes, some of which have wandered quite far from their homeland. While Wood Elves lack the magical affinity and extreme slowed aging of the Dark or High Elves, they do have some slowed aging (comparable to Kobolds, or even Prisms) and physical properties.
"Dark Elves" are the descendants of elves who who either were taken with their masters back into the wasteland, or who went to a Chaos Nexus to try and absorb power and reclaim their ancient glory. Most "Dark Elves" live in the wasteland or in the underground tunnels that crisscross Stildane (hence their name). These elves are more physically diverse than others; their skin is often a color not found naturally in anyone else (purple, blue, green, scarlet, metallic, green) and they often have other mutations. Dark Elf settlements are prone to cult-like structures, and some are said to be ruled by the ancient spirits that once ruled all elves. Those underground tend to be the more normal ones, as these are the groups that escaped the nightmare villages at the border of the chaos nexii. While Dark elves can live lengths comparable to Solars, none do - those in the wasteland who reach a certain age are claimed by the Spirits, and those who escape the wasteland are said to be cursed to die a tragic end.
"High Elves" are elves who live in civilized lands who use tactical magical exposure to try and maintain their higher levels of innate magic. This exposure can involve living near magical artifacts or sites, purposefully channeling magic nearby wild magic sites for extended periods of time, or even forcing their children to sleep in a room that contains a small shard of Ederstone. These are the least common kind of elf, with only one community of note located in their homeland of Dovenar. Most High Elven families are not the most adjusted bunch; they attach moral value to their elven past and reject the outside world as somehow spoiled or polluting.
A small number of high elves live this way for purely pragmatic reasons - they want their children to live longer and have more magical affinity, and they consider the risks and costs worthwhile - but the sheer danger and mortality rates (especially to young children, as this exposure must begin young) makes this attitude extremely hubristic in its own right. While High elves can live lengths comparable to Solars, the only known High Elves more than three-hundred years old are either highly-traumatized victims of the Last Kivish Scouring, or mutated stragglers struggling with some haunting or major medical problem.

Civilization and Culture

History

Elves aren't really united enough to have a history, outside of the distant shared ancestry to those seized by the forest spirits of the Scouringwood Wastes. There are some who seek to forge a united history and identity for elves, but this is a small group that is largely in the minority.
There was, ever-so-briefly, an elven Queen of Dovenar who some see as the Queen of all Elfkind: Queen Halga Yohenzel, who ruled from 1730 to 1800 before being deposed, and lived in retirement in her manor in the Elfengrove until 1906.
Aside from Queen Halga's grave, there are a few areas and groups of importance:

• The Elfengrove , in the county of Gernzlov in the Kingdom of Dovenar, is a verdant caldera-valley once ruled by the ancient forest spirits. The Elfhome, a large tree-like growth of warped matter and magic and ancient center of spiritual power, remains to this day. Some elves feel that this caldera is a sacred place, where their magic recharges.
• Tower Alvain, in Keilbar, which is one of the great centers of High Elf unity: an anomalous tower where unusual magic is researched.
• Darenmosh, a great temple-village on four huge plantlike legs that lives in the Broken Hills of Dovenar, in the county of Vlostrov. It wanders the fringe of Dovenar, planting itself to rest for decades at a time. It is likely made of Ederstone-touch Awakened Trees, possibly shaped by the forest spirits (though some claim it was a gift from Ustav). The Darenmosh often picks remote and/or dangerous places to plant itself, making it a bit of a pilgrimmage to get to.
• Drowlesh, at the periphery of the Counties of @Vlostrovand Tolbstorn in the Kingdom of Dovenar, is the only known town of Dark Elves to have any kind of relationship with the outside world. Drowlesh is ruled by a Forest Spirit wearing an elf body, known as Queen Melobalath - the Lady of Spiders. While most other Drow groups are small and hidden, Drowlesh is open and imitates the aesthetics of royal splendor in its own strange way. If a dark elf is able to escape to the broader world through trade or the like, it is through Drowlesh. The town is still extremely isolated, though, and only rarely receives visitors.

Genetic Ancestor(s)

• Human
• Starspawn