Elf

The ever-dwindling children of nature, persecuted and punished by the ever-advancing march of industry

Base Racial Traits

Ability Score Modifiers: (+2 Dexterity, +2 Wisdom, -2 Strength): Elves are nimble and wise, but lack the raw physical prowess of most other species.
Size: Elves are medium-sized creatures and thus receive no bonuses or penalties due to their size.
Type: Elves are humanoid creatures with the elf subtype.
Speed: Elves have a base land speed of 40ft.
Vision: Elves have low-light vision, allowing them to see twice as far as others in conditions of low-light.
Languages: Elves begin play speaking the Regional Language that reflects their origins(See Languages of Numiastra for more info), and Sylvan. An Elf with high INT can select any non-secret language as a bonus language to represent their varied origins.
Dilated Lenses: Their eyes treated with special ointments and salves from a young age, Elves possess a supernaturally keen eyesight that only grows in power the older they get - Elves are always treated as if their eyes were x10 Telescopes(Which they can magnify and zoom out at-will), gaining a +6 circumstance bonus on perception checks to notice fine details far outside their normal vision ranges(GM Discretion). Additionally, their supreme eyesight allows Elves to read the body langauge of other creatures so minutely that they are automatically made aware when a creature they are speaking to and can see is telling a knowing lie or knowingly concealing something from them - as if they auto-succeed all Sense Motive checks for this purpose so long as they can see the other creature while speaking to them.
Flash Vision: Whenever a firearm or any blackpowder-based grenade or consumable(GM Discretion) is discharged in dim light or darkness in their vicinity, an Elf can use the resulting muzzle flash to create an after image of their surroundings in their mind - gaining darkvision(60ft) and blindsense(30ft) until the end of their next turn. If the Elf already possesses Darkvision and Blindsense, the range of these visions increases by 30ft and 15ft respectively until the end of their next turn instead - this bonus stacks.
Guerrilla Fighters: Out of sheer cultural necessity, Elves have had to adapt their entire way of life to survive in this new age of scarcity and industrialization - Elves gain a racial +2 to survival and stealth and gain both as class skills if they don't already possess them as such. Thanks to this training, they also gain Rapid Reload and Weapon Focus as Bonus Feats for either Crossbows or Firearms(Chosen at character creation), and qualify for Weapon Specialization/Greater Focus/Greater Specialization as if they were a Fighter of their HD but only in regards to the same category they chose for Rapid Reload.
Traitor's Training: Elves have not only copied the ranged combat techniques of the Iron Empire, but have improved upon them and mastered them in ways only they can - when making a ranged attack of any kind either mundane or magical, Elves can as a free action enact one of the following effects upon that attack:

• Halve the penalties for firing beyond their first range increment as if they possessed the Far Shot feat, increase the total number of range increments the attack can travel by 50%(rounding down), and silence the shot while also suppressing any noise, light, or other audiovisual phenomena associated with the firing of the weapon.
• Ignore all forms of cover the target possesses save for full cover, and ignore partial concealment.
• Add their Wisdom Modifier to the damage of the attack. If the attack already adds an ability score modifier to damage(Such as composite bows), they add half their Wisdom Modifier instead.
• Allow the attack to "bounce" once and alter its trajectory once in-flight - this allows a ranged attack to strike a target outside of the Elves' line of sight, but the Elf must still target the general area their target is in and be aware that they are there.

Spirit Channelers: Born with an unnatural affinity for the supernatural and magic in general, Elves have learned to channel this gift in various ways - by touching another living creature in skin-to-skin contact and concentrating for one minute, Elves can bring about a variety of effects depending on the nature of the creature in question. If the touched creature is a living animal, magical beast, or plant, this allows the Elf to speak to them as if with an EX Speak with Animals or Speak with Plants spell. If the touched creature is any other living creature OR a soul preserved via a Trap the Soul or similar effect, they can communicate telepathically and empathically with them for as long as contact is maintained. If the touched creature is a deceased non-elf or an elf that has been deceased longer than the time frame laid out in the following clause, they can replicate the effects of an EX blood biography on them. If the touched creature is a deceased elf that perished within the last month, they can replicate the effects of an EX trap the soul effect and place the soul into any object on their person.
Jury-Rigging: Thanks to lifetimes spent having to fight with minimal resources in gruelling conditions, Elves have become quite canny craftsmen - they gain a free Crafting Feat(Or the Gunsmithing Feat) of their choice ignoring prerequisites(Treating their CL as their HD if appropriate for using it). They may not make metal objects with these feats, but can use wood in place of such metallic objects - which is treated as being permanently affected by an Ironwood spell after the crafting process.
Living Refuge: Elves, desperate to preserve the natural world as it crumbles around them, are bonded to small cultures of nature spirits at a young age to foster and grow - these small nature spirits, while furtive and unassuming, allow Elves a small degree of nature magic to wield as their own. Elves, at character creation, can choose one cantrip on the druid list to gain as an at-will SLA and a 1st level Druid Spell to use 3/day, each with a CL equal to their HD. At 5HD, an Elf can choose a 2nd level Druid Spell(Or Plant Growth) to use 1/day as well. At GM's discretion, these spells may be empowered or otherwise boosted in areas of concentrated nature, and likewise weakened or completely disabled in areas where nature's influence is weak. Using these SLA's does not trigger Circuitbleed.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Unfortunately for the Elves themselves, they are one of the most well-studied and well-examined species on Numiastra aside from Humans thanks in large part to the efforts of The Iron Empire, who for centuries have persecuted and systematically destroyed or enslaved Elven Populations, destroyed their homelands and torn down their forests, and most shamefully captured large amounts of their people and hauled them back to places such as The Lumisterra Institute for Higher Learning - where their living and dead bodies alike are cut apart and dissected for the sake of "The Science of the Lesser Species".
Elves, in short, are surprisingly close to Humans in anatomy and morphology both - the two species largely share the same biology and anatomy, possessing each two arms and two legs and a head located atop a central torso, each with a similar set of internal organs and body parts. However, the major differences between them lie in the efficiency of those bodily functions and systems - Elves, by and large, function on a higher degree across the board than their Human counterparts, boasting higher athleticism, faster reaction times, better eyesight, and crucially a much higher sensitivity to spirits, magic, and the supernatural. While Elves are, overall, physically not as muscular as Humans are, they outmatch them in nearly every other capacity - a fact which has done them no favors, as this very nature has often made them the subject of persecution and "hunts" designed to claim their heads and ears as trophies.

Biological Traits

The physical characteristics of Elves, while not as varied as those of Humans, are nonetheless incredibly varied. Their skin color can range widely depending on climate, and their bone structure, hair color and texture, eye color, and host of other facial and bodily characteristics can vary quite widely from one locale to another.
Elves, by and large, tend to be thinner and lankier than humans but not so much as to be clearly distinct from them - they have a harder time getting fat or obese due to their metabolic processes and their own usually low appetites.
While once Elves were distinguishable by their pointed ears in times of antiquity, this trait has largely passed out of most Elven Populations of the modern day and is seen largely as a sign of exceptional racial purity that many Elven populations in fact shun and despise; Indeed, many have spent entire generations performing brutal "trimming" ceremonies on themselves and their own young to round out the shape of their ears out of both shame and simple practicality - with their ears rounded like those of Humans, Elves are nearly impossible to definitively distinguish from baseline humans.

Genetics and Reproduction

Elven reproduction is where they fall short of Humans as a species - Elves, for all their power and longevity, simply do not possess the same drive to expand and reproduce as humans do, though they use the same sexual means of reproduction and possess the same organs to do so. While many believe their lack of reproductive instincts is the fault of some biological inability to have children, the truth is much more banal and heartbreaking - Elves, with their naturally long lifespans, have unnaturally low libidos and seldom have the drive or desire to engage in sexual intercourse to reproduce as they and the more lustful Humans do to have children.
While in an ideal world their low libidos would be a perfect complement to their long lifespans, allowing them to mate and love at their own desires, the lands of Numiastra are not so forgiving or kind - their constant scrutiny and persecution has turned the Elves into an ever-dwindling people who have had to resort to defiling themselves in(By their standards) abhorrently lustful breeding programs to force themselves to have children for the simple yet noble goal of preventing their species from dying out. This, like many issues with Elven society, has caused a deep, brooding hatred to ferment towards Humans and The Iron Empire as a whole across much of modern Elven Society.
Though many might assume the finer details of Elven Reproduction are a poorly understood or little-cared for detail, it is to the Elves' eternal shame and fury that The Iron Empire has disgustingly detailed records of Elven gestation times and pregnancy periods, kept under the Auspices of "Helping their Subhuman neighbors repopulate". This information, while useful, is largely omitted here to preserve the decency of the Elven people - though one may consider such finer details of Elven reproduction similar to that of Humans in many ways, though longer in duration overall.

Growth Rate & Stages

As perhaps the greatest tragedy of Elvenkind in the modern era, Elves of most of Numiastra no longer remember how old they can truly get - much of the Elven Elders of the various Elven conclaves were butchered long ago, and the centuries of constant warfare with The Iron Empire has ensured that few of their already dwindling next generation has survived into adulthood, let alone old age.
From what is known, however, Elves reach maturity after being born and become full adults around the age of 50 - once adults, they are believed to reach middle age somewhere between the ages of 200-300, but any further information on their growth rate is unknown.

Ecology and Habitats

Elves, as one might expect, are a species that most keenly feels the rapidly vanishing magic of Numiastra - they are a people who thrive in mysticism and spirituality, and rely on the Atlen(Mana) of the natural world more than many other species; they are most at home in heavily wooded areas or in environments with thick concentrations of natural Atlen. In other areas devoid of such things, most notably The Diesel Fields fields that surrounding the cities of The Iron Empire, they become notably uncomfortable and "numb".

Dietary Needs and Habits

Though many Elves follow a vegetarian diet, this is not a biological requirement - Elves as a species are technically omnivores, though there is truth in the fact that they do gain more nutrients from plant, vegetable, and fruit matter than Humans and other species.

Biological Cycle

Elves, for as much of their biological cycle that has been studied by their enemies and is remembered by their surviving elders and conclaves, have little in the way of a Biological Cycle - they age exceptionally gracefully and are slow to show signs of aging until the very end of their lifecycle.

Additional Information

Facial characteristics

Elven faces closely resemble those of Humans, with little to distinguish them beyond the now-rare "Royal Ears" that are found in less than 10% of the Elven Populations of the modern era - without the pointy ears of their past, Elven faces tend to be a bit more "beautiful" than most but in a subtle and graceful way.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Elves, unfortunately, were never that widespread even in the days of antiquity - their homes were largely confined to the forests and jungles of Numiastra just as the Dwarves were confined to the Mountains and the Humans to the grasslands; however, Elves of the modern day have all but found themselves isolated and secluded to the few remaining Forests and bastions of Nature remaining on Numiastra.
While a handful of Elves have thrown away their pride and serve with indignity in the halls of The Iron Empire as a lesser species, elves on the mainland of Numiastra are almost exclusively found in the land's few remaining forests, jungles, and other bastions of Nature. Outside of the mainland, the single largest surviving Elf Population is in the Kingdom of Obratu - the mysterious nation far to the southeast that little information has emerged out of.

Average Intelligence

Elves possess a baseline intelligence similar to Humans, despite claims by The Iron Empire that they are a less intelligent "Subspecies".

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Elves, though they were once famed for their legendarily acute senses, have largely traded most of them away over generations of cultural destruction and willing scarification in favor of developing their eyesight to a truly ludicrous degree - their eyes are so legendarily acute and powerful that most elves, as they age, grow so powerful in the eyes that they are almost required to wear glasses or contacts or some other form of eye protection, lest they suffer from constant migraines and headaches from the sheer volume of information and light they can process at a time. Unique lenses in Elven eyes allow them to magnify their sight in a strange biological analogue to telescopes or binoculars, and are largely the main reason for their enhanced senses - though the Elves themselves are believed to have various cultural rituals and practices to draw even more potential out of their eyes; a feat which seems to have largely shifted to practical use in warfare.

Alternate Racial Trait List:
NOT YET BUILT.

Racial Feat List:
NOT YET BUILT.

Lifespan

Unknown. At least 200-300+ Years.

Conservation Status

Elves are not a plentiful people in the lands of Zheng-Kitar - only the mysterious and distant Kingdom of Obratu is known to have Elven Populations approaching anywhere near 'normal', as the rest of Numiastra considers Elves a dying breed due to both The Iron Empire's persecutions and the ever-expanding destruction of the natural world which often leads to the destruction of Elven Heartlands and mass migrations of their people.

Average Height

5.24ft - 6.8ft (1.6 - 2.1 Meters)

Average Weight

110.23lbs - 198.4lbs (50 - 90kg)

Average Physique

While Elves are physically weaker than most other species, they are a great deal quicker and more nimble - they are usually thin and wiry moreso than muscular and strong, and tend to be taller than average for most similarly sized species.

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Elves possess skin tones that usually paler and whiter than those of Humans and are slower to tan and brown than others, but are not immune to such processes - their hair tends to be straight or wavy and seldom curvy, but rather unique tends to have more naturally vibrant colors than the hair of Humans, with blues, purples, greens, pinks, and all bright colors being just as common as the more muted browns, blacks, and blondes of humanity. Oddly, orange and/or ginger tends to be the most predominant Elven Hair color for reasons that are not entirely clear.