Elves

Elves (called "olve" or "olvenfolk" in the Flan tongue) inhabited the Flanaess for many centuries before the destruction of the Baklumsh and Suloise Empires. Suloise, Oeridian, and humanoid invaders pushed the elves from their grassland and prairie homes, forcing them deep into ancient forests. Fortunately, the elves preferred forests to other environments, and they were able to hold their own in many ancient timberlands against human and humanoid aggressors.
The elves (olve in Flan) are slight of stature and fair of complexion. Hair and eye coloration vary by kindred. High elves are usually darkhaired and green-eyed. The noble gray elves have either silvery hair and amber eyes, or pale golden hair and violet eyes (the second type commonly called faerie or fey elves), The hair color of wood elves ranges from yellow to coppery red, and eye color is a shade of hazel or green. Wild elves are the smallest of the elven folk, but otherwise resemble the wood elves. Finally, the valley elves appear to be taller versions (of nearly human height) of the gray elves.
Elves were present in the lands east of the Crystalmist Mountains for uncounted centuries prior to the rise of the first human kingdoms there. Slowly driven from open country to more secluded and better defended strongholds by the growing strength of both human and nonhuman folk, elves still held a number of forest and upland realms at the time of the Twin Cataclysms. The invading humans, orcs, and others pressed them further, until some prominent elven realms made military and political alliances with dwarves, gnomes, and halflings, and even with certain major human tribes (usually Oeridian). Today, elves are dominant in Celene, Sunndi, Highfolk, the Vesve Forest, and the Lendore Isles.
Elves are concerned with life itself and spend long periods contemplating natural beauty. Long-lived and curious, they enjoy exploration and remember much. Their frolics are usually joyous events, though some gatherings have a melancholy tone. The fine arts are much appreciated. Elves measure kinship in terms of broad, ethnic divisions, though family bloodlines, particularly among the nobles, often cross these ethnic boundaries. Valley elves are unique in that they have no social relationship with other elves in the Flanaess, being hated by them for unknown reasons.
Elves normally attire themselves in pale forest hues, though they favor more intense colors in urban settings. Generally, males wear a blouselike shirt over close-fitting hose and soft boots or shoes, while females favor a frock with sash, or a blouse with an ankle-length skirt. Hunting garments are typically in neutral colors like shades of brown, tailored for silent and easy movement. Gray elves wear complex gowns and flowing robes of pure white, sun yellow, and silver and gold set off by polished leather of contrasting colors, accented by jewels. Wild elves usually wear kilts, boots, and rough shirts. All elves favor cloaks, especially when traveling, typically gray or gray-green.
Elves are fascinated by all types of magic, especially illusions and charms. They also produce superior and elegant magic garments, weapons, and armor.
Half-elves (or Alfar) are the offspring of humans and elves. They are highly versatile but not always welcome in elven or human society. The Alfar have grown into a race of their own now, and elf-human pairings are much rarer than Alfar children of Alfar parents. They are disproportionately represented among adventurers as a result.

Ethnicities

High elves are the elves most likely to interact with other peoples of the Flanaess, particularly humanity. High elves are slim and pale in complexion, standing about 5 feet tall, and they like to wear greens, grays, and pastels. Most high elves are dark haired and have green eyes. Like all elves, they are often highly skilled in magic as well as swordcraft, and they have extraordinarily long lifespans. (All elves invariably have pointed ears.)
Gray elves have either silver hair and amber eyes, or else golden hair and violet eyes. The gray elves of the Flanaess are traditionally reclusive, especially when confronted with hostile human kingdoms, but some are militant and have alliances with local humans and demihumans.
Sylvan elves inhabit old woodlands and have darker complexions than high elves. They dress in browns and greens, and they value their privacy and separation from all other peoples. The collapse of the Great Kingdom and the Greyhawk Wars have only encouraged their further isolation.
Wild elves, or grugach, are sylvan elf offshoots who remain isolated from all other peoples, even other elves. They are scattered across the Flanaess in small bands in remote, temperate forests. They are very pale, shorter than most elves, and are xenophobic.
Valley elves are known only from the Valley of the Mage, serving the wizard who rules that land. These elves are taller than usual, some reaching 6 feet in height, and they resemble golden-blond gray elves. Valley elves are not well liked by other elves for some reason.
Aquatic elves live in temperate and tropical seas. A large number are known to live near the Spindrift Islands, where they are allied with the high elves. Aquatic elves have webbed fingers and toes, and they can breathe water as well as air.
Rumors exist of Aerial Elves or Avariel, but if they exist in the Flanaess, they have kept their location secret.

Common Customs and Observed Traditions

Elves across the Flanaess worship the Seldarine, pantheon of the elven gods. Supreme among the Seldarine are Corellon Latherian, God of Magic, the Arts, Beauty, and Change. Corellon's wife, Sehanine Moonbow is God of the Moon, Dreams, and Death. About a dozen elven gods round out the pantheon.
The elves also pay tribute to the Fey Lords and Ladies of the Sylvan Court. They see the Faerie Courts as important powers among the worlds, though few elves consider them equal to the Seldarine. Some elves see the two pantheons as part of a whole, where the Faerie Court act as courtiers to the Seldarine, caring for those minor trivial matters too unimportant to raise to the level of the royalty (the Seldarine).
The elves also know and understand the existence of the Dark Seldarine, led by the Queen of Spider Lolth, the Dark Seldarine hold sway over the drow and their other followers in the Underdark, but they were once part of the Seldarine, and while they no longer seek worship from the surface elves, some elves still direct their prayers to them.

Morphic

Elves have incredible control over their own forms, though much of this control is subconscious, and some is bound to their environment. Elves tend to take on the traits of the world around them. An elf living in the forest may see his hair, or even skin, slowly change to a green hue, and some suspect that the drow of the Underdark have deep black skin which helps hide their movements in that lightless world. Elves of the northern reaches tend to have skin tones of pale blues or whites, and their hair may look like icicles.
Elves have some small control over these changes. Given time, and elf who truly desires to change could change their features. Something like eye color might take a week, while skin or hair color would take significantly longer. These changes are subtle, and the more pronounced the change, the longer it would take.

Gender Ideals

Many humans view elves as beautiful in an ethereal or exotic manner, and this may be part of their fey heritage. Most elves appear slightly androgynous, which isn't far from the truth. Due to their morphic nature, elves have incredible control over their own forms. Like aging, gender is also more fluid for an elf than another humanoid. Elven children are born gender-neutral. Most elves, by the time they reach adulthood, have settled into one gender or the other, and their bodies respond to that choice (or mindset), developing the "correct parts" as they mature. There are cases where the young elf doesn't decide until later in life, and a few elves go through their entire lives without deciding.
Stranger still are stories of elves who are able to change genders over the course of their lives, although this ability, if it exists, is a closely held secret of the elven elders.

Dietary

Elven meals are generally light and flavorful. The elves use less meat than humans and more wild fruits, nuts and greens. A traditional elven breakfast dish is Halvasha, and is often served with nuts and dried fruits. For lunch, elves traditionally each green rolls, thin strips of meat rolled in large edible leaves with cheese and a fruit/vegetable spread.

Basic Information

Growth Rate & Stages

Elves do not age as other races view it. An elf is literally as old as they feel. Elves who grow up in human communities tend to age quickly while the elves of the deep forests tend to age slowly. Effectively immortal, most elves begin to lose their will to live at about 450 years and begin to deteriorate and eventually pass. An elf who has lost loved ones or purpose could age and pass well before that time however. There are cases of "older" elves regaining new purpose and becoming more youthful in appearance and demeanor.
An elf born and raised in the Free City of Greyhawk could mature as quickly as his human "friends" and physically be an adult by his twentieth year. Then the aging process would slow down and he might live for a century or more before the reality of seeing his friends die, and their children, and children's children, catches up to him and he begins to fade, well before many elves would even be considered "old".
For elves with a more "elven" upbringing, the following age categories would be considered a good guideline.

• Adulthood: 110 years

• Old: 300 years

• Venerable: 450 years

• Maximum Age: Most elves pass before their 1,000th year

Average Physique

Elf Male

• Average: 5'9", 145 lbs.

• Random Height: 4'10" +2d10

• Random Weight: 90 lb. + [Height Roll × (2d4) lb.]

Elf Female

• Average: 5'4", 125 lbs.

• Random Height: 4'5" +2d10

• Random Weight: 70 lb. + Height Roll × (2d4) lb.