Elf

Basic Information

Anatomy

Lithe, long-lived humanoids, elves are easily recognized by their pointed ears and pupils so large that their eyes seem to be all one color.

Genetics and Reproduction

Although elves reproduce in many ways physically similar to humans, the time frames are often far longer.

The act of sex itself is usually a week-long affair, and pregnancy lasting between four to six years. Because elven bodies are more fragile than a human's the recovery period is also much longer - and more dangerous. Every elven birth carries the risk of death, with that risk only growing with successive births. Abnormalities (such as twins) also vastly increase the risks.

Fortunately, while the all-or-nothing risk of childbirth is quite severe elves always benefit from complete post-birth recovery - although more complex situations will take longer to recover from.

Growth Rate & Stages

Elven babies develop physically and mentally at a rate similar to humans for their first year, then gradually slow until in their tenth year they are physically equivalent to a human five-year-old.

After this time, their mental capacity develops at a rate similar to a human. It should be noted that their increased intelligence is often due not to any physiological attributes but rather their cultural upbringing. Schooling takes place over the next eighty years, with the remaining ten traditionally being dedicated to a contribution towards Castroveli society or culture.

The next part of life varies from one individual to the next. It isn't until they reach their six-hundredth year that elves begin to show signs of aging, and most prepare for their death closer to seven hundred years old. On average, elven lifespan ends at seven hundred and fifty years of life.

Additional Information

Facial characteristics

Eye color is generally bright green or dark blue, sometimes ranging to nearly black, but it is their irises that differentiate them from others. These are far larger than those of other humanoids, often making it seem like they have little or no white in their eyes. This trait can make elves seem alien and unreadable to other humanoids.

Their hair, which is typically naturally straight and healthy, is generally fair in colour - though a few possess pure white hair. Neither elven males nor females go bald.

Elven ears are generally between 15cm (6in) to 23cm (9in) in length and point backwards, angling upwards slightly to end usually parallel to the crown of the head.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Homeworld: Castrovel, specifically the continent of Sovyrian.

The Forlorn

While elves can be found not only in their own communities, but throughout the rest of the Material Plane, there are distinct differences between elves raised among their kin, and those who grow to adulthood in non-elven communities.

Life among shorter-lived races makes these elves aware of others' mortality in a way that is foreign to their more isolated kin, and the resulting melancholy outlook has given them their moniker: the Forlorn.
Their lack of laughter and joy finds outlets in darker pursuits, such as trickery, cynicism, anger, and even brutality. Forlorn are generally pitied and looked down upon by other elves, who believe them to be emotionally scarred. Because of their lack of connection with their own kind, Forlorn elves tend to form much stronger friendships. A large portion of adventuring elves are in this group.

Average Intelligence

Due to their extensive childhood education, the typical elf has around eighty years of education. Some continue their studies, going on to become exceptionally well-read scholars.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

More in touch with nature than many other civilised beings, elves are subconsciously aware of clues given through their environment. Although most elves can't see in complete darkness, even a small amount of light provides them with clear vision.

Symbiotic and Parasitic organisms

Possessed of an inherent bond with the natural world, they tend to subtly take on the coloration of their surroundings over the course of many years and have a deep spiritual regard for nature.
Elves of Sovyrian in particular display red-tinged hair during autumn, or their eyes shine a particularly vibrant green during the springtime. Other elves, such as those on a frozen world may develop white-blonde hair, and those that choose to live in parts of the forest so dark that not even elves can see well are known to develop darkvison, and grow skin with a slightly pinkish tone.

Civilization and Culture

Naming Traditions

Elven name generator

Elvish names are created by adding a suffix to a verb, adjective or noun, and depending on the last character of that word, the suffix will change.

Major Language Groups and Dialects

Elvish is considered the 'true' language of the elves - and only of elves. Therefore, it is a closely guarded secret with only a few people not of fey ancestry that know it's proper use.

However, trade with others has necessitated the use of additional languages. Castrovelian is popular amongst many, but only the most venerable and staunchly xenophobic elves refuse to learn Common.

Culture and Cultural Heritage

While elves have embraced technology and the security it brings, they also maintain a deep affinity for magic, seeing in its practice a continuity with their ancestors. Many technomancers have applied their crafts to better the Castroveli lifestyle, mixing cutting-edge nanotech with the secrets of ancient elvish magic.

Common Customs, Traditions and Rituals

Most elves prefer to be buried in natural surroundings, such as being mummified in a bog, or interred in a still forest beneath a small sapling. Because death among the elves is such a long-expected yet inevitable event, others prefer to elevate their death by being laid to rest in a stone tomb where others can remember them for all eternity.

History

1. Of all the races common to the Golarion system, elves were perhaps the hardest hit by the Gap, and the slowest to adapt and recover.
   Where shorter-lived species quickly gave birth to children who had never known any other way of life, and thus were personally unaffected by the loss of history, the elven generation whose lives extended back into the Gap continued on, broken and confused by the blank centuries in their own lives and memories. What’s more, those leaders charged with trying to piece together their social history from scraps soon came to a grim conclusion: during the Gap, their race had been betrayed by another - yet exactly which race was involved remains unclear, all suggestions of the answer scrubbed by malicious intent or the Gap itself.
2. Reeling and angry, elves from across the system retreated to their ancestral homeland of Sovyrian on Castrovel and dug in, determined to never again be caught unprepared by disaster.
3. Even this was a fraught endeavor, however, as many of the established elven families already on Castrovel resented the chaos and upheaval caused by the sudden flood of refugees.

Common Myths and Legends

A few elves hold to the ancient belief that their current life is only one in a series, and that upon death they are reincarnated as another creature. Their ultimate goal is to be reborn as a natural creature of the wild.

In pursuit of this they believe that they must find or follow the Brightness; signs and portents which lead them to live a life leading them to their higher destiny.

Interspecies Relations and Assumptions

Modern elves are a reclusive, xenophobic species, little understood by their neighbours and disinclined to remedy that situation. Although their starships still travel Near Space, trading with other worlds, they largely carry all-elven crews, and most elves choose to live among their own kind either in Sovyrian or in predominantly elven enclaves on other worlds. Those adventurous or rebellious individuals who choose to live among other races are called the Forlorn, due both to their loss of elven companionship and to their tendency to outlive friends of other species. Most are viewed with pity and suspicion by their kindred.

Within their borders, elves tend to be whimsical and passionate, yet when dealing with outsiders their laughter disappears quickly, replaced by a cold, unyielding wall. Elven warriors and diplomats operating outside of Sovyrian on government business sometimes even choose to go masked, hiding their identities around other races in order to better represent a united elven state.

Elves and the Drow

The primary exception to all of these tendencies are the drow - purple-skinned elvenkind who reject the company of their brethren to live on Apostae and mine alien tech from that world's interior(link), making them some of the most feared and respected arms dealers in the system.
Ordinary elves and drow despise one another, and while Sovyrian's leadership generally tries to distance itself from political entanglements, supposedly rogue elven fleets have launched several surprise assaults on Apostae in an effort to “cleanse the corruption.” The fact that these attacks have resulted in sanctions from the Pact Council has somehow done little to deter the elves.

"In all my life, I've never seen as much beauty in a single place as when I laid eyes on her. It was to my shock that, much later, I learned she was not only more advanced in years than myself - but also my father, and his father too! And yet she moved with the grace of a goddess."

— An elderly Toriel recounts his meeting with an elf woman to his grandson.

Genetic Ancestor(s)

• Fey

Genetic Descendants

• Drow
• Half-Elf

Scientific Name

Bella Humana (beautiful human)

Origin/Ancestry

Descended from fey, of the The First World

Lifespan

750 years

Conservation Status

Sentient beings. It is usually viewed as murder in the first class to kill an elf.

Average Height

167.64cm (5' 6") to 198.12cm (6' 6")

Average Weight

45.5kg (100lbs) to 68kg (150lbs)

Average Physique

Although elves resemble humans in peak physical form, they are significantly less hardy - particularly concerning combat injuries.
However, their fey ancestry does provide them with uncanny, animalistic reflexes and even seeps into their very musculature, allowing the most mundane of elves superior levels of agility.

Geographic Distribution

• Sovyrian

Related Ethnicities

• Elven

Starfinder: Species