Drow
Drow, or dark elves, are the descendants of the elves who refused to abandon Borrovy during the Great Division. Unlike their cousins, they did not escape across the Aquié Partium, but rather hid in the Underdark below. Something changed these elves during their stay, and when the other elves returned, they found their brethren bitter, twisted, and evil enemies.
Origins
During the Age of Dragons, the ancestors of today's drow race were simply elves living in the northwest corner of Fyre, in a small forest kingdom. An elven secret society known as the Winter Council had discovered that the antediluvian aboleth race was behind the rise of the human civilizations. They also learned that the aboleth had grown tired of humanity's arrogance and planned to remove the dragons from power in order to incite war among the intelligent races, in the hopes that the more ancient races would destroy them. A plan that backfired when the humans unexpectedly put their arrogance aside and bonded together to create a force strong enough to defeat all other races on Borrovy. Once they had done so they began their massacre of all nonhuman races. The elves called out to their brethren to flee Borrovy and seek refuge across the sea or in the mountains. Most did so, but a few elves refused to abandon Borrovy. The exact reasons why they chose to stay behind is still a matter of debate among the elves. Some believe it was out of loyalty to this world, while others suggest that the drow were a political faction who were against the passive elven response to humanity's encroachment on their land. Whatever the true reason, a group of elves fled into the Caves of the Craven below the Allerdale Mountains, believing that they could escape the surface world's destruction by simply delving deep enough into the Underdark. A few years later the Underdark was shaken by tremendous tremors, strong enough to briefly wake Rovagug, the god of destruction who had been imprisoned far below during the Age of Creation. As his wakened mind reached out, it touched the cave where the elves had sequestered themselves, and mixed with the Underdarks' strange radiations and the elves' own feelings of betrayal and anger. It transformed them, turning their hair white and skin dark, and replaced the race's natural tendencies towards independence and good with Rovagug's evil; these elves became the first generation of drow.Dawn of Lolth
After being corrupted by the foul mind of Rovagug, the dark elves of were abandoned by the gods and were left defenceless and vulnerable. They pleaded and prayed for some divine respite. Their answer did not come from above, but below. The Underdark has deep connections with the lower planes of existence and the drow were approached by the demon lord known as Lolth, the queen of spiders. She became the patron deity of the dark elves who quickly spread all across the Underdark.Society
Lolthite, drow society has two nominal goals, called "the First and Second Part of the Destiny of the People". The former is forcing all other races of the Underdark into subservience, while the latter is driving the entire elven population into extinction, seizing their lands and holdings in the process. Lolth claimed that, in order to achieve such goals, the drow had to be in a state of perpetual infighting and violent competition, the constant training serving to make them stronger and smarter while breeding out indolence and other weaknesses. However, the extreme, self-destructive degree to which the Darwinian attitude of the drow was taken prevent them from achieving either of their purposes, barring possibilities for significant growth. In truth, despite her rhetoric, Lolth has no intention of having the drow devote themselves to reaching their supposed goal. She finds their in-fighting far too enjoyable to focus their attention of taking the surface. On a personal level, each drow tries to gain and maintain the favor of Lolth, amass material goods (like wealth and slaves), and gain status inside their society. Depending on the station of a drow, there is a difference in the kind of plans they support and execute. Drow of higher standing support endeavours to boost their own prestige by increasing their own people's power and influence. Drow of lower station supported plans that drag everybody down, for example by causing strife and violence within their communities. Drow communities are known as city-states, although they aren't actually organized as "states", as much as clusters of drow lead by oppressive, theocratic nobility. Cities are normally independent and not part of a larger drow nation, and though some have trade agreements, most frequently fall to war with one another. Cities usually include farmlands, where slaves work to produce and harvest meat and crops. Those lands are usually found inside the main cavern but sometimes, usually due to space limits, they could be found outside as well.
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