Elves

They are rather short and slim in build, though their muscles are deceptively strong. Their faces and jaws are slightly more elongated and pronounced than that of humans, and their irises are catlike. Of course, their ears are elongated and pointy, and their hair grows at about twice the rate of humans. They can't grow facial or body hair, though some mutations have occurred before.

Compared to humans and dwarves, their senses are amplified to an extreme degree. Though legends might praise their eyesight, not many outside of their community are aware that they have the scent of a bloodhound and the ears of an overly attentive rabbit. That may just be an exaggeration, but this goes for their emotions as well. This means they might get bored easily, become excited over something that seems minute or strange to a human, or sometimes take far too long to complete a task that is usually done in minutes by a human. Their long lives put everything into perspective, and what is generally mistaken for laziness or incompetence is almost a biological trait at this point. They simply don't care, or they realize what has been going on around them after far too much time has passed. They might do extreme things just to feel excitement or the thrill of experiencing something new. An elf who has lived in a pristine and charming woodland village might be sick of it and would want to live in a crap-filled, dirt-poor village in the middle of the plains. Why? Just because they can. You can probably guess their alignment tends to be chaotic.

They reproduce just as any human might, though interspecies breeding has never worked, hence why there aren't any half-elves in this setting.

They mature at roughly the same rate as humans, until they reach the age of 20 that is. From then on, they will physically age very slowly, to the point where they might be able to live until they're 500 (though most are killed or commit suicide by then). For context, a 300 year old elf might look middle-aged.

Elves, due to them once having to live during a time when the sun was gone (an ancient elven myth), were supposedly granted infravision and the eyesight of an eagle. This myth however fails to mention their inhuman sense of smell and sound, which the elves seemingly can't find an explanation for.

You can use Tolkien, the fifth edition Dungeons and Dragons Player's Handbook list of names, a sourcebook or an inspiration book for RPGs of some sort, or make something up that sounds vaguely elvish. It's your choice, really. Or, if you're really stumped, just go to fantasynamegenerators.com. The elven names I usually come up with don't use more than two or three syllables, involving lots of "L" and "R" sounds, and most don't have last names due to them being so distant from the concept of family.

Compared to humans and dwarves, they aren't really all that advanced. Now, Ashtree is only at a technological level roughly equivalent to that of 11th century central and northern Europe, so this is definitely saying something. Most of their technology seems vaguely like that of 8th to 9th century central Europe, although this may just be due to the fact that their species doesn't seem to want to build any castles, outposts, or keeps. After all, their strongholds are so well hidden that building a giant castle would just attract more attention.   Additionally, most elves that wear chainmail or breastplate armor are those that have ventured outside of their lands. Even then, most elven smiths, renowned as they are, don't know how to properly make steel, since the crafting process of such an alloy may seem foreign to them. This is largely due to their isolation and over-reliance on magic items. Obviously, not everything in their society is powered by magic. They do have a few special devices, such as elevators and spellforges, that are very rare to find outside of their settlements.

Considering the elves seem like the living embodiment of the phrase "lol random," it would seem a bit surprising that they have any dress patterns or dress codes. Well, it seems they do in fact have a fashion sense! This mostly involves robes, ponchos, cloaks, cold-weather gear, and winter coats or furs. Yes, even when it isn't all that cold. Most don't really wear hats that much, but wearing flower crowns or a ring with deer antlers on it seems to be a trend. Some wear dresses or beautifully woven tunics on formal occasions.

Because of their long lives (and due to being forsaken by the gods, and being forced into a contract with eldritch entities), elves tend to start doing questionable things to keep their appetite for thrills and new experiences satiated. After hundreds of years of life, especially in the tiny clearing they might set up a village in, their day-to-day routine will get extremely boring. Coupled with the fact that they need to regularly prepare sacrifices for the Old God that specific community serves, whatever that may entail, this can lead to some very strange events and legends told from the point of view of the Ashlian humans. More on that in the next section.   Their villages are usually constructed in a remote area of a mountain range, a clearing deep in a forest, a hidden cliffside near a coast, and other rarely-visited areas. They don't partake in a lot of mining, rather trading and bartering for minerals and metal with fey and (sometimes) humans. They live in societies of about 50 to a few hundred individuals, and since they are so rare to find, it is estimated that only a couple thousand elves exist in Ashtree. The elves themselves concur, saying their population is dwindling and that there's only a little over a thousand elves remaining. With these small populations, farming isn't too necessary to support them, so the smallest settlements end up being hunter-gatherer societies, just not nomadic (usually). Those with more than a few dozen people almost always have farms or ranches set up. Contrary to popular belief, elves aren't usually vegans or vegetarians. Their cuisine is typically made up of seafood (or just freshwater fish and crabs), grilled chicken, lamb, or goat, sweet-and-sour sauces made of berries and herbs, jam (served with even the most unusual meals!), and a whole lot of soups and salads.

The sacrifices that must be given to the Old Gods range from slightly weird (but acceptable) to being crimes against nature. To avoid angering the gods (and thusly requiring a grislier sacrifice), an elven society disperses small sacrifices over a long period of time. These might be herbs, mushrooms, animals, making and burning effigies of the Old Gods, burning incense, and spending several hours a day in prayer. It all depends. However, if a village starts showing signs of worshipping the Divines, or not performing enough rituals or sacrifices per day, the Old Gods will stop accepting their sacrifices. Usually, one or more individuals will be informed through a dream by the Old Gods that they are doing something wrong, and to appease them, more desperate measures must be taken.   Now, when people create legends about elves bringing "changelings" to a baby's home and swapping them with an elven child, those are only partially true. At least, the parts about them eating or sacrificing human babies are typically false. They resort to kidnapping children only for really heinous crimes or for heresy, and the elves (or the Old Gods' avatars themselves) force the accused to take care of a human child while also giving away their own or that of a loved one. They don't necessarily need to be infants, either, which can be quite traumatizing for the child, since they'll definitely remember being kidnapped if they're old enough. The agony from forcing a child to live in a completely alien and sheltered society is quite terrible, not to mention the elves in the scenario will outlive the humans. In more fearful communities, the elf child might even be killed. If that wasn't terrible enough, elves can also enter a trance known as "dream-wandering."   In a nutshell, dream-wandering is a way for them to get high and pass the time. They enter a special chamber carved into a tree, inhale some special mushroom-based vapors, and fall unconscious while meditating. In these dreams, they usually experience vibrant and highly realistic dreams, with some of those dreams being those of their ancestors. The recipe for these vapors is kept a secret by the elves, but they can adjust it to create "penitence vapors." If the entire village has committed an act deemed atrocious by the Old Gods, then they have to tie themselves up and dream-wander through nothing but nightmares. This is, of course, caused by this altered recipe. Now, failing to do any of the above things usually means one of the elves is going to get possessed by an aberration and start wreaking havoc on the settlement.   Now, their settlements usually have animal spies patrolling the surrounding wilderness, and this is in return for protecting them from poachers or any harm to their ecosystem. The elves can still hunt here for sustenance (though not too often). As such, many enjoy having pets in their present company, and animal abuse is considered a terrible crime. Speaking of which, the elves have been influenced by the jurisdiction and morality of the Old Gods so much that they might end up carrying out any justice on their own terms, without the orders of their deities.

There is a chapter in the creation myth of Darkguard that goes, for the most part, untold. During the battle of the True Gods' uprising, the elves were meant to outsmart and outmaneuver the forces of the Old Gods using their wile, wit, and magic. However, even back in the day, the elves weren't too numerous. Their primary method of attack, ambushes, were not too helpful against these horrors and abominations. Keep in mind that arcane magic wasn't utilized by anyone in Darkguard, as no one had access to the Old Gods' power other than those considered evil. The elves, at the time, used divine magic (and, to an extent, dwarves). It proved quite ineffective when they were surrounded by the avatars of some of the lesser Old Gods. Those that weren't driven insane were simply demoralized, seeing half their allies fleeing in terror or being ripped apart in front of them. They pleaded and groveled, completely unlike anything their race was meant to be remembered for. However, they were offered a deal by Agh'tzulge herself. A literal deal with the devil...   They would be let go of, on one condition: they must abandon the practices and teachings of the "True Gods" and instead follow the Old Gods, to the point where their influence would be tied to their bloodline. Failure to appease them would result in deformities, forced sacrifices, and other horrid consequences. They agreed, though not without much of a choice. It was demoralizing to see half of their forces side with the enemy, but the armies of the True Gods did not retreat. Though the dwarves were praised for their heroism, the elves, on the other hand, were condemned by the gods. They would no longer be able to cast divine spells, as they couldn't worship the Divines in any way without having one of their kind suddenly transform into a monstrosity. Though the Old Gods have lost their grip over the years, they have imbued the elven bloodline with a form of innate arcane magic. It is far less easy to control than that of a human magic-user, so they aren't as accepting of it as it might seem.   Some retreated to the Twilight Weald, a realm that wasn't under the control of the Divines (or at least not at the time). They sought refuge amongst the fey, considering the Twilight Weald was their "home realm" and was where they were created before the True Gods transported most of the elves and dwarves to Darkguard. To this day, they are considered to be part of the fey, or at least related to them somehow. According to the elves, this is partially true, considering they were created alongside the other fey races (including fairies) in the Twilight Weald. Their resemblance to gnomes, kobolds, goblins, and other fey is quite small, as fairies seem to be their relatives, but not too many elves are sure, considering these memories are from several generations ago.

They feel pitiful towards humans, as their comparatively short lives will lead them nowhere. Elves are also quite envious of the dwarves' renown with the Divines, so it's mostly a one-sided hatred, contrary to popular belief. Orcs are pretty much nothing but trouble, since they aren't on good terms with most tribes, and said tribes are usually quite eager to raid their scout parties. Though they might trade a bit with some human merchants, they generally don't see much of a need for money and instead just barter. After all, what will they use those silver coins for, anyway? They have their own currency, which they barely use anyway. They might surprise those who trespass upon their lands, but they will usually let them go after paying a toll of some food or supplies. The aggressors typically won't attack unless provoked, and they'll leave you with enough supplies to last until the end of your journey to wherever it was that you were going.