Elves

Despite being perceived as fragile, Elven adaptability is legendary; a single generation can change their entire species to fit and function within a harsh environment. This unique quality has allowed them to live -- and even thrive under the harshest conditions.  

Long Lived

Perhaps their most renown trait is their long lifespan; Elves once held a long lifespan that could not end through aging; to the point that their ancient progenitors often referred to dying as 'The Morrigan's Mercy'. This has since changed with each generation, however.   As time has gone on, Elven generations have slowly grown progressively less long lived; each new generation is expected to live significantly shorter than the previous one.

An Elf's five senses are roughly twice as keen as a human's, meaning that pain or excessive stimuli can quickly overwhelm them. This, however, comes with a few unique benefits; Elves can easily hear things that others cannot from a vast distance away, and their nose is keen enough to pick up scents across vast distances.   Furthermore, their taste is so keen that they are capable of flickering their tongue through the air if their sense of smell is somehow compromised, allowing them to 'taste' the air like a serpent.   These unique sensory qualities render Elves somewhat fragile, however. Excessive stimuli can quickly overwhelm them; especially pain. Something as mildly inconveniencing as a stubbed toe may feel like a broken bone to an Elf.

The Elven people once lived across the world, but eventually consolidated in Tregaron; which is now widely considered to be their true ancestral homeland. Before this, they held the most dominant kingdom to live on the land. History, however, has forgotten this era after The Great Dying; an apocalyptic event that brought all life including their own near extinction.   In time, Elven worship centered itself around Crann; a common held belief among some Elven historains is that the Fae gifted mortal kind fire, which in turn later melted the world's ice.

Elven Mercenaries

Elves lived in Mercenary tribes and clans across Tregaron for most of known history, where they were dedicated to the worship of specific Crann. They lived somewhat similarly to the Fianni peoples, with tribes that worshiped and venerated all Fae, but devoted themselves towards one specific Crann.   During this time, Tregaron was a feudal state that was filled with much infighting between the human kingdoms. Entire civilizations rose and fell within the span of days, and war had left the world in a remarkably dark era known as the Cruel Age by many historians.   Elves were, most famously, known for offering their services to humans as both guides and mercenaries, and were mostly a wildly neutral party that benefited from human infighting until the Three Kingdoms were established. Elves still offered their services as guides, but mostly kept in small enclaves devoted to their own way of life; they lived differently under each kingdom but were typically left alone by the human lords; Elves were respected and granted their own territories during this time.  

The Mordencrast Conspiracy

  Human nobles, particularly the Torman, grew envious and nervous of the Elven lifespan. Conspiracy lead to whispers and rumours of the Elven people replacing humanity through outliving them through their immortal lives. Thus, the Torman threatened their local tribes to teach them a methods of gaining immortality for themselves.   Many Elves during this time were still living in an increasingly dwindling lifespan, however, the few Elven tribes familiar with older esoteric arts that lead to their people's long life offered to grant humans their secret to a long life. This ritual, however, was twisted and grew corrupted; and lead to the advent of Vampirism

The Crusades

The Crusades were a series of murders committed by the Church of Aine; Witch hunts were conducted across Tregaron to execute every vampire they could find, and shortly after, Elves were blamed for cursing humans with vampirism.  

Diaspora

Elves are now scattered across the world, with most of their old population being found across the Chain of Fire after they fled overseas.