ELVES 

The most diverse of all of the races, save Humans, is the race of Elves.  They are known to inhabit almost every terrain Habololy has to offer, known to worship deities of all sorts, and can be found in every walk of life and class.  Virtually every Human society has Elves intermingled with it.  This can lead to an Elf coming from almost anywhere.  However, there are also many societies which are predominantly elven and which spawn the five types of known Elves.

The Northern Elves are the most widely known because it is they who most often mingle with other societies.  They are called the Northern Elves simply because their king, who rules over virtually nothing, resides to the north of most of the lands of the main continent, and has for as long as lore tells.  They have long been forced to partially assimilate to the culture they live near.  There are simply too few of them in any one place to stand on their own.  However, their presence in most societies has lead to the general notion of an Elf being that of a Northern Elf.  That notion being: of a creature, which is thinner, shorter, and weighs less than the average Human.  They prefer a rural setting to an urban one.  They tend to worship Treetop, but not exclusively.  They are long-lived, but no longer than a Dwarf.  These observations are true when it comes to most Northern Elves, but not so when it comes to the other varieties.

Common legend has it that the Northern Elves were the original stock, and that the other known Elves sprang of in different directions, much like the Sledgehammer Dwarves did.  This point is disputed only by the other Elves, and most clearly by the Desert Elves.  Their appearance in the Intorian desert is said by most to have occurred in recent history, but they would argue that they have been there since the creation of the world.  That is the typical style of any Desert Elf.  They are always at odds with anyone they talk to, believing that they are above all other races.  If a Desert Elf had it his or her way, they would prefer to be left alone.  To further this, most Desert Elves behave in a manner that causes most to not want to be near them.  This includes refusing to speak any other language unless absolutely necessary.  This is their greatest burden, for there are not enough Desert Elves to even form their own city, so they must resort to living in the cities of the other races that live in the desert.

In the truest example of diversity among the Elves, this philosophy is put on its head by the Jungle Elves, who are in every way different from their desert cousins.  They care little, even not at all, about ancestry or putting on airs.  They live primarily in the jungles on the eastern side of the main continent, but are happy to travel wherever, when the need arises.  They mix with other cultures without complaint, but manage to hold onto their own unique style.  The Jungle Elves have been a sovereign state for as long as any other mainly due to their flexibility.  A king or queen has sat upon their throne for nearly three thousand years.  They are tolerant, and even allow gremlins to inhabit their jungle, going so far as to adopt some of their comic traditions.  There is only one thing that unites all of the Jungle Elves, and that is the jungle itself.  Every Jungle Elf realizes that without the jungle their way of life is doomed.  It is the one of the only reasons that this otherwise friendly race goes to war.

The Scaled Elves live in the cold western reaches of Icefia, and make no claims on being the first Elves.  They were enslaved for many years before being freed by the god Stasis in his mortal days.  More than half a millennium has passed and the Scaled Elves have built their own realm.  They are not quick to take action, but fierce when they do.  The Scaled Elves have developed a harsh, but fair society, where the greatest warrior or knight rules over a counsel.  They drew on the greatest cultures of the world to design their own after they were freed.  A Scaled Elf could be seen wielding any type of weapon, speaking nearly any language, and found in the worship of numerous deities.  Their name derives from the fact that they have formed a relationship with the Wyverns, which inhabited the land they first settled in after being freed.  Their greatest knights ride the beasts into combat, and their warriors wear armor made from the dead wyverns’ scales.

The final Elves do not live on the surface and are known by all as the Drow.  Appearing to the other races only at night, all other Elves agree that the Drow are not of this world, but are instead a fiendish corruption of whatever surface Elves hold as true and noble.  The Drow are in fact a vile race looking to enslave, rule, and exploit the surface dwellers.  Their cities are horrible places deep under ground where only the Crystal Dwarves live.  It is the hope of every surface race that there are no caves beneath their home from which the Drow could strike.

APPEARANCE: The typical Northern Elf stands about 5ft. tall and weighs about 100lbs.  They have long, pointed ears and a paler than Human skin tone.  A fat Elf is truly an enigma.  Northern Elves have brown to blonde hair and a variety of eye colors ranging from dark purple to near-white blue.  No Elf can grow facial hair.  Northern Elves tend to dress in the fashion of the city or town they live in or near.

Desert Elves are on average 3 to 6 inches taller than a Northern Elf, but weigh no more.  Their skin is darker and beaten by the desert sun.  They wear light colors and thin fabrics with as much ornamentation as possible.  Female desert Elves are never seen by the other races, but are said to be much the same in style to their male counterparts.

Jungle Elves are usually the same height as the Northern Elves, but are 10 to 20 lbs. Heavier.  Their hair is a variety of bright colors: violet, green, red, etc.  They try to match their clothes, the little that they do wear, to those same colors.  Their skin is typically light brown.  They have more defined muscles than any of the other Elves.  Jewelry among the Jungle Elves is very common, but the jewelry is not obnoxious or expensive.

Scaled Elves have dark hair, sometimes even black.  They are as tall as Humans, but weigh 10 to 20 lbs. less.  Their skin is pale almost to the point of graying.  Clothing is rarely colorful, but usually comfortable.  Jewelry is a sign of station and wealth, but is never gaudy.  They have gray, blue, and steel colored eyes.

Drow Elves have ebony black skin and typically have white to silver hair.  Their eyes have haunting colors, which swirl and twinkle in the dark.  They are only seen wearing armor and ready for battle.  Females are never seen.

ALIGNMENT:  Northern Elves usually take on the alignment of the society they have lived in, but rarely toward evil.  Desert Elves are ambivalent and unconcerned with the world and tend toward neutral in all ways.  Jungle Elves are predominantly chaotic and good.  Scaled Elves are rarely chaotic.  The Drow Elves are evil.

RELIGION:  Treetop is seen as the creator by Northern, Jungle, and Scaled Elves and therefore given appropriate worship.  Northern Elves also worship a variety of deities, dependant upon where they live.  Jungle Elves are found in the worship of Arsur’anyodel and Tommimao as well as Treetop.  Scaled Elves worship Stasis as a liberator, Gruweas as an organizer, Treetop as creator, Han~Sui as a weapon master, and all of the judges as keepers of order.  They despise The Oldest Orc and feel his organization led to their imprisonment.  The Drow Elves are all in the thrall of different cults.  The Desert Elves struggle to avoid any worship, but fall into the beliefs of Everentual and The Oldest Orc.

WHAT MAKES ELVES DIFFERENT:

The Elves have developed many differences based on their lifestyles and homelands.  In the beginning it is believed all non-Drow Elves were like the Northern Elves.