Races of Wild

do spend time away from one another as a means of refreshingthe relationship. Such “vacations” from one another keep amarriage fresh and vital by allowing each partner to growindependently of the other.Outsiders often mistakenly believe that elves have littlelove for family, friends, and community because they mayleave home for years at a time to follow their own desires.However, while elves are undeniably self-centered, theyusually harbor deep-seated affection for their families andfriends. The extent of that affection can be seen in theirwillingness to let go and trust that their loved ones willreturn to share more time with them. Indeed, when an elfwho has been absent from his community for an extendedperiod decides to return home, little can stand in his way,and the joy of his loved ones upon his return is boundlessindeed. Celebrations extending for weeks often surroundthe return of a long-absent member of the community,who doubtless has many tales to tell of his travels. Suchstories serve to enrich the understanding and the lore ofthe entire community.ReproductionThough an elf reaches mental and physical maturity at theage of 25, very few elves become parents until much later inlife. Elves rarely feel that they’re ready to settle down andbegin families before they’re at least 100 years old, and moststop having children soon after reaching the age of 200. Elfchildren are not as numerous as one might expect, given thelength of an elf’s child-rearing years, because elves are lessfertile than humans and other shorter-lived races. A typicalhuman couple might have one to four children over thecourse of a decade, but an elf couple might take fifty yearsto have the same number of children.Elves have a gestation period of approximately nine months,just as humans and other similarly sized creatures do. Once achild is born, his or her parents usually raise the youngster forthe first few years, and then foster him or her out to a successionof older relatives until he or she reaches maturity. Thispractice provides training for the child in a variety of areasand allows the parents to return to the pursuit of their owninterests. It also encourages young elves to develop theirown sense of self and a degree of personal independence.ELVES AT WARElves consider war a last resort for resolving disputes. Thoughthey are by no means cowardly, they know that they canexpect to live for hundreds of years, and they are loath to risktheir lives over petty issues. Since virtually all elves are inaccord on this point, they almost never war against their ownkind, except for periodic skirmishing between surface elvesand drow. The same sentiment prevents elves from declaringwar on other beings unless the situation is dire and the fateof the world hangs in the balance.Not all sentient beings share the elves’ “live and let live”credo. Tribes of orcs, renegade dwarves, and even imperialistichuman kingdoms have long coveted elf lands and resources,and many have tried to seize the holdings of their more pacifisticneighbors by force of arms. Thus, even the peace-lovingelves must have adequate defenses for their settlements.All elves learn the use of the bow and the sword while stillyoung so that they can help to defend their ancestral landsfrom invaders of any kind. Such training commences forboth males and females at about 15 years of age.Because of their general unwillingness to risk their livesunnecessarily, the elves’ first line of defense is usually thelongbow, allowing them to slay their enemies from a distance.(This tactic is especially effective in circumstances when theycan use their low-light vision to decimate foes before theenemy can even see them.) Elven culture does not demeanthe bravery of a warrior who drops his enemies from afar.After all, allowing a larger and stronger foe to engage in meleecombat is folly, not courage. Foes that manage to threaten anelf at melee range are usually met with a flashing longswordor rapier.Most elf settlements augment their defenses with arcanemagic. Alarm spells and other defensive dweomers placedaround the perimeter of elf territory warn of the approach ofintruders, and elf wizards regularly employ scrying to ensureCHAPTER 1ELVESpqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqrsELVES AND ADULTHOODTable 6–4 of the Player’s Handbook suggests that elves don’t Humans finish their “filling out” and full adult growth byreach their full physical growth until an age of 110, at a minimum.That’s not entirely accurate. The random starting age for full height and weight before age 25. After that, elves remainabout age 20, but elves take a little longer, rarely reaching theirelves is simply the age at which many elf adventurers feel ready virtually timeless, decade after decade. Not even another elfto leave their forests and roam the world outside for a time. More can tell at a glance whether an elf is 25, 50, or 100 years ofthan a few elves have commenced their adventuring careers at age. A few minutes’ conversation quickly dispels the mystery,much younger ages.of course; elves gain experience, grace, emotional maturity,Elf children grow almost as swiftly as human children to age patience, and wisdom throughout these ageless decades. Even15 or so; a 10-year-old elf boy and a 10-year-old human boy are so, some elves are remarkably poised for their age, and somenearly the same size and have similar mental and emotional elven romances tell the tale of a grieving elf of 150 years of agematurity. The elf will be shorter and slighter than his human discovering life and joy again in new lover of only 25 or 30 whoplaymate. He is also quite likely to be more patient, observant, carries himself or herself like an elf of 100.and self-sufficient, simply due to the influence of growing up inan elf household.pqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqrs13