Homebrew Elfling Species Details
It was quite the interesting day so far. Well, every day was interesting when you looked at it the right day. The sun was shining and the birds were singing, except when they weren't. Still, no matter what the weather, she was not going to let it get her down. The youthful-looking woman's wide, emerald eyes sparkled with enthusiasm as she skipped down the path. She was about four feet, five inches in height and had warm, sun kissed skin that had been slightly tanned from her travels. She had curly, brown shoulder-length hair and her face had all of the best traits of an Elf's and a Halfling's. Her ears were long and gracefully pointed, much like an Elf's. However, she was much too small to be an Elf. Not a lot of people accurately guessed what she was, the young woman thought mirthfully. Off in the distance, she spotted something different. It looked like a caravan of sorts. "Ooh!" she said gleefully. "This looks interesting! Could be fun!" With that, she skipped down the path. The journey down the stairs was not as easy as it would be for someone taller, but she certainly managed.
Elflings are the children of elves and halflings. These rare hybrids can be the result of illicit romances, though it is also common for them to come from one-night stands between ambitious halflings and adventurous elves. Elflings can breed with both elves and halflings and the resulting offspring are, for all intents and purposes, the non-elfling parent's race.
The way elflings are treated depends on which parent they are raised by. Elves often look down on elflings, viewing them as the result of weakening elven blood. They are not treated harshly, but they are not made to feel particularly welcome, either. Many parents choose to have the halfling parent raise the child, as halflings are more likely to make an elfling feel welcome. Elfling raised among halflings are more likely to be treated by their smaller kin as a taller halfling rather than a short elf.
Elflings speak Common and Elven or Halfling (depending on which parent they were raised by) as well as a language called Elfling. The Elfling language is a language with words in common from the Elven and Halfling languages, as well as a few hybridized words. The syntax is Elven, as is the script. Written Elfling, though flowing, is not as elegant as written Elven.
Appearance
Elflings are petite creatures, most standing a little over four feet tall with males being slightly taller and heavier than females. They tend to have round, youthful faces with light skin and rosy cheeks. They usually have hair in various shades of brown with eyes that can be either brown or green. Their ears are long and pointed like those of an elf and their bodies tend to be quite proportional. Curly hair is not uncommon and male elflings often have sideburns.
Demeanor
Elflings tend to have very interesting personalities. They possess the happy-go-lucky nature of halflings and the serene grace of elves. As such, they can seem outgoing and wise at the same time. They always have something on their mind and are usually honest about it, though they can make sublime liars when they need to. One trait that one should keep in mind is that elflings are notoriously talkative. They can go on for hours about anything and everything that interests them, which could be anything from stone throwing to training ponies to magic. Reactions to this can vary from person to person. Some find an elfling to be charmingly long-winded while others can view them to be annoyingly chatty.
When an elfling finds a subject that interests them, they will focus on it with a devotion that only elves can understand. At least for as long as the elfling's attention lasts. Because of this, many elflings have a wide variety of skills and will not hesitate to use them, generally for purposes of helping others. Because of their perpetual friendliness, most elflings are chaotic good, with a strong chaotic neutral minority. Evil elflings are extremely rare and extremely dangerous.
Background
Elflings growing up among elves are often treated as less than a pure-blooded elf, or even a pure-blooded halfling. They do not necessarily have miserable childhoods, but even the most loving elven parent can't entirely shield their hybrid offspring from the unkind words of other elves. Conversely, elflings brought up among halflings tend to have very happy childhoods. Wherever they are raised, even the happiest elfling can still feel a bit awkward. Those raised around elves often feel small and constantly underfoot while elflings raised by halflings often feel large and awkward. The awkwardness can be furthered by the rate at which they age. Reaching adulthood around the age of forty, elflings age faster than elves and more slowly than halflings. Many elflings are slightly self-conscious as children, though the majority of them outgrow this as they grow older.
Adventurers
A lot of elflings are adventurers of some sort, though some never wander more than a few miles from home. They try to get along well with other races, with varying degrees of success. Halflings get along famously with elflings, as do most gnomes. Dwarves find elflings to be borderline-hyperactive and half-orcs are annoyed by how overly cheerful they are. How well a human gets along with an elfling varies from person to person.
Most elfling adventurers are rogues, as the rogue's craft comes naturally to elflings. Elfling bards are uncommon, but those who chose to take up bardcraft often prove excellent at it. Elfling magic users are more likely to be sorcerers than wizards, as an elfling's attention span only allows for limited focus on studying it. Elflings who are drawn in by their elven love of nature and the semi-nomadic tendencies of their halfling blood may become rangers or druids.
Elfling Traits
Your elfling character has a number of traits in common with elves and halflings.Small but Alert
You get a +2 racial bonus on Move Silently, Hide, Listen, Search, and Spot checks.
Immunity to Sleep
You get immunity to sleep spells and similar magical effects, and a +2 racial bonus on saving throw against enchantment spells or effects.
Low Light Vision
An elfling can see twice as far as a human in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. She retains the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions.
Good Arm
You get a +1 racial bonus on attack rolls with thrown weapons and slings.
Mixed Blood
For all effects related to race, an elfling can be considered an elf or a halfling. Elflings, for example, can be affected by spells that affect specifically elves, just as they can use items and take prestige classes specifically for halflings.
Languages
An Elfling can speak, read, and write in Common, Elfling, and either Elven or Halfling. They can also take Dwarven, Gnome, Goblin, Orc, Sylvan, or Elven or Halfling (whichever isn't taken by default) as a bonus language.
Ability Score Increase
Your dexterity and charisma scores are increased by two. Your strength and constitution scores are decreased by two.
Age
A halfling reaches adulthood at the age of 40 and generally lives into the middle of his or her second century.
Alignment
Most halflings are lawful good. As a rule, they are good-hearted and kind, hate to see others in pain, and have no tolerance for oppression. They are also very orderly and traditional, leaning heavily on the support of their community and the comfort of their old ways.
Size
Elflings average about 5 feet tall and weigh about 75 pounds. Your size is Medium.
Speed
Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
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