Homebrew Elfling Species Details

Looks

Elflings have an unusual but attractive appearance and don't quite fit in with either race, they're almost closer to the stature and proportions of a human on a comparatively smaller ratio scale.

In height, they end up roughly halfway between their parents, too tall for a halfling but a bit too small for an Elf standing at 4 to 5 foot. They tend to be quite petite overall, much slighter and narrower than their halfling cousins, although not as slender as Elves, with the men tending to be abit taller and broader than their female counterparts.

Male elves can't grow facial hair and halfling men often have long sideburns but beards and mustaches are quite rare, elflings are therefore extremely unlikely to have facial hair themselves.

Elfling coloration and features lie somewhere between their halfling and elf parents, and thus show a variety even more pronounced than that found among either race (anywhere from black, brown or blonde hair to blue, green or purple and their eyes tend to follow a hazel to brown base with hues and flecks of gold or silver). With such a little number of known Elflings to exist, predicting a childs features is extremely difficult and seemingly random, but always tend to inherit an unusual beauty, with defined features.

Elflings like to wear comfortable and practical clothes like halflings, yet still favour them being fashionable and stylish for their figure, taking pride in their appearance much alike the way Elves do, with the occasional simple and practical piece of jewellery that allows them to continue their daily tasks without removal. Their inherited practicality extends beyond their clothing, although they do enjoy indulging in their treasures and luxuries more so than their halfling cousins do, not to the level the Elves would, but non-the-less finding pleasure in the middle ground with various practical, sentimental and indulgent objects dotted around, neither locked away nor displayed as the centre piece.

Character

Elflings are mostly warm, cheerful people, although tend to start out quite reserved with strangers they've only just met. They're reasonably slow to make friends and enemies, and even slower to forget them.  Once they have formed a bond they're extremely loyal and cherish it, displaying remarkable ferocity when their friends, families, or communities are threatened. Being such a rare half-race they almost have no choice but to be adaptable in varied communities of halflings, elves, dwarves and humans, making themselves valuable and welcome.

Just like both their Elf and Halfling ancestry, they'd rather not resort or escalate to violence until the need arises, and despise seeing something or someone suffer unnecessarily. They're flexible in the face of danger, with remarkable stealth, and skills in fighting and strategy. They can be focused and relentless whether pursuing a goal, on a mission or learning something new, with little patience for dithering and a tendency for stubbornness.

Their love for adventuring and wanderlust runs through their bones, it's essentially less of a career than an opportunity to travel freely, set their own pace and feed their curiosity to explore a wide wonder filled world. They love discovering new things, such as exotic food, clothing and cultures. Although in times of settling the adventurers path may come up again out of necessity to defend their communities and support friends, leaving their homes behind and not returning until their cause has been completed.

Elfling Names

They can use either halfling or elven naming conventions or a mix of both, but they tend to have more than 1 first name. As if to emphasize that they are a rare mix of both societies the names chosen tend to be neutral in gender and a combination from both cultures, sometimes they're simply names the parents/gaurdians like, or a unique creation that reflects the names of respected individuals or other family members. They will also take on the family names of both races. Sometimes elflings will choose their own name for themselves thoughout their life, just like an elf will when they declare themselves adults and choose their adult name, although for an elfling this is usually due to a poignant moment, perhaps something of personal significance or when they go off on an adventure.

 

 

Elfling Traits

Your elfling character has some qualities in common with halflings and elves, and some that are unique as a rare half species.

Age

They'll physically mature into adulthood around 18-20 and live to around 350 years. Having to watch their halfling cousins grow old and grey, they usually outlive them by about 200 years, aging much more gradually with a life span roughly half way between the halflings and elves. Despite their reasonably long life span, time still barely seems to touch their elven cousins who tend to live up too 750 years.

Size

They tend to end up roughly halfway between their parents, raging from 4 to 5 feet in height, too tall for a halfling but a bit too small for an Elf. They tend to be quite petite overall, much slighter and narrower than their halfling cousins, although not as slender as Elves, with the men tending to be a bit taller and broader than their female counterparts. They're comparative to humans in build and stature, on a proportionately smaller scale. Your size is Small to Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Darkvision

Inherited from your elven side you have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can’t discern colour in darkness, only shades of grey.

Brave

You have advantage on saving throws against being frightened.

Fey Ancestry

You have advantage on saving throws against being charmed, and magic can’t put you to sleep.

Keen Senses

You have proficiency in the Perception skill.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common, Halfling and Elvish. Halflings write very little, so they don’t have a rich body of literature but their oral tradition, is very strong. Elvish is rich and varied, and their songs and poems are famous among other races. Common is taught both both sides of their parentage and very useful converse with people whose lands they dwell or are travelling through.