Homebrew Half-Elf (PHB 2024) Species Details

Half-Elves remain a distinct species from Elves as they lack the soul of a Primal Elf.  In times before written history, when one of his creations, Lolth, attempted to assassinate the Seldarine god Corellon, he cast all Primal Elves from Arvandor in his rage and anguish. This consigned them to a physical, mortal existence on the Material Plane, only permitted to return to Arvandor in brief respites between reincarnations. He thus limited the number of elven souls in existence. While their fey ancestry gives them powers passed down from the Seldarine, Half-Elves remain only a distinct bridge between the blood of Corellon and the humans of Faerûn.

Walking in two worlds but truly belonging to neither, half-elves combine what some say are the best qualities of their elf and human parents: human curiosity, inventiveness, and ambition tempered by the refined senses, love of nature, and artistic tastes of the elves. Some half-elves live among humans, set apart by their emotional and physical differences, watching friends and loved ones age while time barely touches them. Others live with the elves, growing restless as they reach adulthood in the timeless elven realms, while their peers continue to live as children. Many half-elves, unable to fit into either society, choose lives of solitary wandering or join with other misfits and outcasts in the adventuring life.

In other words, WotC made a lore reason for half-elves and should never have deleted them from the PHB.  As long as Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes remains canon, it's completely PC to use "half".

Half-Elf (PHB 2024) Traits

As an Half-Elf, you have these special traits.

Darkvision

Thanks to your elf blood, 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 color in darkness, only shades of gray.

Fey Ancestry

You have Advantage on saving throws you make to avoid or end the Charmed condition.

Best of Both Worlds

You start with a feat of your choice.

Elven Lineage

You are part of a lineage that grants you supernatural abilities. Choose a lineage from the Elven Lineages table. You gain the level 1 benefit of that lineage.

When you reach character level 5, you learn a higher-level spell, as shown on the table. You always have that spell prepared. You can cast it once without a spell slot, and you regain the ability to cast it in that way when you finish a Long Rest. You can also cast the spell using any spell slots you have of the appropriate level.

Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma is your spellcasting ability for the spells you cast with this trait (choose the ability when you select the lineage).

Elven Lineage
LINEAGE	LEVEL 1	LEVEL 5
Drow	The range of your Darkvision increases to 120 feet. You also know the Dancing Lights cantrip.	Darkness
High Elf	You know the Prestidigitation cantrip. Whenever you finish a Long Rest, you can replace that cantrip with a different cantrip from the Wizard spell list.	Misty Step
Wood Elf	Your Speed increases to 35 feet. You also know the Druidcraft cantrip.	Pass without Trace