
Half-Elf
Legacy
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Species Details
Flint squinted into the setting sun. He thought he saw the figure of a man striding up the path. Standing, Flint drew back into the shadow of a tall pine to see better. The man’s walk was marked by an easy grace—an elvish grace, Flint would have said; yet the man’s body had the thickness and tight muscles of a human, while the facial hair was definitely humankind’s. All the dwarf could see of the man’s face beneath a green hood was tan skin and a brownish-red beard. A longbow was slung over one shoulder and a sword hung at his left side. He was dressed in soft leather, carefully tooled in the intricate designs the elves loved. But no elf in the world of Krynn could grow a beard
. . . no elf, but . . .“Tanis?” said Flint hesitantly as the man neared.
“The same.” The newcomer’s bearded face split in a wide grin. He held open his arms and, before the dwarf could stop him, engulfed Flint in a hug that lifted him off the ground. The dwarf clasped his old friend close for a brief instant, then, remembering his dignity, squirmed and freed himself from the half-elf’s embrace.
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.
Of Two Worlds
To humans, half-elves look like elves, and to elves, they look human. In height, they’re on par with both parents, though they’re neither as slender as elves nor as broad as humans. They range from under 5 feet to about 6 feet tall, and from 100 to 180 pounds, with men only slightly taller and heavier than women. Half-elf men do have facial hair, and sometimes grow beards to mask their elven ancestry. Half-elven coloration and features lie somewhere between their human and elf parents, and thus show a variety even more pronounced than that found among either race. They tend to have the eyes of their elven parents.
Diplomats or Wanderers
Half-elves have no lands of their own, though they are welcome in human cities and somewhat less welcome in elven forests. In large cities in regions where elves and humans interact often, half-elves are sometimes numerous enough to form small communities of their own. They enjoy the company of other half-elves, the only people who truly understand what it is to live between these two worlds.
In most parts of the world, though, half-elves are uncommon enough that one might live for years without meeting another. Some half-elves prefer to avoid company altogether, wandering the wilds as trappers, foresters, hunters, or adventurers and visiting civilization only rarely. Like elves, they are driven by the wanderlust that comes of their longevity. Others, in contrast, throw themselves into the thick of society, putting their charisma and social skills to great use in diplomatic roles or as swindlers.
Half-Elf Names
Half-elves use either human or elven naming conventions. As if to emphasize that they don’t really fit in to either society, half-elves raised among humans are often given elven names, and those raised among elves often take human names.
EXCELLENT AMBASSADORS
Many half-elves learn at an early age to get along with everyone, defusing hostility and finding common ground. As a race, they have elven grace without elven aloofness and human energy without human boorishness. They often make excellent ambassadors and go-betweens (except between elves and humans, since each side suspects the half-elf of favoring the other).
Half-Elf Variants
Some half-elves in Faerûn have a racial trait in place of the Skill Versatility trait. If your DM allows it, your half-elf character can forgo Skill Versatility and instead take the elf trait Keen Senses or a trait based on your elf parentage:
Half-Elf Traits
Your half-elf character has some qualities in common with elves and some that are unique to half-elves.Ability Score Increase
Your Charisma score increases by 2, and two other ability scores of your choice increase by 1.
Age
Half-elves mature at the same rate humans do and reach adulthood around the age of 20. They live much longer than humans, however, often exceeding 180 years.
Size
Half-elves are about the same size as humans, ranging from 5 to 6 feet tall. Your size is Medium.
Speed
Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
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 against being charmed, and magic can’t put you to sleep.
Skill Versatility
You gain proficiency in two skills of your choice.
Languages
You can speak, read, and write Common, Elvish, and one extra language of your choice.
Half Elf. You get the added bonus of *parent issues* so that's fun.
I have a Half Elf Ranger I'm about to play. His name is Sonnovah and has the good ol' case of old man syndrome. He's always drinking form his flask and is a dual wielder. Was once a soldier, deserted the army, then had a wife and daughter. Wife died, kid got lost. Now he's a sad old man but will tell you a story anytime. Sad Dad TM vibes all the way,
I allowed my half elf to use wood elf as the elven half and let her have mask of the wild from the w. elf race. To balance I req'd one of the skill versatilities to be in dex and the other of player's choice instead of allowing 2 choices.
would be convinient if the half high elf could cast the cantrip with charisma instead of int
I like how House Medani stays out of all the Dragonmarked House drama and power dynamics. I guess that's what happens when everyone in your family is so wise.
I am new to this. I would like to just have fun. I want to be a ranger.
It would be helpfull if sub races mentioned what source they are from so one could easily buy any extra races.
The half races are the best !!!! I usually go half elf or half orc fighter or barbarian. Half elves also have the racial charisma making persuasion checks easier. Half races? Why would you not? They easily become some of the most adaptable and powerful.
I'm pretty sure you could fit a half-elf into any class pretty easily. I was gonna just do a rogue, but I am also thinking of doing more of a wandering survivalist type barbarian, which a half-elf would be perfect for. That's the beauty of this race. The sky is the limit.
Can the Half-Elves in Eberron sleep and dream? As a follow-up if Yes, would they be affected by the Quari just as others who sleep/dream, or would their Elven blood somehow protect them from the Quori and the Inspired regardless of the fact that they do sleep and dream? Many thanks!
As long as it is properly accounted for, a DM should be able to allow it without too much consequence. Just be sure not to let it get out of control (utilise appropriate countermeasures on important enemies).
The occasional moment of brilliance is always good fun :D
Tanis the OG half elf.
Please excuse the delay in response time to reply, but I've only just discovered this website.
I'm curious to hear how it turned out. Did you choose Half Elf as a fighter?
gonna do drow half-elf paladin
couldn't there be a half-elf tiefling?
I've played this race 4 characters in a row so diverse and powerful as well if you want a cool fun humanoid that fuses 2 strong races together this is for you.
hi this is my first time ever doing anything dnd related im here because i love fantasy animes and the hobit if any one can help me creat a charector it would be much apreaceated
That would be an amazing build.
Same half eleves are really cool I have a bunch of them
I love half-elves half-elves are great