Homebrew Elvhenan Species Details

Elvhenan is the ancient race of Elves before the ancient divides among the elven people resulted in three main subraces: high elves, wood elves, and dark elves, who are commonly called drow. These Ancient Elves are a magical people of otherworldly grace, living in the world but not entirely part of it. They live in places of ethereal beauty, in ancient forests, hidden ancient mountain cities, or in silvery spires glittering with faerie light, where soft music drifts through the air and gentle fragrances waft on the breeze. Most Elvhenan cities and kingdoms are covered in magic, hiding them from the rest of the world, with only ancient magic able to destroy the magic that hides them. Most of the younger Elvhenan Elves go out just past their homes barrier to hunt game, gather food while inside, ancient ways have been kept up, allowing them to have large harvests in the worst of conditions or soil, and their skill and magic allow them to support themselves without the need for clearing and plowing land. They are talented artisans, crafting finely worked clothes and art objects. Their contact with outsiders is usually limited, though a few elves make a good living by trading crafted items for metals (which they have no interest in mining). Like most Elves the Elvhenan love nature and magic, art and artistry, music and poetry, and the good things of the world.

The Elvhenan have an unbelievable and unearthly grace and fine features, elves appear hauntingly beautiful to humans and members of many other races. Compared to their descendent subraces, Elvhenan's skin has small hard to see slightly light-tinted "freckles" that sparkle in most light and give them an almost luminescent glow. However, in darker areas, the "freckles" will glow giving their bodies an ethereal look even in the dark, yet it does not go very far and only goes out a minimum 1ft depending on how much light they were in and can last up to 30 minutes. Elvhenan are somewhat different than their subrace descendants, having a tall and curved figure while maintaining a mostly slim figure, weighing only 150 to 200 pounds. They are on the taller side, ranging from 5'9-6'3 tall. Males and females are similar in build, however, Elvhenan has the blessing of Corellon. As part of this blessing, these elves can choose their biological sex whenever they finish a long rest. These elves can choose to be male, female, or "neither" based on their moods or feelings. Elves’ coloration encompasses the normal human range and also includes skin in shades of copper, bronze, pure white, and almost bluish-white and purple-white, hair of brown, red, blond, blue, and white, and eyes like pools of liquid gold, silver, or sometimes even the sky. Elves have little to no facial hair and little body hair. They favor elegant clothing in bright and dark colors, and they enjoy simple yet lovely jewelry.

If an Elvhenan is to be encountered outside their homelands they are either mages, ambassadors, or banished. Even then, most Elvhenan are skilled at hiding in most lands due to their skills in most lands and stealth, and will not likely be seen by other races. Sometimes an Elvhenan ambassador is sent in disguise as a subrace elf, such as a High Elf or Wood Elf, to keep kingdoms and settlement tension eased or away from Elvhenan settlements. While Elvhenan do not go out much, they keep up on their knowledge of the world with an elite order of spies to steal knowledge (history, magic, current art, war plans, and societal standings) and trade goods for their own.

Elvhenan Traits

Your elf character has a variety of natural and magical abilities, as result being one of the oldest existing race of elves and the closest decedents to the Fey.

Fey Step

As a bonus action, you can magically teleport up to 30 feet to an unoccupied space you can see. Once you use this trait, you can’t do so again until you finish a short or long rest.

When you reach 3rd level, your Fey Step gains an additional effect based on your season; if the effect requires a saving throw, the DC equals 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier

Due to Elvhenan being the closest descendants of the Fey and Eladrin they are able to use Fey Step, however it is limited based on the region an Elvhenan clan lives in. Unlike Eldrin, Elvhenan cannot change their season whenever you finish a long rest and must stick to one season:

Autumn: Immediately after you use your Fey Step, up to two creatures of your choice that you can see within 10 feet of you must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or be charmed by you for 1 minute, or until you or your companions deal any damage to it.

Winter: When you use your Fey Step, one creature of your choice that you can see within 5 feet of you before you teleport must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or be frightened of you until the end of your next turn.

Spring: When you use your Fey Step, you can touch one willing creature within 5 feet of you. That creature then teleports instead of you, appearing in an unoccupied space of your choice that you can see within 30 feet of you.

Summer: Immediately after you use your Fey Step, each creature of your choice that you can see within 5 feet of you takes fire damage equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of 1 damage).

Mask of the Wild

You can attempt to hide even when you are only lightly obscured by foliage, heavy rain, falling snow, mist, and other natural phenomena.

Elven Weapon Training

You have proficiency with the longsword, shortsword, shortbow, and longbow.

Ability Score Increase

Your Dexterity score increases by 2.

Age

Although elves reach physical maturity at about the same age as humans, the elven understanding of adulthood goes beyond physical growth to encompass worldly experience. An elf typically claims adulthood and an adult name around the age of 100 and can live to be 1500 years old.

Alignment

Elves love freedom, variety, and self-expression, so they lean strongly toward the gentler aspects of chaos. They value and protect others’ freedom as well as their own, and they are more often good than not. The drow are an exception; their exile into the Underdark has made them vicious and dangerous. Drow are more often evil than not.

Size

Elves range from under 5 to over 6 feet tall and have slender builds. Your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Darkvision

Accustomed to twilit forests and the night sky, 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.

Keen Senses

You have proficiency in the Perception skill.

Fey Ancestry

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

Trance

Elves don’t need to sleep. Instead, they meditate deeply, remaining semiconscious, for 4 hours a day. (The Common word for such meditation is “trance.”) While meditating, you can dream after a fashion; such dreams are actually mental exercises that have become reflexive through years of practice. After resting in this way, you gain the same benefit that a human does from 8 hours of sleep.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common, Elvish Ancient Elvish. Elvish is fluid, with subtle intonations and intricate grammar. Elven literature is rich and varied, and their songs and poems are famous among other races. Many bards learn their language so they can add Elvish ballads to their repertoires.