Elves

This page serves as a source of information about elves as it is applicable to World 42 roleplaying characters. Everyone is invited to add to this information.

Tarddiad
The Elves began on a world known as Tarddiad, a land of endless forests and timeless greenery. Early in their history, the goddess Seren, after leaving her creator, Mah, came across the elves and their world, and as she revealed herself to them; they adored her, and she in turn adored them. The elves took Seren as their god, and Seren in kind took the elves as her favored people; she then began her long journey of discovery as she settled in among a mortal race. It was from the elves that Seren learned much of what she came to know, and it was from the elves that she learned of something she had no concept of, had thought impossible, something horrible and yet fascinating at the same time: death. As she learned of death, Seren was captivated and yet afraid of it, and came to heavily grieve as individuals she knew passed on to the next life.

In her grief, she sought a solution to stave off death for her elves, and found it in her own energies. She harmonized the elves with herself, merging her spiritual energy with theirs, and so the elves were born as we knew them; a long lived and mystical race, deeply tied to their god. Though Seren had successfully prolonged the lives of her elves, it came at a terrible price she had not foreseen: her elves were bound to her, and if she left them they would fall sick and die. She was wracked with guilt, and began searching for a solution on how to cure them of this curse; and it was not long before she came across someone who would change her life forever: the god Guthix.

Gielinor
With the help of Guthix and the World Gate, Seren brought her elves forth to Gielinor at the start of the First Age, and she and Guthix watched over the world of mortals, though Seren continued her silent search for a cure to what she did to her followers. The First Age was quiet for the elves, as they made their city of crystal: Prifddinas. When Guthix took to sleep and the Second Age began, things started to take an interesting turn.

As gods began to quarrel over land and followers, Seren, as the most powerful god since Guthix took to slumber, erected a barrier over Tiranwnn; which could keep gods out of her elves' land, but not their followers, and the elves began to shut away their territory from other races, keeping them out of Prifddinas and the surrounding forest. When word reached Seren of a new god on Gielinor forming a great empire, she was initially fearful, but this was dispelled as she learned it to be her long lost sibling; Zaros. She came to Zaros with her troubles involving her accidental curse upon the elves, but Zaros only had his own troubles to voice to her, and so they parted from one another. Though Seren was fearful of how they would affect one another; the feelings Mah had given her two creations towards one another had faded with the time she and Zaros had been apart, and Seren believed she had found her answer as she left Zaros to his own problems: she decided to slowly wean the elves off of her energies.

As the Third Age began with Zaros's death, Seren was enraged, grief stricken, and confused as to how beings such as Zaros and herself could die, though she did not know the truth that he had survived. Seren became very protective of her elves and her land as the God Wars began, and she sent out clan Cadarn to defend the borders, along with some of clan Iorwerth. It was in this tumultuous time that an elf lord of clan Cadarn, named Baxtorian, founded his kingdom North of Ardougne. As the fighting grew and Forinthry was burned by Zamorak; Guthix awoke and established the edicts. It was from the edicts that Seren had come to be shattered. She had not weaned her elves from her yet, and was unwilling to leave them behind to die as Guthix established the edicts, and so she shattered herself into thousands upon thousands of shards so that the elves might live, even if she was no longer among them in whole.

It was after this time, during the Fourth Age, that clan Iorwerth began their ambitious assault on the other clans. Clan Iorwerth had always been a combative clan, and their leader at the time grew in jealousy of clan Cadarn, due to Seren choosing them to maintain the majority of the military while clan Iorwerth was forced into the sidelines. In a great uprising, clan Iorwerth seized control of Prifddinas, and ruled from the city with an iron fist. It was only from the actions of king Baxtorian that Prifddinas was taken back from the Iorwerth, though at a cost. Baxtorian sent in a small team to infiltrate Prifddinas and rescue the other clan leaders, and with their help, Baxtorian and the lords and ladies of the clans reverted the city into a great crystal seed. As the elf clans scattered across Tirannwn, clan Iorwerth continued the civil war they had created, and sought a way to regrow Prifddinas from the crystal seed.

Since then up to the beginning of the Sixth age, the elves continued their civil war; the village of lletya, home of the rebel elves, was founded, and in the Fifth Age an adventurer began to help the elves. With aid of the Adventurer nearing the end of the Fifth Age and into the beginning of the Sixth, Prifddinas was regrown from the seed and peace was brought to the elven clans once more.

Accepted Lore
This section addresses confirmed lore that applies to World-42 roleplaying characters. Please do not hesitate to contribute to this information.

The Elven Clans
There are eight clans in total, each elf born to that clan often excels at the skills the clan is known for, though they are not limited to said skills. See the gallery below the clan list for a view of the clan colors and symbols.

Amlodd
Clan Amlodd is a peculiar bunch; well versed in the art of summoning and the recent skill of divination. While they are a spiritual clan, they are not the religious leaders of the race; clan Hefin holds that honor. Elves from the Amlodd clan are distinguished in their familiarity with beasts and spirits, one elf has even taken it upon himself to collect and study implings.

Cadarn
Clan Cadarn forms a large portion of the elven military; their battlemages and archers are the stuff of legend. Clan Cadarn formed the largest percentage of the population of the rebel elves during the fight against the Iorwerth. While the rivalry between Cadarn and Iorwerth still continues to this day, the relationship is now competitive, instead of deadly like it was during the civil war, though members of either clan would likely still have some old emotional scars against one another that will take time to heal. An elf from clan Cadarn would likely be a mage or archer, and take military life very seriously.

Crwys
Clan Crwys are a humble bunch; farmers and woodcutters by majority, as they supply most of Prifddinas's food and lumber supply. Out of all the elven clans, members of clan Crwys are the most in-tuned to nature. Elves have always been linked to trees, and lord Crwys embodies this quite literally as he blurs the line between tree and elf. An elf from clan Crwys would not likely be very combative, and would probably rather spend time tending to plants.

Hefin
Clan Hefin holds the distinguishing honor as the religious leaders of the elven clans; having a grand temple and an agility course dedicated to physical health. Clan Hefin takes their duties very seriously, not only their religious health but physical wellness as well. An elf from Clan Hefin would likely be very religious, and physically fit (not muscled like an Iorwerth soldier, but lean and quick like a skirmisher).

Iorwerth
Clan Iorwerth is the embodiment of strength and prowess to many elves; for clan Iorwerth elves are famed for their melee skills and slaying capabilities. Despite clan Cadarn's long history of military service, it is actually clan Iorwerth that forms the unbreakable backbone of the elven military; such was their prowess that the Iorwerth forced all other clans into submission or exile during their civil war campaign. Although sometimes viewed as evil by other races (due to their actions and their clan symbol), clan Iorwerth was actually driven into civil war out of their own desperation for Seren, and their clan symbol in elven culture is an icon of strength and nobility, not of evil. While the Cadarn hold battlemages and archers, the Iorwerth are the true warriors of the elven clans, and they are not shy when it comes to showing off their might. An elf from clan Iorwerth would likely devote their lives to combat and the sport hunting of dangerous monsters.

Ithell
Clan Ithell are the architects of elven society; famed craftsmen and builders, the Ithell are the elves that are the most talented at crystal singing. It was from their efforts that much of Prifddinas was restored, as they sang the buildings back into shape and coaxed the inhabitants back out of the crystal seed. An elf from clan Ithell would likely be adept in the creation of non-metallic items, and would be proud to sing forth crystal weaponry for the Cadarn and Iorwerth.

Meilyr
Clan Meilyr are the herbalists and explorers of the elven clans; as they concoct strange potions and forge ahead to new places in the search of yet more herbs (this includes perilous Daemonheim). An elf from clan Meilyr would likely be an adventurous sort with a head for herbal effects.

Trahaearn
Clan Trahaearn is the industrial backbone of all elven society; they are famed miners and blacksmiths, if any elf knew how to forge something legendary out of metal, it would be a Trahaearn elf. An elf from clan Trahaearn would likely be adept in metallurgy and prospecting, and spend their times busying themselves with complex projects.

Naming conventions
As a guide to naming your elf; elf names focus heavily on vowels, along with the letters N, Y and W, though other consonants are not uncommon; in fact, in an elf name, double consonants are very common, examples: Briallen (double consonant), Eoin (heavy focus on vowels). Elves most commonly only have first names, followed by the clan name, but rarely there are some elves that have last names instead of clan names (though they are still related to at least one of the eight clans).

A Useful and lore-friendly way to create a unique name (for almost any race) is to mix and mash tidbits of other names to create your own. An example would be Haluwyn (a mix of Haluned and Ysgawyn). Here is a list of nearly all elf names mentioned in lore, see if you can create something unique out of them!

A near full list of elf names in lore: Adwr, Adyna, Afenen, Alfon, Amaethwr, Arianwyn, Arvel, Auron, Baxtorian, Berwyn, Briallen, Bronwyn, Ceidwad, Cerddi, Cerridwyn, Daffyd, Dai, Daiglolas, Dalldav, Edern, Eifion, Eilwynn, Eirlys, Elen Anterth, Eluned, Emlyn, Endwyr, Eoin, Essyllt, Eudav, Finda, Gethin, Glarial, Goreu, Gruffydd, Gwir, Haluned, Heriau, Idris, Iestin Edern, Ilfeen, Iona, Islwyn, Mawrth, Meredith, Morvran, Mwynen, Nissyen Edern, Oluien, Oronwen, Rhiannon, Sior, Teclyn, Tiwlip, Trevelian, Valis, Wythien, Ysgawyn.

Other Accepted Lore

 * Elves, on average, live to be around 500 years old, lest they have magical means to extend their life. Taking this into consideration, one could assume the Elven age ratio is now 1:6 (comparing the average modern human living to around 75 or so).
 * Elves need to be around Seren or her crystal to survive, or else they will grow feverish and begin to die within three days. They grow desperate during this time, enough so to do almost anything to be near Seren again.
 * Due to Seren's efforts to wean the elves off of her energies, it is unknown if this applies completely anymore, though when Seren shattered herself they were still in danger of dying from separation. Although the addiction has likely faded slightly, and elf would still likely become feverish if separated from some source of Seren.
 * Elves are similar to humans in height, but their slender build often makes them appear relatively tall.
 * Gwir_updated.png (but not all) elves are gifted with the ability to sing crystal seeds into new shapes, especially weapons and tools (saws). Descendants of the Ithell Clan carry this gift well, and some of their true masters can even enhance the weaponry further.
 * Elves do not adapt quickly to change or to foreign environments and customs. This is a drawback of their longevity.
 * Elves, almost without exception, refuse to enter the underground pass.
 * Elves, especially females, are known for their exquisite beauty. It would be strange for a human not to notice. The males are typically of a more slender build than humans.
 * Elves usually dress in green, or the colours of their Clan.
 * The average Elf has far greater natural agility and nimbleness than a human, but not so much that a formidable and trained human couldn't overcome an elf. This applies especially to physical strength, as seen with the Tyras Guard.
 * Clan Hefin members are the agility masters of the race, it would take a high amount of training for a human to hope to match a member of the Hefin. The same applies to the combative Iowerth clan.
 * Due to their longer lifespan, any adult Elf would generally have much greater experience and skill at any art or trade than an adult human.
 * For standard elemental magic, Elves do need runes. Crystal magic is restricted to crystal singing (for example bows, saws, chimes); more advanced crystal singing extends to object enchantments (for example teleport crystals).
 * Elves of Tirannwn follow the crystal goddess, Seren. The exception is some of the Iorwerth clan, who worshipped a Dark Part of Seren obsessed with Death to a degree it barely acted like her.
 * Elves have long pointed ears, and partly because of this have sharper hearing than humans.
 * Typically, elves are "much more observant" than humans and are very difficult to steal from, sneak up on or ambush.
 * Elves sometimes use native Gielinorian alongside crystal-derived technology: the dead elf ranger in the quest "Missing, Presumed Death" is depicted holding a clearly wooden bow. It was also revealed that they are careful not to waste their crystal as there is only a limited amount in Gielinor, so it may be quite precious.
 * Elves are capable of all corners of the combat triangle, from Prayer, Summoning, Ranged, Melee, and Magic, to skills such as Slaying, Agility, Woodcutting, Farming, Mining, Smithing, Herblaw, Dungeon-Delving, Construction, Crafting, and Divination.
 * Elves may become immortal by many means to prolong their life, but these are difficult and not likely to be used by anyone except the Clan Lords and Ladies.
 * Male elves are capable of growing facial hair, as seen with an Amlodd elf.

Debated Lore
This section addresses details about elves that are still the subject of disagreements.
 * Elves can mate seamlessly with humans. It is canon that all humanoids in RuneScape can produce crossbred offspring, and many players create half-elves - the children of one elf and one human. However, the compatibility of their genetic structures has been questioned; and some further believe that, like mules and ligers, half-elves themselves are sterile and cannot produce children of their own.
 * As a result of their long lives, elves are not known for their fidelity in romantic relationships, although this does not imply any less depth of emotion behind their attachments. There are exceptions however, one notable case being that of Baxtorian and Glarial.
 * Crystal "magic" is never presented in-game as combat magic, except indirectly through crystal weaponry and other crystal items which may confer certain advantages (for example crystal chimes). For other kinds of magic Elves must use the same spellbooks as the other races.
 * Many player-character elves use weapons of of varying descriptions, although elves in-game are only shown wielding crystal weapons.
 * Some unaffiliated or freelance roleplayers contest the community consensus on the way in which elves age, despite the aforementioned 12:1 ageing ratio being very widely accepted.
 * Mobilising Armies housed a group of Cadarn Elf Magi, seeking refuge outside Priffdinas. The Clan is unconfirmed, but the presence of Magic is confirmed, allowing implications to be made.

Common Mistakes
This section addresses traits that unexperienced roleplayers often bestow their elven characters but that aren't actually seen in elves on RuneScape.
 * Elves do not have strange magical abilities like telepathy, telekenesis, etc.
 * Elves cannot cast magic without runes and, with the exception of the Cadarn not skilled with combative magic.
 * Elves do not typically have supersenses. Their hearing is more evolved than humans, but they are not known to have better sight, smell, taste, or touch senses.

Other Information

 * The eight official Elf Clans who came through the World Gate are the Ithell (crafting and construction), Cadarn (range and magic), Iorwerth (slayer and melee), Trahaearn (mining and smithing), Crwys (woodcutting and farming), Hefin (agility and prayer), Amlodd (divination and summoning), and Meilyr (dungeoneering and herblore). Obviously, each clan has its own set of special skills that makes each unique.
 * Elves can have any natural skin or hair colour.
 * Elves from Tirannwn wear their hair long and often loose. If they style it, they tie it into braids or the elaborate Flower of Lletya for women. Rarely does an elf wear a hat, as they seem typically to prefer hoods or circlets; by and large however they go bareheaded.