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Elves of Korovia
Elves in Korovia are a lithe and graceful race who primarily live in forested regions and other areas of natural splendour. Elves delight in all things natural and try to live in harmony with the surrounding nature. They can often be distrustful of outsiders who they are worried might cause harm to the natural environment and local fauna. Living much of their lives outdoors, many elves hone woodcraft skills, agricultural skills, and enjoy working with animals. Avid hunters, elves delight in archery and are often quite skilled with longbows and horsebows. They also delight in swordplay and other combat arts. Inately magical, many elves either dabble in magic or devote their lives to the study of it. Many elves prefer the magical schools of divination and enchantment, but can devote themselves to various schools. Necromancy is illegal in major cities like Sylvania and Yeksereannia (Yek). Elves often worship the male and female patron elven gods: Arvandus the Swordbringer and Celiador the Arrowsmith. Any elf who has not pledged themselves to a different god is considered to go to the elvish afterlife of Arvandor when they die to sing, dance and hunt for eternity. Sylvan / Grey Elves The city and outlying region of Sylvania contains a mixed population of Sylvan/Gray Elves, High Elves, Snow, Wood, Wild, Dtrow (pronounced with a soft DT sound) and Sea Elves. Wood elves, wild elves and snow elves are usually nomadic, but some have made a home in Sylvania. Sea elves prefer to avoid contact with land-dwellers, but do socialize and trade with other elves in Sylvania. Part of the city is underwater within the harbour. The city of Yeksereannia (Yek) is populated mostly by Sylvan/Gray Elves. The elves in Yek operate a griffon roost there and are well known for their griffon cavalry, which makes up an integral part of their military. Yek also has a strong naval presence, with many sea elves working on naval vessels. A small percentage of gray elves also live in the city of Weyvin, a city that is more multicultural thanks to its open acceptance of all races. Sylvan elves come with a wide variety of appearances, as their hair, eyes and skin vary wildly. High Elves believe this is due to racial impurity, but in truth sylvan elves have always had a broader appearance. The sylvan elf archer Gyburn appears in the novel "The Demon's Sacrifice". High / Basikvian Elves High Elves (Basikvian Elves) are a minority in Sylvania, originally hailing from the kingdom of Basikvia from the south-east of Korovia. Basikvian Elves tend to be haughty and rude to other races and even to other elves, whom they sometimes consider to be inferior and "less pure". Their skin is more of a golden hue and their hair is similarly golden. Half Elves The term "half-elf" has become muddled over the centuries. It typically can mean any person who is between one quarter and three-quarters elf, and any person who is less than one quarter elf typically looks like a full blooded human and refers to themselves as such. Likewise any person who is over three-quarters elf typically looks like a full elf and will refer to themselves as being an elf. The city of Weyvin is populated mostly with humans and half-elves. Weyvin has been a mecca/haven for half-elves for millenia, and many families of half-elves in Weyvin pride themselves on being "purebred half-elves". The half-elf priestess Hellene appears in "The Demon's Sacrifice". Wood Elves The village of Oakenvale north of Weyvin is home to many wood elves, where their homes are many of giant oak trees. The wood elves consider the village to be sacred and many wood elves make multiple pilgrimages to visit Oakenvale during their life time. Wood elves are also known to live in the Snowfells and other small communities throughout Korovia where trees still flourish. The wood elf archer Vertia (shown top right) appears in the novel "The Assassin's Trail". Snow Elves Snow Elf tribes can be found in the regions between the Snowfells and the Icy Peaks, and a few even live in the human city of Azek. Many snow elves also live in the Wild Lands north-east of Korovia. Visually snow elves have very pale skin, but their hair can be white, grey or even black. Snow elves with white hair are often mistakenly assumed to be dark elves, but are taller and their garb is usually more fur oriented. Snow elves often carry goggles with horizontal slits in them to protect themselves from snow blindness.
Dark Elves Dtrow (soft DT sound, the pronunciation of which sounds like troll) are a race of dark elves who spend most of their lives below ground and are rarely seen by surface dwellers. Their skin is extremely pale and their hair is either white or mostly white. Some dark elves have red eyes, similar to an albino. Dark elves are sometimes confused with snow elves since they look visually similar, but dark elves are also shorter whereas snow elves are taller. Dark elves are fond of wearing brightly coloured clothing when traveling on the surface, and prefer large brimmed hats to keep their eyes away from the sun as it hurts their eyes. The Troll Lands is home to many subterranean cities originally built by the dtrow, but are now abandoned. The region is now overrun with trolls. It is said that in ancient times the dtrow experimented with powerful necromancy and accidentally turned many of their own kind into trolls. Today most dtrow live in caves beneath Sylvania or under the Tranquil Mountains. Many dtrow worship a benevolent bat goddess known as Eravia, who is also the goddess of caves and mushrooms. (See Eravia in the Totem Gods section of the Cosmology to learn more.) The dtrow elf minstrel Valeska (shown on the right) appears in various stories in the Adventures of the Bogatyr series, starting with "A Bag of Silver, A Bag of Bones".
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