Races of Vathis – Ele’rin: Familiar Strangers of the Past
During the height of the Leyarin Empire, most of the elf population of Vathis made its home in Leyathar.
When Synethil, the capital of the empire was shunted to the Vibrant, many an elf was brought along for the ride. Those who remained on the material plane, kept with their traditions and became the Acer’rin that we know today. The elves that ended up on the Vibrant existed there for the many decades that Synethil dwelt on the mirror plane. Overtime, these elves were influenced by the energies of the Vibrant and the fey who dwelt there. This changed their appearance and culture, crafting the society of elves that we know as the Ele’rin. Since returning to the material plane, the Ele’rin are now distinctly different from their Acer’rin cousins. They are more in attuned to nature and the ether, and often become powerful spell casters, like the Archfaer, who help shape the world and drive its magical advancements forward.
Ele’rin are very similar to their Acer’rin cousins but at the same time have a few key differences.
On average an Ele’rin stands the same height as a human. They tend to sport lean builds and have an almost elegant aura to them. Ele’rin of course possess the signature pointed ears of an elf. Due to the influence of the vibrant, Ele’rin ears tend to be a bit longer than other elves. They have very fair skin, much more fair than the Acer’rin. Thanks again to their heavy exposure to the Vibrant, some even possess a green hue to their skin. Ele’rin hair tends to be blonde to very light brown. Like their skin, their hair will occasionally have a greenish hue to it. In Ele’rin culture this is generally seen as an extremely desirable and attractive trait. The image of a “green haired maiden” or “green haired bachelor” is a popular one in Ele’rin literature for an extremely attractive individual.
The Ele’rin first became separated from the rest of their elven brethren, and the whole material plane for that matter, at the end of the Night Wars between Leyathar and the dark Vae’rin forces of the Evernight.
The Leyarin capital city of Synethil was shunted from the material plane to the mirror plane known as the Vibrant, bringing the inhabitants of the city with it. The elves, who made up a sizable portion of the population of the city, would become the first elves to call themselves Ele’rin. For three hundred years, the city of Synethil remained on the Vibrant, all the while fighting to survive against the threats the alien plane provided. With time, the citizens of Synethil began to change and adapt to the strange energies of the Vibrant. Coupled with their constant advancement of magical technologies, the elves of Synethil became more attune with the Vibrant, thus became more attuned with nature and the ether itself. Under the leadership of Archfaer Kernaroth, Synethil returned to the material plane. Unfortunately, the cities returned was welcomed by the grasping shadows of the Shattered Hand, who had been plaguing the rest of the world for several years in the Darkest War.
Synethil proved to be an invaluable ally to the rest of Vathis on their return.
Many Ele’rin soldiers and mages joined the fray and brought with them powerful magical weapons and knowledge of the Ether. The return of Synethil seemed to strengthen the Ether itself, and the people of Vathis were able to push back the Shattered Hand and survive the Darkest War. From the end of the Darkest War until now, Synethil has found itself in an odd position. With the Ele’rin, now distinctly different from the other elves in culture, and to an extent appearance, they are outsiders to the modern ways of the world. At the same time, people from all over seek out the Ele’rin’s magical prowess hoping to learn from them and advance the magical capabilities of their own nations and organizations. Ele’rin have become the welcome and familiar strangers who find themselves back in a world that they’ve been missing from for three centuries.
