Elves
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 750 years old.
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.
Precursor Ancestry. You have advantage on saving throws against being charmed, and magic can't put you to sleep.
Trance. Elves do not sleep. Instead they meditate deeply, remaining semi-conscious, for 4 hours a day. The Common word for this meditation is "trance." While meditating, you dream after a fashion; such dreams are actually mental exercises that have become reflexive after years of practice. After resting in this way, you gain the same benefit a human would from 8 hours of sleep.
Keen Senses. You have proficiency in the Perception skill.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and Elvish.
Ancient History
It is said that the elven race came into being as the Once-Silver Sea eroded the southern coast of Destrea, causing the plant life on the shore to draw nourishment from the ocean water instead of the rainfall. This caused arcane energies to be infused in the vegetation, allowing for centuries of unchecked growth. From the great, beautiful trees that grew forth from this union, the Founding Gods carved the first elves of Destrea.
Population Crisis
Until very recently, elves were considered near-immortal, with average lifespans lasting centuries, but in recent decades, across nearly all demographics, they have begun to age at roughly the same rate that humans and orcs do. The cause for this change is still hotly debated amongst theologians, arcanic researchers, and tavern-goers alike, but signs point strongly to the devastating phenomenon which ended The Battle of Summoner's Plain as being at the very least correlated.
Elven nations had long ago developed a negative birth rate, the reasons for which ranged from a general social apathy toward child rearing, to economic pragmatism, to a near-total lack of environmental 'growth limiters', such as disease or disastrous weather events. Dating and coupling, historically, were done purely for pleasure, companionship, or political reasons.
As a result of their newfound mortality, many elven societies find themselves scrambling to reorganize systems and institutions built with the conceit that those running them would live several mortal generations.
Physical Characteristics
Historically, most mainland elves could be described as slender, long-eared folk with fine, thin hair, and unusually smooth skin. Though along with their immortality, their naturally aesthetically-pleasing physical characteristics have begun to deteriorate as well. Obesity, hair loss, liver spots, crow's feet, and other typical signs of aging in mortals are on the rise.
Elven Ethnicities
Fhaelian (Urban)
Fhaelian elves represent the majority demographic in the twin coastal cities of Yondera and Verdana, which dot the southwestern cape of Antür. Their eldest have long-claimed ancestry dating back to long before the Founding Era, to the enigmatic Fhaelian Empire, whose capitol resided in what's now known as Founder's Crossing.
Antüran (Rural)
Whether by choice or by circumstance, most rural Antürans had historically found themselves isolated from much of the daily realities of broader Destrean life. That is, however, until the recent invasion of the Anclevan Empire in 295 DC, which brought with it social, economic, and environmental devastation.
Terriquan
Elves whose ancestors migrated to, and helped establish, the desert city-state of Terri'Uqam in what is today known as the Dunelands.
Voranite
Elves hailing from Voran.
Sun-Tempered You have advantage on Survival checks when in desert, badlands, or jungle environments.
Settlers, dissidents, exiles, and drifters from all corners of the realm, who've made homes of the independent City-States dotting the Caravan Coast, and the seas over which they extend dominion. No matter which of the Independent republics, petty kingdoms, or havens of sin a caravanian hails from, they must share shade with one another; each holding an upturned nail beneath the ever-looming boots of major Destrean nations. While the city-states' disdain for one another may run deep, it is a mere thimble's worth when measured against the ocean of antipathy they reserve for outsiders.
Menacing. You gain proficiency in the Intimidation skill.
Equipment: Utility knife, 1d6 gold in a coin purse.
Descended from one of many waves of settlers to the Great Wide over the centuries, their ancestors helped to establish the Commonwealth Federation of City-States.
Commoner culture, much like that of the Caravan Coast, is the product of waves of settlers each bringing customs, traditions, and values that end up influencing their new country to varying degrees. What sets commoners apart, however, is their peculiar tendency towards orderliness, institutional trust, and fervent nationalism.
Militia Training. You are proficient with firearms.
Equipment: Commonwealth runecoin, two food rations, 1d4 gold in a coin purse.