The Half-Elves of Lakeport

So this is another expansion of the work i have been doing on my Lakeport setting.  Today I’m going to talk about the Fey of this world, and how they helped shape it into what it is.  There’s a companion article (really four companion articles) that detail the Fey Gods, and then a companion piece about Elves and half Elves.  This group of articles should do a fairly solid job of putting these three races together and give you a wealth of information on who they are and what they do.  Let’s dig into the Half-Elves.

The History of the Half-Elves

The world of Lakeport began in darkness and slowly took on form of its own.  In this time, the sun and stars didn’t burn, and it was a formless mass of rock and water.  Two divine sparks found this nascent world and bent and shaped it into their home.  They made a hospitable land that life could grow out of.  They ignited the stars and brought light into this world of their design.  These two beings planted a great seed of energy that blossomed into the Fey.  These original Fey took on aspects of the world around them, and for every plant and animal that grew or walked, a Fey claimed it as their own.  Some Fey took ideas and nature as their own, and the Fey of the elements were born.  They built a great city to live in, and worshipped their makers as Gods.  these two deities coalesced into Grandfather Oak and Grandmother Lion, and they ruled over their people with kindness and wonder.

Ages passed (time mattered little to the immortal Fey) and others emerged in the world.  The great Wyrms of Dragonkind and the Giants appeared on the edges of the Fey’s forest home.  The first Orcs migrated into the world, taking a corner of the forest as their own.  The first humans were encountered by a party of Fey nobles, and the ones that survived the hunting trip were brought back to Feyhome.  The Fey even met the first of the Walkers and the Watchmen during this time, but they were the undisputed masters of the world...for a time.

Half-elves were an odd curiosity for a time.  The first few unions of Human and Elf were made in the labs of the Fleshcrafters, to see if they were more serviceable than either of their parents.  Eventually the Fey passed on their potential usefulness and made the relationships that created them taboo.  (This had nothing to do with any moral or ethical concerns, the Fey didn’t want their elven minions distracted by children that would be born, grow and wither in the blink of an eye.)  Eventually the few half-elves that had been born passed beyond and there were no half-elves for quite a long time.  

 

The Fey War

The war that crippled the fey as a dominant power was an ugly brutal affair that damaged the world.  Mountains were shattered, sections of the great forest burnt to ashes, and the rivers and lakes were unmade and reshaped to suit another purpose.  Eventually, with the intervention of the new deities, the Fey War ended with a narrow victory for the world.  The Me’Ah’Chin were destroyed and their factories removed from reality.  Half-Elves were made with frightening speed and spent a great deal of blood and sweat on the front lines of that war.    

Modern Half-Elves

Half-Elves are a populous group that have spread across the world.  (in some cases they are more prevalent than humans)  Half-Elves always have Half-Elven children, despite the other parent.  The Half-Elves occupy an interesting place in relation to their two original parents, as they are typically physically strong and more agile than either of their parents.  Half-Elves are sought after as mercenaries and warriors when they are offering their services.  

Appearance

Half-Elves have larger than normal ears (but smaller than the enormous ears of their elven parent), but can have virtually any combination of skin tones, hair colors, and eye colors that are known to either of their parents.  The first generation of half-elves were known to have wildly different physical characteristics, and occasionally these manifest in modern half-elves.  They are as tall as most humans (some variation exists, but they are closer in height to humans than elves).  

Personality

Half-Elves have a different view of the world.  They are purposeful beings who look for ways to change the circumstances they find themselves in constantly.  They are active agents of change and seek to leave the world better than they find it (relative to their moral and ethical views of the world).  Half-elves had issues sitting still and are often rushing from one thing to the next.  

Society

Half-Elves have a loose social structure of their own.  They are broadly organized into companies (remnants from the days they spent fighting the Fey War) and each of the nine remaining companies has a nominal region of their own.  They are equally adept at blending into the societies of others, and aside from the ears, Half-Elves are very hard to distinguish from their human cousins.  

Adventurers

Half-Elves love the life of an adventurer.  They travel constantly, looking for things that need to be helped or circumstances that need to be changed.  Their need for constant motion is  something that causes occasional consternation among their adventuring companions, but trying to get a half-elf to sit still is like arguing with a tornado.  

Religion

Half- Elves follow one of the four surviving Archfey.  Grandfather Oak, Grandmother Lion, The North Wind, or the Black Ocean.  The Grandparents are the progenitor gods of most living things, and have much in common with other nature gods.  The North Wind is a champion of virtue and honorable conduct who seeks to elevate the culture of his worshippers.  The Black Ocean is a dark deity who seeks to remake the world into a more pleasing version for the Fey, consequences be damned.  Half-elves typically follow the North Wind, as his martial aspect is one that they can find purpose and honor in service to a greater good.   

Rules addendums

Half-Elves from this setting have the following changes:

Ability Scores:

Half-Elves have a +1 Strength and +2 Dexterity.  This replaces the Half-Elf racial ability score bonuses.  

Armor Proficiency:  Half-Elves are proficient in Light Armor

Weapon Proficiency:  Half Elves can select two martial weapon proficiencies.  This ability replaces the Half-Elf Skill versatility special ability.