DEMEANOR: Aquatic Elves share many of the same attitudes as their land based brethren. They are highly attuned to the Oceans and Seas that they live in, they maintain a deep reverence for nature and strive to live in harmony with it at all times.
Aquatic Elves have slightly less affinity to magic than land based Elves but still view the existence of magic as simply another aspect of nature, and thus share a deeper affinity for it than many other races.
Aquatic Elves generally prefer the company of other aquatic beings such as Mermen, Dolphins and Selkies over that of land based beings, even other Elves. A few Aquatic Elves have been known to make their homes on land, but always near a large body of water. Generally they will only spend a limited amount of time on land, usually for the purpose of trade, education or to work out political or environmental issues that involve land based peoples. One may occasionally encounter a group of Aquatic Elves working with some of the Guilds in a coastal city assisting in the building of magical devices to ensure that contamination of water flowing through the city and into the ocean is kept to a minimum.
Aquatic Elves typically live near coral reefs, protected bays, and other shallow water areas. They prefer warmer climates but can occasionally be found in colder waters.
Aquatic Elves are renowned for their ability to create beautiful jewelry and other items from items constructed from coral, shells, pearls, seaweed and other natural materials that are available. It is not unusual for an Aquatic Elf to take 50 or 100 years to complete a particular item because it takes that long to find a pearl that perfectly matches the rest of the item that is being created. Like items created by land Elves, most of the crafts created by Aquatic Elves will serve some sort of functional purpose as well as being a work of art.
APPEARANCE: Aquatic Elves resemble Elves in appearance, averaging 5′ 6″ in height, with females of the race ranging only a few inches shorter. Due to the fact that water based environments are somewhat more strenuous to move through than air based environments, Aquatic Elves have a higher stamina and are somewhat more muscular than land based Elves, with the males weighing around 140 pounds and females weighing around 120 pounds. Aquatic Elves are paler than other Elves, and usually have white or blonde hair with a hint of green. They have slightly webbed hands and feet and have a second transparent eyelid which protects their eyes underwater while still allowing them to see clearly. Their eyes are usually pale blue or grey. They share the pointed ears and lack of facial hair of the land based Elves. Aquatic Elves will often create light weight clothing spun from fine kelp threads, often colored to allow them to blend into the seascape or landscape around them. When in the water, particularly if they are near home, Aquatic Elves will wear a very minimal amount of clothing, if any.
LIFESPAN: Aquatic Elves have the same lifespan as land Elves, usually living to be over 500 years of age, with a few individuals surviving for over 600 years!
CULTURE: Aquatic Elven societies are normally structured closely following the Aquatic culture, but on rare occasions can be found in other cultures which make their homes near large bodies of water.
Enhanced Senses — With acute senses honed to perfection, all Elves gain a special bonus of +10 to all General Perception rolls.
Amphibian — Aquatic Elves have powerful lungs and gills hidden inside their throats which allow them to extract oxygen from both the water and air equally well. They can dive down to a depth of 400 feet without difficulty and often learn spells that allow them to function at even deeper depths.
Night Vision — Aquatic Elves can clearly see up to 100′ easily on a starlit night or in very deep water where the light is dim. By the light of a full moon or in moderately deep water they can see up to 500′ as if in broad daylight. In total darkness they are as blind as the majority of the other races.