Drow

## Basics

### Anatomy

The typical drow closely resembles other elves, having the traditional two arms, two legs, ten fingers and ten toes. They are commonly the shortest and most slender of the elven races.

### Genetics and Reproduction

Drow reproduce in the same sexual manner as other elves. They give live birth, and have pregnancies which last around one year.

### Growth

Although Drow are capable of living just as long as the other surface-dwelling elf species, the harshness of their society has made it uncommon for many of them to live very long past 400. Largely because of this, they are considered adults at a slightly younger age of 80.

### Ecology and Habitat

Traditionally, Drow reside in the Underdark, which is below the earth's surface.

### Dietary Needs

Drow are Omnivores like other elves, though they have been known to eat more insect and spider "meat".

## Additional Information

### Social Structure

Traditional Drow society is matriarchal, with the highest members being priestesses known as the handmaidens of Lolth. As the name suggests, these women serve the Spider Queen, and lead their noble houses.

### Facial Characteristics

Drow have the same sharp features as other elven races. If they manage to grow any facial hair, it is always very short. Their eyes tend to be either red or white, and often have little to no iris.

### Average Intelligence

Drow are considered to have the same intelligence as other elves, which places them slightly above most humans.

### Perception and sensory capabilities

Drow have excellent darkvision, able to see up to 120 feet in front of them even in total darkness. Many have adapted to be able to sense their surroundings in darkness by feeling vibrations in the stone around them. The unfortunate trade off is that their vision is quite sensitive when exposed to light.

## Civilization and Culture

### Common Customs, Traditions, and Rituals

Drow are considered to be very hedonistic, and will surround themselves with that which they perceive as beautiful.

### History

The history of the Drow is one which is long, and honestly quite tragic. It is told that millennia ago, when some of the winter Eladrin ventured too far from the Feywild, they became lost and disoriented. They heard a voice calling to them from within the mountains, which guided them to shelter in a cavern deep beneath the surface. They continued to wander deeper and deeper, until they lost all hope of returning. Once they reached the deepest cave, the voice revealed itself as Lolth, the Spider Queen. She told the lost travelers that she could save them. And, in her own way, she kept her word.

Lolth provided her charges with just enough food and heat to survive. She guarded them against the dark and mysterious creatures which scurried through the shadows. And all the while, she whispered to them, filling their heads with the idea that their brothers and sisters had abandoned them. Through subtle murmurings, Lolth turned them against their former kin, and eventually, against one another. It would not be long before they began lashing out against one another. And Lolth fed on their paranoia. Eventually, she demanded that in return for her continued protection and "guidance", the Eladrin needed to swear their loyalty to her. Any who rejected the new goddess would be tortured or sacrificed.

The total corruption of these Eladrin was something which took many generations. Over the years, the teachings became darker, and more twisted, to the point that they all but forgot their origins in the fey wild. They were no longer the Eladrin. The Drow had been born.

### Interspecies Relations

Drow are said to view all other races as inferior and weak. Their true hatred, however, is towards other elves, as the twisted stories have painted surface elves as the ones who abandoned them and cast them aside.