Elves

An ***elf*** is a small creature that lives in a village populated by other elves, which is usually situated in the middle of any area of land, away from other elvish villages. They appear in the graphic novels, animated series, and novelization, though their history, culture and lifestyle are shown in more detail in the latter two.

## Appearance

Elves have pointy ears. For most Elves, their skin complexion is of a pure white color ( Like Alfur Aldric,) but some members have more reddish skins (like the Mayor and the King) or brown (like Adeline). They are shown to have head and facial hair, which, like humans, can be shaped into any style. While their limbs are very thin and stick-like, their torsos are of various shapes and sizes, from skinny to fat.

Their basic design is depicted as being very simple and devoid of any details, akin to a stick figure. This lack of detailing may be to better represent how small they really are, compared to humans and other creatures.

Elves wear a variety of clothing and armors, varying from village to village and from one hierarchical position to another.

Some Elves have beards or mustaches, but most are clean-shaven.Some of the only elves that keep beards are the lost clan.

## Civilization

### Villages

Elves live in villages, usually situated in the middle of any land they chose to colonize and erect a village upon.

Elf houses look just like human houses in design. Like with humans, the higher ranking Elves live in bigger buildings. The king has a palace for example. Only the houses of the Bragga Family are different.

Villages, in turn, are part of counties. The only Elf Counties mentioned in the series so far are the Northern Counties.

### Government

Elves have been ruled by a king since the start of their civilization.

The king is supported by a government lead by a Prime Minister, who is elected democratically. It's not known how long a prime minister stays in the office before new elections are held.

Elf villages are governed by a mayor.

### Paperwork

The entirety of the elvish civilization is built upon the utilization of contracts and other paperwork. Any decision or deal made within a village or even between villages, whether it is between members of the bourgeoisie or simple peasants, or with any other outside creature, is made by redacting and signing a large amount of various contracts. The more complex the paperwork, the better. They have protocols for almost everything. The only known exception to this rule are the Elves of the Bragga Family.

In the time of the first Elves, contracts were even more important than today, to the point that presenting an incomplete contract to the king was reason enough to be exiled. While the rules have become less strict over time, paperwork remains an essential part of Elf culture.

The only known way to get out of a signed contract with an Elf is by having the contract destroyed by a Lindworm. Over time, many Elves have tried to fake their contracts getting destroyed by a Lindworm by actually burning it in the toaster, but these attempts are quickly seen through since Lindworm ashes have a blue glow that is difficult to replicate.

### Email

In the animated series, the Elves have their own postal system called *Email* or *Elf Mail*, which covers the entire area from the wilderness to Trolberg. Email is a highly efficient system, that makes use of pneumatic tube transport, and couriers riding on rabbits, birds and squirrels to deliver any letter within a few hours after posting. The Elven Postal system is one of the most important institutions in the world of Elves.

In "Chapter 11: The House in the Woods", Hilda used email to send a message to her mother in Trolberg to let her know she was currently lost in the wilderness. She only had to address the letter to "mum", without any street names or house numbers, and the Elves still managed to get it delivered to the correct house.

### Skills

Some elves are highly adapt at combat, especially the lost clan and the Prime Minister's cavalry. Weapons utilized by the elves include axes, spears, slings, and bows.

Seafaring and ships are also used by the lost clan and the Delegation for the Return of Wayward Elves. The lost clan uses small rowing boats, were as the Delegation used a ship with a sail and small building upon it.

Elves domesticate birds, squirrels, and rabbits for travel and warfare. Nittens such as Peppercorn were also domesticated as pets.

Some elves also use the practice of beekeeping.

## Interaction with other species

Elves prefer privacy. As such, they and their villages usually cannot be seen by any other creature. The mere visual knowledge of their existence by other species is based on paperwork: Elves, by default, cannot be seen or touched by any other creature, unless they sign the correct, lenghty paperwork, granting the creature the permanent ability to see Elves and their villages. This task is extra bothersome by the fact that the papers are often too small for any bigger creature to properly read and sign, sometimes requiring the aid of a magnifying glass or otherwise.

While they cannot be seen, they can still be heard and interacted with by those that have not signed the paperwork.

A creature to whom Elves are still invisible can not accidentally or purposely inflict any damage to elf buildings. Their bodies will simply phase through the structure without harming it (though elves still consider this rather unpleasant, even if it doesn't hurt them).

Characters that filled out the proper paperwork and can thus see Elves include:

* Hilda (both graphic novels and animated series)
* Johanna (animated series only)
* Frida (animated series only)
* The Great Raven (animated series only)
* Wood Man (presumably; he was able to play cards with Elves in "Chapter 11").
* Lindworm (presumably; she was able to see Alfur and help burn the contract)
* Twig (presumably; Twig has been shown to interact with Alfur)
* David (animated series only, at some point between season 1's Chapter 7: The Lost Clan" and "Chapter 10: The Storm")
* Astrid
* Gerda Gustav (implied; in her last scene she and Alfur are both taking notes during the Bird Parade and even exchange a look after spotting the Marra)

In "Chapter 1: The Train to Tofoten", Astrid tells Alfur she is surprised her paperwork is still valid, considering she signed it a long time ago, which implies the paperwork may have an expiration date on it.
In "Chapter 3: The Giantslayer", Hilda was able to see the Elves in Halvor's village despite having been send to a time and place from long before she was even born, let alone signed the paperwork. This proves the paperwork transcends time itself.

## Species' Members

* Alfur Aldric
* Adeline
* Aloysius
* Alvin
* Agnes Bragga
* Elf Prime Minister
* Elf King
* Elf mayor
* Prime Minister's cavalry
* Bartell Bragga
* Bragga Family
* Aldric Family
* Barch
* Rupert
* Gertrude
* Ulrik
* Tomas
* Jester elf
* Minor Elves

## Gallery

An elf village as seen in the graphic novelsThe prime ministerOld Elf living near the Weather StationPostal worker with Hilda's letterCouriers transporting Email.Elf Courier on a squirrelThe king in the time of the first Elves.
## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Hilda's Book of Beasts and Spirits

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