Wood Elves

Wood Elves are the most common in the world and are largely disconnected from the insular cultures of the other elves. They are often found scattered in small enclaves in forests or other rural areas, occasionally setting up districts within major cities where they can gain an adequate foothold, but often sticking to the wilds. Many Wood Elves live rough lives but ultimately they feel it is their element and are more than comfortable with embracing the wild side.

### Physique

Wood elves typically have copper-colored or bronze skin (but others exist), and generally have brown or black hair (although again, others are not uncommon). Males and females both stand at around 5'8 and are lithe and dextrous, with muscle usually favoring their legs and forearms (through cultural experience more than genetics).

### Culture

Wood Elf culture is in many ways the result of having to at one time share space with the High Elves and Wild Elves, but is also the result of mixing with humans, meeting dwarves, encountering orcs, and learning that these new cultures contained within them great value. Wood Elf culture is vehemently opposed to hierarchies and aristocracies, following the Wild Court more than any others yet not declaring direct fealty to any one Court of Elven Gods. The Gods most venerated by Wood Elves are those that stand up for the underdogs and outcasts like Fenmarel Mestarine or nature deities like Rillifane Rallathil. Wood Elves are also the most likely to support Gods outside of the Elven Pantheon altogether, showing support for newcomers like Mielikki and total outsider Silvanus.

### Relationships

Wood Elves are considered peasants by the High Elves, a hangover from when they shared spaces in the highly stratified Eladrin kingdoms and something the Wood Elves find repugnant. Wood Elves found much in common initially with the young humans when they came to Nexxis, finding that their tribal and hunter/gatherer tendencies gave them many of the same values. In the modern era Wood Elves have found this once amicable relationship strained by the prevalence of kingdoms, and the increasingly class-based societies humans have founded, many of which consider the Wood-Elves to be second-class citizens or outsiders.

Among Dwarves Wood-Elves are considered the least irritating of the elves, but they still don't make fast friends. It's as hard to lead a Wood-elf into a mine as to lead a Dwarf up a tree. Gnomes seem to be the only race capable of interacting with both groups in measure, and may be the glue that holds dwarf-elf relations together.

Orcs have a tumultuous at best relationship with Wood-Elves despite on a surface level sharing some of the same values. Orcish tendencies towards war and dominance have led to wholesale slaughters and massacres that no elf is ready to forgive easily. While alliances have been made in the past they are never without doubt and include constant back-sliding on both sides.

Wood-elves have a mutual fascination with halflings, yet their lifestyles very rarely intersect, making the appearance of a halfling quite the spectacle if it were to occur, with many of the elves taking great care in introducing themselves to the newcomer.