Light Elves

The tribe of Light, known as the *Vanir* in their native dialect, was the main enemy forces who opposed dokkalfar rule over the continent for millenia. Now, only isolated remnants of free vanir remain in the northern mountains, else they are little more than cattle for drow masters. The light elves once stretched across the range of the northern mountain ranges and northeastern forests, often coming to blows with their southern dark elven neighbors. Some nations elected to trade and even mixing lineages with the dokkalfar; others sought to war with them, leading to two worldwide catastrophes that nearly destroyed all mana-bearing life on the surface.

A fragment of the moons crashing down from the heavens was the first culmination of these conflicts, which created the Nidavellir crater and its Mist that altered all who dwelled in it. The Great War was the second case of these apocalyptic events; malefic entities known as demons entered the world and devoured all mana life they came across. Those who fled thought to seek refuge with the dark elves, but many only found slavery and death at the hands of their age-old enemy--however, a few light elf communities from this northeastern nation sought to follow Sharess' teachings and later became the Val'Kyorl'solenurn clan in Chel'el'Sussoloth.

Those light elves who stayed behind faced a thousand years of harsh life in order to deter the nether energy from consuming their lands and lives, such as the nation of Vanaheimr who practices limited mana usage to this day.

### Physical

#### Key Points

 File:Lightelf kyo.png
- Average Height - Females: 2m / 6'7, Males: 2.13m / 7'

- Vanir skin tones are pale, with variations ranging from almost white to lightly tanned.

- Vanir eye color can vary, with the most common colors being brown, blue, gold, and grey.

- Vanir hair color tends towards natural colors such as blonde, brown, black, and grey.

#### Details

Vanir share the lighter builds of their drowussu cousins, with females being slightly smaller than males. They are fine featured, with angular bone structures and agile body types. Their ears are pointed, and longer than a humans but shorter than a drowalath's. Their hair towards more natural colors, with the most common colors being various shades of blonde, brown, black and grey, platinum or silvery blonde.

### Physiological

#### Key Points

- Vanir possess auras, and are able to use Mana Arts.

- Vanir have better eyesight than most surface dwellers, and while they are able to see in lower light conditions, they do not have the ability to see heat sources or see in the dark like drowussu.

- Vanir age at a ratio of 2:1 (2 years to every 1 human equivalent year; i.e., they age at half speed.) Mental aging is only two years behind the human equivalent. (ie. a 10 year old vanir is the mental equivalent of an 8 year old human.)

- Vanir stop aging at age approximately age sixty.

#### Details

Vanir bodies are akin to drowussu and drowalath bodies. Their eyesight in the overworld is keen, being able to see great distances and in high detail. In the Underworld, however, their ability to see is dependent on ambient light sources, as they lack the ability of drowussu and drowalath to see in the dark. Males are slightly taller than females, much like drowussu. Like their grey-skinned cousins, the vanir also share a low birth rate, though they enjoy longer lifespans and low mortality rates when living in a mana-rich environment such as the Vanaheimr mana forest.

### Psychological

While individual personalities may vary, the average vanir does not question their overall place in society. If given orders, a vanir follows them without question with very few exceptions. Not all vanir are totally subservient, however, and some find rebellion in stretching the boundaries of their orders or defying them outright if the cause is important enough.

### Sociocultural

 File:Lightelf.png
Vanir society is a rigid one, with a caste system that leaves little to no room for improvement in social standing. If a vanir is born a blacksmith, the will live and eventually die a blacksmith, and due to heavy indoctrination, this caste system is never questioned. Unlike drowussu and drowalath society, it is not considered obscene to show off their necks, and many only cover them if their clothing design calls for it.

Light elves are rare, even in the overworld as most of the light elf settlements either followed the dark elves into exile into the underground, or were destroyed during the first demonic invasion. Of the ones that remain, the only known one is Vanaheimr, which escaped destruction due to being surrounded by a deadly mana forest filled with dryad guardians, and restricted use of mana.

Outsiders are forbidden in Vanaheimr, even if they are also light elves. Any newcomers are purged of any foreign foci, bathed and cleansed upon arrival. Unfortunately for most, this means that even if they are sponsored by a noble vanir, they will eventually be disposed of in an effort to keep them from "tainting" the vanir citizens. Mixing of races and sexes is also prohibited; males and females bathe separately, and socializing with other races is discouraged.

Vanaheimr is patriarchal, led by a Chancellor and Vala. The Vala (or queen) is little more than a figurehead who has no political power without a Chancellor (or king). The noble caste is one of the few allowed to leave Vanaheimr for the outer territories; all others would be captured and possibly killed by the forest guardians surrounding the territory.

# Height Chart Comparison

Revised heights for various races (note that Dokkalfar women are 9ft / 2.75m tall):

http://www.drowtales.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/height.jpg

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