Elves

The Elves are one of the oldest races on Alusia having been around since The First Age.They split into a number of branches during the Elven Civil war known as the War of Tears.

Elves are a common folk, but many do not leave the elven lands of Alfheim.

Physiology

Elves are in general a little taller than humans and generally of more slender build. While they, like humans, cover all the possible body types, most elves tend to the ectomorphic.

Aging

Elves being long lived have a somewhat different ageing process which differs enough from the human development to confuse anyone outside of the elven culture.

1-10

(1-10 human comparison age)
Elven children grow in a similar fashion to human children both in mind and body. A week is still a long time to a young elf as it is to a human child and impatience is a common failing in the very young.

11-100

(11-19 human comparison age)
The Elven physiology tends to begin to slow at this point, and diverge from the human conception of time and development. Physical development slows, only a little at first but more and more as the decades pass and with an older perception the sense of a very long adult life ahead has its impact on Elven psychology. Elves are often though by humans to be split into the 'Grim Quester' or the 'Impertinent merrymaker' but this is merely a difference caused by some elves accepting their long lives while others rebel against the lifestyles of their elders and maintain the youthful exuberance.

In the first few years of their second decade aging slows to around 1/4th that of humans and puberty occurs at around 20-30 years old. After puberty it slows further to less than 1/10th that of humans, from about 50 onwards it is less than 1/20th; at this point the young elves are in their late 'teenage years', and it is at this age that most elves leave home.

100-5,000

(20-60 human comparison age)
The bulk of the elven adult population fits in this age bracket as once full physical development is completed the physical ageing of the elven body drops to around 1/100th of that of Humans.

5,000-10,000

(60-80 human comparison age)
Many elves of this age tend to go a bit funny. Some commit suicide (not a widely reported fact), others retreat from life yet others embrace it with greater and greater excess. No-one is sure whether this is a mental or physiologic issue with older elves and as elves tend to keep their true ages to themselves it is a difficult area of study.

10,000+

(80+ human comparison age)
The truly venerable elves finally begin to show signs of ageing at this point and many go into physical decline at this point. Those that make it to this extreme age are generally fountains of information that they have gathered over the years and while their bodies begin to fail their minds generally stay very sharp.

History

In the time of The First Age a group of Fae began to explore the mortal realms and over time settled. As they became less connected to the Fae realm they had left, they lost their allergy to Iron and began to work the metal for their own uses. This group are the Elves, sundered from the Fae realms that are their true homes.