How to Make Elves Not Boring

Elves are often reduced to one flat stereotype in D&D, so what can you do to bring dimension back to them?

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Elves are a staple in the D&D universe, but has their popularization forced them into uninteresting and bland boxes? Drows are edgy, High Elves are snooty, and Wood Elves are… dirty? After looking through the history of elves and their origins, I’m here to offer new ideas and views to bring a sense of shine and innovation back to these old subraces. While my ideas may not perfectly meld with the Player’s Handbook’s, rules are meant to be broken. For this, I’ll be going over the origins of elves, providing you with a little background information on each type of elf, and how you can apply that into your own game.

What is an elf?

Elves come from North Germanic mythology, specifically Norse and Scandinavian, while Celtic mythology also holds some ties with elves. The modern idea of what elves are was conceived during the Christianization of North Germanic societies. Originally, the elves were a part of the fae, and the line between elf and fairy was incredibly blurry. In fact, they took on one name, known as the “aos sí”, in Celtic mythology, which were descendants of fallen angels and gods. In D&D, believe it or not, elves’ alignment is chaotic good. As stated, “Elves tend to lean towards chaotic good, with the exception of Drow whom are chaotic evil more often than not.”

Now, as a biracial Asian-American, I will say I don’t love the term “subrace”, but that's a topic for another article. However, that is the term used in the D&D to describe the different types of elves. The main three are Drows, Wood Elves, and High Elves. I’ll be focusing on these three for this piece because they are the ones provided in the base material and are the most commonly played subraces

Drow

Drows are often the choice for a player who wants an edgelord character who was raised by stalactites and a shark’s tooth inside of Death’s kidneys. Dark Elves, another name for Drow, are directly taken from Norse Mythology. Norse beliefs were heavily pagan during that time, and there were two kinds of elves: dark and light. In ancient Icelandic text, dark elves are known as subterranean creatures and are practically interchangeable with dwarves. In later writings, dark elves are said to be the cause of bad dreams among mortal humans.

What caught my eye was the statement said by Kevin Crossley-Holland, a translator and poet, "No valid distinction though can be drawn between the dwarfs and the dark elves; they appear to have been interchangeable.” Drows are often portrayed as hedonistic and vain, caring about their appearances and lineage above all. However a different approach, one that values the material of their world and holds a closer semblance to dwarves, would be much more interesting. Not hedonism and vanity, but pride in their world and lineage. What if the dark elves found subterranean life to be much more beautiful than the overworld? What if, with the help of dwarves, they were able to cultivate a more fulfilling life underground? Valuing the gifts of Mother Terra and their own craftsmanship, Drows could learn to become self-sustaining and hardworking creatures.

Wood Elves

Wood Elves in Celtic mythology are almost entirely the opposite to how Wood Elves are portrayed in D&D today. Elves were the fae folk of Celtic mythology. They were described in an Old Germanic text as “nature-god or nature-demon, equated with the Fauns of Classical mythology.” I would love to see a return of this kind of Wood Elf. Elves are chaotic good, for goodness sake! So, where’s that chaos at the table been? While Wild Elves do hold some of the natural energy that we all want to see from a creature known to be connected to the forests and fey, they lack the spirit and chaos that comes with someone “equal to a satyr”.

J.R.R. Tolkien’s Woodland Realm elves from The Hobbit are a great example of chaotic and fantastical Wood Elves. The use of magic has been removed from this subrace in D&D, and it truly is a tragedy. Wood Elves should be creatures that live within the forest, protecting the feywild and its creatures. Mixing the two concepts of both mythological and D&D elves could also be an interesting concept. Because Wood Elves are described as being “generally uncomfortable with most forms of magic” in D&D, how would that fare in the feywild? Is there a reason that they are distrustful of magic but still reside in the feywild? There is a need to bring the chaos and fantastical nature back to this subrace and embrace the inner feywild of elves.

High Elves

Often the snooty and uptight characters in a campaign, this is the subrace where I really want to see that “chaotic good” energy come back. The concept of “High Elves” most likely comes from the Christianization of North Germanic mythology. This period created the well known description of elves as “more beautiful than the sun,” among other qualities. This subrace has the weakest connection to the mythological origin of elves, and I struggled to come up with ideas of how to bring new qualities to them.

A point about the Aos Sí, the Celtic version of an elf, that struck me as odd was that, in the Abrahamic narrative, they could be descendants from fallen angels. An interesting take on High Elves would be: the descendants of fallen angels, who were tempted to the Prime Material by beings of the Fey. Are the High Elves resentful to the fey or celestial because of that? Are they proud of either aspect of their lineage? Where do the celestial and fey aspects meet, and where do they clash? Are there fanatic cults of High Elves bent on the idea that they must cleanse their race to become truly celestial again? Finding a line between the fey and celestial aspects of a High Elf can create a form of tension and intrigue for a subrace that tends to get a thin and unoriginal history.

Elves have an amazing and rich background, and you can clearly see where inspiration for each subrace was taken from. After looking at the history of what elves are and how they are defined by D&D, it is clear that there have been vast changes to the idea of what an elf is over time, for better and for worse. Elves are so much more than a set of pointy ears and sharp cheekbones, and their origins truly do reflect that. They were creatures with the power to give nightmares and could be the descendants of fallen angels. Even with the popularization of more modern media like Lord of the Rings, it's good to return to the roots, and remember that elves are chaotic good. I never want to see another lawful good elf again in my life.

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DnD with a Z is a DnD blog that writes about the next generation's relationship with roleplay, writing, and DnD. To get regular updates about when articles go live, follow the author's twitter.

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