Dark Elf

A Dark Elf is an elf descended from the bloodline of the True Elves who joined Mardac in bonding the warrior spirit with their own soul. By the accounts of the Great Elves all children of a dark elf are dark elves, they can never be redeemed.

The first Elv to come to Miranda with Ellowyn and her court bonded part of their souls to his world and became the True Elves. When Mardac bonded a dark warrior spirit to those that volunteered to fight the last fragments of their ancestors were destroyed in them. For those first True Elves the experience was both terrifying and liberating and they were bonded to this world in a way no other elf could comprehend.

Unless noted below the physical differences between a Dark Elf and a Great Elf would be difficult to spot by just looking at them. On average a dark elf is slightly more muscular with an even leaner frame. Changes that would blend in with a mixed crowd of elves. For all other purposes they appear identical to the other fallen elves.

A dark elf will average over one-hundred and eighty-five centimeters in height (6'2“ ±3”) and weight nearly eighty kilograms (180 pounds). This makes them slightly smaller and heavier than the average Great Elf, but still close enough to their range.

No dark elf has physically manifested the ancestral changes that seem to appear occasionally among the Great and Forsaken Elves. Slight reminders for their fae-blood like some hair of spun gold, sparkles along their cheeks, fingers able to curl as if they had no bones, eyes of silver, the ability to walk just centimeters above the ground, or gossamer wings.

The Beserk Rage attributed to dark elves is actually the full manifestation of their warrior spirit. It is possible for a strong elf to resist the full nature of this spirit, but for most they fall under its control, which forces them into unbridled rage until all enemies fall before them. Those dark elves who stayed behind on Miranda have either learned to control this spirit, hidden themselves from others, or have been killed by Great Elves determined to wipe out their existence.

The rage does not take away survival instincts, rather it enhances them giving them heightened reflexes, bottomless stamina, and a nearly supernatural awareness of everything around them. Some of those facing a dark elf fully embracing their rage describe it as their opponent knowing where they were moving and attacking before they even decided for themselves. Facing someone that can read your mind or future intentions is terrifying.

The first dark elves were created by Mardac from the dark warrior spirit used to turn the True Elves into the Orgundi. He refined the spirit and reforged it in the fire and heat of his own passions. An eternal drive to protect this world created by Ellowyn, his true love.

There are currently three major branches of dark elves different enough to be considered a separate race. Each of these races are physically isolated enough to have developed different characteristics. Unless otherwise noted they are still considered part of the elf species and can fully interbreed with them.

These are the dark elves that fled this world with Mardac. The land they where they went was arid and devoid of the great forests that populate Miranda. They named this land Durinthuel after the first of the dark elves to die to the poisonous plants that grew from the soil. This was the land that would break them and forge them anew. Here they could vent their rage and pain and in time shape this world.

After countless generations the elves of this world are almost uniformly black-skinned with deep crimson eyes. Their hair is still straight and whispy, but majority raven-black. Physically they have grown shorter by several centimeters and stockier (5'11 ±2“ & 200 pounds).

Even after the generations at their core is a spiritual need for their homeland. Many believe it is a desire to take back when the Great Elves stole from them, but in others it becomes deep melancholy. Mardac has made his home in Durinthuel and stops any of his children who tries to return home. He knows they would be hunted and killed just from their outward appearance.

These are the descendants of those first dark elves who stayed behind. Nearly all of them are mix blooded between dark elves and other elves, Forsaken Elves being the most common. According to the more fanatical Great Elves a single dark elf ancestor means all children are doomed to be dark elves, but that is rarely a concern for most elves.

For many of these dark elves their warrior spirit has been weakened over the generations to be almost an afterthought. They might be prone to being snappish or flying into a fit of rage over small transgressions, but never become consumed by the true Beserk Rage. For others the spirit is waiting just below the surface to rise up and seize control of their body, a deep well of power and fury.

Most of these elves could easily pass for either Forsaken of Half-elves.

The smallest number are those dark elves who originally joined Mardac, but elected to stay behind. Like the True Elves these elves are immortal, but so consumed by the Berserk Rage they can find little solace in the contemplative sleep of the True Elves. None of these survivors have given themselves fully into their rage, but each of them have learned how to make peace with their inner demons and the blood of their kin on their hands.

Physically it is possible for these Dark Elves to fully manifest themselves as they once were, but for most doing this too painful of a memory. Instead they adopt forms that allow them to blend in with other elves. In can take them decades to physically change their bodies as they no longer possess any of their fae-blood.