Nerdarchy on 3 New Ways to Elf in D&D
In this 15-minute video on Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted explore elves in D&D and how make different kinds of elf societies.
The conversation begins with Dave and Ted asking the question, “Should we change D&D monsters, races, and other D&D tropes?” Of course they both agree in the affirmative. Making the D&D experience your own by incorporating your own creative ideas with the compelling material you find in official sources is part of the fun.
In the video Dave and Ted put the spotlight on elves and create some examples of different takes on this traditional and much beloved fantasy and D&D race. Their brainstorm begins with a sea elf concept. Rather than elves who live beneath the waves though this thought experiment imagines elves driven from dry land long ago by a powerful enemy. Drawing on elves’ strong magical nature, a common element in D&D elf lore, these refugee elves coax living vessels from the waves and flee across the vast expanse. Over time this culture adapts to the nomadic sea life, lashing vessels together to form flotilla encampments.
Next the elves get transplanted from the natural world full of magic to the slums of other civilizations’ urban centers. These are more than just elves who left the forest and instead their connection to cities runs much deeper due to a curse that banished them from the Feywild completely. Now these elves are strangers in strange lands, forbidden from the places most closely connected to their ancestral home and struggling to adapt to an alien way of life.
Finally a society of elves journeys from their home in the Feywild to explore the multiverse astride exemplar horses, fulfilling a pact between an elf queen and the first horse, a creature of legend. Forever bound these elves and their descendants along with carefully nurtured horses who can trace their line back to the first horse roam the plains of the planes until the end of time.
This video continues a series where Dave and Ted come up with a variety of different cultures, societies and legends for different D&D creatures. Previous videos include dwarves, kobolds, goblins, lizardfolk, gnolls and others. You can find a playlist for these other videos in the New Ways to Do D&D Races at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel here.
If you just can’t get enough elf stuff for your D&D games then Terrible Terrain Elven Forests- High Elf vs. Wood Elf vs. Forest with No Elves might be just the thing you need to inspire your next adventure.
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