The Feyborn

The Quintessential Elf

Author Alejandro Melchor
Publisher Mongoose Publishing
Publish date 2002

The blood in some elves still runs strong with their fey origin, touched by magic at their birth. They feel the pulse of nature much more strongly, and have an even more ethereal quality to their looks. The birth of a feyborn child is celebrated by all the community, as it reminds them of their ties with the spirits of nature. Whether just an awakening of ancient blood or the product of a fey parent, such children often grow up pampered by the community, and they are expected to become priests, druids or rangers, prime positions to become mediators between elves and their allies among the woodland creatures. Feyborn cannot hide their origin, sporting features like odd-coloured hair and eyes, or a faint smell of humid earth. Their voices are soft and they move with an otherworldly grace than even elves find fascinating. All feyborn drow are female, as they deem the gift from the evil fey unfitting for males, and kill them at birth.

Adventuring: Feyborn are discouraged from wandering off into the unknown, treated almost like royalty from the moment they are born. Ironically, this does more to push them away than if they were just treated like normal members of their community. The same fey blood that makes them so prized by their peers also burns inside them, filling them with the need to experience all that the world has to offer. They itch for excitement and will look for the first opportunity to escape the smothering attention. These elves are attracted to magic, and although their calling lies with Spellcasting, it is not rare that they choose a more mundane career.

Role-Playing: Feyborn have more than just the looks from their origin, they are restless spirits with a streak of mischievousness to their character. A feyborn elf always tackles any task with contagious enthusiasm, but may lose interest if it takes too long to complete. They are also prone to moody episodes, as their blood calls to them to become lost in the nearest forest, but this feeling also passes quickly, and they are as good as new the following day. The feyborn makes friends easily, but is not a fool, placing his full trust only in those who prove worthy of it. A feyborn can never be of Lawful alignment; it simply does not go with his fey soul.

Bonuses: fey creatures treat these elves as kin, recognizing instantly the power of the blood that runs through their veins. Feyborn enjoy a +1 racial bonus to all Charisma-based checks when dealing with creatures of the fey type, and also have a +2 inherent bonus to resist the spell-like abilities of fey creatures. This bonus stacks with the druid class feature Resist Nature’s Lure.

Penalties: The fey heritage is impossible to miss. The elf is marked by green or pale blue hair, cat-like eyes, fur-tipped ears or another minor feature. They have a -1 racial penalty to Charisma checks dealing with any non-elf humanoid. They also register strongly on any Detect Magic, which could prove to be a problem for feyborn rogues trying to sneak past a spellcaster.