Surface Drow

The Drow of the Wold are a religious and pious race. They have long worshiped Jancassis, their females leading and forming the pinnacle of society. Males are little more than slaves. Jancassis grants these her favored people many benefits and the use of other races and monsters such as the drider. These sub-terrain elves are just like the Monster manual describes.

Surface Drow however are changed. This group of Drow has fought there way upward away from their dark cousins and into the light. They have broken with tradition and been blessed by Alemi. These Drow have broken with the Matriarchal traditions and now worship any god they wish.

Personality:

Surface Drow are kind but brooding, they are trying to overcome millennia of being forced underground and denying the part of themselves that wished to see the sun--that part that wished to worship free. Now that they are free they are loyal and fierce defenders of their friendships and their homes. They are focused and stoic and often have trouble appreciating humor. Their art is powerful but sad and their music touches the soul and makes you weep. They are a sad people who are learning happiness, and it is taking them a long time. However as the stretch into the future and into the light many things have happened to give their people hope. Males have gained places of authority and are no longer considered second class citizens. They have begun to worship all Gods, not just the goddess of revenge, casting aside their hunger to get even with those who live in the light, and most of all they have rid themselves of their evil intents and hearts. Becoming a varied people with the capacity of individuals to do great good or great harm as they choose.

Physical Description:

The physical description of the Surface Drow is identical to that of elves with the exception of the skin, hair, and eye color. Surface Drow's skin is silky blue to black, their hair blonde to white and their eye color is Light blue, light green, black, or silver.

However, in order to mark themselves as different from their underground cousins the young have begun to dye their hair in bright brilliant colors, and designs, purples and greens and reds. Swirling together and overlapping. They wear bright colors and silks and often tattoo their dark skin in beautiful white patterns, spirals and swoops, and intricate tiny designs, becoming works of art themselves. Many of these tattoos and dyes and silks are magical to never be quite the same as these Surface Drow become living artworks themselves.

While the young pursue this others dye their hair gold, the color of the underworld queens and leave well enough alone, believing that straying too far from their past could bring calamity and forgetfulness, which is invitation to repeat the past. These golden haired ones wear the mark of royalty to show their freedom from their past and leave it at that. There is often good natured conflict between the two groups, but nothing serious as they realize that fighting among ones own clan is why they were forced into the underworld in the first place.

Relations:

Surface Drow are initially skittish around any but their own kind, having to deal with millennia of prejudice against their race. However when they do make friends they are loyal to them to the death. They are happy to make friends when they are presented with the chance and proving they are nothing like their dark counterparts is first on their list of duties.

Drow Lands:

The Surface Drow live in dark forests and valleys and surface caves. They live in extended family groups called houses. House Bralfah, which means inseparable from the sun, lives in the Monster Preserve Lands of the 2nd plateau west of the 3rd Plateau and the Orchards that surround it. They were given a great set of caverns there by the High Lord Mayor of New Elenna. The now are in the process of turning it into a “living cave” to honor their ascension to the surface world. It is more beautiful each time one visits.

Religion:

The Drow Below mostly worships Jancassis and while some Surface Drow continues to worship her, the others worship many members of both pantheons. This diversification bothers some of the more traditional of the House. Jancassis seems to be willing to play the two groups of her worshippers against one another. The Drow above who worship Jancassis desire further revenge on those who forced them to suffer below the surface for so many generations. These drow are in danger of becoming what they hate. Because of this, more and more of the Surface drow have left Jancassis and patron other gods.

Language:

The Surface Drow speak their own Drow tongue which is a derivative of the ancient elven tongue. They also speak Undercommon, a common language for all intelligent creatures who live below the surface. They speak common as well.

Names:

Drow always have two names, their personal name and the name of their house. Before House Bralfah’s ascension to the surface, they followed the Drow tradition of only allowing those of position with the house to carry the house surname. Now, however, all within House Bralfah proudly carry the surname of the house. Another change in nomenclature is that before their ascension, names were to be humbling rather than braggadocios. They were not even allowed to begin their name with the same letter as anything holy or important. Now, however, this has also reversed. Children are being named after the Sun, the Moons, the Gods, and especially the famous Storm Dragons and other adventurers that helped them to survive to escape to the surface. These names are usually transliterated into Drow sounding names however. There is a limit after all and traditions to preserve.

Adventurers:

Drow take up adventuring as a way of proving their worth to themselves and to the Wold. They do so to locate and return ancient artifacts and to discover the past lost to them being trapped under the earth for so long.

Surface Drow Racial Traits:

• +2 Dexterity, -2 Constitution, +2 Int, -2 Chr

• Medium size.

• Drow base speed: 30 feet.

• Darkvision: Drow can see in the dark up to 120 feet. Darkvision is black and white only, but it is otherwise like normal sight, and Drow can function just fine with no light at all. Drow do not have low-light vision.

• Light blindness: Abrupt exposure to bright light (such as sunlight or a daylight spell) blinds Drow for 4 rounds. In addition, they suffer a -2 circumstance penalty to all attack rolls, saves, and checks while operating in bright light. These penalties can be negated by wearing a pair of smoked-glass goggles (3 GP cost), but the Drow can't use darkvision while wearing goggles.

• Proficient with either short sword or rapier; proficient with either; short bow / composite short bow or Light Crossbow.

• Spell-like abilities: Drow with Intelligence scores of 10 or higher may spontaneously cast one of the following spells once per day: dancing lights, darkness, faerie fire, prestidigitation, and flare. These are arcane spells. Treat the Drow as a sorcerer of the Drow's character level for all spell effects dependent on level. For every 5 points of Intelligence above 10 the Drow may cast one more per day. Ex. A Drow with an Intelligence of 25 may spontaneously cast 4 times from the list.

• Elf Blood: Drow are treated as elves for certain purposes, such as some prestige classes that are open only to elves and for the construction of certain magic items.

• Automatic Languages: Common and Elven.

• Bonus Languages: Draconic, Woldian Below, Gnome, Goblin, Orc, and Sylvan.

• Favored Class:
  • Male Surface Drow: fighter;
  • Female Surface Drow: cleric.

See also the Origins of the Drow

See also the House of Bralfah

See also Dradah Delmah