Eladrin

Summary
A distant and somewhat aloof race, the eladrin hold to the belief that they once ruled over a vast empire spanning the world. They, by and large, keep with their religious beliefs that pre-date human civilization. They have no truly exclusive settlements of their own, living amongst other peoples of the world, mostly elves. Physically, there is not much different between the eladrin and elves. The differences are cultural, for the most part. The eladrin believe elves were once part of their empire, a lower caste of workers that spread across the world under eladrin rule. They rigidly adhere to the maintenance of their traditional language, which shares a root with the elven language. They are almost universally fair-skinned, though some groups have been known to be of a slightly more tan complexion.

Subtypes
N/A

Culture
The Eladrin culture is ancient, and steeped in traditions. Their language predates human tongues, and is fiercely passed on to Eladrin young. There is an inherrent arrogance to Eladrins, by their very nature. They know they once ruled the world and no lesser race can ever strip them of that greatness.

Religion
Their religious beliefs are related to the Elven animistic traditions. They believe that all things, animate or inanimate are the projection of a higher archetypal Spirit form. These perfect forms are worshipped by the Elves and Eladrin in a very informal way. There is little organization, the way humans might with their gods; no churches or temples; few dedicated priests of the spirits.

Magic
The Eladrin are an inherently magical people. They believe magic is the force that binds creation together, and is a product of the spirits' interactions with the material plane.

Society
Eladrin society, today, is very loosely organized, as they have integrated themselves throughout human society. Still, within the human cities, Eladrin strictly adhere to social rankings amongst their own kind. It is a difficult thing for non-Eladrin to comprehend, as they seem to instinctively know whether a stranger sits above or below them is social standing. They have 8 different verb cases for greetings and social interactions, based on social rank. Improper estimation of rank is a grievous insult between Eladrin, though they are understanding that the lesser races don't comprehend their social structure.

History
Until roughly 3000 years ago, the Eladrin commanded a world-spanning Empire, so the stories say. The actual reasons behind it's collapse are shrouded in the fogs of history, obscured by fantastic stories and legends, and deliberate misdirection from Eladrin themselves. What is known is that they commanded great magical power, were unparalleled in military might, and included the Elven race as a near-slave worker people.