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| ====== Drow ====== | ====== Drow ====== |
| {{ placeholder |}} | {{ :wiki:drow.png |}} |
| ^ Drow ^ | ^ Drow ^ |
| | Height: 150 to 180 | | | Height: 160–180 cm | |
| | Attribute Modifiers: +2 Dexterity, +2 Charisma, –2 Constitution | | | Attribute Modifiers: +2 Dexterity, +2 Charisma, –2 Constitution | |
| | Language: Elven, Undercommon | | | Languages: Common, Elven, Undercommon | |
| | Common Cultures: [[Drow Noble Houses]], [[Underdark Cities]], [[Surface Exiles]] | | | Cultures: [[Cavern Drow]], [[House Drow]], [[Underdark Outcasts]] | |
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| | [[https://www.aonprd.com/RacesDisplay.aspx?ItemName=Drow|Archives of Nethys: Drow]] |
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| === Overview === | === Overview === |
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| **Male Names:** Arcavato, Drovic, Firyin, Kaelmourn, Mirrendier, Pharnox, Syrendross, Zov. | Male Names: Arcavato, Drovic, Firyin, Kaelmourn, Mirrendier, Pharnox, Syrendross, Zov |
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| **Female Names:** Belmarniss, Cylellinth, Ilvaria, Johysis, Loscivia, Tyvorhan, Ulumbralya, Volundeil. | Female Names: Belmarniss, Cylellinth, Ilvaria, Johysis, Loscivia, Tyvorhan, Ulumbralya, Volundeil |
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| Cruel and cunning, drow are a dark reflection of the elven race. Also called dark elves, they dwell deep underground in elaborate cities carved from cyclopean caverns. Drow seldom make themselves known to surface folk, preferring to remain legends while advancing their sinister agendas through proxies and agents. While not innately evil, malignancy runs deep in drow culture, and nonconformists rarely survive long. Some tales suggest that an especially hateful elf could become a drow, though such transformations are exceptionally rare and require profound depravity. | Drow are elves twisted by time, circumstance, and the influence of malevolent forces in the depths of Golarion. Originating from surface elves who refused to abandon their homeland during the Age of Legend, they retreated into the Deep Dark of the Calphiak Mountains. There, exposure to subterranean energies and the awakened influence of Rovagug corrupted their appearance and nature. The resulting drow possess dark, often lavender-hued skin, red or pale eyes, and an inherent drive toward cunning and ambition. |
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| | Half-drow, born of drow and human parents, inherit some of these traits but are often seen as outsiders in both human and drow societies. They are rare and frequently stigmatized, though they may carry latent potential for leadership or magical talent. |
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| == Physical Description: == | == Physical Description == |
| Drow are similar in stature to humans but retain the slender build and delicate features of elves, including long, pointed ears. Their eyes lack pupils and are usually solid white or red. Skin ranges from coal black to dusky purple, and hair is typically white or silver, though variations exist. Their appearance is striking, often unnerving, and marks them unmistakably as a separate elven lineage. | |
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| | Drow share the slender, graceful frame of their elven ancestors but are smaller on average than surface elves. Their skin ranges from deep violet to ashen lavender, and their hair is usually white, silver, or pale gray. Eyes are strikingly red, white, or pale blue, lacking visible pupils. Drow move with a natural agility, and their features often carry an unsettling perfection. They favor elegant, dark clothing that blends with the shadows of their underground homes. |
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| == Society: == | == Society == |
| Drow society is traditionally class-oriented and matriarchal. Male drow usually fulfill martial roles, defending their communities, while female drow assume positions of authority and governance. Noble houses define drow politics, each led by a matriarch and composed of lesser families, military companies, and business interests. Each house typically venerates a demon lord patron. | |
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| Drow culture is one of ambition, intrigue, and ruthlessness. Common drow seek favor with the noble houses, while the nobility consolidates power through assassination, seduction, treachery, and manipulation. Social mobility is perilous, and survival often depends on cunning and duplicity. | Drow society is matriarchal and hierarchical, governed by noble houses led by powerful female leaders. Male drow often serve martial or specialized roles, while female drow hold positions of authority, magical mastery, and political influence. Houses engage in elaborate schemes, intrigue, and rivalries, often under the patronage of a demon lord. Power, cunning, and ambition are prized above all else. Drow who fail to conform to societal expectations risk exile or death. |
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| | == Relations with Other Races == |
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| == Relations: == | Drow maintain a strong sense of superiority over other races, treating many as tools or inferiors. They tolerate or even ally with races that share their ambitions or cunning, such as hobgoblins or orcs, but harbor deep hatred toward elves and surface dwellers. Half-drow are generally distrusted, even within drow communities. Despite this, drow may cooperate with other underground races when mutually beneficial. |
| Drow have a strong sense of racial superiority and divide non-drow into slaves and potential slaves. They may cooperate with races like hobgoblins and orcs who align with their goals, but races such as dwarves, gnomes, and halflings are often treated harshly. Drow delight in exploiting human weaknesses and harbor particular enmity for surface elves, viewing them as rivals to be subverted or destroyed. Curiosity and cautious interest exist toward other shadow-adapted races, like fetchlings. | |
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| | == Alignment and Beliefs == |
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| == Alignment and Religion: == | Most drow lean toward chaotic evil, valuing power, survival, and personal gain above compassion. They channel emotion and passion through ambition, manipulation, and sometimes violence. While some drow worship deities of darkness or trickery, others follow philosophies emphasizing personal power, strategy, and cunning over divine intervention. |
| Drow emphasize power, survival, and self-interest. Compassion is rare, and enemies are treated with cruelty or manipulation. Most drow are chaotic evil, channeling elven passions through hatred, vengeance, lust for power, and carnal pleasures. Deities, when venerated, are often those associated with darkness, trickery, or domination, though many drow follow no god at all. | |
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| | == Adventurers == |
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| == Adventurers: == | Drow often become adventurers due to exile, personal ambition, or the pursuit of power. Males tend toward stealth, martial, or arcane-focused roles, while females often assume magical or leadership-oriented classes. Both genders excel at spellcasting, manipulation, and strategy. Half-drow adventurers often seek acceptance or mastery over the powers inherited from their drow ancestry. |
| Driven to expand territory or exact vengeance, drow adventurers are often spies, soldiers, or agents of their houses. Males tend toward martial or stealth classes, such as fighters, rogues, or rangers. Females gravitate toward leadership or arcane-focused roles, including clerics, bards, wizards, or summoners. Innate magical talent makes drow effective spellcasters, while their natural agility and cunning support both combat and subterfuge roles. | |
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