Sidhe
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The literal translation of the elvish word "sidhe" is "noble". And thus, to non-elves, that's what sidheare - the nobles of the elves. But while this is undoubtedly true, it is not the whole of the truth.

When a newborn child is born to one of the elven noble houses, its house arranges for a special ceremony which must take place no later than one month after the birth, preferably at the next full moon. This ceremony - called the "Taressa Elonil", or "Blessing of the Stars" - is based on ancient pacts with the powers of Faerie and turns the elven child into an sidhe and allows it to access the powers of that plane. This ceremony is vital for receiving its inheritance - without it, it will remain a "common" elf for the rest of its life. In rare cases, an sidhe house will adopt the children born to elven commoners - usually when its parents have done the house a great service - but this adoption will only be valid if these children are blessed within the usual time span after birth. In such cases, the children - now sidhe - are considered to be members of the noble house that adopted them even if they continue to live with their parents (though the sponsoring house will usually arrange for better education and training).

Sidhe from Narevoreen are generally well-liked by their subjects and seen as competent leaders, although the recent political changes have begun to sow seeds of doubt. The sidhe from Avareen are usually rather arrogant and resented by the commoners behind their backs, but as they comprise almost half of the elven population of that realm and most have few hopes of achieving genuine political power, many are quite willing to travel abroad in search of their destiny. As Tuvareen has recently lost the favor of Faerie, its noble houses are unable to create new sidhe, and unless the favor of Faerie can be regained somehow, the sidhe currently coming of age in that realm will be the last of their kind.

Other races are usually unable to distinguish between common elves and sidhe usually react depending on the dress and manner of the sidhe they encounter, as well as their impression of elves in general.

List of Articles about Sidhe

Adventure Ideas

Designer's Notes & Resources

Like the dragonborn and the tieflings, the eladrin (now renamed "sidhe") were one of the new player character races which I had to shoehorn into Urbis somehow. Eventually, I ended up with the idea of eladrin as normal elves "blessed" with the power of Faerie at birth and comprising the nobility of the elven kingdoms. Not only did this allow me to retcon eladrin into the setting, but it also made the social and political dynamics of the elven realms far more interesting. Finally, it gave me the inspiration I needed to create the dark elves of Urbis, which are similar to the standard D&D drow to occupy a similar niche within the game setting, yet different enough to be fascinating in their own right.

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