Wood Elves

Wood elves, otherwise known as V'ael elves, Veil elves, mist elves, or Tarquenhriim, are the oldest and most reclusive of the elven races in Collabris. Very few leave the mysterious forests of V'ael and fewer still interact with other cultures. They view themselves as the protectors of the ancient dire oaks and the forests that surround them. They're known to live for millennia, if not eternally, as the magical mists of V'ael have an effect on them as they do on most things they touch.

Description
Wood elves are easily identifiable by their tan skin and green, brown, or hazel eyes. Wood elven hair is usually black or brown, although hues such as blond or copper red are also found. Wood elves tend to dress in simple clothes, with few bold colors and a greater number of earth tones that blend into their natural surroundings. Wood elves are roughly identical to other elves in height and build, with males larger than females.

Personality
As a people, wood elves are largely seen as calm and level-headed. Many have a strong aversion for large cities, having lost their passion for urbanization after the end of the Golden Age. To wood elves, the trappings of civilization, including the mightiest of fortresses or tallest walls, are transient and impermanent things that will eventually be overcome by the long processes of nature. To many, this attitude seems condescending, weakening the bonds between wood elves and other races. Additionally, wood elves could sometimes seem off-putting compared to other elves, with a gruff manner that makes them less charismatic, despite their avowed compassion and humility.

Culture
Families are matrilineal. This basically means that a wood elf's surname comes from their mother's side as opposed to their father's. The also tend to live in the house of their mother until they marry and either move into a house of their own or the house of their wife in the case of men. Marriages don't often last much longer than a few centuries before couples divorce and remarry. Men will often live in the house of their sister or mother when they are unmarried so that they can care for their nieces and nephews. Fathers are typically viewed in the same light as a human would view their uncle; not always entirely necessary for growth and development, but welcomed into the home just the same. Uncles instead play the role of "father figures" in that they play a much stronger role in raising their sister's children. Wood elf society is otherwise fairly egalitarian in that both men and women can serve the same function in society without bias for one or the other. A man can stay home to cook and clean just as a woman can go out to hunt.