In most lands, half-drow are rare. Since so many drow are irredeemably evil, they only mate with humans by way of rape or slavery. The only exception are the half-drow of the land of Dambrath in the Shining South, who arise from the centuries-old drow subjugation of the human folk of that land.
Half-drow have dusky skin, silver or white hair, and a broad range of eye colours. They are often just as dark-hearted as their elven parents, but with a bitter resentment that comes from knowing that they are considered second-class members of drow society. In human society, half-drow are distrusted nearly as much as their full-blooded cousins. Despite this, good half-drow are much less rare than good drow. Whether this has to do with the influence of their human blood, or the desire to rebel against the drow who treat them so poorly, is difficult to tell.
History: Around 500 years ago, the barbaric human kingdom of Dambrath warred with the powerful drow city-state of T’lindhet beneath the nearby Gnollwatch Mountains. When the drow won, they enslaved the humans of the region. Over the course of several human generations, the conquering dark elves took human lovers from their slaves, resulting in a large number of half-drow. Today, such people make up about 15% of the country’s population.
In time, the ruling drow nobles came to spend less and less time on the surface, returning to their subterranean city and leaving their surface conquests in the hands of their half-breed children. The great Houses of T’lindhet carved up the broad lands of Dambrath into their personal fiefs, and their half-drow scions served as good stewards for their vast estates. These great old families of half-drow rule Dambrath to this day, each nominally loyal to an ancient House of T’lindhet. Drow blood is a sign of power and wealth in Dambrath, but when the half-drow of the surface visit their ancientfamilies below the Gnollwatch Mountains, they find that their full-blooded drow relations treat them as inferiors.
Outlook: Dambrathan half-drow combine cold, condescending arrogance with secret shame. Although they consider themselves the better of the humans over which they rule, they know that their drow cousins feel similarly about them. They spend a great deal of time trying to prove themselves to everyone around them, including each other.
Many half-drow become adventurers to escape the bigotry they face in just about every community they find outside Dambrath. Dambrathans, on the other hand, often range far outside their homeland to garner the wealth and fame that can prove their superiority back home.
Characters: The half-drow of Dambrath are often fighters and wizards — two quick paths to power on the surface world. Unlike the caste-driven society their drow forebears came from, half-drow show all the adaptability of other half-elves. Accordingly, many of them opt to multiclass.
Favoured Class: The highest class a half-drow has is considered his favoured class.
Prestige Classes: Half-drow can use any prestige classes open to humans. They also have access to the arcane archer, spellslinger and bladesinger prestige classes.
Society: In Dambrathan society, half-drow are aristocrats by birth. They grow up pampered, but a great deal is expected of them. When they become adults, they must do their best to prove that they are worthy of their blood. If they fail, they disgrace their entire family, and may be disowned and expelled from the country in shame.
Elderly half-drow who have proved themselves can settle down and teach the younger ones what they know. Otherwise they must keep at their chosen profession until they finally are deemed worthy. In any event, elderly half-drow rarely live long after age begins to weaken them, since there are always younger relations hungry for the opportunity to claim the wealth and station of an aged half-drow.
Outside Dambrath, many half-drow are solitary souls, preferring to keep their own counsel than sully themselves with the opinions of others. Other times, they band together into a self-important group, often bullying those they feel they can intimidate.
Language: Half-drow speak Elven and the human tongue of their home region. If they were raised in the Underdark or Dambrath, they speak Undercommon. Otherwise, they speak Common.
All half-drow are literate, except for barbarians.
Magic: Half-drow can use the racial spells of both humans and drow. They have no spellcasting traditions of their own, however.
Common Magic Items: Due to Loviatar’s influence in Dambrath, magic whips can be purchased at a 10% discount from the half-drow.
Religion: Half-drow can choose any human or drow deity as a patron. Dambrathan half-drow almost always choose either a patron among the drow pantheon or, better yet, Loviatar. Good half-drow almost always take Eilistraee as their patron. For many half-drow of good heart, choosing Eilistraee is a compromise between both sides of their heritage, one that they can happily live with.
Loviatar’s faith has a peculiar place among the folk of Dambrath. This goddess of pain and suffering had a following in Dambrath before the drow conquered the land. In fact, without the aid of Loviatar’s cult, the drow might never have taken the country at all. In respect for her, the worship of Loviatar is still the official faith of Dambrath, and most half-drow who live there follow this line.
Relations: Most half-drow don’t get along well with anyone outside other half-drow. Dambrath is really the place for such people. Good half-drow are often friendly when approached with acceptance or understanding, but standoffish otherwise. They know all too well how most people feel about their drow kin and, by extension, them.
Equipment: Half-drow have no unusual racial equipment of their own. However, they can make use of any equipment or weapons special to humans or drow. They have a particular fondness for the hand crossbow.
Regions: The Dalelands, Dambrath
Note: Darkvision was removed in an errata documented in Drow of the Underdark (Page 220). Also, the +2 racial bonus for Diplomacy and Gather Information checks seems to be contrary to the note that most half-drow “don’t get along well with anyone outside other half-drow”. This half-elven trait has been removed. It is also absent from the Half-Drow traits listed in City of the Spider Queen (Page 147).
Source: Races of Faerûn (Page 62), Player’s Handbook (Page 18), Drow of the Underdark (Page 220)
Your character can be either male or female.
Every player character starts as an adult. You can choose or randomly generate your character’s age. If you choose it, it must be at least the minimum age for the character’s race and class (see Table: Starting Ages). Your character’s minimum starting age is the adulthood age of his or her race plus the number of dice indicated in the entry corresponding to the character’s race and class on Table: Starting Ages.
Alternatively, refer to Table: Starting Ages and roll dice to determine how old your character is.
| Adulthood | Intuitive1 | Self-Taught2 | Trained3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 years | +1d6 (21—26) years | +2d6 (22—32) years | +3d6 (23—38) years |
1 This category includes barbarians, rogues and sorcerers.
2 This category includes bards, fighters, paladins and rangers.
3 This category includes clerics, druids, monks and wizards.
With age, a character’s physical ability scores decrease and his or her mental ability scores increase (see Table: Aging Effects). The effects of each aging step are cumulative. However, none of a character’s ability scores can be reduced below 1 in this way.
| Middle Age1 | Old Age2 | Venerable3 | Maximum Age |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62 years | 93 years | 125 years | +3d20 years |
1 -1 to Strength, Dexterity and Constitution; +1 to Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma.
2 -2 to Strength, Dexterity and Constitution; +1 to Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma.
3 -3 to Strength, Dexterity and Constitution; +1 to Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma.
When a character reaches venerable age, the DM secretly rolls his or her maximum age, which is the number from the Venerable column on Table: Aging Effects plus the result of the dice roll indicated on the Maximum Age column on that table, and records the result, which the player does not know. A character who reaches his or her maximum age dies of old age at some time during the following year, as determined by the DM.
The maximum ages are for player characters. Most people in the world at large die from pestilence, accidents, infections or violence before getting to venerable age.
Choose your character’s height and weight from the ranges mentioned in the appropriate race description or from the ranges found on Table: Height and Weight. Think about what your character’s abilities might say about his or her height and weight. A weak but agile character may be thin. A strong and tough character may be tall or just heavy.
Alternatively, roll randomly for your character’s height and weight on Table: Height and Weight. The dice roll given in the Height Modifier column determines the character’s extra height beyond the base height. That same number multiplied by the dice roll or quantity given in the Weight Modifier column determines the character’s extra weight beyond the base weight.
| Gender | Base Height | Height Modifier | Base Weight | Weight Modifier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 4’ 7" | +2d8 (4’ 9"—5’ 11") | 100 lbs. | ×2d4 (104—228 lbs.) |
| Female | 4’ 5" | +2d8 (4’ 7"—5’ 9") | 80 lbs. | ×2d4 (84—208 lbs.) |
Source: Player’s Handbook (Page 109), Player’s Guide to Faerûn (Page 32)