Elves, Gnomes, and Mutability

Both the elves and the gnomes of Terafa (and also the ælves and goblins, of course) are arrivals on Terafa from another realm - from the Feywild in the case of the elves, with the origin of gnomes being more open to dispute. Both of these are extremely mutable creatures, who have retained some part of the mercurical nature of the plane that formed them.

In the case of the elves, they can perhaps be regarded as noble trees, growing tall, strong, and straight - beautiful, magestic, and proud. The goblins, on the other hand, are a much more fecund and hardy breed - they tend to be much more wrinkled and twisted, like shrubs, fungi, or otherwise life of the many varieties found in the woods (or the seas, mountains, or even under the earth).

One consequence of the mutability of both elves and gnomes is that they are much less fixed and permanent in appearance, albeit within certain bounds.

Elves have a variety of skin tones and colourations, though these tend to be both colours found in nature, and also not those found amongst humans - elven skin ranges from a rue white to a true black, through all manner of greens, golds, browns, and even blues and violet. It's worth noting also that elven skin colouration is not fixed. (Tattoos are therefore extremely rare amongst elves, fading quickly in any case. However, many if not most elves have various whorls and marks on skin that are much the same in aesthetic impact as tattoos are amongst humans - indeed, it is entirely possible that the practice of tattooing amongst humans was inspired by the elves.)

The same impermanence also gives elves the ability to heal small hurts more fully than humans, albeit over a fairly long time. For that reason, elves very seldom have scars, and even then only for a time. Even missing fingers, toes, ears, and even eyes and hands can eventually regrow.

Gnomes and goblins are similarly variable in their appearance, although humans tend to be blissfully unaware of any changes. Gnomes and goblins tend to become more wrinkled and bent as they age, and they generally grow all manner of lumps, hairs, and other growths. It is not at all uncommon for gnomes and goblins to have six or even more fingers or toes on one or more of their limbs. Additionally, gnomes and, especially, goblins regrow teeth at a prodigious rate, and even grow additional teeth wherever a space may be found.

In terms of skin colouration, gnomes and goblins are much more mutable than elves as a collective, but much less mutable as individuals. That is, gnomes and goblins of any and all colours may be found, mostly in tones similar to the environment around them. And, indeed, a goblin may not be of a single colour - stripes, spots, and other marks are very common. However, once a gnome or goblin reaches adulthood, their skin colouration remains fixed for the remainder of the life.

In much the same way, gnomes and goblins have the ability to heal many small hurts, but this trait manifests rather differently for them than for elves - goblins scar readily, and tend to remain scarred, but they are seldom impeded by these lasting marks. Likewise, a maimed goblin won't regrow a lost finger or toe... but is likely to grow an entirely new finger or toe to replace it. Thus their limbs remain entirely functional, despite sometimes looking like a mismatched collection of parts - though, of course, that is entirely a judgement made by humans, and who is to say that human notion of aesthetics is of any real merit?