“I’m not ‘half’ anything. You humans come from Sarlona. The elves are from Aerenal. Me? I’m a true child of Khorvaire.” – Nandon Tam, Khoravar activist

Half-elves share the continent of Khorvaire with the other common races. When the elves first came to the continent and began mingling with the human settlers, the first half-elves were born. Over time, half-elves gathered and formed two distinct family groups- the groups that eventually became House Lyrandar and House Medani.

For two thousand years, the half-elves of Khorvaire have possessed a culture and society of their own. Occasionally, elves and humans still produce half-elves, but those belonging to the two half-elf Dragonmarked Houses breed true as a race of their own.

Lands

The half-elves of Khorvaire don’t control any nations but their houses and guilds command key services for many countries. The first of these Houses formed about two thousand years ago, around the time of the appearance of the dragonmark of Storm. The second house came into its own five hundred years later and may have been an offshoot of the original half-elf community. Both groups weathered the War of the Mark and the Last War, and today half-elves with connections to both Houses can be found in nearly every nation of Khorvaire.

Power Groups

Two main groups have tremendous power within half-elf communities. House Lyrandar holds the Mark of Storm, thus half-elves run both the powerful Windwrights Guild and the Raincallers Guild. Together these guilds dominate
shipping, travel, and agriculture.

House Medani is less influential in politics, but it commands the business of personal protection due to the Mark of Detection it bears. The house members’
sterling reputations and stalwart guardianship have earned them many friends in high places.