I started to play DnD in 1st Edition. Because such, some things from 1st Edition I have kept. For example, lifespan of races. I still use the lifespan chart from 1st Edition. The only changes on this chart is difference types of races. For example, this chart is made up of the most common elf, the High elf. Wood elves live a little shorter, while Grey elves live a lot longer. It is very common to find Grey elves that are over 2,000 years old. This is why elves tend to make friends with human families and will be the families friend for generation, to them the lifespan of a human is so brief. The elf never actually matures and ages with the human. This is why elves and dwarves have such a love hate relationship. Outside of their respective races, they do not have many other races that can comprehend what it is like to live for centuries. There is a saying among elves and how they see their relationship with humans, "What is the difference in a casual friend and a close true friend? A few centuries." The lifespan listed again are for the most common representatives of each species. In game-play, this really only come into focus during backstories or when talking about past events. For example, Felosial saying that she has been fighting evil for 300 years and yet is still not quite middle age. Her sister which is an Aasimar/elf hybrid is 62 years old. Slayers and Charidess, two prominent Drow that are in the capital of Citadel that are 457 and 226 years old respectively. This explains why there are citizens of Forenna and Everland that lived during the great war and clearly remember the atrocities of it. Human settlements tend to have a different view of the great war, since they are so man generations separated from the event. This huge variance in lifespan is one of the reasons that the humans have moved more apart from the old ways. Think of it like this, modern day Americans and Colonial Americans during the revolution. Our attitudes have completely changed. My grandmother, which was born in 1910, remember when she was a child that they did not ever use call the German measles by that name because of the bad blood that existed during that time. Instead, it was called the Freedom measles. Yes, before there was Freedom fries, there was Freedom Measles. All of my great uncles served either in the Navy or Marines during World War II, one of my uncles was upon a ship that was sunk by the Japanese. He spent the rest of his life in a wheelchair, his lower abdomen pushed up into his upper chest cavity. While I was in high school, I met someone that would become a lifelong friend until his early death from stomach cancer, Bob Tsai. When I brought Bob over to my house to play computer games and hang out, my grandmother was very standoffish, after he left she very vocally voiced her disapproval of my friendship with Bob due to him being Asian. Prejudices ran deep to those that lost friends and families in wars. Before the great war, a Drow seneschal or a Drow Captain of the King's guard would be unheard of, now it is a accepted thing as every day life. So even though Drow and some other races are more accepted among the populace, there is distrust and hatred from those that have carry grudges versus various races. Again, not all Drow are good, not by a long shot, but over the centuries Drow societies for the most part have shifted from Chaotic Evil to more of a Chaotic Neutral settlement. Also, due to Charidess and Slayers holding the positions they do within the hierarchy, it has inspired other Drow to turn away from Lloth and the Underdark. But, do not be too comfortable. Menzoberranzan is alive and well and is home to over 5 million Lloth followers. So, do not assume all Drow are evil, or they are reformist. Drow and Wood can live up to 1600 years, use the High Elf Chart, Grey elves can live up to 2000 years. Grey Elves use the High elf chart, except they hit old age 1200, Venerable at 1600, and have a maximum lifespan of 2000. Most fey, such as Nymphs, Dryads, and Treants are Immortal. They follow the High elf chart, except they hit middle age and stay at middle age. Centuars have a shorter lifespan than elves, but much longer than humans. They follow the Half-elf chart. Race Version Adulthood Middle Age Old Age Venerable Variance Maximum Age Human 1e 21 41 61 91 120 2e 15 45 60 90 +2d20 130 V3 15 35 53 70 +2d20 110 Dwarf 1e 51 151 251 351 450 2e 40 125 167 250 +2d100 450 V3 40 125 188 250 +2d100 450 Elf 1e (Drow) 101 401 601 801 1000 1e (High) 176 551 876 1201 1600 2e 100 175 233 350 +4d100 750 V3 110 175 263 350 +4d100 750 Gnome 1e 91 301 451 601 750 2e 60 100 133 200 +3d100 500 V3 40 100 150 200 +3d100 500 Half-elf 1e 41 101 176 251 325 2e 15 62 83 125 +3d20 185 V3 20 62 93 125 +3d20 185 Half-orc 1e 16 31 46 61 80 2e V3 14 30 45 60 +2d10 80 Halfling 1e 34 69 102 145 199 2e 20 50 67 100 +1d100 200 V3 20 50 75 100 +5d20 200
