Just as high, holy elves exist in Dungeons & Dragons lore, so too do the dark elves in the form of the drow. This is a highly controversial race of elves due to their inherently wicked, selfish, and perverse nature — none of which stops them from being playable both in tabletop and in video game mediums.
Over the years, however, they seem to have been gaining a slow but steady increase in popularity. One of the most popular dark elves in D&D right now is Drizzt Do'Urden, who is about to get his third official video game in the form of Dungeons & Dragons: Dark Alliance. D&D also released a narrated and animated short, told by none other than Benedict Cumberbatch himself. It's high time fans get more familiar with the drow.
10 Their Natural Aversion To Sunlight
The drow are practically vampires, but with more freedom to bask in the sunlight and no constricting need for blood. Their race is predisposed to live in the Underdark, D&D's huge underground network of a world where creepy and abnormal creatures reside.
Unlike vampires, they don't outright die or burn in the sunlight. Instead, it only weakens them, as they're sensitive to it after several thousands of years living underground. Most drow who venture out on the surface circumvent this weakness by wearing cloaks or robes during the daytime.
9 Their Creator, Lolth, Is Still Alive & Present
Most gods in D&D tend to make themselves scarce and uninvolved. However, Lolth, the goddess and creator of the drow, is very much present in the Underdark amongst her creations. She lives in her own area not too far off from Menzoberranzan, the capital city of the drow.
Thus, she keeps a close watch on the drow society. At times, she even goes as far as to censor lower drow deities or even figureheads out of fear or jealousy that they might overtake her. That way, Lolth maintains her supremacy with a hands-on approach.
8 They're A Matriarchal Society
Since Lolth is a female half-spider deity, she dictates how her creations are to function as a group and how their gender dynamics work. The drow society is dominantly matriarchal; males can't own property and can't have power unless they marry into it.
The drow women hence have more power, and are the only ones allowed to become lower deities or leaders. Even Lolth's son himself was never given privilege, despite his royal advantage. It's also generally believed that drow women are physically bigger or stronger than drow men.
7 Their Society Runs On Slavery
One reason why the drow are such a contentious race is their love of enslaving others. Most drow in the Underdark are xenophobic, and believe in their race's supremacy.
Hence, during their expeditions to the surface world of the Forgotten Realms, they always make sure to take human, dwarven, or even elven races as slaves. Some of the weaker or lower-status males in drow society are also subject to slavery.
6 The Drow Culture Is Counterproductive
In real-life and in other fantasy contexts, society is meant to be a sanctuary of social cooperation so that the members are safe and can live lawfully. Drow culture is different — it's the very antithesis of what a society is supposed to be.
Drows are encouraged to be selfish, antisocial, animalistic, treacherous, and even murderous towards one another and other races. Lolth herself is the flagbearer of these qualities. With such a structure, some players might even question how they lasted more than a month functioning like that.
5 They're More Attractive Than Other Elves
Since the drow pride themselves in being a superior race, they also believe in Social Darwinism or survival of the fittest. Thus, their females chose their breeding mates with high standards. This selective breeding resulted in higher beauty standards among the drow, making the typical appearance of a dark elf more attractive compared even to other types of elves.
They used this beauty abusively, most often to instill fear among their ranks and to seduce as a manipulation tactic. Still, even some of the races or civilizations in the surface world become so enamored with the usual drow's beauty that they become more accepting towards them.
4 Some Become Disillusioned, Leading To Kindness
Not all of the drow take after their kin. Some, around 10 - 15 percent of their society, reject the drow norm. Many cave under the drow's perverse social pressure, compelling them to pretend to be unpleasant.
There are outliers in the drow society, especially those that fall upon the "good" or "neutral" moral alignment of D&D. One such character in the Chaotic Good category is the legendary adventurer Drizzt Do'Urden. He did openly admit his lack of adherence to drow customs, making him a prime target of his kin. Similar things happen to other dissenters.
3 They're A Bit Short
Some might think that the drow's selective breeding would result in them being taller or more fit than other races. However, living without the sunlight has its disadvantages. The average drow height ranges from 4′7″ to 5′5″, or 140 to 170 cm.
This is significantly shorter than the human average in D&D, or even the elven average. In fact, based on D&D lore, drow are only slightly taller than dwarfs on average. Still, that shorter stature can help them be more stealthy, especially during raids.
2 Mind Flayers Fear Them
The Mind Flayers or Illithids are perhaps the most troublesome denizens of the Underdark, but even they don't dare cross the drow. Apparently, the Mind Flayers fear the drow's military might and magic, and the fact that they also inhabit the Underdark.
Due to this, the Mind Flayers decided to coexist with the drow in the Underdark by bartering a non-aggression pact with Menzoberranzan. They simply fear or cannot afford a war with Lolth or the drow city. Still, that doesn't stop them from preying on rogue drow groups or teams who have wandered too far or are on the surface.
1 Attempts To Change The Racist Stereotype
In line with the most recent social issues involving racism, Wizards of the Coast are trying to reimagine some races that they deem to perpetuate certain racist stereotypes. Among these races are the dark elves.
The drow, in particular, have been depicted as evil or villainous with a dark skin tone. Two of Wizards of the Coast's new books D&D books, Eberron: Rising from the Last War and Explorer’s Guide to Wildemount placed the drow and the orcs in a different light. These materials portray a culturally complex race, instead of breeding grounds for villains.