Fae, or Faelings

The are the rough equivalent to Menelonian fairies. Except for a few scholars in the field of interdimensional studies, humans know very little about them. They are of the chaos realm and are agents of it, regardless of temperament or outlook.

Pronounced "fee" or "fee-ling." The sound of the "ae" diphthong is repeated in the words below:

• Daelings are fae that are by nature somewhat kindly disposed toward humankind.
• Graelings are the vast majority of fae, and are disposed neutrally toward humankind though this can be influenced from moment to moment by interaction with them.
• Baelings are fae who are so malignantly aligned towards all life that they can be properly classed as minor demons.

The fae can manifest almost anywhere, at any time, though they tend to congregate in elven woods where powerful "faeling circles" are present. These interdimensional portals are closely guarded by the elves, and the fae tend to use them as superhighways to travel the worlds.

Fae do not normally appear to any of the mortal races, but can be caught and observed unawares. They may disappear when they realize they are being watched, or shift appearance to look like a wisp of smoke or a cloud of mist, or they may stay and chat for awhile, especially if it's a daeling and the human thought to bring along a bribe.

Among humans, it's considered risky to have dealings with the fae. Many of the malevolent types can shapeshift almost at will, and baelings will often masquerade as daelings or even graelings to cause chaos and confusion among mortalkind.

Faeling Circles

Within each elven wood is a "faeling circle," an interdimensional portal that is maintained and used by the elves for study and for interdimensional travel. The circles are also studied by human scholars, and some can be found living in proximity to the woods where they occur, but the elves are otherwise very protective of these places, and restrict access to them to those who have earned their trust. The biggest, most powerful *faeling* circles that are known to exist above-ground are in the wood of Tinhellerin and the Sylantian Wood. Less powerful circles exist in the elven wood in Fernwall, and in the elven enclave on the Sea of Orahn,  and there are numerous dimensional "soft spots" all over the planet, most of which are unusable to the elves in their current state.