#*elvhen

the realest tragedy is the dark merrill mod bc it's just an athenril recolour and like she's hot but that's not my beautiful wife

like the chasind morrigan mod is completely perfect bc it's just morrigan w a very slightly different nose and perfect colouration but

the dark merrill mod literally looks as trash as most of the "make the character white" mods make the characters look... it's so sad...

tbh i'm ok with merrill not being dark like i love her and i love skin colour contrasts w my LIs but also i wish i could just

if i knew how to mod the ideal look i would give merrill the Look of my expansive headcanon elvhen ethnic group w estel/ru/tint's colouring

i have 2 very distinct ethnic subgroups in my head of darker skinned elves... ru/tint/estel are from one and laurelin/casper r from another

the first one is like. mediumdark tanned skin w orangey undertones, tends to have red or blonde hair, and green or gold eyes.

also wavycurly hair on the side of curlier than not. and lightly freckled but not excessively. they're prone to Strong Noses + cheekbones

but sorta roundier faces and larger eyes - they look very youthful but also in older age they get really Intense laughter lines

also their ears are more like. right or equilateral triangle than the stereotypical "knife ear" thing (see: ru's ears. they're Perfect)

the other group has typically more pointed chins and longer faces, skin is a few shades darker and more purple based than reddish based

they also freckle profusely and have incredibly course but still generally sort of straight hair. tend towards blue or grey or brown eyes

they usually have naturally dark hair and naturally light eyes which contrast heavily with their skin and hair, and strong eyebrows

their nose structure is also more petite than the other group is- long with a smaller tip, slightly more indented bridge (but only slightly)

their palms are lighter and their lips are sort of purply in tone too and they have pretty pronounced under eye circles All The Time

they scar very visibly - it raises as well as appears white on the skin. in elvhenan, elves of their colour might've done scarification

(scars on the other group are more typically indented) casper obviously takes after this group but doesn't look the part so much

casper has the freckles and the dark skin + the light eyes but his hair is naturally blond + his face is rounder (tho he's also just Young)

laurelin is much more classic of that ethnic group, also since he's older his features have settled a lot more. casper gets moreso w time?

tinuviel also comes from a specific ethnic group of elves in my mind but i've given that one slightly less thought bc she's the only i have

and bc the pc she resembles most heavily is Definitely naia - both were modeled to look more or less japanese

tho. tinuviel when she gets older for sure would look p much like. elvhen gong li. who is chinese. tho she has played japanese characters...

tbh i haven't given a ton of thought to tinuviel or naia's origins looks/ethnicitywise bc there's no asia equivalent At All (yet) in thedas

tho thinkin back to the merrill thing i guess it makes sense bc she was traded from a diff clan that she wouldn't b the majority ethnicity

like it actually makes a lot of sense?? bc most of the npcs in marethari's clan including her are... darker... hm

like mostly they're not quite fitting to my thoughts on that group i've designed estel, ru, and tint to be in, but they're Closer mostly??

which also i mean suits in general p well bc i would think families might carry stronger traits but. this is elvhen diaspora. so