Thyrellos - Elven Races

Elves, like any other race, have their own "subraces". These subraces have developed due to the chosen home of these people. They have different physical characteristics, also different racial traits, as none of the other Elves are as adept in magic as the High Elves etc. Their lifespan also differs, High Elves are virtually immortal, as they cannot die of old age (but can die of illnesses, wounds, trauma etc.), and City Elves can live up to ~300 years. The lifespan decreases in the order the subraces are represented.

The difference in lifespan is mostly due to the fact that Elves are magical creatures, and are very connected to nature and life. Thus, the more remotely they live from magic, nature and life, the shorter their lifespan. High Elves live near forests and choose places for their cities that are rich in magical energies. Even though Dark Elves live deep below the surface, in the belly of mountains, but they are the closest relatives of High Elves (having been  so adept in the dark arts that they have been able to retain most of their longevity, though they are no longer immortal in that aspect. Desert Elves have the second shortest lifespan, then Flame Elves because they live in places where magic and iife quite scarce.

Short descriptions:
High Elves - The elder ones, the original Elves, who are highly adept in magic and may live virtually forever. And thus, superiority complex runs in their blood... They mostly have blonde or white hair, and very long pointed ears.
Dark Elves - Cursed by the God of Light for worshipping the Dark One. Their skin is coal black, their hair are black, grey or white, and they gradually become weaker if exposed to sunlight. That's why they dwell in caverns.
Sea Elves - Driven by their love for the sea and all its creatures, these Elves live on the shores, in floating cities or on ships travelling the endless seas. Although they are adept magic users, they're most known as merchants and pirates.
Forest Elves - They live hidden, deep inside forests, usually in small towns built upon the trees, connected by bridges. They are said to be very territorial and very unfrendly to tresspassers. They are masters of stealth and poisons.
Mountain Elves - They are probably the thickest-built of all the races, though not the physically strongest. They live upon mountains, or sometimes inside them, but they like the sunshine and the cold.
Flame Elves - Their names comes from the fact that their mana takes on the fire element almost all the time, and they live near volcanic mountains, building their settlements around lava lakes. They are the strongest of the Elves, the "builders" and "warriors".
Desert Elves - As their name suggests, they can be found in deserts. They are also most well-known for being merchants, but they are also very good treasure hunters and historics. Many ruins found deep in the desert have been found thanks to Deser Elves.
City Elves - The "lowest" of the Elves. They are the result of Elves moving into the big Human settlements after the Humans stepped foot in their lands. The two races mixed together, so these Elves have a much shorter lifespan than High Elves and also have close to zero magic affinity.

--------
The ideas and the art belongs to (c)
I used RaikaiRan's tutorial to draw the head as I was short on time. So thank you.