Half-Elf

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Half-Elves are, (duh) the children of humans and elves. They maintain many of the characteristics their elvish and human parents, only watered down: For example, they live a wee bit longer than humans (they don't hit venerable until they're over 100 years old) but remain vigorous to the end like the elves.

Typically the combination is human father/elven mother (for reasons outlined on the elf page). Also, the elven parent is almost always a high or wood elf; half-drow, merrows, gray elves, and what-not are incredibly rare unless there's either a Drizzt clone on the prowl, using his/her inexplicably potent sexual charisma to pour forth their tainted seed upon the land to trouble the weary world, or were talking about a Drow male (Females would lack the fertility to make it as likely) "Playing" with his slaves, so we could expect a lot more Drow Half Elves then other kinds.

Like half-orcs, enjoy a lot of the versatility of humans in Pathfinder, with a floating +2 bonus to any stat they like, free skill focus in any one skill, and the ability to select multiple classes as "favored" for the purposes of multiclassing, while getting elven bonuses to their Will saves and low-light vision. One particularly cool alternate ability lets them trade in skill focus to gain training in any one exotic weapon they like, just in case you always wanted to try an urumi or falcata but didn't wanna spring the feat for it.

In 4e, they have a +2 Constitution (from their human parentage), and a choice of +2 Wis or +2 Cha (presumably from Elven parentage). They make shitty rangers, which is also bizarre considering they're descended from the one race that can do it right. They do make pretty amazing bards, and half-elf bards have a specific paragon path dedicated to them.

In 5e, they get a +2 to Charisma, and two +1s in any two other stats, making them good at being Sorcerers and Bards, as they are the only race other than Tieflings who get Charisma. They also retain many elven traits. Also, they can grow beards, which is explicitly mentioned in the PH. This makes half-elves twice as manly as regular elves (two times zero is still zero).

On the other hand, they can warlord like a boss and they get a free encounter power from any class other than their own. If you like trawling through setting guides and back issues of magazines (or have CBLoader), half-elves are the class for you. The only downside is, you're playing a race with "elf" in the name, and nobody wants that.

An interesting example of half-elfish people are the race of numenor in the Silmarilion whos king was Elros Tar-Minyatur son of Eärendil and Elwing both half elves. Who were characterized by extremly long lives an irrational fear of death, being tricked by sauron into self-destruct and are the race from whom the people of gondor descended.

Get your DM to let you be half-dorf instead. Makes more sense, crunch-to-fluff-wise, and lets you be a race that's actually got a little man in it. See also Half-dwarf.

Also, if you ask to play a mixture of an elf and a dorf, your DM reserves the right to punt your nuts to Mars.