Green-eyed elves only others eye colors need not apply?

[Brother Shatterstone]

I'm sure this has been noticed before but I'm not sure if it's been commented on. This descriptions are out of the players handbook both 3rd edition and 3.5 edition as they their descriptions have not changed. Note: I did shorten them where I have seen need to do as I didn't see the need for the whole physical description to be on here.

Elf (3rd: pg 15, 3.5: pg 15)

Physical Description: Elves are short and slim, standing about 4 1/2 to 51/2 feet tall and typically weighing 85 to 135 pounds, with elven men the same height as and only marginally heavier than elven women. They are graceful but frail. They tend to be pale-skinned and dark-haired, with deep green eyes. Elves have no facial or body hair. Countines but it doesn't address eye color again...

Well it does say tends which isn't a bad thing but it gets more precise in the half elf description.

Half-elf (3rd: pg 15; 3.5: pg 18)

Physical Description: To humans, half-elves look like elves. To elves, they look like humans, (indeed, elves call them "half humans"), half-elven height ranges from under 5 feet to almost 6 feet tall, and weight usually ranges from 90 to 180 pounds. Half-elven men are taller and heavier than half-elven women, but the difference is less, pronounced than that found among humans. Half-elves are paler, fairer, and smoother-skinned than their human parents, but their actual skin tone, hair color, and other details vary just as human features do. Half-elves' eyes are green, just as are those of their elven parents. A half-elf reaches adulthood at age 20 and can live to be over 180 years old. Most half-elves are the children of human-elf pairings. Some, however, are the children of parents who themselves are partly human and partly elven. Some of these "second generation" half-elves have humanlike eyes, but most still have green eyes.

Sounds like it's set in stone....

When did they change it to all elves have green eyes and maybe more importantly why?

 

[Crothian]

Forest Camo

This is news to me, and it does seem like an odd thing.

 

[BiggusGeekus@Work]

See? And the old-school gamers maintain that 1e is a better system. What do you have to say about changes like this, guys? Huh?!?! Man, it's like a whole new game!

But seriously....

I'm of the opinion that such descriptions should be removed entirely. C.J. Cherryh once noted that if you describe a protagonist for the reader, it can inhibit the reader's ability to epmphsize with the character. People like their own mental images of things and being told "green, not brown" can throw people off. Why do that if it in no way affects the plot (or adventure)? It isn't like there's a race of evil red-eyed elves out there that a character with red-green colorblindness might fall prey to. It's uncessesary flavor text.

In my arrogant opinion, of course.

 

[Wolfspider]

 

[Moe Ronalds]

I think the boards ate most of your post. Care to explain what you meant?

 

[HeavyG]

See? And the old-school gamers maintain that 1e is a better system. What do you have to say about changes like this, guys? Huh?!?! Man, it's like a whole new game!

High elves had green eyes and brown hair in 1E too, no ?

 

[Wippit Guud]

What's wrong with a race all having the same color of eyes?

Go wat Star Trek, every Betazoid has black eyes. So it's not like this is a D&D-only phenonenom

 

[Aaron L]

It's been this way since 1E, yes.

 

[Amrynn Moonshadow]

"but i have grey eyes!"

- elf guy from that Deadalewives mp3 (you know the one about the cheetohs and casting magic missile to attack the darkness, which apparently summons 'ogres all around you')

 

[BiggusGeekus@Work]

Actually, I could have sworn that 1e elves had grey eyes.

But then elves in D&D can't go on a family vacation for 2 weeks without coming back as a subrace, so who knows?