Light Elves

The Light Elves, known also as the Ljosalfar, were one of the two factions of Elves who inhabited Alfheim. Luminous beings who claimed to be the rightful owners of the Light, they were locked in an ancient war with the Dark Elves for dominion of that power, a conflict that drew Kratos and Atreus into Alfheim.

A people of light#

The Light Elves were beautiful and luminous beings, with perfect skin of light gray, marble white, and pearly white, and bright eyes of pink, gray, and light blue. They bore pointed ears and horns which they seemed to have shaved down, decorating them with white veils, and they dressed in fine fabrics of white and light blue, often veiling their faces. Their warriors wore armor and masks imbued with light, and bore golden face masks that matched their true faces down to the scar-like lines all Elves shared. Unlike the Dark Elves, the Light Elves had no wings, yet their deep connection to the magical Light of Alfheim let them levitate and fly through the air all the same. That same bond made them masterful builders of light and let them conjure weapons of pure light, including swords, knives, and cannons. Though they first appeared a peaceful people with little taste for combat, they proved in time to be powerful warriors.

The war for the Light#

It was never known which race of Elves had come first, and that very uncertainty kindled the conflict between the Light Elves and the Dark Elves for dominion of the Light of Alfheim. The truth of the schism was that, centuries before, the two peoples had been equals, until some among the Elves discovered the Light of the Lake of Souls. They built a temple to harness its energy and grew obsessed with their newfound power, finding new ways to express themselves through art and invention. But the prosperity came at a cost as the realm's Living Desert began to wither, and those who deemed the price too high turned against them, spawning the violent cycle of conflict. Those who lingered in the Light were permanently changed into Light Elves.

The tide turned when the Vanir Freyr, who had a long history with the Elves, took their side in the war and was named their overlord and absolute leader, given residence in their realm. Under him the Light Elves enjoyed their longest mastery of the Light. The Light Elves also kept a presence beyond their own realm; they helped build Tyr's Temple in Midgard, designing its solid light bridges and granting the Light that powered the Realm Travel Bridge, and a gateway of their making guarded the River Pass leading to the Lake of Nine.

Kratos and Atreus in Alfheim#

When Freyr mysteriously vanished, the Light Elves were left without his aid and fell to losing the war. Many were forced to retreat and seal themselves within Freyr's Temple, expecting their missing lord to return and rescue them. By the time Kratos and Atreus arrived in Alfheim, the corpses of Light Elves lay scattered throughout the realm, and the father and son witnessed the Dark Elves murdering many of them without provocation. When the two outsiders released the Light of Alfheim and the Light Elves along with it, the first thought of the freed Elves was to seek out their missing Vanir lord.

Ragnarok and the aftermath#

In the years that followed, still unable to find Freyr, the Light Elves added new defenses to their Ringed Temple, empowered themselves further with the Light, and grew hostile toward all outsiders. When Kratos and Atreus next ventured into Alfheim, the Light Elves met them as enemies. At last Freyr returned to the realm and convinced the Elves to set aside their hatred; the Light Elves formed a truce with the Dark Elves, and both peoples joined the army Kratos had gathered for the invasion of Asgard. In the battle of Ragnarok, however, the formidable Asgardian forces overwhelmed them, and the Light Elves lost most of their number. Though a few survived the destruction of Asgard, no Light Elf was seen in Alfheim again.