Elves have red blood.

[doofus-01]

(Sorry if this is addressed somewhere already, I couldn't find it.)

Do elves have red blood like regular mammals? Or do the magical fairy elves get filled with some magical green aether, while the fighter-type elves have red blood?

I know Wesnoth avoids gore, but it still seems like something that would come up, if it hasn't already.

Thanks.

[thespaceinvader]

I don't see any reason why they wouldn't have red blood. I'd say go ahead and make their blood red.

[StDrake]

I'd say if males have red blood, females shouldn't differ that much, could be a different shade or hue shifted a little bit, but still they're "magified" not totally magical beings, so some kind of red should show

[johndh]

There doesn't seem to be any indication of what color elven blood is, but it's certainly easiest to suppose that it's red. That way we don't have to get into the "what is it made of?" discussion.

I'd say if males have red blood, females shouldn't differ that much, could be a different shade or hue shifted a little bit, but still they're "magified" not totally magical beings, so some kind of red should show

It seems like you're under the impression that female elves are intrinsically more magical than the males, but considering there are both male and female archers, and the only elven lich known was male, that doesn't seem to be the case.

[thespaceinvader]

And before people raise the elves' allergy to iron as a reason their blood shouldn't be red: iron in compound is different from iron, the element. Blood contains the former, swords the latter.

[Sgt. Groovy]

Their skin is the same hue as humans' (though paler), so their blood should be pretty much the same colour. If it was significantly different, it would make a difference in the skin hue.

[A-Red]

Their skin is the same hue as humans' (though paler), so their blood should be pretty much the same colour. If it was significantly different, it would make a difference in the skin hue.

I'm not sure this is true. Humans have lots of different skin hues, but only one color of blood.

I think giving the elves a different blood color would be some pretty silly fluff though. And there isn't any blood in BfW anyway.

[doofus-01]

I think giving the elves a different blood color would be some pretty silly fluff though. And there isn't any blood in BfW anyway.

Would it be any sillier than anything else? Imagine some campaign characters find a trail of glowing green goo and deduce that a shyde is wounded. Or something like that.

And just because Wesnoth isn't a torture-porn splatterhouse doesn't mean there is no blood. There is a reference to "black blood" in in Eastern Invasion intro, and orc blood is mentioned in the race description. I'd be surprised if those were the only occasions it comes up.

Anyhow, my point in asking was because I wanted to put bloodstains on some cloth in a couple of elf portraits. I had no idea if it was some obscure part of Wesnoth canon (that could become less obscure some day) that they had non-red blood. As far as I'm concerned, this question has been answered.

[Sgt. Groovy]

I'm not sure this is true. Humans have lots of different skin hues, but only one color of blood.

The skin tissue itself is fairly colourless and translucent. The skin colour is made of combination of brownness of melanin (the skin pigment) and redness of blood. You see this by pressing hard on some spot on your skin, which forces the blood out of the skin capillaries. When you take the pressure off, the skin is lighter and yellower on that spot, returning to normal colour as the blood returns. Blushing and getting pale are also caused by changes in skin blood circulation. Also, people with liver problems often get yellow skin, which is caused by increased levels of bilirubin in their blood, a yellow substance normally removed from blood by the liver. The effect of blood on the skin colour is more pronounced the lighter the skin. Elves are very light-skinned, so if their blood was say blue or green, it would definitely show on their skin colour.

[doofus-01]

Maybe elves have something other than melanin. And I couldn't squeeze one to see what color they turn before the blood rushes back.

[Virgeist]

[deleted]

[Sgt. Groovy]

Yes, reptiles have blood too. For Drakes, it's a flammable mixture of hydrocarbons.

[Reepurr]

I'd say elves would have green tinged blood laced with chlorophyll, to help them achieve photosynthesis.

You know, elves have mouths for a reason other than talking.

[flying_pancake]

When I saw this, I thought humans had another colour blood.
But yes, I think they would have red blood.

[TheGreatRings]

And before people raise the elves' allergy to iron as a reason their blood shouldn't be red: iron in compound is different from iron, the element. Blood contains the former, swords the latter.

Also, where in Wesnoth is it said that elves have an allergy to iron?