These prestigious hunting hounds are bred and kept by families of elven nobles who utilize their skills for sport and battle. Elven hunting hounds are most commonly found amongst wood elves, though members of high elven nobility often keep and breed packs of them. They possess an otherworldly grace akin to their elven masters, and they are bred almost as much for their beauty as their hunting skills.
Many elves claim the original hunting hounds were gifted to them by a grateful fey lord, while others believe they were once ordinary hounds who were slowly changed over time by the influence of the Feywild. Whatever the source of these gifts, they allow elven hunting hounds to pursue quarry through normally untraceable territory such as the confounding Feywild. It is said even the most elusive of fey can't shake the trail of an elven hunting hound once it catches their scent.
Outside of hunting elusive beasts through magical wilds, elves also utilize their hunting hounds in defense of their territory. Elven lands are often enchanted in ways that hamper navigation through mundane means so as to confound intruders. Even expert navigators or dogs bred for tracking can quickly become confounded in such wilds. This makes them easy prey for elven hunting hounds leading patrol sentinels who quickly pick apart the would-be invaders.