An ancient civilisation that lived alongside dragons in a symbiotic relationship, their bodies gradually changed by prolonged exposure to dragons into something more than human - scaled, elongated, and magically enhanced. The Elderlings built great cities of memory stone (Skill stone) including Kelsingra and Frengong. Their civilisation collapsed when the dragons declined. The Rain Wild Traders unknowingly live among Elderling ruins and are themselves slowly changed by the buried Skill stone.