History Main / ElvesVersusDwarves

* ''TabletopGame/WarhammerAgeOfSigmar'': Downplayed. The Duardin and Aelven factions get along about as well as any of the races in the Grand Alliance of Order do. Which is to say, badly, but they'll put aside their differences to fight a mutual foe, especially if that foe is Chaos.

* ''Magna/FrierenBeyondJourneysEnd'': Averted; Frieren the elf is actually on perfectly good terms with her former teammate Eisen, who is a dwarf, and there's no indication there was ever any notable hostility between the two. The fact is, Elves are so incredibly ''rare'' in this setting (at one point the party meets another Elf who is surprised to see Frieren, as he hadn't encountered another Elf in so long he genuinely believed he was TheLastOfHisKind) that it's likely they just don't encounter each other enough to form any FantasticRacism.

* Elves use [[CoolSword swords]] or [[ArcherArchetype bows]] (or [[BowAndSwordInAccord both]]), weapons requiring flexibility and precision, representations of elegance. Elegance is power. Dwarves use axes, [[CarryABigStick hammers]], [[AutomaticCrossbows crossbows]] or if the setting allows for it, guns, which are primarily about direct, mechanical (in the case of the crossbow) or chemical (for guns) application of force. Force is power.

* ''Literature/BoredOfTheRings'' has a hostile relationship between Legolam tbe elf and Gimlet the dwarf, who frequently vent their FantasticRacism [[VolleyingInsults on each other]].

* Elves use [[CoolSword swords]] or [[ArcherArchetype bows]] (or [[BowAndSwordInAccord both]]), weapons requiring flexibility and precision, representations of elegance. Elegance is power. Dwarves use axes, [[DropTheHammer hammers]], [[AutomaticCrossbows crossbows]] or if the setting allows for it, guns, which are primarily about direct, mechanical (in the case of the crossbow) or chemical (for guns) application of force. Force is power.

* Elves use [[CoolSword swords]] or [[ArcherArchetype bows]] (or [[BowAndSwordInAccord both]]), weapons requiring flexibility and precision, representations of elegance. Elegance is power. Dwarves use axes, [[DropTheHammer hammers]], [[AutomaticCrossbows crossbows]] or if the setting allows for it, [[CoolGuns guns]], which are primarily about direct, mechanical (in the case of the crossbow) or chemical (for guns) application of force. Force is power.

* In the story told in ''WebOriginal/ElfslayerChronicles'', the dwarf Rumbling Brothers were helping OP get away with his in-game crimes against the elves, by messing with elves' ''[[LieDetector Discern Lies]]'' spell. One brother had insanely high charisma and could easily fool the spell, and he constantly made outrageously false stories that would be identified as true by the spell. His twin had very low charisma, and he confirmed the story as true, with the spell recognizing it as the lie, which resulted in their story being confirmed as both true and false, confusing the elves and [[BeAsUnhelpfulAsPossible hindering their progress in searching for the culprit]]. Out-of-universe, it's because their players are as annoyed by DM's YaoiFangirl fantasy and CantArgueWithElves rhethoric as OP was. In-universe, that's because they are dwarves and [[{{Troll}} just wanted to mess with elves]].

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* ''Literature/GoblinSlayer'':
** Dwarf Shaman and High Elf Archer often argue with each other for trivial reasons, usually pulling the race card against each other. That doesn't stop them from working with and protecting each other. [[EnemyMine This is especially true in regards to Goblins, as both races consider them as ancient an enemy to their respective races as the other is to them.]]
** Dwarf Scout and Elf Acolyte leap on each other's throats if left alone, and delight in the other getting chewed out by the rest of the party until it's their turn. They still would save each other, though.
** Axe-Dwarf and Half-Elf Archer, on the other hand, got along very well and never had an argument with each other during their [[CareerEndingInjury short]] [[KillTheCutie careers]].

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* In James Cameron's ''Film/{{Avatar}}'', the Na'vi are amazing natural archers, have deep empathy for their environment, are not ones to really mess around, and are tall, slender, and lacking in body hair. The Humans are incredibly skilled at craftsmanship, construction, and engineering, utilize big guns, mining machines, and high-impact weaponry, live in dark multi-layered cities with lots of technology and little vegetation and natural light, mostly lack a spiritual connection with their world, and are rather gung-ho and upfront, not to mention short, stocky and hairy when compared to the Na'vi.

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* OlderThanTelevision: Creator/HGWells's 1895 ''Literature/TheTimeMachine'' features the Morlocks (below ground, industrious) and the Eloi (above ground, beautiful, musical), two (sub?)-species of humanity, in the year 802701. Unlike the more common form of this trope, however, the Eloi are neither highly advanced nor highly intelligent. Indeed, they're little more than the Morlocks' purebred humanoid cattle.
* Stanislaw Lem's ''Literature/HisMastersVoice'' has the HardOnSoftScience conflict between the "Dwarves" (mathematicians, engineers) and the "Elves" (psychologists, mostly).
* ''Franchise/TolkiensLegendarium'' is the TropeMaker, considering Creator/JRRTolkien's major role in creating the modern fantasy archetypes of both dwarves and elves[[note]]indeed, prior to Tolkien, Dwarves and Elves were not usually treated as completely distinct types of beings in mythology and folklore in the first place, with both fitting into the broad category of "fairy" along with other supernatural beings who reside outside of human civilization[[/note]], with the enmity between the elegant, tree-loving, immortal, and mostly clean-shaven Elves and the stout, mining-oriented, mortal, and universally bearded Dwarves being a major source of conflict in ''Literature/TheHobbit''. In fact, when the Dwarves were first created, the God of Arda himself foretold that they would come to conflict with the Elves. That said, the actual relationship between the two would turn out to be more complicated:
** As shown in ''Literature/TheSilmarillion'', relations between Elves and Dwarves were actually relatively friendly for most of the First Age; they taught each other many things, trade flourished, and the Dwarves were even happy to help the Elves build their greatest settlements. While Tolkien does still describe the friendship between the two races during this time as not being particularly warm, this didn't stop them from fighting side by side against the evil forces of Morgoth. In fact, it's not until near the very end of the First Age that Elves and Dwarves actually come to blows, when an argument over ownership of a Silmaril suddenly explodes into a bloody conflict between the Dwarven city of Nogrod and the Elven kingdom of Doriath, resulting in Doriath's destruction and the complete annihilation of the Nogrod forces. Though brief (lasting less than a year), this war becomes the source of subsequent enmity between the Elves and Dwarves of western Middle-earth, though tensions never again escalate to the point of actual fighting.
** That said, even in the Second Age, there was a strong friendship between the Elves of Eregion and the Dwarves of Khazad-dûm; the gate between them allowing entrance to the Dwarven kingdom would open to the word "friend" spoken in ''Elvish''. However, the fall of Eregion and a general decrease in the ties between all the races in the following millennia would once sunder the relationship between the two races to the point where it would not be until near the end of the Third Age that an Elf (Legolas) and a Dwarf (Gimli) could once again call each other friend.
** There is a wonderful moment in the first book where Gimli meets [[PhysicalGod Galadriel]], and Galadriel has no idea what to give Gimli as a gift for the journey. Gimli is smitten with her and Galadriel didn't want Gimli to be the only one leaving empty-handed, so he jokingly asked her for a strand of [[HairOfGoldHeartOfGold her hair]] to remember her beauty by. [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments So she gives him]] ''three'' [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments strands]]. [[note]]In one other story, Fëanor ''demanded'' a strand of her hair three times and refused him each time. She saw goodness and humility in the heart of a lowborn soldier (of a race the elves have quarrelled with for a long time) that she could not see in the greatest warrior king of the elves to have ever lived, and she believed him three times more deserving. You can practically hear Fëanor reeling from the TakeThat[[/note]] That is how much Gimli is regarded as an Elf-Friend. Even sweeter? At first, Gimli would ask for nothing, saying the hospitality he'd been shown was enough. Galadriel is so impressed with his humility that she has a command for all of Elfkind at that point.
--->'''Galadriel:''' Hear ye all Elves! Let none say again that Dwarves are grasping and ungracious!
** It's worth noting that in many respects, the two aren't that different. For one thing, the Dwarves and the Ñoldorin Elves, in particular, have a shared love of and skill in smithing and general craftsmanship, and a shared reverence for Aulë, the Vala who specializes in these things (who actually ''made'' the Dwarves), all of which became the source of their relatively good relations (the aforementioned Eregion was itself a Ñoldorin realm). Also, while the Dwarves have a reputation for coveting gems and jewelry, the Elves (and not just the Ñoldor) are rather guilty of this too.
** The most straight example probably comes in the relationship between the Elves and the Petty-Dwarves, a smaller subspecies descended from Dwarven outcasts. When the Elves first encountered the Petty-Dwarves, they had yet to come across another sapient species and thus mistook them for beasts that could be hunted; though they stopped doing this after encountering "regular" Dwarves and realizing their mistake, the Petty-Dwarves refused to forgive them for this, especially since many Elves ended up settling in caves that they themselves had dug.
** ''The Hobbit'' gives a short and simple backstory for the conflict, likely because Tolkien hadn't established that part of the setting properly yet, so he just needed something easy and simple. The reason is actually remarkably petty; the Elves claim that the Dwarves refused to part with some jewelry even after the Elves had paid them to work the raw jewels. The Dwarves claim that they were never paid and kept the jewelry as compensation. The whole thing seems to be intentionally as petty as possible.
* ''Literature/TheSwordOfShannara'' is ''highly'' derivative of Creator/JRRTolkien's works ([[DerivativeDifferentiation later books in the series less so]]), but his elves and dwarves get along quite well and have for centuries, thank you very much. Also, Brooks's Dwarves have a morbid fear of being underground, to the extent that given a choice between sleeping outside in the rain and sleeping in a cozy, dry cave, the typical Dwarf is going to wake up wet.
* In Katherine Kerr's ''Literature/{{Deverry}}'' novels, many of the Mountain Folk (Dwarves) believe the Westfolk (Elves) are all thieves and enchant their weaponry to glow when they come into contact with Elves (this is how it's revealed the main character is a HalfHumanHybrid). Any antipathy the Westfolk have toward the Dwarves is mostly a reaction to this attitude.
* In the Creator/TimothyZahn book ''The Green And The Gray'' the two races, Greens and Grays, are basically Elves and Dwarves respectively and yes, they've been at war for centuries.
* Played with in three of the worlds from ''Literature/TheDeathGateCycle''. In [[FloatingContinent Arianus]], the Elves are TheEmpire and the Dwarves are an oppressed slave race that serves them; in [[HollowWorld Pryan]], the Dwarves generally don't like ''anybody'', but there doesn't seem to be any particular animosity between them and the elves; in [[WaterIsAir Chelestra]], the two races are shown to be staunch allies who may indulge in mockery of each other but have great respect for each other's abilities. In [[DeathWorld Abarrach]], both races had been wiped out by the toxic atmosphere over a century before the story begins, rendering whatever relationship the two races may have had moot.
* ''Literature/StarTrekNovelVerse'':
** The ''[[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration The Next Generation]]'' ExpandedUniverse novels ''[[Literature/StarTrekATimeTo A Time to Love]]'' and ''A Time to Hate'' feature two rival alien races called the Dorset and the Bader. The Dorset are a race of tall, thin artists; the Bader are stocky builders and engineers.
** The rivalry between Huanni and their offshoot race the Falorians. Huanni are graceful and ethereal as well as emotionally expressive, Falorians are stockier, stoic, disciplined, and historically a labour class.

* The Elves and Dwarves in the Literature/InheritanceCycle add another twist to this: the Elves are generally very scientific, while the Dwarves are religious. Note that this has nothing to do with technology: the series is strictly "swords & sorcery." But for example, the Dwarves worship Stone, believing that they came from it and return to it in death, and one of their priests mentions why they know that stone is alive: coral reefs, which grow over the decades. The hero is suitably impressed with this until he meets the agnostic Elves, who posit that there is no evidence supporting any gods or supernatural beings and that the coral are just the accumulation of billions of tiny dead sea creature fossils.

* In Adrian Tchaikovsky's ''Literature/ShadowsOfTheApt'' series there is considerable tension between the [[TheMagicGoesAway fading, magically oriented Inapt races]] and the rising, technologically oriented Apt ones, especially between the Moth-kinden and the short, stocky Beetle-kinden.
* Subverted in a short story from ''Dragon'', in which a dwarf community built under a gigantic tree is revealed to be even ''more'' spiritually attuned to the tree than the Elves who worship it on the surface. The Dwarves tend its roots with loving care and are grateful to it for holding the roof together and guiding them to water. When it gets sick, the Elves just worry about what its illness forebodes; the practical-minded Dwarves seek out and correct the problem with the tree's taproot.
* Randy Waterhouse in ''Literature/{{Cryptonomicon}}'' by Creator/NealStephenson divides the world into Elves (ingenious, calculating, and highly motivated people, like his business partner Avi), Dwarves (hard-working "plodders," like himself), and Men (everyone else outside the realm of nerds that he inhabits). Interestingly, he feels that Elves and Dwarves complement each other well, despite their differences. He later adds "Hobbits" ([[HardOnSoftScience humanities academics]]) to his typology, and ''those'' he regards with contempt.
* Subversion of this in R.A. Salvatore's ''Literature/TheClericQuintet'' and some of his later [[Literature/TheLegendOfDrizzt Drizzt]] novels, which feature Pikel, a rather eccentric dwarf (he dyes his beard bright ''green'') whose ambition in life is to become a druid (to the sheer horror of both the elven monks he goes to for training and his brother Ivan, who is the epitome of everything blunt, earthy, and dwarvish). However, Pikel's affinity for nature and his druidic abilities eventually end up creating quite a rapport between certain dwarven and elven settlements.
** Drizzt himself is a subversion as a dark elf who befriends a dwarf chieftain, Bruenor Battlehammer.
* ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'':
** In ''Literature/SoulMusic'', Glod the Dwarf acts a bit hostile to Imp at first when he thinks he might be elvish.
** In ''Literature/LordsAndLadies'', it is mentioned that dwarves and trolls would kill an elf on sight, but [[TheFairFolk for a good reason]]. Discworld elves are somewhere between Nazis with magic and demons with good PR. Humans fall victim to their {{Glamour}} easily; Dwarves and Trolls are resistant to it.
** Dwarves and Trolls are hereditary enemies. Dwarves mine, which involves smashing rocks to get valuable minerals out of them, and trolls are basically animate rocks with valuable minerals in them. This is despite the fact that ''both'' races are Stout.
* This runs all through the ''Literature/GreenSkyTrilogy'', despite the fact that the Kindar (willowy, pale, overly-diplomatic, tree-dwelling [[{{Veganopia}} vegetarians]]) and Erdlings (stocky, darker-skinned, plain-spoken, underground-dwelling hunters) are simply two separate human cultures.
* Essentially there in Julian May's ''Literature/SagaOfTheExiles'' with the Tanu and Firvulag. Tanu are tall and beautiful, while the normal Firvulag is short and stocky, although their heroes can be equal or better than the Tanu.
* In SevenwatersTrilogy the Sevenwaters clan are in touch with nature and nature spirits, while the Northwoods are stodgy folk, and more settled in mentality.
* The ''Literature/BillibubBaddings'' books, which features a dwarf from a StandardFantasySetting being stranded in UsefulNotes/{{Chicago}} in [[TheRoaringTwenties the late 1920s]], alludes to and lightly parodies the rivalry between elves and dwarves -- though the dwarf protagonist certainly doesn't ''hate'' elves (especially not the women!), and in fact reveals that in their world, the rivalry originally started over a recipe for malt beer.
* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' has the Children of the Forest and the Race of Men. Men of Westeros can also be divided between the sly and elegant Southrons, mostly descendants of the Andals, and the straight-talking and often brutal GrimUpNorth Northmen, descended from the First Men that first warred the Children. Ironically, the cultured, urbane, "advanced" [[LandOfOneCity Free]] [[MerchantCity Cities]] and the "barbarous" [[HordesFromTheEast Dothraki]] coexist relatively well. The [[ProudWarriorRace Dothraki]] show up and rattle their spears, and the Free Cities bribe them to go away because it's cheaper than hiring mercenaries to run them off. Diplomatic relations are strong enough that Free City [[MerchantPrince Magister]] Illyrio can invite Dothraki chieftain [[BarbarianHero Khal Drogo]] and seemingly his entire [[BarbarianTribe khalasar]] over to discuss a marriage pact with few or no problems.
* In the ''Literature/{{Corum}}'' series, the Vadhagh are extremely Elf-like and are eventually just identified as Elves. Their ancient enemies, the Nahdragh, are barely mentioned, but the one Nahdragh who does appear, is described as stocky, wearing furs and with a vaguely Neanderthal-like appearance.
* In ''Literature/TheDwarves'' by German author Creator/MarkusHeitz, the Dwarves really hate the Elves for seemingly annihilating the fifthling kingdom before the main storyline, but the Elves never actually had a part in the genocide - the culprits were the Elves' AlwaysChaoticEvil counterparts, the Alfs, and the Elves oppose the forces of the Perished Land as much as the Dwarves do. It ends up all for naught by the third volume when a hothead Dwarf declares himself High King and launches a genocidal war against the Elves, which ends with ''37'' Elves left in the entire world. Nice going, you stunted jerks.

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* ''Literature/TheSwordOfShannara'' is ''highly'' derivative of Creator/JRRTolkien's works (later books in the series less so), but his elves and dwarves get along quite well and have for centuries, thank you very much. Also, Brooks's Dwarves have a morbid fear of being underground, to the extent that given a choice between sleeping outside in the rain and sleeping in a cozy, dry cave, the typical Dwarf is going to wake up wet.

* Elves are often masters of diplomacy, debate, rhetoric, PurpleProse, small talk and ''[[DoubleMeaning doubletalk]]''. Dwarves generally prefer straightforward opinions and blunt facts, and [[BrutalHonesty aren't overly concerned when somebody's feelings get hurt]].

One common outcome is for the elf and the dwarf to better understand each other and their respective cultures. The dwarf may gain a new respect for the elf's culture and deep learning, while the elf comes to appreciate the dwarf's craftsmanship and hard work. Also expect both sides to put aside their differences and [[EnemyMine team up against a third enemy]], who's usually portrayed as primarily destructive (orcs, for example). The primary attribute shared by elves and dwarves is their resourcefulness.

Compare with PiratesVersusNinjas--although the latter is a recent MemeticMutation while this trope is OlderThanTelevision. Likewise the horror-oriented [[FurAgainstFang werewolves vs. vampires]]. For neighboring foil cities or countries, see AthensAndSparta. Comedy will show this one as SlobsVersusSnobs, BigGuyLittleGuy, or FatAndSkinny. It can sometimes manifest as a form of FantasticRacism. Don't expect to see a dwarf/elf hybrid due to HybridOverkillAvoidance and both sides being ''very'' {{squick}}ed at the prospect. However, it's always possible to have an OrcRaisedByElves or by dwarves, if not either an elf or a dwarf being RaisedByOrcs.

TanukiKitsuneContrast is a SubTrope and the Eastern equivalent of the classic elf/dwarf dichotomy.

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* In the backstory of ''Manga/DeliciousInDungeon'', elves and dwarves fought over the ownership of the island. The elves won, but handed it over to humans because they had too much territory to take care of by then. By the present, though, elves and dwarves have no problem cooperating in matters such as keeping {{precursor}} technology and ruins out of the hands of the short-lived races.
* ''Manga/ItsMyLifeImomushiNarita'' has Oz Snowblind (a white dwarf) and Dr. Feelgood (a big elf), who would always bicker whenever they see each other. However, their relationship is mostly played as VitriolicBestBuds rather than actual animosity.

** Dwarf Shaman and High Elf Archer often argue with each other for trivial reasons, usually pulling the race card against each other. That doesn't stop them from working with and protecting each other. [[EnemyMine This especially true in regards to Goblins as both races consider them as ancient an enemy to their respective races as the other is to them.]]
** Dwarf Scout and Elf Acolyte leap on each others throats if left alone, and delight in the other getting chewed out by the rest of the party until its their turn. They still would save each other, though.

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* The Polish "ComicBook/LilIPut" ("Lil i Put") series. In this universe dwarves not only only hate elves but their first instinct when they see one is to charge and beat the crap out of him (or [[WouldHitAGirl her]]). The hate is partly sadistic as even all their songs appear to center around how much fun is for them to hurt elves.
* The elves and trolls in ''ComicBook/ElfQuest'' closely fit this dynamic--although those particular elf tribes are not particularly cultured, and the two groups aren't above [[EnemyMine cooperating against a common enemy]]. The trolls of ''[=ElfQuest=]'' are [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame little different]] from standard fantasy dwarves.
* In Doug Moench's '70s-'80s story ''Weirdworld - Warriors of the Shadow Realm'', dwarves are commonplace in that [[ComicBook/AllNewAllDifferentMarvel fantasy world]] and when they meet their first elf - it's pretty much hate at first sight. The 2 reasons? First, the elf Tyndall has pointed ears (and that's largely the biggest difference - elves in this world are short, no taller than the dwarves) and most dwarves are bigoted against non-dwarves. The 2nd is that Tyndall appeared at a time when the dwarves would soon come under attack from monsters and so they attributed the attacks with his appearance. When a second elf, Velena is found, she gets treated no better. The only dwarf to treat them well is the [[ButtMonkey thieving dwarf, Mudbutt]].

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* Used as a bit of background colour in the ''Magazine/{{Dragon}}'' magazine strip ''Floyd'' by Aaron Williams. At one point Floyd and his friends accidentally get between an elvish ambush and a dwarven ambush. The reason the two sides are ambushing each other is never elaborated on beyond the fact they're elves and dwarves, and that's what they do.

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* In James Cameron's ''Film/{{Avatar}}'', the Na'vi are amazing natural archers, have a deep empathy for their environment, are not ones to really mess around, and are tall, slender, and lacking in body hair. The Humans are incredibly skilled at craftsmanship, construction, and engineering, utilize big guns, mining machines, and high impact weaponry, live in dark multi-layered cities with lots of technology and little vegetation and natural light, mostly lack a spiritual connection with their world, and are rather gung-ho and upfront, not to mention short, stocky and hairy, when compared to the Na'vi.

* ''Film/ThorTheDarkWorld'': We have Dark Elves with Asgardians playing the part of dwarves. The traditional earmarks are played with, though: both are pretty advanced but the Dark Elves' tech is visibly "spacey" (starships, laser guns, grenades) while Asgardian tech looks medieval, and the "dwarves" have fancier clothes (by virtue of wearing colors other than black).
* The 2012 film adaptation of ''Film/TheHobbit'' plays up the animosity between elves and dwarves. Thorin hates elves because they wouldn't help fight off Smaug when he came to the Lonely Mountain.

** PlayedForLaughs in one scene in Rivendell. The mostly dwarven party is invited into Rivendell for food and rest, but they quickly find to their displeasure that [[MeatVersusVeggies elven cuisine mostly consists of salads and green food]]. Compounded by one of the dwarves' reactions:

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* The Dökkálfar and Ljósálfar of Norse mythology represent a concept of light versus dark. Though whether or not both sides are elfs, or if the Dökkálfar are actually dwarfs is debated, but the idea still fits this trope either way.
** You also have the war of the Aesir and the Vanir. The former generally described as gods of war (dwarves), and the latter as gods of nature (elves). Freyr, one of the Vanir, was even the ruler of the Norse alfar.
* A variation of sorts can be found in Japanese folklore where [[AsianFoxSpirit Kitsune]] and {{Tanuki}} have an infamous rivalry for the position of apex trickster going on. The Tanuki commonly take the form of short, fat and jolly old monks and employ both TricksterMentor behavior, petty pranks and [[TheDon mafia-like methods]] when interacting with humans. The Kitsune, on the other hand, favor the form of lean, seductive women and prefer setting humans up for their own downfall through sinful actions with an almost divine entitlement.

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* Both played straight and subverted in the ''Literature/FightingFantasy'' gamebooks, depending on where exactly you go in the world of Titan. It's noted that many dwarves and elves really don't get along, but it tends to be more due to misunderstanding rather than outright antipathy. The subversion comes when canon also notes that there have been several notable adventuring team-ups between elves and dwarves, and both races have a certain respect for the love the other has for nature/the earth. The ''Zagor Chronicles'' series of standalone novels further fleshes out this trope when the dwarf Kagand explains to the dwarf Stubble (who comes from another world) that, while dwarves and elves have slain enough of each other in wars over the centuries, they actually live in harmony in places like Darkwood. This is a mild form of culture shock to Stubble, as the dwarves and elves on his own world have a deep-rooted dislike that goes back centuries.

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* Stanislaw Lem's ''Literature/HisMastersVoice'' has the HardOnSoftScience conflict between the "dwarfs" (mathematicians, engineers) and the "elves" (psychologists, mostly).
* ''Franchise/TolkiensLegendarium'' is the TropeMaker, considering Creator/JRRTolkien's major role in creating the modern fantasy archetypes of both dwarves and elves[[note]]indeed, prior to Tolkien, dwarves and elves were not usually treated as completely distinct types of beings in mythology and folklore in the first place, with both fitting into the broad category of "fairy" along with other supernatural beings who reside outside of human civilization[[/note]], with the enmity between the elegant, tree-loving, immortal, and mostly clean-shaven Elves and the stout, mining-oriented, mortal, and universally bearded Dwarves being a major source of conflict in ''Literature/TheHobbit''. In fact, when the Dwarves were first created, the God of Arda himself foretold that they would come to conflict with the Elves. That said, the actual relationship between the two would turn out to be more complicated:
** As shown in ''Literature/TheSilmarillion'', relations between Elves and Dwarves were actually relatively friendly for most of the First Age; they taught each other many things, trade flourished, and the Dwarves were even happy to help the Elves build their greatest settlements. While Tolkien does still describe the friendship between the two races during this time as not being particularly warm, this didn't stop them from fighting side by side against the evil forces of Morgoth. In fact, it's not until near the very end of the First Age that Elves and Dwarves actually come to blows, when an argument over ownership of a Silmaril suddenly explodes into bloody conflict between the dwarven city of Nogrod and the elven kingdom of Doriath, resulting in Doriath's destruction and the complete annihilation of the Nogrod forces. Though brief (lasting less than a year), this war becomes the source of subsequent enmity between the Elves and Dwarves of western Middle-earth, though tensions never again escalate to the point of actual fighting.
** That said, even in the Second Age, there was a strong friendship between the Elves of Eregion and the Dwarves of Khazad-dûm; the gate between them allowing entrance to the Dwarven kingdom would open to the word "friend" spoken in ''Elvish''. However, the fall of Eregion and a general decrease in the ties between all the races in the following millennia would once sunder the relationship between the two races, to the point where it would not be until near the end of the Third Age that an Elf (Legolas) and a Dwarf (Gimli) could once again call each other friend.
** There is a wonderful moment in the first book where Gimli meets [[PhysicalGod Galadriel]], and Galadriel has no idea what to give Gimli as a gift for the journey. Gimli is smitten with her and Galadriel didn't want Gimli to be the only one leaving empty-handed, so he jokingly asked her for a strand of [[HairOfGoldHeartOfGold her hair]] to remember her beauty by. [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments So she gives him]] ''three'' [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments strands]]. [[note]]In one other story, Fëanor ''demanded'' a strand of her hair three times and refused him each time. She saw goodness and humility in the heart of a lowborn soldier (of a race the elves have quarrelled with for a long time) that she could not see in the greatest warrior king of the elves to have ever lived, and she believed him three times more deserving. You can practically hear Fëanor reeling from the TakeThat[[/note]] That is how much Gimli is regarded as an Elf-Friend. Even sweeter? At first Gimli would ask for nothing, saying the hospitality he'd been shown was enough. Galadriel is so impressed with his humility that she has a command for all of Elfkind at that point.

** It's worth noting that in many respects, the two aren't that different. For one thing, the Dwarves and the Noldorin Elves in particular have a shared love of and skill in smithing and general craftsmanship, and a shared reverence for Aulë, the Vala who specializes in these things (who actually ''made'' the Dwarves), all of which became the source of their relatively good relations (the aforementioned Eregion was itself a Noldorin realm). Also, while the Dwarves have a reputation for coveting gems and jewelry, the Elves (and not just the Noldor) are rather guilty of this too.

** ''The Hobbit'' gives a short and simple backstory for the conflict, likely because Tolkien hadn't established that part of the setting properly yet, so he just needed something easy and simple. The reason is actually remarkably petty; the elves claim that the dwarves refused to part with some jewelry even after the elves had paid them to work the raw jewels. The dwarves claim that they were never paid, and kept the jewelry as compensation. The whole thing seems to be intentionally as petty as possible.
* ''Literature/TheSwordOfShannara'' is ''highly'' derivative of Creator/JRRTolkien's works (later books in the series less so), but his elves and dwarves get along quite well and have for centuries, thank you very much. Also, Brooks' dwarves have a morbid fear of being underground, to the extent that a given a choice between sleeping outside in the rain and sleeping in a cozy, dry cave, the typical dwarf is going to wake up wet.
* In Katherine Kerr's ''Literature/{{Deverry}}'' novels, many of the Mountain Folk (dwarves) believe the Westfolk (elves) are all thieves, and enchant their weaponry to glow when they come into contact with elves (this is how it's revealed the main character is a HalfHumanHybrid). Any antipathy the Westfolk have to the dwarves is mostly a reaction to this attitude.

** The rivalry between Huanni and their offshoot race the Falorians. Huanni are graceful and ethereal as well as emotionally expressive, Falorians are stockier, stoic, disciplined and historically a labour class.
* ''Literature/TheFirstDwarfKing'': The elves and dwarves of Herezar would sooner kill each other than look at each other.
* The Elves and Dwarves in the Literature/InheritanceCycle add another twist to this: the Elves are generally very scientific, while the Dwarves are religious. Note that this has nothing to do with technology: the series is strictly "swords & sorcery." But for example, the Dwarves worship Stone, believing that they came from it and return to it in death, and one of their priests mentions why they know that stone is alive: coral reefs, which grow over the decades. The hero is suitably impressed with this, until he meets the agnostic Elves who posit that there is no evidence supporting any gods or supernatural beings, and that the coral are just the accumulation of billions of tiny dead sea creature fossils.
** In a series set technologically in the Medieval era, magic is the ''only'' way to properly study the world. A particularly meticulous king of a small nation is overjoyed to have a few of rebels' mages at his beck and call, being suddenly able to really study the world in detail.

* Subverted in a short story from ''Dragon'', in which a dwarf community built under a gigantic tree is revealed to be even ''more'' spiritually attuned to the tree than the elves who worship it on the surface. The dwarves tend its roots with loving care, and are grateful to it for holding the roof together and guiding them to water. When it gets sick, the elves just worry about what its illness forebodes; the practical-minded dwarves seek out and correct the problem with the tree's taproot.
* Randy Waterhouse in ''Literature/{{Cryptonomicon}}'' by Creator/NealStephenson divides the world into Elves (ingenious, calculating and highly motivated people, like his business partner Avi), Dwarves (hard-working "plodders," like himself), and Men (everyone else outside the realm of nerds that he inhabits). Interestingly, he feels that Elves and Dwarves complement each other well, despite their differences. He later adds "Hobbits" ([[HardOnSoftScience humanities academics]]) to his typology, and ''those'' he regards with contempt.

** In ''Literature/LordsAndLadies'', it is mentioned that dwarves and trolls would kill an elf on sight, but [[TheFairFolk for a good reason]]. Discworld elves are somewhere between Nazis with magic and demons with good PR. Humans fall victim to their {{Glamour}} easily; dwarves and trolls are resistant to it.
** Dwarves and trolls are hereditary enemies. Dwarves mine, which involves smashing rocks to get valuable minerals out of them, and trolls are basically animate rocks with valuable minerals in. This despite the fact that ''both'' races are Stout.

* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' has the Children of the Forest and the Race of Men. Men of Westeros can also be divided between the sly and elegant Southrons, mostly descendant of the Andals, and the straight-talking and often brutal GrimUpNorth Northmen, descended of the First Men that first warred the Children. Ironically, the cultured, urbane, "advanced" [[LandOfOneCity Free]] [[MerchantCity Cities]] and the "barbarous" [[HordesFromTheEast Dothraki]] coexist relatively well. The [[ProudWarriorRace Dothraki]] show up and rattle their spears, and the Free Cities bribe them to go away because it's cheaper than hiring mercenaries to run them off. Diplomatic relations are strong enough that Free City [[MerchantPrince Magister]] Illyrio can invite Dothraki chieftain [[BarbarianHero Khal Drogo]] and seemingly his entire [[BarbarianTribe khalasar]] over to discuss a marriage pact with few or no problems.
* In the ''Literature/{{Corum}}'' series, the Vadhagh are extremely elf-like, and are eventually just identifed as elves. Their ancient enemies, the Nahdragh, are barely mentioned, but the one Nahdragh who does appear, is described as stocky, wearing furs and with a vaguely Neanderthal-like appearance.
* In ''Literature/TheDwarves'' by German author Creator/MarkusHeitz, the dwarves really hate the elves for seemingly annihilating the fifthling kingdom before the main storyline, but the elves never actually had a part in the genocide - the culprits were the elves' AlwaysChaoticEvil counterparts, the alfs, and the elves oppose the forces of the Perished Land as much as the dwarves do. It ends up all for naught by the third volume when a hothead dwarf declares himself High King and launches a genocidal war against the elves which ends with ''37'' elves left in the entire world. Nice going, you stunted jerks.

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]

** The Time Lords ruled the universe in the past and possessed the most advanced of all possible technology, but were (with the exception of the Doctor) almost always portrayed as arrogant, and abided by a strict code of non-interference and by the time of the Time War all that remains of their empire is their home planet, Gallifrey, where the Lords spent most of their time being dusty old senators in constant political Machiavellian infighting rather than, you know, using their ancient elegant supertech to actually rule all of cosmic order (Elves).
** On the other hand, there are the Daleks, the Dwarves to Time Lords' Elves. Previously, as any Classic who fan would attest, they are in their most basic, utilitarian, not-so-stylish, saltshakers with plunger arms, who could not even climb up stairs. But their drive to EXTERMINATE anything in their path won't let such stairs stand in their way ("Daleks don't climb stairs. They level the building") - though in later parts of the classic series and in the new series, they can fly... but, Daleks being Daleks, they will still happily level the building anyway. Unlike the Time Lords' TARDIS technology which was basically flying in your own pocket universe throughout space and time, Dalek technology was always portrayed as utilitarian, metallic and bulky, yet they get the job done in combatting the Time Lords in their own turf (that is, throughout the entirety of space and time) and are extremely devastating, and despite their ugly technology, they almost ''won the Time War with sheer firepower and numbers''.
*** It should be noted that taking on the Time Lords was a case of WakingTheSleepingGiant - just because they ''didn't'' rule the universe didn't mean that they weren't entirely capable of it, and once roused, they nearly destroyed the universe in fighting the Daleks (then almost did it out of spite). Had a more ruthless Time Lord than the 4th Doctor been on Skaro at the beginning, they could easily have erased the Daleks from history - and even on the verge of defeat, their emergency measure, the 'Final Sanction', would have allowed them to ascend beyond mortal form, wiping out the Daleks along with ''the entire universe'' (hence the Doctor's intention to use the Moment a.k.a. 'the Galaxy-Eater')... and instead, a relatively simple piece of Time Lord technology, properly used, allowed [[spoiler: the Time Lords to get away clean and tricked the Daleks into almost destroying themselves]]. Even after, the very words 'Gallifrey' and 'Time Lord' caused {{Villainous Breakdown}}s in {{Eldritch Abomination}}s and SufficientlyAdvancedAliens alike, while premonitions of its return echoed throughout time and space, causing a MassOhCrap, and a signal they broadcast to reach the Doctor through a crack in reality caused existential terror in every single being that detected it, Daleks included, to the point where they laid a 900 year siege to stop Gallifrey coming back.

** At one point the Daleks are shown in conflict with the Movellans, who are tall beautiful androids. However the Movellans ended up winning the war with a virus.

** In the episode "Journey to Babel", Vulcans and Tellarites have a classic elf-dwarf relationship, with Sarek of Vulcan a rather witty Legolas and Gav the Tellarite a doomed variant of Gimli.

** The Federation versus the Borg. The Federation is enlightened, utopian, and based on the principles of personal freedom and self-determination. Their technology is elegant, aesthetically pleasing, and geared largely toward improving quality of life. The Borg are single-mindedly dedicated to forcing the entire universe to conform to their ideal of "perfection," which is total submission to a plague-like rapacious HiveMind. Their technology is ugly, industrial, but functional; they have no real sense of aesthetics or artistic creativity, and no purpose other than to consume and expand.

** Meanwhile the Centauri are decadent, pompous,and huge consumers of art and culture, and the Narn are brutal, HotBlooded, and weapon mongerers. It is indicated that the Centauri made them that way when they enslaved the Narn, however. Finding common ground to settle their differences is a major background plot for much of the show, [[spoiler: culminating in them forming a temporary alliance along with the Minbari and the League of Nonaligned Worlds to help Sheridan liberate Earth from Clark's dictatorship.]]
* ''Series/TheLordOfTheRingsTheRingsOfPower'': During the First Age, King Thingol of the Teleri Elves made an alliance with the Dwarves in the battles against the Orc forces. However, Thingol's passion for Silmarils — gems crafted in the First Age from essence of the Two Trees of Valinor — led to the deterioration of the relationship between the races when he commissioned the Dwarves of Belegost to create a necklace into which a Silmaril gem could be set. Realising the beauty of what they'd crafted, the Dwarves refused to give up the necklace, which led to an escalating conflict that's still bubbling away in the Second Age.

[[folder:Music]]

[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
* ''TabletopGame/ThirteenthAge'': The elves and dwarves get along ''now'' (except for the drow), but there was a war long in the past that caused the three elven subraces to split in the first place.

* ''TabletopGame/CastlesAndCrusades'': The elves and dwarves have a longstanding enmity, as the dwarves see the elves as untrustworthy while the elves see the dwarves as backwards. The one place where the two races agree is in their hatred of the goblinoid races.
* ''TabletopGame/TheDarkEye'': There's no outright violence (although there have been wars in the past), but a lot of issues to work out nonetheless. Elves prefer to live under the open sky. Dwarves consider that to be suicidally insane, after all you never know when a dragon might attack. Elves love the forest and will defend it from loggers. Dwarves view the forest as a good source of more mineshaft supports. Dwarves believe (with some justification) that dragons, specifically the Great Dragon Pyrdacor, are the root of all evil in the world. Elves once worshiped Pyrdacor as a god. Dwarves distrust all magic, viewing it as the Dragon's Work. Elves are inherently magical. Dwarves love beer (and wine, and rum, and...). Elves find the smell of any fermented foodstuff or drink so revolting it can cause them physical damage. Elves have no body (or facial) hair. Dwarves believe any male without a beard must have been cursed by their god for some very serious crime. Unlike in some other settings, male and female dwarves are fairly easy to tell apart. Elves... aren't. This can lead to embarrassment. The list goes on. Needless to say, the two races have had a traditionally rocky history...

** ''TabletopGame/{{Eberron}}'' has a really weird version of this between the halflings of the Talenta Plains and the elves of Valenar. Thing is, it's the halflings standing in for the elves in this trope -- primitive, spiritual, attuned to nature, and generally cleaving to the MagicalNativeAmerican idea, only they ride dinosaurs. The Valenar elves, in turn, stand in for the ''dwarves'', being accurately described as land-based Vikings. The actual dwarves of the setting are geographically removed from both races and thus are neutral towards both. Also, the setting's largest elven culture is where it gets weird -- an even more remote, DarkIsNotEvil [[TheNecrocracy necrocracy]], former slaves to [[OurGiantsAreBigger giants]] and a rivalry with [[OurDragonsAreDifferent dragons]].
* ''TabletopGame/{{Eon}}'': The reason for elves' and dwarves' inability to get along is explained by the fact that the elves and dwarfs have fought five highly destructive "great wars" against one another. According to legend, the first one ironically started when the dwarfs accidentally made a terrible diplomatic faux pas by laying down their weapons in front of the elvish negotiatior. In elven culture, this is a declaration of war ("Now, the only thing that can be between us is arms!"). The conflict is easily fueled by the extreme differences in mentality and culture. Elves are famous for flowery language and long greetings. For dwarves, spoken language is for conveying information, and the subtleties are expressed with tone and body language.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Godforsaken}}'': Discussed. Elves love trees and green things, dwarves love rocks and the underground, and never shall the two agree. This trope and its prejudices are common in most fantasy games that have elves and dwarves. To make things more interesting, the GM is suggested to amplify the conflict so that an elven kingdom and a dwarven kingdom are openly at war, and all other groups of elves, dwarves, and their allies are forced to take sides, or invert this concept by having elves and dwarves be close allies who have no interest in each other's territory, and the other prominent species of the world compete for space with this powerful alliance.
* ''TabletopGame/IronKingdoms'': The highly-industrialized titular Iron Kingdoms (the WARMACHINE factions) often find themselves at odds with the much more naturalistic Primal Powers (the HORDES factions). Of course, there's plenty of infighting among the Iron Kingdoms and the Primal Powers as well. Notably, this trait is actually averted by the setting's ''actual'' elves and dwarves, as the elves are xenophobes and friendly with no one else but particularly hate the skorne and humans, and the dwarves, while isolationist, are on generally friendly terms with all the other races.
* ''TabletopGame/TheOneRing'': Downplayed, as the elves and dwarves of [[Franchise/TolkiensLegendarium Middle-earth]] are both heroic cultures despite their mutual prejudice. Mechanically, they're less forgiving of each other in social encounters, and will accept fewer failed social skill checks before cutting off conversation entirely.

** This trope was consciously averted: Elves actually are really good neighbors with Dwarfs in this setting due to both being fairly isolationist. According to one sourcebook this is because "good fences make good neighbors". Lead designer James Jacobs explained that it's because ElvesVsDwarves is a prominent trope in ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms'', and Paizo wanted to avoid comparisons between the two settings.

* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'': There's a minor example of this in older lore concerning the Eldar, SpaceElves, and the Squats, short and industrious HeavyWorlder humans, where the Squats nurture an older grudge from when the Eldar declined to help in the defence against an Ork invasion. When the Squats were later re-imagined as the Leagues of Votann, they weren't however noted to have any particular grudge with the Eldar, at least no moreso than they do with most other factions.
* ''TabletopGame/WarhammerFantasy'': The Elves and Dwarfs have a long-standing mutual hatred for each other from the War of Vengeance/War of the Beard/War of Vengeance from long ago. Once they were great allies and worked together to save the world from Chaos. However the Elves underwent a civil war and the Dark Elves framed the High Elves for a series of attacks on Dwarf caravans. The Dwarfs, who are normally so obsessed with vengeance that they have a giant book that enumerates every slight wrong against them, were such good friends with the Elves at the time that they sent emissaries to ask for answers rather than go to war. The Phoenix King of the elves, apparently unwilling to lose face by admitting that they had suffered a civil war and angered by the Dwarf emissary's aggressive behavior, had the lead ambassador ''shaved''. This being a grave insult on top of their refusal to explain what was happening immediately triggered a gigantic war. The war irrevocably ruined both empires (allowing for the rise of humanity and [[NiceJobBreakingItHero increased influence of Chaos]]) and lead to the death of the Phoenix King. The Elves refuse to put it behind them because the Dwarfs stole the Phoenix Crown from their king. The Dwarfs refuse to put it behind them because, again, they literally have a giant book listing every grudge in the whole history of their race to ensure they never stop being mad about them. While, by the time of the game itself, the two races are once again allies and on relatively (they are willing to talk and cooperate to an extent) friendly terms, it is noted that they will never again be as close as they were before. They even insist on conducting most of their trade through human middlemen to avoid contact as much as possible.
* ''TabletopGame/TheWitcherGameOfImagination'': The first thing elves did after landing on the Continent was declaring dwarves not worth living and starting a genocidal war with them. This equally maimed both sides and paved the road for being conquered by humans. Both races still hold grudges against each other. Dwarves also like to remind everyone how elves started talking about "[[EnemyMine us older races]]" only after humanity decided that there was no room for elves.

[[folder:Theatre]]
* The gods of Asgard (Elves) vs. the Nibelungs (Dwarves) but also the giants (Fasolt and Fafner) in ''Theatre/TheRingOfTheNibelung'' by Music/RichardWagner. Alberich in particular is often interpreted as an embodiment of Capitalism, out to depose the old, feudal elites. The Gods are sometimes referred to as Light Elves, though ironically enough the Nibelung Dwarves are sometimes referred to as black elves. The name of the Nibelung, Alberich, even roughly means Elf King. This is from Norse Mythology, where there wasn't really a clear divide between the Black Elves and Dwarves.

[[folder:Video Games]]
* In ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'', the Echani and the Mandalorians. Both are a form of ProudWarriorRaceGuy, but they go about it in different ways. Echani are famous for their graceful combat and finely crafted light armor and weapons, whereas the Mandalorians are well known for their powerful heavy armor and fondness for big, heavy, sturdy weapons. One memorable conversation with a Mandalorian mercenary on Manaan has him pegging the Echani as "Fey dancers wielding flimsy toy weapons not suitable for mandalorian children." The Echani are also regarded by many fans as physically elf-like for their lithe bodies and their features.

* ''VideoGame/{{Scribblenauts}}'' has a classic example. While an ordinary "[[ChristmasElves Elf]]" is no trouble, try putting a "Wood Elf" and a "Dwarf" next to each other. [[spoiler: If both unarmed, the dwarf panics and is slain by the elf. If both equally armed, the dwarf will defeat the wood elf.]]

** Played with in ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition'' in some overheard NPC dialogue at Skyhold. A human tells a dwarf that he's happy to be working with him and not "one of them." The dwarf has no idea what the human means, rattling off several possible groups which could be indicated by "them," until the human finally spells it out - "Elves!" The dwarf is distinctly unimpressed, because ''he'' has no problem with elves.

* To a degree in ''VideoGame/KingdomOfLoathing''; as part of a quest you can start and stop a war between the nature-loving hippies and the beer-drinking frat boys.

** Averted in the first three games, where dwarves and elves are part of the same faction.
** Played straight in the fourth game, where the Dwarf Lord Ufretin has severed the aforementioned alliance between elves and dwarves, and allied his people with the Academy (Order) faction instead, while the elves formed (or remained in) their own Nature faction; incidentally, Order and Nature are opposed to each other.
** Played straight-ish in VideoGame/HeroesOfMightAndMagic 5, where dwarves war against ''dark'' elves.
** The dark elves and dark dwarves of the old verse were unfriendly to each other. This may have more to do with the consequences of one race (the Elves) being enthusiastic traders and the other being xenophobic allies/servants of the Earth Elementals than this trope, however (certainly, the dark elves can only ''barely'' be said to fit the Elven archetype used in this trope).
* Even though ''VideoGame/{{Thief}}'' has humans as the only civilized race, aspects of this trope show up in the rivalry between [[CrystalDragonJesus The Hammerites]], whose religion embodies the concepts of order, technology and civilization, and the paganistic worshippers of a TricksterGod, whose religion embodies chaos, nature and magic.
* Averted in ''VideoGame/PopfulMail'' with elven bomb-maker Slick and dwarven artisan Glug, who are the best of friends.

* While both factions in ''VideoGame/{{Rift}}'' have elves, it's the faction that ''doesn't'' have dwarves in which this rivalry gets obviously played out: The [[OurElvesAreDifferent Kelari elves]] are not on the best of terms with the bahmi (the [[TheBigGuy imposing]], blue-skinned, and decidedly ''non''-dwarven stout race of the Defiant faction).
* ''VideoGame/DwarfFortress'' [[DoubleSubversion double subverts]] this trope. Textually, dwarves are on good enough terms with elven civilizations to engage in trade. However, the ''Dwarf Fortress'' playerbase [[ScrewYouElves loathes elves]], due to their obnoxious, arrogant attitudes, their constant attempts to restrict players from cutting down trees, and the fact that they will be appalled if you sell wooden goods ''[[{{Hypocrite}} even though they sell wooden goods themselves.]]''[[note]]Elves somehow "grow" their wood items, apparently independently of trees so they aren't entirely hypocritical.[[/note]] This has led players to do [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential drastic things]] just to spite elves.
** Cacame Awemedinade is also a DoubleSubversion. He's an elf who became the king of a dwarven civilization, and just about the only elf beloved by the playerbase... but he's admired because he ''[[MySpeciesDothProtestTooMuch despises]]'' other elves. (''Dwarf Fortress'' elves have [[ImAHumanitarian cannibalistic tendencies]], and one such elf killed and ate Cacame's wife. Cacame himself has never eaten anybody.) This opposition to elves, combined with being a OneManArmy who slaughtered a dragon in single combat, makes Cacame one of the most dwarfy elves ever.

** Downplayed in ''Warcraft II'' and ''III'', high elves and Bronzebeard dwarves don't really get along well, but the more spiritual Wildhammer dwarves were very good friends with the High Elves. Dwarves in general don't seem to have any problem with night elves, and if they are enemies of the blood elves it's only because the latter joined the Horde (their rival faction) or the [[TheLegionsOfHell Burning Legion]] (who are enemies to [[OmnicidalManiac everybody]]).

** The Alliance's ambassador to the blood elves (before they joined the Horde) was a dwarf, which you would think was an intentional aversion of this trope. Turns out, he was investigating things where he didn't belong and handing off blueprints of arcane sanctums to the night elves hiding in the area.
** There is a bit of this trope in ''Cataclysm'', with the dwarven Explorer's League coming to blows with the elven Reliquary, course they are on opposite factions so its to be expected.
** Early on the rivalry between the Jungle Trolls and the Forsaken was played up, particularly in the [[AllThereInTheManual manual]]. However later it got [[AbortedArc dropped]] without much explanation. There seems to be a minor animosity between Blood Elves and Darkspear Trolls, which stems from both races being ancestral enemies and with the Blood Elves joining the Horde, this is the first time they ever have to be allies.

* ''VideoGame/TheWitcher'' is all over the place with this trope. Elves and dwarves don't like each other at all. However, both elves and dwarves are members of the local AntiHumanAlliance called the Scoia'tael. However, there are several dwarves who don't like the Scoia'tael (who, for all their high-sounding rhetoric, are most likely "freedom fighters" InNameOnly) and point out that the elves didn't stop being condescending and hateful towards dwarves until human supremacy was already a fact and that the Scoia'tael will always put elves before dwarves. Elves, on the other hand, dislike dwarves mostly because they have had a far easier time being accepted into human society and have managed to preserve much more of their culture and traditions.
* While not played straight in the official games, the ''VideoGame/HyruleTotalWar'' mod of VideoGame/MedievalIITotalWar has the graceful and supremacist Zora versus the stout and warlike Gorons. They're explicitly rival factions and hence both have wiping the other race out as a win-condition.
* The [[AllInTheManual backstory]] of the ''VideoGame/{{Disciples}}'' series has this start with a misunderstanding. When [[TheDevil Bethrezen]]'s [[TheLegionsOfHell Legions of the Damned]] first burst onto the surface of Nevendaar, they happen to come out in the elven woods, setting them on fire. The elves flee ''en masse'' towards higher ground, which is also where the Mountain Clans are located. Misinterpreting the massive rout as an invasion, the dwarves attack the "invaders", slaughtering many elves. The elven gods Gallean and Solonielle go to the dwarven god Wotan and demand that he punish his children for this. Outraged, Wotan kills Gallean (he gets better later, but the event also results in Solonielle becoming the fleshless goddess Mortis). This starts the feud. Then, during the elven campaign, a young oracle, possessed by Gallean (who may have gone insane by this point) urges the Elven Alliance to attack the Mountain Clans. The elves win and force the Clans back under their mountain. Then [[spoiler:the oracle kills the dwarven queen for no good reason]].
* Elves and dwarves don't get along with one another in the ''Videogame/WarlordsBattlecry'' series. There are a few different stories explaining why this is; one claims that both races were manipulated into war by the Dark Elves (who were excluded from mainstream elven society when they discovered how to summon demons), while another claims that a dwarf king swore an oath of friendship to the elves when they saved him from a storm at sea, but a jealous nephew murdered the king, seized the throne and declared war on the elves in order to pillage their treasures.
* ''Videogame/DeepRockGalactic:'' Implied, along with many other hints that the universe is a standard fantasy setting that made it beyond the Space Age. In this trope's case, the dwarves may insult each other by calling the other a "pointy-eared leaf lover", and the "Leaf Lover's Special" is a drink that dwarves do ''not'' want to drink, be seen drinking, or even have available in the bar at all, in good part because of this trope (the other part being [[KlatchianCoffee it gets rid of your alcoholic buzz faster than a surprise pay cut]]).
* ''VideoGame/{{Suikoden}}'': Toran dwarves, while very different from the [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame standard depiction of Dwarves in media]] [[note]]They live above ground in the Great Forest, have mastered the art of {{Alchemy|IsMagic}} that allowed to developed electricity and artificial light and are one of the most technologically-advanced races in the setting.[[/note]], hold elves in utter contempt (and the feeling is mutual).

[[folder:Web Comics]]
* In ''Webcomic/{{Drowtales}}'', the Light and Dark elves were no longer able to survive on the surface and fled into the depths of their world. There they were faced with hordes and entire cities of dwarves who were none to happy about these new refugees and a war broke out... Which the dwarves lost entirely, whole cities slaughtered and their race pushed back to the barely habitable edges of the underworld. Now they are viewed as a passing pest and nuisance by the elven races and almost all small fights with them end in a one sided massacre by the elves.

** The grudge is mostly explained as elves ''really, really'' disliking all the beards. Or, [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2003/10/09/episode-340-the-next-quest/ to be more specific]], both races believe they rightfully own the Earth Orb. Notably ''not'' present in the game it's based on, however, which portrays the dwarves and elves as being friendly with each other.

* In ''Webcomic/DominicDeegan'', they have the [[{{Hobbits}} Halflings]] and the Dwarves going at it, with the pretty Halflings having fruited beers while the ugly Dwarves have more generic beers. That is what's presented at the nature of their conflicts, at least in the modern day. [[spoiler: It's later mentioned that the star that provides magic to one country or another on their planet shone on the island they share at some point in the past and they used the magic to go to war with one another.]]

[[folder:Web Original]]

* In ''Monster Girl Encyclopedia'', it was FantasticRacism in era of previous overlords. Elves consider humans, dwarves and any monsters to be lowly creatures and loathe to make contact with them, so they rarely get far from their HiddenElfVillage. Dwarves feel insulted by this attitude and hate them back. Today, when many of elves and dwarves are [[SuccubiAndIncubi succubi]], they still tend to snipe at each other and fight over men. For some reason, succubi elves and dwarves usually target same men. Fortunatly, their "fighting" consists mostly of...[[AThreesomeIsHot snuggling up against the man, pinching him between them]].
* Similarly to ''Naheulbeuk'', ''AudioPlay/RefletsDAcide'' has elven bard Enoriel and dwarf master Zarakaï constantly arguing, typically through SnarkToSnarkCombat.
* In the story told in ''WebOriginal/ElfslayerChronicles'', the dwarf Rumbling Brothers were helping OP getting away with his in-game crimes against the elves, by messing with elves' ''[[LieDetector Discern Lies]]'' spell. One brother had insanely high charisma and could easily fool the spell, and he constantly made outrageously false story that would be identified as true by the spell. His twin had very low charisma, and he confirmed the story as true, with the spell recognizing it as the lie, which resulted in their story being confirmed as both true and false, confusing the elves and [[BeAsUnhelpfulAsPossible hindering their progress in searching for the culprit]]. Out-of-universe, it's because their players are as annoyed by DM's YaoiFangirl fantasy and CantArgueWithElves rhethoric as OP was. In-universe, that's because they are dwarves and [[{{Troll}} just wanted to mess with elves]].
-->'''OP:''' Dwarves just love to make elves suffer.

[[folder:Websites]]

[[folder:Web Videos]]

* Ross Scott of ''WebVideo/RosssGameDungeon'' is firmly on Team Dwarf. The show has covered a fair number of fantasy games which feature dwarves and/or elves, and Ross wastes no opportunity to either praise dwarves, insult elves, or both at once. Even if the game ''doesn't'' feature them he'll still sometimes get in a few jabs at elves, such as blaming them for murder in ''VideoGame/TheBlackMirror'', a GothicHorror game with no elves or dwarves at all.

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheGrimAdventuresOfBillyAndMandy'' episode "Here There Be Dwarves!", the plot revolves around a war between tree-dwelling Elves (a parody of the Keebler Elves) and Dwarves over who got what rights to sell food. The Elves, of course, got cookies, while the Dwarves get mushrooms, and have regretted it ever since; it was originally the other way around, but the elves tricked the dwarves into taking the mushroom job instead. In the end, they compromise and make mushroom cookies.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheGrimAdventuresOfBillyAndMandy'' episode "Here There Be Dwarves!", the plot revolves around a war between tree-dwelling Elves (a parody of the Keebler Elves) and Dwarves over who got what rights to sell food. The Elves, of course, got cookies, while the Dwarves get mushrooms, and have regretted it ever since. In the end, they compromise and make mushroom cookies.

* Played absolutely straight in the ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}}'' fantasy battle game. The Elves and Dwarfs have a long-standing mutual hatred for each other from the War of Vengeance/War of the Beard/War of the Ancients from long ago. Once they were great allies and worked together to save the world from Chaos. However the Elves underwent a civil war and the Dark Elves framed the High Elves for a series of attacks on Dwarf caravans. The Dwarfs, who are normally so obsessed with vengeance that they have a giant book that enumerates every slight wrong against them, were such good friends with the Elves at the time that they sent emissaries to ask for answers rather than go to war. The Phoenix King of the elves, apparently unwilling to lose face by admitting that they had suffered a civil war and angered by the Dwarf emissary's aggressive behavior, had the lead ambassador ''shaved''. This being a grave insult on top of their refusal to explain what was happening immediately triggered a gigantic war. The war irrevocably ruined both empires (allowing for the rise of humanity and [[NiceJobBreakingItHero increased influence of Chaos]]) and lead to the death of the Phoenix King. The Elves refuse to put it behind them because the Dwarfs stole the Phoenix Crown from their king. The Dwarfs refuse to put it behind them because, again, they literally have a giant book listing every grudge in the whole history of their race to ensure they never stop being mad about them. While, by the time of the game itself, the two races are once again allies and on relatively (they are willing to talk and cooperate to an extent) friendly terms, it is noted that they will never again be as close as they were before. They even insist on conducting most of their trade through human middlemen to avoid contact as much as possible.
* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'':
** It's Eldar Vs ''Humans'' on a galactic, genocidal scale in this setting, with the Imperium of Man squarely filling the dwarves' shoes. Though in this case, it's less about swords and bows vs axes and hammers than it is starcannons and hovertanks vs chainswords, battle cannons and heavy, tracked monstrosities. Of course, 40K is pretty much everybody VS everybody else ([[EnemyCivilWar including your own side]]) [[ForeverWar on a permament basis]].
** The ancient War in Heaven was fought between the Old Ones, a species of peaceful and immortal psykers/mages who sought to cultivate life across the galaxy, and the Necrontyr, a warlike species marked by advanced technology and short, sickly lives. The Necrontyr had the technological advantage, but were constantly outmaneuvered by the Old Ones thanks to a PortalNetwork. The war only began turning in the Necrontyr's favor after they transformed themselves into the robotic Necrons, at which point they gained tireless mechanical bodies and a penchant for building huge subterranean fortresses. The Eldar were actually created by the Old Ones specifically to help fight the Necrons; it doesn't come up much because of all the other fighting they're busy with now, but the two consider each other ancestral enemies.
** Though the 40k universe did have its version of dwarves early on, the [[OldShame Squats]]. [[DroppedABridgeOnHim It didn't end well for them.]] [[note]] Interestingly enough, Squats and Eldar repeated the dwarf-elf grudge from ''Warhammer Fantasy'', after the Eldar declined to help in the defence against an Ork invasion. [[/note]] When the Squats were later re-imagined as the Leagues of Votann, these space-dwarves weren't noted to have any particular grudge with the Eldar, at least no moreso than they do with most other factions, largely averting the trope.

* In ''TabletopGame/TheWitcherGameOfImagination'' backstory, the first thing elves did after landing on the Continent was declaring dwarves not worth living and starting a genocidal war with them. This equally maimed both sides and paved the road for being conquered by humans. Both races still hold grudges against each other. Dwarves also like to remind everyone how elves started talking about "[[EnemyMine us, older races]]" only after humanity decided that there was no room for elves.
* In the TabletopGame/IronKingdoms setting (where ''WARMACHINE'' and ''HORDES'' are set), the highly-industrialized titular Iron Kingdoms (the WARMACHINE factions) often find themselves at odds with the much more naturalistic Primal Powers (the HORDES factions). Of course, there's plenty of infighting among the Iron Kingdoms and the Primal Powers as well. Notably, this trait is actually averted by the setting's ''actual'' elves and dwarves, as the elves are xenophobes and friendly with no one else but particularly hate the skorne and humans, and the dwarves, while isolationist, are on generally friendly terms with all the other races.
* The [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame Jadeborn]] (with a hint of [[OurElvesAreDifferent elfish traits]]) and TheFairFolk in ''TabletopGame/{{Exalted}}'' don't exactly meet often enough to develop an attitude about it, but their very natures are inimical to each other -- the industrious, inventive Jadeborn being about as close as you can get to representations of Creation and Order without being an Earth elemental, and the alien Fair Folk being a tiny piece of PrimordialChaos that for whatever reason decided to pretend to be sentient and go around {{Mind Rap|e}}ing people.\\\
Within the Jadeborn society, the Artisan Caste (the most elf-looking) are typically prejudiced against the Worker and Warrior Castes, regarding the regulars as uncouth and brutish and the Enlightened ones as freaks and upstarts, while the other two Castes deride the Artisans as stuck-up, arrogant and a little bit crazy.
* Played straight in ''TabletopGame/PalladiumFantasyRolePlayingGame'', with the Elven and Dwarven Empires having recently fought a war that lasted ''over 10 thousand years''. As a consequence of the war humans now dominate the world and [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame Dwarves swore off magic]].
* In ''TabletopGame/{{Traveller}}'' the Darrians and the Sword Worlders could fit as elves and dwarves respectively.
* In ''TabletopGame/{{Banestorm}}'' the [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Elves and Dwarves]] play more or less to type.
* In ''TabletopGame/TheDarkEye'', there's no outright violence (although there have been wars in the past), but a lot of issues to work out nonetheless. Elves prefer to live under the open sky. Dwarves consider that to be suicidally insane, after all you never know when a dragon might attack. Elves love the forest and will defend it from loggers. Dwarves view the forest as a good source of more mineshaft supports. Dwarves believe (with some justification) that dragons, specifically the Great Dragon Pyrdacor, are the root of all evil in the world. Elves once worshiped Pyrdacor as a god. Dwarves distrust all magic, viewing it as the Dragon's Work. Elves are inherently magical. Dwarves love beer (and wine, and rum, and...). Elves find the smell of any fermented foodstuff or drink so revolting it can cause them physical damage. Elves have no body (or facial) hair. Dwarves believe any male without a beard must have been cursed by their god for some very serious crime. Unlike in some other settings, male and female dwarves are fairly easy to tell apart. Elves... aren't. This can lead to embarrassment. The list goes on. Needless to say, the two races have had a traditionally rocky history...
* In ''TabletopGame/ThirteenthAge'', the elves and dwarves get along ''now'' (except for the drow), but there was a war long in the past that caused the three elven subraces to split in the first place.
* In the ''TabletopGame/{{Pugmire}}'' universe (which includes ''TabletopGame/MonarchiesOfMau''), this relationship exists between cats and dogs. Dogs struggle to avoid falling into groupthink, while cats struggle to build a society despite their individualism. Naturally, each species recoils at the other's behavior.
* In ''TabletopGame/{{Eon}}'' the reason for elves' and dwarves' inability to get along is explained by the fact that the elves and dwarfs have fought five highly destructive "great wars" against one another. According to legend, the first one ironically started when the dwarfs accidentally made a terrible diplomatic faux pas by laying down their weapons in front of the elvish negotiatior. In elven culture, this is a declaration of war ("Now, the only thing that can be between us is arms!"). The conflict is easily fueled by the extreme differences in mentality and culture. Elves are famous for flowery language and long greetings. For dwarves, spoken language is for conveying information, and the subtleties are expressed with tone and body language.
* ''TabletopGame/TheOneRing'': Downplayed, as the elves and dwarves of [[Franchise/TolkiensLegendarium Middle-earth]] are both heroic cultures despite their mutual prejudice. Mechanically, they're less forgiving of each other in social encounters, and will accept fewer failed social skill checks before cutting off conversation entirely.
* ''TabletopGame/CastlesAndCrusades'': The elves and dwarves have a longstanding enmity, as the dwarves see the elves as untrustworthy while the elves see the dwarves as backwards. The one place where the two races agree is in their hatred of the goblinoid races.

** The ancient War in Heaven was fought between the Old Ones, a species of peaceful and immortal psykers/mages who sought to cultivate life across the galaxy, and the Necrontyr, a warlike species marked by advanced technology and short, sickly lives. According to the Necrontyr, the war kicked off because they asked the Old Ones for the secret of immortality and the Old Ones refused. The Necrontyr had the technological advantage, but were constantly outmaneuvered by the Old Ones thanks to a PortalNetwork. The war only began turning in the Necrontyr's favor after they transformed themselves into the robotic Necrons, at which point they gained tireless mechanical bodies and a penchant for building huge subterranean fortresses.

* ''LightNovel/GoblinSlayer'':

** Though the 40k universe did have its version of dwarves early on, the [[OldShame Squats]]. [[DroppedABridgeOnHim It didn't end well for them.]] Interestingly enough, Squats and Eldar repeated the dwarf-elf grudge from ''Warhammer Fantasy'', after the Eldar declined to help in the defence against an Ork invasion.

* ''VideoGame/{{Suikoden}}'': Toran dwarves, while very different from the [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame standard depiction of Dwarves in media]] [[note]]They live above ground in the Great Forest, have mastered the art of {{Alchemy}} that allowed to developed electricity and artificial light and are one of the most technologically-advanced races in the setting.[[/note]], hold elves in utter contempt (and the feeling is mutual).

** ''TabletopGame/{{Eberron}}'' has a really weird version of this between the halflings of the Talenta Plains and the elves of Valenar. Thing is, it's the halflings standing in for the elves in this trope -- primitive, spiritual, attuned to nature, and generally cleaving to the MagicalNativeAmerican idea, only they ride [[EverythingsBetterWithDinosaurs dinosaurs]]. The Valenar elves, in turn, stand in for the ''dwarves'', being accurately described as land-based Vikings. The actual dwarves of the setting are geographically removed from both races and thus are neutral towards both. Also, the setting's largest elven culture is where it gets weird -- an even more remote, DarkIsNotEvil [[TheNecrocracy necrocracy]], former slaves to [[OurGiantsAreBigger giants]] and a rivalry with [[OurDragonsAreDifferent dragons]].

* In the backstory of ''Manga/DeliciousInDungeon'', elves and dwarves fought over the ownership of the island. The elves won, but handed it over to humans because it was too big to take care of.

* ''Anime/RecordOfLodossWar'' makes good use of this trope in playing up the initial dislike between the aged, bitter dwarf Ghim and the flighty elven princess Deedlit. CharacterDevelopment leads them both to understand the other better.

* This runs all through the ''Literature/GreenSkyTrilogy'', despite the fact that the Kindar (willowy, pale, overly-diplomatic, tree-dwelling [[{{Veganopia}} vegetarians]]) and Erdlings (stocky, AmbiguouslyBrown, plain-spoken, underground-dwelling hunters) are simply two separate human cultures.

* Ross Scott of ''WebVideo/RosssGameDungeon''' is firmly on Team Dwarf. The show has covered a fair number of fantasy games which feature dwarves and/or elves, and Ross wastes no opportunity to either praise dwarves, insult elves, or both at once. Even if the game ''doesn't'' feature them he'll still sometimes get in a few jabs at elves, such as blaming them for murder in ''VideoGame/TheBlackMirror'', a GothicHorror game with no elves or dwarves at all.