The Faceless race.

- yes, there are no Dark Elves in Heroes 5, I agree with Silvanis, they only have elements of matriarchy. And the Dunmer from TES are also not quite Dark Elves; their way of life is different and doesn't resemble any of the known Dark Elves in fantasy.

Well, in TES III, the Dark Elves are very different from the Elves in Heroes 5. Of course, they are actually Chimer.

What kind of matriarchy is there when the leaders are men and half of the heroes are men? And this Ilia, the guardian of the law, almost grovels before Raelag - with the Drow, she would have whipped him and sent him to punish those she disliked.

But what about the units?
The Shadow Mistress is a priestess; there are no priests. Then there's the architecture. And if you look at Might and Magic 8, where the Dark Elves lived on the surface and were merchants, they don't resemble the Dark Elves in Heroes 5 at all, and therefore they are more like Drow. Besides, the highest position in society is the Shadow Mistress, not the Shadow Lord; the English name is: Shadow Matriarch. In Heroes 5, two societies are built: a true patriarchy - the Dwarves - and a female Dark Elf society.
The Dwarves have Rune Patriarch priests.
And there is a long-standing war between these races, for example, the Underdark War, when the Elves turned away from worshipping Malassa in favor of Urgash, or rather, the Clan of Stern Hearts, whose leader later became the leader of the Igg-Shail clan