Gnome

Occasionally called “Half-dwarf”, gnomes are descendants of humans and dwarves, long ago split off into their ancestry. The gnomes are the subjects of an ancient curse, spoken by Queen Mab of the Dusk Cour. This affliction—the Bleaching—strikes gnomes who fail to dream, innovate, and take in new experiences. The Bleaching slowly drains the literal color from gnomes, and it plunges the affected into states of deep depression that eventually claim their lives. Only a very few gnomes survive this scourge, becoming deeply morose and wise survivors known as bleachlings. Bleachling Something in your background caused you to react strangely to the Bleaching compared to other gnomes. Instead of dying, you lost your color but remained stable. You are immune to the Bleaching and gain the Animal Speaker feat. It’s possible for your heritage to change from your starting heritage to bleachling during the course of play due to the effects of the Bleaching, though typically only in campaigns that span an incredibly long amount of time. Deep Gnome Also called a svirfneblin, you come from underground and have found a way to stave off the gnome malaise known as the Bleaching. You gain darkvision and are immune to the Bleaching. Fell Gnome Unlike most gnomes, you have a connection to some of the darker fey, such as gremlins and redcaps. You can cast chill touch as an innate primal spell at will. The cantrip is heightened to a spell level equal to half your level rounded up. For more information about spells, see page 192. Sharp-Nosed Gnome You see all colors as brighter, hear all sounds as richer, and especially smell all scents with incredible detail. You gain a +2 circumstance bonus to sense an unseen creature that is close enough for you to smell (typically within 30 feet, though halve the distance if you are upwind and double the distance if you are downwind). For more information about senses, see page 301.

Basic Information

Genetics and Reproduction

Medium compatibility

Growth Rate & Stages

Adult: 40 Middle Age: 100 Old: 150 Venerable: 200

Scientific Name

Humanoid (Gnome)