Gnome
These tiny humanoids maintained a nearly unknown existence for the vast majority of their time on Cairne, content to living in the heart of the God's Teeth Mountains where they practiced their art and lived out their days in relative peace, trading with the Dwarves of Underhome and keeping to themselves as far as the other cultures of the world are concerned.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Standing little more than a meter in height, these tiny humanoids appear not unlike their dwarven cousins. Smaller, less stout, and shorter, but with very large feet and hands.
Ecology and Habitats
Gnomish culture thrived in the cold internal tunnels of the God's Teeth Mountains, and within that realm mastered many arts and means of making their lives there particularly comfortable. Their tunnels were carved from the rock using powerful magic, and in doing so they were able to craft them with gentle curves and artistic accoutrements. Their homes were, likewise, built for comfort and aesthetic grace as well. Within their subterranean domain that farmed lichens and fungi and mined precious gems and ores.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Gnomes were vegetarian creatures and their diet was almost entirely made of fungi and lichens gathered in the underground.
Behaviour
The gnomish way of life was one of isolation from the outside world. They were a xenophobic culture that were wary of all others, even the dwarves who were tolerated because of a shared heritage and faith. While they avoided confrontation if at all possible, if cornered they were said to be quite dangerous. Despite their slight frames and small stature, they were strong and extremely cunning, and used these traits in their underground warrens and tunnels with terrifying effectiveness. Despite this, their skill as craftsmen was well known in certain circles, as their ability to manipulate both stone and the minerals found there were exquisite. Often the dwarves were credited with their work, though they made little effort to correct theis and for the most part, seemed not to care.
Additional Information
Social Structure
Culturally these creatures were very much not unlike what they were with the outside world, living in small family clusters and only meeting during holy days and festival seasons when the youth would mingle and wares and news could be traded.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
The gnomes existed in a singular known location within the God's Teeth Mountains, deep within tunnels and caverns within the heart of the mountains. Their network within the mountains was fairly vast, especially when their size is taken into account, but they were never a culture to wander, and content to spend their days where they were most comfortable.
Average Intelligence
Gromes were capricious and incredibly shrewd, though their intelligence tended to fall on the practical side. They had a natural affluence for earth based magical manipulations as well, though this mostly seemed to be an inherent ability rather than a practiced or studied skill.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Gnomes had incredibly sensitive eyes, which was perfectly suited to their underground environment.
Civilization and Culture
History
The gnomes shared a common ancestry with the dwarves as children of the god Zevrhan . They grew and evolved side by side from them and were well night indistinguishable for many, many years until, though the society that built up around them, there came a point where the dwarves, eager to engage the outside world in matters of trade, split from the more xenophobic cousins. While the rift was amicable for the most part, the migration of the gnomes from Underhome into the God's Teeth Mountains was viewed as a sad moment in history, as their contributions to the Kingdom of Underhome were numerous and vast ranging from the crafting of the outer shells of the Domes of the Shining Eyes to the delicate details and beautiful architecture of The Halls of Black Fire.
Trade continued between the two estranged cultures however, as through shared holidays and festivals, there remained many occasions to meet, and the skill of the Gnomes in matters of design, stone melding, and gemcutting complimented the dwarven mastery of masonry, mining, and the forge. This symbiotic cross culture relationship continued on until the day the Blight fell. While the dwarves were pushed back into the caverns of Grundhome , the Gnomes were cut off, the tunnels that would have permitted their escape flooded with deadly void energy and those that weren't quickly being overrun with the denizens of that dark and twisted domain. It is believed that they were slaughtered to the last in their warrens below the mountains, and no survivors or signs of survivors were uncovered in the numerous forays into those lost territories. This was confirmed, sady, many years later with the Culvarkt settled upon the mountain peaks and began to build, clearing the top layers of the Gnome's former domain of Void spawn and sealing the rest.
EXTINCT
Genetic Ancestor(s)
Genetic Descendants
Scientific Name
Humanoid
Lifespan
300 Years
Average Height
1 Meter
Average Physique
Slightly slighter than dwarves and shorter as well, the differences beyond that are harder to place, though to a dwarf or a gnome this is a matter of dispute. Beyond those minor aspects however to the outside casual observer, they are hard to tell apart.
Related Ethnicities
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