Gnomes
A Race of highly intelligent tinkers and scholars.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Gnomes are small, with very long arms, fingers and legs for their stature, allowing them to easily crawl through caverns and pry small objects open.
Biological Traits
Gnomes stand a little taller than Halflings, though similar in build to Elves they were slim creatures.
Ecology and Habitats
Gnomes typically prefer the dark and the cold, but will change their environment to suit their needs rather than hide in caves.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Gnomes could range from peckish Elf, to ravenous Halfling depending on if they were experiencing the Quickening.
Biological Cycle
Gnomes aged in a very strange way following one of the many unfortunate experiments their people underwent, aging will sometimes stop or accelerate rapidly. This event is known as a Gnomes Quickening.
Additional Information
Social Structure
Following the ruination of the Magia Society during the Giant Wars, Gnomes became wandering travelers and lived in the Deep Caverns with the Dwarves or with the newly born Human races who rapidly spread throughout Irindoth.
Facial characteristics
Gnomes faces appear sharp and weathered, the Quickening making even young Gnomes appear very very old.
Average Intelligence
Gnomes are said to be the most naturally gifted thinkers of the Mortal Races, the first to dabble in the Arcane arts the Dragons had developed.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Gnomes were very adept at small manipulations of objects, and feeling the difference in the earth with their fingertips. they also had acute eyesight in the dark.
Civilization and Culture
Naming Traditions
Gnomes typically had a Single name and identified with the city of their birth or where they lived. such as Trayur of Nengran, or Carmila of Highgate.
Average Technological Level
Gnomes were for many centuries the dominant force in technological advancement, refining various compounds into explosive powders and gels, steam powered engines, combustible fuels. They often experimented in combining their advancements with the Arcane with the Technological.
Major Language Groups and Dialects
Gnomes speak Gnomish, and often learn Dwarven because of their close ties to the Dwarves during their history.
Common Etiquette Rules
Gnomes are mischievous pranksters, which none but the Dwarves seem to really appreciate. Pranks, and cruel jokes are often involved in Gnome conversation, playing tricks on those that don't know enough about Gnomes to be wary.
History
Gnomes were born of the Firstborn Dhemdis with a curious and mischievous nature similar to her own. While the Dwarves were forged from Earth and Iron, the Gnomes were said to have been made of Glass and Gemstones. Because of their curious nature, Gnomes quickly took to learning about the world of Irindoth, and how the Dragons came to be, lending their aid to the Giants, Dwarves, and the Elves during the first war. Gnomes were the first to tap into the Ley Lines using a number of reactive agents and circle runes of various ingredients to devise crude spells. This was different than the Divine Magic of the Dwarves, or the way Elves bent nature to their will, Gnomes were tapping into the Ley Lines similar to how Dragons did naturally. Because of this Gnomes became very powerful, though their reckless experiments with their new findings eventually led to the ruination of the Magia Society, the Loss of their Timelessness and the Quickening. Its presumed that the early experiments with the Haste spell is what led to the downfall of the Gnomes, and the attempts to fix this accident led to the future losses they suffered.The Gnomes allowed a foothold to be gained with the Dragon Empire, though were still recovering from the loss of their society when the Giants declared war upon the other Mortals. Gnomes and Dwarves lived together in the Deep Caverns during the Giant Wars, though the majority of their efforts were bent towards stemming the effects of the Quickening. Following the Curse of Stone, and the end of the Giant Wars a number of new sub-species of Giant fled the crumbling kingdom the Giant warmongers had created, and many Gnomes sought to discover how they had escaped their curse. Many Gnomes left the Deep Caverns of the Dwarves after this, to seek out the means to put an end to the Quickening. Gnomes that remained behind with the Dwarves founded a new city of Nengran that survived through the Khoven Wars, before being lost to time in the Long Night. A large group of Gnomes work now for the Wurdgrym, though its still unclear if they do so willingly in the hopes of finding a cure for the Quickening, or are slaves to the totalitarian Dwarves.
Common Myths and Legends
Many credit the Gnomes for developing Wizardry. a method for those who are educated, though not blessed with powerful Bloodlines or touched by the Eldritch, to tap into the Arcane through Wizardry.
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
Gnomes and Dwarves, even after the Long Night, have long been allies since the early days of their existence where myth and history blend together.
Genetic Descendants
Lifespan
60-500 years
Average Height
91 - 121 cm
Average Weight
10–16 kg
Average Physique
typically very weak, yet nimble.
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Gnomes have a slight verdant ting to their flesh, which grows dimmer as they age.
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