Gnomes and their role in your game

[Lucky Number]

I always thought of gnomes in terms of their mythological roots- as far as i have found, they were originally Hellenic earth elementals, associated with hidden knowledge.

I've been on and off tinkering with ideas for a homebrew where gnomes are one of the most ancient races in existence, but have only begun showing up on the surface relatively recently (the past few hundred years). Living deep underground (as opposed to the dwarves of this world, who live above ground in deep forests or in mountain halls), gnomish culture is founded on the goal of acquiring knowledge through careful observation. The idea that "to know the origins of a thing is to know that thing entirely" is popular, and many gnomes insist on dealing with the root of a problem rather than it's outward causes. However, they also tend to stereotype other races, with many stubborn gnomes assuming that all things are as slow to change as the deep earth.

 

[Woas]

Sheesh, so much Gnome hate...

Gnomes (and halflings) are my favorite race to play. In fact, now that I'm thinking about it... I'm pretty sure I've only played a non-gnome or non-halfling once and it was a dwarf. I dunno, maybe I got some wierd liking for the little people. I'm 6 foot 1 myself so its not like I have some physical height connection to them... Maybe its the sideburns and facial hair that we share that brings me to 'em

But anyway... Gnomes are kicken. I see Gnomes as the true dominate race in the lands. This is because that they are one of the "Old Three". This Old three that I talk about are those three races with the super long (by human standards) life-times. Elves are the longest at 300 years, dwarves in second at 250 years and Gnomes with a health 200 years.
And the reason why Gnomes would be the dominate of the three is because of their culture. Elves are usually extremely introverted as a people. Usually the only real exception to this elven isolationism is when someone plays one... then you have to give room for why they moved out. So Elves live in their enchanted forest and do not bother with the outside (ie: Human) world much. Dwarves are the same way for the most part. They may be a little less uptight an a little more lawful, but usually they too are isolated in their mountains or underdarks. This leaves the gnomes. I like the think that Gnome towns look just like a normal human town... just on a smaller scale. And that is because the humans adopted this set up as the basic town from the gnomes.

Anyway, because of the gnome-life style and there extrovert culture, they become the strong leaders and dominate non-human race. One gnome lives for every 3-4 human generations or so.

I also like to think of gnomes as all-around entrepreneurs. Not just tinkerers or jesters. Gnomes do not stop moving, learning or acquiring. Unlike elves, who take a few years off from college cause their "finding themselves" or some BS and then take a few more years off every other year.. cause they live 300 freaking years... gnomes are always on the move. All 200 years of a gnomes life is active. They don't slack off and leave things that could be done today for next year.

And I mean, who could pass up all the puns you can make up with the word gnome?! My friends love it when they ask me a question and my reply is, "Gnome its not."

 

[Kalendraf]

In my main campaign, gnomes and dwarves have many similarities. Both are known to enjoy their liquor, and both are known for their mining abilities. But gnomes are a bit more inclined toward living above ground than their dwarven counterparts, and they are also quite a bit more social than dwarves.

There are rumors that gnomes are distantly related to goblins, but any gnome will denounce such talk as "pure poppycock". However, the similarities in statue, nose-size and skin coloration (typically tan) still leads many to wonder if their might in fact be some truth to it. Gnomes have been known to be ruthless and even mean at times which hasn't helped their reputation either. Of course, many gnomes are very laid back and mellow, so it might just be a few bad apples.

There are presently no gnomes in the party, but they have visited a gnomish mining town. They have also encountered a pair of NPC gnomes who were assassins, so they really dislike gnomes right now.

My other campaign is set in Greyhawk, and the party has encountered gnomes in the Stark Mounds south of Geoff. So the gnomes there are typical greyhawk gnomes.

 

[francisca]

Two groups of gnomes in my homebrew:

1) Ice Gnomes of the Great Rift Lake. High up in a mountain range formed by the collision of two tectonic plates, there lies the Great Rift Lake. It sets just above the tree-line and is flanked on both side by cave-ridden, sheer cliffs. Here the Ice Gnomes live. They make a living by mining the cave, fishing the lake, lumbering in the forest below, and hunting. They have trained Mountain Goats and Giant Condors as mounts. They're sightly Xenophobic, but enough of them trade with the outside world that they aren't a lost civilization.

2) They call themselves Forest Gnomes, but everyone else calls them The Dreaded League of A.R.G.! (Arborial Ruthless Gnomes). These guys are semi-nomadic gnomes who live in treehuts. They move about the larger forests of the world, often spending decades in one before moving on to another. They make their living from the bounty of the forest, and raiding passers-by. That's right. Picture a mini version of Robin Hood and his merry men, robbing the rich and giving to, well, themselves!

 

[jerichothebard]

Gnomes are one of the most interesting character races IMC.

They covet knowledge and mental challenges above all the other races. They love puzzles, knowledge, Zen-style koans, riddles, the written word, skill, faith, doubt, paradox and contradiction. They embody the questioning spirit of both the truly pious soul and the scientific mind.

They seek the true knowledge, live by the Socratic method, and have faith in their answers even when they are proved incorrect.

The Gnomish mind is capable of believing totally contradictory ideals, arguing both sides of a point, and seeing all sides of an issue.

Their favored class is cleric, and Craft: Tinker is a class skill for all gnomes.

The Gnomish Ministry of Engineering issues patents on inventions, but only to registered engineers. You must hold a patent to become a registered engineer.




It's probably goes without saying that no one in my campaign actually plays a gnome. *sigh*


jtb

 

[Khayman]

We're playing in a campaign where all the PCs are short folk --- five gnomes and a halfling. The gist of the setting is that the elves are the bad guys, humans enslaved, and dwarves are an army of tech-crazy saboteurs. The gnomes are in a sort of self-imposed exile, having treatied with the elves to retain their own autonomy. Those sneaky Unseelie sorts then poisoned the Gnome King, who went quite mad --- imagine the Gnome King of the Oz books crossed with the 'wounded king' of British myth. The king ails, so his nation is similarly afflicted. The gnomes are just emerging from a generational dark age, leaving their borders for the first time in fifty years, exploring a changed world while trying to undermine the terms of the treaty. Gnomish bards and paladins are at the head of this charge --- masters of the law, looking for loopholes, keeping alive the history of the gnomish race.

We play the gnomes as compulsive over-complicators. If you need to span a chasm, you build the most insane bridge you can out of dungeon doors and golem parts. If you have to tell a story, you tell it in lavish detail. Teaching is done with humour and humility, almost in the vein of the 'sacred trickster' of Native American myth --- watch me to learn, or at least what *not* to do.

And above all, we wear hats.

 

[The_Gneech]

Well, in my game they're sorta like dwarves-as-written-by-P.G.-Wodehouse. Lots of nonsensical patter, rhymes, chants that sounds like they should mean something but don't. A bit like Jeremy from Yellow Submarine, for those who get the ref.

Most other races generally assume that gnomes are barking mad, and treat them accordingly.

-The Gneech

 

[talinthas]

i adore gnomes. Their attitude and insane engineering is what got me hooked on Dragonlance, and from there D&D. my first ever PC was a tinker gnome =)

 

[Brother MacLaren]

In my current campaign, gnomes are protectors of the natural world. They're not born, but rather incarnated out of the earth.

I really like this idea, as well as Nellisir's "Keepers of Hidden Knowledge" idea.

In a campaign I'm sketching, dwarves and humans say that gnomes are dwarves touched by the Realm of Faerie and elves are humans so touched. Elves say that Elves and Dwarves are equally ancient race and gnomes are the result of interbreeding in The Elder Days (with humans being created from monkeys by a curious deity). Gnomes say that they are the oldest, and Elves and Dwarves resulted from a fracturing of their line into the wood-folk and the stone-folk, with the forest and rock gnomes there to maintain a connection to each offshoot. Sometimes, gnomes say that all three stories are true - although they are keepers of lore and all agree that they discovered magic, gnomes have a curious view of logic which makes their lore incomprehensible to most outsiders.

Halflings, however, came fairly recently from Elsewhere, and as such are completely outside the loop of Fate. No prophecy concerns the halflings, and every prophecy now has the implicit caveat "...unless a halfling interferes somehow." Although they mostly wish to be left alone with their farms, they are often sought out, being extremely unpopular with anybody seeking to fulfull a prophecy and extremely popular with anybody wishing to thwart one.

 

[DaveStebbins]

I see them as a combination of many of the posts here. They are the loremasters and sages. They are master craftsmen in trades requiring fine, dextrous, detailed work. They get along well with all the other races and thus make excellent traders. Their natural bent towards bardic knowledge and storycraft/song make them popular in human civilization. Their long life, coupled with their popularity and non-threatening stature (as well as the enchantment magics available to bard-types) make them excellent advisors and powers-behind-the-throne types.

After reading Roger Moore's Point of View articles in the Dragon, I became sad when halflings seemed to move into the gnomes' natural niche over the years. But the way they have evolved, including the 3.5 changes, gives them an interesting place in the world. Intertwined among the other races, yet still capable of surviving on their own. Unobtrusively sitting in places of power or near-power throughout the civilized world. Easy to overlook but, to the paranoid, seeming to have their fingers everywhere...