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Message: <blockquote data-quote="steeldragons" data-source="post: 6304195" data-attributes="member: 92511">My initial thoughts, and it resonates quite well with the "noone's ever found a gnomish cemetery" above, were that the dead - either by family or animal friends or (my initial thought) clergy of the supreme gnomish deity (be it Garl or some other trickster type. In my homebrew, the gnomish deity is said to be the one responsible for placing/hiding all gemstones throughout the world. So something like that where the body is taken away and put somewhere, where almost no one knows where. perhaps with the further belief (or for some sects) that the gnomish deity will come collect them in his wanderings/travels to take him to the gem-filled paradise of gnomekind.This ties into the gnomish culture/consciousness of their closeness to nature (be it forests or rocks) and their belief/understanding/acceptance that in the cycle of nature and birth/growth/death/rebirth...akin to our "energy is never created or destroyed". So the deceased is taken away and put somewhere with the complete knowledge and acceptance that they will be taken back into the earth/become part of the trees/stones to carry on into the gnomish afterlife. This is, of course, the greatest glory and desire for any gnomish soul. So, after a mournful ceremony, during which all gnomes will remove their colorful caps and hats - one of the truly rare occasions where this is sanctioned in public- and eulogize the deceased in truly heroic terms (outlandish tall tales being the norm), there is a truly celebratory vibe and feasting for the return of the gnome to the natural world.Also, a gnome in mourning/funerary attire is somber in design and color. Dull browns and greys, though not usually black, the colors of the earth, as opposed to the bright rainbow clashing colors they very much prefer to wear otherwise. Brown, red or grey clay/paste/paint is smudged on the face, to mirror/respect the deceased's return to the earth and the living gnomes reminder that they too will some day find themselves "hidden among the stones."As a side note, there may be a popular belief that treants and galeb durs are born from and/or actually the reincarnated spirits of the greatest/wisest/best gnomish souls.</blockquote>

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