Halflings Need a Brand New Bag

[Chaoszero]

I have always wanted to make my homebrew unique from the standard settings and one of the ways I do this (of course) is by giving races new schticks. Elves are more tribal (sniped by 4e), Dwarves are more gloomy and magical, dragonborn are spiritual warrior monks.

But I can't figure out a new role for Halflings. The other settings have great roles for them. Dino-riders in Eberron or cannibals in Dark Sun. I just never liked the 'we're merchants' tag they always have.

Does anybody have unique halflings? Or ideas for a halfling retool?

 

[JohnBiles]

I have always wanted to make my homebrew unique from the standard settings and one of the ways I do this (of course) is by giving races new schticks. Elves are more tribal (sniped by 4e), Dwarves are more gloomy and magical, dragonborn are spiritual warrior monks.

But I can't figure out a new role for Halflings. The other settings have great roles for them. Dino-riders in Eberron or cannibals in Dark Sun. I just never liked the 'we're merchants' tag they always have.

Does anybody have unique halflings? Or ideas for a halfling retool?

This is from my Alternate Five Shires for Mystara:

The history of the Alternate Five Shires is driven by several interlocking cycles. Firstly, agricultural countries undergo a boom/bust cycle which is driven by population growth and the limits of the ability of the land to sustain such growth. It begins with a small population farming only the best lands. As the population grows, they spread out to begin farming more marginal lands. Eventually, all the land is taken, and further population growth is only possible if you either conquer more land. This can lead either to bursts of colonization and expansion or else to bloody war as everyone begins killing each other to take control of the best land.

Secondly, this interlocks with the nature of halflings (postulated for this supplement). When food is readily available, halflings eat like pigs and are happy and content and good natured. They become a peaceful folk, able to fight if survival is necessary, but inclined to strongly lawful and good behaviours. However, when starvation sets in, they become increasingly sneaky, cranky, and quarrelsome, as their survival instincts begin to override their good natures. Halfling adventurers tend to be a lot sneakier and dangerous and theft-inclined than normal halflings in part because they don't have time for meals six times a day. Or the money to pay for it. Until they steal it.

Thus, as the Five Shires periodically becomes full of too many people for everyone to have six meals a day, the inhabitants become progressively more suspicious, protective of their relatives over strangers, quarrelsome, sneaky, and even violent. The population pressure must be relieved either by expansion or by civil war which cuts the population down to size.

This interlocks with a third cycle, the cycle of growth and shrinkage of the population of the region of the Shadowdeep located under the Five Shires. Manipulated by the Deep Glaurants, the humanoids and other creatures which dwell below the land periodically erupt upwards, seeking to seize the Crucibles of Blackflame and to rule the land for themselves. While the monsters outstripping their resources follows a cycle similar to that of the Halflings, their cycle is timed differently, and thus has different results, depending on its intersection with the Halfling psychological and agricultural cycles.

It is of course in the nature of things that all three cycles are now starting to peak simultaneously in the year 1000 AC, when the player characters step onto the scene...

So basically, you have halflings with personality shifts induced by whether they are overfed or in paranoid starvation mode.

 

[Merkuri]

I once envisioned a campaign world where halflings were like gypsies or Tinkers from Wheel of Time (which are pretty much gypsies, too). They move around from place to place in colorfully-painted wagons, repairing random things for villages they come across and trading.

Perhaps they're mistrusted by a lot of villages, who will trade with them but do so because there are few other people to trade with. Human villages might mistrust them so much that they spread rumors about halflings stealing human babies. After all, don't halflings look like children themselves? That's how they reproduce - they steal human children and enchant them so that they won't grow! (This is, of course, false, but a fun rumor to add to the campaign setting.)

 

[FireLance]

How about going back to the hobbit roots of pastoral farmers, but with greater emphasis on the aspects of civilization, co-operation and protection? Such halflings would gravitate to the Leader and Defender roles and the worship of Erathis.

 

[Oni]

Contentious pirates and river raiders. Kind of like the shrews in Redwall in personality, but less trustworthy. When you hear their river shanties it's time to hide.

 

[Chaoszero]

They move around from place to place in colorfully-painted wagons, repairing random things for villages they come across and trading.

This is exactly what core halflings were in 3e. 4e does the same thing, they just replaced the wagons with rivers.

How about going back to the hobbit roots of pastoral farmers

I'm trying to find something a little less standard. Hobbits are boring, but I do appreciate the suggestion.

Contentious pirates and river raiders.

Now this I can get behind. Excellent suggestion. Funny enough, a firend of mine reskinned orcs into pirates. I guess halflings can swash buckles as good as any and it explains the +2 to theivery for 4e and the bonuses to athletic stuff in 3e.

 

[Loonook]

Halflings are are the progenitors of 'modern' civilization. They need less materials, smaller spaces in which to live, and build like Amish termites trained by mystic architects. They have talents for making objects of beauty and strength, but they rarely hire out their talents to other races without something in return. Halflings master their bodies as they master the land around them; architecture, medicine, anything which shapes themselves or the world around them. A fluid caste-like system based on the 'passion' of the individual is seen as part of their culture; a halfling is not born king, but if he has the talent and works himself through the path and wins favor in the eyes of the people he may become one.

There is another side to the coin. Early halfling tribes were fond of trade and subsistence alongside the elves. When the halflings took to their cities they did not completely leave behind the lessons of their tribes. Indeed, there exists a caste of individuals who is revered and feared. Noble but feral, these halflings have embraced the Moon, and become fierce warriors with the ability to change form.

((Inspirations: I see cities where Humans need to cramp themselves together or Shrink themselves to be comfortable, and well-built places. Also, I can see Halfling nobles becoming Glass Walkers a la Werewolf: The Apocalypse.))

Next time you have a question, cross-post to my inspiration thread if you like this suggestion .

Slainte,

-Loonook

 

[GnomeWorks]

In my setting, halflings are renowned gunslingers, and count a significant number of paladins amongst their heroes of old.

My setting's equivalent of King Arthur, for instance, was a halfling.

This made sense to me, due to their size - they have to be hardcore to get by in the world, because most things are bigger than them. Rather than go the sneaky route, they tough it out. In 3.5, it also made their bonuses to saves against fear make sense.

 

[chronoplasm]

Lately I've been doing this thing where I've been using political parties as inspiration for the races/cultures of the realm.
Dwarves are Libertarians.
Elves are Socialists.
Goblins are Anarchists.
Orcs are Republicans.

So... maybe figure out where Hobbits fall in the political spectrum and that might yield some insights for you.

 

[exile]

In the campaign world a friend and I were developing halfings, which looked a lot more like Tolkein's hobbits than their current 4E incarnation, were descended from a tall, handsome, technologically adavnced race of proto-humans (think Atlanteans). When their goddess was caught in a moment of infidelity, they turned their back on her. She in turn punished them by destroying their civilization and transforming them into the frumpy hobbit shapes they wear today.

Halflings are now used as menial laborers by most of the other races, particularly humans and dwarves. Gnomes were the first to raid teh ancient halfling lands, plundering their lost technologies. Because of this, gnomes feel a certain amount of pity toward the halflings and often work as job brokers, finding the halflings work for new human or dwarven masters.

Halflings are known to be quite lazy. This stems from their tendency to nap during the day. The truth is that they nap only because their nights are haunted by horrible dreams of teh superior beings that they once were.

Chad