If gnomes had the eladrin's powers would that make them more appealing?

[Klaus]

What is this "magical fey" niche you people speak of?

I know they were given the fluff of being tricksters, pranksters and could be illusionists, but that's not what they presented as in the ACTUAL campaign settings.

In previous editions, the niche for gnomes was either "cousin race to DWARVES" as the fluff text IIRC for both FR and GH was that gnome villages were almost always located next to dwarves and the more common niche of "tinkerer/inventors/engineers" thanks to Dragonlance.

The latter is certainly the most common niche that TSR went with (Dragonlance, Forgotten Realms, Mystara) if they didn't outright kill them off (Birthright, Darksun). Do you know that the gnomes are the only "core" race that got excised from 2E campaign settings?

Where does this gnome love come from, since it certainly wasn't TSR that bolstered it.

The niche of gnomes pre-3E is of "magical dwarves", since dwarves back then couldn't be wizards or illusionists.

I wouldn't mind if gnomes in 4E had a connection to the Primal power source, making them natural druids and knowledgeable in the "old wisdom" of the world. Where Eladrin are from the Twilight forests of the Feywild, gnomes are from the earth and grass and tree roots.

 

[AllisterH]

The niche of gnomes pre-3E is of "magical dwarves", since dwarves back then couldn't be wizards or illusionists.

.

So it isn't eladrins that took away the gnome niche (since as others have pointed out, magical elves/woodsman elves is a staple since Tolkein himself) but when WOTC allowed dwarves to be wizards/sorcerors.

Then taking the eladrin's powers wouldn't help since you still would have magical dwarves.

 

[hong]

Mmm, magic dwarf anime. The counterpart of magic girl anime, for the geek guys out there.

 

[Belorin]

I would associate them more strongly with the Feywild, even more so than the Eladrin, able to slip in and out of the Feywild almost at will. Their villages exist on either side of the curtain allowing them to hide their homes with illusion and shadow magic. They also make use of the animals of the wild places, badgers, wolverines, even wolves for defense and as mounts.
In stature they are similar to Halflings, but are more stocky. They live in the lightly wooded foothills near the mountains, but feel no kinship with dwarves although they are on friendly terms. Due to their close ties to the Feywild gnomes live longer than eladrin, elves or dwarves, around 5oo years. Sometimes a gnome will venture forth into the natural world as a quest for new knowledge, sometimes they join adventuring parties.
Though they favor arcane classes or rangers over rogues and fighters or divine classes they have been known to take any class. They make great controllers and strikers due to their expertise with illusions, shadows and something similar to the eladrin fey step.

Bel

 

[SaffroN]

"If gnomes had the eladrin's powers would that make them more appealing?"

No... Not for me.

 

[FabioMilitoPagliara]

All of you gnome-haters don't murderize me for suggesting it but if the gnome was given the Feyish powers that the eladrin has, would that change your opinion on how appealing they'd be to play?

The designers said that the gnome weren't going to be in the PHB because they didn't have an established niche but it seems to me like with their mythological roots and the otherworldly-looking gnome from the webcartoon interview they could fill the Fey role pretty well. And as the only 3.x PHB race with SLA's it doesn't seem like it would be horning in on any other niches (especially if magic-oriented elf are obligated to being magic-oriented by taking a magely class like it's been since 2nd Ed.).

To me the Fey-powers seem like the perfect opportunity to give them a niche that would draw people to them more.

but gnome are not fey, Eladrin fill the niche of the distant arcane oriented Elf

gnomes? we have illusionist gnomes, technomancer gnomes, elemental gnomes... and yet there is no clear identity for them

it's not only a question of powers but of finding the right powers for their identity

so the first question to answer is "What are gnomes?" then "Which gnomes we want?" and so on

 

[Fallen Seraph]

I posted this on WoTC but it is pretty relevant, this is if I ever do include Gnomes what their background/lore will be, it is very Fey/Feywild heavy:

"It is said, that centuries ago and even continuing to this day, certain creatures from the Feywild would find themselves in our World. These beings, having the mind of a trickster and the magick of the Feywild soon began to spread mischief amongst the many villages and towns.

Some of this mischief took on a sinister tone, adultery and pregnancy and the kidnapping and replacing of children were the daily order for some of these Fey.

These children of the Fey, soon began to grow and develop into their true beings. Some did not survive long, Humans being naturally frightful of otherworldly beings, others did survive.

These survivors began to hear tells of others, and began to mingle. Their children were the first Gnomes.

Gnomes live a life between two worlds, the offspring of Half-Fey that have gained the cunning trickery and magic of the Fey, but the resilience and knowledge of their Human ancestory.

Most Gnomes live in forest-villages with ties and links to the Feywild, ocassionaly a Fey, Elf, Eladrin or another Half-Fey will find its way into their protection."

 

[Belorin]

I like that.

Bel

 

[Dormain1]

Seeing that 4E has taken so much from Dragonlance why not the gnomes

Gnomes of Dragonlance

nottomentiontheydonttakeabreathwhenspeaking

they can cause just as much mayhem as kender and they get to blow things up

 

[Klaus]

Seeing that 4E has taken so much from Dragonlance why not the gnomes

Gnomes of Dragonlance

nottomentiontheydonttakeabreathwhenspeaking

they can cause just as much mayhem as kender and they get to blow things up

Oh God.

Oh, no.

Nonono.

No.

Plus, people would think they've been taken from Warcraft, not DL.