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Message: <blockquote data-quote="ForceUser" data-source="post: 1776806" data-attributes="member: 2785">Ah, gnomes. I used to hate them. Over the years since 3E debuted, though, they've grown on me like a fungus. The 3E gnome always seemed a little off, and the 3.5 version never quite did it for me. I saw where they were going thematically, taking the gnome back to its roots as a fey-like creature of mischief, but the garden gnomes never interested me as much as the tinker gnomes of Dragonlance. But those little guys are more a charicature of gnomish inventiveness than an actual playable race in my mind. They're just too silly. Then came Eberron, and with it came gnomes more to my liking culturally: learned, artful, sly, inventive. Still, these guys were using the wrong stats, and I absolutely can't stand having bard as the gnomes' favored class, not when I view them more as tinkers and inventors. Luckily, Eberron also brought with it the artificer class, which in my reckoning is the perfect class for gnomes. So taking one part Dragonlance tinker gnome with two parts Eberron gnome, I dropped some leftover abilities that made no sense in my homebrew - such as a hatred of giants and humanoids - and crafted a gnomish race more to my liking. Have a look.----GNOMESGnomes harbor a thirst for knowledge that can only be described as lust. They believe that every piece of information, no matter how trivial, may someday have value. Combined with a meticulous discipline, this love of knowledge makes gnomes superb librarians, accountants, bards, artificers, and alchemists, but this attitude has a sinister side as well. The same talents that make an accomplished bard can produce a skilled spy, and gnome society is filled with webs of intrigue and blackmail that often pass completely unnoticed by human eyes. The gnomes have no history of empire-building, but their talents for diplomacy and espionage have allowed them to maintain their independence throughout the history of Eriador. In addition to their skill as alchemists, gnomes have mastered the art of elemental binding, which they use to power the ships and other vessels they construct in the dry docks and shipyards of Yoppletop.The gnomes’ homeland is the craggy island chain of Yoppletop, in the frozen North Sea off the coast of Eriador. Known for its stores of knowledge and its schools of learning, Yoppletop is also a significant trading power on the northern seas. The gnomes of Yoppletop are expert shipwrights, and the volcanic caves deep under their islands hold fine gem mines.GNOME RACIAL TRAITS•    +2 Constitution, -2 Strength. Gnomes are hale, but they are small and therefore not as strong as larger humanoids.•    Small: As Small creatures, gnomes gain a +1 size bonus to AC, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, and a +4 size bonus on Sneak checks, but they use smaller weapons than humans use, and their lifting and carrying limits are three-quarters of those of a Medium character. As Small creatures, they also suffer a -4 size penalty to grapple checks.•    Gnome base land speed is 20 feet.•    Low-Light Vision: A gnome can see twice as far as a normal human in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. He retains the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions.•    Guild Affiliation: At character creation, the gnome character selects a Guild with which he is affiliated. Since there are innumerable guilds, they are technically broken into three major categories: Craft Guilds (bowyer, blacksmithing, leatherworking, and the like), Technical Guilds (architecture, chemistry, engineering, scriveners, and others), and Sage Guilds (botany, biology, education, mathematics, philosophy, and so on). If the gnome selects a Craft Guild, he gains a +2 racial bonus on all Craft checks. Technically inclined gnomes gain a +2 racial bonus on all Profession checks. Sage gnomes receive a +2 racial bonus on all Knowledge checks.•    Weapon Familiarity: A gnome may treat gnome hooked hammers (see page 118 of the Player’s Handbook) as martial weapons rather than exotic weapons.•    Artful Dodger: A gnome gains a +1 dodge bonus to AC against any foe that is at least two size categories larger than him. Gnomes are taught from an early age how to avoid the wrath of larger folk.•     +2 racial bonus on Listen checks: Gnomes have keen ears.•    +2 racial bonus on Craft (alchemy) checks: A gnome’s sensitive nose allows him to monitor alchemical processes by smell.•    Favored Class: Artificer. A multiclass gnome’s artificer class does not count when determining whether he takes an experience point penalty for multiclassing (see XP for multiclass characters, page 60 of the Player’s Handbook).</blockquote>

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