D&D General why do we have halflings and gnomes?

[Maxperson]

Gnomes however are awesome, they are a small reclusive race, fey like but rugged, and as you allude chock full of folklore (although miners adopting princesses is dwarfs). They do need to be tiny (1-2ft) rather than small though. Smurfs are my favourite depiction of gnomes, not to mention the TPratchetts wee small men.

They can tak' oour lives but they cannae tak' oour troousers! Bigjobs!

 

[Al'Kelhar]

You know, this thread is just ticking me off.

We have gnomes and halflings in the game for same dang reason we have elves, aarakocra, humans and goliaths: Because you can tell make a character that is one of them, and have fun doing so. That should be the beginning, middle, end, and after credits scene of the discussion.

Yep, agreed.




Except gnomes. Was it in 4E gnomes were relegated to "monsters"? Best version of the gnome, ever. (Except, maybe, for that concrete one you stick next to the fishpond in the garden, you know, the one with its pants down that's p**ing into the pond).

 

[EzekielRaiden]

why do we have halflings and gnomes?

I get that they are classic and all that but I can't for the life of me figure out the appeal of them or what to do with them in a setting?

I know why Tolkien used hobbits but I do not see who the use them in a non-story setting (gaming settings are slightly different)

gnomes I just have no idea aside from loving gems which is not something to build a culture around.

I know of similar concepts to them that I am more familiar but they are very different in rather drastic ways (they have more location-based subtypes than even elves) but I was asked for something less completely out there.
do any of you know what halflings, gnomes and such types are for in a setting? or why people might play them?

The only (mostly) non-D&D game I know of that features halflings is FFXIV with its Lalafell. They're basically nothing like Tolkien's halflings other than size, though.

I think the only reasons halflings and gnomes stick around are:

1. Tradition. They've been around a long time, so people expect them. We saw what happened when 4e delayed them until the PHB2, there were the equivalent of mass protests...even though most people, then and now, don't play them. WAY more than any class, races are where we have a ton of cruft like this, but we're almost certainly never going to pare things back.*
2. The thematics of size. Most people like playing someone tall; it's socially advantageous to be tall IRL, so most people prefer it. But there's a meaningful (if perhaps not sizable, hah!) contingent that really like being small, too. It's part of why "thief"-type stuff has always been such a thing for halflings, even though their culture doesn't really support it.
3. The mechanics in general. It's not hard to extol the virtues of being smaller in 3.x, at least, and as a result many guides will note that halflings and gnomes are good choices for squishy, hide-away classes like wizard or casting-focused bard/cleric/etc. In 5e, halflings are lucky, and that luck is thought to be worth considering even without TCoE-style stat redistribution, while gomes in general make great Wizards (without TCoE) whatever subrace you pick (SCAG deep gnomes even get superior darkvision without sunlight sensitivity).

So yeah. I definitely think gnomes and halflings exist primarily because tradition says they should. However, there ARE just enough genuine fans and mechanics-first folks (who use them without specifically loving them) that they'll never really go away.

*My personal approach is to fold halflings and gnomes together into a single "small humanoids" race, and likewise try to fold several common options together. So "dragonborn" might absorb lizardfolk, tortles, and kobolds, while "orc" might absorb hobgoblins, goblins, and bugbears. This lets you cover more ground with fewer sprawling pages of content.

 

[Weiley31]

It's that or Kenders.

 

[Minigiant]

Except gnomes. Was it in 4E gnomes were relegated to "monsters"? Best version of the gnome, ever.

I hope in 6e or maybe in a 2nd 5e MM, they go back to including the PHB races in the MM as monsters.

I'd love to see more races monsterized and unshackled of the balance of PCdom. What really is a halfling or gnome NPC besides farmer and badger thrower?

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

I hope in 6e or maybe in a 2nd 5e MM, they go back to including the PHB races in the MM as monsters.

I'd love to see more races monsterized and unshackled of the balance of PCdom. What really is a halfling or gnome NPC besides farmer and badger thrower?

Eberron: Rising from the Last War has stats for the races in that world in the bestiary section. I would love it if they did that for all of the races, too.

 

[Stormonu]

Previous editions both had halflings and gnomes as "monsters", it's not a 4E thing.

There's been the likes of halfling outriders, slingers and burglars to oppose PCs. On the gnomish side at the least goblinstickers, illusionists and warren defenders.

If you want them as opponents, there's nothing stopping you and they can be just as vicious as any of the other races (Really, just take NPC stat block in the MM, VGtM or MToM and make the race halfling - or do you want to pretend there aren't also isn't any specific hill dwarf or high elf NPC stats blocks?). But I think there's more of a call for them to be on the PC's side, if not PCs themselves.

 

[Blue]

Halflings are one of my favorite races to play. They are the plucky underdog. They band together naturally, perfect for forming a party, and are known for stubborn loyalty. Their fearless plays into plucky well - where others fear to tread they'll go for life, love, and friendship. They are the anti-edgelord.

Gnomes I used to have a hard time with as well. I taught my kids how to play, and my youngest's third character was a Forest Gnome. She read all the lore about them and then spun me this tail of this hidden settlement in the forest, so perfectly part of nature that bigguns can walk through without noticing. About their communal help, referncing things like barnraising and the like. She talked about how they weave their natural ability to do illusions into everything. Entertainment like storytelling or music is easy, but even things like when there are overdue children they put a big arrow up above the tree line pointing towards the settlement, and any other gnomes that see it do the same so the whole forest guides them home. How they talk to the animals and use them as early warning of dangers, as messengers to other gnomes, and as friends-of-the-community that they gladly feed and help adn get the same in return. Each tree or area having it's own gnome band that get together in friendly rivalry and try to out-play each other at frequent contests. As she put it "they've so darn wholesome!".

So of course, I had to twist it. In another game, exploring a new world, there is an established gnome were-leopard forest kingdom, vaguely LE. That work together, treat the birds and squirrels and everything like part of the family and have a built-in network that warns the of interlopers, etc. All the goodness, turned to a purpose opposed to the PCs. Such fun.

 

[Blue]

Clerics?

View attachment 131597

User name checks out. I'll believe him.

 

[Blue]

I'm not saying halflings can't become adventurers. I'm saying that halfling culture actively discourages leaving home and disruption. Most halflings adventurers would be the weird kids and disaster survivors.

Every single culture actively discourages adventuring. It's an insanely dangerous thing to do. It's always been for mavericks, those with little to lose, or those who have a huge point to prove.