D&D General Why Gnomes Are Awesome (+)

Mad_Jack

Legend
I made a 5e gnome illusionist character just to turn the stereotype on its head... He's the complete antithesis of the standard whimsical gnome spellcaster...

Magnus Magnussen is a somewhat older gnome who dresses in what used to be, some twenty years ago, the uniform and armor of a siege engineer/sapper - now it's clearly of no use as protection since it's been patched, and repatched, and covered in burns and battle damage. (He's loosely based on this Reaper miniature.)
And you can see from his uniform that he used to be a member of the Hell Badgers, an infamous gnomish mercenary unit known for their siege work and use of incendiary and illusion magic. Often, the first sign that the Badgers had taken the field in battle was when the ground of the castle's inner courtyard erupted in a shower of rubble and fire, and dozens of gnomes came charging up out of the hole hurling incendiaries and screaming the same cries as the trained giant badgers that fought beside them.
It's been said that the Hell Badgers once brought peace between two enemies by hiring themselves out to both sides at once and then informing the two that they would fight against whichever side refused to come to the bargaining table.

Magnus, or "1st Sergeant Gramps" as he used to be known, is a gruff and sarcastic old soldier, a wily and cunning old goat, and clearly both highly dangerous and borderline insane* - he usually saves his illusions for stealth and ambushes, preferring to throw fireballs or incendiary devices in combat.
He's also multiclassed as a Fiend-pact tomelock - years ago, some fiend took a shine to Magnus' unit and its capacity for ferocity and utter mayhem, and became something of a patron of theirs for the sheer entertainment value they provided. In his younger days, Magnus found himself cut off from his squad, surrounded and about to die, and the fiend granted him a Pact simply so that Magnus could continue to entertain him. Magnus' patron rarely asks for anything as long as Magnus continues to fight.


*Nobody survives long enough to be forcibly retired from a sapper unit due to old age without being incredibly dangerous, tough, lucky, and crazy as a brewery rat, lol.
 

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Lidgar

Gongfarmer
I made a 5e gnome illusionist character just to turn the stereotype on its head... He's the complete antithesis of the standard whimsical gnome spellcaster...

Magnus Magnussen is a somewhat older gnome who dresses in what used to be, some twenty years ago, the uniform and armor of a siege engineer/sapper - now it's clearly of no use as protection since it's been patched, and repatched, and covered in burns and battle damage. (He's loosely based on this Reaper miniature.)
And you can see from his uniform that he used to be a member of the Hell Badgers, an infamous gnomish mercenary unit known for their siege work and use of incendiary and illusion magic. Often, the first sign that the Badgers had taken the field in battle was when the ground of the castle's inner courtyard erupted in a shower of rubble and fire, and dozens of gnomes came charging up out of the hole hurling incendiaries and screaming the same cries as the trained giant badgers that fought beside them.
It's been said that the Hell Badgers once brought peace between two enemies by hiring themselves out to both sides at once and then informing the two that they would fight against whichever side refused to come to the bargaining table.

Magnus, or "1st Sergeant Gramps" as he used to be known, is a gruff and sarcastic old soldier, a wily and cunning old goat, and clearly both highly dangerous and borderline insane* - he usually saves his illusions for stealth and ambushes, preferring to throw fireballs or incendiary devices in combat.
He's also multiclassed as a Fiend-pact tomelock - years ago, some fiend took a shine to Magnus' unit and its capacity for ferocity and utter mayhem, and became something of a patron of theirs for the sheer entertainment value they provided. In his younger days, Magnus found himself cut off from his squad, surrounded and about to die, and the fiend granted him a Pact simply so that Magnus could continue to entertain him. Magnus' patron rarely asks for anything as long as Magnus continues to fight.


*Nobody survives long enough to be forcibly retired from a sapper unit due to old age without being incredibly dangerous, tough, lucky, and crazy as a brewery rat, lol.
I like this, as it is similar to the other type of gnome I play: cleric/fighter type.

1684004110394.jpeg
 

Clint_L

Legend
Seriously unless you're trying to min max or don't play short races (I'm sorry but I will never not find this one weird), why on earth would you not wanna play a gnome?
Because they're not goblins! But you make some good points in favour of the second best small species. In my campaign, gnome cultures tend to be adventurous and determined, often inclined towards thinking and tinkering, and industrious. Many of them like to work hard and play hard, so taverns catering primarily to gnomes tend to keep late hours. However, this culture also can lead to high rates of stress and anxiety.

My goblins are culturally sort of like gnomes, but with less regard for rigour and safety. Being shorter lived, they frequently have more of a "go for it while you can" outlook. But I see these two species as very copacetic.
 

doctorbadwolf

Heretic of The Seventh Circle
Because they're not goblins! But you make some good points in favour of the second best small species. In my campaign, gnome cultures tend to be adventurous and determined, often inclined towards thinking and tinkering, and industrious. Many of them like to work hard and play hard, so taverns catering primarily to gnomes tend to keep late hours. However, this culture also can lead to high rates of stress and anxiety.

My goblins are culturally sort of like gnomes, but with less regard for rigour and safety. Being shorter lived, they frequently have more of a "go for it while you can" outlook. But I see these two species as very copacetic.
I like that!
 


For a while my “issue” with gnomes has been that they have he same niche as halflngs - ecologically, (game) mechanically and narratively. They’re the little guys who can still make a big difference. Certain skillsets are usually associated with one or the other but gnomish rogues and halfling artificers exist and work just as well.

If I had to pick one I think I would pick gnomes at this point, but for quite some time I’ve assumed both exist as expressions of internal diversity of the race - a hobbit-hole and a 4e halfling’s caravan and a hidden forest village and a clockwork land-ship - all filled with the same species, but very different cultures.

Incidentally, gnomes is the iternal name - halfling is obviously an exonym.

One fun side effect of this, for those who remember late 3.5s races of stone and/or wild: this give one major deity for each alignment: Garl Glittergold (good), Gelf Darkheart (evil), Yondalla (lawful, in the community-first sense), and Dalla Thaum (chaotic, in the rules-are-no-fun sense).
 

doctorbadwolf

Heretic of The Seventh Circle
For a while my “issue” with gnomes has been that they have he same niche as halflngs - ecologically, (game) mechanically and narratively. They’re the little guys who can still make a big difference. Certain skillsets are usually associated with one or the other but gnomish rogues and halfling artificers exist and work just as well.

If I had to pick one I think I would pick gnomes at this point, but for quite some time I’ve assumed both exist as expressions of internal diversity of the race - a hobbit-hole and a 4e halfling’s caravan and a hidden forest village and a clockwork land-ship - all filled with the same species, but very different cultures.

Incidentally, gnomes is the iternal name - halfling is obviously an exonym.

One fun side effect of this, for those who remember late 3.5s races of stone and/or wild: this give one major deity for each alignment: Garl Glittergold (good), Gelf Darkheart (evil), Yondalla (lawful, in the community-first sense), and Dalla Thaum (chaotic, in the rules-are-no-fun sense).
This feels counter to the purpose of the thread, which is a + thread.

This isn’t a thread for explaining why you think gnomes are totally redundant with another race because they’re both short. It’s a thread celebrating gnomes and sharing why we like them.
 



greg kaye

Explorer
For a while my “issue” with gnomes has been that they have he same niche as halflngs - ecologically, (game) mechanically and narratively. They’re the little guys who can still make a big difference. Certain skillsets are usually associated with one or the other but gnomish rogues and halfling artificers exist and work just as well. ...
Yeah, we just need three subraces of gnome and perhaps just one type of halfling, (and "halfling" could just be a reference to a type of gnome).
 

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