Races of Antediluvian: Gnomes
Well Met Travelers,
Welcome to another of my worldbuilding sessions. The last time I wrote a Races of Antediluvian article, I wrote about the Horthrushes, a race of King-Worshiping bird people.
This week, I plan on delving into the rich history of a very polarized people, the Gnomes.
Among the Gnomes, there are two major subraces, and each is very different from the other so I will discuss the similarities first.
Welcome to another of my worldbuilding sessions. The last time I wrote a Races of Antediluvian article, I wrote about the Horthrushes, a race of King-Worshiping bird people.
This week, I plan on delving into the rich history of a very polarized people, the Gnomes.
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| https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C_B2gVOVoAAe_Cp.jpg |
Physically speaking, Gnomes are the shortest race in existence. The typical gnome stands somewhere between 2.5 and 3 feet. Their hair color ranges through that of the human nature. Their eyes are slightly larger than those of humans, and these eyes range from colors both natural for humans and those that are unnatural, such as amber and gold. Their skin ranges from very pale to dark and ruddy.
The other commonality of Gnomes is the languages known as Gnomish, which coincidentally split into two dialects, Mountain and forest.
Subraces
Forest Gnomes
These Gnomes are the earliest faction of gnomes. They were created by the gods to travel the forests and wilderness of Antediluvian. They act much like the Romani of earth, wandering and never staying in one place for long.
The clothing styles of the Forest Gnomes are quite unique. Their clothing tends to be bright and flashy. They utilize bright colors, yellow, purple, and red are common for them despite the fact that these dyes are hard to come by. Their clothing tends to be dingy and dirty because of the constant travel that these people endure.
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The culture of the Forest gnomes involves a life of travel, magic, and deception. These gnomes tend to travel in large caravans and are known for their wagon trains that move from town to town. They make their living by providing festivals, fortune telling, and a slight bit of thievery. This lifestyle makes it so that the Forest Gnomes tend to be jovial and light-hearted people. Wherever they go, parties and festivals seem to follow. The Forest Gnomes, being the partiers that they are, mastered the art of brewing a strange hallucinogenic alcohol from funguses that grow in the forest.
Magic is a trait interlinked with the life of the Forest Gnomes. The forest gnomes are majorly attuned to divine magic, and they have a lesser attunement to natural magic. The divine magic takes the form of fortune tellers, divinely powered entities who gain brief glimpses of the future through artifacts like crystals and cards, lay elder curses, and tame great beasts. The natural magic of the forest gnomes grants them the ability to move their caravans without the wilderness hindering their progress.
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There is little in the way of government among these woodland peoples, for they have no centralized power base to give them orders. The ways of the gnomes are governed by traditions and taboos. These two sources of knowledge are great tools, but they are not enough; someone has to enforce these things. This is where the elders come into being. for each caravan, the oldest living gnome (usually a female) keeps the peace among the Caravan.
The Language of Forest Gnomes is its own dialect of Gnomish. It is slower and more positive than the Mountain Dialect.
Mountain Gnomes
This group of Gnomes came after the forest gnomes. When the gnomes encountered the dwarves, they saw the great smiths and saw the great works that they produced. Some among the gnomes saw the promise that these metal crafts had. These gnomes would become the first of the mountain gnomes, or tinker gnomes as they are called among their own kind. These gnomes quickly adapted their skills to work engineering and working with great machines.
The clothing styles of the tinker gnomes are more similar to those of dwarves. Their clothes are practical but fine. These are designed to be the clothes of the workmen. Mountain Gnomes supplement the garb designed by dwarves with goggles and additional pockets used for holding tools.
Culture among the mountain gnomes involves massive intellects and engineering. It is the life of every mountain gnome to create and invent great works to make life easier, but these inventions are not always the most practical. The life of the mountain gnomes involves treaties with the dwarves that forge the great cogs, gears, and other machine components for their inventions. In exchange, the gnomes bend their pride slightly by allowing commissions from the dwarves (gnomes find commissions insulting, for if something is worth making, a gnome will invent it on his own).
Magic among Mountain Gnomes is uncommon, but what magic they do use is typically arcane, for arcane magic often takes intense study. Mountain Gnomes respect intellectual pursuits, and it is for this reason that gnomes tolerate arcane magic. A special group of Gnomish Mages came into existence. These Mages, now known as Gear Mages, combine the machinery of gnomes with arcane power.
The Government of the Mountain Gnomes is a council of inventors. The greatest and most successful inventors living within Mount GnomishCityofGnomishHomes (The Mountain Gnome Capital) create the laws and rules of the gnomes, most of these laws and rules involve what can and cannot be invented.
The Mountain Gnomish Language is not far different than the Language of the Forest Gnomes, but it is filled with an extraordinary amount of technical jargon and is spoken at extremely fast speeds, leading to sentences that sound like very long words.
Marriage and Funerary Customs
The Marriage Customs of the Gnomes involve traveling to one of the Ancient Shrines of Obo, the god of Halflings and Gnomes. At the shrine, A gnomish priest bonds the couple under the eyes of their god. This ritual forever unites the couple in the eyes of the gods.
The Funerary customs of the gnomes are different for each subrace.
The Forest Gnomes take the deceased and bury them under a road. Then, the entire wagon train must ride over the grave while the members of the caravan chant the hymn of road mother, an ancient song about life as a nomad.
The Mountain Gnomes take their dead and place them into cryogenic capsules in the great machine that they believe will be activated at the end of days to raise all mountain gnomes so that they alone may live in Antediluvian.
I think that is all for this time,
Until Next Time,
Farewell and Safe Journeys, Travelers.
The Language of Forest Gnomes is its own dialect of Gnomish. It is slower and more positive than the Mountain Dialect.
Mountain Gnomes
This group of Gnomes came after the forest gnomes. When the gnomes encountered the dwarves, they saw the great smiths and saw the great works that they produced. Some among the gnomes saw the promise that these metal crafts had. These gnomes would become the first of the mountain gnomes, or tinker gnomes as they are called among their own kind. These gnomes quickly adapted their skills to work engineering and working with great machines.
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| https://i.pinimg.com/736x/43/30/1a/43301a1389aa3bae0e74ec39d8fb0d0e--digital-illustration-fantasy-characters.jpg |
Culture among the mountain gnomes involves massive intellects and engineering. It is the life of every mountain gnome to create and invent great works to make life easier, but these inventions are not always the most practical. The life of the mountain gnomes involves treaties with the dwarves that forge the great cogs, gears, and other machine components for their inventions. In exchange, the gnomes bend their pride slightly by allowing commissions from the dwarves (gnomes find commissions insulting, for if something is worth making, a gnome will invent it on his own).
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| https://orig00.deviantart.net/c08c/f/2013/199/6/8/gnome_by_yngvemartinussen-d6e2e0k.jpg |
Magic among Mountain Gnomes is uncommon, but what magic they do use is typically arcane, for arcane magic often takes intense study. Mountain Gnomes respect intellectual pursuits, and it is for this reason that gnomes tolerate arcane magic. A special group of Gnomish Mages came into existence. These Mages, now known as Gear Mages, combine the machinery of gnomes with arcane power.
The Government of the Mountain Gnomes is a council of inventors. The greatest and most successful inventors living within Mount GnomishCityofGnomishHomes (The Mountain Gnome Capital) create the laws and rules of the gnomes, most of these laws and rules involve what can and cannot be invented.
The Mountain Gnomish Language is not far different than the Language of the Forest Gnomes, but it is filled with an extraordinary amount of technical jargon and is spoken at extremely fast speeds, leading to sentences that sound like very long words.
Marriage and Funerary Customs
The Marriage Customs of the Gnomes involve traveling to one of the Ancient Shrines of Obo, the god of Halflings and Gnomes. At the shrine, A gnomish priest bonds the couple under the eyes of their god. This ritual forever unites the couple in the eyes of the gods.
The Funerary customs of the gnomes are different for each subrace.
 |
| https://i.pinimg.com/736x/fb/4e/1a/fb4e1a2b164802951152b1674aca4dab--fantasy-books-fantasy-characters.jpg |
The Forest Gnomes take the deceased and bury them under a road. Then, the entire wagon train must ride over the grave while the members of the caravan chant the hymn of road mother, an ancient song about life as a nomad.
The Mountain Gnomes take their dead and place them into cryogenic capsules in the great machine that they believe will be activated at the end of days to raise all mountain gnomes so that they alone may live in Antediluvian.
I think that is all for this time,
Until Next Time,
Farewell and Safe Journeys, Travelers.
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