Races of Wild

Gnomes: Gnomes are kindred spirits and fellow littlepeople. As such, they’re made-to-order allies for halflings.And if those considerations weren’t enough to make visitingthem fun, they’re also good wizards and fabulous singers.Having a gnome bard join in the evening song around thecampfire is a real treat.However, gnomes are strangely short-tempered creatures.They can be chatting pleasantly one minute and shouting thenext. They also seem easily frustrated, getting worked up overthe smallest things. Perhaps they’ve developed bedsores orsomething from sitting in one place all the time.Half-Elves: Half-elves are just like elves but less so. Theyhave the same grace and charm in a halfling’s eyes, but theirdemeanor isn’t as intimidating as that of a full elf’s. Half-elveslive much shorter lives, so they’re not always talking aboutthings that happened hundreds of years ago. This tendencyto live in the here and now tends to endear them to theirhalfling companions.Half-elves have all the charm of their elf parents, coupledwith a respect for the ways of others that can come onlyfrom being part of more than one culture. They’re as goodat negotiating for what they need as halflings are, thoughmany of them have a troubling honest streak. They’re alsoindividualists, each different from the others, and eachinteresting in her own way. All these factors make them realkindred spirits, though they’re a little too tall.Half-Orcs: In general, halflings consider half-orcs stronglike bulls—and dumb like bulls. They tend to make goodmarks for confidence games and even theft, but woe to thehalfling who is caught. Half-orcs are the least susceptible tohalfling charm and wit of all the other races.On the other hand, it’s nice to be on the good side of a halforcwhen a strong sword-arm is needed. Maybe half-orcs don’talways get the more subtle jokes, but they can appreciate themore obvious kinds of humor that few others do. Of course,any halfling who can get a half-orc to laugh almost alwaysgets a free drink for the effort.Humans: Halflings enjoy the company of humans morethan that of any other race. Endlessly adaptable and everchanging,they are very much like halflings in spirit. Halflingshave worked hard to cultivate their relationship with humansand ensure that they are always welcome in human settlements.To gain the enmity of the human race would deprivethe halflings of a significant area in which to roam, becausehumans hold more lands than any other race.Halflings consider humans big and goofy, but rather sweetin their own way. They’re smart and adaptable, they like totravel, and they can work hard when they want to. They’realmost as friendly as half-elves and a little bit gullible likehalf-orcs—a winning combination in any halfling’s book.Human settlements are good places for halflings to findwork, because humans always need something done. Oftenthis need stems from their odd tendency to declare war onone another, but that’s their own business. Even withouta war, they’re always creating—building, expanding, andinventing. Their societies are varied and always changing,and halflings who go to the same settlement a second timemay find its needs and outlook very different.Raptorans: To a halfling, a raptoran seems like a combinationof an eagle and an elf. The raptorans’ cleverness and their abilityto fly fascinate the halflings, who can’t get enough of raptorans’stories about how it feels to have the wind in their faces.On the other hand, raptorans aren’t very good customers,since they hardly ever want to buy anything, and they usuallydon’t need to hire out any work. They also prefer that halflingscamp far away from their homes and not remain long if theydo pass through the area.Overall, halflings find raptorans a bit standoffish, and seetheir need to give permission for camping on open land asludicrous. This practice, combined with the raptorans’ tendencyto consider proposals for a long time, leads halflings toconclude (incorrectly) that they can do anything they wish onraptoran land as long as they ask first. Such misapprehensionshave led to more than one clash between the two races.Roleplaying Application: The above generalizationsrepresent how an average halfling is likely to view someonefrom a given race. Since there are no average members ofsociety, it’s up to you to decide how well these commentsfit your impressions of the individual. Does your characteradhere to the stereotypes presented above? If not, why not?Was there something in your character’s past that changedhis or her view of a given race from the status quo?RELIGIONMost halflings maintain a deep reverence for their owngods, and many temporarily adopt the worship of the deitiesof other nearby races as a matter of politeness. Wanderinghalflings also venerate a host of local nature spirits and lesserdeities that rule over particular forests, lakes, and marshes.They typically stop at the small shrines of such deities to payhomage, pray for a safe journey, and leave a bit of food for thelocal animals in the gods’ names.The halfling pantheon is led by Yondalla, who is alsorepresented in a different aspect by the deity known asDallah Thaun (see below). Other members of the pantheoninclude Arvoreen, Brandobaris, Cyrollalee, Sheela Peryroyl,and Urogalan, all of whom are described in detail in theFORGOTTEN REALMS® supplement Faiths and Pantheons. Briefgame information about each of these additional deitiesappears at the end of this section.Organized religious services occur rarely, usually only tocelebrate holidays and to solemnize certain rites of passage,such as births, weddings, and funerals. Most halflings neverset foot inside a temple except when they’re in a halflingsettlement, but they visit the wagon of the caravan’s cleric ordeacon whenever they feel the need for spiritual guidance.Offerings to the church are usually in the form of goods orfood, though halflings are happy to contribute coin for specialneeds, such as repairing a temple or building a new one.A halfling wedding requires a cleric of Yondalla to sanctifythe vows of the couple. At a funeral, a cleric or deaconCHAPTER 2HALFLINGS51