On: Gnomes

Yeah, I know, its kinda late. But here it is, On: Gnomes.

Physically gnomes are diminutive (between 2 and 3 feet tall) and of roughly proportionate build to human, but with larger feet and hands. Their hair and eyes come in a wide range of colours, all of them bright. The hair and eye colour will also change throughout their lifetimes. They have between three and five fingers on each hand, and toes on each foot. A gnome with 7 fingers (on each hand) and 7 toes (on each foot) is said to be blessed by Hojo, and is supposed to mean the "blessed" gnome will have a chaotic, but fortunate life, and they should trust in their luck.

Mentally gnomes are formidable and have mastered sorcery, particularly entromancy (chaos magic). They are unusually curious, constantly tinkering with something or other, usually dangerously. Many gnomes have died because of their sense of curiosity has overpowered their sense of self preservation. This mix of a powerful intellect and an insatiable curiosity means that gnomes are often great scholars. However their short attention spans mean that only the most focussed and determined gnomes become a master of any given field.

Gnomes are frequently mages - as with all the other 3rd spawning races (Dragons, Ents and Elves). They gravitate towards entromancy (chaos magic) and away from syntromancy (order magic). Elemental magics are common, particularly pyromancy (fire magic) and aeromancy (air magic), Aquamancy is more common then geomancy (water and earth magic respectively), and similarly biomancy is more common then necromancy (life and death). Gnomish geomances tend to focus more on quaqe magic, and most mages are also sorcerers, who mix in dangerous amounts of enromancy to create unpredictable effects to their magic.

Gnomes venerate Hojo above all other immortals. Of the first gods, they prey to all of them, but mainly Gnok (curiosity) and after him Graj (discontent/wanting/hunger/rebelliosness/change). The gnomish temperment is ill suited to Modah (thoughfullness/contemplation/patience) or Shaw (calmness/sleep/contentedness).

As gnomes age, their hair and eyes tend to become less table, changing colours faster and faster. Their eyes particulaly will change rapidly, going from red to purple to blue and back again in moments in the oldest gnomes. As gnomes age, they show increacing signs of mutation, growing extra fingers, losing their hair (or occasionally it fading slowly as per other races), extre leangth in the limbs, extra ribs, stunted gowth, regression and eventually if they survive they will begin to grow extra stomachs, lungs, eyes and even limbs. This process will continue until the gnome in question dies. Some ancient gnomes resemble morphilks and choaskin, with extra arms, claws and undesirable limbs of all descriptions. Many will seak out a Syntromancer, to remove mutations magically - however eventually the gnomes build up a resistance to syntromancy and they slowly age and mutate until death. Eventually a mutation will kill them, a rib growing through a lung or a heart that pumps bile instead of blood. The gnomes are then burnt, their mutated husks being forgottern, so loved ones can remember the gnome that was.