Halflings
| ||||||||||||||
As is common knowledge, the origins of the Halfling race began with couples consisting of a human and a dwarf. Nowadays, the Halflings have distinct traits of their own, practically unmistakable when compared with the modern counterparts of their progenitors. Because of their short height of about 3 feet Halflings are often called Half-men. They are well-known for being peaceful people, and live in small isolated villages, and live in houses called burrows. Halflings are well known as farmers, smokers, and drinkers. They hold some of the best parties known to the four races full of booze, games, and dancing. Many Halflings prefer a simple life isolated away from civilization, but a select few live in cities and towns.
Halflings have a reputation for being docile and often stay out of politics and warfare, but are quite dangerous when provoked. The halfling curse from being born from half breeds among anything else of dwarves and humans they gain both curses. Along with a short life, they are rather short and have hungry greed for food.
Contents
Physical Attributes
Halflings are unique when it comes to their stature. They are often called halfmen because they are about half the heigh of a Human, and referred to as the smallest of all the races. The average height for a halfling is about three feet tall.
Halflings are not known for their combat skills due to this size, coupled with their lack of burliness. Unlike dwarves, who are short and stout, this race is short and less built. It is not uncommon to see an obese halfling, though, for they do love food and lazing about.
The Little Folk are famous for their hardy feet. It is a well-known fact that they avoid wearing shoes. Doing so is quite uncomfortable, as they have much thicker and more leathery feet than humans. This extra layer of skin can withstand thorns and sharp rocks. The foot of a male halfling has a curious amount of hair, that spreads over its top. Little is known why they have so much foot hair, but the halflings do not seem to question it. Their feet, in proportion to the rest of their body, are quite large.
The hair of halflings is often curly, or wavy, and almost never straight. It tends to range from blonde to dark brown, and on rare occasions, black. Black hair is rarely seen, and brown seems to be the color in most abundance.
Halflings' eyes are also quite a curious spectacle. Their eye color is about the same as a humans', ranging from brown, to green, to blue, with the addition of less common colors, such as violet. The most intriguing eye color is, well, in fact, a mixture of two different colors. The condition "Heterochromia iridium" is common in halflings. This means that both eyes are different colors. It is seen more often in she-halflings than in male halflings, for reasons unknown.
Clothing
Halfling clothing tends to vary from halfling to halfling. Some halflings prefer to wear jackets if they are feeling fancy that particular day. Others might wear some sort of farmhand trousers combined with a vest or shirt if they need to work or travel. Overalls are also common. The more relaxed and nature-loving halflings will wear casual or very short clothing. Most female halflings wear short dresses or skirts.
Other Attributes
Due to their relatively longer lives Halflings are known as laid back and prefer to take life slow. However, they are among the most talented tinkers, farmers, brewers, and cooks. They are famous for their many inventions and exquisite meals. Halflings in the past have been known to reach for greatness, many becoming a Druid, Ascended, and High Pontiff.
Aging
The Halfling lifespan is akin to Humans, many live to around 150 years old. This relatively long lifespan allows the Halflings to live live carefree, often times engaging in smoking, drinking, and partying for life. Halflings often have no goals or achievements, rather they let life pass by and enjoy the ride. They have no traditions as Halflings enter adulthood, but they are often seen in a more respectable way than they were before. Halfling's, unlike the other races, mature at the age thirty-three and half of their current age is their maturity age.
|
Birth
There are many rumors about how Halflings are born. Many of these rumors make talk about them being born in an unusual way, a myth which told in a book. The mysterious way that Halflings are born. A long kept secret of the Halflings, many have found that Halfling babies are the product of wild cabbages that grow in the farms, a long lost ritual known only to Elder Halflings is conducted and a baby is formed. Of course this is only a myth and doesn't prove truthful as halflings are born the same as all others. Halflings cannot be born from anything other than a Halfling, with anything else they will not be considered the same.
History
Halflings have well documented history, A History of Halflings was written in Aegis to save Halfling history and culture. Originally appearing somewhere around 300, the Halfling people were shunned by both Dwarves and Humans alike. Many Halflings were known as thieves due to their short stature and inherent greed. Over time however, Halflings became less inclined to thievery and fighting. They began to settle into secluded villages far away where their culture was able to develop. As written in Petyr's book, Halfling culture thrived during this time and many distinctive 'Halfling' traits were founded during this time. Brewing and cooking became distinctive, taking on unique flavors and new twists. However religion never begins to take off, instead quasi-religious figures appear based around things that the Halflings admired the most: food, harvest, and safety. In the place of religion family values in the village grew, many believing that if one were to betray his family and village, he had betrayed everyone.
Over time the Halfling culture began to grow and change into the modern culture we know today. Many Halfling live within a singular village, they live isolated away from the hustle and bustle of city live. Some Halflings choose to move away, instead living in populated cities throughout the realm. Halfling culture has changed little since the founding of Dunwood in Aegis. Halflings have moved countless times since Aegis, each town different but the same to the last one. In most recent times the Halflings live in the village of Brandybrook.
Religion
Many Halflings do not follow the religion of Humans. In older times many Halflings believed in the Pumpkin Lord, a magical being that appears before them. He resembles a man with a pumpkin for a head and throughout history has appeared to come the Halflings in times of need. Unbeknownst to the Halflings, they had been worshipping the arrival of Knox, a deranged murderer. Many Halflings did not worship frequently, although many held The Pumpkin Lord in high regard building shrines in dedication to him. Among other gods that were worshipped is the Squidlord Arugula. In myths she appears as a giant squid engulfing entire villages and dragging them into the ocean. It is rumored that the Daemon Arugula grants power to those who are most devoted, turning them into powerful mages known as Munchkins.
In modern day, these gods still hold a place in many small folks hearts. However, in modern times many Halfling folk have begun to worship Billy Bob, the Potato Lord. This has caused controversy throughout the village, and many fierce debates have taken place about Billy, calling him a false prophet. Many Halflings still not hold religious values, while it is true they worship many gods they do not play a role in the lives of Halflings, instead they hold family values over religious ones. As such, family and community plays a larger role in Halfling life. They hold these core values of friendship and good will higher than that of gods and idols, a belief that is reflected in their culture through festivals.
Traditions
Halflings keep many traditions sacred to them, practicing what their parents and grandparents had been doing for centuries. Although they are not well known for their traditions the Halflings have countless ones that seem strange to those who are unfamiliar with their culture.
Locks
Curious as it is the Halflings place large emphasis on community, refusing to lock the doors to their burrows and chests. As they say, "what's mine is yours!" Even in the face of burglary and Orcs the Halflings have refused to break this tradition and instead opt to hide their valuables behind walls and floorboards.
Marriage
Halfling courtship and marriage are similar to that of the human race, but it also has a few differences. Here are some specifications.
|
When a halfling finds an attraction to the opposite gender, he or she will usually approach the other, eventually asking them to go on a date of some sort. They might go to any location (the pub, a nice picnic etc). On this "date," the two will get to know each other better. The halflings might find that they enjoy the others company, in which they will go on another "date." Or, they might find that they dislike the other, in which they will head off in search of a new person.
Barring that there are any mishaps, fights, or loss of interest, the two halflings will eventually fall in love, and start to get on a more personal level. After an even longer time, the halfling's love might become so strong that they feel they can spend the rest of their lives together. If so, the male halfling will offer the female halfling an item of significant importance, and ask for her to marry, and spend the rest their lives together. If the female accepts the two will begin preparations for a wedding (It is very rare for a pair of halflings not to have the wedding ceremony, but in a few cases halflings have skipped in altogether).
These ceremonies will be held (normally) in an outside area, as most halfling communities have no large church or building to hold it in. These weddings will have large amounts of people (nearly the whole town, for halflings like to party), food and drinks. Once the initial party is over, the weddings begin. In these, the betrothed stand close to each other with an Elder in the middle. The two wear fine clothes as do the rest of the onlookers. Rings are then brought out by a first man and lady. The husband's is often inlaid with refined lapis and the wife's is inlaid with a diamond. The two exchange rings then their vows are read by one of the Elders. The two seal their vows by drinking some of the towns finest vintage wine from the same cup. A toast is then raised by the onlooking crowd for the well-being of the relationship.
The party then resumes with traditional halfling jigs and other dances, carrying off late into the night. After the couple is happily married they will indulge on a search for a home they can live in together (note, they skip the honeymoon as halflings don't like to travel as much as other races). The couple will then raise a family and resume their happy halfling lives together.
Villages
Reedsborough
Much as Willow Hollow, Reedsborough in Axios was secluded and ran on a similar community system as before. This town was behind Sutica on the isle of Ceru and was responsible for this particular isle's rich produce.
The Halflings faced many great dangers: necromancers, bears, and Orcs. Despite this, life remained peaceful and the Halflings were often spotted standing outside of the tavern, eager to start a conversation and share a drink with visitors and friends.
Dunshire
Tucked away within The Cloud Temple lands, Dunshire in Atlas was formed after the halflings left the village of Fernswood in order to live in the countryside again. After having moved around too much in Axios for their wee minds to handle, the halflings of Dunshire sought to live a peaceful and stable life in their new home.
Brandybrook
Located right next to Aegrothond, Brandybrook is the main halfling settlement in Arcas. Its known for its docks along the nearby river as well as its excellent farm produce. While the village may be smaller than previous villages, they halflings make up for this by cramming every space available with as much as possible! It is a cozy village indeed!
Random Tidbits
- Halflings are really cool, they are one of the only races to have two racial professions!
- For help on creating a Halfling character please check out the megathread!
- For help with Halfling names, click here
- For another guide on how to create and roleplay a Halfling click here
- There use to be a mayor in the village, but Larry Shortoak was responsible for changing it to only three elders!
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
