Greetings!
Have you developed different societies and cultures of Halflings in your campaigns? How have your players responded to such distinctly different Halflings?
Certainly, Tolkien brought the fantastic Halflings to the fore in The Lord of The Rings, and of course, The Hobbit. Tolkien's Halflings were partially "fantastic" but more or less grounded in being rustic, mundane, and distinctively ordinary. Through the years, such Halflings have been ubiquitous standards in D&D and many other RPG's. I have read over the years that many people *hate* Halflings, and are bored silly from such Halflings, firmly rooted in the medieval English culture.
While seemingly fantastic and mythological, being deeply connected to English culture, but also having echoes in other European cultures, there are real-world examples of Halflings existing, both in the past and to the present day. For example, I was amazed to learn in college, that one of my Anthropology professors spent years living with Pygmies in Africa. Pygmy tribes still exist to this day. Photographs showed my Anthropology professor surrounded by adult Pygmies--all of which, male and female alike, stood no higher than his waist. They were all three to four feet high. Unlike standard "Halflings"--of course, they were typically slim and graceful in build, having very dark black skin, and dark brown eyes, with characteristic tightly curled and short black hair. The Pygmies lived in a tribal culture, living in small, rural villages where they remain largely hunters and gatherers, as well as engaging in pastoral herding and light agriculture.
Then, modern archeologists have also confirmed that there were cultures of "Halflings" that lived in south-east Asia, on some tropical islands, and perhaps along the coasts. Skeletons of such Halflings have been proven to be from three to four feet in height, consistently throughout the population.
Interesting stuff!:D
In my World of Thandor, I have developed several different cultures of Halflings. I have one Halfling culture where the Halflings have light yellow skin, black hair and dark brown eyes. They live in barbarian tribes scattered throughout some regional coasts and islands. They wear vividly coloured clothing, beads, and have tattoos. These tribal Halflings are violent, warlike, and cannibalistic. They make frequent use of poisons, use shortbows, spears, and machetes, as well as hand axes, darts, and nets. They practice slavery, and human sacrifice. The barbarian tribes of Halflings have also developed traditions of boat-building, and crafting of canoes. The tribal Halflings frequently make sea-going attacks and raids on neighboring peoples and tribes.
I have another Halfling culture which exists in a coastal region of hills and jungles, as well as rice plantations and various woodlands and agricultural crops. These Halflings embrace more advanced agriculture, and have fortified villages and towns, and have developed small kingdoms. These agricultural Halflings have dark brown skin, dark brown eyes, and black hair. They have a well-developed religion, featuring stone temples, and a class of revered priests and priestesses. These Halflings ride miniature Elephants, and have fairly sophisticated armour, weaponry, and metal-working skills. The coastal highland Halflings have a sophisticated economy, and trade extensively with neighboring peoples. These town-dwelling Halflings also have distinctive forms of art, and have developed their own kinds of pottery styles, as well as a variety of costumes and styles of clothing.
In a different region of the world, I have a tribal society of Halflings that have pale white skin, blue or green eyes, and blonde or brown hair typically. These Halflings live in dense forests, as well as hills and marshes. They have small fortified villages and practice pastoral herding, hunting and gathering, and fishing. They also embrace some light agriculture. They are tribal, and led by chieftains. Such Halflings are somewhat reclusive, they embrace trade, though they are defensive in demeanor, and seek to avoid warfare with others. They are also led by shamans, and practice an ancient nature-based religion and embrace various mystical traditions.
I think that there is plenty of "room" to develop different cultures of Halflings, inspired also by real-world history.
Semper Fidelis,
SHARK
Dark Sun!!! Halflings are cannibalistic.
Kender!!
It is an odd result of everyone trying not to make hobbits that Middle-earth games have unique halflings.
Quote from: Razor 007;1130643Dark Sun!!! Halflings are cannibalistic.
In some of the debatable quality extended lore, they were also the elder progenitor species with biotech.
I have Bogeys in many of my settings. Bogeys are neolithic halflings. Kind of like midget Picts. They're a nice bait and switch for low level characters who are expecting goblins. Though, I generally treat Halflings, Gnomes, Leprechauns and the like as different cultures but the same race.
In my current campaign, halflings are the only sane survivors of a fiendish gnomish society that managed to all but wipe itself out otherwise. There are a few true gnomes left, but they are corrupted, power-mad monsters, either liches or worse. They would be more of a threat, but they hate each other more than any other creature. Most of the gods don't know exactly what happened to the gnomes, as the final rituals that did them in included a powerful memory effect that touched even the gods.
Halflings are notable for evolving to fit their environment, so that there are now four distinct varieties in the campaign area, with some the more typical types and others more gnomish in their habitats and attitudes. This is partly a side effect of the curse and partly a side effect of the magical radiation where they live.
The above is largely unknown to the players, though they've had a few hints. A few even picked up a "gnomish tattoo"--and were later warned by halfling clerics that this was a curse.
All of this was basically an attempt by me to keep the "little people" down to a low roar. I knew the players were unlikely to pick many such characters, such that one race would be plenty. Well, that and to have powerful gnomish liches sprung as a surprise.
Quote from: Razor 007;1130643Dark Sun!!! Halflings are cannibalistic.
^Beat me to it! :p
I haven't really done anything with halflings (other than portray them as cannibals in Dark Sun), but there's some interesting stuff in the OP, and I have considered Pigmies as well, and wondered how I might incorporate something like them into my worlds, but never got around it. Halflings have always been low priority for me, since most people go for elves or dwarves, and I always saw them as a Tolkien creation--except for the existence of Pigmies, which sometimes got me wondering.
Halflings are too specifically Tolkien for me to ever want to use them or play them.
I'd either go the Warcraft route and just use gnomes... or make them some fuzzy homonid offshoot. Either way, none of that twee rural English squire stuff.
Quote from: Kuroth;1130650Kender!!
It is an odd result of everyone trying not to make hobbits that Middle-earth games have unique halflings.
An impressive example of making something worse than the original stock.
I put them in one region of my game world as a sub-population of the humans in that region. They are not significantly different from humans other than their shorter stature. They live in separate villages, but get along fine with the bigger folk. They provide levy archers when called to war.
D&D 3e and 3.5 didn't treat Halflings as Hobbits. Which I was grateful for.
I've treated halflings as a commensualistic species that live among giants. Imagine the steading of the hill giant chief, except the scurrying you hear in the walls and the eyes peeping down at you from the rafters aren't rat and bats, they're halflings. They're shy and skittish, and keep out of the light. When things are quiet, they crawl out to take away remnants of food and other useful bits.
Quote from: Vidgrip;1130739I put them in one region of my game world as a sub-population of the humans in that region. They are not significantly different from humans other than their shorter stature. They live in separate villages, but get along fine with the bigger folk. They provide levy archers when called to war.
That has to be my new favorite interpretation.
In one of my more human-centric campaign settings "halflings" are part of the human species, and the only 'non-human' class. No dwarfs or elves. Their namesake (the erykoi) stems from a trickster god (Erykos) of similar stature. Most human cultures regard them in a similar manner to how humans in the real world see dwarfism, though of course in a more historical, discriminatory context. Think Sparta for the more extreme reaction.
However, the difference is that being a halfling isn't so much a "defect", even if perceived to be. Instead, humans are more likely to have a halfling child if they interact with the realms of myth (it's a ancient Greek inspired setting). As such, adventurers are more likely to give birth to one, especially if both parents are adventurers. It's essentially a connection to an older, mythological world coming through.
They tend to be tricksters themselves, usually out of necessity, though it is of course something that comes natural to them. You might find the occasional halfling living among humans and they may not know others exist. Communities of them exist however, hiding away from the tall folk; they build temples dedicated to the outcast god Erykos.
One of the ways a game can set itself apart is full describe and implement female halflings (half-women ha). They are like female dwarfs, often poorly described. I always have found that lame.
Lejendary Adventure renames halflings to kobolds, giving them a more fey-like appearance, discarding the Hansel & Gretel caricature. They are greenish in complexion. They are given the invisibility ability, like fey or you know who. One in four have an additional special ability of the enchantment of psychic sort. They are fairly devious in their sense of humor, with sort of an arrogant general attitude that can be gregarious in the right environment. They live in hidden communities.
Quote from: Pat;1130743I've treated halflings as a commensualistic species that live among giants. Imagine the steading of the hill giant chief, except the scurrying you hear in the walls and the eyes peeping down at you from the rafters aren't rat and bats, they're halflings. They're shy and skittish, and keep out of the light. When things are quiet, they crawl out to take away remnants of food and other useful bits.
I kind of like this idea. Perhaps set them as a form of familiar too.
Quote from: Kuroth;1130650Kender!!
It is an odd result of everyone trying not to make hobbits that Middle-earth games have unique halflings.
Greetings!
Yeah, *Kender*.:D I think making a good effort to create different cultural and ethnic groups for Halflings--or whatever race--is a good and worthwhile endeavor.
Making a race like the Kender is just pathetic and annoying, you know? I had a hate for the Kender from the beginning! *Laughing*
Semper Fidelis,
SHARK
Eh I mention kender because I know some have a reaction, but there is a lot of dumb stuff kicking around D&D over time. Dwarven women have beards, modrons etc...
Quote from: VisionStorm;1130670^Beat me to it! :p
I haven't really done anything with halflings (other than portray them as cannibals in Dark Sun), but there's some interesting stuff in the OP, and I have considered Pigmies as well, and wondered how I might incorporate something like them into my worlds, but never got around it. Halflings have always been low priority for me, since most people go for elves or dwarves, and I always saw them as a Tolkien creation--except for the existence of Pigmies, which sometimes got me wondering.
Greetings!
Hey VisionStorm! Thank you! I'm glad you are intrigued. The nice thing about developing several different Halfling cultures is that--like myself in my World of Thandor--I do have a Halfling culture that is more or less like the Tolkien model, though I also have several other cultural and ethnic variations. This kind of variety provides more options and choices not just for your Player Characters, but also for your NPC's, which can be very cool. I have found having such different Halfling cultures in some weird way, creates a different kind of dramatic and *social* "space" for the Halflings. That basis then spreads out into the milieu, causing the players to react and think differently, but also other aspects and cultures within the campaign, if that makes any sense. I have found such different Halflings to be fun, and breaking out of the heavier stereotype--but in an intriguing way.:D
Semper Fidelis,
SHARK
I'm much more okay with Not-Hobbits in Warhammer Fantasy than in D&D. I don't know why exactly.
Decades ago, I made Halflings into Wolflings, basically tiny wolfmen. They lived in warrens, like the Shire, but instead of agrarians, they were mostly hunters. The Wolflings who joined Adventuring Parties were often outcasts from the village pack and the PCs became their new pack. Their language was howls and barks. I had a player who changed them to Foxlings which I used for that campaign. Unlike the more primal wolflings, Foxlings wore fine clothes, were cultured and lived among Humans primarily providing culture and finery to merchants and nobles.
My OD&D game is almost entirely humanocentric and there are no halflings. I replaced them with Gnomes, reclusive beings with mystical ties to elements. They are held in high regard by Elves and Dwarves who seek them out for wisdom and defend their hidden villages. However, the gnomes remain strictly neutral from the affairs of other races, and any favor provided to them is repaid in gold.
There was an interesting variation of Halflings that pretended to be Dwarves (by wearing fake beards) and Gnomes (by wearing fake noses)
Then there is Harpo chasing elven maidens...EEK!
Quote from: SHARK;1130761Greetings!
Yeah, *Kender*.:D I think making a good effort to create different cultural and ethnic groups for Halflings--or whatever race--is a good and worthwhile endeavor.
Making a race like the Kender is just pathetic and annoying, you know? I had a hate for the Kender from the beginning! *Laughing*
Semper Fidelis,
SHARK
Kender might have worked if they'd played down the 'complete lack of fear and common sense' aspect. Any species that lacks self-preservation awareness isn't going to last long, no matter how many gods or writers like you.
I'd have also rewritten the kleptomania traits so that kender were more prone to picking up things absent mindedly, rather than reflexively pickpocketing anyone within a five foot radius. That was just silly.
Thinking about the recent Halfling and Reptilian culture threads I had some ideas mashing the two together, and mixing them with some setting ideas I hadn't had time to use before.
The World
It's set on a low magic primeval world at the start of civilization, where only a few fledgling kingdoms exist, but most of the world is still a savage untamed land, where people must constantly fend against wild beasts and the elements. Technology exists, but it's still at its early stages, consisting largely of copper tools and crude engineering, with stone tools still used in many places. Bronze may have been discovered in some of the more advanced kingdoms but it's still not widely used.
Humans are not the only advanced species, but the races of the world are not magical creatures, like in traditional fantasy settings, but rather natural creatures that evolved to adapt to this particular world's circumstances. The "monsters" that characters face consist largely of the megafauna that permeates the world (including extinct creatures, like sabertooth and mammoths, as well as other creatures unique to this world), and the occasional magical creature that slips through the cracks from another reality. Mutated creatures might also be possibility, perhaps as the result eldritch energies or corrupting substances leftover from a prior era of a long forgotten past where magic may have been more powerful and prevalent, but ended in a major cataclysm that hurtled the world back into a primeval state.
The Jagged Cliffs
One of the regions of this world sports a large valley of jagged cliffs extending for hundreds of miles. The cliffs are large stoney protrusions extending across a vast expanse, like chunks of land rising hundreds of feet into the air then expanding away from each other leaving short stretches of land in between. Around some of these gaps of land hundreds of streams run through, some larger than others, sometimes merging into one another other, forming puddles and lakes stretching out onto the open regions beyond the cliffs, where the streams form into marshlands around the more fertile ground, growing deep green vegetation in contrast to the more arid soil of the stoney cliffs.
Races of the Jagged Cliff Region
Two races dominate this region: a race of large reptilian humanoids descended from lizards similar to crocodiles (Lizardmen), and diminutive mammalian humanoids closely related to humans (equivalent to Halflings).
The Halflings were the first race to settle this valley, almost a thousand years ago after they were driven out from a nearby region to the north by aggressive Beastmen that now dominate that region and frequently raid hapless travelers and human settlements. So the Halflings fled southeast till they found this valley and settled there, living in the trees around the marshlands and carving a simple primitive life, eating fish from the lakes and marshes, occasionally banding in large numbers to hunt large game, but largely unperturbed by the outside world.
But a group of Lizardmen migrated into the region several centuries ago, when a tribe from the coastal regions split off after a massive storm that scattered their numbers and left them wondering aimlessly until they found water rich land adequate to fit their needs. The carnivorous Lizardmen quickly settled the marshlands--neatly adapted to dominate the watery terrain--and the numerous Halflings became a staple diet for them, which the larger and physically powerful Lizardmen would hunt with frequency, making the marshlands uninhabitable for the little folk.
The Cliffhanger Villages
So the Halflings fled onto the jagged cliffs of the valley, climbing high--away from the reach of the predatory lizard folk, yet still reliant on the waters coursing below for sustenance. They became expert climbers, adept in rope use and cliffside construction, and settled the stoney cliffs, building Cliffhanger Villages that hung around the cliff's edge, ever watchful for lizard-sign below. Crude pulleys are used to lift food, water and materials to the sky-high homes, and this same system can be used to pull ground bound Halflings in the case of attack.
The Halflings also mastered the use of slings, javelins and darts, and the construction of crude traps, which they would use against the hordes of Lizardmem when the culling came, keeping the hungry lizards away from their lofty homes. They are ever watchful of trespassers into their land--ever wary of attack, given their bloodthirsty neighbors. Horns will sound the alarm if any approach, and the small nimble folk will rush through a network of hanging bridges and ropes that interconnect the villages from one cliff to another.
I've always disliked haflings and prefered to not use them. Not a fan of gnomes either but at least gnomes struck me as mystical and fey enough to warrant existing as their own race. I had at one time tinkered with the idea of gnomes being elves aflicted with dwarfism. Generally, nowadays, I prefer human-centric approach, with non-humans of all kinds being either from a different dimension like the old fairy tales or the result of diabolic corruption, ie orcs not being a race that gives birth but rather once-humans corrupted by a boar-headed demon calling itself orcus.
I didn't like hobbits in Tolkien (no more than I liked ewoks in Star Wars), and I have no need for halflings or gnomes in my games. Well, I do have one game world with halflings, but they are nasty half-animal humanoid hybrids. I have never played with a demographic that likes cute, and if I did I'd probably go more Miyazaki than Tolkien.
These days I generally don't have non-human player characters in my games, either, because nobody really plays them well unless they are pastiches. Having alien species in the party also removes some of their mystique and thus makes the fantasy less fantastic, IMO.
Quote from: Slipshot762;1131256Generally, nowadays, I prefer human-centric approach, with non-humans of all kinds being either from a different dimension like the old fairy tales or the result of diabolic corruption, ie orcs not being a race that gives birth but rather once-humans corrupted by a boar-headed demon calling itself orcus.
I usually just portray orcs as a savage race of aggressive humanoids, but this presents interesting possibilities as well. Being an orc could be more like a sickness or a curse. A plague that spreads across the land and transforms men into monsters created for conflict.
It also raises some nteresting questions. Could those transformed be saved, or are they doomed to live and die as orcs? Is the process voluntary or against their will? And how does one fight this demon from another world?
I have also been thinking a lot of treating all magical creatures, including races like elves and gnomes, as beings from another world, and having humans and perhaps other natural species (if they exist) as the only races native to the natural world. All other races would be Otherworldly races and belong to the world beyond, and only a limited number of PCs may be members of these races--all other PCs must be human.
I would even like to treat dwarves more like Nordic dwarves and have them be a magical race with the ability to craft items of power, like the weapons of the gods themselves.
I want a campaign where halflings are anti-kender. They stay well away from other people and their belongings. They have a religious fear of doors. A race defined by extreme aversion.
Quote from: VisionStorm;1131263I would even like to treat dwarves more like Nordic dwarves and have them be a magical race with the ability to craft items of power, like the weapons of the gods themselves.
Dwarves not having any females but rather reproducing via special sarcophogi that must be filled with gems and precious metals to forge a new dwarf explains the trope of dwarven avarice quite nicely I think.
Quote from: Slipshot762;1131289Dwarves not having any females but rather reproducing via special sarcophogi that must be filled with gems and precious metals to forge a new dwarf explains the trope of dwarven avarice quite nicely I think.
Alternately Dwarves could be dug off the minerals from the earth. Every so often dwarven miners will come by a stone casing in the form of a dwarf. They will carefully dig the casing from the earth and take it back to their dwarf-homes, where the dwarf inside the casing will eventually mature and break out of the stone fully formed! Dwarf-casings are often found in the richest veins of whatever mine the dwarves have settled, and the dwarves dig ever diligently in the hopes of finding more of their kin born of the earth. In the process, the dwarves will make off with plenty of fine metals and gem stones, as they dig deeper into the mine trying to find the richest veins, where more of their kin could be born.
Another more science fantasy approach: If a dwarf can earn a dwarf-weight of gold, he can petition the priests of the life-forge for the right to craft an heir. It starts with a grand ceremony, where priests clad in white robes and coats lead the way through the warrens, swaying and chanting the ancient words passed down from master to apprentice. As they lead the way, the priests periodically stop to brandish the coins and wrought jewelry the father has earned, seeking the favor of the spirits of the breathing mountain. Eventually, following a long, winding path, they reach the vast chamber of the heart. As the entire community watches with heat-flushed faces, the priests cast the offering of gold into the crucible, where it melts down into a bubbling pool
Then using the rote rituals of their caste, which have been drilled into them from childhood, the priests perform the dance of birth. They move gracefully from station to station, stroking and manipulating the strange sculptures and carvings. In response, lights start to dance across the room, and ancient sounds of clanking and whirring emerge from the earth. The molten gold sluices along channels, and into one of the molds. After a time of cooling, the mold is broken, and with great pincers and an iron stretcher, they carry the still hot but firm shape to one of the vats, and cast it in with a burst of steam and sacred cries. The assemblage of faithful below, staring through the windows in the vat, gasp as they see the form captured by a net, which cradles and slowly swaddles the vaguely humanoid golden mass, suspending it in the liquid. Eventually the dwarven witnesses shuffle out of the room, in pairs, leaving the priests behind at their stations, and the soon-to-father kneeling in prayer before the vat.
Weeks pass. The petitioner remains at his post in front of the vat. Occasionally a young priest offers a bulb full of liquid to the potential father, sustaining him. He may become delirious or ecstatic; if necessary, he will be restrained by the attentive priests, with chains bolted to the floor. As time passes, the priests introduce new materials into the vat. Layer after layer builds up, hiding the glossy golden heart with coatings, woven strands, and odd little implants. Eventually, a recognizably dwarven shape starts to emerge. The final layer is the skin, rough, dark, and hardy, as dwarves should be. At this point, a bell chimes, resonating through the warrens. Those closest to the new father drop what they're doing, and race to the birth chamber. Others finish what they're doing, and put away their tools. But except for a few guards, eventually the entire community filters in.
They wait in silence. Eventually there's a gurgle and a rush, and the crowd gasps as the vat starts to empty. The net falls flat, and the body within slumps to the floor. The father-to-be-no-longer dashes to the door, or if restrained, starts to pull against the chains. The priests gently release him if necessary, and then with a spin and a quick dance, they open the door. The new father surges inside, and cradles his new son. The crowd watches in silent reverence. There may be tears, there may be words or just noises, but that is as it should be.
The dwarfchild is dried with towels, draped in a gown, and placed on a stretcher. Then a new procession takes the father and son to their home warren, and leaves them. The son will wake in a few days, but that is a personal matter. Only the father and a senior priest attend.
Gold is malleable, bright and beautiful, and never tarnishes. Dwarves are proud of their heart, and believe other races are made of inferior metals.
Quote from: Shrieking Banshee;1130651In some of the debatable quality extended lore, they were also the elder progenitor species with biotech.
That actually made it into the main lore. They are the progenitors and had advanced biotech. Then at some point screwed up practically everything.
Quote from: Omega;1131546That actually made it into the main lore. They are the progenitors and had advanced biotech. Then at some point screwed up practically everything.
But their screw ups eventually led to the creation of every other race, including humans. Who eventually discovered defiler magic and started the Cleansing Wars, which
really screwed everything up and turned everything into desert, and the halflings into cannibals.
In my own campaign Halflings had a sizable kingdom to the west. In various iterations for different groups I played around with some variations of culture had in mind. They were bordered on the north by goblins and actually got along fairly well with them and together held the only pass north through a long mountain chain that stretched east to west bisecting the map. Gnomes also to the north they on the other hand did not get along with, at all. (Gnomes were not a PC race).
I had them trading alot of agricultural produce with their neighboring kingdoms and producing some sought after foods and drinks as well as a sturdy breed of ponies. I liked to give them a more Romanian and Gypsy style of culture and dress. I even played around with the idea of placing Ravenloft there and having Strahd be a halfling!
Eberron had dinosaur riding mafia halflings with some plains Indian thrown in for good measure.
Quote from: VisionStorm;1131548But their screw ups eventually led to the creation of every other race, including humans. Who eventually discovered defiler magic and started the Cleansing Wars, which really screwed everything up and turned everything into desert, and the halflings into cannibals.
See! It is all the halflings fault!