Gnome
Gnome
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Gnomes are short and hardy folk, with an unquenchable curiosity and eccentric habits.
Long ago, early gnome ancestors emigrated from the First World, realm of the fey. While it’s unclear why the first gnomes wandered to Golarion, this lineage manifests in modern gnomes as bizarre reasoning, eccentricity, obsessive tendencies, and what some see as naivete.
Always hungry for new experiences, gnomes constantly wander both mentally and physically, attempting to stave off a terrible ailment that threatens all of their people. This affliction, known as the Bleaching, strikes gnomes who fail to dream, innovate, and take in new experiences. The Bleaching slowly drains the color— literally—from gnomes, and it plunges those affected into states of deep depression that eventually claim their lives. Very few gnomes survive this scourge, becoming deeply morose and wise survivors known as bleachlings.
If you want a character with boundless enthusiasm and an alien, fey outlook on morality and life, you should play a gnome.
- Embrace learning and hop from one area of study to another without warning.
- Speak, think, and move quickly, and lose patience with those who can’t keep up.
- Appreciate your enthusiasm and the energy with which you approach new situations.
- Struggle to understand your motivations or adapt to your rapid changes of direction.
Gnomes typically reach physical maturity at the age of 18, though many gnomes maintain a childlike curiosity about the world even into adulthood. A gnome can theoretically live to any age if they can stave off the Bleaching indefinitely, but in practice gnomes rarely live longer than around 400 years.
By necessity, few gnomes marry for life, instead allowing relationships to run their course before amicably moving on, the better to stave off the Bleaching with new experiences. Though gnome families tend to be small, many gnome communities raise children communally, with fluid family boundaries. Gnome names can get quite complex and polysyllabic. Gnomes rarely concern themselves with how easy their names are to pronounce, and they often go by shorter nicknames. Among gnomes, the shorter the name, the more feminine it’s considered to be.
Popular Edicts seek new experiences, embrace your inspiration, move from obsession to obsession
Popular Anathema slow down to explain yourself, deprive someone of all stimulation
Additional languages equal to your Intelligence modifier (if it’s positive). Choose from Draconic, Dwarven, Elven, Goblin, Jotun, Orcish, and any other languages to which you have access (such as the languages prevalent in your region).