Appearance

While the Dwarves were once considered the smallest humanoid species, the Gnomes have claimed this title. The tallest Gnome in recorded history was three foot, while the average is two and a half feet. Like their Dwarven cousins, they have a great deal of variety in their appearance, from light skin to dark brown, but they tend to favor a lighter skin tone. Despite their usually colorful hair, their eyes are surprisingly dull. They can be found in greys, browns and blacks, while other colors are rarely seen, if ever. It is said that Ganthor tricked Malina into taking coal, stone and dirt as a way to color their eyes while Ganthor kept the precious stones that were full of color for his Dwarves.

Eryn: Their hair is often found in vibrant colors including pink, blues, purples and reds. Although, it is not naturally that way, but it is a very common practice for men and women to dye their hair. The natural colors range as much as any other humanoid species, from brown and black to an auburn. They are also nicknamed “Short Elves” due to having similarly pointed ears.

Syna: Unlike their more adventurous kin, they rarely, if ever, dye their hair. Instead, they keep it their natural colors of browns, auburns, and blacks. It is also common for them to have a clean-shaven face, unlike their kin, who like to have dyed beards as well. While they may have slightly pointed ears, it is not near as prominent as their kin, with them being more rounded.

Abilities

Physical

Gnomes are very weak physically due to their stature, despite most of them thinking otherwise. They could easily be destroyed by other larger races, especially the likes of dragons and the others. However, what they lack in size they try to make up for in magical abilities.

Eryn: Eryn are the less physically fit of the two variations. That is why you rarely see a soldier or warrior from the Eryn. Their preferred methods of attack are magic, ranged weaponry,or falling back to using stealth attacks. Despite not being able to take on a soldier head on, they are known to be extremely lithe and quick.

Syna: Despite most Synas being passive, they have a much better at hand-to-hand combat. Syna warriors are known to be deadly and quick at the same time as they wear light armor and use a small sword. This allows them to be able to easily dodge attacks, go through legs, and more.

Magical

Eryn: They are known to be much more adept at magic. Eyrn are able to learn a wide variety of magic, from elements to healing. They often use magic to construct their inventions as most of their inventions require magic to function. It is common for an Eryn mage to be able to use two different types of magic at a time, but rarely is able to master them both.

Syna: Synas are known to have little to no magic, being simple farmers and herders, who want a simple and peaceful life in their meadows. It is not that they are unable to use magic, but they very rarely have. This has caused their magical abilities to remain dormant in most Syna. If they do access their magical abilities, it often is involving elemental magic, but it is harder to control due to their history of neglecting magic.

Champions of this race do not look any different from any other, but they have a unique ability. They have been gifted with the ability to see the future. The future isn’t set in stone so they can see flashes of multiple futures.

History

It is said that when Ganthor, god of stone, created his hardy and powerful Dwarves, Malina, the god of nature, was impressed greatly at their vigor. They lived in holes in the ground, were short, with no magical ability yet they were some of the most resourceful creatures she had seen. While they lived amongst nature, they found ways to use their resources to craft things out of it. The way these creatures were able to utilize her domain amazed the goddess. In an act to make a similar design, she requested Ganthor’s permission to allow her to modify the dwarf design into a more elf-like one as a blend of the two races.

Malina directed Ganthor on how to shape them with his sturdy, large hands as she believed she would not be up for such a task. Over the years, the duo crafted an even shorter race; standing barely half of the Dwarves’ height. They were practically shorter Dwarves with the only difference being they had prominently pointed ears similar to elves.

Once complete, they originally lived near, and sometimes with, the Dwarves; making their own small steel-made cities along the mountain walls. However, when the Dwarves began to battle the Dragons, war soon spilled over into their cities; many dying from the giant beasts. Nialle, seeing these deprived and helpless creatures dying over someone else’s wars, decided to intervene and give some of the Gnome population the ability to learn different magic. With the approval of Malina, she directed the dwarves to Katakarthia where she thought the Elves, due to being similar to them, would protect the new race.

Instead of accepting them, the Elves declined to help them as they believed the Gnomes to be cheap, failed copies of themselves. Being outcasted and alone, unrest soon swept over the population as sudden and accidental deaths from untrained mages occurred. This lead to the deaths of most of the unmagical population.

Out of fear, the majority of the non-magical gnomes and those too fearful to try magic for themselves fled to the west, towards the plains of Katakarthia. With those gnomes unwilling to use magic to invent stuff, they spent the following years becoming peaceful and non-adventurous farmers and herders. This divide lead to the creation of the Synas. While the Synas became their own people, the Eryn continued to evolve to be even more adventurous and crazy with their designs. Some even built confusing, maze-like cities into the mountainside, similar to Dwarves, but even more advanced.