Realm; Halfling Realm
Population; Halflings
Background;
0-2001 ALD
Hillocky Tract – a hummocky territory loosely held by Gnome and Halflings
clans (the Small folk).
The Isle of Yber - an island off the Northen Coast of the Gnomes and
Halflings land, colonized by humans as per their treaty with the Gnomes and
Halflings of the Tract in exchange for the military support.
After the clashes with Undead during the Long Dark, Halflings and Gnomes had
somewhat separated themselves from the alliance with the dwarves and migrated
from the Mountains in the West to the foothills, settling in the territory now
called the Hillocky Tract.
The landscape of the land, that had given it its name is undulating to hummocky,
with deep river cuts forming the sandy badlands, ending up in the sand dunes by
the sea shore. In the summer the inland territory is very hot, in the winters it
is frozen solid. The rains form the temporary washes and streams, cutting the
formerly stable slopes. The lands were considered unfertile and wasteful, but
the two clever nations had found ingenious ways to grow sturdy vegetables,
grains, cacti and a few varieties of sheep and goats, even small varieties of
cattle.
The sparse forest covers some of the hills, making it a preferable habitat for
the Gnomes, while all the hills are perfect for the burrows and complex holes of
the Halfling-kind. Due to the climatic conditions and the imminent threat of the
attack from all sides the Halflings and Gnomes developed an ingenious defense
system that roots in Halflings stealth and Gnome’s illusionary magic.
In the Hillocky Tract anything and anyone can be real or illusory and the only
permanent thing is the change.
There are mirage vegetable gardens and fields, dwellings and creatures that
would scream and burn and die on the orcish swords, but only a few hills away,
the real settlement is hidden under the illusionary coverlet. All these
elaborate smoke-screens are erected once the scouts (mostly Halflings) bring the
news of the impending raid. The settlements also move often and sometimes a long
way away, both to find a new stream and land, and to fool the foes. So, while
the raids are common and cruel, the Gnomes and Halflings survive and even strive
in the Hillocky Tract.
The Halflings of the WTP are small, fragile and usually have long curly hair,
both males and female; The Gnomes have rounded features, with the tell-tale
noses starting mid-forehead, above their brow line and culminating in a bulbous
ending. Gnomish females do not grow beards or mustaches.
Gnomes and Halflings’ art is mostly embroidery, small wooden and soapstone
carvings and oral tradition, the endless tales of the tricksters and smart small
folk that defeat monsters by cleverness. Halfling folklore is centered around
the characters like Lois, the Foxfoot and Doberra the Smiley, whose mischief was
au par only with their heroism. Gnomes’ tales are incredibly complex and windy;
the protagonists are never what they seem and have the seven true names each –
and a countless amount of shapes, occupations and aliases.
The large parcels of the shore territory is on lease to the humans who had build
a few trading colonies there, which serve as an out for Dwarven, Gnomish and
Halflings’ goods. The biggest human holding in the Gnomes and Halflings land are
on the Isle of Yber, which is predominantly human, since neither Gnomes nor
Halflings have love for the sea and sea craft. In exchange for the lands and
trade, humans station two Foreign Legions in the city-colonies, that come to the
aid of the small folk when the ogres or undead raids become too severe for the
magic and stealth to handle.
Halflings and Gnomes rarely intermarry, for such unions are infertile, and both
nations have a great love for their families, close and removed. Very few of the
small folk leave the Tract, mostly the ones that were uprooted too harshly or
had lost nearly everyone they loved.
Status; Unclaimed
Developer(s);
NONE