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Author Topic: Ghostwise Halflings  (Read 400 times)

EdTheKet

Ghostwise Halflings
« on: September 12, 2004, 03:07:00 am »
Ghostwise halflings were once very much akin to their lightfoot cousins. But as they explored the lands, this small tribe of halflings came to see the atrocities commited by the bigger races. They asked all the tribes to unite to bring a balance to the chaos, but they were harshly turned down. Refusing to mimic those that they disliked the most, The Wise Tribes, as they were known at that time, decided to retire from civilized areas and isolate themselves in the forests. As time passed they chose to forget many of the lightfoot ways, opting for quiet meditation instead of non-stop adventuring.  The Wise Tribes stopped worshiping Deliar and Prunilla, although they never stopped respecting the couple. They became a self-sufficient race and as such they respected their ancestors more than anything. Coming to worship their ancestors, or the "ghosts" of their past, and became to be known as the Ghostwise.
 

  Personality:  Ghostwise halflings are very timid and shy. They come to trust very few, and are especially wary of tallfolk. Their lives are based around the survival of their tribe and its traditions; every ghostwise halfling is as important as the other, but the history of the tribe must survive before anything else. As such, very few of them leave their treetop villages and only do so under extreme circumstances or when facing "The Ritual of Change."
 

  Physical Description:  Ghostwise halflings look very much like their lightfoot cousins in stature. Not as nimble as their cousins, some Ghostwise tend be slightly stockier in build. When leaving their treetop villages, they tend to spend most of their time outside in the sun, giving them slightly tanned skins and a light brown hair. Since they rely so much on physical communication, every Ghostwise has their name tattooed in tribal symbols on a visible place on their body, and many opt to tattoo many other tribal symbols representing people and events in their lives.
 

  Relations with other races:  Ghostwise tend to trust very few outside races. They respect their cousins for carrying the same blood as their ancestors but never associate with them for extended periods of time. The only tall race they have come to freely associate with is the Wild Elves, as both races have many similar principles and traditions. It is not rare to see either Ghostwise halflings or Wild Elves visiting each other's tribes to share stories. Any other race they normally hold at an arm's distance and keep it that way.
 

  Alignment:  Ghostwise seek balance, both inside themselves and around their homes, above all else. As such, most of them tend toward neutrality. A true Ghostwise is neutral to all and will not get involved in the bickering of the tall people unless their heritage is threatened.
 

  Religion:  The Ghostwise stopped worshiping Deliar and Prunilla when the race split apart. They started depending on themselves and thusly hold inner strength above all. Ghostwise enjoy meditation to reach a balance within themselves, believing that inner balance is the first step to balancing one’s environment. They hold Katia in great regard for giving them refuge in the forests, but never actively worship her. They respect their ancestors above all and worship the ghosts of the past. Ghostwise have many rituals of passage at different stages of their lives. The most noticeable is the Ritual of Naming and the Ritual of Change. The first one occurs when a Ghostwise reaches adulthood and is finally given her name tattoo. Before this event a child is known by many nicknames, and the one that sticks is the one tattooed onto her body.
 
The Ritual of Change occurs when a Ghostwise is not able to reach an inner balance and must seek it elsewhere. These halflings are given leave from their tribes to seek that which they need to reach a healthy state. Most Ghostwise seen roaming around the world are normally in the Ritual of Change.
 

  Language:  This race of halflings, known by many as "The Silent,” have developed a complex language of body expressions and hand movements. This language is so intricate that they do not need to speak in order to communicate with one another. Even when a ghostwise does speak, 90% of the time they use an old version of a halfling dialect originated during the racial split. Nevertheless, they are respectful of others, and will do their best at speaking the common language in the presence of those who will not understand them.
 
There is no in-game equivalent of the Ghostwise silent language or their spoken dialects. Player characters must have a minimum intelligence of 12 to be fluent in another language.
 

  Names: Ghostwise kept similar short first names as those of their lightfoot cousins as a sign of respect and everlasting brotherhood. However, they opted for different last names that portrayed their more naturalistic personality. Common last names are Slowillow, Stoutoak, Fallenleaf, and Wiseflower.
 

  Adventurers: Ghostwise adventurers are very rare. Normally every adventuring Ghostwise is undergoing the Ritual of Change. There are, however, Ghostwise exiles that venture the lands to either seek redemption for harm brought to the tribe or spread the seeds of the Ghosts across the world.
 

  NWN syntax entered into Subrace Field: ghostwisehalfling, Ghostwisehalfling, GhostwiseHalfling
 
As standard halfling except as follows: +2wis (ESA +2str, -2dex, +2wis)