Infused with the spirit of chaos, these gnomes are energetic, flamboyant and charismatic. They exude a restless, inspirational energy and seldom rest. They also possess uncanny luck and have great talent as sorcerers. Colourful cousins of standard gnomes, they are adventurous; even the most staid among them is prone to wander. Although commonly referred to as chaos gnomes, these precocious humanoids also call themselves “imago” (singular and plural).
Although some find chaos gnomes’ energy and recklessness off-putting, none doubt their power as sorcerers. With their powerful racial ability to bring a touch of chaos to their spellcasting, spellcasting imago often become known as chaos mystics.
Personality: Chaos gnomes find probability, chance and randomness extremely fascinating. Although many individuals of other races consider them slightly mad, chaos gnomes can at times be brilliant, making intuitive leaps to accurate conclusions that might elude the brightest thinkers of other races. They have a great sense of humour, finding amusement in many aspects of life. Unlike other gnomes, however, chaos gnomes are seldom tricksters or pranksters.
Chaos gnomes have a great love of arcane magic, and they often develop sorcerous talents. Although they appreciate divine magic for its power and utility, they rarely remain devoted to one deity or philosophy long enough to develop significant divine spellcasting abilities.
Many find these free-spirited gnomes engaging, and more serious or stoic individuals often form great friendships with chaos gnomes. Chaos gnomes enjoy such relationships as well, finding a natural foil for their own chaotic nature in the serious demeanors of their friends.
Physical Description: Chaos gnomes stand 3 to 3½ feet tall, much like other gnomes. They have the same slight build and trim appearance that other gnomes favour, but their colouring differs wildly. Chaos gnomes have bright red, blue, green or violet eyes, and their eyes change in hue and brightness depending on their mood — from bright red when angry or excited to dull green or blue when bored or disappointed. They have similarly bright hair colour, ranging from vivid red to blond.
Chaos gnomes favour bright colours in their clothing, particularly reds and oranges. They decorate their clothing with seemingly random bead patterns.
Relations: Chaos gnomes get along well with members of most races, but they find it especially easy to relate to other gnomes. They are at ease with the free-spirited elves, and they enjoy the halflings’ nomadic lifestyle. Dwarves have a difficult time getting along with chaos gnomes. Dwarves respect other gnomes for their inventiveness and skill with mechanical objects, but chaos gnomes are simply too likely to break rules, laws or customs for dwarves to tolerate them for long. Perhaps surprisingly, half-orcs get along well with chaos gnomes. The gnomes are seldom concerned with a half-orc’s parentage, so their communities seem particularly accommodating and open to half-orcs who have had difficulty finding acceptance by other races.
Alignment: Chaos gnomes, as their name suggests, are naturally inclined toward chaos. Although they are flighty even by the standards of other gnomes, they are good-hearted like most of their kindred. Chaos gnomes value freedom, which is the one cause or ideal that can always hold their attention.
Chaos Gnome Lands: Chaos gnomes thrive anywhere, and since they are not numerous, they often dwell with or near other gnomes for protection. Chaos gnomes are not the wanderers that halflings are, but neither are their communities as permanent as those of most other races. Typically, a few chaos gnome families decide to settle in a pleasant area and begin building a community. Within a few years, the area will be a small but bustling chaos gnome town. After about a decade, though, the gnomes begin to move on, and within two or three years thereafter, the area is likely devoid of chaos gnome inhabitants.
Religion: Chaos gnomes rarely take a serious religious stance — they join a church for as long as it suits their fancy and then move to another when worship grows dull or troublesome. Chaos gnomes are more serious about the worship of Garl Glittergold than of any other deity, but even he cannot hold their attention or devotion for long.
Language: Chaos gnomes speak Gnome. They enjoy learning different languages, and they often pull expressions and words from other languages into their own.
Names: Chaos gnomes love names, and most have at least a half dozen. A chaos gnome is given a name by her parents, but she usually uses it only for the first ten years or so of her life. By that time, a chaos gnome usually feels ready to pick her own name. This first name choice is as serious a tradition as any that exists in chaos gnome culture, and an individual uses this name for up to six or seven years before changing it again. After this second name change, a chaos gnome chooses a new name whenever she feels so inclined, many times just adopting a word or words that she likes.
Male Names: Aidien, Doolian, Chainion, Pellia, Rookinoniak, Zingnoff.
Female Names: Gonnynock, Pella, Tarralin, Zernaelian.
Family Names: Chebwith, Kalliess, Nornock, Parrington, Smothings.
Adventurers: Like their more common kindred, chaos gnomes are curious and impulsive. Most chaos gnomes adventure to see the world. Their nearly insatiable love of new and different sights and experiences drives many chaos gnomes to wander for a good portion of their youth. Older chaos gnomes are even likely to accompany their children on their first significant travels.
Source: Races of Stone (Page 86)
Your character can be either male or female.
Every player character starts as an adult. You can choose or randomly generate your character’s age. If you choose it, it must be at least the minimum age for the character’s race and class (see Table: Starting Ages). Your character’s minimum starting age is the adulthood age of his or her race plus the number of dice indicated in the entry corresponding to the character’s race and class on Table: Starting Ages.
Alternatively, refer to Table: Starting Ages and roll dice to determine how old your character is.
| Adulthood | Intuitive1 | Self-Taught2 | Trained3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 years | +2d6 (32—42) years | +4d6 (34—54) years | +6d6 (36—66) years |
1 This category includes barbarians, rogues and sorcerers.
2 This category includes bards, fighters, paladins and rangers.
3 This category includes clerics, druids, monks and wizards.
With age, a character’s physical ability scores decrease and his or her mental ability scores increase (see Table: Aging Effects). The effects of each aging step are cumulative. However, none of a character’s ability scores can be reduced below 1 in this way.
| Middle Age1 | Old Age2 | Venerable3 | Maximum Age |
|---|---|---|---|
| 75 years | 112 years | 150 years | +3d% years |
1 -1 to Strength, Dexterity and Constitution; +1 to Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma.
2 -2 to Strength, Dexterity and Constitution; +1 to Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma.
3 -3 to Strength, Dexterity and Constitution; +1 to Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma.
When a character reaches venerable age, the DM secretly rolls his or her maximum age, which is the number from the Venerable column on Table: Aging Effects plus the result of the dice roll indicated on the Maximum Age column on that table, and records the result, which the player does not know. A character who reaches his or her maximum age dies of old age at some time during the following year, as determined by the DM.
The maximum ages are for player characters. Most people in the world at large die from pestilence, accidents, infections or violence before getting to venerable age.
Choose your character’s height and weight from the ranges mentioned in the appropriate race description or from the ranges found on Table: Height and Weight. Think about what your character’s abilities might say about his or her height and weight. A weak but agile character may be thin. A strong and tough character may be tall or just heavy.
Alternatively, roll randomly for your character’s height and weight on Table: Height and Weight. The dice roll given in the Height Modifier column determines the character’s extra height beyond the base height. That same number multiplied by the dice roll or quantity given in the Weight Modifier column determines the character’s extra weight beyond the base weight.
| Gender | Base Height | Height Modifier | Base Weight | Weight Modifier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 2’ 8" | +2d4 (2’ 10"—3’ 4") | 30 lbs. | ×1 (32—38 lbs.) |
| Female | 2’ 6" | +2d4 (2’ 8"—3’ 2") | 25 lbs. | ×1 (27—33 lbs.) |
Source: Races of Stone (Page 86)