Afternoon all,
I'm working on writing my own homebrew world, and I'm doing some WILDLY variant idea implementations. The biggest, in some estimations, is that Halflings on my world are the dominant race and as currently written live up to approximately 1500 years. This has, as written, led to a gerontocracy (rule by the eldest). Additionally, the Halfling race also reproduces incredibly quickly (one year gestation, almost always results in a multiple birth, and so on). This is reasoned by Divine Mandate.
Essentially, the world itself was called from nothingness by an erstwhile Halfling adventure-cum-Greater Power. As such, (S)He cast the dominant race in Zir (pardon the use of gender unspecified pronouns, it's part of the mystique of this particular Power) own image. QED, Halflings are prodigious, long lived and basically take an admixture of racial roles normally filled by other races rolled into one. (ie, the lifespan of Elves and the rapid spread of Humans)
In a readover by my Beloved Spouse (Kobold chorus: "We love you!") she points out that my post-Great-War semi-Utopian Halfling society doesn't match with how people work. By which she means any race that lives that long wouldn't behave as I've written them to. And any race that prodigious wouldn't behave that way either.
Which, I guess, brings us to my question.
Putting aside one's preconceptions of Halflings as they have been written in fantasy and gaming to this point, how would you envision a race such as described above behaving?
The factors that should enter into the equation:
1) Divine Providence. These are LITERALLY the Chosen Ones of the world's Great Power. All other races (which I won't get into on this post) are allowed to live here by this Power's sufferance.
2) This is a race that has just (within the past millenia) come out of a Great War (Think American Civil War, much larger scale, fantasy typical weapons)
3) This race inhabits a belt of land surrounding the planet's equator, and has an incredible amount of space over which to spread before encountering any resource depletion or urbanization difficulties.
There are other factors, but 3 is a good number.
So, let's hear all your feedback. Keep it constructive please, but be honest.
Okay, well, looking at these halflings, I can think of a few things that are problematic.
First off, what was the civil war about and who won? The gerontocracy may not have survived. But if it did, the civil war was probably in part about the gerontocracy.
If the accepted halfling norm is rule by the eldest, and they produce huge numbers of young, then they're probably an incredibly backstabbing race in any of the cities with an even larger number fleeing in horror to go found their own homesteads, which in turn lead to new cities, and the same problem yet again.
The elves, though not the "chosen race," are probably the power behind a lot of halfling thrones via taking a subservient position but not being in line for the next knife in the back.
Humans are likely viewed as foolish giants, or at best tragic figures, since even the cleverest are doomed to die young.
Goblins are probably used as dishwashers and street sweepers. They're also probably the cooks too, since they like eating, and working for the halflings means they won't starve.
Dwarves are probably the only race with a culture halfway intact, due to living somewhere the halflings don't like.
There has probably been more than one religious heresy regarding birth control, anything from drinking potions or making like the Shakers and not having sex.
One assumes that, given the race's fertility, all the half-human monsters in this world are instead half halfling. Halfling harpies. Halfling mermaids. Halfling minotaurs.
Re: Kevin Andrew Murphy... I like your ideas. Given your feedback, I'm just going to throw open the reference document that I'm working on right now for the world in question.It's over here:
http://worldoftinris.wordpress.com/2009/09/08/initial-overview-wip/Very much a work in progress, but it shows where I am in the world building as well as addressing some of your feedback.
I hadn't yet gotten to the other 'non-primary' humanoids like Goblinoids and the like. Would love to hear your thoughts, as well as those of others.
2) This is a race that has just (within the past millenia) come out of a Great War (Think American Civil War, much larger scale, fantasy typical weapons)
A lot depends on how the society was BEFORE this great war.
When I'm thinking ACW.
One of the lasting effects of the ACW was a centralization of power under the Federal Government. What was the structure of the Genrontocracy before the war ? How would the war have altered it ?
There were advances in technology (Ironclad Warships, for example) and the strategic use of railroads and the telegraph, but technology was not widely blamed for the horrors of war.
When I'm thinking WWI.
If the deaths in combat fell disporportionately on the young, this might tend to reinforce the gerontocracy. It might leave a generational gap as well that leads to shortages of labor, as the majority of the able bodied (not in war critical industries) died on the battlefield.
If the deaths in combat fell on the men rather than the women, the post-war period might lead to such expedients as the french practice of men having one or several mistresses (if you had been rich enough to avoid being killed on the battlefield) as there are not enough men to go around.
If the advances in magic (akin to the advances of the warplane, the submarine, the machinegun, the use of poison gas) were seen as terrible, there may be a backlash against the peacetime use of such magic.
Hmm, incredible feedback Slim. I originally threw the War in for flavor, and now I see that it really is going to be a lot bigger deal in future revisions.
With a war affecting the majority of younger men (similar to real world combats, the leaders of the armies would most likely have been the elders of the race) and possibly/probably females as well, that makes a major impact. I'm thinking of editing so that the gerontocracy arose from the war, with the younger population being both thinned by the combat and also having come to see their elders as de facto leaders. Mmmf, I think I like this idea more and more!
Re: tech and magic post-war. I basically have already scripted it that the Halflings have a great fear-respect of the weapons of their combat. Most towns would prominently display siege equipment, leaving it to disrepair but maintaining it enough in a "Never again" and/or "Never forget" sort of fashion. While I am enamoured of the idea of something akin to Hazard Magi (from Thieves World), I think I'll avoid that. I want this to be mostly original content, and borrow sparingly from other sources if at all.
You have given me much to think on, and I will definitely remember this when time to credit my sources comes about.
Since people tend to value their personal space, expect lots of urban sprawl. Also could have a flavor of "manifest destiny" and "small-man'd burden".
Ooh, like this lots. Thanks!
Re: Kevin Andrew Murphy... I like your ideas. Given your feedback, I'm just going to throw open the reference document that I'm working on right now for the world in question.It's over here:
http://worldoftinris.wordpress.com/2009/09/08/initial-overview-wip/Very much a work in progress, but it shows where I am in the world building as well as addressing some of your feedback.
I hadn't yet gotten to the other 'non-primary' humanoids like Goblinoids and the like. Would love to hear your thoughts, as well as those of others.
It's an interesting world. One legal question that immediately arises: If killing a pregnant halfling woman is immediately punishable by death, what happens if the killer happens to be another pregnant halfling woman? Seems like being perpetually gravid is an easy shield from all sorts of consequences. What does the paladin do when the cannibal headhunter necromancer who set fire to the village then animated the smoking corpses is also a pregnant halfling female?
You've swapped things around so your orcs are basically elves and your elves are basically orcs, which is fine, though I sort of wonder at the orcs being listed as having "ferocity" or whatever it was if they're basically taking the old elven niche.
Having awful things happening to races without a patron is an interesting thing, but it also leads to an interesting wrinkle: consider Ur Priests. Could an elven Ur Priest, via stealing some power from the halfling goddess, regain an elven lifespan or any of the other kewl powerz the other races get? This would give the elves something to do, rather than be the insipid flighty people who've been moping and dying since their god died. The impetus to either steal power from other races gods, to regain something of what they lost, or to kill those other gods, to level the playing field, is an interesting one.
Since you have druids, this also assumes reincarnation. What exactly do the (frankly racist) gods do about this situation?
It's an interesting world. One legal question that immediately arises: If killing a pregnant halfling woman is immediately punishable by death, what happens if the killer happens to be another pregnant halfling woman? Seems like being perpetually gravid is an easy shield from all sorts of consequences. What does the paladin do when the cannibal headhunter necromancer who set fire to the village then animated the smoking corpses is also a pregnant halfling female?
*facepalm* Ah, the joys of a 'cut and dry' bit of law. Nothing is ever black and white, and I hadn't thought of this ramification. To this point, this has been a bit of an exercise in thought for me. With the intention of perhaps myself and my Beloved Spouse (Kobold chorus: "We love you!") being the only actual players. As I've now presented it to others, and am taking feedback, I realize that I actually want this world to have the verisimilitude of a well-built world. Back to the drawing board on that one.
You've swapped things around so your orcs are basically elves and your elves are basically orcs, which is fine, though I sort of wonder at the orcs being listed as having "ferocity" or whatever it was if they're basically taking the old elven niche.
Hmm, I don't really see the Orcs and Elves roles being swapped on a large scale. In my wife's game, Elves are all poncy little twerps with a cultural alignment of Lawful Neutral who until recently 'ran everything'. But I've never gotten that vibe off of 'default fantasy'. Regardless of that, I am pretty much overhauling what it means to be a member of these races. "Ferocity" or the PFRPG equivalent isn't going to apply to Orcs. It MIGHT to Humans, but that's still up for debate.
Having awful things happening to races without a patron is an interesting thing, but it also leads to an interesting wrinkle: consider Ur Priests. Could an elven Ur Priest, via stealing some power from the halfling goddess, regain an elven lifespan or any of the other kewl powerz the other races get? This would give the elves something to do, rather than be the insipid flighty people who've been moping and dying since their god died. The impetus to either steal power from other races gods, to regain something of what they lost, or to kill those other gods, to level the playing field, is an interesting one.
I like the way you think and would like to subscribe to your newsletter.
But seriously, yes, that is a definitely valid train of thought. Were an Elven Ur Priest (or whatever they end up being on this world) to steal power from another deity, they'd gain a bit of that deity's racial portfolio. By which, an Elven Ur Priest stealing from Ilfander would gain most, if not all, of a standard Tinrisian Halfling's lifespan.
As re: Racist gods, you're right. The one thing not yet mentioned is that while Halflings USUALLY worship Ilfander and Dwarves Hafesh, there is no proscription against one worshipping another race's deity. I've not yet really dug into what the deities of this world mean to their races and in relation to other deities beyond "This is Ilfandra's world because Zie made it" with the subtext that the other Powers are here at Zir sufferance. In the offline version of this, it is clearly stated that Ilfander was actually a mortal adventurer once. A VERY long time ago. And when Zie ascended to deific status, Zie brought along Zir entire party.
In traditional high fantasy settings, many texts are quick to point out that humans achieve their diversity and versatility due to their short lifespans. Incredibly long lifespans such as those of your halflings would result in cripplingly conservative societies that barely inch forward while those of shorter-lived races progress in new directions and experiment with new ideas. This might help to balance out the 'lesser races' by allowing them more advanced technology, governmental systems, etc., while the halflings are busy arguing with their out-of-touch elders about why bartering with livestock should no longer be the default system of currency in a world where humans have already begun mass-producing paper money and writing checks.
*blink* Whoa, I hadn't even considered that. My wife's homebrew has Elves that fill the niche my Halflings do. They are stagnant, conservative and rather staid.
This is one of the biggest insights that I've had to face with the Gerontocratic Halflings. Thank you! (And thank you for proving my wife right, as she points out that she mentioned this when I first dreamt Tinris into existence and started discussing the Halflings)
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Here's my world-building take on things:
You would likely end up with two core beliefs within halfling society.
1) Halflings are meant to rule and should use this power for their own good. These halflings would likely be condescending to other races, keep slaves, and live in a sexually promiscuous society. Think Brave New World.
Halfling laws for this group would give halflings superiority under the law, and make crimes against halflings more severe (or crimes against non-halflings less severe).
Knowing their race is destined to rule and will survive almost anything they would be highly militaristic and take on reckless and wild pursuits to support their empire. After all, they can always breed more halflings.
2) Halflings are meant to rule and should use this power for the good of all. These halflings would be delicate with other races, seeing them as fragile and perhaps slow. They would engender altruism from experience and be very cautious about breeding lest they overwhelm the world. Think Victorian England.
Halfling laws for this group would still favour halflings (after all, killing a 1000 year old divine spark is more serious than a 50 year old human). They would exhibit a sense of responsibility to the world and spread their empire in an effort to share its bounty - but only to those willing.
3) Likely a neutral group - probably reclusive and untrusting of non-halflings. These would act more like the stereo-typical elves of D&D.
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Tolken's elves were filled with the vigor of the Valar and so reproduced and built their culture rapidly. This may also be the case here.The factors that should enter into the equation:
1) Divine Providence. These are LITERALLY the Chosen Ones of the world's Great Power. All other races (which I won't get into on this post) are allowed to live here by this Power's sufferance.
Playing on this, if the god(dess) intended the Halfling people to grow to encompass the world, the fecundity might not be an inherited trait, but something that was divinely mandated, but now that the mandate has been fulfilled, and Halflings cover the globe, perhaps Halfling fertility has begun to wane, and the later generations of Halflings are grower shorter-lived...
Halflings might be torn between acceptance that this, too, is part of the divine plan, or utter despair, believing that the god(dess) has abandoned them and a frantic desire to 'do something about it,' with plans ranging from 'do something impressive to regain the god(desse)s favor' to 'it's a curse from those pesky elves, humans, whatever, jealous of our favored status, we must kill them all!' Halfling society would be marked by 'street preachers' offering up these, and many other, explanations, and exhorting believers to do anything from sacrifice themselves to the god(dess), to 'return their lives to the great pool' which is said to be grown thin with too many Halflings being alive at one time, to declaring jihad on this race or that culture (or even another group of Halflings that have 'cursed us all' by worshipping the creator 'wrong').
Or perhaps this happened generations ago, and was the source of the great Halfling civil war, as the decline in fertility and shortening of life-span (and perhaps even loss of actual immortality, with no Halflings before a certain point ever having died of old age), causing a race-wide paroxysm of panic, despair and apocalyptic 'millenialist' thought.
Or perhaps this happened generations ago, and was the source of the great Halfling civil war,
... GENIUS!!! *snags and assimilates to the next revision*