I just purchased the Gnomes of Golarion book and it seems to state that gnomes are alien to Golarion. Very cool.
It also states that most gnomes don't truly gain a natural bond with nature till after they survive a Bleaching.
So are Gnomes doomed to a kender-like curiosity with no calmness or stillness within until they go through the near-death experience of the Bleaching?
How does one play Cleric or Druid with high wisdom if that seems to be inherintly lacking in the Gnome race?
These things don't seem to make sense to me, please help.
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Curiosity isn't necessarily a lack of wisdom. A wise gnome might just have the right amount of intuition to save him from lethal or all to painful first experiences. Curiosity might have killed the cat, but that cat probably wasn't very wise.
The hopping kender going boom while exploring the deeper meaning of "don't hit that buttom" is one way to play a curious character, but surely not the only one.
Look at the Brother Catfael stories/movies for an example. Catfael has seen much of the world, yet he takes delight in experiencing his calmer life in the monastery. He is curious, yet wise, worldwise and mostly calm.
As druids: Aside from being just "strange" gnomes, there might be druids who feel the vibrant first world shining through the ceil in the oldest and deepest parts of a forest or the serene majesty of a nymphs pond.
Last but not least you will find a trait in GoG that allows a gnome to avoid the bleaching through his zealot devotion, sounds good for a not-so-kenderlike cleric imo.
I would also note that the iconic Druid is a Gnome, so they're definately not unknown
Excellent, the iconics are great.
Thank you both.
I'm playing a gnome druid in our PF game. I use the Reaper figure (gnome riding giant toad) when he's mounted. The toad has become as much a party member as the gnome, bringing up interesting and amusing encounters when we are in town or staying at an inn. Usually the gnome makes a deal so the toad can stay in the stables, in return for it eating any rats that happen by.
Playing a gnome in Golarion is a lot of fun if you concentrate on how otherworldly the gnomes are. They don't think like any of the core races. I find that remembering they are fey, and therefore the material world is alien to them, even though born into it, keeps them interesting.
For example, Krundalbar Glymberek (of the Sanos Forest Glymbereks, he likes to say), carries on conversations with his toad whether or not speak with animals is active. He honestly believes if he changes the color of his hair, even while riding the giant toad, it will fool locals into thinking it's a different gnome in town. He collects buttons (and uses them to improve crafting checks as per the gnome trait), carves small wooden animal fetishes to give out to bar maids, and fights from toad-back with the gnomish ripsaw glaive he crafted.
His giant toad companion has been dubbed "Hoppy" by the party, though Krundalbar insists his name is Hoppiton Webfoot III (explaining that the first two giant toads he tried to befriend insisted on trying to eat him). "The trick to taming a giant toad, if you're a gnome, is not getting swallowed whole early in the relationship."
The fun of the gnome race, as I said, is playing them as an alien race. Things the other races find no interest in, such as a bird nest, a discarded pewter spoon, or the shape of a cloud, are of infinite interest to the gnome, and he will put meaning into them even if no such meaning actually exists.
Play your gnome with the idea that your are keeping away the Bleaching by being so odd and impulsive and there is purpose to it all.
And as a player, there is enjoyment in another player saying things like, "That's really weird... not as weird as Krundalbar, but still strange."