...wow, that was a mouthful. (that's what she said, hey-o!)
So part of the thing that gets me in trouble is brainstorming on the things that some deem far more 'base' than 'merely' killing things and taking their stuff. The other part is over-thinking on weird bits of randomness that might be mentioned in passing, and taking said contacts to highly-illogical-yet-vastly-entertaining directions.
Such was the case with the discovery of how gnomes work in Golarion.
As soon as I saw the bit about the First World, all I could picture was that the gnomes were the Pathfinder Expy of...the Orz from Star Control II: The Ur-Quan Masters.
Think about it.
People already consider them eccentric-unto-strange. They have been described by many as being just shy of Uncanny Valley at times. The constant need for stimulus to prevent the Bleaching, the quirky fey behavior drew further attention. The crackpot theory put forth by someone that they are sometimes oblivious to the whole 'reproduction' thing due to not fully having a grip on how it works on an intellectual level? That was the clincher.
So in one of my games I've been toying with the idea that gnomes are, wittingly or no, part of a greater extended consciousness that either exists still as the center of the First World, or that migrated into its own demiplane, and as such has been adrift in the multiverse, touching on planes with gnomes and causing fits of 'reversion' of other types of gnome to a more Pathfinder-esque nature, and when the demiplane ceases being conterminous allows gradual restoration of the respective gnomish traits.
TL;DR Gnomes as semi-cosmic soul 'fruits' of a Cosmic Entity in a Pocket Plane with vaguely Myciliumistic qualities.
Discuss? Alternately, weird things you do with the standard races in your games/settings/writings. It's a sort of follow-up to the Gnome vs. Dwarf strip clubs.
Random theory 2 as posited elsewhere and revamped over here: by most accounts and traditions, all seven of the primary PC races are marked and typified by the Seven Deadly Sins.
Humans - Lust (note the last two in the list)
Elves - Pride/Hubris
Dwarves - Greed/Avarice
Halflings - Gluttony (particularly when they're hobbit-alikes)
Gnomes - Sloth (by means of their inventions)
Half-elves - Envy (of their elven parents)
Half-orcs - Wrath (often at the world and especially their human parents)
The problem I run into is setting up races for the proper counterbalance of the Seven Heavenly Virtues.
Humans - Charity, possibly? (in the classic, rather than the modern sense)
Elves - Patience (with the ability to outlive one's foes as a prime cause)
Dwarves - Diligence (obviously)
Halflings - Kindness
Gnomes - ???
Half-elves - Chastity (again, in the classical sense, rather than modern)
Half-orcs - ???
Specifically, as the two remaining out of the seven are Humility and Temperance, which the latter I could in some regards see as being swapped around for Chastity in the case of the Half-Elves, and giving Chastity to the Gnomes instead, but Half-Orcs throw a wrench in my mental workings. Sturgeon's Law, naturally, applies, though in execution of this concept his Revelation is also particularly apt.
I can see the gnomes having chastity...
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I swear I've seen the theory about "gnomes = fey Orz" turn up before, but for the life of me I can't recall where.
It could certainly be a fun(and potentially disturbing) angle to play up.
I'd go with Humility for half orcs. Its a bit odd but when you consider the fact that the don't really fit in either culture and often try to avoid the spotlight it kinda works.
I kind of like this notion.
I usually have "passion" as half-orcs big positive trait, but it may not fit well into the classic seven virtues arrangement.
I'd go with Humility for half orcs. Its a bit odd but when you consider the fact that the don't really fit in either culture and often try to avoid the spotlight it kinda works.
In the best of their number, I could see that - my only qualm is the (admittedly inferred) sheer amount of Mandatory Machismo that seems to go with orcishness, to the point of bravado. It could be seen as courageousness, under a certain light, I guess...
I can see the gnomes having chastity...
See, I'm not so sure on that - going by the gloss listings of purity, knowledge, honesty, and wisdom, and the extended explanation courtesy of Wikipedia of "Abstaining from sexual conduct according to one's state in life; the practice of courtly love and romantic friendship. Cleanliness through cultivated good health and hygiene, and maintained by refraining from intoxicants. To be honest with oneself, one's family, one's friends, and to all of humanity. Embracing of moral wholesomeness and achieving purity of thought-through education and betterment. The ability to refrain from being distracted and influenced by hostility, temptation or corruption," I could possibly see that, save for the intoxicant restraint. Honesty and an innate knack for altering peoples' perceptions by means of illusion don't seem to have a natural 'mesh', for lack of a better term. That said, if you were to reassign Chastity to gnomes, what would be more apt for half-elves?
I swear I've seen the theory about "gnomes = fey Orz" turn up before, but for the life of me I can't recall where.
It could certainly be a fun(and potentially disturbing) angle to play up.
I'd seen it elsewhere too, and I liked it so much I ganked it for my own usage, though the intent was not to deny the original person who thought it up credit. I was more thinking of the amusing potential of it being part of their inherent 'creepiness'...and the fact that if one schtupped a gnome, there was a chance that any other gnomes in the vicinity would be instinctively aware of it, and depending on how it happened, would react accordingly. Especially if having all of those adorable little slightly-off uncanny valley faces are looking equally intrigued and confused by the sparkings of pleasure they might have inadvertently felt, with a lack of comprehension of it.
I'd go with Humility for half orcs. Its a bit odd but when you consider the fact that the don't really fit in either culture and often try to avoid the spotlight it kinda works.I kind of like this notion.
I usually have "passion" as half-orcs big positive trait, but it may not fit well into the classic seven virtues arrangement.
The vexing part is, humility DOES include bravery as part of its gloss, which fits perfectly with half-orcs. I don't want to have to flip-flop on that one, but it does have enough justification to merit the change. Bravery, modesty, reverence, altruism...I could see only half of those as apt, but then I could also see that being a case of where it's tribe-based; maybe one of those being the predominant aspect per tribe in question, where the altruism may not extend beyond other half-orcs, but it's there...and where reverence may not necessarily be towards a NICE deity, but when it comes to their faith they're all-but rabid.
Side tangent; I'd been about to bring up another topic in regards to fantasy tropes that came to mind due to Cheliax's influence on my imaginings, but was going to do so as a separate post. Since I'm already here, I may as well follow up with that idea, and make it appropriately on-topic.
In the Gnomish vs. Dwarven strip club thread, an off-the-cuff reference to Master/Blaster brought to mind the prospect of similar such pairings between smaller and larger peoples - those who are familiar with Golden Axe: Revenge of Death Adder might recall that the dwarf, Gilius Thunderhead, rode on what amount to a hill giant/goliath-sized person's back. If a nation can get their proverbial affairs in order in such a way as to be able to effectively become a Devil-idolizing Asmodeus-worshiping superpower, has anyone played with/brainstormed on ways in which a larger people could be appropriately subjugated into obedience by a smaller race on the one hand, or might even enter into a mutually-beneficial pact/agreement in similar circumstances? Alternately, given the aforementioned Cheliaxian proclivity to slavery and potential for hedonism inherent therein, topped off with the sorts of magics available, there are notions that would all too quickly head down roads that most would consider beyond the pale in terms of potential squickery.
So Gnomes are some sort of collective conciousness or Husks worn by a superplanar entity/conciousness?
Six of one, half-dozen of the other?
Truthfully, I was thinking that they're individuals, on one level, but on the subconscious level they are all somewhat 'networked', not as a hive-mind but accessible by the original First World entity that spawned them. The entity may or may not be on the First World still, but I picture it as being the 'server', of sorts, with individual gnomes across the multiverse being different client laptops that are independent save when in proximity, planarly speaking, to the First World, in which cases no matter how unlike Golarian gnomes they are, they semi-revert to a Golarian-type Gnomish state until the planes are no longer coterminous.
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I like humility for the half-orc I think it fits well.
Temperence I think is a good fit for the half-elf and Chasity for the gnomes as I see them playing up their knowledge alot wisdom and honesty. That sort of blunt honesty they don't even think about it.
The self control justice and honor seem to fit into the half-elf. Just my 2 cps.
And this is the reason gnomes make such good Summoners...
...I honestly can't believe I'd never considered that detail and made that mental connection. Well played!
I like humility for the half-orc I think it fits well.
Temperance I think is a good fit for the half-elf and Chasity for the gnomes as I see them playing up their knowledge a lot wisdom and honesty. That sort of blunt honesty they don't even think about it.
The self control justice and honor seem to fit into the half-elf. Just my 2 cps.
Given the interplay between the typified virtues and vices of the races in question, I suppose that chastity interacting with sloth could approximate a desire ti apply the knowledge in a way that allows for the gnomish people to have minimal need of direct involvement with the work their creations are designed to handle.
It ties back, in a way, to the notion that I'd always had that gnomish 'working girls', to use an old euphemism, tended to not be directly inclined towards interaction, instead making use of their innate knack for illusion to provide an experience comparable to the Holodecks from Star Trek: TNG.
As for half-elves, I could see the self-control aspect being more crucial to one raised in Elven society, if only for the fact that they would be hitting emotional and physical maturity quicker than their fellow 'children' - while the half-elves are starting to discover certain 'urges', their peers might be blithely unconcerned with such inclinations. Morality would be drastically different, perhaps leading into an unintended case of where elven children are far, far crueler than they realize, perhaps not having the epiphany about their deeds until the half-elf is long-since departed from the area, because they realized what the world was like sooner, and had to go and act on it sooner. Conversely, one raised among humans might be slightly later out the door in terms of mental and emotional maturity in relation to the world, treated by their fellows in a manner akin to how certain people treat professional business people who are gamers and unmarried after a certain age.
Whee, fun with perspectives!
So on yet another night of too much time, not enough activity at the workplace, I found myself debating on the appeal of races on a general, and individual, level; this lead to speculation on not only racial tropes, but on how the interact within the confines of their own societies.
In humanity's case, we need only look at the most notable double-standard of them all to see why humanity's vice is often justifiably designated as lust - I believe the quote I'd seen was 'a key that opens many locks is a masterful key, but a lock that opens to many keys is a poor quality lock'. Not even taking into account the dubious mixed metaphors that apply in equating the two, it shows the blatant hypocrisy that comes into play regard gender and physical gratification.
What this leads to, in a sort of odd-ish interplay between the vice theory and gender relations, is the notion of similar hypocrisies that might exist, and in fact may be in some regards demonstrably existent in play already. A prime example of this comes, in Golarian's case, in the form of the role of females in Orcish society - they are treated more or less as breeding chattel, at best, with exceptions coming forth in the form of women who are all-but even-more enthusiastic distaff versions of the males who act the same. It gives a rather clear impression that such wroth nature is a male's birthright, and no place for the other half of the race; if a female is as violent, vicious, and otherwise vindictive as a male orc, they take the route of effectively treating her as one. I'd not be surprised if such a female was blatantly ostracized from more traditional orcish women, in some regards treated the way a group of human women my treat a particularly standout individual who is perceived to be a 'slut' for behaving more like the stereotypically libidinous male. The main distinction is that the more 'typical' female orc would have to make sure they don't do so overtly, because they risk the sort of abuses heaped on them that most of the males would use as a disciplining tool.
Flipping back to the more traditionally heroic races, is it plausible to find some measure of vice-based double-standards among the others? Dwarves have always been portrayed as greedy little wealth-mongers, and as they have a rather equal society in relation to gender, by most portrayals, does an expectation of reduced greed on the part of females make sense? On one level, there's the natural predisposition towards selflessness in regards to mothers and their offspring, and when played as a low-fecundity race it provides that much greater cause for protecting the rare children born. In contrast, however, is the notion that, if treated as a near-to-utterly loveless endeavor as much craft as societal necessity, one could easily see a successful dwarven wife become obsessed with proving her ability to bear strong children, to the point where one might think that her success were attributed to cuckolding rather than the combined efforts of herself and her husband. Then again, that also carries connotations of vainglory, which is another interesting prospect when one considers that, among elves, it's almost a social custom to look down at other races that are not as beautiful, elegant, talented, creative, and worthy of praise as themselves. For the race as a whole, their vice is almost dependent on there being an outside culture to denigrate, as most elves look upon each other far too favorably...barring drow, of course.
How might this manifest in other races?