Where did the slur 'Slip' come from?


Skull & Shackles


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Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber

I'm running a Skull and Shackles campaign for my friends and one of my players asked me where the pejorative term 'slip' came from, as one of my NPCs consistently refers to Rosie Cusswell by this racial slur. I told him I'd look into it, but all I can find is that it's mentioned in the Cheliax Campaign Setting as a racial slur originating in Cheliax for many halfings that are slaves there and the iconic Mesmerist Meligaster grows up in a 'Sliphouse'. I'm not sure which term came first. I'm sure I could think up something creative and awesome, but I wanted to know if it was ever mentioned somewhere that I missed or if anyone else has a creative way that they've used to explain the term to their players.

Thanks!


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I always thought of it as having to do with halflings being able to slip about unnoticed. Although there is the idea from our own world of a slip of a girl, could be another possible fit.


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Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber
Pig in a Poke Tuesday wrote:
I always thought of it as having to do with halflings being able to slip about unnoticed. Although there is the idea from our own world of a slip of a girl, could be another possible fit.

That was my original thought, too. It doesn't necessarily seem too offensive, but I know that even in our own world, offense doesn't always have to be what word it is, but how it is used.


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Maybe it has to do with a Halfling's worth as a slave; a slaver promises his client 15 slaves, but doesn't mention that he's slipped 5 Halflings into the bunch without reducing the cost. This would make the meaning behind the slur that Halflings are worthless, or simply not worth much.


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Val Kerrigan wrote:

I can find is that it's mentioned in the Cheliax Campaign Setting as a racial slur originating in Cheliax for many halfings that are slaves there and the iconic Mesmerist Meligaster grows up in a 'Sliphouse'. I'm not sure which term came first.

It came from this post which Erik then used for the Gazetteer.

Spoilered for length:

Spoiler:

Frank Steven Gimenez wrote:
Eyebite wrote:

I think this was covered on other threads - but I'll briefly summarize here:

Depending on how halflings are viewed in Varisia - they could be dungsweepers, if other positions aren't open to them.

Could be a very racist environment against halflings - hence the use of the term "halfling" as an insult or racial epithet.

So, Dungsweepers might not be a bad idea .....except a pile of Centaur poo might be as big as a halfling. That would make for a really unpleasant job.

I have been thinking about how Chelaxians treat halflings while reading the Pathfinder's Player's Guide. I want to play a human Chelaxian from Magnimar. I have a character plan where my character will gain a halfling cohort apprentice. The thing is that he considers himself good and not a racist. But it is clear from the way he treats halflings that he regards them an inferior race. It's not something he says out loud or even thinks overtly. It's just in his bones.

He speaks to halflings as a social superior. He commands instead of requests. He doesn't look at them when he speaks. And he ignores them when not speaking to them. He will speak about the obvious "facts" about the sad state of the halfling people and culture to others, even while in the presence of halflings. Not at all to be malicious. But the points he brings up are so obvious to him that he can't imagine halfings doing nothing but agree with these clear truths about themselves if they have any sense at all.

He calls them "slips" which he considers a polite and proper term because there are uglier terms that other Chellaxians use that he won't. On the surface, "slip" doesn't seem bad. It can mean "slight", which halflings are. But the word has some other meanings that implies certain qualities to halflings.

  • "Slippery", as in the qualities of a rogue. "Slip" from justice when they do something wrong. "Slip" away from a situation where bravery and courage are expected.
  • There is also "slip", as "something that is the barest
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