Halfling
Halfling
Halfling
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exclusively in an attempt to benefit from their luck (and their<br />
aptness at illicit trade), and many children’s tales feature<br />
exceptionally lucky half ling heroes.<br />
Being lucky is second nature to nearly all half lings, and<br />
while many demystify their successes with tales of superior<br />
ref lexes, unmatched skill, or inscrutable cunning, a few<br />
half lings stand out by an unmistakable lack of luck. Instead,<br />
these individuals seem to bring mischief and bad luck to<br />
adversaries, and as a result they are avoided or even feared,<br />
especially among cultures heartily embracing superstitions.<br />
Half lings themselves believe this occurrence to be a rare<br />
blessing of Desna, and children bearing this gift are often<br />
ushered into the study of magical arts.<br />
Due to these attributes, and in contrast to their stable and<br />
altruistic communities, half ling society has a hidden, darker<br />
side as meaningful, developed, and important as the face<br />
maintained for the unassuming public. Almost all half lings<br />
possess a strong opportunistic streak that is most prominent<br />
during their younger years. During this time, many stray<br />
from the rules of the community and involve themselves in<br />
the disdained affairs of thievery, subterfuge, adventuring,<br />
and vagabond life. They often join guilds and try their hands<br />
at various professions or seek out other half ling settlements<br />
so as to mingle with different cultures.<br />
While humans are considered to be the building blocks of<br />
Golarion’s society, half lings are the mortar that reinforces<br />
these communities by sustaining a common sense of purpose<br />
that supercedes the individual’s need.<br />
In most human communities, a small percentage of<br />
half lings forms a subpopulation with various interests that<br />
seems to be immersed and absorbed, merely dabbling in the<br />
community’s affairs. In truth, the half lings benefit from<br />
the techniques, approaches, and protection their symbiotic<br />
society offers them. In return, they use their positions,<br />
interspecies knowledge, and constantly growing inf luence<br />
to stabilize society, avert conf lict, and maintain a prosperous<br />
balance of power.<br />
Despite their curiosity-driven wanderlust, half lings<br />
possess a strong sense of house and home that develops over<br />
the years. A half ling takes great pride in his domicile, often<br />
spending above his means to add to the common comforts<br />
of home life.<br />
Half lings usually adopt the religious beliefs of the societies<br />
with which they merge. Unsurprisingly, many half lings<br />
worship the gods of humankind, such as Abadar, Iomedae,<br />
and Shelyn. Despite their practical commitment to faith, it is<br />
very rare for half lings to become clerics, paladins, or similar<br />
devout servants of these deities. More often, these rare,<br />
enlightened, individuals choose Desna, Erastil, or Sarenrae<br />
as their patrons. Rumors also tell of a disturbingly large<br />
cult venerating the treacherous aspect of Norgorber. These<br />
apparitional preachers usually remain in the background<br />
and, being half lings, have perfected the art of blending in<br />
Characters: <strong>Halfling</strong><br />
Coming of Age<br />
<strong>Halfling</strong>s reach adulthood after a little more than 2 decades,<br />
and most halfling communities have a habit of celebrating<br />
a halfling’s coming of age ritualistically. The exact time of the<br />
festival is usually determined by a certain task the fledgling must<br />
perform. Its nature is generally specified years before the child<br />
has any hope of completing it, and might range from acquiring<br />
a certain amount of wealth to the preparation of a feast for the<br />
entire family. Many apprentices try repeatedly before they are<br />
able to match the challenge through skill or adept cheating.<br />
After succeeding, the halfling is given a token to remember<br />
the accomplishment. This item often carries the additional<br />
promise of freedom from the community but usually bears<br />
little actual value. An ancient gold coin to start a collection,<br />
an ornamental dagger to sever the chains of comfort, a pair<br />
of boots to travel the world, or a dubious treasure map help<br />
to toss the curious youngling out into the world.<br />
and avoiding attention. Nonetheless, the growing number of<br />
bloody deeds and assassinations that oddly benefit half ling<br />
communities make the cult’s emergence difficult to deny.<br />
Due to their homogenous communities, many half lings<br />
refine and differentiate their social lives by joining groups and<br />
societies of interest that often serve as open and legal fronts to<br />
the infamous shadowguilds. Most of these organizations are<br />
intercultural and geared toward older participants, revolving<br />
around trade, art, or diplomacy. Despite these economic and<br />
peaceful trades, however, a newly founded elitist duelist<br />
league continues to quickly expand. The league teaches fast,<br />
dexterous fighting styles with undeniable roots in the back<br />
alleys. Its techniques possess a certain panache that turns<br />
even the most unassuming half ling into a bladewhirling<br />
dervish. This approach appeals to the younger generations,<br />
who desperately long for a f lirt with danger.<br />
Half lings stand just shorter than gnomes but make up<br />
for what they lack in stature and strength with bravery,<br />
optimism, and skill. The bottoms of their feet are naturally<br />
covered in tough calluses and the tops often sport tufts<br />
of warming hair, allowing for barefoot travel. Most have<br />
almond skin and brown hair with hues that tend to darken<br />
closer to the Inner Sea.<br />
Forever living in the shadows of their taller kith and kin,<br />
half lings dress in whatever styles suit the human culture<br />
in which they dwell. Half ling slaves tend to dress slightly<br />
better than their free cousins, especially in Cheliax, as their<br />
owners tend to use the half lings as status symbols.<br />
Emotionally, half lings embrace nonexclusive extremes.<br />
They are easygoing but excitable, prone to laziness but<br />
frenetic when roused. Ironically, their greatest strength<br />
is their perceived weakness—half lings can count on the<br />
advantage that they are continually underestimated, an edge<br />
they exploit mercilessly.<br />
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