Gnome Gnomes , or the Forgotten Folk as they were sometimes known , were small humanoid s known for their eccentric sense of humor , inquisitiveness , and engineering prowess . Having had few overt influences on the world ' s history but many small and unseen ones , gnomes were often overlooked by the powers that be , despite their craftiness and affinity for illusion magic . Description . Gnomes were very small compared to most other races and , with an average height ranging between 3 ' 0 " – 3 ' 6 " ( 0 . 9 – 1 . 1 meters ) and a weight range of 40 – 45 lbs ( 18 – 20 kg ) , gnomes were generally larger and heavier than halfling s , though forest gnome s , ranging between 2 ' 1 " – 2 ' 10 " in height ( 0 . 6 – 0 . 9 meters ) and 21 – 35 lbs in weight ( 10 – 16 kg ) , tended to be smaller than halflings , leading some scholars to erroneously classify all gnomish races as " smaller than the Hin " . However , while halflings were commonly said to resemble short human s , gnomes were more comparable with elves , with whom they shared pointed ears and high cheekbones , or even dwarves , due to their tendency to grow beards and live underground . Many gnomes had a more feral appearance than either , however , with hair that often sprouted from their heads in odd directions . The skin of gnomes ran in hue from reddish tans to earthy browns or even shades of gray , with exact hue somewhat dependent upon the ethnic origin of a gnome . Similarly , gnomish hair varied wildly in color from blond and brown to more exotic colors like white , orange , or even green . Gnomish eyes were often — particularly in individuals who are native to the Feywild — glittering black or blue , although more natural eye colors were also known to the race . Gnomes were very long - lived , often living as long as elves , which meant living over three centuries was not uncommonly rare and five centuries was not unheard of . Generally , gnomes were considered to reach maturity at forty years of age . However , unlike elves or eladrin , gnomes showed a greater degree of aging as they grew older and once a gnome had passed his or her first century , their hair began to gray , if it was not already white , and their skin began to wrinkle as in humans or dwarves . However , even the oldest gnome retained a vitality that would be extraordinarily unusual among many of the younger races . Abilities . Gnomes were a naturally intelligent and creative race , with a charm about them unusual for other humanoids . Gnomes also had a natural grasp of the arcane , innately possessing the ability to cast the cantrip " ghost sound " and some possessed the ability to cast " prestidigitation " and " mage hand " as well . Gnomes also had a natural affinity for stealth , an affinity they could sometimes pass on to others , and illusion , both for the purpose of using it for themselves as well as seeing through other attempts at it . After the Spellplague ] , gnomes innately were able to use the " fade away " power to disappear temporarily from sight and additionally had a reflexive tendency to take cover and hide when suddenly endangered . Some gnomes learned also to combine their " fade away " ability with teleportation like that of an eladrin . Other gnomes were capable of casting " dancing lights " . Many gnomes were weak compared to other humanoids , though this was far from a universal trait for the race . Like elves , gnomes had sensitive hearing and were often capable of hearing things that other races might miss . Gnomish eyes were also suited for seeing in low - light conditions , to a degree comparable with elves or eladrin . Personality . Gnomes were an intelligent and innately curious race and had a strong affinity for all thing magic al , particularly the arcane . Gnomes might have lacked the drive and ambition of other races , particularly human s , but their creativity gave them a strong ability for ingenuity . Most gnomes were content to live simple lives , acquiring knowledge merely as a hobby but others explored lost ruins , delved deep into the heart of the world , and conducted dangerous research in their unquenchable thirst for knowledge , leading more than a few to an untimely demise . Gnomes were naturally witty and jovial , and they preferred to overcome obstacles through cunning and innovation rather than the obvious way . Ever curious , gnomes were drawn to adventure more often by a desire to see the world than out of greed or the hope of fame . It was this curiosity , along with their cunning and witty repartee , that made gnomes both entertaining friends and adept arcane spellcaster s or scholars . In their original home of the Feywild , as well as some places on Toril , gnomes lived in burrows and dug - out homes akin to those used by badger s , fox es , or rabbit s and as such were fond of these small animals , feeling a sense of natural kinship with them . And , like these animals , gnomes had an aversion to danger that made gnomes naturally inclined to hide away if they were able and many gnomish homes were carefully hidden by magic or other methods . Culture . Like other races , gnomish culture varied based on region and ethnicity , but a few characteristics were common to most gnomes . Among virtually all gnomes , great value was placed on one ' s ability to avoid trouble and stay out of the way of others . Children ' s games often involved elements of stealth and among adults drawing attention to one ' s self was considered a breach of etiquette . The few legends of gnomish heroes were not of powerful warriors but of subtle tricksters , who sneaked past or tricked their opponents rather than vanquishing them in combat . This in part came from the long - standing issue gnomes had faced , namely their miniscule size compared to larger predators or enemies such as the fomorian s of the Feywild , whom few gnomes could hope to stand toe to toe with in a fair fight . Gnomes had an intricate society based on their love of all kinds of arts , pranks , and their long lives . Gnomes loved indulgence , and they made most celebrations on a grander scale . Gnome weddings lasted for a week , even though gnomes didn ' t view love the same way humans did . If love began to go wrong between a couple they might break up , believing it was a prank by Garl Glittergold . Their society was based on art ; all gnomes had to take up some form of art , whether music , painting , cooking , building , or any other form that was considered creative by the time they came of age . Gnomes who left home to seek an adventurer ' s life were rare , given the race ' s famed shyness and lack of ambition . Those that did were motivated by a number of factors , but the impulsive race was often driven by curiosity more than anything else . Many gnomes felt no more rationale for adventuring than simply to explore the world that surrounded them . A few , the more orderly ones that is , sought out adventure for more innately noble purposes , such as to help others , but these gnomes were rare . Other gnomes were driven to become adventurers by little more than simple avarice , as adventuring was often seen as a quick , if unsafe , avenue for wealth . Adventuring was not necessarily a welcomed lifestyle among gnomes , despite the curiosity that filled the whole race , and sometimes was , in fact , seen as a betrayal of sorts to a gnome ' s clan . Following Gond ' s appearance in Lantan during the Time of Troubles , many more gnomes took on the adventurer ' s life though , as always , gnomes had an aversion to becoming a part of anything " too big , " usually scattering into smaller , like - minded communities instead of attempting to direct larger ones . Magic and religion . Gnomes were talented illusionist s , with a natural grasp of the arcane . Regardless of their other talents , all gnomes were capable of casting a cantrip or two and had the capacity to disappear from sight if they wished . Gnomes were well - suited to all forms of arcane training , particularly that of a bard , sorcerer , warlock , or wizard . The primary gnome deity of the gnomish pantheon was Garl Glittergold . Other deities of the pantheon were Baervan Wildwanderer , Gaerdal Ironhand , and Urdlen . These gods were all themselves , at least after the Spellplague , members of the Seldarine , the fey pantheon headed by Corellon Larethian . Gnomes were the only non - elven / half - elven race capable of becoming Elven Dualist specialist wizards ; in their case , " Nelluonkkar " ( illusionist / necromancer ) . Relations with other races . Gnomes , in general , were a reclusive people who ' d rather stay out of others ' affairs . Though some races interpreted this as cowardice , it ' s more the case that gnomes simply had nothing at stake in the conflicts between most other races and after centuries of being ignored or stomped on , were not particularly eager to fight someone else ' s fight . In fact , generally speaking , gnomes were a very courageous and good - hearted race , who frequently used their neutrality as a way to negotiate disputes . Of all the races in Faerûn , it ' s fair to say that gnomes had the fewest enemies , although they had very few friends as well . Gnomes rarely intentionally invoked ire in any group , but at times circumstances made conflict with other races unavoidable . In the Feywild , gnomes were particularly wary of the fomorians that sometimes enslaved them , regarding them with fear and caution . In the Prime Material Plane , gnomes were most often at odds with goblin s and kobold s , who shared their underground homes and often war with them for territory or wealth . In these cases , gnomes were rarely the aggressors , owing to their tendency to avoid trouble rather than cause it . Gnomes were on fairly good terms with other fey , being particularly fond of eladrin , though they also shared good relations with elves . Gnomes also had sympathy for the fey commonly enslaved by fomorians , feeling empathy for creatures that shared the fate many of their forbears had suffered . Gnomes also got along well enough with halflings . Among those gnomes who lived in the caverns of the Prime , dwarves were often counted as friends , due in part to the two races ' physical and cultural similarities . Additionally , dwarves and gnomes both counted goblins and giant s as enemies and could often be found working together against them . Gnomes were generally suspicious of other races , however . History . The " Treatise Historical of the Dragon Tyrants " held that gnomes were created in approximately −24 , 500 DR from gems hidden in caverns beneath a mountain in the land later known as Netheril . Kobold s enslaved the first gnomes and stole the gems that contained yet - unborn gnomish souls . This prompted Garl Glittergold to collapse the mountain , killing most of the kobolds ( including their leader Kurtulmak ) and creating the depression known as the Hidden Lake , later as the Shoal of Thirst . Gnomish myths held that the gods of the gnome pantheon originated as gems deep within the bowels of the earth that were then exposed to open air . Likewise , these myths held that the gnomes were created when Garl Glittergold discovered similar gems and breathed life into them , which he followed up with a joke , inspiring the race to craftiness and mischief . This story also related that gnomes born of diamond s became the rock gnome s , while those forged of emerald s became forest gnome s and those made of rubies were the ancestors of the deep gnome s . Early in their history , many gnomes were held captive by the nations of Netheril and Calimshan as slaves , though most escaped this cruel fate . Other than these early tales , little is known about the formative history of the gnomes . While humans , dwarves , eladrin , and elves all forged empires and waged terrible wars that devastated the land , the gnomes did nothing of the sort . Nor did gnomes have a known , original homeland like the halflings . Throughout history , they were known as a scattered race of hidden villages , clans , and holds , rarely caught up in grand events . The gnomes were sometimes referred to as the Forgotten Folk and this title is perhaps apt , and few of their race ever graced or troubled the mighty , instead remaining characters who faded , for the most part , into the background while others went on to forge mighty legends . For a time , there was an exception to this on the isle of Lantan , a nation dominated by gnomish engineers . Here the gnomes , as an exception to the rule , were dominant and it was their culture that dictated the laws of the land . However , the gnomish isle was overwhelmed by great tsunamis resulting from the shifting of continents that occurred during the Spellplague , destroying this small bastion of gnomish ingenuity and culture . As the number of humans grew and gnomes became further marginalized , younger generations began to question the wisdom of their forebears in taking a deliberately passive role in world events . This attitude was seemingly encouraged by the appearance of Gond , the god of invention , among the gnomes of Lantan during the Time of Troubles ( 1358 DR ) . As a result , there was a gradual trend in more and more gnomes leaving their reclusive homes to travel the world . Homelands . Gnomes primarily lived in wooded , hilly landscapes , most often underground . Generally speaking , though , gnomes enjoyed the fresh air a good deal more than other subterranean races such as dwarves or drow and rarely burrowed very deep , spending a great deal of time on the surface . Gnomish homes or communities were generally well - hidden , making it difficult for unwelcome visitors to find them . Within , gnomish houses were warm and comfortable , akin to the burrows of small mammals . Gnomes were found widely throughout the world , though rarely in large numbers . Small communities were most commonly found in the Western Heartlands , Elturgard , and along the coastline of the Shining Sea . Other gnomes , notably the svirfneblin or deep gnomes , were found in the Underdark and were even more secretive than other gnomes , maintaining their distance from other races except for dwarves , with whom they were careful to maintain polite relationships for the purpose of protection . Most gnomes who did live among other races , particularly humans , worked as gemcutters , mechanics , sages , or teachers , the last in particular being a highly valued profession by human employers , who knew that a single gnome could tutor multiple generations . Prior to the Spellplague , many gnomes were also found in Lantan , the only land dominated by gnomes . However , during the chaos of the disaster the gnomish land was swept clean . Subraces . There were several subraces of gnomes , as listed below :