Hobbits

Hobbits (also known as Halflings, Half-Men, and Small Folk) are a race of humanoids that live in the Elven Territory. while they were once a large, and prosperous race; the War of the Marshes has cut their kind down drastically, leaving a lone village to try and carry on the race.

## General Ways of the Halfling

Optimistic and cheerful by nature, blessed with uncanny luck, and driven by a powerful wanderlust, halflings make up for their short stature with an abundance of bravado and curiosity. At once excitable and easy-going, halflings like to keep an even temper and a steady eye on opportunity, and are not as prone to violent or emotional outbursts as some of the more volatile races. Even in the jaws of catastrophe, halflings almost never lose their sense of humor. Their ability to find humor in the absurd, no matter how dire the situation, often allows halflings to distance themselves ever so slightly from the dangers that surround them. This sense of detachment can also help shield them from terrors that might immobilize their allies.

Halflings are inveterate opportunists. They firmly believe they can turn any situation to their advantage, and sometimes gleefully leap into trouble without any solid plan to extricate themselves if things go awry. Often unable to physically defend themselves from the rigors of the world, they know when to bend with the wind and when to hide away. Yet halflings’ curiosity often overwhelms their good sense, leading to poor decisions and narrow escapes. While harsh experience sometimes teaches halflings a measure of caution, it rarely makes them completely lose faith in their luck or stop believing that the universe, in some strange way, exists for their entertainment and would never really allow them to come to harm. Though their curiosity drives them to seek out new places and experiences, halflings possess a strong sense of hearth and home, often spending above their means to enhance the comforts of domestic life. Without a doubt, halflings enjoy luxury and comfort, but they have equally strong reasons to make their homes a showcase. Halflings consider this urge to devote time, money, and energy toward improving their dwellings a sign of both respect for strangers and affection for their loved ones. Whether for their own blood kin, cherished friends, or honored guests, halflings make their homes beautiful in order to express their feelings toward those they welcome inside. Even traveling halflings typically decorate their wagons or carry a few cherished keepsakes to adorn their campsites. \*\*\*(STOLEN FROM PAIZOs DESCRIPTION, BUT A GREAT DESCRIPTION OF HOBBITS)\*\*\*

## Physical Description

Halflings tend to stand at most 3ft5in when fully grown, and at the least, 2ft5in. Their small size thus leads them to be lighter too, averaging about 20-40lbs. Their hair is a darker colour, but also varies a ton, usually consisting of the same colours as the area around them. It usually tends to be brown, grey, black, dark green, etc. Their skin is also varies a lot, based on where they were raised. While now, many of the other Halfling tribes have been lost, a great diversity is still seen in their last vestige; Sun Leaf. Halflings of all shapes, sizes, and colours have come together to further their race, and keep their information alive.

## Halfling Society

Halfling society is one of vast history and cultural knowledge; but the Halflings will not tell it to you like that. They want you to earn their knowledge, and they want you to see the value in it. They tend to tell stories about legendary heroes, rather than something that happened to them that could help. Their reliance on oral history has come to be difficult, as many, many stories that were gathered over the years have been lost. Oral history is still important to them, but they have come to start writing down some of it, so it may not all be lost if they are left behind.

## The War of the Marshes

Hundreds of years ago, in the Marshes that the Elven Territory calls its own, a war ravaged the landscape. It was that between Orcs and Halflings. Cretus came down, and partitioned the land to give to a new race that the Gods had thought up; Halflings. The Forest Orcs did not take kindly to this at all, and protested, demanded and attempted to persuaed the gods to not give their land away. But it did not work. Their land was taken from them, and given to these new humanoids. The orcs hated them. They left their old homes, and built new ones. Many, many new ones. Among the treetops, in the caves, under the Marshes. Anywhere the could find, and create a society, the Orcs did it. And once the Gods had their backs turned to the Forests, they struck.

Raids. Throughout the Halfling villages. Massive amounts of Orcs, Goblins and others came to take back the land that was once theirs. In the Marshes was where the fighting was the worst. The soggy, moss covered ground. The deep water holes covered by underbrush. The thick canopy above that made the night so dark, you couldn't see anything. The orcs struck with such ferocity and savageness, that it seemed like nothing could stop them.

But then something did. Well, it was more of a someone. Yurythes Knockarrow was a legendary soldier for the Halflings. Wielding his Earth and Water Maya with all of his might, he his platoon of Halflings with counter raids against the encampments of Orcs. Using their small size to hide where they could, the struck valuables and resources from the Orcs, killing their leaders, and ruining their materials and rations. When all seemed lost for those halflings, Yurythes helped them come back. But, it was too late for many Halflings, and even Orcs. When the dust settled after all these raids, the Marshes took the most corpses and casualties. Many families not getting their loved ones back, and even more being lost forever. Some say that the bodies still lie deep within the watery Marshes, waiting to come back and fight for their homeland... - An ancient tale passed down through generations of Halflings.

## The Lone Village

After the war, the Halflings gathered what was left of their people, and layed claim to an area of land. This is what is now known as Sun Leaf Village. The Great Tree resides nearby, protecting these few that are lest. Although a village, Sun Leaf has a total population of around 1000, with many of them venturing the world, to garner information about anything and everything, or just that need to wander. The old Cheif Cyrus is gone, his advisor Jayvira too. The well-beling of the Village, and its citizens now lies within Cheif Zel-Rune's hands.