Gremlins

A subterranean race of beings that lived not far below the surface that came up regularly to hunt and scavenge. They live primarily in a network of caves and tunnels. Their lives where disturbed many years ago when a mining expedition arrived. At first the Gremlins where curious of the people, stealing small items to learn about them. When it became obvious the newcomers intended to dig into what the Gremlins considered their territories they tried to get rid of them. At the time they were entirely pacifist people, still largely are, so mostly attempted to sabotage the equipment of the miners. Despite their efforts the miners remained long enough to find an ore that brought many more and eventually became a permanent fixture. Many gremlins still resent the interlopers and attempt to at least bother them through destruction, theft, and sabotage. Most have retreated further into their caves and only react when people come into their new territories, though that can be significantly more violent. Some rare few are curious about the surface dwellers and even attempt to live among them, with varying degrees of success. These latter cases are most often seen in the Fulminant Level, where the locals reaction usually ranges from them being a curiosity to a nuisance akin to Skants. Those of the higher levels tend to have more drastic reactions along the same lines.

There seem to be noticeably more female gremlins than males. How this is reflected socially varies from tribe to tribe. This is true for many things as each tribe can have wildly different traditions than others, though there are some that are common throughout. One of the key traditions shared between the tribes are various ways for the tribes to meet peacefully and trade & for some members to move from tribe to tribe.

One tradition some have is to mount enemies heads on pikes, which is actually a show of respect.

From the accounts of Konto Ellicott on the physical characteristics of Gremlins:

"They are feral looking humanoids, usually small in stature and seem even smaller due to a hunched posture most display. Likely from a lifetime of scrambling through narrow tunnels. They have large ears, large eyes that usually have cat-like pupils, with wide mouths housing sharp teeth. Their noses are usually like that of a child, though some are upturned almost like a bat. They have tails that are capped with a tuft of hair. They are generally some sort of green in color, but there are several exceptions: various shades of brown and even pale purple have been observed."

***Notable Gremlins:***

Emma Gination - Owner of Curl Up & Dye Hair Salon

Fulgi - Idiot child that climbed the Sunstone on a dare (Mudlobber Clan)

Gemi - A book loving individual trying her best to learn and survive. Recent addition to The Party at M.A.S.K.S. thanks to Miss Lärung's generous referral.

White Nose - Legendary gremlin that was the first to fight back against the invasion from the surface world.

Zutzil - The chieftain of a group of the Mudlobber Clan of Gremlins in The Pit

Wolf - Original name unknown, exiled from the Mudlobber Clan

***Hybrids/Mixed Races***

Graver Nimblehemble - A Nisse/Gremlin Seamstress associated with The Red Wire Company runs Stitch n' Time

***Gremlin Racial Traits***

Destructive Knack : Cost of Boons for them or Needles for opponents reduced by one for destroying items or similar effects

Prehensile Tail : Acts as an extra limb though limited. Also grants free Uptick to most Athleticism checks.

Echolocation: 1 Action to Activate. Grants an immediate Notice check. Echolocation: 1 Action to Activate. Grants an immediate Notice check. Allows them to "see" in pure darkness for 1 round. This “sight” is in ALL directions within 30 ft wherein it becomes less clear all the way out to a max range of 90 ft.

Stubby Claws: Though not a terrible effective weapon it does allow the Gremlin to do Stabbing or Slashing damage with an unarmed attack. They are especially good against inorganic material, increasing the damage multiplier by 0.5 in such cases. This also allows them to carve through stone or such just with their claws given enough time. They can dig through soil at a foot per minute and most stone at a foot per hour. Varies for metal, but generally is much more difficult taking an hour to get through an inch of steel.