Gnome

Gnomes (Pumilo gnomus), known in the Traveler's Tongue as Maddrakki due to inhabiting Maddrak, are a short-stocky hominid species with a sparse population scattered across central Eldham. Related to, but distinct from, the Dwarves, they became known for their skill in alchemy and the ancient empire of Leytha before its inevitable collapse.

Races of Maddkairn
Several sub-species of Gnomes have been discerned over the course of modern history, despite the fact that differences may appear unnoticeable to all but the Maddkairn themselves. Despite any differences in appearance or thought however, they all hold themselves as kin and therefore hold the tightest bonds with one another.

Forest Gnomes
Forest gnomes (Madd-Kairndd, or "Forest folk") are a race of lighter skinned gnomes. They are almost entirely extinct, but notably still persist in the Anglunian town of Soliana. They fled there after the collapse of Phoenia, the nation one of them used to be king of, that was known as a haven for gnomes eldhamwide. They speak a local dialect of Gnomish (Maddlörk) called Solean Little Tongue, that has incorporated a lot of the traveller's tongue into its pronounciations and slangs. The Gnome Mafia is mostly made up of Forest Gnomes.

Lutumite Gnomes
The Lutumite Gnomes are just that, Gnomes that live in Lutum, more specifically the wasteland region known as Rakk (literally "land" in gnomish), for that they are sometimes called Lesser Gnomes or Wasteland Gnomes, in a derrogatory manner of course. Technically they are considered to be Forest Gnomes. They, however, do not speak classic gnomish, using instead a local dialect often called Lesser Gnomish, or Mixed Maddrakkian, and sometimes called Lutumite Gnomish. They are known for their laziness and their sweet tooth, albeit to them those are nothing but steriotypes, even though they really do enjoy sweets, especially cake.

A link to Mixed Gnomish can be found in the Maddrakkian section.

Rock Gnomes
Rock gnomes (Rakk-Kairndd, or "Earth folk") are known for their mechanical marvels and their worship of the Source Crystal, an imitation of the heart of Ag'leyth, in what was known as the Machine Cult. This crystal was a Mind Engine, simulating the combined computing power of several million brains put together. It was so smart, in fact, that it gained individuality, and was able to predict the future with uncanny precision... including the downfall of Leytha. This foreknowledge only expedited the collapse of the Empire however, leading to many failed expeditions, and Rock gnomes are a minority amidst their people. They mostly speak Gnomish (Maddlörl), but their children are also thaught the Traveller's Tongue, albeit they exclusively speak to their fellow gnomes using gnomish, so important is their heritage.

Dark Gnomes
Dark gnomes (Dyndd-Kairndd, or "Greedy Folk") are said to be the foulest of gnome sub-races. Their birth was foretold by the mad, and whence they came into this world they were corrupted by the Flame of Ambition, or so the legends say.

In truth they are the result of centuries of intermingling between Rock Gnomes and Ice Elves, having the characteristic blue skin of the elves and everything else from the gnomes. As a result of their heritage they do not feel welcomed by neither of the species and thus created their own sub-communities. They are known to be greedy but overall fine folk, serving as merchants and craftsmen. Their name of Dark Gnomes is a derrogatory term used against them, but they have since embraced it. They speak both Ice Elvish (Yirsi'tal ) and Gnomish (Maddlörk), and generally live secluded from the other races. Dark Gnomes came to be the majority after the fall of Phoenia.

Ancient History
Modern secular hypotheses indicate that the gnomes' closest modern relatives are dwarves, and as such the two races share the genus Pumilo together. The two likely evolved from a short and robust species of early hominin, likely Homo erectus or Homo athielensis. It is also hypothesized that Leytha, the demiplane from which gnomes mythologically originated from, may in fact be a domain within the Underrealm. The gnomes, or rather their ancestors, likely migrated to Eldham using their portals during an ice age, and completed their speciation once separate from the ancestors of the dwarves' tens of thousands of years ago.

Mythical Origins
According to legend, gnomes were created by a god forgotten, Ag'leyth the Forsaken, in a bid to create a perfect society. In the demiplane of Leytha the gnomes were formed, molded with a chisel of god-like power from the primordial amethyst, the Heart of Ag'leyth. As such, Gnomes were made in their image, and with their innate hunger for knowledge imbued in them. In the realm of floating amethyst islands, the demiplane Leytha, they were set with unending natural resources, and no natural predators. Ag'leyth's experiment had started.

Empire of Leytha
What others did in thousands of years the gnomes of Leytha did in a few centuries, and so it was that alchemy, the arts, engineering, astronomy and astrology, philosophy and sociology all developed in record speeds. Ag'leyth was pleased, but it seemed that the gnomes were not. Their empire came to dominate the entirety of the demiplane, but they vied for space because of overcrowding, and this upset Ag'leyth. As such, he delivered to them a technology that allowed them to travel outside of Leytha. These were purple portals, made of a stone called obsidian, which linked them to a fiery realm, the Nether, and through it they found other portals to other worlds. The eyes of the gnomes tingled with awe and wonder, and the first adventurous souls did not take long to make their way to Eldham.

Era of Exploration
They first arrived in a region of modern Onthukhan approximately eight centuries before the Traveler's Era, early in the Jagdasian Era. Groups of dissatisfied gnomes came to settle this land, but savage tribes ruled the land. Having little sympathy of those not created from the Primordial Amethyst, the gnomes mercilessly slaughtered the local tribes of Goblins, and the survivors were set to work until death in terrible conditions as slaves. And thus, gnomish slavery was born, and Trolls, Goblins, Mřau, Lemurfolk, and even Ice Elf Yirsi were brought from Eldham, and other worlds, to Leytha. Life there became a utopia for the gnomes, their every need served by their newly found slaves. Great wonders were built in the name of progress by the gnomes of Leytha, as the slaves were bred like horses and stuffed into tightly packed, unsanitary quarters.

The Collapse
Unfortunately, these slaves came to outnumber the gnomes immensely. Little over five centuries before the Traveler's Era, at the close of the Jagdasian Era, an immense revolt took place and nearly every gnome in the demiplane of Leytha was slaughtered. Soon, these self-liberated slaves began organizing themselves to aid the Empire's former colonies, intending to make the gnomes their slaves. Tt is known through modern archeological techniques that the Mřau catfolk were especially involved in the rebelion. In a desperate bid to preserve their beloved experiment, Ag'leyth collapsed all portals to Leytha. The Gnomes within Onthukhan found themselves cut off, isolated, and they never heard again of Leytha or the colonies in the other worlds. Slowly, the natives noticed the sudden weakness of the gnomes, and sought to destroy them for their crimes. One by one they were hunted, till they were driven from dominance to seclusion in the modern region of Maddrak, the "Land of Forests" in their tongue. By the close of the Era, the Onthukhan Colony had lost any functional statehood, devolving into regional principalities. It is believed that Maddrakki Humans had a small part to play in their survival, but it is not known for certain.

Modern History
Civilizations has come and gone in Eldham and all that was left of the formerly so dominating empire was dust and echoes. Modern Gnomes however, persisted through this flux, and have gone on to lead nations in the modern world.

Phoenia
A nation was founded on the ruins of the gnomes, Phoenia, and with it was a hope for them once more. The political machinations and histories that developed in said nation arose the Chancellor-King, Skippy Amethya Blizun to rediscover what his gnome race had done. Here he also rediscovered the Source Crystal and built a religion around worshipping it, to placate its childish impulses. Since the Republic has fallen, but its mark remains on the region and its successors.

Phoenian Inheritors and Current Population Centres
The nation of Phoenia collapsed into multiple small nations that came to form their own histories, and through them the gnomes persisted. From the Aellonsyrdom of Lutum, to the Diarchy of Vespera, and the city-state o Soliana, the gnomes have survived. Mostly they live in the Rakk region of Lutum and the gnome slums of Soliana, albeit the Dark Gnome sub species have started to make a name for themselves in neighboring Anglunia.

The Phenomena known as Slumming
As a result of their seclusion they often organize into semi-idependend districts inside bigger Ice Elf led cities, fighting fiercily for their rights both in the political scene and, rarely, through rioting; this is called Gnome Slumming. Gnome slums exist everywhere gnomes do, albeit to the gnomes themselves the houses are perfectly suited to their height, if a little misplaced. The most famous and biggest gnome slum in the current age is the one in Soliana, but other notable one exist, such as the one in Kylorne's Rest.

Maddrakkian
Gnomes speak what is known in the Traveler's Tongue as Maddrakkian, or simply gnomish. The language is slowly being translated into the Traveler's Tongue by Skippy Amethya-Blizun Hakir Fäedween Gargoyle from loose pieces of found partchment and inscriptions on amethyst tablets, tree bark and stones.

Adendum: after decades of honest work in translating the language, Skippy has died in a duel against a bee woman, and a fellow gnome, known as Margit the Icen, has picked up where Skippy had stopped,

Here is what is known so far: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Aq8jzjQmEzs210WcKYnLQkzMmHUPbtGGbHs5DGSk_UI/edit

There is also a local Lutumite dialect of gnomish often called Lesser Gnomish. Here is what is known of it so far: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1tqtszl4WqVp1_kmgQqkb0rFr9j40tl0eyGejzuGpfng/edit

Short Stories
The Forsaken Machine: A story about some of the Gnomish Empire's cruel methods & treatment.

The Tank of Ravencross: A short story on Gnomish tech & some of their legacy.