Oesaria: The Hardfoot Halflings

In the province of Melloria live two peculiar races of smallfolk. They are distant cousins to their neighboring Hill Dwarfs, though their cultures are not that similar. In Melloria, there are two kinds of Halflings: Hardfoots and Softhairs.

Hardfoot Halflings

The Hardfoot ancestry traces their origins to the very foundations of the mountains they live on today. When Emperor Heritus Septin, Fourth of His Name claimed Melloria a province of the Empire, his soldiers were surprised to see the mountains populated with jovial smallfolk instead of stubborn dwarfs. The Halflings welcomed their new guests with open arms and trays of cheese and bread. Upon being told that the Emperor has claimed dominion over Melloria, the Hardfoots chuckled. "He may claim dominion wherever he like. Fat bellies, smoked pipes, cheery tunes - that is all we claim dominion over!"

A Hardfoot adventurer enjoying a break. Art by Tony DiTerlizzi

Hardfoot Halfings take pride in their carefree nature, and believe it to be why all of their meals and weeds are beyond satisfying. When life gives you lemons, the lemonade tastes much better if you never worry about why life didn't give you apples instead. What a Hardfoot gets, a Hardfoot appreciates - even the worst of crops in the coldest of winters doesn't hinder their spirits too harshly. Hardfoots understand that life, in its multitude of ups and downs, is what you make of it. And for every passing of a close friend, there's a blooming of a new flower that bears that friend's smile.

Hardfoots usually spend all of their long lives in the Splinter Clay Mountains on the border of Melloria and Sainne. Their capital, Cabbagedirt, hosts most of the Hardfoots that still live in those mountains and is surrounded by clusters of smaller village-like communities. The Hardfoot culture is one of sharing, looking out for one's neighbor, and living to the fullest as best you can. Because outsiders don't climb the mountains often for neither trade nor travel, Hardfoots don't get many visitors and thus regard outsiders with an excited curiosity and misguided well-intentions. They may welcome a Catfolk visitor from Sainne with a bowl of warm milk and a plate of raw ram, completely blind to their ignorance until corrected. This has earned them a reputation as fools and bigots in some circles of the Kingdom, usually from those that met this blissful ignorance first-hand.

A Hardfoot may adventure for the thrill of a great tale to tell, or the chance to try new foods, pipes, and beds. It is rare, but possible, for a Hardfoot to leave for adventure out of a need to look for another community they fit in better.

Playing a Hardfoot Halfling

Like with all character creation, the race's lore is not a straitjacket for your creativity.

FOR KNAVE, Reroll either your lowest CON score or your lowest DEX score and choose the higher result.

FOR MAZE RATS, add a +1 to EITHER your health OR Dexterity

Most Hardfoots have agricultural jobs that pay nothing. In the communal living of Cabbagedirt, coin is only for dealing with outsiders. Everyone pulls their own weight as best as they can to help the rest of the village. Roll a d8 to determine what weight you pulled around when you still lived in the mountains.

1. You were a Fertilizer. You practiced in the art of proper fertilization for all of the crops in your village, or for a sub-community in Cabbagedirt. You can accurately predict how long it will take for a crop to grow based on the surrounding soil, what crop it is, and how often it rains in the local area. You have a bag of mountain goat manure and 4 prize-winning tasty cabbages.
2. You were a Weaver. You spun the sheep wool into sturdy clothes, and weaved the twigs and dry grass of the mountain into even sturdier baskets. You can quickly repair any small tears and other damage to commoner-level clothing, and can find work easy in any village that needs a weaver. You have a sturdy wicker basket with 3 turnips.
3. You were a Woodsworker. You helped design patterns on doors, tables, and chairs, but most of your work was crafting pipes for the smoking of tobacco and pipesweed. You can better appraise the price of any pipe and any object that is mostly wood. You have a expensive, carved wooden pipe worth 1 gold/XP.
4. You were a Scarecrow. You fought off the Giant Ravens of the mountain that would try to steal the freshly grown crops. You can accurately mimic the sounds of bird-hunting predators, and have a better understanding of how a scavenging bird may 'think'. You have a hand-drum and mallet.
5. You were a Harvester. You harvested all of the crops when they fully grew, pulling roots and hacking away at wheat. You can find work easily in most villages that have plenty of farms to harvest from. You have a sickle and backpack-sized wheelbarrow.
6. You were a Repairman. You fixed the housings, furniture, and tools of the community to keep them in tip-top shape. You have an easier time noticing weaknesses in a structure's foundation, so long as that structure is mostly comprised of clay, metal, stone, or wood. You have a hammer, mallet, stake, and sticky adhesive.
7. You were a Weatherman. You would climb the tallest spires in Cabbagedirt to judge the coming week's rainfall, and kept a vigilant eye out for odd patterns in the clouds that could indicate natural disasters. You can accurately predict whether it will rain today or tomorrow so long as you spend at least an hour outside somewhere you can see several miles of the sky. You have a weather stick.
8. You were a Spice Master. You were one of the many cooks in the kitchen, your role mostly tasting and spicing the various meals that were prepared around the clock. You can make a decent living with your culinary skills. You have a bag of spices and well-seasoned wild turkey.

In addition, you can roll a d8 to determine what you brought with you from home.

1. A small bag of pipeweed whose smoke depicts a story of a Halfling playing riddles with a cave goblin. The bag holds enough pipeweed to see the whole story twice.
2. A small wooden statue of a cabbage. Bounces like a bouncy ball, weighs half a pound.
3. A small bag of seasonings, enough to spice a week's worth of meals (or two week's worth of not-Halfling portioned meals).
4. A cart that is big enough to fit you and your mountain goat companion. The goat pulls the cart and is loyal to you, but is not trained for combat.
5. A bundle of catfolk bread that was traded for your services. One serving is enough for two days, though it is rather bland without extra seasoning.
6. A small clay model of a nondescript figure. Acts like a tiny sponge, can store enough water to feed a small to medium beast.
7. A mountain songbird that is trained to collect small seeds and berries for you.
8. A lock of hair from someone that fancied you back home. Still smells of mountain berries.

Names

Like their towns and songs, Hardfoot names tend to include some sort of food grown in their community or a past-time that keeps spirits up. Their family names are usually two to four syllables long, and usually state where their initial home in the mountains is. When interacting with outsiders, Hardfoots may use various nicknames picked up throughout their life. You can roll 2d6 to determine your Hardfoot name if you wish. The first d6 is for the first name, while the second is for the surname.

First Names

1. Rootsmell
2. Weedpuff
3. Singsong
4. Cabbagehair
5. Picklesip
6. Gigglefart

Surnames

1. Left-Of-Bricks
2. Undercabbage
3. By-The-Weeds
4. Next-To-Stream
5. Overhang
6. By-The-Piles

Oesaria: The Gristletooth Goblins

[Edit 4/22/19: Besides small lore changes that have developed since I started building this world up a lil more, I added the equipment table at the bottom of the post rather than make it its own post.

Goblins are a staple in most fantasy settings. They're loud, obnoxious, chaotic, and a little bit silly. In the land of Oesaria, goblins are a nuisance to the commoners of Melloria. They're known for ravaging defenseless hamlets, stripping small villages of their metals, livestock, and supplies, all the while being rather mean about it. However, there are those that find a life of constant scavenging hell on earth and have pledged their allegiance to the Empire's royal crown. These goblins are branded for their loyalty and given a place to live in the squalor of the cities and villages under the King's control.

A Gristletooth goblin, identified by their tattoo. Art by Miro Petrov

In return for their service and patronage, they are given refuge from wanton murder by adventurers and the same rights granted by all citizens that pay their taxes and live under the crown's law. They are given the clan name "Gristletooth", a symbolic gesture of their dulled hostilities and temper. Those in the kingdom-wide clan that seeks a life of adventuring are met with confusion by other Gristletooths and caution by commoners.

Playing A Gristletooth Goblin [Knave]

You are a goblin from the Gristletooth clan. You were most likely born in some civilized area and spent most of your childhood in squalor. You probably grew up in a tight-knit clan of fellow Gristletooths and might have a strong sense of community for others that share your background.

Reroll your lowest DEX score and choose the higher result.

Most Gristletooths have low-paying jobs that keep them fed. Roll a d12 to determine your previous occupation before adventuring.

1. You were a street-sweep and janitor, cleaning the waste left by others in the community. You know your way around a sewer system, and have a knack for finding lost valuables dumped with the rest of the garbage. You have a twice-cleaned shit-stained shovel.
2. You were a construction worker, your days filled with carrying heavy stones and wood to the next development. You have a keen eye for spotting weaknesses in infrastructure and can properly assess repair costs for damages to buildings. You have an auger and handsaw.
3. You were a dog tamer, left in charge of cleaning the kennels and keeping the pups well fed and trained. Dogs and similar animals are friendlier towards you. You can live off of dog food just fine, though the smell of the beasts makes cats warier of you. You have a dog whistle and 1 pound of dog food.
4. You were a cartwright, skilled in the art of repairing and maintaining carts of various sizes. You have some skill with wood, hammers, and nails. You can find steady work in most villages. You have a hammer and a bag of nails.
5. You were a chimney sweep, your days spent cleaning the various chimneys of the village's households. You're more used to noxious fumes than most people and are adept at scaling close, narrow walls. You have a chimney sweeper and one random item found in a chimney, as chosen by the DM.
6. You were the cook's aid, fetching the various ingredients around the kitchen in a hurried manner. Your cooking skills are better than most adventurers and can provide a morale boost in the darkest of times. You have a bag of spices and wooden cooking set.
7. You were a candlestick maker, a master in the art of beautiful and efficient candlesticks. You have an eerily accurate sense of how much light a candle has left. You have 3 ornate candlesticks and a 5ft strip of wick.
8. You were a fence, a seller and buyer of illegally acquired goods. You can spot Thieves' Guilds easier than most people, and know a bit of The Cant. You have a broken down crossbow and 2 silver coins.
9. You were a butcher, your blades rusted with the blood of hundreds of lamb. You can get more food out of captured game in the wild. You have a bloody cleaver and apron.
10. You were a gravedigger, the mortal reaper that carried the dead onto the River Styx (metaphorically). You can get a sense of someone's wealth and stature judging by their tombstone and burial grounds. You have a shovel caked with grave dirt.
11. You were a tanner, treating animal skins and furs to sell them as warm coats for the winter. You make the most out of every animal you catch in the wild, knowing the best way to skin it to preserve both the hide and the meat. You have an extra waterskin and a pair of fur boots.
12. You were the steward of a noble or high-blooded person or family. You were treated better than most of your brethren. You recognize all the house names and associated livery of local nobility, as well as the symbols they use to wax-seal their letters. You have a fancy ink pen and inkwell.

Additional Equipment
Roll a d8 to determine what you bring with you from your home.

1. A cracked brass decanter gifted to you by a close friend when you left. Can hold half a day's ration of water.
2. Two dead rats tied together by their tails. Recently dead, they can be used to bait bigger game in the wilds.
3. A small vial of acid collected from a dead troll. Can burn through small metals.
4. A golden ring, thrown into the dump by a Halfling. The inside of the ring says something in Elven.
5. A pet dog that is loyal to you. It is not trained for fighting, but it will defend you.
6. A small bag of recently-rotted food. Still good enough for you!
7. A belt with an onion tied to it. Older Gristletooths tend to give you more respect when you wear it.
8. A dirty abandoned blanket re-purposed into a hood and cloak. Needs to be cleaned often, as fleas are quite fond of it.