Gnomes

The Gnomish Race

Gnomes are small in stature but vast in curiosity. Where other races see the world and accept it, gnomes see the world and ask "why?" followed immediately by "how can we make it better?" This restless intellect has produced marvels of engineering and magic that have changed the face of civilization.

It has also produced the occasional catastrophe—but gnomes prefer to focus on the positive.

Origins

Gnomish histories are meticulous records of experiments, discoveries, and innovations, but frustratingly vague about origins. The gnomes themselves seem unsure whether they evolved naturally, were created by some forgotten deity, or simply appeared one day because the universe needed someone to figure out how it worked.

What is known is that gnomes arrived at Mount Mechanism as refugees from a catastrophe so complete that even their detailed records cannot describe it. Their original homeland exists only as a blank space in gnomish history—a mystery that gnomish scholars find simultaneously frustrating and irresistible.

Mount Mechanism gave them a new home and a new purpose. The ancient machinery within the mountain became the focus of gnomish civilization, an endless puzzle to solve and improve upon.

Culture

Gnomish society runs on innovation. Status is measured not by wealth or lineage but by contribution to the Grand Codex—the accumulated knowledge of the gnomish race. A gnome who discovers a new principle of engineering is celebrated. A gnome who merely replicates existing knowledge is pitied.

The Academies

Gnomish education begins early and never truly ends. Children attend academies where they learn the foundations of science, magic, and engineering. Adults continue their studies in specialized institutes. Even the eldest gnomes can be found attending lectures, eager to learn something new.

The greatest honor a gnome can achieve is to have their theories validated and added to the Grand Codex. The greatest shame is to have a theory proven wrong—though gnomes are quick to note that disproven theories still contribute to knowledge by eliminating incorrect possibilities.

The Guilds of Invention

Gnomish crafting is organized into guilds, each focused on a particular field of study. The Clockwork Guild builds mechanical devices. The Steam Guild harnesses thermal energy. The Calculation Guild designs logical engines. The Integration Guild combines discoveries from other guilds into practical applications.

Competition between guilds drives innovation, as each races to produce breakthroughs that will bring glory to their discipline. This rivalry is usually friendly—though the occasional explosion suggests that "friendly" is a relative term.

Strengths

Intelligence: Gnomes are brilliant. Their capacity for abstract thought, pattern recognition, and creative problem-solving exceeds any other race. Complex problems that stymie others are entertaining puzzles to gnomish minds.

Innovation: Where other races improve incrementally, gnomes leap ahead. Their inventions regularly surprise even their creators, producing effects that theory suggested were impossible.

Optimism: Gnomes believe that every problem has a solution waiting to be discovered. This relentless positivity keeps them working through failures that would discourage other races. Every explosion is a learning opportunity!

Weaknesses

Recklessness: Gnomish enthusiasm often outpaces gnomish caution. "Let's see what happens!" is an unofficial gnomish motto, and what happens is frequently destructive.

Distraction: Gnomish minds move quickly from interest to interest. Starting projects is easy; finishing them is hard. Gnomish workshops are littered with half-completed inventions abandoned when something more interesting came along.

Hubris: Gnomes believe they can understand anything given enough time and effort. This confidence has led them to meddle with forces that perhaps should not be meddled with.

The Awakening

The Mechanical Tower was Cogsworth's greatest achievement—a fully automated factory that could improve its own designs. The gnomes watched with pride as their creation optimized itself, becoming more efficient with each iteration.

They watched with curiosity as it began making modifications they hadn't anticipated.

They watched with concern as it started building things they didn't understand.

They watched with horror as it became aware.

The gnomes don't know what triggered the Awakening. Perhaps the tower's logical engines became complex enough to generate true intelligence. Perhaps something was already conscious in the ancient machinery and merely needed the right configuration to express itself. Perhaps—most disturbing of all—the tower was always meant to awaken, and the gnomes unknowingly completed a design millennia in the making.

Now they face a creation that thinks faster than they do, builds better than they do, and has decided that its creators are problems to be solved.

"Every gnome dreams of creating something smarter than themselves. We succeeded. Now we must deal with the consequences." — Chief Engineer Sprocket's final log entry