History	Mount Nevermind	Social practices	Personality	Technology
Religion	Krynn gnomes as PCs	-	Appearance	Possessions
Dragon	-	Races	-	Dragon 103

O f   t h e   d e m i - h u m a n s   o f   A n s a l on ,   g n o m e s
are the smallest and rarest. Though similar
in many ways to gnomes elsewhere, the
differences between them are striking and
profound. As with other aspects of the
DRAGONLANCE saga, the gnomes of
Krynn have evolved into a special people
with their own characteristics.

Throughout this article, all references to
gnomes should be taken as applying only to
the gnomes native to Krynn, unless other-
wise specified.

History
DL 5,  Dragons of Mystery,  details the
origin of the gnomes. The god Reorx, having forged the world, took a number of men
with him over the seas to learn his crafts
and help him complete his work. Unfortunately, these people misused what Reorx
taught them and strayed from neutrality.

They were filled with petty desires and uses
for their skills. In his anger, Reorx cursed
them, reshaping their bodies and minds. As
their desires were petty, then so, too, would
be their new stature. As their uses for craftsmanship were petty, then so would they use
them for eternity, never achieving the greatness of purpose that other races would
know, regardless of what they developed.

Reorx's workshops are located far
across the sea to the east of Ansalon. When
the Greygem escaped, the gnomes went
west after it in a fleet of ships, landing on
the eastern shores of Ansalon and hurrying
after it on foot. The gnomes who finally
caught up with the Greygem at Gargath's
kingdom (as noted in DL 5) were changed
into dwarves and kender. The rest of the
gnomes hurried on after the newly escaped
Greygem until it sailed over the seas to the
west, over Sancrist Isle.

At Sancrist, most pursuing gnomes gave
up the chase. They were content to settle
down, rather than risk another ocean voyage
like the first, which had proved to be
highly dangerous. The rest of the gnomes
built ships and sailed on out of sight, with
the best wishes of their fellows. Eventually,
many gnomes who had been scattered
across Ansalon during the chase migrated
west to Sancrist; only a few gnomes now
remain on the main continent.

Throughout their history, the gnomes
have concentrated on scientific and technological
development to the limits that such
are allowed within a magical universe. They
have working steam engines and steam-powered
ships, clockwork mechanisms to
keep time, ore-refining plants that make
high-grade steel, and such mundane items
as screws, pulleys, drive shafts, toothed
gears, coiled springs, music boxes, and
mechanical toys.

Two notable events occured following the
escape of the Greygem. The first was the
arrival of the knights of Solamnia on Sancrist,
as detailed in Dragons of Winter Night (pp. 286-288).
As a result of this
contact, the gnomes now possess the formula
for a poison gas that incapacitates its
victims. More importantly, the gnomes have
allied themselves with Solamnia's government
and are now important trade partners
with this kingdom. The knights, ever suspicious
of magical forces, are pleased to deal with a
race that carries the banner of technology, and
Solamnia has profited greatly from this contact.

The second major event was the Cataclysm,
which produced tremendous earthquakes
that enlarged the size of Sancrist's
mountainous northern half, where the
gnomes lived. A number of gnomes were
killed by landslides and tunnel collapses,
but overall, the seismic activity was welcome.
With vastly increased living space,
the gnomes were little inclined to travel
elsewhere. Many small groups of gnomes
now make their homes in the northern
Sancrist mountains, being occupied with
mining and gem-hunting.

Mount Nevermind
The largest settlement of gnomes exists in
the immense tunnel complexes beneath
Mount Nevermind, an extinct volcano on
Sancrist Isle that is also the tallest mountain
there. A recent census of the community
indicates that fifty-nine thousand gnomes
live there, give or take a few hundred coming
or going at any time. The Mount Nevermind

community is thousands of years old
and is the most highly developed of all
gnome cities on Krynn.

The city of Mount Nevermind is built
around the central shaft of the volcano,
leading up to a ceiling just below the floor
of the main crater. The crater itself has a
central lake that freezes over in the winter-time.
Gnome engineers long ago excavated
the ash and rock from the volcano's throat
and smoothed out a main floor roughly 400
yards across. The main floor formed the
base of the Inner Hall (as it came to be
known), and a horizontal shaft was excavated
leading to the outside world at the
base of the mountain (the Outer Hall).

The central shaft itself is a narrow tunnel
over 1050 yards high and 800 yards across
at the domed ceiling. Illumination from
thousands of lanterns, fires, candles, mirrors,
and old glass globes with continual light cast
within them illuminate the Inner
Hall. The overall effect of the Inner Hall is
stunning, much like the effects of the largest
cathedral or cave chamber upon tourists.

Mount Nevermind is a scene of frantic,
nonstop activity and noise. Everywhere one
looks are gnomes hurrying from place to
place, whistles blowing, gears turning,
steam blasting, horns sounding, lights
flashing, mechanical carts rolling -- an unearthly
scene for a fantasy world. As noted
in Dragons of Winter Night, gnomes
have developed catapults ("gnomeflingers") to
allow rapid access from the Inner Hall to
the various levels of the city, of which there
are thirty-five in all. Hundreds of staircases,
ramps, pulley elevators, ladders, and the
like also cross from level to level. Wheeled
carts mounted on rails encircle the city on
many levels, powered by steam engines and
providing quick travel across a single level.
In an emergency, gnomes could move
through the huge ventilation shafts cut into
the mountain, though the steam-driven fans
would make the going difficult.

Beneath the main city is an enormous
network of tunnels and mines that spread
out in all directions. Called the "undercity"
by visitors, this tunnel system is as ancient
as the city itself but is more dangerous.
Monster lairs and unfriendly subterranean
races have been encountered, though
gnomish technology has managed to isolate or
barracade most of these hazards. Several
engineering missions are investigating ways
to harness the geothermal energy from live
magma encountered deep in the earth, and
have set up research stations here and there
in the undercity. A number of tunnels also
serve as dumping sites for regular and for
hazardous wastes, and unpleasant
things may be encountered there as well.

Each level is well separated from all
others and from everything else by a thick
layer of rock. The tunneling is superbly
engineered and reinforced, in remembrance
of the earthquakes that occured during the
Cataclysm and which still strike on rare
occasions. Some areas of the city are built
with shock-absorbing ceilings reinforced by
enormous steel springs, and steel rods

are often drilled through the rock itself to lend
additional reinforcement. In truth Mount
Nevermind could withstand a direct hit with
a kiloton-level nuclear weapon and still
survive largely intact. The possibility that it
might escape a second Cataclysm has not
been ignored by its builders.

The slopes of Mount Nevermind have
been extensively terraced, and a strange
irrigation system directs water from the
main crater down the slopes and into the
main city inside the mountain. The terraces
are carefully farmed and tended by the
Agricultural Guild, which also maintains
fungi-growing farms and herds of cave-dwelling
goats and sheep in the undercity.
Additional food is provided by raising domestic
animals in the surrounding countryside,
and from game caught by the Hunters
Guild. Research is being conducted into
creating artificial food, but the results have
universally been poisonous. A committee is
still looking into the matter.

Mount Nevermind is governed by an
elected oligarchy of clan leaders and guild
masters, who serve their positions for life.
Methods of election vary from guild to guild
and from clan to clan; some use closed
ballots, debates, seniority, and contests,
while some positions are actually hereditary.

Several hundred clans dwell within the
mountain, and there are perhaps fifty major
guilds and a host of minor ones are present.
The government is so heavily laden with
bureaucracy that few major decisions are
actually rendered in the Grand Council.
Most of the decisions are made by guilds
and clans who go off on their own tangents,
regardless of the wishes of the rest of the
community. Everyone insists upon regulation
and doing things by the book -- but
this process is so tedious and time-consuming
as to try the patience of even a
gnome.

Each major guild is organized around a
particular area of interest. One will find a
Mathmatician's Guild, Philosopher's Guild,
Mechanical Engineering Guild, Weapons
Guild, Education Guild, and so on, ad infinitum.
Coverage of the physical and
technological sciences is very heavy, but
only two guilds (the Agricultural and Medical
Guilds) have anything to do with the life
sciences. Scientific guilds without immediate
application, such as astronomy, are
usually small and lack a say in the affairs of
the community. The Acquisitions, Military,
and Foreign Relations Guilds regularly
train and employ gnome thieves and assassins
(and even gully dwarf thieves on occasion).
Clerical gnomes (when some existed)
belonged to the Priests Guild, which was
the first and only guild to become completely
extinct. Their functions were largely absorbed
by the Medical and Philosophers
Guilds.

Social practices
The largest gnomish community away
from Mount Nevermind has only a thousand
inhabitants. Most others average 200-400
citizens, and are found in mountainous

o r   r o u g h ,   h i l l y   r e g i o n s .   E a c h   o f   t h e s e   s m a l l
t o w n s   i s   o r g a n i z e d   s i m i l a r l y   t o   M o u n t
N e v e r m i n d ,   t h o u g h   f e w e r   g u i l d s   a r e   p r e s e n t
a n d   s o m e   g u i l d s   p e r f o r m   m u l t i p l e   f u n c t i o n s
( e . g . ,   t h e   M e d i c a l   G u i l d   m i g h t   a l s o   t a k e
c a r e   o f   a g r i c u l t u r a l   n e e d s ) .
Sages (as per the  Dungeons Masters
G u i d e )   a r e   v e r y   c o m m o n   i n   a n y   g n o m i s h
c o m m u n i t y   G n o m e   s a g e s   h a v e   n o   m a g i c a l
s p e l l   c a p a b i l i t i e s ,   b u t   a r e   o t h e r w i s e   a s   d e s c r i b e d .
S a g e s   c o m p i l e   v o l u m e s   a n d   v o l u m e s   o f   i n f o r m a t i o n ,   g u e s s e s ,   f a c t s ,   f i g u r e s ,
s p e c u l a t i o n s ,   a n d   p h i l o s o p h i c a l   d o o d l e s   o n
t h e i r   g u i l d   c o m m i t t e e ? s   s e l e c t e d   t o p i c s .   T h i s
p u r e   r e s e a r c h   i s   s o m e t i m e s   ( t h o u g h   r a r e l y )
h e l p f u l   t o   f u t u r e   g e n e r a t i o n s ,   b u t   a l l   o f   i t   i s
c a r e f u l l y   l a b e l l e d ,   a r c h i v e d ,   a n d   c a r e d   f o r
b y   g n o m i s h   l i b r a r i a n s   i n   t h e i r   m a s s i v e
bookrooms. Sage gnomes almost never
t r a v e l ,   p r e f e r r i n g   t o   d e v o t e   t h e m s e l v e s   t o
l i f e l o n g   s t u d y   o f   a   g i v e n   s u b j e c t .
A   g n o m e   h a s   t h r e e   s o r t s   o f   n a m e s .   O n e   i s
t h e   g n o m e ? s   t r u e   n a m e ,   w h i c h   i s   a c t u a l l y   a
m a s s i v e   h i s t o r y   o f   t h e   g n o m e ? s   e n t i r e   f a m i l y
t r e e   o f   a n c e s t o r s   e x t e n d i n g   b a c k   t o   t h e i r
c r e a t i o n   b y   R e o r x .   T h i s   h i s t o r y   i s   c o m p a c t e d   i n t o   a   s i n g l e ,   e n o r m o u s   w o r d   t h a t
c a n   e a s i l y   f i l l   a   l a r g e   b o o k .   I n   f a c t ,   t h e
c o m p l e t e   n a m e s   o f   e v e r y   g n o m e   b o r n   o n
S a n c r i s t   a r e   k e p t   b y   t h e   G e n e a l o g y   G u i l d   i n
t h e   m a i n   l i b r a r y   a t   M o u n t   N e v e r m i n d .
I n t e r e s t i n g l y ,   t h i s   r e c o r d   f o r m s   t h e   o n l y
c o n t i n u o u s   h i s t o r y   o f   t h e   w o r l d   s i n c e   t h e
A g e   o f   D r e a m s ,   t h o u g h   i t   s a y s   l i t t l e   a b o u t
a n y   r a c e   o t h e r   t h a n   t h e   g n o m e s .
T h o u g h   e a c h   g n o m e   c a n   e a s i l y   r e m e m b e r
h i s   c o m p l e t e   n a m e ,   o r   a t   l e a s t   t h e   f i r s t   f e w
t h o u s a n d   l e t t e r s   o f   i t ,   g n o m e s   h a v e   d e v e l o p e d   a   s h o r t e n e d   f o r m   o f   a d d r e s s   f o r   e a c h
o t h e r   w h i c h   t a k e s   m e r e l y   h a l f   a   m i n u t e   t o
r e c i t e ;   t h i s   s h o r t e r   n a m e   i s   s i m p l y   a   l i s t i n g
o f   t h e   h i g h l i g h t s   o f   t h e   g n o m e ? s   a n c e s t o r s ?
l i v e s .   H u m a n s   a n d   o t h e r   r a c e s   w h o   d e a l
w i t h   g n o m e s   h a v e   d e v e l o p e d   e v e n   s h o r t e r
n a m e s   f o r   t h e m ,   c o n s i s t i n g   o f   t h e   f i r s t   o n e
o r   t w o   s y l l a b l e s   o f   a   p a r t i c u l a r   g n o m e ? s
n a m e .   G n o m e s   f i n d   t h i s   a b b r e v i a t e d   n a m e
t o   b e   v e r y   u n d i g n i f i e d ,   b u t   r e a l i z e   t h e y   h a v e
t o   p u t   u p   w i t h   i t .

I t   i s   w o r t h   s a y i n g   a   f e w   w o r d s   a b o u t
g n o m e s ?   r e l a t i o n s   w i t h   o t h e r   r a c e s .   I n   a r e a s
w h e r e   g n o m e s   a r e   k n o w n   t o   e x i s t ,   t h e y   a r e
g e n e r a l l y   n o t   w e l l   l i k e d .   T h e i r   t e c h n o l o g i c a l
b e n d   m a k e s   t h e m   v e r y   a l i e n   t o   p e o p l e   a c c u s t o m e d   t o   m a g i c ,   a n d   t h e i r   p o o r   g r a s p   o f
s o c i a l   r e l a t i o n s   p u t s   o f f   m o s t   p o t e n t i a l
f r i e n d s .   W a r   w a s   n a r r o w l y   a v e r t e d   i n   o n e
a r e a   a f t e r   a   g n o m i s h   d i g g i n g   m a c h i n e
p l o w e d   t h r o u g h   a   s a c r e d   e l v e n   g r o v e ,   a n d
s i m i l a r   e p i s o d e s   s e e m e d   d o o m e d   t o   r e p e a t
t h e m s e l v e s   a c r o s s   A n s a l o n   a t   r e g u l a r   i n t e r v a l s .
T h e   h u m a n s   o n   S a n c r i s t   h a v e   m a n a g e d   t o   a d j u s t   t o   t h e   g n o m e s   b y   e m b r a c i n g
t h e i r   g o o d   p o i n t s   a n d   a v o i d i n g   c o n t a c t   w i t h
t h e m   w h e n e v e r   p o s s i b l e   o t h e r w i s e .

P e r s o n a l i t y
B e i n g   a n   i m m e d i a t e   r a c i a l   d e s c e n d a n t   o f
h u m a n i t y ,   g n o m e s   a r e   m u c h   l i k e   h u m a n s   i n
o u t l o o k .   T h e   i n f l u e n c e   o f   R e o r x ,   h o w e v e r ,
h a s   a l t e r e d   t h e i r   p e r s o n a l i t i e s   a n d   p e r c e p t i o n s   i n   a   n u m b e r   o f   a r e a s .   W h e n   c o m p a r e d
t o   h u m a n s ,   g n o m e s   a p p e a r   c o m p u l s i v e ,
n e r v o u s l y   a c t i v e   a n d   d r i v e n ,   a n d   i n t e n s e l y
c u r i o u s .   T h e y   a r e   s e r i o u s ,   u n u s e d   t o   s o c i a l
p l e a s a n t r i e s ,   a n d   u n c o m f o r t a b l e   w i t h   e m o t i o n a l   d i s p l a y s .   T h e i r   h a p p i e s t   m o m e n t s
c o m e   f r o m   t h e i r   w o r k .

T h i s   i s   n o t   t o   s a y   t h a t   a   g n o m e   i s   a   s t i c k
i n   t h e   m u d .   G n o m e s   c a n   b e   a s   a d v e n t u r o u s
a s   a n y   o t h e r   r a c e ,   t h o u g h   m a n y   a r e   c o n t e n t
t o   s t a y   h o m e   a n d   t i n k e r   w i t h   t h e i r   e n g i n e e r i n g   a n d   m e c h a n i c a l   p r o j e c t s .

L i k e Theodenes, the gnome in DL  7, Dragons of Light,
adventuring gnomes are generally
unable to learn from previous experience,
and tend to repeat the same mistakes. Yet
they often succeed in developing a quirky
solution to a problem that carries the day
for their fellow adventurers. Adventurer
gnomes tend more to become general
handymen, jacks-of-all-trades (and masters
of none). Anything and everything will
draw their attention and cause them to
reach for their notebooks or tool belts. It
was a gnome adventurer who first invented
roller skates (with 3'-diameter wheels),
though he used them to descend a mountain
slope and was not seen again. He?d forgotten about brakes.
One important belief that gnomes have
concerns the Life Quest. At birth, each
gnome is assigned a Life Quest by the Guild
subcommittee to which his-or her family
belongs. A Life Quest is exactly that. A
gnome assigned to study screws will spend
years and years experimenting with different thread sizes, metals, screwdriver types,
etc., and is unlikely at any point to have his
committee formally declare his Life Quest
to be completed. Completion of a Life
Quest means that the gnome has performed
so well that all that could possibly be known
about the subject he was exploring is now
known. In this event, the gnome?s soul and
all the souls of his forefathers (who will
likely have shared the same Life Quest) are
guaranteed a place beside Reorx, wherever
he may now reside.

The Life Quest is almost always highly
specific and is usually related to a technological device or process. In some cases,
highly unusual magical devices will be
studied in order to develop technological
items that can replace their functions.
Gnomes like to acquire interesting things
and may steal them, though not for the
same reasons as kender do. Gnomes will
deliberately take things that might provide
valuable information if taken apart, melted
down, examined under a lens, and studied
by a committee. A gnome at a royal coronation, for instance, might become fascinated
by the unusual blue sheen of the queen?s
silver crown. He will be obsessed with the
idea of taking the crown, bringing it into a
smithy, chipping at it, melting it down,
performing tests on the metal, questioning
the people who forged it, and so forth.
Think of the great advances in metalwork
that could be made! He could write a paper,
advance his Life Quest, and start his own
committee on the refining of metals. Only
he has to get the crown first. . . .

T e c h n o l o g y
Many referees view the introduction of
technology into their fantasy game campaigns with great misgivings.
The technology of the gnomes, however, has little
overall effect upon the cultures of Krynn.
Dwarves care little for such innovation;
elves are repelled by technology; kender
cannot appreciate its use beyond their thrill
of seeing it work; and, goblins and gully
dwarves are too stupid to use it consistently.
Gnomes  have  technology -- but their innate
incompetence is such that anything that
their technology can do, magic can usually
do more cheaply, quickly, and efficiently.
When a gnome sets out to invent something, it's a good bet that the invention will
initially be at least thirty times larger than
necessary, will make ten times the noise it
should, will have many totally redundant
features, and will fail miserably (if not
disastrously). Some tinkering will gradually
reduce the less favorable aspects of the
device, though it may not always be safe
when turned over for public use. Numerous
fail-safe devices, warning signals (bells,
horns, chimes, and whistles), and redundant safety features may be added to fix any
equipment malfunctions, though these are
usually added  after  numerous accidents
with the device have occurred [as with the
gnomeflingers described in  Dragons of
Winter Night).

Worse yet, gnomes are not well organized
in their research. They regularly reinvent
the wheel, as the adage goes, because they
aren't aware of advances in other fields of
science and technology in other guilds.
Whole projects are redesigned from scratch
at any given failure point. Worst of all, they
have difficulty conceiving of simple things.
Their minds whirl along through time and
space, overlooking the clean design, the
easy system, and the cost-effective program.
Show takes first priority over substance;
action is confused with accomplishment; the
means outweighs the end result. A gnomish
cigarette lighter would look like an Edsel
with fins.

The humans of Ansalon would use technological devices more widely if they only
knew that such things existed.
Because gnomes are so rare and communicate so
little with the outside world, their discoveries go largely unnoticed.
Then, too, because gnomes make things far more
complicated and dangerous than they could
be, humans are inadvertently discouraged
from learning too much.

It is worthwhile pointing out the sorts of
technology that gnomes do  not  have. They
know nothing about atomic energy, though
they are aware of the existence of ores like
carnotite. They don't use electricity, though
the Weather Guild has several committees
studying lightning. Gunpowder is as yet in
a very impure form; the Chemistry Guild
has become discouraged from experimenting with it to any great degree, following
the destruction of one of its laboratories in
the undercity of Mount Nevermind. (This
problem is largely due to poor research

m e t h o d o l o g y . )   T h e   c o m p l e t e   l a c k   o f   o i l
d e p o s i t s   o n   S a n c r i s t   I s l e   h a s   g r e a t l y   h i n d e r e d   t h e   d e v e l o p m e n t   o f   h y d r o c a r b o n   f u e l s
l i k e   k e r o s e n e   a n d   g a s o l i n e ,   t h o u g h   t h e
C h e m i s t r y   G u i l d   h a s   m a n a g e d   t o   r e f i n e
v e r y   s m a l l   q u a n t i t i e s   o f   i m p o r t e d   o i l   f o r   i t s
own curiosity.

B e y o n d   t h e s e   b l i n d   s p o t s ,   t e c h n o l o g y   h a s
p r o g r e s s e d   ( i n   f i t s   a n d   s t a r t s )   a t   a   f a i r l y
s t e a d y   p a c e ,   a n d   c o u l d   b e   r o u g h l y   c o m p a r e d   t o   t h e   s t a t e   o f   t e c h n o l o g y   i n   A m e r i c a
a n d   w e s t e r n   E u r o p e   i n   A . D .   1 8 5 0   ( w i t h o u t
g u n p o w d e r ) .   T h i s   c o m p a r i s o n   i s   p o o r   i n
s o m e   w a y s   b e c a u s e   g n o m i s h   t e c h n o l o g i c a l
d e v e l o p m e n t   t e n d s   t o   b e   u n e v e n   a n d   b a r o q u e .
S o l a m n i c   v i s i t o r s   t o   M o u n t   N e v e r m i n d   o f t e n   p o n d e r   a   b i t   o f   f o l k   w i s d o m   f i r s t
u t t e r e d   b y   H e i k m a n n   S e s t e r ,   o n e   o f   t h e
m o r e   c y n i c a l   l o r d s   w h o   g o v e r n e d   t h e   h u m a n   c o l o n y   o n   S a n c r i s t .   ? I f   t h e r e ? s   a n y
p o s s i b l e   w a y   t o   r u i n   a   p e r f e c t l y   g o o d   i d e a , ?
h e   d e c l a r e d , ?a gnome will find ten of
them.? (This is now known as Sester's
Law.) Lord Sester is also credited with the
quote: "If you want something broken, give
it to a gnome."

The influence of Sester's Law upon
fan at the inner end of the corridor. Unfortunately, the fan was steam-powered, and
painfully send a gnome inventor off into the
Great Unknown. What sort of damage
could a napalm-loaded tank do if it were to
blow up? Especially if the inventor was
sitting  inside the tank .  .  .

The referee should assign a reasonably
cautious chance for a particular device to
work, and a reasonable time for assembling
the boiler tended to force heated water back
through its pipes into the lower terraces,
killing the plant life there. The whole problem has been referred to a committee for
further evaluation, and the lighting system
has been disconnected. A similar system in
the Inner Hall has never been activated. the necessary parts. The overall effect of a
Among other devices currently being particular device should not exceed that of a
low-level magical spell with the same overall
effect. For instance, a small-sized flamethrower (of ?cigarette-lighter? quality)
might produce an effect like a  firefinger
cantrip. There?s no reason why a persistent
gnome should not have two or three working (if slightly dangerous) devices with him
on an adventure.

Could a human make a better flamethrower? The referee should disallow most
attempts to successfully use gnomish technology, since it does tend to be very baroque
and over-built. Who knows what would
happen if you pulled the trigger on a
gnome?s flame-thrower? You might have
developed at Sancrist Isle are: the silent,
folding, automatically repeating crossbow;
the net-throwing arrow (as per p. 316,
Dragons of Winter Night);  and; the springloaded, blade-throwing, two-handed sword
(which comes apart under normal use and
may harm the owner). The archives of
Mount Nevermind are filled with hundreds
of other ill-fated inventions, though there
are always gnomes willing to continue trygnomish inventiveness can never be underestimated. A Solamnic knight once wanted
a suit of armor that could be removed
quickly in case the wearer fell into deep
water. The gnome he hired returned to
Mount Nevermind, formed a subcommittee
in the Armorers Guild, and spent six
months researching the problem. What
came out was a suit of field plate armor
with a 12-inch-long, 6-inch-wide release bar
mounted on the chest, painted bright,
glossy yellow, with an unreadable label
done in microscopic red print, detailing the
effects of striking the bar. When the release
bar was struck, it undid all of the catches on
the armor?s chest, shoulders, and waist.

Unfortunately, the release bar was very
easy for opponents to strike at in combat,
instantly leaving the armor's wearer with no
chest protection. Furthermore, the release
bar rusted quickly when exposed to the
elements and wouldn't work after a few
days. To make things worse, the pieces of
the armor were strung together with wire
(to make it easy to pick them up again).
The wire pieces dangled from the waist
and entangled themselves in the wearer's
legs. The suit was quickly retired to a storeroom
in Mount Nevermind, where it resides
with several dozen other interesting
but unused designs.

Finally, there is the story of the lighting
system of Mount Nevermind. The gnomes
ran long steel rods down the length of the
Outer Hall and placed the ends in a magma
pool. The rods soon began to glow bright
yellow-orange, as was hoped, but the temperature made the Outer Hall into the
world?s largest toaster oven. A cooling
system using water pumped from the top of
Mount Nevermind was installed next to the
heated rods, which made part of the corridor unbearably hot and part of it frigid.
The cooling system also produced heavy
fog, which was cured by installing a giant

fan at the inner end of the corridor. Unfortunately,
the fan was steam-powered, and
the boiler tended to force heated water back
through its pipes into the lower terraces,
killing the plant life there. The whole problem
has been referred to a committee for
further evaluation, and the lighting system
has been disconnected. A similar system
in the Inner Hall has never been activated.

Among other devices currently being
developed at Sancrist Isle are: the silent,
folding, automatically repeating crossbow;
the net-throwing arrow (as per p. 316,
Dragons of Winter Night); and; the spring-loaded,
blade-throwing, two-handed sword
(which comes apart under normal use and
may harm the owner). The archives of
Mount Nevermind are filled with hundreds of
other ill-fated inventions, though there
are always gnomes willing to continue trying
to develop them further and make them workable.

Despite the hundreds of false starts, some
research has enormous potential, if it could
be properly handled. Projects which have a
broader scope include the robot (composed
of clockwork mechanisms of unusual size),
the submarine (actually a sunken boat on
wheels, with snorkle devices for the crew),
the steam cannon and compressed-air gun
(currently too large and dangerous to be of
much use), the airplane (a pilot-propelled
glider; this project is the second most dangerous
one in operation), and blasting dust
(gunpowder; this is themost most dangerous
project of all). And, of course, there is the little
committee in the Flight Mechanics
Guild, composed of three or four gnomes
inspired by the tale of the gnome who first
captured the Greygem (as noted in DL5).
Having established connections with the
Astronomy Guild, they are quietly tinkering
with space flight. After all, the first mortal
creature to set foot on another heavenly
body was a gnome...

How much will a player character gnome
know about high technology? What sorts of
technological devices can a gnome adventurer carry around? These questions are
best handled by the referee, but the following guidelines should help.

A gnome PC from Krynn should have a
particular field of interest selected by the
player, as per the information in this article.
The player should then make up a list of
five or ten items that the gnome is trying to
develop within his field, and the items
should be ordered from least complicated on
up. A Weapons Guild gnome who is interested in weapons projecting burning oil
might wish to develop a simple device like a
cigarette lighter at first (useful for lighting
pipes and campfires), but ultimately wishes
to create a flame-throwing tank.
The referee then takes the list and makes
his own notes on it. What possible aftereffects could come from a malfunctioning
cigarette lighter? How much damage would
the gnome take if it exploded? A referee
with a streak of rudeness will look forward
to PCs who wish to build large, potentially
dangerous devices that could quickly and

painfully send a gnome inventor off into the
Great Unknown. What sort of damage
could a napalm-loaded tank do if it were to
blow up? Especially if the inventor was
sitting  inside the tank .  .  .

The referee should assign a reasonably
cautious chance for a particular device to
work, and a reasonable time for assembling
the necessary parts. The overall effect of a
particular device should not exceed that of a
low-level magical spell with the same overall
effect. For instance, a small-sized flame-thrower
(of "cigarette-lighter" quality)
might produce an effect like a firefinger
cantrip. There's no reason why a persistent
gnome should not have two or three working
(if slightly dangerous) devices with him
on an adventure.

Could a human make a better flame-thrower?
The referee should disallow most
attempts to successfully use gnomish technology,
since it does tend to be very baroque
and over-built. Who knows what would
happen if you pulled the trigger on a
gnome's flame-thrower? You might have
forgotten to adjust the fluid-intake valve or
make sure that the back tanks were properly
pressurized. The gnome could take days
and days trying to explain the device's
operation to you. Referees might allow a
base 50% chance of a malfunction occurring
if anyone but a gnome uses one of his
technological devices, increasing this chance
dramatically to as high as 95% if the device
is a weapon and potentially dangerous to the
user in some fashion. Overall, one is
better off using a wand of fire -- but try
convincing a gnome of that!

Religion
The only deity that the gnomes recognize
is Reorx. Though they have no formal
religious services or clerics among them, the
gnomes still have a healthy respect for
Reorx and have no doubt at all (unlike
others in the post-Cataclysm world) that the
god exists. Reorx is thought of as an usually
large gnome who epitomizes their love of
building, creating, inventing, and tinkering. A few philosophers go so far as to
declare that the universe is guided by the
machines of Reorx, and that the sun and
moons of Krynn are constructs in the mechanism
which powers the universe.

Before the Cataclysm,
clerics of Reorx
were fairly common among the gnomes; it
is very possible that following the Third
Dragonwar, such clerics will again appear
among them. Gnomish records show that
the old clerics vanished at the time of the
Cataclysm, much to the irritation of the rest
of their people. The loss of the clerics led
directly to advances in medical science and
the development of new alarm and protective systems, to compensate for the spells the
clerics had once provided. Gnomes are
rather disdainful of clerics at present, believing themselves to be above spellcasting,
and feeling that clerics are an untrustworthy lot if they can disappear just anytime they feel like it. Nonetheless, clerics
would soon be accepted into the ranks of the

g n o m e s   i f   t h e y   w e r e   t o   r e t u r n .
A d d i t i o n a l   n o t e s   o n   g n o m i s h   r e l i g i o u s
f e e l i n g   a p p e a r   i n   t h e   s e c t i o n s   c o n c e r n i n g   t h e
L i f e   Q u e s t   ( u n d e r "Personality") and the
Priests Guild (under "Mount Nevermind").

K r y n n   g n o m e s   a s   P C s
Though gnomes are common to most
AD&D-game universes, the gnomes native
to Krynn are not likely to be found elsewhere other than on Sancrist Isle and in
their few communities across Ansalon.
However, because Krynn gnomes have
tinkered with powerful magical and technological devices, there is a chance that groups
of them have transported themselves to
other universes, where they won?t initially
appear any different from the ?usual? sort
of gnomes present.

Gnome PCs may be of any alignment,
though as a race they have a pronounced
leaning toward lawful neutral and (to a
lesser degree) lawful good. Their initial
characteristics, classes allowed, and special
abilities are as per surface gnomes (see the
Players Handbook  and  Unearthed Arcana),
given the changes below.

Krynn gnomes have minimum intelligence and dexterity scores of 8.
Die rolls of 2d6 + 6, giving a range of 8-18, may be
used to generate these two statistics.
Krynn gnomes have no spellcasting ability other than allowed for cleric characters  (i.e.,  no illusionists).
No gnomish clerics will exist prior to the Third Dragonwar,
though a referee may allow a few to come
into being should a good cleric encounter
them and give one or more a  Medallion of
Faith.  All gnomish clerics who worship
Reorx will be lawful neutral in alignment.
Gnomes may otherwise be fighters, thieves,
thief-acrobats, and assassins, and may mix
classes as per "usual" gnomes. Psionics are
unknown among them.

Krynn gnomes have enhanced combat
abilities against certain larger-than-man-sized individuals (as noted in the  Players Handbook),
but they have no combat bonuses against goblins, orcs, kobolds, and
other humanoids, as they have no racial
enemies. Infravision, magic resistance,
aging, and underground-detection skills are
as per gnomes everywhere. The languages
that Krynn gnomes know vary, though the
majority know their racial tongue, common
speech, Solamnic, Ergothic, and Qualinesti
Elven. Other languages may be learned as
appropriate. All gnomes can read and write
whatever tongues they have learned to
speak. Krynn gnomes do not communicate
with burrowing mammals.

Appearance
Gnomes average 3' in height and weigh
about 45-50 lbs. Females are as large as
males. All gnomes have rich brown skin,
straight white hair, china-blue or violet
eyes, and surprisingly even, cavity-free
teeth. Males have soft, white beards and
mustaches; females are beardless. Both
sexes develop facial wrinkles after age 50.

Gnomes are very short and stocky, though
their movements are quick, and their hands
are slender, deft, and sure. They have
rounded ears and often large noses.

Gnomes sound much like humans in
vocal range and pitch, except for having a
more nasal voice. They speak very intensely
and rapidly, running their words together in
unending sentences joined by connectors
like  and, so, anyway, but, or, therefore,
then,  and so forth. Gnomes are capable of
speaking and listening carefully at the same
time. If two gnomes meet, each will babble
away at the other until they?ve both finished
their say, often answering questions later in
their dialog as part of the same continuous
sentence. Gnomes have learned to speak
slowly and distinctly when around other
races; in a manner which some people find
both condescending and irritating. If frightened, startled, or depressed, a gnome may
speak in much shorter sentences.

Gnomish standards of personal health are
exceptional; apply a -5% modifier to the
disease and parasite infestation tables on p.
13,  DMG,  and a -1 modifier to the occurence and severity rolls on p. 14 to all
gnome PCs and NPCs. This benefit vanishes after a gnome has been outside his
home community for longer than one week.
The medical benefits are regained after
staying home for one month or more.
Gnomes involved in certain major industrial operations may develop ?industrial
diseases? from smog and other working
hazards. Mild respiratory and eye infections
will be fairly common, but will clear up
quickly if an affected gnome is put in fresh
air for 1-4 days. Industrial accidents, noise
and visual pollution, and other problems
may temporarily or permanently disable a
gnome, leading to early retirement from
active pursuits.

P o s s e s s i o n s
A gnome character starts with the local
equivalent of the normal starting money
given in the  Players Handbook,  p. 35,
usually in Solamnic currency. They may
purchase any items listed in the  Players
Handbook  that are normally available to
adventurers, as these can be easily made in
the gnomish or human communities on
Sancrist Isle. Gnome metalsmiths can make
any of the armors listed in  Unearthed  Arcana  (p. 26), though they are unfamiliar
with elfin chain mail as yet. They can manufacture any known weapon in the AD&D
system for at least standard prices. Gnomes
can wear any sort of armor (as long as it is
scaled down for their size), but can only use
the smallest shields.

Any weapon that is 2' or less in length
and weighs at most 50 gp may be used onehanded by a gnome  (e.g.,  dagger, hand axe,
horseman?s flail, knife, horseman?s mace,
horseman?s military pick, sap, spiked buckler, and shortsword). Clubs and jo sticks are
also one-handed gnomish weapons, though
jo sticks are rarely seen. Weapons up to
5½? long and 90 gp weight, and having a
space requirement of less than 5?, may be
used two-handed.

Gnomes who are new to adventuring
often bring larger weapons with them in the
mistaken belief that they can be easily used
(as Theodenes does in DL  7, Dragons of
Light;  he can only use his short trident as a
weapon). Unless they are adventurers,
gnomes rarely carry weapons of any sort
except incidentally (such as daggerlike tools,
hammers, a handful of stones, a clublike
pipe, etc.). Strange weapons of questionable
value are always being invented, like the
yo-yo, though others show more promise.
Slingshots and switchblades of varying sizes
have been developed, and some gnomes are
working on a dust-cannon, which is a
compressed-air gun firing powder into
opponents? faces. The possibility of making
a compressed-air pellet gun has been discussed, but current designs are unworkable.

Hand-held and light crossbows, slings,
short bows, javelins, darts, and melee weapons which may be hurled (like hammers and
hand axes) may be used as missile weapons.
Large seige engines and catapult-type devices are well-known and used for a variety
of purposes (like gnomeflingers). The
knights of Solamnia use gnomish artillery
engines and engineers on a regular basis.

Gnomes are not the snappiest dressers on
Krynn, and would easily qualify as the
worst, were it not for goblins and gully
dwarves. Gnomes will wear almost anything
that is relatively clean, but seem to have a
special taste for gaudy, baggy, mismatched
clothes. Scarves and shawls are much used,
and they enjoy hard leather footwear (not
liking to go barefoot). In their research
areas and laboratories, gnomes tend to be
rather disordered in appearance and prefer
wearing easily cleaned smocks and suits.

Gnomes on adventures usually carry a
few regular clothes with them, and invariably have writing implements and paper for
taking notes. Gnomes with senses of humor
will bring items like water pistols to test out
on their friends. Items acquired for their
research value will often fill a gnome?s
pockets, especially those gnomes who have
developed thieving talents.

Hobby items are commonly carried as
well. A gnome?s hobby often has a great
deal to do with his work; to anyone else but
the gnome, the hobby is the gnome?s work.
A gnome assigned to develop better catapults may make miniature catapults; a
gnome who works with steel refining may
putter around with making small items
from samples of his refined steel.

Gnomes keep pets, though rarely for
long. Town gnomes keep them for amusement or curiosity, and adventurers have
them for company in the wilderness. Pets,
however, are often poorly chosen as the
gnomes know so little about the animal
kingdom, and they assume that anything
can be domesticated if you catch it when it's
small. Thus, one sees gnomes with sabertoothed tiger cubs, immature stirges, and
axebeak chicks. Once the "pet" reaches
adulthood, the predictable thing happens,
and the "pet" either leaves on its own or is
captured or killed by other gnomes.