Strongheart Halfling

Introduction

The strongheart halflings are, like the ghostwise and lightfoot hin, native to Luiren. They trace their ancestry back to the same long-lost days as the other subraces, but unlike their cousins, the stronghearts elected to remain in their homeland following the events of the Hin Ghostwar. The legacy of Chand, the strongheart war chieftain who galvanized his tribe against the threat of the feral ghostwise, lives on today in a nation that both reinforces and defies many of the expectations nonhalflings have of this face.

Outlook

Prior to the Hin Ghostwar, the stronghearts were, like their brethren, mostly a nomadic hunter-gather people. During the centuries that followed the terrible conflict, however, the stronghearts gravitated toward a more agrarian-based lifestyle centered around permanent communities. But if the communities were stationery, the stronghearts were not, moving from established community to established community.

This strange duality of nature, consisting of a desire to more about freely with a liking for permanent structures and settlements, has produced some unusual outlooks among the stronghearts of Luiren. Their viewpoint stresses cooperation aboe all other traits, and the ability to work as a team is the most valued behavior in their land. Cooperation trascends many boundaries in Luiren, and even strangers of whom the locals are suspicious can earn themselves considerable credit and tolerance by demonstrating a willingness to cooperate.

Characters

Stronghearts have relatively more clerics and martial characters (fighters, rangers, and paladins) than their lightfoot cousins, but the skilled rogue is still the most common character class among strongheart adventurers.

Society

The stronghearts have evolved a unique, semi-nomadic lifestyle, in which business, families, and even entire clans move freely and independently from place to place in Luiren. The fusion of wanderlust and stability is a source of wonderment and confusion for visitors, who find it difficult to comprehend how a society can enjoy such seemingly whimsical mobility while retaining any viable structure. For their part, most of the strongheart hin cannot understand why anyone would want to tie themselves permanently to any one community or structure for their entire lives.

Deities

The scrupulous stronghearts of Luiren take care to honor all the deities in the halfling pantheon, but their way of life reflects the influence of certain powers more than others. They do not favor any deities from other pantheons, and they actively discourage halflings from venerating the gods and goddesses of other races.

Among all the Faerudian halfling subraces, Arvoreen enjoys the strongest worship from the stronghearts of Luiren. While the Luiren hin venerate all the deities of the halfling pantheon in their turn, they hold the Vigilant Guardian in very high regard. His simple dogma has almost become the de facto motto of the nation: “Vigilance against attack will protect the community. Prepare an active defense, drill continuously, and leave nothing to change. Put down danger before allowing it a chance to rear its head.” Clerics of the Wary Sword are among the nation's foremost religious, political, and military leaders; most of them multiclass as fighters.

Strongheart druids and rangers frequently venerate Sheela Peryroyl, the Green Sister, and they encourage their fellow hin to be mindful of the need to balance their communities expansions with the need to preserve nature. Most strongheart communities in Luiren maintain shrines to the Watchful Mother, usually on the edge of the settled area where it borders the wilderness.

Yondalla, the Blessed One, is the most popular halfling deity after Avoreen among the stronghearts. Many of the subrace who dwell in Luiren find the dichotomy of her faith – do not welcome violence, but defend the home and community fiercely – to be reflective of the strongheart outlook. Yondalla reigns supreme in Luiren whenever matters of family and tradition are invoked, and her clergy enjoys considerable respect and influence in the most important national councils.

Creating New Character On Arelith

Base race

Halfling

+2 Dex, -2 Str

Favored class: Rogue

Special abilities

Small stature:

+1 size modifier to attack rolls.

+1 size modifier to AC.

+4 size bonus to hide checks.

Skill affinity (move silently): +2 racial bonus to move silently checks.

Skill affinity (listen): +2 racial bonus to listen checks.

Lucky: +1 luck bonus to all saving throws.

Fearless: +2 morale bonus to saving throws against spells and effects of the fear subtype.

Good aim: +1 racial bonus to attack rolls made with throwing weapons.

Abilities

Bonus feat: Alertness

Bonus Feat: Strong Soul.

Receive all halfling stats and abilities, except Lucky.

Classes

Favoured Class: Rogue

Most common are rogues. Stronghearts have relatively more clerics, fighters, rangers, and paladins than lightfoot halflings.

Alignment

Usually neutral

Appearance

• Skin: Ruddy
• Hair: Black and straight. Halfling men often have long sideburns, but beards are rare among them and moustaches almost unseen.
• Eyes: Brown or black

Aging

Age		Bonus
Adulthood	20 Years	+5d20
Middle Age	50 Years
Old	75 Years
Venerable	100 Years

Racial Crafting

Dale Sword

Notes

• Bonus language: Halfling language
• Starting city: Cordor, Brogendenstein, Sencliff or Skal

Playable Races on Arelith   

Human	Human - Deep Imaskari - Firbolg - Half-Giant - Shadovar
Dwarf	Shield Dwarf - Gold Dwarf - Duergar - Wild Dwarf
Elf	Moon Elf - Aquatic Elf - Avariel - Fey'ri - Sun Elf - Wild Elf - Wood Elf
Gnome	Rock Gnome - Svirfneblin - Forest Gnome
Halfling	Lightfoot Halfling - Ghostwise Halfling - Strongheart Halfling - Fey
Half-Elf	Half-Elf - Gloaming - Green Hag - Kenku
Half-Orc	Half-Orc
Monstrous	Drow - Goblin - Kobold - Gnoll - Orog - Hobgoblin - Ogre - Minotaur - Imp - Troglodyte - Yuan-ti Pureblood - Derro - Rakshasa - Vampire - Grodd Goblin - Snow Goblin - Bugbear
Planetouched	Aasimar - Air Genasi - Earth Genasi - Fire Genasi - Water Genasi - Tiefling