The Core Values of Each Cultural Group in My Homebrew Setting

I recently did a series of guides to clans in my homebrew setting. It began as an effort to emulate the interesting details and complicated dynamics of a campaign I got to play in--my clans would have ideological perspectives and traditions, like my DM's groups. But as I wrote, I realized that in order to pick groups of people who would stand out amongst many in a rich culture, I needed to pick based on what the most central values of those groups were. By the end of that series, it turned out that the halfling guide was actually just a list of social movements (since halflings don't do formal organization), and that was basically just an expression of cultural values. I've spent years writing dozens of profiles on my homebrew societies, always driving at showing their core values, but never just directly saying it. It's time to rectify that. I honestly think that any DM should try to avoid my mistake--get to defining the cultural values of your homebrew groups early in your design so that you can use it as a framework to build on, and if you're a veteran DM who hasn't explicitly named at least a few values for each group, now is the time to start. With that spirit in mind, let's address the five most intently-held values of each culture in my homebrew setting, from most important to less important. 

Daltoners

Power

The obtaining and smart use of power is the most crucial aspiration of most Daltoners. Being able to capture power through social position, physical strength, or godly assistance is revered in Daltoner society, as is being able to use that power to extend and increase one's power. To Daltoners, power does not imply responsibility; rather, power is the ability to do exactly as you wish. Among the powerful, struggles for control are common in the name of obtaining more power.

Piety

A close second to power is piety. Belief in the Dalton Church of Pelor is essentially mandatory for those living in New Dalton, as social exclusion or violence is likely to occur without demonstrated piety. This means having an active life in the Dalton Church of Pelor, publicly and privately demonstrating religious devotion, and paying respect to religious leaders. Religious leaders amongst Daltoners are typically zealous and will use shame or violence to spread their beliefs.

Submission/Domination

In situations involving power dynamics, Daltoner society dictates that the weak should submit to the strong, whose power and duty it is to dominate the world around them, their enemies, and misguided followers. This is held to be the natural order of things--the powerful dominate the weak, which is ultimately good for both as well as the natural order itself. Part of Daltoner religious belief holds that all Daltoners must submit to Pelor, and this is a submission that all must commit to.

Success/Competition

Daltoner society believes that all living things are in competition for supremacy (finding power and dominating), and ultimate success means winning out over competitors. To this end, Daltoner children are raised with highly competitive systems around them, promoting a drive to succeed, often at all costs, as successful children and adults alike are usually the only ones to receive praise and affection. Because of the strict competitiveness in Daltoner culture, trust is a hard thing to come by.

Tradition

Daltoner tradition is essentially the rallying cry of the Daltoner people both in New Dalton and on the home island of Dalton. In addition to the call for power, piety, domination, and competition, Daltoner tradition means a way of life, from living by and spreading Daltoner culture and economic interests to living as Daltoner ancestors did, down to fashion and diet--in one of the most prosperous cities in the world, oats and barleycakes are a staple because they are what was eaten on Dalton. In manners like this, the Daltoners commit to tradition as few others.

Faninites

Family

The most important thing in Faninite society is having a happy, close family. Culturally, the process of raising children from young naïveté to skilled adult is considered both the utmost blessing and the most serious responsibility, and that means that parenting is both aspired to and treated solemnly (though not without joy--sharing joy with one's children is the greatest delight for a Faninite). To love and be beloved by one's family is the ultimate pursuit in Faninite culture.

Community

Faninite communities tend to be close because a core cultural value holds that more can be accomplished together than individually. This is held in a general sense that cooperation leads to greater results, but also in that a sense of togetherness is emotionally more fulfilling than being divided. Faninites promote community by practicing inclusion and reaching out to neighbors and colleagues, and it is generally observed that Faninite communities, which are usually fairly small, are often united as an entire group.

Peace

On their home island of Fanin, peace has been known for as long as people can remember. Peace allows people to prosper, and Faninites tend to do whatever they can to preserve peace, when both individuals and societies do better. Keeping peace sometimes means being a gentle guard for more aggressive Faninites, and more diplomatic efforts for especially peaceable Faninites. Whatever their disposition, Faninites embrace peace as a way of life.

Teaching

Much of the all-important parenting in Faninite culture as well as much of the community organization of Faninite settlements depends on teaching. It is considered one's duty to teach someone how to do something if you know how and they want to know. Many Faninites pursue careers in education, particularly with lower grades, where basic life lessons can be imparted with gentleness. Teaching someone something valuable is considered an especially good deed, and being receptive to teaching is equally important.

Kindness

Faninites are taught from a young age to be kind--gracious, patient, forgiving, warm, and affectionate. The value of this is clear to Faninites--people are happier and have more rewarding relationships when they are kind to each other. This supports family, togetherness, and peace in turn. Kindness is not just taught as an action directed toward others; Faninites are taught to give themselves the same grace, patience, forgiveness, warmth, and affection as they would give others. 

Dwarves

Conformity

Many dwarves would describe this value as "tradition," but the dwarven value goes beyond tradition. Dwarven society calls for total conformity to what is called tradition, but which is actually something of a combining of and fabrication of a culture meant to emulate tradition. (Dwarven society has denied that it was for millennia matriarchal although historical record clearly shows it.) Conformity to the patriarchy, oligarchy, and cultural construction called tradition is demanded of any dwarf who desires a place in dwarven society. This includes behavior, personal tastes, profession, social circles, fashion, and more. 

Devotion

Dwarves value being devoted to something completely. Those who spend centuries honing a craft, those who commit completely to an ideal, and those who live by an approved code are seen as heroic. In everyday life, dwarves try to commit 100% to small actions, and observing full effort from someone often prompts a compliment in dwarven society. Devotion to any task, ideal, or person is held by dwarves to be the proper way to live life.

Expertise

Becoming a true expert in something is prized by dwarves in a way that it is in no other society. For Faninites, teaching is about providing a skill, not mastering it; for dwarves, becoming a master of a skill is the aim--there is very little amateur effort made in dwarven society (reinforced by the call for devotion). Because the bar is so high in terms of mastery of dwarven society-approved interests, many choose a life's calling at a very young age and follow it until death. True expertise is often measured by the ability to confound a sanctioned expert with one's skill.

Piety

Religious faith in Moradin (and to a lesser extent, approved deities like Heironeous and Kord) is held as important to the health of a dwarf's soul, but also as a demonstration of one's devotion to morality. While the Moradin dwarves worship today--a vital and solemn dwarven man with a great beard--is a far cry from the Moradin the party encountered in Of Gods and Dragons--a friendly and warm dwarven woman with an outsider's appearance--dwarves fundamentally hold that belief in Moradin is an assurance of grace and a moral proving ground for dwarves.

Persistence

Dwarves live long lives--many reach 400 years old--and as such, choose lofty goals for their lives. Truly mastering a craft, fully devoting oneself to something for centuries, holding true to one culture in all ways--these are difficult tasks which will have inevitable mistakes. In order to succeed and keep going, dwarves prize persistence. Bouncing back from hard times (dwarves love an underdog), continuing progress when successes are small, and doing improbable things all require incredible persistence, and part of the history of remarkable dwarves stems from this cultural value.

Orcs 

Tradition

Orcish society holds that a traditional way of life is the most important part of the orcish experience. Traditional orcish life is tribal, with small settlements dotting orcish lands which are not so much governed as guided by wise women, curtrans. This way of life--community-driven, largely matriarchal, and without the problems of big cities--matters deeply to orcs, especially seeing what life outside orcish lands is like. Moreso than any other cultural group, the orcs have remained separate from continent-wide affairs and kept a traditional way of life alive. Orcs who wish to embrace the newer, wider way of life are free to leave, but tradition is so pervasive amongst orcs that orcish lands are permeated with orcish tradition.

Wisdom

Beyond maintaining the orcish way of life, the most chief value in orcish society is wisdom. Because life is simple in orcish lands, most problems can be resolved with a sufficiently wise person, and the orcish curtrans are among the wisest in Evanoch. It is because wisdom is prized in the first place that curtrans are unofficial leaders, as they hold no official post amongst orcs. Beyond curtrans, average orcs aspire to be wise, to see the world clearly, to have solutions to problems, and to have a strong spirit. 

Respect

For orcs, respect is a mutual arrangement--one orc treats another with respect with the expectation that respect if returned. Special respect is paid to curtrans and to especially talented combatants, the two highest roles in orcish society. Paying respect can be as simple as asking after one's wellbeing and trying to speak directly, but informally praising someone, especially by describing how great their achievements and personality are, is considered a substantial measure of respect. 

Kindness

While orcs may be direct in conversation and firm in their traditional way of life, they are also a genuinely kind people who are motivated to treat others well and bestow special treatment as a sign of affection. While Faninites are very warm in their kindness, orcs are more direct and outspoken, leading to a more boisterous and playful kindness. Orcish culture invites all orcs to embrace kindness wholeheartedly, and a great many do.

Community

To orcs, community is so important that orcish settlements tend to be limited in size so that the entire settlement can function as one familiar community. Neighbors help neighbors, neighbors trust neighbors, and neighbors are thoughtful towards neighbors. To live in a community with someone elevates their importance in one's life considerably--this is not some strange orc you don't know, this is the orc who lives down the street. It is not uncommon for orcs to describe a complicated relationship ("this is my sister's coworker's cousin's great aunt's best friend") as porash, loosely meaning "my community member/neighbor," but with a notable affection.

Elves

Individuality

To elves, being one's truest self without fear of judgment is the most important thing one can aspire to. For many elves, who have experienced hundreds of years of defining experiences and growth, embracing the things that have made them them is one of life's highest goals. Elves have a term for this belief--amor fati, elven for "love of fate"--which holds that accepting one's entire life as their identity must be achieved, and this is a core part of elven society.

Reason

Elves live long enough to know that passion does not make for the best long-term decisions, and reasoning things out instead is a valued thing. But even beyond this, elves prize information so that an informed decision can be made. And considering an incredibly long lifespan in which massive amounts of information can be gathered, elves have many reasons to reason things out and use their intellect to solve problems. 

Tradition

Elven tradition is important to elves--their way of life has been defined by millennia in a watery mangrove island system, incredible advances in art and science, and unlike other societies, many elves can trace their lineage back to ancient elven civilization, connecting them to tradition as few others can be. Maintaining elven tradition means living in a way that honors one's ancestors, whether that means carrying on their trade, living as they were brought up to do, or bringing acclaim to the family name.

Grace

For an elf, grace is not just about physical dexterity, although that is prized in connection to the idea; grace is about how one holds oneself, how all their manner, words, and presence combine to appear effortless and yet charming or even mystical. To be taken seriously in elven society, some measure of grace is required, and most all elves, regardless of their individuality, will aspire to be graceful in all things.

Respect

For elves, social status is complicated and highly important to one's reputation and prospects for friends and partners--one's profession, the opinion of one's peers, public standing, style of clothing, and more affects the status of an elf. It is considered vital in elven culture to pay respect to those with higher standing or at least perceived higher standing with social gestures that demonstrate respect, such as inviting the more highly-respected person to speak more than their social inferior and praising the reputation of the more highly-respected person.

Half-Elves

Freedom

To half-elves, freedom is everything. The freedom to live as one sees fit, to be oneself, to ignore society's opinions or be away from society altogether--these are the things that drive half-elves. Politically, half-elves tend towards radical freedom either through anarchic collectives like the halflings or more libertarian organizations with sweeping support for social issues. To be confined for a half-elf is torture, and having one's freedom restored is considered a lifedebt for half-elves. 

Creativity

In half-elven society, contributing to culture is seen as one of the highest callings a person can have. Even on smaller scales, adding creativity to an otherwise mundane task, such as embroidering a beautiful flower on top of a patch on work pants, is seen as embracing this value. Creativity is believed to be an expression of the truest self, and the skill and effort to be creative is seen as the mark of a wise and deep person.

Individuality

Like their elven parents, half-elves prize individuality. But where elves honor individuality because it is something that helps to define them as a group (they are all made into individuals by their great lifespan), half-elves honor individuality because it is what allows them to stand apart from a group (truly being a lone self defined only as an individual). To a half-elf, being an individual means listening to only one's own inner voice when it comes to matters of the heart and sometimes of the mind.

Kindness

Like their Faninite parents, half-elves embrace kindness as a way of life. To half-elves, kindness means being thoughtful, understanding, empathetic, and patient; many also interpret the value of kindness to mean being friendly and sociable, though this is not universal--some half-elves are helpful and supportive with warmth, and others let their kind actions speak for them. However they interpret it, half-elves hold kindness up as an important thing to be, and most half-elves can be depended on to lend a hand or an ear.

Wisdom

While their elven parents prize reason--pure, objective facts and logic--half-elves prefer wisdom--seeing the whole issue and issuing a judgment that makes consistent sense. For elves, problems are like puzzles to solve, while for half-elves, problems are obstacles to overcome. Wisdom is aspired to by all half-elves, and it is particularly believed that great artists possess unusual wisdom. Seeking wisdom for half-elves means experiencing as much of life as possible so that their perspective can be broadened.

Gnomes

Unity

Gnomes aspire to individual achievement, but all individual achievements are made in the name of collective society, be that gnomes or everyone. Gnomes tend to choose tasks where they can work together on big projects; gnomish industry is dominated by professional guilds; the government of Vestry is a true democracy. All of these things illustrate how committed to unity gnomes are, and gnomes remain one of the most united groups in all of Evanoch.

Reason

Gnomish culture centers on reason--a great many gnomes choose science as their life's work, every aspect of gnomish life is carefully planned and executed according to cautious design, and all of life is carried out according to the Code of Good and Right Action, a logically-driven set of reasoning about how best to live life for the moral good. Like the elves, reason is a high priority, but elven reason is based on detachment, while gnomish reason is a way of life meant to include passion.

Inventiveness

To be clever, resourceful, and innovative are crucial parts of being respected in gnomish culture. Literally inventing things is a massive field in gnomish science which has transformed Vestry and the world beyond, but even simply having and acting on new ideas is enough to gain a gnome a positive reputation. Inventiveness to gnomes is about using one's own mind to create a positive change in the world. 

Expertise

Becoming a true expert in something is to be commended in gnomish culture, in large part because the intersection of reason and inventiveness is true expertise--using one's mind and innovation to master a skill and add to the collected knowledge in that field is how gnomes exercise this value. Gnomish experts are especially interested in details; dwarves approach expertise through endless practice, while gnomes make an effort to refine processes to make them easier and master them more fully.

Mercy

Gnomish society is generally defined by a sense of mercy, meaning that they recognize the suffering in the world and wish to take action to ease or end that suffering. To this end, the planned community of Vestry includes a great many social services which have largely eliminated poverty and serious health issues--so great is the gnomish commitment to treating others mercifully that their society is centered around a community that cares for the underprivileged and struggling as a given. It is not uncommon for displaced people to find a home in Vestry, where they will be taken care of, as did the dissidents rescued in Of Gods and Dragons. 

Halflings

Cooperation

The value that stands before all other values in halfling society is cooperation, a willingness and decision to work together to achieve more than is possible alone. Halflings live in a dense rainforest where dangers lurk almost everywhere, and survival means that they have to cooperate to stand against their home's natural threats. But even beyond survival, halflings band together to solve problems daily, and it is the matter of convincing others to cooperate that motivates much of halfling communication. 

Independence

This may seem contradictory given the prime value of cooperation, but to halflings, there is no conflict. In public life, they know that cooperation is the key to success, as it is when dealing with a big problem. But in private life, halflings are intensely independent. Even cooperation is centered around actions that a halfling has convinced them to help with, and that is a matter of a single will amplified by others. It is not uncommon in halfling society for halflings to be even more independent and live entirely alone--there are scattered homes across the halfling lands belonging to halflings who wish to be truly independent.

Community

While individuals may strive for independence, public life calls for a great sense of community. In Curagon, halflings often sympathize with one another by saying, "It's the jungle against all of us" as a way to indicate that they are on the same side as the person who is struggling ("the jungle" can refer to bad luck, stressful people, or any other problem that might vex someone). If a halfling notices a problem that affects someone else, they are expected to help with it or at least communicate the problem so the person it affects can deal with it. Most halflings know that whoever they are as individuals matters, but ultimately, they are part of a community that is more important than they are alone. For some halflings, "neighbor" indicates a greater bond than does a familial tie.

Mercy

Moreso than any other culture, halflings embrace mercy as a way of life. While there are no official organizations that help those in need, individuals do work alone or together to resolve issues. The poor in halfling lands always receive extra food, help constructing a burrow, or offers of unbalanced trades that favor the needy. All of this is offered without question or hesitation in most cases, in large part because these needy people belong to the community and therefore matter to other halflings. While poverty has not disappeared like it has in Vestry, the needy are taken care of well in halfling lands due to the high value of mercy.

Privacy

As much as halflings value being a part of a community, they are also fond of being able to live private lives. Because separating oneself from one's community is really only possible when alone, being in a state of total privacy allows halflings to unwind and be their real selves without any obligations to anyone. (This is not to say that halflings aren't genuine in public, but that needing to be of service at any time can be exhausting.) Creating a private space means that most all halflings, including married halflings, have their own separate homes where they can have real privacy from everyone.

There you have it--a guide to the core values of each group in my homebrew setting. This was a big one, and for two reasons: 1 - I learned something fascinating and valuable about each group from this guide, and 2 - this is my 250th article on Over the DM's Shoulder! It's very fitting that this article be the big milestone as this is the culmination of all the homebrew work I've been doing for years. Actually sitting down and writing it has always been a huge part of my homebrew process--sometimes we taken things for granted that could be more interesting if we just devoted the time to spicing them up. But in this case, having years of time and 53 articles on my homebrew setting was the real hero. I drafted this article by creating the lists of values first, then explaining them all; in that process, I ended up changing a few values and reordering some, then got to writing. And as I wrote, I would think, "Oh yeah! I wrote about something that is evidence for this value--I'll just link to the article." And as you can see from the many links above, I drew from those guides a lot. I think that without that foundation, my changes wouldn't have happened, and this guide wouldn't reflect who I've made these groups to be. So while I've often said (and I've been mostly joking when I have said) that I wished I'd gotten to the particular idea for an article sooner, I'm glad I got to this one now--I had to build a lot of foundation to make this guide correctly. 

So what did we learn? 

My Daltoners are more understandable to me now, so I can better play them as non-maniacs. They're brought up in a world that wants them to be something and have no control unless they take it, and now I can understand that psychology well enough to make them human (pun intended). I kinda want to try to play a Daltoner who's supposed to be liked by the party--someone just starting to see through the veil of what's really going on in Daltoner society. 

My Faninites have historically not been a factor in global politics, and now I see why--all of their values lead them to live quiet lives removed from global issues. Now I'm going to play them as really invested in their families and communities and less like wacked-out hippies. And I'm really excited to try to find ways to show Faninites existing in the world with this new understanding. 

I've said before that I've struggled with dwarves because their characterization is so set in stone (pun also intended), and I have always wanted a way to distinguish them as mine while not straying from the dominant image. This guide cracked that--my dwarves are victims of an oppressive society, and only sticking to one task for 400 years can get you recognized and validated--my dwarves are people bearing a heavy weight or escaping one, and that's a dramatic angle I can sink my teeth into. 

Meanwhile, my orcs came out exactly as I knew them to be, but their values aligned with the elves in a way that surprised me. I've always strived to draw parallels between the elves and the orcs--I think playing against the stereotype of them as total opposites is fun--but after all the guides combined, my elves and orcs are so similar. They both value Tradition and Respect; they are slightly different with Reason versus Wisdom and Grace versus Kindness, but essentially embrace similar ideas; only on Individuality versus Community did they truly differ. 

And on the topic of the elves, their values really softened the group for me. I think there's a stereotype of the sneering, superior elf who detests all things that are not elven, and I have to admit: it bores me. Over the years, I've kept some superior elves as foils and villains, but the values here show them to be well-intentioned if fairly deeply affected by living for so long, and I look forward to playing elves who are more obviously well-intentioned (especially since they're having something of a revolution). 

My half-elves are kinder than I'd played them traditionally, too. I think the stereotype with half-elves is kind of mystical, and that comes with a distance that I don't think is true of half-elves in my world. From here out, my half-elves are going to be a lot more genuine and affable. I think with a better grasp of half-elves, I'll be more inclined to add them to stories (I've put relatively few half-elves in my games out of uncertainty of how to play one in a given situation). 

My gnomes came out as expected, but they have a value in common with three other groups--the dwarves, the halflings, and the elves--and I really didn't expect them to be a group that shared a lot in common with anyone else. My gnomes have traditionally been really weird, but now I interpret that as allowing people to be themselves, and I see that my gnomes should be more relatable to more people. 

And my halflings, the group of mine that is more homebrew than any other. They're full of contradictions! At first, I worried. Had I created something broken? Why do they believe in Cooperation and Community but also Independence and Privacy? I fought off the panic and asked myself why I'd added these things to the list. Held apart, these values seemed to conflict. But held together, it was a complex portrait I hadn't realized I'd painted. My halflings are intensely community-driven in public and intensely independent and private on their own. I'd known the values but not how they fit together, and now I do. I can play halflings who are dividing and compartmentalizing their lives into public and private, a helpful part of the whole or a complete unknown depending on the moment. I love it. I love that my halflings, the group I've done the most to create, are weird and contradictory but also totally natural given the loads of information I've developed about them. I can't wait to play another halfling in a game. 

And as I mentioned with the orcs, elves, and gnomes, the connections between groups are fascinating. 

Daltoners share Piety with the dwarves and Tradition with the elves and orcs. This is a reflection of Daltoners and dwarves placing religious faith at the center of public life; meanwhile, Daltoners, elves, and orcs all look backwards to find inspiration about the present (as opposed to more forward-looking groups). So Daltoners who leave New Dalton, disillusioned about their roots, would generally feel most comfortable with dwarves, elves, or orcs, with whom they would share a general value. 

Faninites share Community with the orcs and halflings as well as Kindness with the orcs and half-elves. Faninites sharing values with the half-elves would make sense, but this means that orcs share twice as many values with Faninites than do half-elves, the children of Faninites. This made me think: what if the Faninites had landed in orcish lands? The Faninites share no values with elves, but proximity brought them together. But if the Faninites had landed with the orcs, the two cultures may have blended into something new or created something new altogether. But now I realize that Faninites and orcs should be very close in game when the situation allows for it. 

Dwarves share Piety with Daltoners and Expertise with the gnomes. Honestly, dwarves being a halfway pointed between the other oppressive society and the gnomes, who traditional lore barely differentiates from dwarves, is pretty hilarious to me. On a more serious note, my dwarves have one of the more specific set of values--specifying that dwarves do not hold Tradition but rather Conformity means that dwarves could also be like orcs, elves, and Daltoners but don't, for instance. This was a conscious choice because (1) I believe dwarves really are demanding something different than mere adherence to tradition, and (2) I must stress that dwarven society today bears no resemblance to the peaceful, emotional, matriarchal people who actually were the dwarven tradition. And the fact that this makes dwarves less connected by values to other groups is appropriate--they should defined as different because they are truly doing something different. 

Orcs are, interestingly, the most connected group of all of Evanoch by values. They share Tradition with Daltoners and elves; they share Wisdom with half-elves; they share Respect with elves; they share Kindness with Faninites and half-elves; they share Community with Faninites and halflings. Not a single value of orcs is not held by another group. As mentioned above, Faninites and orcs share a strong bond. Elves and orcs share two strongly held values. The orcs having values that are shared by other groups on every count is remarkable, and it is also ironic since traditional orcs insist on living in orcish lands, where they are unlikely to find shared values with outsiders since there are so few outsiders. I was trying to make the orcs relatable, and it seems like that happened.  

Elves share Individuality with the half-elves, their children, a link that makes obvious sense. Elves share Reason with the gnomes, which allows them to connect on intellectual matters, and I would now like to have more elven-gnomish academic cooperation. Both groups are too committed to knowing more to pass up an opportunity to share knowledge. Tradition is shared with the orcs and Daltoners, and Respect is held by the orcs as well as the elves. I was really trying to define elves here as individuals like their value holds, but I quickly found that Individuality and Reason were quite shared by other groups. Grace is the real defining point here, something that would be minor to most but matters deeply to elves. 

Half-elves share Individuality with their parents, the elves; they share Kindness with the Faninites, their parents, as well as the orcs; they share Wisdom with the orcs. Discovering that the half-elves relate more in values to orcs than to their own parent groups was fascinating. To think that a half-elf would simply need to see themselves as part of a larger community and learn some traditions, they would be quite at home in orcish society interests me deeply, especially since my half-elves are big travelers, and that could mean a disproportionate number of half-elves in orcish lands. That's it--I'm making it canon. There's a bunch of half-elves in orcish lands. 

Gnomes share Reason with the elves, as mentioned above--I like the idea of a whole line of gnomish scientists corresponding with the same elf or two on some academic matter over a millennium. Boom--also canon now. Gnomes share Expertise with the dwarves, and I think that in this case, there is very little different between dwarven and gnomish interpretations. I said in the guide above that it's a matter of dwarven practice versus gnomish refinement, but the ethic is basically identical, and that hasn't been true of most of these values, which are taken individually within the societies they come from. I'm excited by the prospect of gnomish and dwarven smiths comparing notes, both mind-boggled by the approach of the other but full of respect. That one will be canon next time I play. And gnomes also share Mercy with the halflings. The term "Mercy" is used here to show a sense of wanting to help those who are hurting. Gnomes have a more proactive approach then the halfling method of treating the problem, but both are essentially willing to sacrifice to help those in need, and I termed it Mercy as a way of recognizing the perspective of the gnomes and halflings--it is a mercy to help those who are in pain, and that gentleness comes with both gnomish and halfling interpretations. I really enjoyed getting to put my gnomish society, which has been very well-defined for a long time, into values, and seeing these connections makes me happy to see a full accounting for my gnomes that feels right. 

And the halflings: they shared Community with the orcs and Faninites, and they share Mercy with the gnomes. I've discussed these connections above, so I'll say this: the real job with the halflings was putting their culture into words. Maybe it sounds crazy to say, but I feel like Curagon has lived in my head for a long time, and I can project it as the DM, but it's hard to put into words. Or it has been, because the values I came up with were perfect. I can finally articulate it. The values that are not shared are the ones that interest me most. Cooperation, Independence, and Privacy are worth thinking about. Cooperation and Community are close--why do both? For halflings, it really can be and often is a matter of survival to just live. To cooperate is to help someone; to be a part of a halfling community is to accept the duty of helping someone. And this means that the values culturally reinforce each other, intensifying their effects in the society. Meanwhile, Independence is different from Individuality (which would have been shared by the elves and half-elves) because Independence is an effort to take care of one's own needs, while Individuality is a matter of identity. And Privacy is harder to explain. I knew somehow that my halflings valued privacy. A burrow doesn't reveal the size of your home; halfling front doors are always locked; questions about private affairs are strictly forbidden except between close friends. Halflings like being able to exist away from their communities, and that calls for Privacy. So even though it's a total oddball value, it's still something that permeates halfling society. I really can't wait to roleplay my halflings again. I have been wanting to do a campaign in Curagon, so maybe I'll get the chance. (I still have to finish Of Gods and Dragons, of course.)

And so, on this monumental occasion of the 250th article on Over the DM's Shoulder and on the foundation of this guide to the core values of my homebrew world, I am incredibly pleased to say that this is really only a beginning. Moving forth, I will have these values as well as the combined effort of years of writing here at my disposal. I say it often, and it bears saying now: when you work at something, you get better at it. I can't DM all the time, but I can always catch some time to sit and write about D&D or my homebrew setting or make a silly one-shot, and those things help too. I'm not saying to go out and write 250 articles about D&D. That would be crazy, and anyone who does it is clearly a little strange. But I do think that there's basically endless potential in working at it. What interests you? I'm covered in tattoos, and I did a tattoo art guide. I have a degree in Literature, and I wrote about in-game literature and languages. I'm a musician, and I wrote about music. I'm a married transwoman, and I have written articles about marriage ceremonies and gender identity. You're not obligated to write epic lore about the dwarven kingdom that's lasted for 10,000 years or map detailed maps of your setting (you could make those maps if you wanted to, though). It can just be fun. Make it a thought experiment. What kind of carnival food would an elf like most? What stories do gnomes tell their kids at bedtime? Or go bigger: wouldn't it be fun if there was more opportunity to use familiars? What happened before recorded history? Wouldn't some people having magic and others not having it totally change society? These are thought experiments, daydreams, but if you add enough of them up, you get a pretty detailed picture. So yeah, there have been writer's block days where I think about the home décor of Faninites, but there are also days I make an environmental storytelling sci-fi time loop game or the 10 most important things I've learned from 18 years of DMing or five custom classes that allow for approaches not available in D&D. And that's not bragging--I set out to write those things because I wanted to be spending time on tabletop games, and I kept plugging away until they were done and all the other articles were done. Is it all equally valuable? No. But is it all valuable? Absolutely. I mocked the home décor above, but I can now really set the scene inside buildings. And it all happened from persistence (a dwarven value)--I just kept thinking about D&D, kept writing, kept trying new things. That's actually all it takes. So, as I've said before, but as I say with special gusto this time, give this work a chance yourself. Make up a monster with an interesting power. Sketch an outline of a map and name a city. Figure out who the most important half-elves are. Or do the carnival food for elves thing, which still sounds fun. (I bet they'd love funnel cake.) What matters at the end of the day is that you're trying. Every second thinking about D&D in a new way is an opportunity to learn something, make something, get better at something. So please, reader, homebrew something soon. Even if you're a veteran homebrewer, make some time to make something special. This act of creation means something, and it's good for us to create. 

That's all for now. Coming soon: the flags of each major city in my homebrew setting, education in my homebrew setting, and the value of an epilogue. Until next time, happy gaming!

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