Athasian Halfling

This subrace of halflings is encountered only on the world of Athas, beneath the Dark Sun. Its members primarily inhabit the jungles along the ridgeline of the Ringing Mountains, the most well-watered terrain on all of Athas. They establish their villages in the dense tangle of the rain forest and jealously guard their territory against intrusion.

The Athasian halfling is by far the least social of all halfling subraces: clannish, suspicious, and distrustful of strangers. Their habit of eating intruders who venture into their territory makes them a danger to all unwary travelers. The Athasian halfling is unique among halfling cultures in this horrifying dietary trait (significantly, they do not consider themselves cannibals, since they don't eat each other, only members of other races).

The villages of these essentially nomadic folk are each centered around a great stone pyramid, with a scattering of small stone buildings around it. The village is the residence of a chief and a few of his or her followers. The rest of the halflings roam a well-defined patch of forest-land, though all the clans will gather at the village once every hundred days.

Athasian halflings average about 3'3" in height. Their skin color varies widely in tone, though even the paler shades tend to be well-bronzed by the sun--since this is a subrace that, as a rule, shuns clothing. Both males and females wear their hair in long, unkempt manes, aside from priests, who usually shave their heads; otherwise, their bodies are completely hairless.

Adept at negotiating all types of forested terrain, including dense swamps, thorny thickets, mangroves, and so on, Athasian halflings utilize this natural cover to screen their villages from larger folk. A network of pathways, each less than 4' high, will pass throughout the huge, densely verdant forest.

Athasian halflings thrive in terrain where other societies might have a hard time surviving. In part, this is because they are so self-sufficient, sharing many skills among the members of a single clan. Woodcarving, weaving, hunting and snaring, tanning, pottery, herbal medicine, alchemy (including the preparation of deadly or paralyzing poisons), farming and herding, jewelry, and feather-work are all common proficiencies among the Athasian halflings.

Though they will cautiously open trading arrangements with nearby cultures, whatever their race, these halflings tend to conduct all transactions in a neutral location or in the other party's community--foreign traders are not allowed into their villages. This arrangement is satisfactory to the other races as well, since these traders realize that they're taking their lives in their hands by venturing into the halflings' jungles--even large, well-armed parties are subject to raids and thievery by these halflings.

Halflings of Athas will treat members of their own subrace from other tribes with respect, generosity, and friendship--even if those halflings are accompanying enemies of the clan (a few renegade clans, however, refuse to recognize the common kinship, and traveling halflings are advised to avoid falling into their clutches).

As with all halfling subraces, a few Athasian halflings are very curious about the customs and traits of other cultures outside the boundaries of their own jungles and will become wary wanderers. While they find it hard to overcome suspicions that the folk they meet on their travels are only waiting for their guard to drop before trying to kill and eat them, these bold wanderers will experiment with different types of behavior and show great openness in trying new forms of food, entertainment, and other experiences.

The only halfling subrace to show any inclination for climbing trees, some halflings of Athas even make their homes in the branches of particular types of forest giants. The homes of such a village are connected by hanging bridges, often leading down spiraling ladders to additional buildings on the forest floor. A more typical camp is located in a clearing beside a steady supply of clean water. A thorny barrier, grown like a hedge to a height of 10' or more, protects the entire village except for a single, endlessly-guarded gate.

In combat, halflings of Athas prefer short bows, slings, and daggers. Since there is little metal on Athas, most of their weaponry is made of wood and bone. The subrace is also adept at the use of a very accurate blowgun which can silently fire darts up to 60'. These darts are typically coated with one of the virulent toxins or fast-acting paralytics distilled by the tribe's alchemists.

Table 9: Athasian Halfling Ability Scores

Ability	Minimum	Maximum
Strength	3	18
Dexterity	12	20
Constitution	5	20
Intelligence	5	20
Wisdom	7	20
Charisma	5	20

Ability Score Adjustments: +2 to Dexterity; +2 to Wisdom; -2 to Strength; -1 to Constitution; -1 to Charisma

Languages: The halflings of Athas have a language of their own based upon the sounds of forest animals (hoots, howls, chirps, whistles, and the like). Most halflings speak this language and no other. However, a tribe's chiefs will usually know the languages of their neighbors as well in order to handle trade. Wanderers can pick up any language allowed by the individual's Intelligence score.

Infravision: No

Special Features: In addition to the usual priest, fighter, and thief classes, Athasian halflings can be druids, gladiators, rangers, illusionists, and psionicists (all in their DARK SUN® setting variations).

Also, in keeping with the world of Athas campaign, these halflings begin play as 3rd (not 1st) level characters.

(See also Monstrous Manual, Player's Handbook, and Player's Option: Skills & Powers)

Table of Contents