Brownie

Personality/Behavior
The personality of each Brownie is as different as most races are from one another; since they tend to emulate the behavior of whoever it is they happen to be living near in an attempt to be more readily accepted. The only trait most urban based Brownies tend to share is a somewhat skittish, neurotic behavior akin to living in a world of giants. They have thrived beneath the feet of larger beings for longer than any can remember and live by one simple principle “Try to be as helpful as possible and maybe they won’t squish you” running about on their chosen tasks to prove their worth all while staying as inconspicuous as possible. They are sometimes referred to as “Borrowers” from their tendency to replace any small items they take with items they believe to be the same worth; like a button or thimble in place of a scrap of discarded food. They are hard working, proud and have a will to survive and persevere unlike any other race in Mytheroptera.

Description/Biology
Brownies resemble common elves only standing 7-9 inches tall with a long tail ending in a small tuft of fur. They dress in simple homemade clothing made from discarded scraps and usually in the style of the society they live in.

Climate/Terrain
Any; preferably indoors

Territories
A true testament to their resilience and will to survive, Brownies can be found in virtually any climate/environment in Mytheroptera but are most numerous in the central Temperate Zones, especially in larger cities with plenty of places to hide and enough tasks to keep them busy.

Society
Brownies live in a society within another society that they live with for protection and try to prove themselves useful in exchange. Although they all share the same skittish, paranoid behavior akin to the world of giants they live in, each Brownie settlement will usually take on the characteristics and cultural aspects of the beings they reside with. Brownies living among Dwarves will fashion clothing from metal scraps and furs, trying their best to emulate their keepers’ culture and will probably be more aggressive and stubborn and so on. They make their homes behind walls and in various out of the way crevices and hidden spaces out of sight. There are a few stories out there telling of wild Brownies that live deep in the more unknown parts of the wild where THEY are the greatest threat TO the giants, swarming over and destroying their enemies like a colony of fire ants.

Species Relations
It’s been said that Brownies are good judges of character, and that if you see a lot of Brownies running around in a particular area, then there are good people living there. In the past Brownies were among the most abused and oppressed race in existence, whether they were used as slaves, livestock or guinea pigs for experimentation by the less compassionate. These days Brownies are more than welcomed in virtually any area of the Seelie Court but still struggle a bit in the Neutral Zone where such discrimination is still commonplace, quite a number of people still seeing them as little more than rodents. They are virtually extinct in the Unseelie Lands.

Gender Relations/Roles
Normally Brownies consider males and females to be of equal worth (no room to discriminate when survival is so vital) but due to tend to be influenced by the culture of the larger race they live with, although hardly to the same degree. Both men and women work and scavenge for food unless the female is pregnant in which time she is obsessively cared for by the rest of her family with great care and tenderness, immediately returning to her duties after childbirth, children being raised by the family as a whole.

Love/Courtship
In traditional Brownie society, when a young Brownie male comes of age he leaves his traditional home where they are most all related by blood to travel to the next house in search of a mate. In the modern day however, especially in the more heavily populated areas, special gatherings are held in which all Brownies who have come of age are made known to the community as potential suitors for any willing partners. Sadly, given the average life expectancy of a Brownie in the dangerous world they live in, procreation takes priority over emotional attachment and some societies will arrange marriages against the participants will. Sometimes when there is a lack of suitable mates, polygamist family groups will be permitted and enforced for the sake of preserving their species.

Sex
As one would expect…sex is vital in Brownie culture. Despite their small size, they are surprisingly virile and vigorous lovers. Brownie females are in a consistent state of high fertility from the moment they hit puberty and if the male partner is healthy, any attempt to conceive will always be successful. This is fortunate because even though a Brownie female will give birth to an average minimum of 10 children per generation, only 2-3 of them will survive to adulthood. As lovers they’re passionate and intense, doing anything and everything they can to please their mate believing it will bring luck to the resulting offspring.

Birthrights



 * Beast Tongue: Their most useful skill in their dangerous world is the ability to speak to all animals, wild or domestic and they are very well know for enlisting their help in their activities. But not all animals are quite as eager to help, just because the Brownie can speak to the snake doesn’t mean it will be swayed from eating him. It is very common for them to have animal companions that they forge lifelong partnerships with.


 * Mighty Mite: Brownies are experts at moving about without being seen. They can move surprisingly fast for their size, are expert climbers with natural acrobatic skill and can fit through tight spaces no other beings could or would traverse. They are also surprisingly strong as well, able to lift up to one full pound over their heads despite only weighing around 12 ounces on average.

Favored Class
Since Brownies tend to emulate the lifestyle and culture of those around them, virtually any class will do although the path of the Rogue makes the best use of their natural abilities. Combat oriented classes like the Warrior, Brawler and Soldier are a bit rarer but not totally unheard of, especially when part of a larger fighting force.

Combat
As one would expect, a single solitary Brownie is no good in combat, but in large numbers they can overwhelm and subdue an opponent. With proper training however, a Brownie can be a very effective assassin, being able to move about unnoticed until it’s too late. Most weaponry is scaled down variations of larger weapons made from any suitable materials on hand, such as a dagger made from the carved/sharpened canine of a dog, a kitchen knife wielded like a broadsword or a spear tipped with the poisonous stinger of a scorpion. Their proportionally impressive strength allows them to wield weapons comparatively larger and heavier than themselves but may slow them down.

Development
The idea for Brownies came from a variety of sources. The conventional type that live among other races were inspired by the book "The Borrowers" along with the 80's cartoon "The Littles" which in particular lead to them having tails. The "Wild Brownies" briefly mentioned were more inspired by the ones seen the movie "Willow" who were far more tribal and aggressive in nature.