Dimling (Dim-ling)
Halflings that dwell in The Underrealm beneath Ardlam, dimlings are grey-skinned halflings that lack the cheer of their surface cousins. Often traveling between the upper layers of the Underealm and the surface world, many dimlings claim to have spanned the distance of the entire realm over the course of their lifetime. Lacking the ability to see in the dark depths of the deeper reaches of the Underealm, but also able to still see on the surface, dimlings are able to exploit this advantage to travel to the upper world to escape the reach of more sinister races. They often operate on the surface only during twilight or dawn, as they are still mistrustful of the larger races and are not fully adapted to working in daylight.
Culture
Major language groups and dialects
A dimling speaks Undercommon instead of Common, but often still picks up rudimentary knowledge of Common.
Average technological level
Dimlings often steal their technology from both the races of the surface world and the Underrealm. They then reverse engineer it to better work in their hands and turn them against their hated enemies.
Common Dress code
Dimlings wear simple cloths often colored black or grey, to help them blend in and avoid others.
Art & Architecture
Dimlings rarely build permanent settlements, instead crafting makeshift homes in already existing tunnels or ruins. They see little point and value in art, as it does little to aid in their survival.
Birth & Baptismal Rites
New dimling parents are instructed to give their baby as little physical contact as possible, as that may instill a false sense of hope and trust in the child that will make accepting the harsh truths of the world more difficult.
Coming of Age Rites
Dimlings are constantly on the move, and thus must constantly make long treks. A dimling born on the surface would see its first trek to the Underrealm as its proving test, while one born in the Underrealm would see venturing to the surface as its journey of worth.
Funerary and Memorial customs
The dimlings bury their dead, often trying to inter them in the exact spot that they perished in. They do this so that the soul will realize were it is when it begins its walk to the afterlife, giving them a clear starting point and preventing them from becoming lost.
Common Taboos
Due to their nihilistic attitudes, the dimlings have little taboos, not seeing the point of getting upset over such actions. While they might outwardly decree any dimling who willingly works with one of their hated enemies, often and in private will understand that the offender is doing what they need to do to survive, and that they would likely make similar choices if put in that situation.
Common Myths and Legends
A majority of dimlings worship Ramé, the halfling god of wanderings and survival, but can be found worshiping other members of the halfling pantheon. Most dimlings believe that they inhabited the first tunnels of the Underrealm, only to be pushed upwards by the onset of the Enthos when they were created in the Age of Conflict, only to be pushed out again by the surface races who descended into the Underrealm in the Age of Seperation.
Ideals
Beauty Ideals
The dimlings care little for physical beauty, only seeing it as a reminder of what they lack. This is especially relevant for slaves or escaped slaves, as many bare scares or mutations from abuse by their tormentors.
Gender Ideals
Dimlings care little about gender as a society, but individual dimlings often gain extreme ideals based on their surroundings. A dimling slave in the more matriarchal Drow society is likely to view all females as untrustworthy manipulators, while a dimling slave in the more patriarchal Duergar society is likely to view all males as savage brutes.
Courtship Ideals
Only rarely do dimlings partake in true courtship, as free dimlings lack passion and are instilled with a sense of despondency, only finding a partner out of a obligation to further their races, while enslaved dimlings rarely get any sort of choice in the matter.
Relationship Ideals
The dimlings have little trust in other races, seeing life as an endless parade of unfairness that they must constantly fight against. Thus, they struggle to make meaningful connections, as other races tend to find them unhelpfully depressing.
Major organizations
Many dimlings are enslaved to the Duergar and Drow, and thus most dimlings make it their life goal to fight against the other races of the Underrealm, often forming bands of fighters and resistance agents. Their centuries long fight has made little progress, and thus the noble goal of the dimlings as transformed into more of a campaign of vengeance, focused more on making the other races suffer for their crimes rather than the liberation of their people.
Random Dimling Homelands
| % Rolled | Homeland | Trait Gained |
|---|---|---|
| 01-60 | Subterranean | Surface Stranger |
| 61-72 | Forest | Briar Bandit |
| 73-81 | Desert | Desert Child |
| 82-88 | Hills | Slave Smuggler |
| 89-94 | Plains | Freed Slave |
| 95-00 | Unusual Homeland | (Roll on Unusual Homeland table) |
Encompassed species
Related Locations
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