Halfling, Jungle

Natives of the thickest forests and hottest jungles, jungle halflings build no cities and regard the ways of civilization with suspicion. They are the undisputed masters of stealth and woodcraft, using the terrain of their chosen homeland to easily avoid larger enemies. In fact, halflings are so good at avoiding people they do not want to meet that many consider stories of tribes of child-sized people living in the jungles to be mere fables.

They have a reputation for being shy and suspicious of strangers, but this is not entirely deserved. They are often quite friendly and hospitable to strangers, once they have determined that the strangers are not enemies. They are happy to trade with people they trust, and more than a few jungle traders have become rich by bringing good metal tools and weapons to halflings with gemstones and ivory to trade. However, halflings are deadly foes to enemies foolish enough to venture into their territory. They are masters of ambush and poison, pelting invaders with a rain of envenomed arrows from the jungle shadows.

Like other savage peoples, halflings know little of gods or arcane matters. Instead, they learn the secrets of nature spirits, calling upon them to help protect and nourish the tribe. They are deeply religious in their own way, and are often shocked to learn that civilized people are ignorant of the nature spirits.

Curiosity about other people and no small amount of wanderlust encourage halfling adventurers to overlook the ignorance and bad manners of most humans.

Racial Traits

In addition to the racial characteristics common to all halflings, jungle halflings have the following traits.

• Ability Scores: +1 Wisdom. Halflings are perceptive and deeply reverent of their forest spirits.
• Alignment: Jungle halflings place freedom and honor above obedience to authority. They are some of the kinder and more generous people to be found in the savage continent, although simple survival dictates a certain amount of reclusiveness in dealing with more aggressive races. Most halflings are chaotic neutral or chaotic good.
• Masters of Woodcraft: Jungle halflings can attempt to hide in any forest, jungle, marsh, or swamp setting, as long as they have partial cover or are lightly obscured by their surroundings.
• Languages: Jungle halflings are not literate. Halflings do not have a language of their own, and instead speak a dialect of the language of their human neighbors.