**Full Name:** Gerome the Gnome **Race:** Gnome (Forest) **Class & Level:** Rogue 8 (Soulknife) **Background:** Farmer **Origin:** Barrelbend, Free Kingdoms **Current Status:** Wandering adventurer **Alignment:** Chaotic Good **Patron Deity:** [[Dijinus, God of Fire|Dijinus]], God of Fire --- ### Origins Gerome never knew his parents. He was discovered as a toddler curled up inside a cabbage cart on the outskirts of the small halfling farming village of **Barrelbend**. There, a kind elderly couple, **Tom and Mary Goodwill**, adopted him and raised him with values of humility, cleverness, and community. Growing up as the only gnome in a halfling town, Gerome developed a quick wit, nimble fingers, and a fondness for creative mischief. Though trained in farming, his talents always leaned more toward _rearranging things_ — locks, ledgers, and occasionally plans. --- ### Personality & Ideals Gerome is no grand hero. He's a shadow in the crowd, a whisper in the tavern, a blade that strikes only when justice is out of reach. Guided by his conscience more than any law, he balances pragmatism with principle, doing just enough _wrong_ to accomplish a little _right_. - **Traits:** Wry, resourceful, cautious but loyal. - **Ideals:** _“If the law’s too big to help the little guy, maybe it’s time someone smaller stepped in.”_ - **Bonds:** The Goodwills remain his moral compass. He writes them often, never mentioning the danger he’s in. - **Flaws:** Sometimes trusts the wrong people, especially those who remind him of home. --- ### Role in the Party Gerome serves as the group's **stealth expert and infiltrator**, often tasked with bypassing traps, navigating shadows, and gathering secrets. He’s also the emotional compass in darker times—offering grounded, homey advice in the middle of chaos. --- ### Secrets & Mysteries Gerome’s past remains a mystery. Why was he left in that cart? Who were his parents, and what bloodline do they come from? Sometimes, his dreams whisper names he’s never heard. Sometimes, he wonders if he was hidden... or abandoned.