The Face - Revision history

Ariese: /* Belief and Custom */

2026-08-27T21:48:46Z

Belief and Custom

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:48, 27 August 2026
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	The common saying, ''"Before you decide, improve your sight,"'' summarizes this attitude. Another, more theological expression is: ''"A face is given. What it shows is made."''		The common saying, ''"Before you decide, improve your sight,"'' summarizes this attitude. Another, more theological expression is: ''"A face is given. What it shows is made."''

	Every Face is understood to possess both clarity and distortion. The same virtue, followed without restraint, becomes a ~~vice~~. Curiosity becomes obsession; memory becomes confinement; improvement becomes control. Gnomish teachers sometimes compare this to a flawed lens: the fault is not that it shows nothing, but that one forgets the image has been bent.		Every Face is understood to possess both clarity and distortion. The same virtue, followed without restraint, becomes a sickness. Curiosity becomes obsession; memory becomes confinement; improvement becomes control. Gnomish teachers sometimes compare this to a flawed lens: the fault is not that it shows nothing, but that one forgets the image has been bent.

	Religious specialists are usually warlocks rather than priests. Unlike most lay gnomes, they generally wear the color of only one Face. Their devotion is therefore sometimes regarded with both respect and caution. To spend one's life looking through a single lens is a powerful thing, but not necessarily a safe one.		Religious specialists are usually warlocks rather than priests. Unlike most lay gnomes, they generally wear the color of only one Face. Their devotion is therefore sometimes regarded with both respect and caution. To spend one's life looking through a single lens is a powerful thing, but not necessarily a safe one.

Ariese: /* The Far Face */

2026-08-27T21:47:23Z

The Far Face

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:47, 27 August 2026
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	Frogs are traditionally associated with the Far Face, particularly those which appear unexpectedly after rain or in places far from standing water.		Frogs are traditionally associated with the Far Face, particularly those which appear unexpectedly after rain or in places far from standing water.

	Its holy mark is a circular lens made into a stylized eye, bearing a ~~'''~~five-pointed star~~'''~~ within it.		Its holy mark is a circular lens made into a stylized eye, bearing a five-pointed star within it.

	The Far Face is represented by purple glass.		The Far Face is represented by purple glass.

Ariese: /* The Far Face */

2026-08-27T21:47:10Z

The Far Face

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:47, 27 August 2026
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	Frogs are traditionally associated with the Far Face, particularly those which appear unexpectedly after rain or in places far from standing water.		Frogs are traditionally associated with the Far Face, particularly those which appear unexpectedly after rain or in places far from standing water.

	Its holy mark is a circular lens made into a stylized eye, bearing a '''five-pointed star''' within it~~. The mark must contain all three elements: the lens, the eye, and the five points~~.		Its holy mark is a circular lens made into a stylized eye, bearing a '''five-pointed star''' within it.

	The Far Face is represented by purple glass.		The Far Face is represented by purple glass.

Ariese: /* The Mended Face */

2026-08-27T21:45:46Z

The Mended Face

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:45, 27 August 2026
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	The Mended Face therefore carries a simple caution: ''"Mend what is broken. Ask before mending what is merely different."''		The Mended Face therefore carries a simple caution: ''"Mend what is broken. Ask before mending what is merely different."''

	Its holy mark is ~~a circle broken at regular points by squared waves. From a distance it resembles~~ an abstract gear~~, although its teeth do not quite match one another: some project outward while others turn inward~~.		Its holy mark is an abstract gear. The Mended Face is represented by amber glass.

	The Mended Face is represented by amber glass.

	=== Warlocks ===		=== Warlocks ===

Ariese: /* Belief and Custom */

2026-08-27T21:44:36Z

Belief and Custom

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:44, 27 August 2026
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	Holy marks of the Faces share a common form: a circle representing the lens itself, altered according to the Face being invoked. These simple signs are commonly scratched onto tools, chalked upon walls, painted onto sheep tags, or worked into the rims of actual lenses.		Holy marks of the Faces share a common form: a circle representing the lens itself, altered according to the Face being invoked. These simple signs are commonly scratched onto tools, chalked upon walls, painted onto sheep tags, or worked into the rims of actual lenses.

			[[Image:Faces.png\|thumb\|right\|600px\|Symbols of the faces.]]

	==== The Far Face ====		==== The Far Face ====

Ariese at 21:23, 27 August 2026

2026-08-27T21:23:12Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:23, 27 August 2026
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	For outsiders, the most reliable rule is simple: on a gnomish map, the cliff itself is the world, and the Brow is always at the top.		For outsiders, the most reliable rule is simple: on a gnomish map, the cliff itself is the world, and the Brow is always at the top.

	== Belief and Custom ==		=== Belief and Custom ===

	Gnomish "religion" is commonly also described as '''the Face''', a collection of five ways through which the world may be understood. Each is represented by a colored lens, and many gnomes own several such lenses, exchanging them according to the work before them. A shepherd might wear one while tending a flock, another while repairing a gate, and a third while settling an argument among family. To change lenses is not generally regarded as changing faith. It is simply an admission that no single way of seeing is sufficient for every problem.		Gnomish "religion" is commonly also described as '''the Face''', a collection of five ways through which the world may be understood. Each is represented by a colored lens, and many gnomes own several such lenses, exchanging them according to the work before them. A shepherd might wear one while tending a flock, another while repairing a gate, and a third while settling an argument among family. To change lenses is not generally regarded as changing faith. It is simply an admission that no single way of seeing is sufficient for every problem.
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	Holy marks of the Faces share a common form: a circle representing the lens itself, altered according to the Face being invoked. These simple signs are commonly scratched onto tools, chalked upon walls, painted onto sheep tags, or worked into the rims of actual lenses.		Holy marks of the Faces share a common form: a circle representing the lens itself, altered according to the Face being invoked. These simple signs are commonly scratched onto tools, chalked upon walls, painted onto sheep tags, or worked into the rims of actual lenses.

	=== The Far Face ===		==== The Far Face ====

	The Far Face is associated with the '''Far Lantern''' and represents wonder, guidance, discovery, and the desire to understand what lies beyond familiar sight. Its devotees include explorers, astronomers, travelers, experimenters, and those who seek answers that others have learned to leave alone.		The Far Face is associated with the '''Far Lantern''' and represents wonder, guidance, discovery, and the desire to understand what lies beyond familiar sight. Its devotees include explorers, astronomers, travelers, experimenters, and those who seek answers that others have learned to leave alone.
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	The Far Face is represented by purple glass.		The Far Face is represented by purple glass.

	=== The Crafted Face ===		==== The Crafted Face ====

	The Crafted Face is associated with the '''Tollmonger''' and represents workmanship, invention, precision, useful improvement, and the honest accounting of what a creation requires.		The Crafted Face is associated with the '''Tollmonger''' and represents workmanship, invention, precision, useful improvement, and the honest accounting of what a creation requires.
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	The Crafted Face is represented by clear glass.		The Crafted Face is represented by clear glass.

	=== The Remembering Face ===		==== The Remembering Face ====

	The Remembering Face is associated with the '''Shepherd of Names''' and represents memory, identity, stewardship, tradition, and the preservation of things which would otherwise be lost.		The Remembering Face is associated with the '''Shepherd of Names''' and represents memory, identity, stewardship, tradition, and the preservation of things which would otherwise be lost.
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	The Remembering Face is represented by blue glass.		The Remembering Face is represented by blue glass.

	=== The Living Face ===		==== The Living Face ====

	The Living Face is associated with the '''Green Hand''' and represents cultivation, health, abundance, patience, family, and the deliberate encouragement of growth.		The Living Face is associated with the '''Green Hand''' and represents cultivation, health, abundance, patience, family, and the deliberate encouragement of growth.
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	The Living Face is represented by green glass.		The Living Face is represented by green glass.

	=== The Mended Face ===		==== The Mended Face ====
	[[Image:Amber_Warlock.png\|thumb\|right\|250px\|An amber warlock ponders renumeration.]]		[[Image:Amber_Warlock.png\|thumb\|right\|250px\|An amber warlock ponders renumeration.]]
	The Mended Face is associated with '''the Gear''' and represents repair, correction, reform, adaptation, and the belief that something need not remain as it was merely because it has always been that way.		The Mended Face is associated with '''the Gear''' and represents repair, correction, reform, adaptation, and the belief that something need not remain as it was merely because it has always been that way.
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	These positions need not be hereditary and do not constitute a unified priesthood.		These positions need not be hereditary and do not constitute a unified priesthood.

	~~== Fahrstone ==~~

	~~White Fahrstone makes large gnomish settlements possible, but surprisingly little of the mineral is actively mined.~~

	The stone protecting a community may lie hundreds of feet from the nearest inhabited gallery, and its exact size and position are often unknown. Removing Fahrstone without understanding the shape of a deposit risks weakening the field protecting a settlement. Excavation may also compromise the cliff itself.

	~~As a consequence, reckless prospecting carries both legal and religious prohibitions.~~

	~~A common maxim warns:~~

	~~:''Work the Face. Do not wound it blindly.''~~

	~~Known exposed deposits may be carefully worked when necessary, but generations of observations, surveys, and field measurements are generally preferred to exploratory mining.~~

	== Ecology ==		== Ecology ==
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	For most of their history the gnomes consequently remained on the Face: protected by the stone, surrounded by known roads and markets, and with few reasons to descend into a wilderness which offered more danger than profit.		For most of their history the gnomes consequently remained on the Face: protected by the stone, surrounded by known roads and markets, and with few reasons to descend into a wilderness which offered more danger than profit.

			== Fahrstone ==

			White Fahrstone makes large gnomish settlements possible, but surprisingly little of the mineral is actively mined.

			The stone protecting a community may lie hundreds of feet from the nearest inhabited gallery, and its exact size and position are often unknown. Removing Fahrstone without understanding the shape of a deposit risks weakening the field protecting a settlement. Excavation may also compromise the cliff itself.

			As a consequence, reckless prospecting carries both legal and religious prohibitions.

			A common maxim warns:

			:''Work the Face. Do not wound it blindly.''

			Known exposed deposits may be carefully worked when necessary, but generations of observations, surveys, and field measurements are generally preferred to exploratory mining.

	== New Backgrounds ==		== New Backgrounds ==

Ariese at 21:22, 27 August 2026

2026-08-27T21:22:04Z

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			[[Image:Jungle_Floor.png\|thumb\|right\|250px\|The jungle beneath the cliffs is a dangerous place.]]
	'''Gnomes''' are a diminutive people native to the great cliffs beneath the [[Ginwil]] plateau's western edge. Until very recently they were unknown outside the scattered settlements of Ginwil, living in small towns cut into the plateau's immense cliff faces and protected by deposits of [[Fahrstone]] buried somewhere within the incredibly hard rock.		'''Gnomes''' are a diminutive people native to the great cliffs beneath the [[Ginwil]] plateau's western edge. Until very recently they were unknown outside the scattered settlements of Ginwil, living in small towns cut into the plateau's immense cliff faces and protected by deposits of [[Fahrstone]] buried somewhere within the incredibly hard rock.

Ariese: /* The Mended Face */

2026-08-27T21:20:44Z

The Mended Face

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:20, 27 August 2026
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	=== The Mended Face ===		=== The Mended Face ===
			[[Image:Amber_Warlock.png\|thumb\|right\|250px\|An amber warlock ponders renumeration.]]
	The Mended Face is associated with '''the Gear''' and represents repair, correction, reform, adaptation, and the belief that something need not remain as it was merely because it has always been that way.		The Mended Face is associated with '''the Gear''' and represents repair, correction, reform, adaptation, and the belief that something need not remain as it was merely because it has always been that way.

Ariese: /* Warlocks */

2026-08-27T21:20:32Z

Warlocks

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:20, 27 August 2026
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	=== Warlocks ===		=== Warlocks ===
	~~[[Image:Amber_Warlock.png\|thumb\|right\|250px\|An amber warlock ponders renumeration.]]~~

	Gnomish religious practice has no direct equivalent to the large clerical institutions common elsewhere in the world. Individuals granted unusual power by one of the patrons of the Five Faces instead serve as priests, advisers, celebrants, and specialists. Outsiders generally identify these individuals as [[warlocks]].		Gnomish religious practice has no direct equivalent to the large clerical institutions common elsewhere in the world. Individuals granted unusual power by one of the patrons of the Five Faces instead serve as priests, advisers, celebrants, and specialists. Outsiders generally identify these individuals as [[warlocks]].

Ariese: /* Alchemy */

2026-08-27T21:20:12Z

Alchemy

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:20, 27 August 2026
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	=== Alchemy ===		=== Alchemy ===
			[[Image:Bioalchemy.png\|thumb\|left\|250px\|A gnomish alchemist separates metal remains from algae in a cliffside groove.]]

	Gnomish alchemy is strongly associated with the separation, concentration, and reuse of materials that the cliff provides only reluctantly.		Gnomish alchemy is strongly associated with the separation, concentration, and reuse of materials that the cliff provides only reluctantly.