Boggart

The curious little folk called Boggarts, also known as Brownies in certain northern dialects of Reodic, are famous for their big appetites and comfortable homes. They live in small Communes throughout Aarathien, in holes in the ground called Burrows. Wherever they go, and whatever they do, boggarts almost always have luck on their side.

Appearance
The most immediately obvious difference between a brownie and a human is their height, as brownies stand on average at 3 feet tall. Their faces are also strange and round by human standards, and often asymmetrical. Cases of heterochromia iridum are common. This, along with their large, hairy feet, their round and protruding ears, and their species-wide ambidexterity are what make boggarts a strange folk to look at. But their wide smiles, curly hair, common absence of facial hair and warm eyes ensure that anyone in the presence of a brownie is sure to be made to feel right at home.

In terms of clothing, brownies prefer rustic, earthy garments in greens, yellows, and browns. They are fond of comfortable things such as buttoned coats and handkerchiefs. All items of boggart clothing sport many pockets for the storage of bits and bobs that the little folk may find interesting on their walks through the countryside (along with the strange weeds that they love to smoke in wooden pipes). Boggarts are also fond of embroidered animals on their shirts and trousers, such as pigs, sheep, ducks, mice, owls and hedgehogs. They very rarely wear any shoes, as their feet are coated in enough coarse hair to keep them safe from rough ground.

Abilities
Boggarts are notoriously lucky, as they are for some reason favored by the winds of fate. They do not know why, nor do they care. Because of the tendency for Brownie Luck to rub off on those around them, boggarts are seen as lucky charms by many. Boggarts are on average 3 feet tall - this small size allows them to crawl into narrow passages and through tiny holes. Their life in the Burrows of their home Communes gifts boggarts with some degree of dark vision. They are also quite good at sneaking around, allowing them to move through the shadows silently. All boggarts are ambidextrous and so in combat they prefer to fight with two weapons at once, making them quick and unpredictable. But boggarts are not very physically suited for fighting in general, and they are not capable of casting spells like Magicians and Elves. Those rare boggarts that engage in such things as adventure and questing are usually valued scouts, thieves, and good luck charms for adventuring parties.

Society and Culture
Boggart society is organized into small villages called Communes. Each Commune has quite a small population (when it reaches a certain number, it is customary for some of its members to leave and form a new one) and is overseen by the Maer, who is appointed by vote each season. The Maer is primarily in charge of resource distribution, settling disputes, and building projects, along with other smaller duties. As such, Maers are seen as servants of the Commune, and often take the smallest portion of resources for themselves in the rare instance of a shortage.

The Commune farms are governed by common ownership by all boggarts, as each boggart plants what they need and nothing more. Their agricultural techniques emphasize sustainability, so that bountiful harvests can be expected throughout the whole year until winter, during which a stored surplus will see the boggarts through. For resources that the Boggarts are not able to produce themselves, they trade their famous foods, weeds and meads with neighboring people. The boggarts to represent the Commune in these trades are called the Masnachs, and are appointed by vote.

Boggart Communes have no standing army, merely making do with a small number of Fighters (usually around 10-15). The Fighters have the responsibilities of defending the Masnach during trade deals, protecting the Commune from outside threats, and patrolling the countryside for signs of trouble. Their leader is a Siryf, who is elected by the season just like the Maer. The Fighters usually carry clubs, hatchets, spears, or daggers (used as shortswords) and rely on the element of surprise, their wits, their two-weapon fighting skills, and a little luck in combat, as boggarts are not particularly tough or strong.

Within a Brownie Commune, there are various clans represented by quaint heraldry of animals and flowers. Clans are made up of blood relatives, and the occasional honorary clan member. Living in large Burrows in the hills, with round doors and windows, the Clan includes even relatives who would be considered distant by human standards. It is the accepted duty of every boggart to provide for their clan, especially the young and the old who cannot provide for themselves, and this is a duty that is taken up with pride. Unlike in human societies, however, it is not considered important that each boggart bear children, nor is marriage or monogamy practiced in any strict sense. The children of any pair of lovers are simply adopted by whoever can afford to care for them, while the parents remain in their separate clans, even if they often become much emotionally closer after having children together. Boggarts therefore have little in the way of strict gender roles and they are known to openly engage in homosexual acts when it pleases them.

The favorite activities of boggarts are engaged in with the whole Commune. Parties are very frequent, as are Commune-wide feasts that mark a particularly bountiful harvest. More than anything, the girthy boggarts love food and alcoholic drinks, and so they have mastered the art of preparing both. The most unique of their activities, however, is the social smoking of the brownie weeds which grow in their homeland. They crush the plant up into wooden pipes, light it with a match, and inhale the soothing smoke. This is often done in the evening, after a hard days work, when the boggarts (especially the older ones) will sit around a fire with their clan and smoke the strange weeds, which they find most comfortable.

An insular people, boggarts are largely unconcerned with the goings on of the larger world. Their chief concern is the next harvest, and they could not care less about who is at war with whom, or who the king of their neighbors is. In fact, they are frequently distrustful of outsiders (unless they bring ample gifts), as outsiders more oft than not bring trouble. For this reason, boggarts are also suspicious of any of their own who leave the safety of the Commune and come back, believing them to have been tainted by the outside world. Least loved by boggarts are adventurers and magicians, who they consider to be far too dangerous to entertain. The stealthy skills of the tiny brownies allow them to easily escape the notice of the Big People, however, meaning that very few ever have to worry about such horrible things as strangers and adventures. The humble boggarts also don't worry themselves with the big questions of history and religion, making them a straightforward and down-to-earth folk.

Language
As their ancestral home lies within the bounds of Aarathien, leading to much dealing with the humans of Etaleth and her daughter kingdoms, Boggarts overwhelmingly speak Reodic. The word 'Boggart' itself is Reodic, and is descended from the Tagdaur word 'Bogle', meaning something along the lines of 'Bog Phantom'. This refers to the Boggart Raids in the Ancient Era, during which the Tagdaur people first made contact with the Boggarts. The Boggarts themselves much prefer the use of the northern Reodic word 'Brownie' to describe their own people, as it is descended from a barbarian word meaning 'good mannered' or 'kindly'. This word originates from early trade that occurred between barbarians in north Aarathien and the Brownies, during which the little folk earned themselves a reputation of unmatched hospitality and generosity. The word boggart, however, is used far more commonly by Reodic speakers due to the role the Tagdaur played in forming the kingdom of Etaleth.

In the Olden Days, the Brownies spoke an old forgotten language called Iaith. However, this tongue was never recorded in writing and has been lost to time. Only some of the proudest Boggart clans which are able to trace their lineage back to the chieftains of the Olden Days still know traces of Iaith. The only words of that old tongue that have been preserved in every-day use are those that denote important offices, such as that of the Maer and the Siryf. The word for brownie in their own old tongue is 'Pwca'.

The Olden Days
The exact place of the brownies' origin is unknown, but it is generally believed that they came from somewhere in the northwest of Aarathien, perhaps even from Gruhaen. They spent many years wandering the green lands of the north before settling in small townships throughout the Midlands in a period of time they remember fondly as the Olden Days. The history of the Olden Days is not recorded in writing, but is remembered through deeply respected oral traditions.

The first Boggart Communes are believed to have been founded in western Aarathien around the year 8980 AE by the Etalethan reckoning. The abundantly fertile soil of that green land meant the boggarts could begin the transition from being nomadic to agricultural people. Their farming techniques were (and still are) far ahead of any other culture's, relying on a sustainable relationship with the land so that famines were very rare. They lived on a very comfortable surplus of grain and meat which satisfied their famous appetites for centuries.