Deep Gnome (Svirfneblin): A Svir-What Now?

Gnomes. One of the most frequently forgotten races in Dungeons and Dragons. Because how many people in the world want to play as a gnome? You can be a dragon man, a cat girl, a turtle, or even a robot! Why be a tiny little smart guy?

And for that matter: why make your players fight one?

Lore: Miners in the Dark

Svirfneblin, deep gnomes, live in caverns well below the surface of the world. They rely on their wits and stealth to survive in the dark, although they’ve got the strength and weight to help them out. Their enclaves are often run by the women while the men search for valuable gemstones (which they love) and any enemies that might threaten them. Often times, they’ll ally themselves with creatures from the Elemental Plane of Earth, as they share much in common in relation to their goals.

And that’s about it. Honestly, this lore is fairly dull and uninteresting. At best, you could write a single encounter out of it. If your players want to explore a deep history that ties into the plot, though, they’ll be disappointed.

Design: I’ve Got Nothing

Like… it’s not the most boring thing in the world. But what is there to talk about?

It certainly looks like a cave-dwelling creature, I’ll give it that. With the equipment and the coal-colored skin (and the backpack filled with the shit), it’s hard not to put that together. It looks more like a goblin than a gnome, but I guess that makes sense, given where it lives.

And… yeah, that’s it. A fairly dull design. Not so generic that it’s awful. But not something any DM will have much fun in describing to their players.

Stats: Metal Gnome Solid

Get it? Because they’re stealthy? Okay. I’ll leave now.

These guys aren’t exactly the most durable of the lot. Their AC is higher than nothing, but their HP is on the low end. It doesn’t take many hits to kill one.

But finding one can be a pain in the ass. Not only are they stealthy as fuck, but they’re also strong against any magic that requires a saving throw (so… most of it). And it’s got a few spells that make it easier to escape as well! Including:

At will: nondetection (self only)
1/day each: blindness/deafness, blur, disguise self

Oh, I’m sorry! Did you just find it? Well, too bad! It’s gone again!

In terms of actions, it’s fairly limited. It can hit you with a war pick or throw a poison dart at you. They’ve both got meh damage, but the poison effect can be troublesome.

All in all, it can make for a decent fight. But it’s tricky. You’ve got to set up just the right number of enemies, just the right battlefield, and pace it just the right way. That alone is tough. But when you factor in the unpredictability of the players themselves? The encounter could quickly end up falling apart.

Whether that’s fun or not depends on your group. Kind of like D&D in general, really.

Placement

Yeah, this monster is pretty boring. It’s lore is lackluster, it’s design just the same, and the stats only slightly better. I’d be amazed if I didn’t forget this thing existed the moment this article is published.

With all that in mind, let’s put the Deep Gnome on the Best of the Bestiary!

1. Beholder
2. Death Tyrant
3. Dragon Turtle
4. Green Dragons
5. Red Dragons
6. Blue Dragons
7. Black Dragons
8. White Dragons
9. Silver Dragons
10. Couatl
11. Behir
12. Aboleth
13. Bronze Dragons
14. Brass Dragons
15. Copper Dragons
16. Gold Dragons
17. Chuul
18. Gibbering Mouther
19. Chimera
20. Death Knight
21. Fomorian
22. Bone Devil
23. Dracolich
24. Faerie Dragon
25. Ankheg
26. Storm Giant
27. Hill Giant
28. Empyrean
29. Efreeti
30. Dao
31. Cloud Giant
32. Drow (all four of ’em)
33. Shadow Demon
34. Marilith
35. Drider
36. Aarackockra
37. Azer
38. Demilich
39. Spectator
40. Marid
41. Cambion
42. Fire Giant
43. Animated Armor
44. Banshee
45. Basilisk
46. Yochlol
47. Bulette
48. Cloaker
49. Darkmantle
50. Doppelganger
51. Ghoul and Ghast
52. Ettin
53. Pit Fiend
54. Erinyes
55. Chain Devil
56. Bearded Devil
57. Barbed Devil
58. Spined Devil
59. Ice Devil
60. Djinni
61. Nalfeshnee
62. Glabrezu
63. Chasme
64. Barlgura
65. Horned Devil
66. Balor
67. Shadow Dragon
68. Vrock
69. Dretch
70. Gnolls (all three)
71. Goristro
72. Hezrou
73. Manes
74. Frost Giant
75. Duergar
76. Quasit
77. Dryad
78. Flumph
79. Githyanki
80. Planetar
81. Imp
82. Flameskull
83. Displacer Beast
84. Carrion Crawler
85. Githzerai
86. Rug of Smothering
87. Bugbear Chief
88. Bugbear
89. Vine Blight
90. Twig Blight
91. Needle Blight
92. Bullywug
93. Ettercap
94. Gas Spore
95. Cockatrice
96. Lemure
97. Solar
98. Deva
99. Cyclops
100. Centaur
101. Ghost
102. Fire Elemental
103. Water Elemental
104. Air Elemental
105. Stone Giant
106. Deep Gnome <——————–
107. Dinosaurs (All six of them)
108. Earth Elemental
109. Galeb Duhr
110. Flying Sword
111. Crawling Claw
112. Violet Fungus
113. Shrieker
114. Gargoyle