Cherished and guided by gods who value life, home, and hearth, halflings gravitate toward bucolic havens where family and community help shape their lives. That said, many halflings are blessed (some might say cursed) with a brave and adventurous spirit that leads them on journeys of discovery, affording them the chance to explore a bigger world and make new friends along the way. Their size—being not unlike that of a human child—helps them avoid unwanted entanglements and slip into and out of tight spaces.
Anyone who has spent time around halflings, and particularly halfling adventurers, has likely witnessed the storied “luck of the halflings” in action. When a halfling is in mortal danger, it seems as though an unseen force intervenes on the halfling’s behalf. Many halflings believe in the power of luck, and they attribute their unusual gift to one or more of their benevolent gods, including Yondalla, Brandobaris, and Charmalaine.
On many worlds, halflings are walking, talking contradictions: home, tradition, and pastoral pursuits collide with a gods-given love of adventure and a knack for getting into and out of trouble. Halfling communities come in all varieties. For every sequestered halfling shire tucked away in some unspoiled corner of the world, there’s a halfling crime syndicate like the Boromar Clan on the world of Eberron or a territorial mob of halflings like those found on the world of Athas.
Some halfling settlers, particularly ones who prefer to live underground, are thought to have a little bit of dwarven blood coursing through their veins and are sometimes called strongheart halflings or stouts. Nomadic halflings, as well as those who live among humans and other tall folk, are sometimes called lightfoot halflings or tallfellows.