Stout

The ironfooted halflings have a culture far more steeped in assimilation that most others. They would prefer to blend into the dominant culture as much as possible. While there are some distinct traditions and understandings that do exist across Stout communities, there are more differences between communities than there are similarities. The exception to this is with regards to the dwarves whom the stouts never attempt to assimilate with. It is here where the most distinct cultural attitudes come to the fore.

The stouts are commonly referred to as the ironfooted. This is due to their pronounced feet which are covered with footwear. Stouts have disproportionately large feet, thick hair on the dorsal, and two inch thick padding on their soles. A joke among stouts and others alike commonly goes something like:

Why did the halfling cross the road barefoot? He couldn't find a pair of boots his size!

While stouts attempt to merge into the cultures of others, the most apparent difference is in architecture. Stouts will almost always build homes made of stone and metals at great expense for resources that are not locally available. These homes are disproportionately large to their size and will usually be in the style of the majority culture.   The connection to stone and metal extends to their art as well. Stone and metal sculptures are the most common form of artistic expression for the stouts. No stout home is complete without dozens of sculptures and statues. Many of the greatest and most recognized sculptors are stout halflings. Lords and monarchs from across the continent will hire stouts for commissions and busts.

One of the more controversial traditions of the Stouts is known as Foot Smithing. A coming of age tradition which dates back for centuries relatively unchanged. The ritual is performed in three major acts which replicate the smithing process. The first act is to walk of red hot coals symbolically representing both the hardships the people have endured as well the melting down of metals. The second act the hammering, where the feet hit hammers while they are still red from the coals. These first two acts are repeated until the youth no longer feels pain; typically two to three times. Finally, once the youth can unflinchingly do the first two acts, the third acts begins. The third act is the quenching where the feet are soaked and cleaned in water. Typically, it is the parents who clean the feet but other persons of honour may be chosen by the youth.

The origins of the iron footed is an intriguing tale. It is commonly acknowledged that the stouts have physiological similarities to the dwarves. Their stockier frames and more natural resistances to poisons and toxins imply a connection to the dwarves. Some believe that the dwarves and halflings shared a common ancestor. The Stouts themselves believe that there was some ancient experiment by the dwarves to try to genocide the halflings through forced breeding programs. Only stopping when they realized that these attempts only resulted in more halflings. This is voraciously denied by the dwarves leading to great animosity between the two cultures.