In the original 1e FR boxed set, it says halflings “have a light covering of hairy down all over their bodies” but I’ve never seen that referenced elsewhere. Was that an aspect of your home Realms that was later dropped or overlooked in the published Realms? WE ALL have a light covering of hairy down all over our bodies, if we're human and haven't removed it or suffered from a skin condition or radiation treatment. I presume that line was written in to make hin 'stand out' as a race. (?) I've never had editorial control over FR.
— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) April 25, 2019
Right. I figured it had to be a notable amount fo hair since it was, well, noted.
Speaking of small folk, how did you picture the gnomes of the home Realms? White hair, grey-to-blue eyes, & long wispy beards (as in Greyhawk)? Big long noses? Pointed ears? Human-like proportions? I think it was meant to be hair-hue-contrasts-with-skin so NOTICEABLE (like "all over five-o'clock-shadow"). I see gnomes as distinguishable from human children by having SLIGHTLY larger heads, hands, and feet (proportionately). Tend to be fair-haired, but full range of hair…— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) April 25, 2019
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…and eye hues. Can grow beards but most don't as it gets in the way of craftwork/forgework/cooking/carpentry (and they're ALWAYS busy with their hands). Tiny backswept points to ears. Larger facial features than hin, but many can still "blend" among humans at casual glance.— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) April 25, 2019
Ah, very interesting. Thanks! Did gnomes having deep smile lines that give them a wood-carved appearance come from your original notes, or was that a feature added by someone at TSR (like hirsute halfling bods and gold flecks in moon elven eyes)? TSR artists'/designers' interpretations, except for the gold flecks (which were in my early FR fantasy stories, pre-D&D). The Realms was purchased to be the home world setting of the D&D game for 2nd edition, so many things were bolted on/changed to fit needs of the time.
— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) April 25, 2019
Oh, sorry. I thought I read somewhere that the gold flecks were added by someone else at TSR. Speaking of elves, did all three original elven sub-types: moon, gold, and wild (and their respective features) come from your original notes? Yes and no. Meaning: by INCREDIBLE coincidence, someone at TSR had done the exactly three subtypes I had done (even to moon also being called "silver" elves by some in the Realms, though not by any elves).
— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) April 26, 2019