If you’re a frequent bot (or visitor) to this space, you’d never guess that I once hated Gnomengarde. Now that I have authored sixteen blog entries on Gnomengardian topics (with more on the way) and a DM’s Guild supplement on Gnomengarde (with another on the way), I think it’s safe to say I’ve gotten over my earlier disdain for the place. In fact, if I continue writing about Gnomengarde at this pace, I may need to change the name of this site to something like onthewaytognomengarde.com.

Anyhoo, back to trinkets. Hey, someone has to do it.

The Players Handbook d100 list of trinkets has a few weird chachkies and doodads on it which, to me, scream “made in Gnomengarde”:

• A pipe that blows bubbles
• A rectangular metal device with two tiny metal cups on one end that throws sparks when wet
• A mechanical canary inside a lamp
• A glass orb filled with water, in which swims a clockwork goldfish
• A tiny mechanical crab or spider that moves about when it’s not being observed
• A glass jar containing lard with a label that reads, “Griffon Grease”

I don’t see any of these trinkets tying into to lore, history, or furthering a story in Dragon of Icespire Peak. But if one of these trinkets is chosen at character creation, found while rummaging through the pockets of a corpse, or is acquired in a card game, perhaps the character can’t help but notice the gnomish runes on each of these trinkets that, when translated, read “made in Gnomengarde.”

I kind of see these trinkets as having the potential to serve as a sort of “is no fun, is no Blinsky” device to put Gnomengarde on the map for a character.

That way, when Harbin Wester starts looking for a party to make a trip out to Gnomengarde, at least one of the characters will have heard of the place, and therefore might be inclined to visit or find out more about Gnomengarde.

Let’s be mutuals over on Bluesky! If you’re interested, I’m @ticklecorn.bsky.social. I always follow back.

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