Xvart

Xvarts (also known as Xivorts or Svarts ) were a race of small blue humanoids.

Description
Xvarts were relatively small, standing at around 3 feet (0.9m). They had blue skin and large yellow eyes. Xvarts often wore simple cloth doublets, preferring greens and blues. Some xvarts had dark patches of hair, often receding.

Personality
Xvarts were cowardly and easily intimidated. They were of average intelligence. Xvarts were generally hateful creatures. Their short, miserable lives led them to despise most creatures and take out their angst on anyone and anything they could; but they particularly enjoy tormenting larger creatures, in particular goliaths and half-orcs.

However they enjoy somewhat better relationships with gnomes and halflings being frequently recruited as spies and minions by evil members of those races.

Combat
Xvarts were weak as individuals, so often attacked in large groups. Ambush tactics were the xvarts preferred form of attack. They would often attack sleeping opponents if given the opportunity. Xvart raiding parties sometimes took prisoners to torture or hold for ransom.

Commonly used xvart weapons are short swords, daggers, darts and nets. Xvart "net casters" would try and restrain larger opponents allowing the blade wielding xvarts to swarm their opponent.

Some xvarts were able to tap into a type of shadow magic which they used in combat as well as to protect their homes. A small minority of xvarts had shaman powers.

Society
Xvarts were most likely to live in hills or caves. Tribes are often made up of around 100 xvarts. Each tribe had a leader and roughly 3 lieutenants.

Xvarts had little interest in coins and currency. Making deals with xvarts often meant having to trade goods or services.

While the males hunted and pillaged, the females would care for children and basically run the tribe. Xvarts are normally conceived in the spring and the autumn. Offspring are born in pairs and are cared for until they are around 7 years old. At this point they are considered adults and assume their role in the tribe.

Religion
Xvarts have no known formal religion, but the reference to xvart tribal shamans does indicate that they may have some kind of spiritual beliefs.

Interracial Relations
Xvarts are naturally drawn to shadow creatures. They are often used by evil gnomes or halflings as minions.

Xvarts feared humans and would only attack groups of humans if they had a considerable numeric advantage.

Xvarts considered themselves above kobolds in a racial hierarchy and would bully kobolds whenever possible.

Xvarts had a hatred of large creatures like ogres and giants. They particularly loathed goliaths and half-orcs.

Xvarts are able to communicate with bats and rats and even wererats. They often use them as allies or beasts of burden. Xvarts sometimes ride particularly large rats or bats.

History
Xvarts were once gnomes. They were captured by fomorians and enslaved in the Shadowdark. Over many generations the creatures were warped by fell magic and slowly began to adapt to their surroundings.

As part of a bargain with a cabal of hags, a number of xvarts escaped the Shadowdark and slipped into the Shadowfell. This led to these xvarts becoming even more disfigured and unlike their gnome ancestors.

Eventually many of the creatures found their way back into Toril and into the Feywild, though some are still slaves to the fomorians.

Around 1479 DR, a band of xvarts were brought to the sewers beneath Baldur's Gate from the Feywild by the gnome illusionist Rothryn Toth in order to pillage the city on his behalf.

A population of xvarts had established a significant presence in a region of the Sword Coast near-south of Baldur's Gate in the decades after the Time of Troubles. There they established a village in the mountains west of Nashkel and carried out raids on local farmers, taking a particular interest in their cattle. They also allied themselves with a nearby population of gnolls and took up residence in a group of caves close to a fortress of theirs, providing troops to aid in it's defense.

Appearances
Xvarts appear in very few realm-specific sources. This is probably partly because Ed Greenwood considered Xvarts to be redundant creatures with no unique or interesting characteristics.