Gnome (playable)

Core races
Human Dwarf Night elf Gnome Draenei Worgen	Pandaren Dracthyr		Orc Undead Tauren Troll Blood elf Goblin
Allied races
Void elf Lightforged draenei Dark Iron dwarf Kul Tiran Mechagnome		Nightborne Highmountain tauren Mag'har orc Zandalari troll Vulpera

This article is about the playable race. For the gnome lore, see Gnome. For the in-game faction, see Gnomeregan (faction).

Gnomes
Character classes	Mage, Rogue, Warlock, Warrior, Death knight, Priest, Monk, Hunter
Main language	Gnomish
Secondary language	Common
Starting zone	Coldridge Valley, Dun Morogh Gnomeregan & Chill Breeze Valley, Dun Morogh Exile's Reach
Racial leader	Gelbin Mekkatorque
Capital	New Tinkertown Gnomeregan (claimed)
Racial mount	Mechanostrider

The gnomes of Gnomeregan are one of the playable Alliance races in World of Warcraft. A brilliant race of inventors, the gnomes have enjoyed a friendship with their dwarven cousins for generations, with who they shared the subterranean spaces of Khaz Modan. However, their kingdom was lost to invasion and betrayal, and in recent years gnomes have lived in the halls of their allies. Prior to Cataclysm, the gnomes started their lives in Coldridge Valley, an area of Dun Morogh closed off by mountains. Currently, the gnomes instead start their adventures inside of their destroyed city, struggling to survive in a remade world.

The gnomes do not currently have a capital city, although they dream of the day that their beloved Gnomeregan will be fully reclaimed, and New Tinkertown serves as a main base to do just that. They ride Mechanostrider mounts and speak Gnomish as their main language, with Common as a secondary tongue.

Background

Main article: Gnome#History

Icon of Technology

Creation screen description

Though small in stature, the gnomes of Khaz Modan have used their great intellect to secure a place in history. Indeed, their subterranean kingdom, Gnomeregan, was once a marvel of steam-driven technology. Even so, due to a massive trogg invasion, the city was lost. Now its builders are vagabonds in the dwarven lands, aiding their allies as best they can.

Though small in stature, the clever gnomes of Khaz Modan have used their great intellect to secure a place in history. Their subterranean kingdom of Gnomeregan is a marvel of steam-driven technology, and their skill at both engineering and the arcane arts has been a tremendous benefit to the Alliance across numerous campaigns.

Classic guide

Clever and eccentric, Gnomes are a race of tiny tinkerers, trailblazers, and technological geniuses, renowned for their intellect and radical ideas. Despite the destruction of their home city, they remain cheerful and ever-devoted to their work.

Classic opening cutscene

The eccentric, often brilliant gnomes are held as one of the most peculiar races of the world. With their obsession for developing radical new technologies and constructing marvels of mind-bending engineering, it’s a wonder that any gnomes have survived to proliferate. Over the years, the gnomes have contributed ingenious weapons to aid the Grand Alliance in its fierce battles against the Horde. Thriving in the wondrous techno-city of Gnomeregan, the gnomes shared the resources of the forested peaks of Dun Morogh with their dwarven cousins for generations. Yet recently, a barbaric menace rose up from the bowels of the earth and invaded Gnomeregan. Aided by their dwarven allies, the gnomes fought a valiant battle to save their beloved city. Nevertheless, Gnomeregan was irrelevantly lost. The surviving gnomes flew to the safety of the dwarf stronghold of Ironforge. There they remained; devising strategies to retake their city. As a gnome of proud stand, it falls to you to answer the challenge and lead your curious people to a brighter future.

Cataclysm opening cutscene

Given the recent political upheaval in Ironforge, the gnomes have suddenly found themselves unwelcomed guests within the city. Leveraging their ingenious technologies and unquenchable spirit for adventure, the gnomes have begun to reevaluate their role within Khaz Modan. Under the inventive leadership of High Tinker Gelbin Mekkatorque, the gnomes now plan a daring campaign against the barbarous troggs to retake their former capital of Gnomeregan. With the odds stacked against them, the gnomes are counting on brave heroes such as you to stand and be counted. Your people's greatest hour draws near.

History

The eccentric, often brilliant gnomes are held as one of the most peculiar races of the world. With their obsession for developing radical new technologies and constructing marvels of mind-bending engineering, it’s a wonder that any gnomes have survived to proliferate. Over the years, the gnomes have contributed ingenious weapons to aid the Grand Alliance in its fierce battles against the Horde.

Thriving in the wondrous techno-city of Gnomeregan, the gnomes shared the resources of the forested peaks of Dun Morogh with their dwarven cousins for generations. Yet recently, a barbaric menace rose up from the bowels of the earth and invaded Gnomeregan. The troggs — believed to have been unearthed from the Uldaman excavation – erupted beneath Gnomeregan and began to slaughter every gnome within the city. Though the gnomish defense forces staged a valiant defense, they could not save their wondrous city.

At the command of the High Tinker Mekkatorque, the gnomes opened the pressure valves of their giant, grinding machines and released toxic radiation throughout the city. Though the radiation killed the troggs, the gnomes soon discovered that it killed their own people just as quickly. Nearly eighty percent of the gnomish race died within days. Those that survived evacuated the great city and fled to the protection of their dwarven cousins in Ironforge.

There they remain, devising radical strategies to retake their beloved city at any cost. As a gnome of proud standing, it falls to you to answer the challenge and lead your curious people to a brighter future.

Character

Gnomes have unique background art in Cataclysm

In Cataclysm, the Gnomeregan Exiles now have their own unique starting area within Gnomeregan, rather than sharing Anvilmar with the dwarves.

Starting attributes

	Base	Mage	Rogue	Warlock	Warrior	Death knight	Priest	Monk	Hunter
Strength	15	15	16	15	18	102	15	16	15
Agility	23	23	26	23	23	75	23	24	26
Stamina	19	19	20	20	21	99	19	20	21
Intellect	23	26	23	25	23	32	25	25	23
Spirit	20	23	20	23	21	42	24	21	21

Classes

•  Death knight
•  Hunter
•  Mage
•  Monk
•  Priest
•  Rogue
•  Warlock
•  Warrior

Racial traits

Skaduzzle, a gnome mage.

[Escape Artist] - instant - 1 min cooldown
Escape the effects of any immobilization or movement speed reduction effect.
[Expansive Mind] - passive
Maximum Resource increased by 5%.
[Arcane Resistance] - passive
Reduces Arcane damage taken by 1%.
[Engineering Specialization] - passive
Engineering skill increased by 15.
[Nimble Fingers] - passive
Haste increased by 1%.

Why gnomes in the World of Warcraft?

From Insider Interview — with Chris Metzen: Gnomes and Trolls as Playable Races from the Blizzard Insider:

I think we deal with it a little bit in upcoming D&D supplements. During Warcraft II, the gnomes were, in effect, building weapons and lending designs to the Alliance — but they were staying out of any direct fighting. In Warcraft III and Frozen Throne, and even in World of Warcraft, it becomes clear that the gnomes have had internal problems of their own for several years. As of World of Warcraft, they still offer support to the Alliance in terms of building tanks, designing weapons, sending flying machines, and so on. But they had a problem at home that has recently been discovered — an ancient menace from the depths of the underground, called Troggs. The Troggs invaded the gnomes' city of Gnomeregan and wiped it out. The gnomes decided not to let the rest of the Alliance know about this because they figured that they could deal with it on their own. But Gnomeregan fell, probably thanks as much to the gnomes' own actions as to those of their enemies — they likely blew themselves up with whatever failsafe devices they used to defeat the threat. After the destruction of their homeland, the gnomes fled to the safety offered by their nearby allies the dwarves.

Quotes

Main articles: Jokes#Gnome male, Jokes#Gnome female

Main articles: Flirt#Gnome male, Flirt#Gnome female

Gallery

• 

  Gnome art.

Videos

• Gnome opening cinematic since ''Cataclysm'' in 4K UHD
• The previous opening cinematic from the beginning

Patch changes

• Patch 8.2.0 (2019-06-25): Heritage armor added, alongside the questline to obtain it.

  Undocumented changes: Female and male gnome models updated to no longer use a ModelScale of 1.15.
  

• Patch 7.0.3 (2016-07-19): Gnomes now have access to the hunter class.
  
• Patch 6.0.2 (2014-10-14):
  • [Shortblade Specialization] racial removed, replaced by [Nimble Fingers].
  • Model updated.
    
• Patch 5.0.4 (2012-08-28): Gnomes now have access to the monk class.
  
• Patch 4.0.3a (2010-11-23): Gnomes now have access to the priest class.
  
• Patch 3.0.2 (2008-10-14): Gnomes now have access to the death knight class.
  

External links

• Wowhead
• World of Warcraft Community Site