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If FR/DnD halflings and anything like their Tolkin cousins then the presumed wear for the feet is nothing. But since in FK damage can be done to specific parts, those that aren't protected by armor usually get severed quite easily. So to promote the bare feet movement, even in battle, could it be made that halflings have a higher foot AC than the other races maybe adding to it as you progress in level. And by no means am I suggesting that the protection be made to that of a pair of ironshod boots or a pair of sollerets (plate mail shoes) but at least offer better protection than not.

And no doubt in Middle Earth, an unarmoured halfling foot would be severed rather easily too. If I recall, Tolkein's Hobbits wore no shoes because their soles had thickened to the extent that they didn't need footwear for every day activies. No doubt if ever they entered a situation where the use of armour became necessary, they would think differently
Halflings are small, they are not stupid!

If you wish to take the time to roleplay a Halfling who does not wear shoes, brilliant! Go for it. Little details like that are what make roleplay fun. When fighting, however, you are entitled to do what is only sensible and wear armour or at least a protective layer on your Halflinfg's feet. I think this would be reasonable, and would not be especially out of character.

Of Tolkien, in the books and movies I read and saw, no footwear was worn on the hobbits at anytime. whether Bilbo engaged with spiders in mirkwood or Frodo against Gimli. But thats Middle-Earth, this is FR or rather FKmud. Being a mud it quite doen't work like pnp or in the books, yet Halflings wearing shoes does not look right to me, even in battle. Yes Hobbit soles provide protection from lifes uneven roads but they do gro curse hear ontom that further prottects the hobbit form anyother foot misfortune. And no not even a shoe will protect you from an axe chopping the foot off. But anything else, bumps, scrapes and even the occational scuffle should be ok barefoot and not worry from code consequenses.

Will this addition to the feet be repaired by a priest? They would be able to cure the common halfling of travel worn feet.

That's not a bad idea to make said "hairy" footwear repairable only by priest... or rather heal spells. If the code would allow...

Yeah I was thinking it would make no sence to get your "feet" repaired by a taylor or bootmaker or armour. But just simply healing won't do it as far as I can see. The code won't work like that.

You could allow a ranger to repair them by tanning the feet

Much like a musher using tannic acid to harden the pads on his dogs...

(er, not an entirely serious suggestion, if it wasn't obvious)

You could have your priest that can repair the "Feet" sell them as well. He could say something like " Your feet will need protecting out in the world, I can help with this for (insert price here)" The character pays and the priest "Casts a spell" then gives the halfling his/her feet.

No better than a priest. A BARBER Think about it, just like a beard,(hair, mustache too) if they get shaggy(Damadged) they will need a trim.(Repaired) And what better way to get some growth going than with a little hair growing tonic.... "The Sam halfling barber dipenses a little of his secret hair growing tonic on you feat." <a little lag> and presto you have a pair of hair feat.

Made better if they could appear on the feet automatically or not having to remove them to repair them but thats just code and something to ignore in the rp.

As Mystra pointed out the third edition halflings are completely different to the second edition. They are based on a race known as Kender from the Dragonlance Campaign World. Whereas the second edition halflings where ripped straight out of the Lord of the Rings by Tolkien.

In regards to footware, personally I do not use it either in combat or out of combat (after all it crinkles my lovely toe hair!) The hair on a halflings foot is a matter of pride, much like the size of a gnomes nose (which incidentaly has been gotten rid of in 3rd edition for a more 'ming the merciless' look). I was under the impression that the feet was the same location as the legs, so if you wear decent armour on your legs surely the feet would be protected too!

Personally I think that weaing boots or not is a purely RP subject and is up to the individual player. After all halfling foot hair is not made from metal! And the protection is on the bottom to guard from life on the road, if you cut a halfling foot at the ankle it would be just as easy as cutting a human foot I think!

Just my thoughts

What about miracle hair grow tonic for your feet? Sounds a bit wierd and might be a few months late but maybe having a tonic seller, a traveling halfling salesman? that pours it on and makes regular feet become big, beautiful hairy feet?(this would be punctated by getting the said hairy feet as an item and wearing them after the tonic takes affect) i think that I can see a halfling doing this or buying this., though I'm not of that race my self they seem open to new things... who knows, hair growth for feet could lead to treating balding pates on little old men
Sorry for the late idea.

P.S. I'm not sure if this is mentioned before but if it is I am again sorry.

Oooh, put me down for a whole crate full of the hair-growing tonic! Leyva`ll start a new trend, then all the halflings will want to have hairy feet so they can be just like him. But seriously I really like all these ideas. My halflings are getting tired of wearing those sweaty stinky human-invention-boot-things. Don't know how you all can stand `em.

This might not be possible with the existing code, but perhaps an idea for future coders to work on when time allows. Make a spell "hairy feet", maybe a variant of the Polymorph spell, only instead of morphing the entire creature, change only the specified targed. Syntax "Cast Hairy Feet <insert PC name here> ". Again I am not sure if this is feasible, but could it be a something worth pursuing?

Think of the possiblities with hair growth tonic. Barbarians can just wear loin cloths when they splash some on their chest and backs. Chest hair, back hair, even hairy calfs and forarms.

Edited to remove inappropriate information. The same rules for in game reguarding "help sex" etc apply here as they do in game.

Mystra wrote:The third edition halfling is much different from the second edition halfling and therefore the halfling from middle earth. They have gone for a taller, leaner halfling in third edition. My personal opinion, is in doing this they have lost alot of the character that makes up a second edition halfling and just made the a small skinny human.

I, for one, can say I am glad that one of the DMs of this Realm still has nostalgia for the unique character of the various races in AD&D.... and tries to keep that character and other distinguishing facets of pre-3E as house rules.

Thank you for going out of the way to do so.

Our tabletop DM has virtually ignored any changes to the halfling in 3e, it does kind of ruin it for a lot of people that halflings arent short and fat with hairy feet and all that stuff...

Saying that I have never felt the need to play a halfling anyway, but I do understand peoples points...

I read a really good article about halflings somewhere. It was written from the perspective of a halfling painter. It addressed the change in halfling appearance. It basically said that in the "old" days halflings saw girth hairyness and foot size as signs of strength and what not. So most halflings were depicted as short, fat and hairy with big furry feet. The speaker went on to explain that ALL halflings were in fact not like this. He says that it has become popular to portray halflings in a more elven way. He even hints at the pointy ears being a geographical trait, that the halflings of Lurien have pointer ears then the halfling of other regions.