Halfling jinx

Certain halflings lack their ancestry's typical good luck, but instead have an occult magical power to manipulate the fortunes of others. Known as jinxed halflings or jinxes, they are able to curse their foes with clumsiness or many other forms of supernatural bad luck. A jinx's birth is often marked by some portentous omen, such as a shooting star, a red glow around the moon, a mirror cracking, or a plant withering. Halfling communities see jinxes as blessed individuals touched by Desna's favor, and often encourage young jinxes to pursue training in the magical arts; many jinxes in fact display magical talents. Some jinxes become alchemists, bards, or witches, and many jinxes are sorcerers of various bloodlines.

Some accuse jinxes' magic of being an unfair tactic, but jinxes themselves contend that they are only evening the odds, given halflings' reduced physical and social stature. Superstitious cultures are likely to hold their own beliefs about jinxes. In Ustalav, jinxes are respectfully avoided, seen as dangerous to offend, and yet dangerous to get too close to. Among Varisians, jinxes are respected, and their ability to change fortunes is celebrated. In Katapesh, where halflings are seen as tremendously lucky, jinxes are seen as terribly unlucky and are fearfully shunned.