Halfling
This article refers to the neutral creature. For the level 1 creature of Factory, see Halfling and Halfling Grenadier.
| Neutral creatures | |
|---|---|
| Level 1 | |
 Peasant
| |
  Halfling 
| |
| Level 2 | |
 Rogue
| |
 Boar
| |
 Leprechaun 
| |
| Level 3 | |
 Nomad
| |
 Mummy
| |
| Level 4 | |
 Sharpshooter
| |
 Satyr
| |
 Steel Golem
| |
| Level 5 | |
 Troll
| |
 Gold Golem
| |
 Fangarm
| |
| Level 6 | |
 Diamond Golem
| |
 Enchanter
| |
| Level 7 | |
 Faerie Dragon
| |
 Rust Dragon
| |
 Crystal Dragon
| |
 Azure Dragon
| |
                  
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| Statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Halfling | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Special abilities: | ||||||||||||||||||||
| • Ranged attack • Always have +1 luck | ||||||||||||||||||||
Portraits
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.gif){kind=small} _(adventure_map).gif){kind=small}
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Halflings are level 1 neutral creatures recruited from the Thatched Hut.
"Armed with sling and stone, halflings have found a harsh existence in Antagrich. Driven from their homes by the Kreegans, halflings have been scattered to the winds. These noble fighters take refuge in the earth and have an uncanny sense of luck." AB manual
Their cost is 40 
, but they are free when recruited from a Thatched Hut. The price only matters if they appear at a Refugee Camp or a Portal of Summoning.
Special Ability: Positive Luck
The positive luck ability of halflings can be affected by Hourglass of the Evil Hour or Cursed Ground magical terrain only. Their luck cannot be decreased below +1 by any other luck modifier (including luck-decreasing artifacts and Fields of Glory magical terrain in Horn of the Abyss ).
Halflings are unable to get luck unless being commanded by a hero, like all the other neutral creatures, despite the game saying that they have +1 luck (fixed in Horn of the Abyss ).
Appearance
Halflings were added in Armageddon's Blade so there are no Halflings or Thatched Huts in Restoration of Erathia.
Horn of the Abyss
Halflings are the level 1 base unit of Factory and no longer belong to the neutral faction. Accordingly, their native terrain is changed to Wasteland.
In versions prior to 1.7.0, the shadow of its adventure map image was fixed and its big portrait was changed:
File:Halfling portrait.gif 
File:Halfling portrait (HotA).gif
.gif){kind=link}
User Commentary
Halflings are one of the best tier 1 creatures in the game, particularly early on. Compared to Master Gremlins, Halflings have 2 less Defense and one fewer weekly growth, but are otherwise equal to or better than them in all categories. A stack of Halflings will typically beat a stack of any other tier 1 creature in a 1 on 1 fight, thanks to their ranged advantage. Plus, they are free to recruit aside from some extra movement points to pick them up. Capture any Thatched Huts you see early, since a stack of Halflings will greatly help with clearing the map out. Halflings are particularly good for Necropolis, which does not have an early shooter.
Strategically, Halflings are similar to Master Gremlins. Try to keep them protected with your other units, since they die quickly and their numbers are precious. Bless and Curse have an even more extreme impact on their effectiveness due to their relatively large 1-3 damage spread.
As with all neutral creatures however, the growth rate of Halflings cannot be increased, which causes them to fall behind town creatures into the midgame. They also have fairly low health, making them easy to pick off with spells, divers, or higher-level shooters.