Dwarven Touch
Dwarven touch, as the name implies, is a disorder which originates amongst Dwarves, though they usually experience only mild symptoms, with the most serious cases occurring in those of mixed dwarven ancestry due to differences in the way the bodies of the former handle arcane energies compared to Elves, Humans and Orcs.
Specifically, when a dwarf is gravely wounded they involuntarily enter a state known as Fjúrúnsil, during which they lose consciousness and the body uses up most of its magical reserves to cast a powerful healing spell to keep the person alive. Some half-dwarves and their descendants inherit this reaction, but those who do so only partially are more likely to have dwarven touch.
People who suffer from it lack full control over their ability to release magic1, resulting in anything from involuntarily heating, cooling or giving shock to anything they touch, to potentially harming others by giving them burns, frostbite or knocking them down with wind magic. The symptoms usually become apparent in late childhood, with those who display more severe ones often being either hidden away or -in case of serious accidents- exiled from the community.
No reliable treatment for dwarven touch has been found so far. Some try to mitigate the effects by regularly casting magic, so that the effects of involuntary spell-casting will be minimal, but this runs the risk of fatigue, nausea and losing consciousness if the magical reserves are depleted.
Specifically, when a dwarf is gravely wounded they involuntarily enter a state known as Fjúrúnsil, during which they lose consciousness and the body uses up most of its magical reserves to cast a powerful healing spell to keep the person alive. Some half-dwarves and their descendants inherit this reaction, but those who do so only partially are more likely to have dwarven touch.
People who suffer from it lack full control over their ability to release magic1, resulting in anything from involuntarily heating, cooling or giving shock to anything they touch, to potentially harming others by giving them burns, frostbite or knocking them down with wind magic. The symptoms usually become apparent in late childhood, with those who display more severe ones often being either hidden away or -in case of serious accidents- exiled from the community.
No reliable treatment for dwarven touch has been found so far. Some try to mitigate the effects by regularly casting magic, so that the effects of involuntary spell-casting will be minimal, but this runs the risk of fatigue, nausea and losing consciousness if the magical reserves are depleted.
History
The disorder has been known since the days of the dwarven bronze age empire of Zameltonía, but it was first recorded and studied after its fall as half-dwarves became more common in central and -later on- eastern Adynía.
1Elderly adyníans sometimes experience similar symptoms, though milder, and the two are commonly confused for each other.
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