Helminth Dwarf
Dwarves who decide not to use the typical earthen materials for their golem-shells and instead opt for suits of flesh are deemed helminths (or "parasites") by the rest of the clans. They have a strongly negative reputation among dwarves.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Helminths construct their shells from the bodies of various creatures, torn open and stitched back together into a functional puppet. Manipulating the existing spiritual circuitry in these bodies allows them to create shells for themselves that are highly receptive to magical energy, both for generating their own effects and for warding off external ones.
Growth Rate & Stages
A combination of magic and the secrets of golemcraft actually keep the fleshy shell of a helminth dwarf "alive" in a manner of speaking. It can even grow if the right materials were used to build it.
Due to the comparative instability of their protective shell, helminths don't tend to last as long as other dwarves. They generally perish alongside the flesh they're wrapped in, rather than the shell outlasting them or vice-versa.
Ecology and Habitats
Helminth dwarf shells are less useful for internal environmental control, giving them less of a defense for venturing above ground. They tend to dwell even deeper than more conventional dwarves, often within the unstable and violent Unterwelt.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Helminths, to the detriment of any prey they can find, are more carnivorous on average than other dwarves. One proposed origin for this habit is that scraps of the materials used in their shells are not often left to go to waste.
Additional Information
Uses, Products & Exploitation
Like all humanoids, helminth dwarves can be used as a source of spirit filaments. This is illegal, but enforcement of that law gets a bit spotty when dealing with helminth victims and dwarven authorities.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Helminth dwarves are uncommon outside the Unterwelt, and almost unheard of further from there than the Bergsclans.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Helminth dwarves typically have access to a second, perhaps third, and maybe even fourth set of eyes that are all attuned to the darkness of the caves they dwell in. While an asset underground, harsh light can shock this system.
Symbiotic and Parasitic organisms
Helminth dwarves are a borderline parasitic creature in and of themselves, saved from the classification only on the technicality of not building their shells out of still-living creatures. Usually.
Civilization and Culture
Common Dress Code
Helminth dwarves have more practical need for clothing than their less fleshy counterparts.
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
Overall, helminth dwarves are outcasts from their own already reclusive species. They're some of the more adept spirit-manipulators on Droswal if someone is really in the market for that sort of thing, but surprisingly, the seeker may stand less of a chance of being eaten if they go to the giants for advice on that topic.
Genetic Ancestor(s)
Lifespan
150 years
Average Height
4 feet and 8 inches (shell)
Average Weight
120 pounds total (30 without shell)
Average Length
2 feet and 5 inches (excluding eye stalks)
Average Physique
The outer shell of a helminth dwarf is taller and leaner than the more mechanical shells of other dwarves.
