Exiled Dwarfs

"Henceforward it is decreed that the Exiled should be one people, with one goal; the complete annihilation of the Stoneborn. We will tear down their holds, their traditions, and their precious clans, and replace them with a new order for Dwarfenkind. Our order."

Dictums of the Living God

Sometimes referred to as the Iron Dwarfs, or the Cursed Dwarfs, the Exiled are the ancestors of the clans that fought alongside Shel against the rest of the Stoneborn Dwarfs in the Great Schism. When they were defeated and cast out by Helmvor and his folk, they were afflicted with what came to be known as Helmvor's Curse. This has caused their altered appearance.
The Exiled are looked on with suspicion by the other races, and for the most part it is not without reason. The Exiled are a highly insular people, xenophobic in the extreme. As such, little is known or understood about them in the outside world. In addition, the Exiled are highly territorial and expansionist, often executing others found inside their territory, and always willing to grasp hold of additional land at the expense of a weak neighbor. Shel preaches strength through unity, and it is precisely that strength that the other races fear.
Individual Exiled are often suspicious of outsiders, and outright hostile to Stoneborn. Aloof and quiet, Exiled are also extremely hard workers, and once you get past their hard exterior some of the most loyal companions around. Exiled are taught from birth to give everything they have to their people, and that strength can only come through unity. Even the Exiled that leave their people behind retain this inherent belief, and are often some of the loyal and dedicated adventurers to be found.

Basic Information

Racial Traits

Ability Score Modifiers
+2 to any Ability Score and +1 to any other Ability Score

Size
Medium

Speed
25 ft

Darkvision
Accustomed to life underground, you have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can’t discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.

Dwarven Combat Training
You have proficiency with the battleaxe, handaxe, light hammer and warhammer.

Tool Proficiency
You gain proficiency with the artisan’s tools of your choice: smith’s tools, brewer’s supplies, or mason’s tools.

Stonecunning
Whenever you make an Intelligence (History) check related to the origin of stonework, you are considered proficient in the History skill and add double your proficiency bonus to the check, instead of your normal proficiency bonus.

Dwarfen Hatred
Advantage on attacks made against other Dwarfs

Helmvor's Curse
Helmvor's Curse grants the Exiled their trademark fiery apperance..

Shel's Dictum
Due to your corruption, you have resistance against shadow damage.

Physical Description

Exiled stand 4'0" to 4'8", but are unusually stout and strong, and as such typically weigh even more than humans. While there is no noticeable size difference between males and females, Exiled males can typically be identified by their well-maintained beards. Exiled skin typically ranges from a pitch black to a light grey, but they all have fire-red eyes. Most Exiled continue the Dwarfen practice of preferring simple hairstyles, and always well maintained.

Exiled Lands

While the Exiled are able to live in any area the Stoneborn Dwarfs live, they typically stick close to their mountain holds. Due to the heated animosity between the Stoneborn and the Exiled, the Exiled are generally unwelcome anywhere the Stoneborn are, and are usually met with at least suspicion if not outright aggression by most races. Those Exiled that do leave their mountain home are often emissaries, scouts or members of the Exiled Legion.

Lifespan

Exiled Dwarfs live to be roughly 400 years old, dependent on several factors. Dwarfs are physically fully mature at age 30, but their legendary beards do not fully grow in until around age 40. A common insult amongst the Exiled is to call someone "Beardless", meaning they are young and inexperienced. Males and females are roughly similar in size, and although females can grow beards as well, they are usually of a downish texture, and rarely reach the same length and size of a male.
The Exiled spend their childhoods under the administration of the State, with the education of Shel's Dictum's and philosophy clearly ingrained. At the age of 30 the Exiled are administered a series of aptitude tests, determining where they will be most useful to society. They then spend the next two decades with a mentor within their assigned order, until at the age of 50 they are considered to be full members of society.

Languages Spoken

Shelbar

Society

Social Structure

Unlike the Stoneborn, the lands of the Exiled are typically closely bunched together into provinces ruled by a governor, normally a member of the Exiled Legion or the Servants of the People. These governors then report to the Exiled Council, and then from there directly to Shel. Individual holds and outposts are normally led by a lower-ranking priest or member of the Legion, and manage day-to-day affairs. The daily life of the Exiled is tightly controlled by their Orders, and through them the state.

Economics and Trade

While individual Exiled have no predilection or use for gold, Exiled society has a strong focus on securing and accumulating resources. As such, their expansionist policy is usually the result of a desire to further their economic status. That being said, while Exiled society places no value on individual wealth, they do understand the nature of trade. As such, it is not uncommon to find members of the Trader's Order in cities friendly to the Exiled, trading gold for materials and resources needed for the hold. While this does grant the Trader's Order a higher social status than some of the others, it by no means holds the influence of a Stoneborn Guild.

Religion

While the Exiled do not deny the benefits the Church of Light and the Oathsworn have brought to Earedar, they would argue that those benefits have been allocated largely to the affluent and powerful. In addition, the membership of Helmvor as one of the Triumverate within the Oathsworn mythos all but bars the Exiled from membership. As such, the Church has never made significant inroads into Exiled religious practices, which is still almost entirely focused around the worship of Shel.
Shel's clergy, the Servants of the People, hold almost a complete stranglehold over all religious, political and economic power within Exiled society. The priests of Shel act as judge, jury, and in some cases executioner in administering the law. These laws are of course based almost entirely upon the Dictums of the Living God, which are memorized by Exiled at a very early age. In addition, the military arm of Shel, the Exiled Legion, forms both the most elite unit in the Exiled army and is responsible for the enforcement of Shel's laws. The appearance of a member of the Exiled Legion outside the home of an Exiled Dwarf is normally followed by a quiet disappearance, and that Dwarf is never seen again.
Shel is not the only deity recognized in the Exiled Pantheon however, as both Hevedra and Duma Soulrager both hold places of honor in the hearts of the Exiled. The clergy of Hevedra has a large influence over the Exiled in the Ministry of Truth. The Ministry of Truth functions as the eyes and ears of the government, encouraging people to report even minor infractions of Shel's laws from their comrades. Among the most effective information gatherers in Earedar, one can never be sure amongst the Exiled if a Truthspeaker or one of their assets is nearby.
The warriors that follow Duma Soulrager, the Bloodragers are just as revered amongst the Exiled as they are amongst the Stoneborn. While Duma is the daughter of both Helmvor and Hevedra, her neutrality during the Great Schism endeared her to the Exiled. Her worship is still relatively commonplace amongst the populace, and her teachings of enlightenment through death and service have been found to be compatible with the Dictums of the Living God. The Bloodragers are one of the few places in which Stoneborn and Exiled can still be found working side by side, and has been the catalyst of some of the few times they have worked together since the Great Schism, including the Siege of Dok Umbar.

Love

In accordance with the text of the 3rd Dictum, it has been declared by the Servants of the People that the concept of personal love is diametrically opposed to their own interests. As Shel has stated, "When you love your People above all, there can be no room for anything else." This has formed the backbone of the function of marriage within Exiled society, or the lack thereof. While this was certainty controversial at first, it has become an accepted practice. In modern Exiled society they are matched with a prospective mate by the Ministry of Health, based on compatibility factors and aptitude. After a brief introductory period they are granted permission to procreate, and after the birth the child is taken into the custody of the Ministry for "education". It is so that all Exiled children are raised.

Gender

Males and females enjoy more equality within Exiled society than in almost any other place in Earedar. Females are able to rise in clan leadership, join the clergy, fight as warriors, and anything else males can do. For the Exiled, the most important factor in advancement is the dedication to duty and the teachings of Shel.

Customs and Holidays

While the Exiled have abandoned most traditions inherited from their days as Stoneborn, there are a few that they still hold dear, and new ones that they have created. Some of the most important Exiled customs are listed below:
Exaltation of the Fallen
Festival of Lies
Oath of Exile
Some of the most important Exiled holidays are listed below:
Dwarven New Year
Tüvok's Day
Exile Day
The Exiled recognize the Ghiscari Calendar.

History

While the roots of the Great Schism can be found far back in Dwarfen history, it is with this event during the Age of Antiquity that the Exiled story truly begins. A mortal risen to divinity by Helmvor himself after his heroics during the war with the Vraekar Empire, Shel had been High King of the Stonelands during his mortal life. As such his worship quickly reached a fevered pitch in the centuries that followed. Priesthoods dedicated to Shel began to crop up throughout Dwarfen lands, and he was considered a primary member of the Dwarfen Pantheon.
As Shel spent the passing centuries in Heshbenor however, he became concerned with what he viewed as Helmvor's failure to address certain key issues that created massive amounts of inequality amongst the Stoneborn. Frustrated with his inability to solve what he viewed as a crisis, he went to Hevedra, the then wife of Helmvor. She listened to his concerns, long having been secretly looking for a reason to gain power within the Pantheon. Over time Hevedra used her power to poison Shel against Helmvor, culminating in a titanic clash between the them in the halls of Heshbenor. Despite the power of the two combined, they could not overwhelm Helmvor, and they fled Heshbenor for the safety of Earedar.
Over the following decades Shel walked amongst the clans themselves, spreading his vision of a better way for Dwarfenkind. Overtime he managed to convince several clans to follow his leadership, which greatly angered Helmvor, thus beginning the Great Schism. The war lasted for centuries, and caused great amounts of death and destruction across Dwarfen lands. Despite the savagery of the fighting, Helmvor ultimately came out victorious, and thus exiled Shel's followers, inflicting Helmvor's Curse upon them.
Despite the loss of their lands in the Stonelands, the Exiled still held control over several Dwarfen holds throughout Earedar, and it is from there that they began to plot their resurgence. In modern times the Exiled hold sway over large amounts of territory in the Blackspear Mountains and the Silveridge Mountains, as well as the Free Marches and the Menevarch Valley. While conflict still sometimes breaks out between small groups of the Stoneborn and the Exiled, for the most part an uneasy peace, enabled by distance, exists between them.

Additional Information

Diet

While the Exiled are omnivores similar to the Stoneborn, their typical diet is boiled or braised meats, cooked with little flair and very bland. They will typically add in any vegetables or forage that can be found in the local area, but very little focus is placed in Exiled society on culinary skill.

Reproduction

Dwarfs reproduce sexually, and pregnancy for a typical Dwarfen birth lasts 10 months. Dwarfs are not especially fertile and birthrates are low, with twins being extremely rare. Exiled Dwarfs are capable of reproducing with the following races:
Human
Stoneborn Dwarfs

Senses

The Exiled have Darkvision, able to see out to 60 feet in black and white. While corrupted, the Exiled are still attuned to the earth, and as such have an uncanny skill at spotting traps, hidden doors and other irregularities in stonework.

Typical Names

Dwarfen names usually contain hard consonants and are rarely more than two syllables. Dwarf's normally follow-up their birthname with that of their order, denotating social status, such as, "Gäelin, Of the Warrior's Order". A title might also replace that of an Order within an Exiled's name, such as "Ruklin, Truthspeaker".
Male Names
Durnan, Bamur, Malgan, Bailin, Rüror
Female Names
Agna, Iskgin, Maekli, Foürna, Yuldina
Order Names
Of the Trader's Order, Of the Exiled Legion, Truthspeaker, Of the Smith's Order

Origin/Ancestry

Dwarf

Lifespan

400 Years

Average Height

4'0" - 4'8"

Average Weight

200 - 240 lbs