Dwarf

The dwarves of Godweave, at a glance, are indistinguishable from dwarves elsewhere in the Multiverse - proud, stubborn, tenacious folk who live under the earth in tight-knit dwarven clans. However, one major difference colors the lives of these dwarves - if they die a dishonorable death out of combat, their soul, regardless of their deity, is bound for the sickening swamp of The Nocnitsa, where they will sink in morass until they use it - typically to create some sort of undead. In order to avoid this, dwarves have formed one of the most honor-bound societies on the planet. Every dwarf is trained extensively in the use of weapons, and while military service is not mandatory, it is one of the most sought-after positions in a dwarven clan. Dwarves don't see this arrangement as unfair - they view their call to die an honorable death in combat with their foes as a divine incentive, one that will make their eternity in the afterlife of their god all the sweeter. Dwarf adventurers are relatively uncommon, as the chance of death by accident and eternal dammnation skyrockets outside of the safety of their halls. Dwarf adventurers are typically exiles, on a specific quest, or outliers, displeased with their lives within the clan.

Subraces

Hill Dwarf

Visually, there is no distinction between hill and mountain dwarves in Godweave. They live in the same spaces and in the same clans. However, a dwarf's role in the clan is often influenced by their subrace, as it helps determine where they will best serve the clan's best interest. Hill dwarves are therefore often the clerics of the dwarves, maintaining dwarven temples and keeping their flock in line.
Alignment: Hill dwarves tend towards lawful good and lawful neutral alignments, as befits their roles as administrators and guiders of their clans. Hill dwarves of other alignments typically serve non-traditional dwarven gods and are thus usually exiles, whether by choice or by force.
Deities: Hill dwarves are drawn to the worship of Vadin, due to his role as chief of the Northern Pantheon and prophetic abilities, and Thani, due to his emphasis on honorable combat and striking down evil. Thani is by far the most common god in dwarven society.
Homeland: Hill dwarves typically live with their mountain dwarf kin in one of the dwarven citadels in Dwarven Lands, situated in the northern mountains of the Northern Realms.

Mountain Dwarf

If hill dwarves are predisposed to be the clerics and administrators of the dwarven people, mountain dwarves serve as foot soldiers. They don't innately serve a lower role in society, but they tend to be far more active in their pursuit of honorable deaths, signing up for the dwarven military and guard positions.
Alignment: Mountain dwarves tend towards lawful good or neutral, as typical soldiers in the service of their clans.
Deities: Mountain dwarves in militaristic roles almost exclusively serve Thani, chanting his name before and during battles to beg his aid in overcoming their foes. Mountain dwarves that serve roles as crafters worship Hrotha instead.
Homeland: Mountain dwarves live with the hill dwarves as described above, but are more common further out, guarding surface settlements that grow their food and making preemptive strikes against dwarven enemies.

Duergar

Duergar are the most unusual, and the most uncommon, of the dwarven subraces. At the dawn of the world, the dwarves of Clan Duergar were unhappy with their cosmic burden to die with honor. In search of release from their unchosen fate, their leaders tunneled ever deeper, and turned to more and more wicked allies. Eventually, they allied themselves with Asmodeus, the Lord of the Nine Hells. Duergar souls, he decreed, would be freed from the need to die with honor to escape The Nocnitsa - so long as they worshipped him instead. He also bestowed them with power, to better further the ends of the Hells on the material plane. Because of this betrayal of the gods, the dwarves drove their kinsmen deep into the earth, and resentment has simmered between them ever since. The dwarves view the duergar as cowards and dishonorable traitors, while the duergar view the dwarves as weak-willed fools, unable and unwilling to break their own bonds. A duergar who turns from the worship of Asmodeus is subject to hatred from both their kinsmen and the dwarves, but the fate of their souls after this breach in their contract is uncertain. These are the duergar most likely to join adventuring parties.
Alignment: Duergar who worship Asmodeus are lawful evil. The odd renegade or heretic can be of any alignment, but tend towards lawful.
Deities: Duergar worship Asmodeus, who lacks the power to create clerics. Thus, warlocks of Asmodeus and devils from the Hells serve as their clergy.
Homeland: Duergar settlements resemble dwarven ones, but exist far deeper in the earth, nestled in impossibly deep chasms. Unlike other dwarves, a duregar might live and die without seeing the sky.

Geographic Distribution

• Northern Realms

Related Organizations

• Dwarven Lands