Dwarf
For more information on all races, see: Ancestries & Races
“The anvil is hard so that it can help shape the blade. If life were easy, we would all be soft and misshapen shards of metal, tossed into a bin.”
Stalwart, proud, and shaped by the weight of rock and tradition, dwarves are a race bound by ancient legacies and rigid hierarchies. Living deep beneath the earth in mighty fortress-cities, dwarves are masters of craftsmanship, history, and endurance. Their society is defined by a complex caste system, reverence for ancestral memory, and a near-religious bond with the living Stone that surrounds and shelters them. To be dwarven is to carry the weight of one's forebears, to honor the unyielding order of the deep, and to endure—unyielding and unbroken—through the rise and fall of empires above.
Physical Description
Dwarves are short, stocky humanoids with broad shoulders and strong builds. Their skin ranges from pale to deep tan, often weathered by their subterranean life. They have thick, muscular arms and sturdy legs, built for hard labor and endurance, and stand about a foot shorter than the average human. Dwarven faces are often square-jawed with prominent brows and deep-set eyes, reflecting the rugged environments they inhabit. Their hair is typically thick and grows long, though some dwarves choose to adopt shaven or stylized hairstyles.
As one of their most iconic features, dwarven beards are more than just a physical trait—they are symbolic and deeply tied to identity, status, and honor. Some dwarves see the growth and grooming of a beard as a spiritual journey in itself, tied to their connection to the earth around them. A long, well-maintained beard signifies wisdom, experience, or noble status. A braided beard may indicate strength or martial prowess, while a neatly trimmed beard might indicate a more scholarly or artisan role. Beard rings, or certain ornamental jewelry in the beard, mark achievements or milestones, such as marriage, victories in battle, or religious devotion. Clean-shaven dwarves are a rarity and are viewed with distaste. Shaving one's beard completely is seen as a drastic act of renouncing one’s dwarven identity. Young dwarves are encouraged to earn their beard through significant deeds. A common tradition is to hold a coming-of-age ritual where a young dwarf’s beard is first braided or adorned with symbolic rings after a heroic act, symbolizing their transition into adulthood.
While male dwarves take pride in their beards, for female dwarves, it is the hair atop their heads that carries the weight of culture. Growing long, thick, and often incredibly resilient over time, a dwarven woman’s hair is a visible testament to her endurance, lineage, and craft. It is often braided in intricate patterns—each style unique to one’s clan, caste, or even personal milestones. Some styles are utilitarian, designed to stay out of the way during labor or battle, while others are ceremonial, worn only for sacred observances or familial rites. Hair jewelry—pins, clasps, rings, and chains made of precious metals or engraved stone—are added to these hairstyles not merely for beauty but for symbolic meaning. A clasp carved in the image of a family’s crest or a pin passed down from grandmother to granddaughter may hold more weight than any gemstone. In many ways, the culture around female hair mirrors that of male beards—both are woven with pride and meaning. But where beards often speak of strength and history in action, a dwarven woman’s hair more often speaks of endurance and the quiet strength of continuity.
Culture
Dwarves are lovers of history and tradition, and their long lifespan leads to far less in the way of generational shifts in attitudes, styles, fashions, and trends than shorter-lived races exhibit. If a thing is not broken, they do not fix it or change it; and if it is broken, they fix it rather than replace it. Thrifty as a rule, dwarves are loath to discard anything unless it is truly ruined and unable to be fixed. At the same time, dwarves' meticulous, near-obsessive attention to detail and durability in their craftsmanship makes that a rare occurrence, as the things they make are built to last. As a result, buildings, artwork, tools, housewares, garments, weapons, and virtually everything else made by dwarves still sees regular use at an age when such items would be relegated to museum pieces, dusty antique shelves, or junkyard fodder by other races. Taken together, these traits create the impression that dwarves are a race frozen in time. Nothing could be further from the truth, however, as dwarves are both thoughtful and imaginative, willing to experiment, if always keen to refine and perfect a new technique or product before moving on to the next one. Dwarves have achieved feats of metallurgy, stonework, and engineering that have consistently outpaced the technological advances of other races, though some non-dwarven races have used magic to supplement and perfect their own creations to achieve the same ends through mystical rather than mundane means. They are also a race typified by stubborn courage and dedication to seeing tasks through to completion, whatever the risks.
Faith & Religion
Unlike many surface-dwelling cultures, the majority of dwarves do not worship anthropomorphic deities. Instead, their beliefs center on reverence for the Stone—a living, eternal presence that cradles their civilization. To dwarves, the Stone is not simply the rock that surrounds them; it is their origin, their shelter, their judge. They consider themselves her children, bound to her by blood, heritage, and soul. They offer her respect, gratitude, and even fear, believing she provides for them while holding the power to cast them out. Spirituality among dwarves is also deeply tied to ancestral legacy. A dwarf who lives honorably and dies nobly is believed to strengthen the Stone, becoming one with the ancestral presence within it. Conversely, those who live in disgrace or shame are thought to weaken the Stone and are rejected by it in death—cut off from legacy and memory. This belief extends to casteless and surface-dwelling dwarves, who are often viewed as having been forsaken by the Stone.A widespread institution known as the Engravery serves as a kind of secular church for the Stone—responsible not for divine worship, but for the sacred task of recording dwarven history, lore, and lineage within the living memory of the Stone. The Engravery has a presence in almost every dwarven settlement, where they chronicle births, deaths, marriages, treaties, and significant events, and carve them into the Memories—a collective repository for all dwarvenkind that every Engravery contributes to. Local thaigs maintain their own Walls of Memory, allowing dwarves of any caste to access vital records relevant to their communities.
Alcohol
Alcohol is more than mere sustenance or indulgence among dwarves—it is a cornerstone of their social fabric, craftsmanship, and even spirituality. What began as a practical necessity—securing safe drinking water in the depths of the earth—evolved into an ancient craft, revered nearly as highly as smithing and stonemasonry. Dwarves do not merely drink; they honor their ancestors with every crafted brew, considering the fermentation process itself a "gift coaxed from the Stone", just as metal and gems are. Innovation in brewing is rare, as tradition rules supreme. The greatest brewers are judged not by how inventive their recipes are, but how faithfully they preserve the ancestral methods. Minor variations are allowed—and hotly debated—but true change is often seen as reckless and disrespectful.Importantly, social status is reflected in drink. The casteless, should they ever scrape together enough means to brew their own, are often forced to settle for crude and dangerous moonshine, while noble clans might boast private distilleries where barrels age for centuries. Each caste specializes differently: warrior clans tend toward hearty ales and smoky spirits meant to warm and invigorate before battle, while artisan clans might favor rich meads or intricately aged whiskeys, each barrel lovingly engraved with runes recording its lineage and history. Even the ingredients for brewing are chosen with immense care—crops tended in carefully curated underground fields or cavern orchards, making every ingredient as "part of the Stone" as the dwarves themselves. Dwarven brews are crafted from hardy plants nurtured by geothermal heat, rich cavern soils, or symbiotic fungi—surface grains, fruits, and hops are rare curiosities to a dwarven brewmaster. Even dwarven fermentation methods follow age-old traditions, as some clans have cultivated yeast strains that have been passed down for generations.
Contrary to expectations, there is a certain degree of pomp and circumstance surrounding dwarven alcohol culture. For example, formal agreements are often sealed with a shared drink, with the specific brew chosen carefully to symbolize the nature of the pact—stouts for strength and endurance, sweet ciders for kinship, harsh liquors for oaths of vengeance. When an important event occurs—a marriage, the forging of a masterpiece weapon, the declaration of a Paragon—it is commemorated with a ceremonial first pour, an offering of the best vintage poured onto the ground to seep back into the Stone, thanking it for its blessings. Alcohol is also deeply tied to mourning and remembrance. At funerals, dwarves partake in a memorial toast, drinking to the deeds of the dead and telling stories of their achievements, sometimes for days. This practice is viewed as strengthening both the Stone and the Memories, ensuring that the deceased’s life is honored and remembered properly. Because the dwarves live in a rigid, highly structured society, drunkenness is viewed differently than it is among surface races. Public drunkenness is tolerated only during festivals or funerary observances; otherwise, losing control is seen as disgraceful and disrespectful to one’s ancestors. Drinking is about endurance, not excess. Dwarves are notoriously hard to outdrink: they can endure hours of heavy drinking without slurring a word or losing their discipline, a fact they wear as a badge of honor.
Society
Whether or not the dwarven claim that they've been carved from the world's stone is true, dwarves share many qualities considered similar to the earth they live under. Strong, hardy, and dependable, dwarves are respectful to elders, and possess a wisdom beyond that of many other races. Dwarves value their traditions regardless of where they come from, and look for inspiration from ancestral heroes. Dwarves are also known for their stubborn nature and cynicism, traits widespread amongst the dwarves but which contribute to and are commonly offset by their bravery and tenacity.
Castes
The dwarven caste system is a deeply entrenched and complex hierarchy, with social status inherited and reinforced over centuries of history. At its base lie the casteless—derisively called slags—dwarves whose clans have been struck from the Memories by the Engravery for crimes or dishonor, either of their own doing or that of an ancestor. Without a recorded lineage, these dwarves are not considered true members of society. They cannot hold recognized work, defend their honor through the courts, or serve in the military. Most are confined to menial labor or left to survive on the margins of dwarven settlements. All casteless dwarves living within the cities are branded on the cheek with a mark denoting their status, visible and unmistakable to all. Dwarves born on the surface or exiled to it are also considered casteless by default, though a growing number of surface-dwelling dwarves from higher castes has begun to blur this line. For many deep-dwellers, the surface remains a strange and superstitious place, feared for its open sky and myths of falling suns—places a "true" dwarf can only tread with special permission granted by their government during times of war or necessity.Above the casteless lies a rigidly structured order: servants at the base, then merchants, miners, artisans, smiths, warriors, and finally nobles at the peak. Social mobility is rare and hard-won; although a dwarf may improve their caste through extraordinary deeds, marriage, or siring children with someone of higher status, such changes are often met with suspicion or scorn by the elite, who deride them as “up-jumped". Caste is inherited through the same-sex parent—sons from their fathers, daughters from their mothers. This rigid inheritance maintains the status quo and ensures that, for most dwarves, their place in society is determined from birth and reinforced by tradition, law, and religion.
Clans
Most dwarven societies are divided into clans built along family ties and political allegiances. These clans are usually led by hereditary rulers descended from the founder of the clan. Dwarves strongly value loyalty to these rulers and to the clan as a whole, and even objective dwarves tend to side primarily with their kin over other races or communities. Historically, these clan structures have promoted a tradition of inbreeding, though this is one of the few dying traditions as it is considered a reason for the dwarves' low birth rate. Due to their rigid caste system, each clan exclusively identifies with the role their caste fulfills. Casteless may join a clan through petition, marriage, or recognition, but these requests are often ignored.For most clans, rather than diversifying their skill sets, they devote themselves wholly to their specific craft or profession—be it blacksmithing, service, mining, or battle. This intense specialization has driven dwarven craftsmanship to legendary heights, but it comes at a cost: many clans risk becoming insular and overly narrow in focus, struggling to adapt when needs shift or resources dwindle.
Forming a new clan in dwarven society is both rare and immensely difficult. Most dwarves place great value on ancient bloodlines and centuries of tradition, preferring to associate with established clans that carry generations of honor, skill, and reputation. A newly founded, or “green” clan, often struggles for legitimacy, viewed with suspicion or even derision. While any dwarf may attempt to form a clan, gaining broad social recognition is another matter entirely. The only universally accepted and highly respected path to founding a new clan is to be named a Paragon—a title reserved for dwarves who have accomplished deeds of such greatness that they are revered within their own lifetime. A Paragon is elevated to the noble caste and granted the right to establish a noble clan of their own, a legacy that may stand beside the most storied lineages in dwarven memory.
Clan Daggers
Common in dwarven society, clan daggers are crucial symbols of personhood. Each dwarf receives a unique dagger at birth or adolescence, forged once their pregnancy is announced. While the dagger is unique to its dwarf, each is set with a gemstone unique to their clan and engraved with carvings reflecting the caste the dwarf was born into. The gemstone of a clan is established during its founding and is a constant marker across generations. A ceremony called the Welcoming, held 10 days after birth, involves the setting of the gemstone, led by the oldest living clan member. The gem remains with the dwarf until they leave the clan, whether by adoption, marriage, banishment, or death. If a dwarf changes clans through adoption or betrothal, the gem is removed during a ceremony known as the Farewell and replaced with a gem from their new clan in another Welcoming ceremony. The emotional toll of a Farewell ceremony is so great that it has resulted in adoptions and marriages being cancelled before the ceremony can be completed. Losing or selling a clan dagger is seen as deeply shameful. The dwarven slur of "empty sheathed" suggests the recipient of such an insult is lacking so much in honor or responsibility that they have lost or discarded their clan dagger. Though rare, non-dwarves can become honorary members of a clan and receive a clan dagger, but are typically excluded from Welcoming and Farewell ceremonies.Naming Traditions
A dwarf's name is granted by a clan elder, in accordance with tradition. Every proper dwarven name has been used and reused down through the generations. A dwarf's name belongs to the clan, not to the individual. A dwarf who misuses or brings shame to a clan name is stripped of the name and forbidden by law to use any dwarven name in its place.Male Names: Dolgrin, Grunyar, Harsk, Kazmuk, Morgrym, Rogar
Female Names: Agna, Bodill, Ingra, Kotri, Rusilka, Yangrit
Government & Law
Dwarven government varies widely across the halls and holdfasts of their people, with each civilization shaping its systems of rule according to its own traditions, needs, and environments. Some remote thaigs have developed eccentric or even anarchic models of governance—merchant councils, rotating elderships, or warrior-led communes—while others have discarded the ancient caste system entirely in favor of more egalitarian ideals. Yet despite this diversity, the vast majority of dwarven strongholds have aligned themselves with the League of Thaigs, a powerful federation of dwarven city-states bound together by shared heritage, trade, and defense. At its heart stands the Assembly, a deliberative council composed of representatives from each member thaig, and above it, a monarch elected and sworn to serve the League as a whole. While each thaig retains sovereignty within its borders, all pledge loyalty to the Assembly’s decrees and recognize the monarch as the living embodiment of dwarven unity and resilience.By and large, dwarves who dwell upon the surface abide by the laws and customs of the lands they inhabit, integrating into mixed settlements with a steadfast commitment to order and craftsmanship. However, those who hail from the deep thaigs below often carry with them the weight of ancient traditions, personal codes of honor, and deep-seated prejudices born from centuries of insular culture. While they may respect the governance of surface nations, many still hold to internal oaths and moral frameworks shaped by the deep roads. This duality often creates a quiet tension—surface dwarves walking a line between the world they now serve and the world that forged them.
Commerce & Trade
Dwarves do not see raw wealth—gold, silver, and gemstones—as an end in itself. To them, these resources are mere potential until shaped by skillful hands. Rather than flood markets with raw materials, dwarves hoard precious metals and stones to transform them into tools, weapons, heirlooms, and works of art that embody generations of craftsmanship. A masterfully forged axe, a perfectly balanced chisel, or an exquisitely detailed reliquary holds far more prestige than unworked gold ever could. These finished creations, when traded with outsiders, fetch extraordinary prices not because of the material alone, but because of the craft imbued within. Among dwarves, wealth is measured not by what one owns, but by what one creates. The most honored artisans are celebrated like nobles, their works preserving the glory of their clan in a way simple hoards never could.Culturally, dwarves believe that the Stone disapproves of those who hoard wealth. Greed is a slow poison, corroding loyalty to family, craft, and thaig. Tales of dwarves corrupted by avarice are common in the Memories, serving as moral lessons about the dangers of forgetting one’s duty to the Stone. As a result, ostentatious displays of wealth are rare and often frowned upon. Most dwarves, even those of noble blood, live with spartan practicality, investing their labor into improving their thaig or elevating their craft rather than adorning themselves with riches. A dwarf’s true value lies in the strength of their work, the loyalty of their kin, and the honor they bring to their ancestors—not in the glitter of gold hidden in vaults. True prosperity is seen not as wealth hoarded, but wealth well-used.
Settlements & Architecture
Dwarven cities are breathtaking marvels of subterranean design, carved directly into the bones of the earth. More than mere settlements, they are eternal monuments to craftsmanship, endurance, and order. A city is not built in the traditional sense; it is sculpted from living rock, its sweeping halls, towering columns, and arched vaults etched out with masterful precision and enduring magic. Every stone is placed with intent. Every chamber echoes purpose. Nothing is ever temporary.The most striking feature of a dwarven city is its verticality. Many cities descend for miles, with massive chasms, spiral staircases, and terraced districts clinging to cliff walls like tiered hives. Entire quarters may hang suspended by ancient chains of unbreakable alloy, swaying slightly with deep tremors. Light is often provided by glowing veins of magically-infused ore, molten lava, or carefully enchanted lanterns, casting a warm, coppery glow that mimics firelight and makes the stone gleam like bronze or gold. Public works and fortifications are seamlessly integrated into the city's natural geology. There are no sharp divisions between military and civic space—defensible bottlenecks, armored bridges, and stonefall traps lie hidden in plain sight. In dwarven thought, a wall is never just a wall—it is shield, stage, and scripture. Walls are often engraved with elaborate historical reliefs, family lineages, or excerpts from the Memories, turning entire districts into walking records of their people’s triumphs and sorrows.
Caste influences design heavily. Noble halls rise higher than others, often situated above flowing mineral-rich springs or grand central spires, while lower castes cluster near mines, forges, and foundries. The Engravery maintains great halls of lore—vast, quiet spaces lined with etched walls, where dwarves can come and contemplate the past in silence. Even temples are uncommon in the traditional sense; faith is embedded in function. A forgehall or archive is as sacred as any chapel.
Water management, vital to life in the Blackreach, is considered a sacred engineering art. Cities are webbed with intricate systems of cisterns, waterfalls, and aqueducts that siphon natural water from underground reservoirs, often hidden beneath polished stone, that provide not only drinking water but power for machinery and ventilation. These lifelines are often guarded with almost fanatical devotion.
For all their grandeur, dwarven cities often feel isolating and somber to outsiders. A heavy silence hangs in the air, broken only by the deep, rhythmic pulses of the thaig markers—like the ticking of a vast subterranean clock. The sense of order is unwavering, and the stone itself feels as though it is closing in. Surface dwellers often find the sense of time and direction disorienting; entire cycles pass without light or change, and some halls are so ancient and sealed-off that even the dwarves have forgotten what lies beyond—but for the dwarves, this is home. A testament. A cradle and a tomb. It is not merely where they live—it is who they are—and to walk its halls is to tread in the footsteps of millennia.
Transportation
In cities where open lava still flows, the dwarves have created thermocurrent ferries—slab-like craft made from heat-resistant mithral that float on the slow-moving lava. Dwarves ride these currents from forge-to-forge or to outposts stationed deep in volcanic chambers, wearing armor designed to endure the searing heat. These are dangerous but immensely respected routes, and only the most seasoned dwarves are trusted to maintain and operate them.Every method of underground travel must contend with the threats of the deep: cave-ins, collapses, predators, and worse. For this reason, caravans are always armed, and dedicated tunnel guards—often equipped with lanterns of ever-burning coal and seismic monitoring crystals—ride alongside. When traveling the deep roads, the dwarves often rely on beasts of burden bred specifically for the Blackreach. Chief among them are the drathen—massive, six-legged, blind reptiles that resemble a cross between a salamander and a rhinoceros. Their thick, stone-like scales make them nearly impervious to heat and abrasion, and their powerful claws allow them to traverse uneven or vertical surfaces with ease. Drathen are calm and intelligent creatures, trained from birth to recognize the resonant frequencies of thaig markers—enormous hammers that rhythmically strike the earth, sending out deep vibrations that travel for miles. These seismic signals allow drathen to navigate the tunnel networks without the need for sight. Specialized wagons are constructed with heavy enchantments and counterweighted suspensions to allow long-distance, cargo-heavy transport via drathen teams. Other thaigs closer to lakes of molten rock may use domesticated ash gliders—bat-like creatures with broad wings and heat-resistant hides that ferry messages or lightweight materials across vent-shafts and chasms. While not strong enough for combat or heavy lifting, they serve as swift messengers between distant enclaves.
Drathen and ash gliders command nowhere near the same begrudging respect as the mjolgat—a creature every bit as ornery and stubborn as the dwarves who rear them. With a nose for gold and iron sharper than any pickaxe, mjolgats are prized companions in mining clans, trained from birth to sniff out buried veins of ore where maps and magic fail. Entire expeditions hinge on a mjolgat’s snuffling judgment, and it's said that a mjolgat’s sneeze has founded more than one dwarven settlement. Their fearsome appearance—broad bone crests like anvils, twisted horns, and low-slung boar-like bodies—makes them seem forged from the mountain itself. Yet for all their utility, mjolgats are foul-tempered beasts that shriek like banshees when threatened, driving off predators and rattling eardrums alike. Only the hardiest of dwarves dare ride them, and even then with earplugs firmly wedged in place. Still, to walk beside a mjolgat is to walk with fortune—if you can endure the noise.
Magic Traditions
Though dwarves are among the most accomplished craftsmen and runesmiths in the world, they have historically lagged behind in arcane pursuits. For much of their existence, dwarves lived deep below the earth, cut off from the stars, seasons, and celestial alignments that inform traditional arcane study. Without access to the heavens, they lacked the fundamental observations that gave rise to arcane theory among surface-dwelling peoples. As such, arcane magic is viewed with suspicion—or outright disdain—by many dwarves, dismissed derisively as “elf magic” or a distraction from proper tradition. Only in more recent generations, with the advent of dwarven skywatchers and imported star charts, has arcane scholarship begun to develop within their thaigs. Even so, it remains incredibly niche, and the overwhelming majority of dwarves prefer more rooted forms of magic.Unlike their underground counterparts, surface dwarves have greater exposure to arcane magic. While many still hold biases against "elf magic," the younger generations—those raised beneath stars rather than stone—are far more curious. Surface dwarves are among the first of their kind to seriously pursue wizardry, astrology, and magical theory. As a result, some have become magical artisans: enchanting tools, constructing golems, or establishing guilds of rune-casters and artificers that blend dwarven skill with arcane precision.
The most respected and widespread magical traditions among dwarves are divine and primal magic, which are fundamentally different but in the dwarven faith, principally similar in practice. Deep attunement to the rhythms of the earth, geothermal currents, and Leylines gives rise to a unique brand of dwarven druidism—one less focused on flora and fauna, and more concerned with stone, pressure, lava flows, and subterranean spirits. Dwarven primalists often speak of the Stone not as an abstract philosophy, but as a literal force of life and will, communed with through meditation with the Leylines. Dwarves of the clergy share similar beliefs as dwarven primalists, but mainly differ in that their power is not drawn from the Leylines, but from prayer, worship, and oaths.
Dwarves are also renowned enchanters, particularly in the field of craftsmanship. Their enchanting techniques are steeped in occult traditions, tapping into the hidden power of belief and ancestral memory. By forging items with symbolic meaning and aligning them with stories, lineages, and the shared subconscious of their people—anchored in the mirrored dream-realms of Nagotha and Phylostea—they create artifacts that are more than just magical: they are recalled into power. A master dwarven enchantment is a thing of legacy, reinforced by centuries of belief and history.
Relations
Dwarven friendship is hard to earn, but is strong once won. Naturally dour and suspicious, the stout folk are slow to trust others, specifically those outside their clans, suspecting the worst of an individual until the outsider has proved their good will many times. Once this trust is gained, dwarves hold their friends to it and view betrayals, even minor ones, with a vicious propensity for vengeance. A common gnomish oath, remarking on this dwarven sense of justice, is "If I'm lying, may I cross a dwarf". For dwarves, loyalty is more than a word and they feel that it should be both valued and rewarded. Dwarves believe it a gift and mark of respect to stand beside a friend in combat, and an even deeper one to protect that ally from harm. Many dwarven tales subsequently revolve around the sacrifice of dwarves for their friends and family. Just as dwarves are known for their dependability as friends and allies, dwarves also harbor grudges far longer than many other races. This might be on an individual basis between a dwarf and one who has wronged them, or against entire races, even if warfare with the enemy has long since ceased.
Despite their lower numbers above ground, dwarves of the Blackreach maintain a firm presence in global affairs—whether through mastery of craft, mercantile guilds, or diplomatic envoys. Their influence may not always be loud, but it is deeply entrenched in the infrastructure, trade, and politics of the wider world.
Outsiders can be allowed into dwarven cities—but such permission is not given lightly and is often laden with conditions, scrutiny, and unspoken boundaries. Merchants, diplomats, scholars, or adventurers may be granted entry, particularly if: they have business with a League-affiliated thaig's Assembly or the noble clans, they are invited under the protection or sponsorship of a specific clan, or they possess rare goods, knowledge, or skills valued by the dwarves. Even when permitted entry, outsiders are usually confined to specific districts—often trade halls, surface quarters, or neutral plazas—and are monitored closely by guards. Few non-dwarves ever see the deeper levels of a thaig, the true heart of dwarven culture. Those who do are either honored guests or prisoners.
Astral Elves
TEXTGnomes
TEXTHumans
TEXTMoon Elves
TEXTOreads
TEXTSun Elves
TEXTSurface Dwarves
While dwarves remain a predominantly subterranean people—with nearly four-fifths of their population still dwelling in the great thaigs beneath the earth—they are not unheard of on the surface. Surface dwarves make up a distinct but visible minority, found in major cities, trade hubs, and distant colonies. Though their roots remain tied to the subterranean traditions of their ancestors, surface dwarves have evolved a culture both unique and adaptive, often bridging the two worlds.For surface-born dwarves, the deep halls of ancient thaigs are stories more than memories—tales told by grandparents or etched into family keepsakes. Some revere their heritage with fervent pride, others with vague disinterest. Few, however, are untouched by it. Surface dwarves often preserve core dwarven values: family bonds, craftsmanship, and communal loyalty, but adapt them to the world around them. Instead of stone halls, they build in thick timber and carved brick; instead of mining veins of ore, many take up roles as master blacksmiths, stonemasons, or engineers in bustling towns. Living among other races has made surface dwarves more open to external influence—if not welcoming, then at least pragmatic. Many adopt local languages, dress in mixed fashion, and even intermarry with other races. This has earned them mixed reputations among their subterranean kin, who often view surface dwarves as diluted or “softened", but surface dwarves are no less dwarven in spirit; they simply temper their traditions with the needs of a changing world. Religion, too, shifts on the surface. While many surface dwarves still attempt to honor the Stone or their ancestors, others find solace in gods of agriculture, trade, or invention. Some reinterpret old beliefs: viewing the Stone not as the literal bedrock below, but as the enduring truth of community and craftsmanship in any form.
Most surface dwarves live in tightly-knit communities, often called holdings or stead-clans, located on hills, cliffsides, or near quarries and trade roads. A single holding might house three or four major families, all tied through shared labor, defense, and governance. These settlements emphasize cooperative independence—they often trade with nearby cities but prefer to manage their own internal affairs. Surface dwarves tend to build downward when possible, carving cellars and subterranean levels beneath otherwise normal surface buildings—a quiet homage to their ancestral ways. Even in cities, dwarves frequently inhabit stone-wrought quarters beneath guildhalls or market districts, their homes filled with hearth altars, ancestral relics, and walls etched with family histories.
In more remote regions or among rural peasantry, it is not uncommon for someone to have never met a dwarf in person, but any who have set foot in a capital or crossed a well-traveled trade road have likely encountered at least one. Most surface dwarves can trace their lineage back to exiles, migrants, or clans who left the deep halls generations ago.
Relations between surface and underground dwarves vary—some underground dwarves see their surface cousins as estranged kin, misguided but salvageable, while others treat them as apostates who have forsaken the Stone. On the surface, many dwarves view their underground brethren as rigid and joyless, bound by old grudges and unchanging hierarchies. Still, when dwarven blood is threatened, surface and subterranean dwarves begrudgingly stand side by side in defense of their race.
Surki
TEXTWood Elves
TEXTAdventurers
In dwarven society, leaving the thaig and setting foot upon the surface is no small matter—it is a symbolic and often literal severing from one’s caste, clan, and the Stone itself. Yet, there are those rare dwarves who turn from the deep halls of home and walk willingly into exile. Some do so out of desperation—casteless slags who have nothing to lose and no future beneath the mountains. Others are exiled for crimes or disgrace, their names struck from the Memories, leaving them little choice but to forge new paths above. Yet not all who leave do so in shame. A dwarf might seek the surface for a higher purpose: to recover ancient relics, prove their worth through legendary deeds, or pursue a calling that dwarven tradition cannot satisfy. Others may be driven by curiosity, ambition, or a desire to challenge the rigid roles of their birth. And in rare, somber cases, a dwarf is granted temporary grace to tread the surface in service to the thaig—scouting threats, seeking allies, or retrieving lost kin.
Over time, some dwarves abroad begin to shift—becoming more expressive, looser with tradition, and more open to foreign ways. The surface changes them, little by little, but even those who adapt remain shaped by the weight of stone in their blood. Whether they wander for a lifetime or seek one day to return, they carry the deep with them in voice, in manner, and in memory. Most dwarves who depart voluntarily, by choice or by writ, bring with them a sacred token: a stone fragment hewn from the very walls of their home thaig. It is more than a memento—it is a living link to the Stone, treated with reverence and tended with quiet devotion. Many wrap it in cloth, keep it in a carved reliquary, or wear it upon a cord close to the heart. It is their anchor, their reminder, their burden—for in the eyes of their people, a dwarf who leaves home walks not just beyond the gate, but beyond the Stone’s embrace.
Table of Contents
General Information
Maturity
Childhood: 0 - 20 yearsYoung Adulthood: 20 - 50 years
Mature Adulthood: 50 - 250 years
Elderhood: 250 - 400 years
Average Lifespan
350 yearsAverage Height
3 ft. 11 in. – 4 ft. 5 in.Average Weight
160 – 200 lbs.Homeland(s)
The League of ThaigsLanguage(s)
Common, DwarvenPathfinder 1e Stat Block
Dwarf - Pathfinder 1e Stat Block
Pathfinder 2e Stat Block
Dwarf - Pathfinder 2e Stat Block
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