Duergar
Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide
Duergar
The Duergar or Grey Dwarves live deep within The Underdark. Once thought to have been a race of dwarves, it is said that the duergar dug too deep and were warped by foul magic which turned them into the ash-skinned, greedy, hardhearted race of dwarves which exist today. The greed of the Duergar is a major driving force behind the goals of their Clans, they toil endlessly to dig out precious metals and gemstones and will take captives of other races and make slaves out of them to aid in their ambition, often working them to death to satiate their greed. They have the same appreciation for order and hierarchy in their society, but lack compassion for those of the lowest classes. Duergar love to fight and take great pride in dominating those they come across in the tunnels of The Underdark, they take people as slaves and capture beasts to be tamed so that they can fight alongside their master; Duergar pride themselves on taming the most dangerous beast they can as a show of their strength. Those who leave their subterranean cities tend to be exiles who have had enough of the harsh way of life in The Underdark, such adventures can be found spread out across all of Midasfjall.
ability score increase:
Your Constitution score increases by 2 and your Strength score increases by 1.
age:
Living in the Underdark has had a negative impact on the longevity of the Duergar. They still mature at the same rate as humans but are considered young until they turn 30 and live to be 250 years old on average..
alignment:
Duergar are greedy and value material possession above all, however they obey the laws of their Clan and stick to hierarchy with a zeal that matches that of their mountain and hill dwarf cousins. As such most Duergar are lawful evil.
Size:
Medium
speed:
25ft (not reduced while wearing heavy armour)
Languages:
You can speak, read, and write Common, Undercommon and Dwarvish.
race features:
- Superior Darkvision. You can see in dim light within 120 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 Resilience. You have advantage on saving throws against poison, and you have resistance against poison damage.
- 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.
- Duergar Resilience. You have advantage on saving throws against illusions and against being charmed or paralyzed.
- Duergar Magic. When you reach 3rd level, you can cast the Enlarge/Reduce spell on yourself once with this trait, using only the spell's enlarge option. When you reach 5th level, you can cast the Invisibility spell on yourself once with this trait. You don't need material components for either spell, and you can't cast them while you're in direct sunlight, although sunlight has no effect on them once cast. You regain the ability to cast these spells with this trait when you finish a long rest. Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for these spells.
- Sunlight Sensitivity. You have disadvantage on Attack rolls and Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight when you, the target of your attack, or whatever you are trying to perceive is in direct sunlig
Physically similar to other dwarves in some ways, the long time spend in the Underdark has twisted these dwarves into a different species almost entirely. They are wiry and lean with deep black eyes, bald heads and unkempt beards of white or grey colouration.
Genetic Ancestor(s)
Geographic Distribution
Comments