Dwarven Faceplate

Dwarven faceplates are a type of armour and helmet commonly seen inside the holds in the Northern Reaches, though they have spread following the paths of refugees from the lost keeps, primarily south towards The Crucible and Eastern Cliffs.
Dwarven faceplates are solid metal plates, curved outwards to create a hollow semi-cylinder which when merged with a helmet or held on by leather harnessing covers the face of the wearer. The outer surface is then carved, generally to resemble a face, with eye holes which may or may not have glass lenses. Originally faceplates are believed to have been in use in mining, that older faces used leather hoods to create an air-tight seal with the wearer's armour in order to either allow for mining in toxic air or to prevent the use of chemical weapons during sieges. Whilst many modern plates still have lenses in them, the idea of maintain a hermetic suit is both seen as useless and heedlessly expensive, though some alchemists swear by them though the often do not care for the items origin.



The other believed reason for their existence is religious. Dwarven culture may not have much in the way of direct religious influence other than general fear of the Worldshaper's wraith, but their reliance on long-lasting materials imparted a strong sense of legacy and ancestry. The culture demands remembrance, that in their world where every mistake is carved into stone seen forever and every triumph is wealth extracted from the earth eternal, so the mask carving may have started as a way to ensure one's image was retained into the future beyond death. When a Dwarf dies, their mask if they have one is often taken to the temple of the Worldshaper closest to their birth, and is interred in a wall of remembrance, the linking plates creating a map of faces, expressions and history into the temples walls. The earliest masks are often elaborate, highly detailed representations of the wearer, but over time as the tradition spreads the designs grew more abstract and symbolism more prevalent. The clearest change was in the eyes and beard. Both became more symbolic, the eyes becoming harder and more polygonal whilst the beard was replaced with more regional variants. In the South West braided celtic designs have become prominent whereas under the mountains designs which bolt additional material on top of the mouth to serve as respirators are common. In the eastern cliffs, refugee communities have adopted floral designs, the beard being represented by leaves or roots. In the Western Regions, surface cultures have been using only partial masks that expose the hairless jaw much like the criminal subcultures of the holds.


Despite their impact on the culture for the academic, masks are still primarily armour and outside of organised armies the use of masks is exceedingly rare and is a symbol of personal accomplishment and importance. The only culture in which their use is growing is the aforementioned refugee communities in the Eastern Cliffs in which they are becoming a social and religious symbol for the burgeoning new community, a rallying cry for identity that merges agricultural life with their history and heritage.

Item type

Armor

Base Price

5GP (Base)