Mountain Dwarves
"I was lucky to find a dwarven smith in that lonely town in the shadows of Mount Derun and luckier still that he hadn't sworn a blood-feud with the family that originally crafted my sword. A human like myself would not have done and I should have failed my mission" - Accounts of Brun, Werewolf Hunter (6th century S.C.)
Mountain dwarves are often considered as the "rule" of dwarfdom, with Sakir and Dvur being exceptions. Because of this, when one thinks of a dwarf, they usually think of mountain dwarves, and not without good reason. Not only are mountain dwarves by far the most widespread of dwarves, but they are also the most approachable and friendly. Unlike the exclusively frost-dwelling Dvur and hyper-isolationist Sakir, mountains dwarves are much more accessible. After all, for mountain dwarves, wealth is king. Mountain dwarves desire jewels and precious metals to a much greater extent than even their dwarven brethren, and therefore are far more likely to take steps to get such materials. While some would call this money-oriented lifestyle to be a major flaw, mountain dwarves do not consider it to be so.
"Look at it this way. Every golden coin in our pockets means one less in our enemy's. And every coin in our pocket lets us buy food from outsiders to spend even more time mining for metals. More money means we can outbid enemies for mercenary contracts, commission great projects, purchase great treasures. What could be more useful than that?" - Hudrun of Khälforge
While the previous quote is perhaps a bit extreme even from a mountain dwarf perspective, often their society is organized along such lines. Usually mountain dwarves will prioritize setting up mining operations to even setting up a stable food supply- importing every bit of their food if they have to. Though mountains dwarves will usually get around to setting up farming, herding or other methods of getting food, often the harsh realities of mountain-living on crops prevent them from having a food surplus, thus necessitating at least some imports. Mountain dwarves have embraced a number of rather distinct types of diets as a result- mountain dwelling goats in place of cows, giant fungi instead of grains, and all sorts of underground farms for various crops that can survive. It is important to ask mountain dwarves what exactly is in their dishes before eating them; they are highly resistant to poisons and toxins, and often cook with ingredients and "spices" that are toxic or downright fatal to other races if ingested. The most critically acclaimed dwarven beer is (usually) fatal if consumed in large quantities, being made with toxic mushrooms. After all what's better than being high and drunk. Well, probably living. Don't drink the beer.
Mountain dwarves are considered better smiths than either of their cousins, and are at the forefront of weapons-crafting. Their society has become so advanced at metalworking for two main reasons. First, almost all mountain dwarves feel a special connection to crafting with metal, and the practice is typically elevated over other types of art within dwarven society. This cultural value placed on metalworking has given rise to a very large metalworking class within dwarven societies, thus driving the practice further in tandem with their already-existing natural inclination to metalwork. Secondly, metalworking allows dwarves to trade refined material for raw material, which can then be refined in turn. Essentially, by selling top-of-the-line products which are sure to fetch a high price, mountains dwarves make a huge amount of money. This money can then be channeled into pursuits which gain even more material to refine, be that outright purchasing the material or by hiring more miners and expanding mines. Thus, mountain dwarves have perfected a system in which allows many of them to not only enjoy their work, but also to make a killing doing it.
A similar line of reasoning applies to dwarves who take to the other side of dwarven craftsmanship- stone carving. In much the same way Dwarves feel an affinity for metals, they have a special connection with stone. Even dwarves whose main occupation is mining the raw materials will often spend spare time carving scrap and leftovers. It is very rare for a dwarf to be unhappy with their lot in life within the bounds of a mountain lifestyle, since they typically get the opportunity to move to one of the more high-end jobs that are characteristic of dwarves: metalworking, stone carving, architecture, sculpture, trade, or invention. Their long-lived nature means that a couples decades as the lowest rung in dwarven society is not so consequential as it would be to a human or short-lived race.
That is not to say that all mountain dwarves are interested in these pursuits, but those who are not usually have a good place in society. Since much of the dwarven population is busy working with metals, stones, and construction, there is often a shortage of other fields and those who wish to go into such fields are typically welcome. Doctors, scholars, farmers, priests, bureaucrats, mages, and more are often in high demand. However it should be noted that some of these fields have certain parts of them well-staffed. For example, brewing and growing plants for brewing are a massive priority for dwarves, but traditional food-based farming is usually less saturated.
One might think that this leads to a high amount of immigration to fill these jobs, but that is typically not the case. While of course the dwarven city is not ideal for populations who are taller than dwarves, and the culture can be daunting for outsiders, in reality the pay is good enough that most would jump on the opportunities provides. Unfortunately for the dwarves (and for people of these careers), dwarves are racist, and it is very hard to be accepted into mountain dwarf society as a non-dwarf. Even though dwarves are fine living amongst other cultures and races, they are very protective of their homes and take pride in homogenous society. Essentially, while a dwarf might be fine living in a human society for a very long time, only the closest of friends would ever be allowed to live permanently inside a dwarven nation. Mountain dwarves divide other races into 4 categories: like-minded, reasonable, not suitable, and enemy (tentative names). Races like gnomes and halflings, who often share similar creeds, are allowed into dwarven cities in much higher numbers than others and mountain dwarves often feel completely comfortable with their presence. Races such as humans are considered reasonable. Mountain dwarves feel that humans can be trusted, but not to the extent of those they consider like-minded. They are completely fine with human presence but would not want large numbers of humans within their cities. When mountain dwarves conquer human cities, they do not attempt to expel or kill the inhabitants, instead treating them with respect. Still, the inhabitants of that city could not be welcome to migrate to the Dwarven-majority regions of the nation. In contrast, races such as elves are considered not suitable for associating with dwarves. These are races that are not necessarily hostile towards dwarves, but that have significant cultural conflictions. Elves that find themselves in a dwarven kingdom will be treated differently and, usually, will find themselves neglected by the state. Finally, there are some races that dwarves hate so much they will attempt to kill or expel them on sight, such as goblins, kobolds, and orcs. It should be noted that the racism of mountain dwarves does vary, and there are some dwarven kingdoms that accept all within their borders freely, though they are few and far between. Dwarves do sometimes overcome grudges against specific races too- the dwarves of Impirmine within the Blazennian Empire do not feud with elves for the most part, but instead retain cordial relations.
Mountain dwarves are often considered as the "rule" of dwarfdom, with Sakir and Dvur being exceptions. Because of this, when one thinks of a dwarf, they usually think of mountain dwarves, and not without good reason. Not only are mountain dwarves by far the most widespread of dwarves, but they are also the most approachable and friendly. Unlike the exclusively frost-dwelling Dvur and hyper-isolationist Sakir, mountains dwarves are much more accessible. After all, for mountain dwarves, wealth is king. Mountain dwarves desire jewels and precious metals to a much greater extent than even their dwarven brethren, and therefore are far more likely to take steps to get such materials. While some would call this money-oriented lifestyle to be a major flaw, mountain dwarves do not consider it to be so.
"Look at it this way. Every golden coin in our pockets means one less in our enemy's. And every coin in our pocket lets us buy food from outsiders to spend even more time mining for metals. More money means we can outbid enemies for mercenary contracts, commission great projects, purchase great treasures. What could be more useful than that?" - Hudrun of Khälforge
While the previous quote is perhaps a bit extreme even from a mountain dwarf perspective, often their society is organized along such lines. Usually mountain dwarves will prioritize setting up mining operations to even setting up a stable food supply- importing every bit of their food if they have to. Though mountains dwarves will usually get around to setting up farming, herding or other methods of getting food, often the harsh realities of mountain-living on crops prevent them from having a food surplus, thus necessitating at least some imports. Mountain dwarves have embraced a number of rather distinct types of diets as a result- mountain dwelling goats in place of cows, giant fungi instead of grains, and all sorts of underground farms for various crops that can survive. It is important to ask mountain dwarves what exactly is in their dishes before eating them; they are highly resistant to poisons and toxins, and often cook with ingredients and "spices" that are toxic or downright fatal to other races if ingested. The most critically acclaimed dwarven beer is (usually) fatal if consumed in large quantities, being made with toxic mushrooms. After all what's better than being high and drunk. Well, probably living. Don't drink the beer.
Mountain dwarves are considered better smiths than either of their cousins, and are at the forefront of weapons-crafting. Their society has become so advanced at metalworking for two main reasons. First, almost all mountain dwarves feel a special connection to crafting with metal, and the practice is typically elevated over other types of art within dwarven society. This cultural value placed on metalworking has given rise to a very large metalworking class within dwarven societies, thus driving the practice further in tandem with their already-existing natural inclination to metalwork. Secondly, metalworking allows dwarves to trade refined material for raw material, which can then be refined in turn. Essentially, by selling top-of-the-line products which are sure to fetch a high price, mountains dwarves make a huge amount of money. This money can then be channeled into pursuits which gain even more material to refine, be that outright purchasing the material or by hiring more miners and expanding mines. Thus, mountain dwarves have perfected a system in which allows many of them to not only enjoy their work, but also to make a killing doing it.
A similar line of reasoning applies to dwarves who take to the other side of dwarven craftsmanship- stone carving. In much the same way Dwarves feel an affinity for metals, they have a special connection with stone. Even dwarves whose main occupation is mining the raw materials will often spend spare time carving scrap and leftovers. It is very rare for a dwarf to be unhappy with their lot in life within the bounds of a mountain lifestyle, since they typically get the opportunity to move to one of the more high-end jobs that are characteristic of dwarves: metalworking, stone carving, architecture, sculpture, trade, or invention. Their long-lived nature means that a couples decades as the lowest rung in dwarven society is not so consequential as it would be to a human or short-lived race.
That is not to say that all mountain dwarves are interested in these pursuits, but those who are not usually have a good place in society. Since much of the dwarven population is busy working with metals, stones, and construction, there is often a shortage of other fields and those who wish to go into such fields are typically welcome. Doctors, scholars, farmers, priests, bureaucrats, mages, and more are often in high demand. However it should be noted that some of these fields have certain parts of them well-staffed. For example, brewing and growing plants for brewing are a massive priority for dwarves, but traditional food-based farming is usually less saturated.
One might think that this leads to a high amount of immigration to fill these jobs, but that is typically not the case. While of course the dwarven city is not ideal for populations who are taller than dwarves, and the culture can be daunting for outsiders, in reality the pay is good enough that most would jump on the opportunities provides. Unfortunately for the dwarves (and for people of these careers), dwarves are racist, and it is very hard to be accepted into mountain dwarf society as a non-dwarf. Even though dwarves are fine living amongst other cultures and races, they are very protective of their homes and take pride in homogenous society. Essentially, while a dwarf might be fine living in a human society for a very long time, only the closest of friends would ever be allowed to live permanently inside a dwarven nation. Mountain dwarves divide other races into 4 categories: like-minded, reasonable, not suitable, and enemy (tentative names). Races like gnomes and halflings, who often share similar creeds, are allowed into dwarven cities in much higher numbers than others and mountain dwarves often feel completely comfortable with their presence. Races such as humans are considered reasonable. Mountain dwarves feel that humans can be trusted, but not to the extent of those they consider like-minded. They are completely fine with human presence but would not want large numbers of humans within their cities. When mountain dwarves conquer human cities, they do not attempt to expel or kill the inhabitants, instead treating them with respect. Still, the inhabitants of that city could not be welcome to migrate to the Dwarven-majority regions of the nation. In contrast, races such as elves are considered not suitable for associating with dwarves. These are races that are not necessarily hostile towards dwarves, but that have significant cultural conflictions. Elves that find themselves in a dwarven kingdom will be treated differently and, usually, will find themselves neglected by the state. Finally, there are some races that dwarves hate so much they will attempt to kill or expel them on sight, such as goblins, kobolds, and orcs. It should be noted that the racism of mountain dwarves does vary, and there are some dwarven kingdoms that accept all within their borders freely, though they are few and far between. Dwarves do sometimes overcome grudges against specific races too- the dwarves of Impirmine within the Blazennian Empire do not feud with elves for the most part, but instead retain cordial relations.
Lifespan
250 years
Average Height
4'6
Related Organizations
Low
Physical Strength
High
Societal Organization
High
Birth Rate
Low
Lifespan Classification
High
Technological Progress
Above Average
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