Duergar

'It was late at night, I was looking at the stars when I saw them coming. Funny little things with purple skin and white beards. They set the barn on fire and ran into the house. I could hear people shouting, but I was frightened, so I hid. They went away with mummy and daddy and little Bobby, and Radnar and Missus Redlake and Old Mister Gordensen, took them into a hole in the fields. I hid until the sun came up and I ran all the way here.' - Millineth, survivor of the duergar raid on Goldenbrook

Following the War Below, in which much of the dwarven Underkingdom was lost to the drow, many dwarves remained trapped below ground. Some were enslaved and worked to death by the drow, but some, notably those of clan Duergar, negotiated their freedom by providing other slaves, abducted from communities on the surface. Over the millennia, these slavers became the duergar. They live in their own communities deep underground, in a tentative truce with the Empire of the Drow, and are considered terrors in many small surface communities where they will emerge to take more slaves to be sold to their compatriots living below.

Basic Information

Ecology and Habitats

The duergar are eminently suited to living below ground, especially in areas that are impossibly hot for other species due to proximity to magma veins. They fare poorly above ground, being incredibly sensitive to bright lights and their skin blistering easily in sunlight.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Duergar are almost exclusively fungivores, fungus being one of the few things that can be eaten below ground. Some reports also indicate them chewing on rocks, though whether they are truly eating them cannot be confirmed.

Biological Cycle

Duergar mature and breed at a similar rate to dwarves, though they tend not to live for as long due to their harsh environment.

Additional Information

Facial characteristics

Like surface dwarves, duergar take a great deal of pride in their beards, which can be similarly long and ornate. Notably, duergar's eyes tend to be almost entirely white, and are sometimes reported to have a slight glow, believed to be an adaptation to living underground.

Civilization and Culture

Naming Traditions

Duergar are usually given names in their dialect of Dwarven, and may take their clan's name as a surname, similar to surface dwarves.

Major Language Groups and Dialects

Duergar are fluent in a unique dialect of Dwarven, and the language shared with the drow known as Undercommon. Some have also been observed speaking Common to slaves.

Culture and Cultural Heritage

Duergar culture is built around capturing and trading slaves to the other species in the Underdark. This is considered to be vital to duergar society, for the Empire of the Drow is significantly stronger than them, and could easily crush them if the slaves ever stopped being provided.

Interspecies Relations and Assumptions

The duergar share a tentative peace with most other species of the Underdark, notably the drow. They are hostile to all surface civilizations, seeing them as little more than slaves.

Genetic Ancestor(s)

• Dwarves

Lifespan

350 years naturally, but most are killed before reaching 200.

Average Height

4-5ft

Average Weight

Lighter than surface dwarves, due to them typically being emaciated

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Duergar have light purple skin, and their hair lacks pigment, being entirely white.