Dwarf

Ancient and dauntless as the mountains they call home. Unlike the elves, the dwarves built their kingdoms deep within the northeastern mountains. Adept with metalworking and jewel crafting, the dwarves created countless cities in the Mountains.

Culture

Dwarves have a strong sense of their progress. Acutely aware of their mortality, they see the many centuries afforded to them as too short a time to risk wasting even a single day in indolence.

Craftmanship

Dwarf artisans regard the fruits of their labors with the same love that members of other races reserve for their children. A dwarf’s works are built to last for centuries, to carry a legacy into the world long after the dwarf is gone. Each item a dwarf crafts is a milepost on the path to perfection, a step taken toward mastering a technique. All of one’s works taken together are the physical representation of a dwarf’s accomplishments. A dwarf who has lived a good, fruitful life leaves behind a rich legacy of wondrous goods — gleaming metal goblets, gem-encrusted stone sculptures, tapestries made of ores and minerals, finely honed weapons.
Dwarves guard their personal creations with the vigilance and ferocity of a dragon protecting a treasure hoard. Such protectiveness isn’t often called for in the company of friends and family — but just as a parent doesn’t leave a child unattended, a dwarf doesn’t craft an item and then knowingly leave it vulnerable to being stolen (or worse). A dwarf who loses an item to thievery pursues the item’s recovery or seeks vengeance against the thieves with the same fury that parents direct against those who kidnapped their child.
At the other extreme, a dwarf’s gift of a personal item to someone else is a deep expression of commitment, love, and trust. The beneficiary of the gift is expected to provide the item with the same careful stewardship exhibited by its creator — never letting it fall into an enemy’s hands and sparing no effort to recover it if is stolen.
Although the dwarves’ obsessive pursuit of perfection in the arts of crafting leads them to produce great works, it comes at a price. Dwarves value stability, repetition, and tradition above all else. Chaos and change cause distractions from the task at hand. Dwarves crave predictability, routine, and safety. A mind not fully focused can’t give a task its proper attention.
This rigidity in outlook, though a fundamental part of the dwarven psyche, can sometimes be a disadvantage. Dwarves don’t change their minds easily, and once set on a course rarely alter their strategy. Their commitment to following a plan serves them well when they build a stone bridge designed to last for centuries, but the same inflexibility can bring problems when applied to the unpredictable dangers of the world. A clan might continue to depend on the same plan for defending its stronghold that has been used for centuries, without considering the possibility that its enemies have discovered how to overcome those defenses.

Dwarven House

The noble house rule over the dwarvish mountain-city. Everything a dwarf does in life is devoted to improving the mountain-city, bringing security and stability to its people and greater glory to the group.
The most important person to any dwarf are the members of one’s immediate family, because the instinctive connection between parent and child is stronger than the attachment between unrelated citizens. Nevertheless, the distinction is so slim as to be unnoticeable to outsiders — dwarves will endure hardship or lay down their lives for any of their neighbors, whether related to them by blood or by the devotion that holds the city together.
The life of a dwarf is all about doing good work and leaving behind a fitting legacy that continues to bolster the city even after its creator has passed on — a legacy counted not only in objects, but also in dwarven souls. Dwarves who become parents rightfully think of their children as the greatest legacy they can leave behind, and they raise them with the same care and attention to detail that they give to the items they create. A dwarf’s direct descendants — beloved sons, daughters, and grandchildren — are often the ones who inherit the inanimate works their ancestor leaves behind.
Marriage is a sacred rite among the dwarves, taken very seriously because it requires two children to move away from their homes to start a new family in the clan. The affected families feel a sense of loss that is healed only when a new dwarf child enters the world — an event that calls for great celebration.
Few dwarves develop romantic feelings for their spouses, at least not in the way that other races do. They view their spouses as collaborators and co-creators, their elders as respected experts to be obeyed, and their children as their most treasured creations. The emotion that underlies all those feelings might not be love, as others would term it, but it is just as intense.
A mountain-city is led by a king or a queen who sits at the head of a noble family (also called house). Dwarf nobles are members of families and houses that claim important role within a city. To the dwarves, leadership is a craft like any other activity, calling for careful practice and constant attention to detail in order to yield the best, most satisfying results.
Young nobles apprentice for a time with masters of every profession in the clan. This period of work and education has two important results. First, the apprenticeships expose a young noble to each part of the city’s operation and create personal ties between the apprentice and every group in the city’s society. By the time a noble takes on a leadership role, the noble has a clear overview of all the clan’s interrelationships and has formed friendships with people from every spot on the spectrum of roles within the clan.
More important, a young noble’s conduct while pursuing a variety of tasks gives the elder nobles a chance to assess the youth’s character. Ideally, a noble who ascends to the leadership of a clan demonstrates an even temperament and an affinity for the clan’s key functions. A noble who particularly enjoys fighting might become a minister of war or a general, while one who loves smithing might become an overseer of the crafters’ work.

Mountain-city

Every dwarf noble house maintains a mountain-city, a stronghold of some kind, typically dug out beneath a mountain or inside a hill. The mountain-city is a haven from the chaos of the outside world, allowing the dwarves to toil in peace. The first concern of any mountain-city is defense. most mountain-city were stronghold that grew to become wondrous underground cities filed with generations of exquisite dwarven artisanship.
Regardless of the noble house in charge, its mountain-city is a stony personification of the noble house — what’s good for the noble house is good for the mountain-city, and vice versa.
Mountain-city are considered the greatest work of the masons and stone cravers that worked on it. In a typical mountain-city, stone bridges arc over chasms, their surfaces embellished with fine carvings and intricate patterns. The great stone doors leading outside can withstand a battering ram when secured, but glide open at the touch of a child when they are unlocked.
A mountain-city is a work of art, and holds the record of the local dwarf history and accomplishments. A work that an outsider regards as “merely” intricate stone carving might actually be a carefully composed recounting of deeds, events, and important persons. Dwarves combine their runes into patterns, present pictorial histories in seemingly unconnected murals and images, and otherwise leave their people legacy of accomplishments hiding in plain sight. The story of the clan is meant to be appreciated by clan members and fellow dwarves, not the few outsiders who might be allowed inside the mountain-city.
Since the era of dragons after the Great Extinction, the mountain city became common, the dwarves digging underground looking for protection. Underground, they don’t have to contend with the changing of the seasons, or even daily variations in the weather, so that one day inside a stronghold is much like any other day. The activities of the city are governed by a firm schedule that provides every member with daily time for work, family, and personal enrichment. The forges are never allowed to go cold, and the mines around the stronghold are worked every hour of every day.
This strict schedule is seen in the Dwarven Calendar and the way they labeled their days and months.
As most mountain-city originate from a need to hide from outside threat, the entrance doesn’t broadcast its presence by being a stellar example of dwarven stonework. The outer precincts of a mountain-city are generally plain and functional, decorated minimally or not at all, to give visitors and those passing nearby no reason to suspect what lies in the deeper chambers. From what they see, a dwarven stronghold is well built but austere.
Every dwarf knows instinctively that clan and mountain-city are inextricably tied together — if one comes undone, the other fails as well. As such, defending the city is a concern that the dwarves address even in the earliest stages of construction. They plan and then build with the goals of safety and security uppermost in mind. And the only way that a home can be truly safe and secure is if it is protected against intruders.
Dwarves use a variety of approaches and devices in setting their defenses. Many mountain cities are honeycombed with secret passages designed to enable the dwarves to ambush and flank enemies. Dwarves also make liberal use of secret doors fashioned by dwarf artisans, slabs of stone that fit so precisely in their openings that no one but a dwarf knows how to locate and open one.
Unlike some other races that guard their territory by creating features that actively deter invaders, dwarves rarely use arrow traps, pit traps, and other such measures that could cause harm to other citizen. They see little sense in risking injury if a trap of that sort malfunctioned or was accidentally triggered by a dwarf. A defensive measure isn’t doing its job if it ends up hurting those it was meant to protect.

Dwarves and ale

Dwarves have a reputation for being able to consume great quantities of ale. Although drinking plays a significant role in their culture, it is a mistake to assume that intoxication has the same effect on them as it does on humans.
Humans drink to forget, while dwarves drink to remember. A dwarf deep in his cups is overcome by powerful, vivid memories of his past, especially events tied to lost kin, great deeds, or monumental failures. When dwarves drink in a group, this effect spreads among them. The group might joyfully sing of triumph as they reminisce over the defeat of a monster, or weep as they recall the death of a beloved elder.
In contrast to group gatherings, dwarves who drink alone invariably become morose and sullen — when separated from their mates, they can’t avoid dwelling on unpleasant memories. It’s the wise traveler who leaves alone the sole, drunken dwarf in the corner.

Last rites

Dwarves honor their dead, and prefer to bury their dead, returning them to the ground that so benefits their race. They consider it both an honor and a repayment. After the burrial, dwarves drink and party in honor of the dead. Some dwarves seal their deceased in tombs.

Characteristics

Physical features

Bold and hardy, dwarves are known as skilled warriors, miners, and workers of stone and metal. Though they stand well under 5 feet tall, dwarves are so broad and compact that they can weigh as much as a human standing nearly two feet taller. Their courage and endurance are also easily a match for any of the larger folk.
Dwarven skin ranges from deep brown to a paler hue tinged with red, but the most common shades are light brown or deep tan, like certain tones of earth. Their hair, worn long but in simple styles, is usually black, gray, or brown, though paler dwarves often have red hair. Male dwarves value their beards highly and groom them carefully.

Biology

Dwarf genes exhibit limited influence when individuals procreate with members of other races. Offspring of such unions typically bear a resemblance to their non-dwarf parent. Consequently, dwarf culture places great importance on maintaining purebred marriages.

Mental traits

Dwarves can live to be more than 400 years old, so the oldest living dwarves often remember a very different world. This longevity grants them a perspective on the world that shorter-lived races such as humans and halflings lack.
Dwarves are solid and enduring like the mountains they love, weathering the passage of centuries with stoic endurance and little change. They respect the traditions of their clans, and don’t abandon those traditions lightly.
Individual dwarves are determined and loyal, true to their word and decisive in action, sometimes to the point of stubbornness. Many dwarves have a strong sense of justice, and they are slow to forget wrongs they have suffered. A wrong done to one dwarf is a wrong done to the dwarf’s entire clan.

Subraces

Azeblood

Dwarves are inherently elemental creature, at least originally, and those that flee to the plane of fire instead of material plane became Azer. Some of mixed blood with nowadays dwarves and azer are called azerblood. These red-haired dwarves channel heat into material around them. Some Azeblood dwarf might also result after the union of a genie and a dwarf, or after a surge of elemental power in an area.

Duergar

Duergar see themselves as the true manifestation of dwarven ideals, clever enough to understand how important is the link of dwarves with the elements. Duergar are the dwarves dwelling deep in the Underdark, resentful of the dwarves for losing their stone form, and their link to the elemental plane. In many ways, Duergar culture is similar to that of other dwarves, but influenced by the treaterous Dao. When typical dwarves strive to create, Duergar strive to own.
As the Duergar chooses to stay underground, and to try and keep a connection with the Dao, their power didn't entirely disappear, and they can naturally use some kind of magic to grow or turn invisible.

Hill Dwarf

Hill dwarf have keen senses, deep intuition, and remarkable resilience. Some of the mountain city in the Ice-peak Concord are home to hill dwarves.

Mountain Dwarf

Mountain dwarfs are strong and hardy, accustomed to a difficult life in rugged terrain. They are generally on the tall side (for a dwarf) and tend toward lighter coloration. They are the most common among Toriel, living in the various mountain cities.

Names

A dwarf’s name is granted by an 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 house, 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.
A dwarf generally has a first name given by the elder, and a last name given by its parent, and his house name. For a member of the leading houses, their house name and last name is the same.
Male Names: Adrik, Alberich, Baern, Barendd, Brottor, Bruenor, Dain, Darrak, Delg, Eberk, Einkil, Fargrim, Flint, Gardain, Harbek, Kildrak, Morgran, Orsik, Oskar, Rangrim, Rurik, Taklinn, Thoradin, Thorin, Tordek, Traubon, Travok, Ulfgar, Veit, Vondal
Female Names: Amber, Artin, Audhild, Bardryn, Dagnal, Diesa, Eldeth, Falkrunn, Finellen, Gunnloda, Gurdis, Helja, Hlin, Kathra, Kristryd, Ilde, Liftrasa, Mardred, Riswynn, Sannl, Torbera, Torgga, Vistra
House Names: Frozen, Icebeard, Amberforge, Hardheart, Orewar, Cascogne (rare), Zultik (rare).

Additional/Modified traits

Dwarven blackpowder training. You have proficiency with Blackpowder weapons when you reach 3rd-level.

History

Origin

It is said that the dwarves are formed from stone, and this legend may be true. Originating from the elemental plane of earth, the dwarves ended up in the material plane long ago, and slowly started to rise to the surface. It is said that they were among the first mortal of the material plane, hiding underground long before the elves came in Toriel. Their sturdy bodies and impressive strength reminiscent of their original form, the legend about the dwarves are many, but the most common one is that of the golems
According to that legend, the dwarves were once stone golem, they escaped the cruel Dao, fleeing into the material plane in the dark cave of the Underdark. Once there, the influence of the Dao started to fade, and their skin turned to flesh, turning into what we now know as the dwarves. As they changed, many grew curious of the outside world, of the sunlight, and of the many possibilities this new plane was offering and decided to dig up. A few, however, were resentful, and hated this new form, thinking it was divine punishment for escaping their former masters and decided to stay in the deepest saves, forming the now called Duergar.

General Information

Scientific name
Homo dwezgaz
Geographic Distribution
Ice-peak Concord
Languages
Common, Dwarvish

Physiologie

Average Lifespan
350 years
Size
Medium
Average Height
1.2 – 1.5 m
Average Weight
68 kg

Others