Dwarves

“Even before your race discovered fire, we dwarfs have stood. Throughout the tribulations and trials that time have seen fit to throw at us, our race has endured as uncompromising as the mountains we reside in. We fought foes far beyond your imagination, slaughtered dragons and shattered empires. We have persisted long before you and will persist long after. Do not forget that human.” - Dwarven Ambassador before the War of the Jewels

History.

The Dwarfs were one of the oldest races in Allurian. They were founded in the second seeing alongside the race of the Hurdin. Like most of the races of the second seeding, they were the target of the Varduin’s attempt to ruthlessly dominate all life on Allurian. The dwarfs were no exception but unlike the other races, the dwarfs were the only ones able to hold of the Varudin. Despite the overwhelming superiority of the Varudin, many enclaves of Dwarfs managed to survive against the Varudin. In massive mountain fortress, aided by gods themselves , Dwarven forces managed to make the Varduin pay for every ground they took. Hundreds of dwarfs died for inflicting a single loss but they had made the campaign against them so exhausting that the Varudin relegated the war to their army of ghost robots. 

However those dwarfs were the lucky ones, hundreds of thousands of dwarfs fell to the Varudin and were enslaved. Unlike the Kalinor however, the strength of the dwarfs made them resilient to the tortures the Varudin delighted on inflicting onto them. Thus, when the Varduin fell, the dwarfs were free to explore the world of allurian with little in their way, or so they hoped. The now released dwarven slaves settled in the hills of the world, being known as the hill dwarfs. Many tried to mingle back with the mountain dwarfs and many succeeded. For a long while it seemed as if the dwarfs were poised to rule Allurian. Yet the dwarfs found that they were not the only ones who had came out from the boot of the Varduin without mortal wounds. While the Kalinorhad been shattered, requiring divine intervention to save their race by dividing them into differe nt races, a race known as Goblins had appeared. Some suspected they were created as mutated experiments at the hands of the Varudin, others believed they were a race of the first or even second founding. That did not matter much to the dwarfs who soon became bitter rivals of the Goblins. 

For hundreds of years the combined dwarven force fought the growing goblin Empire. Eventually defeating and crushing the goblins, shattering their leadership and reducing any signs of civilization the goblins had to nothingness.  With the victory , the dwarfs look set to take over all of Allurian, that would have been the case if not for the dwarven kingdoms refusal to work together. They had united during the war against the goblins but without that, greed took over. Tension grew between many of the mountain dwarf realms against the rapidly growing hill dwarfs. The mountain dwarfs began to view the hill dwarfs as spitting on the graves of the dwarven ancestors. That was as the hill dwarfs did not follow any dwarven tradition and instead preferred the hills and open country compared to the mountains and their deep caverns.

Eventually in a terrible incident in which a visiting group of hill dwarf unknowingly gravely insulted the mountain dwarf of the realm of Karhak-Kori . The visiting hill dwarfs were imprisoned and tortured. However, what came next was when it all went down. A small force of hill dwarfs from the realm of  Hozuk-Dilan came to demand the release of their kin.

The hill dwarves imprisoned however had made a miraculous escape and had somehow broken their way out of the imprisonment. They were pursued by the mountain dwarfs as they fled the dwarven hold before reaching the host of the hill dwarfs. A tense standoff ensued between the pursuing mountain dwarfs and hill dwarfs who refused to relinquish control of their prisoner. Outnumbered, the mountain dwarfs fled. Yet a night later, on the night of sorrows, an army of mountain dwarfs struck the hill dwarf town of Forzuki-Idrin, a village of the dwarven realm of Hozuk-DIlan. They killed those who stood in their way and captured those who surrendered back to their realm where they were dragged through the dwarven hold humiliated.

The mountain dwarfs of Karhak-Kori believed that they had taught their betters a lesson and that the hill dwarfs were greatly mistaken. Yet that would change, when the leader of the dwarf of Karhak-Kori was on his way back from his visit. His party, two hundred strong dwarfs, were attacked by a host of hill dwarfs outside his own hold. A great battle was fought outside the walls but by the time the armies of Karhak-Kori could fully reinforce their kin, their leader had been brutally butchered with a dozen wounds from crossbow bolts and hammers having turned his body in a gory mess.

Many of the mountain dwarven realms who had held traditional views of Karhak-Kori especially the particularly nasty dwarfs of the Duradrin attacked hill dwarf realms all over Allurian. Many of the mountain dwarfs remained neutral, disapproving of either side's actions. A brutal war, named the war of righteousness followed, causing great grief to both sides. For six years both sides exchanged bloody blows until the dwarven king of the great realm of Khazuk-Carim under the new dwarven king Durdin Snowbeard sent a massive host made out of the Realm of Karag-Ankor and Durindstead sent an army. A massive host thirty thousand strong marched to the most brutal of the warzone between the realm of Karhak-Kori and Hozuk-Dilan.  The host immediately demanded both sides to stand down. Neither sides would come to an agreement but with thirty thousand warriors facing them, both sides agreed to end the war which had seen most of the dwarven realms at each other's throats. This has shattered the unity between both sides which would never truly recover.

However for the moment an alliance is temporarily controlled by the great dwarf realm of Karhak-Kori and ruled by Durdin Snowbeard.

Mountain Dwarfs

The mountain dwarfs are one of the oldest races in all of Allurian. They were around during the time of the Varduin and had survived those hardships. They are a race steeped in tradition and history, having lived throughout all the major ages of the world.  

Biology

Dwarfs are shot creatures often around 1 to 1.4 metres in height. Often extremely muscular in nature. They have long, often thick beards. They are extremely hardy in nature and seemingly immune to disease. The average age a dwarf lives to often ranges from two to three hundred though certain dwarfs have been known to live more than five hundred. 

They weigh around 70 - 100 kilograms on average. The average dwarf is considered “mature” at the age around forty to fifty though this can go as early as twenty for certain communities of dwarfs which lends credence to the idea by some scholars that a dwarf matures around twenty to thirty but is not considered “mature” by elder dwarfs. Dwarfs have capable eyes honed to be able to see in dark conditions.

Male Dwarfs tend to be taller than female dwarfs but aside from that, there is little difference between the sexes. They tend to be equally strong but female dwarfs tend to become weaker after childbirth, however, female dwarfs often have longer lifespan by around twenty years

History

Mountain Dwarfs were the dwarfs which survived the onslaught on the Varduin. Their bloodline is one of the oldest in all of Allurian. The Mountain dwarfs would watch humanity rise from petty tribes to kingdoms which began to slowly run over all of Allurian. The Mountain Dwarfs bore little interest in any land that was not a mountain and as such chose to ignore man. Sporadic instances of trade or war between both men and dwarfs existed but for the most part, both sides kept out of each other's way. 

Yet the power of the Mountain Dwarfs failed to grow while humans expanded all over Allurian. Eventually Durdin Snowbeard realised that hill dwarfs could potentially be pulled away. Durdin Snowbeard then decided that it was best to ally with the humans instead of trying to contest or fight them instead. 

And so the Pact of Stone and Steel was signed by both sides after close to ten years of negotiations. Such was the charisma and charm of Durdin Snowbeard that he could quell the bitter anger at having joined in what was in the dwaf eyes, a lesser Empire.

Yet the First Great War helped quell many of the grumblings and unhappiness which the dwarfs felt. For the great armies of both dwarfs and humanity fought and bled together against the forces of the dark gods. The Dwarfs struck against their fallen kin with relentless anger, and were a key part in the victory of the forces of good. Yet many dark seeds were planted within the dwarfs especially against the extreme traditionalist among the Dwarfs. 

The izhuz-Dulam wars helped create a facade that the dwarfs were united. The hatred for the goblins were strong as without waiting for the forces of the Empire(including a fair few dwarven holds) to mobilise, the dwarven forces struck against a growing goblin force. Even Durdin Snowbeard believed that such an action was necessary. While the battles which followed were bloody especially since the dwarves found themselves outnumbered, the dwarfs came out victorious albeit at a heavy cost. The worst was that many of the dwarfs blamed the Empire for not coming to their aid. 

Tensions rose between the Dwarfs, many of the Mountain Dwarfs held grudges against the Hill Dwarfs while others felt that the Empire was far beneath. Durdin Snowbeard knew that they had to be within the Empire but that dwarven unity was crucial. Alas many of the Hill Dwarfs were those that supported the Empire the most which worsened relations between both dwarfs. Yet Durdin Snowbeard would not be alive to resolve the conflict for he died while negotiating with Mountain Dwarfs of Izhldrik. The dwarfs of Izhldrik blamed it on his great age but the dwarfs of Khazuk-Carin did not believe it, which was worsened when the body of the great king was never returned lost supposedly as it was supposed to be returned.

A tense two months passed but on the 60th day from his death, an army of twenty thousand dwarfs from five dwarven realm, three mountain and two hills marched to the realm of Izhldrik. Yet when they reached, they fell prey to a terrible ambush. Reinforced by dwarfs from Duradin, Izhldrik repelled the attack, slaughtering or enslaving all but a thousand dwarfs.

Thus began the great dwarven schism, a long and terrible war which saw both sides a large breakaway force of dwarfs led by the realm of the Duradin war against each other. The Human kingdoms offered aid but the dwarfs were too proud to allow men to assist them. So the war raged on as both sides bloodied and were bloodied in return. Not many are sure of how much the dwarfs lost for only the oldest of the dwarven scholars know that and it is likely even their lowest estimates are too shameful to share.  By the end the victors, the Mountain and Hill  Dwarfs have had most of their power shattered and the losers of the war having fled deep into the earth, away from their victorious dwarven kin. 

The third age saw hope that perhaps the dwarfs could slowly return to its former glory. Few wars occured in this timeframe with the exception of a few conflicts with small forces of goblins.

When the Elf’s entered the Empire, the dwarfs treated the Elf’s as a curiosity. Some of the dwarfs disliked the Elfs while others found friends in them. The Dwarfs however continued to mind their own business, focusing primarily on recovering from the devastation of the schism.

Then came the second great alliance war when a terrible blow struck Allurian. The forces of Sogomere launched an invasion against Allurian. The Dwarven realms held firm against the invasion, their heavily fortified dwarven holds held firm against the terrors of Sogomere. Unlike humanity, the dwarfs had few cultists that did turn to Sogomere and as such had few threats from within.  

The Mountain Dwarfs however preferred to stay in their holds which were able to ward off any attack. Thus, for the first half of the war most of the great armies of the mountain dwarfs hid in their fortress. However, by the second half, diplomatic pressure from the Empire, the dwarven king at that time Thurindell Greyspine realised that it was pointless for the dwarfs to sit in their fortress. With the Elf’s having few if any military forces and the kingdoms of humanity barely holding them off, the Empire desperately needed relief. So, the mountain dwarfs finally came from the mountains, a sense that the tide was turning swept the Empire. Victory came two bloody years later, The mountain dwarfs claimed themselves the saviour of the war but many humans believed years later that the dwarfs had simply left them to suffer and only came in to take the glory. For now however, the Empire celebrated their victory. 

The Mountain dwarfs began to expand back once more, yet as they did so they encroached on the lands once ruled by the dragons. Dwarven expeditions were simply butchered by dragons if they expanded to far towards the lands held by the dragons. The dragon’s aggressiveness was further flamed by humanity’s expansion. When the Empire attempted to negotiate with the dragons, something went wrong. With that came the dragons and all their wrath.

The dwarfs found little safety in their mountain fortresses which now became one of the key targets for dragon attacks. For many of the dragons had harboured a deep dislike of the dwarfs due to their presence in the mountains, an area many of the dragons chose to make their lairs.

The dwarfs soon realised that the dragons were intelligent enough to avoid attacking their mountain fortresses from the front where their fortresses were and instead used the myriad of tunnels in the underdark most of which ironically had been built by the dwarfs in an effort to mine deeper into the earth. The grey dwarfs or Deuragar, enemies of the mountain dwarfs, were more than happy to assist the dragons.  So, when the dragons thus first struck, many mountain dwarven holds were completely unprepared and caught off guard. Despite their size, dragons were more than capable of navigating most dwarven holds and reducing it to ash. Other times the dragons attacked head on, suffering grevious wounds by determined dwarven defenders but inflicting catastrophic damage. 

The narrow confined space of dwarven holds and the underdark limited the dragon’s mobility but also greatly increased the effectiveness of their breaths while giving little room for the dwarfs to utilise heavy artillery. Certain dwarven holds did send out armies to assist their kin or the Empire and the dwarven artillery they utilised proved invaluable against the dragons. The Dragon Wars proved to be a bloodbath, more than a hundred thousand dwarfs would die in this war, greatly reducing the population of the dwarfs and would leave a terrible scar on their race. The dwarfs would claim the lives of hundreds of dragons, more than any other race combined. 

Yet the war was cut short, in the closing days of the war, the dwarfs of Karag Ankor came under attack by a massive red dragon which tore their hold from the inside out.  A valiant effort from the dwarfs trapped the dragon inside the hold. Realising that a full out attack against the dragon would result in catastrophic dwarven loses, the dwarfs called upon the aid of the Elf’s. Karag Ankor were one of the dwarf holds which had been closest to the Elfs. Yet in a incident known as the oathbreaking of the Elfs, the dwarfs murdered the party of Elfs which had came to their aid after seeing them speak to the dragon. 

When news broke out, there was tense silence as the war between the Empire and the Dragons died down. Then as the war died down, the Kingdoms of Humanity and the Dwarfs came to a conclusion that the betrayal of the Elf’s could not stand. Humanity realised that the Elf’s unlike the dwarfs could threaten their position of dominance and with the Empire frustrated that the Elf’s had sent little aid. With that, an army of Dwarfs and Humans struck Elf’s all over Allurian. Thus, in the shattering of the Elf’s, the mountain dwarfs send whatever armies they have left to crush the Elvish colonies and settlements. There will be no defeat for the dwarfs save for the battle of Atorlain. That was when an army of dwarfs marched into the deep woods of Atorlian. Yet instead of finding little resistance and unguarded elven settlements when they marched, they found their entire army obliterated. 

The mountain dwarfs would spend the next fifty years trying to recover from the devastation. Many of the dwarf realms had been crushed and shattered, with many other realms having been simply wiped from existence. 

The mountain dwarfs as part of the Empire sent aid during the fall of caldehind, helping prevent the army of the dead from advancing any further after the human kingdom of Cadlehind came under attack. The dwarves during the second elven war sent great forces to assist the Empire against the Elf’s.  However, while the invasion of the Aurion Isles is initially successful, the invasion of the deepwood realms fails disastrously and the invasion of the Aurion Isle fails eventually after a dragon assisted Elven counterattack. 

By now, the dwarfs had been exhausted and frustrated. Many find little benefits in being with the Empire and many consider breaking away and leaving. The Empire desperately tries to keep the dwarfs but in an incident, the war of the jewels would begin and end with both sides splitting apart. 

Then came the Dwarven wars saw the grey dwarfs and the mountain dwarfs fight a large series of wars. The grey dwarfs had attempted to take advantage of the mountain dwarfs' weakness and a series of deadly wars broke out. Beneath the surface both sides fought a bitter war. The Mountain dwarfs however received aid from the hill dwarfs which turned the tide of the war though at great cost to the mountain dwarfs who had the last of their remaining power destroyed and shattered. 

The dwarfs would stay relatively inactive, with the most notable being the formation of the Elenfall Coalition, in which the dwarfs came to the aid of Shurin and Ferro after an ancient pact signed before the formation of the Empire had been invoked. With that the dwarfs perhaps found that unlike te Rodanin led Empire, perhaps the Shurinese new Coalition with its far more lose idels would prove far more fruitful. This has been the case

Current State:

The Hill Dwarfs remain with the Empire, their realms still as they were. They are the (distant_ second most powerful race in the Empire and hold a high level of independence and authority though ultimately under the Imperial senate and the Emperor. They remain a powerful force, happily mingling with humanity and the other races. Their population had always been smaller than that of the mountain dwarfs though in recent times their numbers have increased slowly and steadily while the mountain dwarfs know only decline

The Mountain dwarfs unfortunately live in the shadow of their past. There are more abandoned dwarf holds than there are onces filled with dwarfs. Only a few resemble how they were at their peak with many having to abandon large parts of their holds due a lack of dwarfs. Despite this, the mountain dwarfs still boast a significant number, arguably rivalling that of the Elves. Their military power is also formidable.

Mountain Dwarf Culture and Society:

The culture of the mountain dwarfs are heavily influenced by their life of living underground. As such mining is heavily ingrained into their culture. It is unheard of to find a dwarven hold not to be a mine. 

Dwarven society is extremely conservative and traditional. The Dwarfs despise change, and it is said human civilisation evolved more in a decade than dwarven civilisation does in centuries. The fact that dwarfs must be well over a standard biological maturity to be considered mature speaks volumes about their society. They have tens of thousands of traditions and rules both written and unwritten about almost every aspect of their society. 

Dwarven is highly focused around discipline. That is drilled into all dwarfs from a young age and as such their society is highly organised and ordered. Dwarfs are assigned roles which they are ordered to train in when they reach the age of twenty five. Many become miners but others become soldiers, craftsmen and other more highly regarded members of society. 

Dwarfs look down and despise those who seem lazy and hardworking, often throwing them all out of the holds. Outcasts from Mountain Dwarven holds rarely find new ones. Dwarfs of the mountain society are thus extremely unaccepting of change and those who do more than suggest often are outcasted.

Dwarven society is male dominated with set gender roles. Female dwarfs are rarely seen outside of dwarven holds. Female Dwarfs often are expected to farm and raise the young, performing what the dwarf’s view as easier tasks. 

To Dwarfs, love is a rather simple affair. They often marry less for love and more out of a necessity. They take little pleasure in carnal affairs seeing it as weak and wasteful. Though while many dwarves come to love their wives others do not see it as such. That is not to say dwarf’s are emotionless, for dwarf’s often form great bonds with each other, that they do often with comrades in arms and their children.

Dwarven society is strictly bound by oaths. To break an oath is an unbelievable crime that is utterly unforgivable. Dwarf’s will always follow their oaths with little regard for context.

Magic is treated with suspicion among the mountain dwarfs but is treated as a necessity. This is likely due to the horrific experience in great wars with the Varduin. The dwarfs however do realise the potential of magic and as such they still allow magic and have magical schools though they are extremely strict with magic and with only wizards trained allowed to practice its usage.

Dwarf’s instead practise the usage of runes which they utilise throughout their society. This practise usually means to contain spells to make up for the few spellcasters that they have.

Mountain Dwarf Food:

Mountain dwarven food often is hard and strange to outsiders. Food often includes heavy thick bread made from wheat grown in the mountains. The mountain dwarfs have a ferocious appetite and as such they have impressive farming capabilities built to support it. Barley and wheat are grown in huge quantities. The dwarf’s also are more than capable of farming underground.  Meat comes from a variety of sources, the many animals that live in the mountain’s such as goats and bears to those that dwell in the tunnels such as rodents. The dwarf’s have huge well-organised farms underground build into their holds.

Dwarven food often comprises large amounts of meats and thick hard bread that can often feel like biting into rock for those unfamiliar. Dwarf’s often care less how food is cooked though soup and steamed food often attract their ire. Fish is often seen as a “weak” type of food to the dwarfs. 

Above all, dwarfs love alcohol which they produce and consume in large numbers. Wine is rarely consumed though exceptions are made. Ale and Beer on the other hand are a common staple served at nearly every meal.

Mountain Dwarf leadership:

The mountain dwarfs are ruled by a high king of the dwarfs. A Dwarf ruled by a council of the great mountain holds.It is considered a miracle that the proud and uncompromising dwarfs could even come to a decision. The high king of the dwarfs is chosen by the kings of each hold to represent the dwarfs in times of great crisis. While mostly a ceremonial role, the mountain dwarfs are obliged by oaths to rally under the one king.

Military of the Mountain Dwarfs

The armies of the Mountain Dwarfs are some of the most formidable throughout Allurian history. No army has come close to matching the stubbornness, resilience and stoutness of their armies. Each warrior of the mountain dwarf’s is extremely well trained and skilled. Their armies boast heavy reliance on heavily armoured warriors and artillery. 

Dwarf’s are the master craftsmen of artillery which they often bring in large numbers to battle. Their bastillas and catapults are far superior to any that humanity or any of the races can bring the bear. Dwarven infantry formations are renowned for being nearly unbreakable. Each dwarven warrior is armoured in thick plate armour which is capable of withstanding heavy damage. Their formation is almost unbreakable as they fight with unmatched strength and ferocity. The mountain dwarfs have brought no cavalry to battle for they are unable to understand or control animals.

Dwarven tactics rely heavily on ranged firepower and their infantry’s resilience. Their lack of mobility is nullified by their artillery’s range which they often use to force enemies to engage them. Ranks of Dwarven crossbow would cut down advancing foes and few can hope to break through dwarven formations. 

Opinions towards the races:

Human: “Humans make for great friends and trusty companions, if they are truly passionate about something, you can be sure they’ll have dedication like a dwarf. Yet be wary not to trust them too much for they lust for power and can stoop to any level to advance their place in the world. They are too proud to be taught and only when the consequences bit then will they then change.”

Elf:  “It’s hard to understand these pretty pointy eared creatures, They are like young upstarts, they poke and prod like curious children without a care on what they do. They are too naive and just too gentle in everything they do, their clothes are too fine, their weapons too thin, their songs too soft yet for all of that they are highly skilled people who must be said to learn lessons much better than humans.” 

Halfling : “They are pleasant to interact with and a great fun at events of joy but that is all they do, when it comes to serious business they are of little help. ”

Gnome “Some of their kind are crazed madmen who have blatant disregard for safety or care but you must admit their tenacity. They often make for fine partners in trade and research but not war.”

Dragonborn: “These strange dragonfolk cannot be trusted for they resemble too much of the namesake who sacked and destroyed entire holds. They are arrogant and proud, keep away from them.”

Tiefling  “So many see them as devil spawn, we believe that to be (mostly) foolish superstition. They are hardworking people, smart but cunning.  However there is some truth to the human’s superstition and never get too comfortable with them.”