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Author: Jarucas
Date Added: 8/6/09
Last Modified: 8/7/09
of the five common races of Aedolyn, the Dwarves may have the most storied past of them all. Diminutive in stature, they are great in accomplishment and rich in heritage. They are, strictly speaking, a single race, though there are three distinctly different types of Dwarves with very little in common, one with the others. They vary in appearance and attitudes, and each type has its own unique culture and its own place in history.
The Three Types of Dwarves
*Note* All three types of dwarves share a common language, which is simply called ‘Dwarvish’. The Dwarvish language is harsh, guttural, and not far removed from the language of the Orcs.
Dweorg - The Mountain DwarvesLands
The Dweorg, more commonly known as Mountain Dwarves, have made their cities within the caverns of the mountainous nation of Angard since time began.
Alignment
Mountain Dwarf characters can be of any alignment, but Dweorg society in general is Chaotic Good.
Physical Features
-Lifespan: 0-50 (Child); 51-150 (Young Adult); 151-300 (Adult); 300-400 (Elder)
-Height: 3’ 9” to 4’ 6”.
-Weight: 135 to 225 lbs.
-Hair: Dark blonde to brown.
-Eyes: Shades of brown.
-Build: Short, stocky, and muscular.
-Skin: Light to medium beige/tan.
-Overview: Dweorg tend to let their hair grow long and the males nearly all have beards. The length a Mountain Dwarf’s beard is a point of pride amongst his peers. They usually add various braids and beads to their beards to indicate their clan and their individual positions within that clan. Females do not have beards, so the braids and beads are added to their hair instead.
Traits
Dweorg do not tend to use much magic, beyond Elemental Earth magic and a bit of Alchemy.
Culture
Mountain Dwarf society is ruled by family Clans. Each clan tends to specialize in a specific field of expertise. One clan might be miners, coaxing ore, gems, and stone from deep within the mountain. Another clan might be smiths, shaping the ore provided by the miners into weapons, armor, coins, and art. Yet others might be gem-cutters, or engineers, or warriors, etc. One specific clan is not based around family. That clan is the Wyvern Riders. Any Mountain Dwarf (male or female) may choose to train as a Wyvern Rider, but in doing so, must give up all ties to their familial clan.
- Separate from the clans, but respected by all, are the Shamans. The Dweorg Shamans use Elemental Earth magic and Alchemy for the good of all the clans of the Mountain Dwarves.
- Dwarven Engineers are famous for their ingenuity and ability to invent wonderous gadgets. They are the undisputed leaders of Aedolyn technology.
- The Dweorg enjoy complete gender equality. Males and females share all of the occupations and social expectations equally, without a hint of gender bias.
Relations
Attempted Neutrality.
History
-1st Age: Constant war raged across the face of Aedolyn.
-2nd Age: The rise of the Angard Empire under the leadership of the demigod Halvak saw generations of peace and prosperity for the Dweorg and their Orc allies.
-3rd Age: Halvak enters Angard into the Sharrum Alliance, which soon goes to war with the Toleriar Alliance. After years of fighting, the Orcs abandon the Dwarves of Angard to form an alliance with Malkur, resulting in the Division of Angard.
-4th Age: The Dweorg of Angard remain neutral during the Second plains War. Halvak allies with Sephria following Calill’s murder in order to defend against the armies of Bavkür and Bäros.
-5th Age: The Angard Mutiny forces the Dwarves out of Gávalik. Halvak, Sephria and Avandor form the Free Peoples of Aedolyn Alliance. They go to war with the Axis of Aedolyn and eventually fight to a standstill. Eventually, Halvak led the Dweorg back into the mountains and gave his life summoning the Wyverns. The newly reformed Dwarven Wyvern Riders gave the Dweorg the advantage and they successfully pushed back the Orcs and reclaimed their capital of Gávalik. The Wyvern Riders then assist Sephria in protecting Zal’Garish from the Axis of Aedolyn, until Aratar came to engulf it. Eventually, the Dweorg and their allies were able to defeat the Axis of Aedolyn, but at a very high cost.
-6th Age (Present Day): The Angard Mountains are plagued by disorder; the regions outside the gates of Gávalik are no longer safe and are now a wilderness of vengeance ruled by Orc and Dwarf clan leaders who seek only territory and revenge.
Zwerg - The Hill DwarvesLands
The Zwerg make their home amongst the rolling hills at the foot of the mountains of Angard in northern reaches of Bäros.
Alignment
Hill Dwarf characters can be of any alignment, but as a whole, they are True Neutral.
Physical Features
-Lifespan: 0-35 (Child); 36-100 (Young Adult); 100-225 (Adult); 226-300 (Elder)
-Height: 3’ to 4’ 2”.
-Weight: 120 to 185 lbs.
-Hair: Shades of red, from strawberry blonde to dark auburn.
-Eyes: Shades of brown and green.
-Build: Short, stocky, and muscular.
-Skin: Pale, often freckled.
-Overview: The Zwerg grow their hair long, but both the males and the females usually keep it braided in a single plait that hangs down the middle of their backs. The men also wear long beards, which they keep neatly trimmed. Unlike their Mountain Dwarf cousins, however, the length of a Hill Dwarf’s beard has no social significance. It simply reflects personal preference.
Traits
Zwerg, as a whole, do not spend much time learning the ways of magic, as their lives are simply too busy with day to day survival. Those Hill Dwarves that do learn to use magic may choose any of the magical spheres. The Zwerg do not have a specific preference one way or the other, nor do they have anything against the use of magic in general.
Culture
The Zwerg live in traditional family units. They construct their homes within mounds of earth and stone. These homes are snuggled in amongst, and almost indistinguishable from, the rolling foothills of the nearby mountains of Angard. Each gathering of Zwerg families is called a ‘hamlet’, and each hamlet is led by an elected elder known simply as a ‘mayor’.
- Hill Dwarves are a farming people, growing their crops upon the rich soil of the hills, allowing their herds of sheep and goats to graze the dales, and using ponies for riding and plowing. They are a simple folk with simple lives and they whole-heartedly like it that way.
- The Zwerg have, quite surprisingly, been able to sustain complete neutrality throughout the long and tumultuous history of their world and never aligned themselves to any of the Nine. Some say that there is a lesson to be learned from their example.
- Unlike the Dweorg, with their total gender equality, the Zwerg culture has clearly delineated gender roles. The women fill the traditional domestic roles (cooking, cleaning, child rearing, etc.), and the men work the farms, build and repair the homes, and generally make most of the decisions.
Relations
Complete Neutrality.
History
Truly, there is not much to tell. Life for the Zwerg has changed very little over the ages, as they have succeeded in remaining separate from the strife, politics, and war that have plagued the rest of Aedolyn throughout history.
Dvergr - The Dark DwarvesLands
The Dvergr homeland is the Bavkür Desert and most of their ilk lives there still, but there are no few of the Dark Dwarves living in the Gaalvar Mountains, as well. These two groups of Dvergr share an enmity for each other that dates back to the 1st Age.
Alignment
Dark Dwarf characters can be of any alignment, but as a whole, the Dvergr are Chaotic Evil.
Physical Features
-Lifespan: 0-25(Child); 26-50 (Young Adult); 51-125 (Adult); 126-200 (Elder)
-Height: 3’ 6” to 4’ 4”.
-Weight: 125 to 200 lbs.
-Hair: Black.
-Eyes: Black.
-Build: Short, stocky, and muscular.
-Skin: Ebony black.
-Overview: Dvergr hair is long and unkempt, often matted or worn in ‘dreadlocks’. The men normally have long beards, which are left wild and untamed, although they do decorate them with animal teeth, bird beaks and talons, and braided strips of raw leather. The warriors typically file their teeth to points and pierce their faces (eyebrows, noses, ears, lips, etc.) with metal rings, spikes, and even bones.
Traits
Dark Dwarves greatly favor Ritual Magic over the other spheres. Most Dvergr that do not become warriors study magic, but the warriors in their culture still outnumber the magic users by at least 3 to 1.
Culture
The Dvergr are a cruel, brutal, violent, and barbaric people. They roam the desert in nomadic tribes, ruled by the strongest. A tribal leader’s reign is quite often a short one, as succession is accomplished through murder and assassination. Whosoever kills the leader of the tribe -becomes- the leader of the tribe… until he is killed in turn by the next leader. The various tribes are perpetually at war with one another and if a tribe’s leader is killed by an enemy tribe, the newly leaderless tribe enters a state of chaotic infighting until a new leader emerges, usually to reign over a tribe much smaller than it was before.
- The Dark Dwarves of the mountains of Gaalvar live much the same way as those in the Bavkür Desert, the main difference being only the terrain in which they live. The two factions of Dark Dwarves were separated back in the 1st Age and each feels that the other has betrayed their own kind. This ancient animosity runs deep between them and each harbors an unreasoning hatred for the other despite the fact that they are truly brothers with no differences between them save geography.
- While the Dweorg enjoy complete gender equality, and the Zwerg maintain ‘traditional’ gender roles, the Dvergr are guilty of total gender oppression. Dark Dwarf women are treated as nothing more than slaves, possessions, and bargaining chips. If a Dvergr is unfortunate enough to be born female, she faces a lifetime of brutality, rape, and servitude. There is, however, an exception to this; the female Dvergr can challenge the male that owns her to mortal combat. Should she be victorious, she becomes a free woman, allowed to leave the tribe and seek a new life among the other races; she is effectively banished from Dark Dwarf society, though she probably does not mourn the loss. If she is defeated, she dies - simple as that.
Relations
The Dvergr disdain all other peoples and pose a serious danger to any that enter their territory, even other tribes of Dvergr. The warlike attitudes of the individual tribes make a unified representation impossible, which means that political relations with other ‘nations’ is nonexistent.
History
- 1st Age: The Dark Dwarves war amongst themselves, splitting into two factions; one settling in the Bavkür Desert, the the other in the mountains of Gaalvar.
- 2nd Age: The Dark Dwarves loosely align themselves with Malkur the Chaotic.
- 3rd Age: Through their alliance with Malkur, the Dvergr are amongst the first to gain access to magic. Malkur establishes the Sharrum alliance and the Dark Dwarves find themselves involved in politics beyond their want. They serve as warriors in Malkur’s dark armies and many Dvergr give their lives in service to his ambitions.
- 4th Age: The Dark Dwarves continue to die for their chosen lord’s ambitions as the rest of Aedolyn begins to join forces against them. Their love of battle is the only thing that keeps them loyal.
- 5th Age: The Dvergr join forces with the Dark Elves, creating the Black Army of Bavkür, which is eventually pushed back by the Free People of Aedolyn, and scattered by the inexorable advance of Aratar.
- 6th Age: The Dvergr have devolved into scattered tribes, constantly at war with each other and everyone else they encounter.
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