hobbygamers ~ View topic

Old Dragon Joined: 30 Aug 2007 Posts: 577

So here's the pitch I have for the Dwarf Heritage:

Before the Godfall War, the Dwarves were the Masters of Gold and Iron. Most major veins of these precious metals were in their possession, not to mention countless other mines producing other metals, minerals, and gemstones. They were also masters of smithing and goldwork, and the art of alemaking. The largest Dwarven stronghold, The Keep, was built on, in the middle of, and underneath 3 mountains that produced gold and iron in enormous quantities. Legends say you merely needed to tap a rock in half to find precious ore within. The Keep was a bustling mega-city, beloved by the Gods of Wealth and Ale.

The Godfall War changed all that. The Keep became a major target, both for its patronage and its resources of riches and weapons. Armies assaulted, then were fought off by the hardy dwarves. Terrible monsters and the strangest magicks attacked the fortress, causing widespread death and destruction, but still the dwarves held out.

But not even the best defenses could withstand Hunger. As the War raged on, the dwarves' supplies began to run out, and the countryside around them was a wasteland. Dissension and unrest began to rise within the Keep's walls, and violence broke out on the streets.

A massive explosion, seen even from far away lands, shook the earth, and there was nothing left of the Keep but a smoldering crater. The dwarven survivors, who had actually fled the stronghold for various reasons some time before the cataclysm, say the shockwave disintegrated anything and anyone caught in it. Nothing was left of the Keep and its three mountains of riches, not even rubble.

Nobody knows what caused it. Some say that the leaders of the city made a bargain with dark powers, who saved the city but damned their souls. Others say the powerful artifacts within, acquired by centuries of heroes of the Keep, was used in desperation. A half-crazed veteran scouting half a country away claims seeing angels and demons fight over the city, and the victorious side taking it away as their own prize. Even others say this was the result of powerful spells wielded by either the city's defenders, her enemies, or rebels within.

Now the dwarves who wander the land of Bonethrall are merchants and artisans and adventurers, too wary to settle in one place lest they lose it like they lost the Keep. Those who do become comfortable in "civilization" gravitate towards the local merchant or craft guilds, where the dwarves's talents are always welcome. An attempt by some to recover some of the Keep's former glory is the Fort, much smaller and far poorer.

There are two competing philosophies within the dwarves. One are those who constantly search for The Keep, believing that it is not gone, merely "elsewhere". It could've been blown up into the sky, or buried under the earth, or teleported into another realm - or it might be in one of those uncharted places they keep talking about in the tavern - a Keeper Dwarf is always on the lookout for new leads or hearsay, always searching for maps, and building up wealth and gear so they can return to the Keep.

Then there are the Worldly Dwarves, whose cause is to make themselves wealthy so they can either make The Fort as grand as the Keep used to be, or to start their own "new Keep".

Much fighting and shouting happens when a Worldly Dwarf and a Keeper Dwarf end up in the same tavern together.