Three millennia ago a vast network of stone roads above and below ground stretched across Barbarica connecting dozens of Dwarven holdfasts allied together in a vast commercial and military commonwealth called the Karadakana, with a combined power sufficient to be the envy of their allies and the bane of their enemies. The details have been lost to the past, but one or more of their enemies feared and hated the Karadakana sufficiently to turn to dark powers to combat them, and the doughty Dwarves found themselves beleaguered above and below ground by hordes of Daemons.
The Dwarves losses were ghastly, and many holdfasts were snuffed out altogether. Ultimately they survived by the narrowest of margins but their culture was racked and their hegemony ruined.
A few scattered remnants of the fabled Karadakana remain across the lands of Barbarica. Barbarican Dwarves typically live in holdfasts in rocky areas, including hills, mountains, and cliffs. Though often isolationist or stand-offish, Dwarves are a bold folk and can be encountered adventuring or on business outside their fortress homes.
Small, mostly isolationist, enclaves of Dwarves still remain and are formidable but they have never reclaimed their lost glory, and no longer have the numbers to do more than hold on to what they have not yet lost.
Race Package (5e)
| Dwarf Race Package |
| Cost | Ability |
| 3 | Strong: +3 STR |
| 6 | Durable: +3 CON |
| 6 | Rugged: +3 BODY |
| 6 | Stubborn: +3 EGO |
| 6 | Resilient: +3 REC |
| 3 | Commanding: +3 PRE |
| 5 | Doughty: Choose One: |
| | - Power Defense: 5
- +5 PD
- +5 ED
- +5 STUN
- Life Support: Intense Heat and +2 ED
- Life Support: Intense Cold and +2 ED
|
| 3 | Tough Skin: Damage Resistance 3 PD / 3 ED |
| 5 | Nightvision |
| 2 | Longevity: LS: 400 Years |
| Value | Disadvantages |
| -20 | Normal Characteristic Maxima |
| -5 | Distinctive Feature: Dwarf (Concealable w/ Magic, Noticed, Not Distinctive in Some Cultures) |
| -2 | Slow: -1" Running |
| -1 | Cumbersome: -1" Leaping |
| -2 | Dense: -2" Swimming |
| +15 | Total Cost of Package |
| Cost | Option |
| 3* | Strong Willed: Resistance 3 |
| 3 | Extra Tough Skin: Damage Resistance 3 PD / 3 ED {max 6 PD / 6 ED} |
| 4 | Find the Path: Detect Way Out, Discriminatory, Underground Only (-1) |
| 1 | Walk the Path: Bump of Direction, Underground Only (-1) |
| 6 | Stoneworker: KS: Stonework; PS: Mason |
| 8 | Stone-eyes: Detect Concealed Stone\Rock Features, Discriminatory |
| 4 | Underground Senses: Detect Depth & Slope Information, Discriminatory, Underground Only (-1) |
| 15 | Blindfighting: Combat Sense 11- |
| 25 | Dwarven War Art: (Weapon Art) |
| | - Side Slash: Martial Strike {3d6 location}
- Stroke: Defensive Strike {2d6+7 location}
- Chop: Offensive Strike {2d6+1 location}
- Block: Martial Block
- Avoidance: Martial Dodge
- KS: Dwarven War Art (INT)
- Art used with Axes/Maces/Hammers/Picks
|
| 10* | Dwarven War Art Training: |
| | - +2 with Dwarven War Art
- +1 DC with Dwarven War Art
|
| 1 | Weapon Skilled: WF: Axes/Maces/Hammers/Picks |
| 1 | Longevity: Double Longevity |
| -10 | Psychological Limitation: Antisocial and Untrusting (Common, Moderate) |
| * May take Multiple Times |
Nations
- Lost City of Karadakana: Albizia; No Dwarves reside here any longer, but it is culturally very relevant as the seat of the Dwarven glory days.
- Baragur: Tropizia; Industrious Dwarven Cliff City
- Dolrur: Silizia; Fabled Glass-smiths of the Blasted Desert
- Durok: Albizia; Insular Dwarven Kingdom Under Daemonic Seige
- Undarak: Norizia; Dwarves of the Mountain of Ice
Languages
- Karadak
- Pronunciation Guide: Karadak has a short-long / light-heavy pattern. Generally speaking the first syllable is short / light and the stressors proceed apace from there; the exception is for words that are two or one syllable long, in which case the first syllable is long / heavy. Dwarves also typically speak a little slower than humans, pronouncing each syllable fully. This highly regular and consistent pattern gives Karadak a sort of rolling, up and down rhythm which has been likened to surf coming in against cliffs on a rising tide. Examples follow.
- Karadak = kah-RAH-dahk
- Karadaka = kah-RAH-dah-KAH
- Karadakana = kah-RAH-dah-KAH-nah
- Baragur = bah-RAH-gurr
- Durok = DURR-ok
- Sample Names:
- Male: tendency towards short one to three syllable names with a strong, definitive sound. Examples follow.
- Vurlok = VUHR-lahk
- Thurik = THUR-ihk
- Korb = KOHRB
- Female: tendency towards short two to four syllable names typically ending with a vowel. Examples follow.
- Yibrna = ee-BRIN-ah
- Sabarava = sah-BAHR-ah-VAH
- Orla = OHR-lah
- Alphabet: Karadak has an open-ended straight-lined runic alphabet based on a set of meta-rules as to where lines can be joined and what they can be interpreted to mean. Hundreds of symbols are possible using the system. A small subset of 23 basic symbols represent letters with which to spell out words while the rest represent whole concepts. Karadak has no equivalents to the following letters: C, J, Q.
Artifice
Dwarves of the Karadakana achieved impressive technological and magical heights in its glory days, and most Dwarven states retain a fair amount thereof. Though there are exceptions, it is typical for a Dwarven state to retain a Standard level of Artifice even in regions that are predominantly Low or Primitive, and a couple have High Artifice.
The following expresses generalities: Dwarven Artifice is predominantly object oriented; they tend to excel at craftsmanship. Magically the Dwarves have excellent traditions of both
Runecrafting and
Alchemy; in fact there is substantial evidence that the Dwarves invented Runecrafting. Technologically they are very capable at civil engineering and have a solid understanding of leverage, blocks and pulleys, and toothed gears. Dwarves favor crossbows and equivalent torsion-based devices for ranged weapons vs muscle-drawn devices. Dwarves excel at working with hard substances such as rock and metal.
Of Interest
Races