The Underground

The drow and dwarves are the two major cultures of the underground, constructing great cities in the earth and stone, using magic and flame, bioluminescent organisms and even flows of molten magma to illuminate their territory. These underground nations may stretch for miles, centered around a single city and stretched out along mines and caverns and farms, both races taking advantage of as much of the resources of the underground as they can scrounge.

There are several ways for people to take themselves down to the depths of the underground, though there are very few safe passages. The drow have numerous raiding tunnels connecting their cities to the world above, but these are concealed and dark. The dwarves have developed reliable tunnels from their cities to the deep caverns and the deep black, but they keep these sealed and defended to prevent intruders or monsters from attacking the city. The typical way for people to gain access to the caverns of the underground is by accident, a mine might have been dug too deep, or an earthquake may expose a previously sealed tunnel. Sometimes passages exist that have been tunneled out by burrowing creatures, or there may simply be caves that happen to run deep enough. These passages though, uncontrolled by the drow or the dwarves, not only act as passages into the deep dark but also as passages out.

Drow

Drow cities in the underground are the most diverse locations of the Underdark, the drow rulers allow a wide range of peoples to reside in their cities as second-class citizens or slaves.

Their cities are built spread out inside of existing caves. They take advantage of the same enchantment that created Skylands that supports these massive cavern structures to build up as well as out. Drow cities gradually expand to take up as much space within the caves as they can. These cities rarely expand too wide, as various drow nations frequently war among each other for control of these spaces and for the limited resources that are available in the Underdark.

Other Underdark species such as beholders, aboleths and mindflayers also compete with the drow for space and resources. This has created a culture of militarism and aggression within the Drow.

A culture of infighting between powerful drow and drow families and dramatic political intrigue, combined with the militaristic bent of the drow people can lead to that intrigue spreading out among the city streets as drow matriarchs manipulate the people of the cities as pawns for their ends and games.

Travelers to the cities of the drow may find grateful benefactors, and for adventurers, the drow may be a path to wealth and luxury, but they will quickly find that their involvement may intertwine them in deadly drow politics.

It’s frequently considered fashionable among the Drow to die their hair, fashioning the styles to match their clans and then detailing that dyed hair into fanciful and elaborate braids. The drow enjoy bright colors in their decoration and often incorporate their clan colors and favorite colors into their fashion and decor.

Dwarves

Dwarves create their homes rather than occupy naturally existing caves like the drow. The dwarves tunnel through the earth and stone, building planned and organized cities. An architect is one of the most respected positions of dwarven culture, as they are not only expected to plan out mines but plan out their occupation and use for centuries afterward.

Dwarven cities are neatly structured to accommodate both the dwarven people and their various industries, often with much more space dedicated to the latter. Different dwarves have different residences in their cities depending on how many dwarves were a part of their construction. A large residence is a status symbol among the dwarves.

Dwarven society is typically hierarchical and organized among clans, each clan centered around a skill that they embrace and teach to their children, such as mining, refining, crafting, and administration. This can make social mobility difficult among the dwarven peoples. Sometimes dwarves are adopted into other clans, this process is intended to ensure that those with ability can practice their skills among clans that can foster them.

Travelers to the dwarven cities find gruff hosts, always ready to discuss business over drinks and ramble on about the politics of clan and country, or simply talk rocks. People go there to seek out the famously sturdy and finely crafted dwarven goods, and to purchase the ores and minerals that the dwarves mine. Even high elves travel down from their Skyland enclaves in search of the resources that dwarves mine. Adventurers seek out the dwarves for a chance for a piece of their legendary riches, though this comes with its dangers, as the most common destination Dwarves have for adventurers is the deep dark or their abandoned tunnels.

The Deep Black

Out beyond the stability of the cities of dwarves and drow is the deep black. The established cities are responsible for illuminating their territories, and beyond that illumination and security are wildness and myriad dangers.

Some small settlements exist in the deep black, mushroom farmers or prospectors. However, usually what explorers will find are the horrendous cities of aberrations. The twisted architecture of the mindflayers and the hollow tunnels blasted out by beholders. There are also the lurching horrors of other monsters that hunt the Underdark, and of things that have never seen the light of the sun in the entirety of their existence.

There are a precious few people either crazy or desperate enough to travel through the pitch black of the deep underground, attracted by the promise of looted riches or impossibly rare resources, or even secrets of magic and technology thought to be lost to everything but the collective of the mindflayers or the distant memories of the aboleth.