Dwarf

Key Similarities with Faerun's Version

• Dwarves take great pride in their appearance. In particular, dwarves take great pride in their hair. Almost all dwarven men, and many dwarven women, grow long and fabulous beards - basically, if you can grow one, you do grow one. Others who can't grow beards tend to take great care with their hair, growing it as long as possible instead. Having your hair taken from you is one of the greatest dishonors a dwarf in Adra can possibly suffer.
• Dwarves tend to have deeply held cultural grudges. Any dwarf even remotely connected to the dwarven cultures of Adra will have some idea, if not in most cases, a memorized list, of the ancestral enemies of the dwarves. They are, in the historical order from oldest to newest: 1) The Dragons (in particular the Chromatic dragons), 2) The Aboleth, 3) Goblins (goblinoids in general), 4) Orcs, 5) Duergar, 6) Valenteran Elves (some more prejudiced or ignorant dwarves may confuse this for elves in general), 7) Drow, and 8) The Giants (including Goliath). The degree to which dwarves are hostile to their ancestral enemies is informed by their individual cultures, for example with Firebrand Dwarves hating the Valenteran Elves far more than other kinds of dwarves elsewhere.
• Most dwarves find themselves drawn into the pursuits of craft, war, and mining, to greater or lesser degrees depending on the culture in particular. Around the world, they are revered for these talents, with even incompetent dwarves being assumed by many non-dwarves to be capable smiths and proud warriors.
• All of dwarven life is organized around the clans. Dwarven Clans are extended family units, bound together by blood, marriage, and certain legal and religious rites. The smallest of clans may have around 20 members. The largest, numbering in the thousands. Most average around 300 or so members. While dwarves to have political constitutions and rulers outside of the clan system, these arrangements are always by the consent of the clans, with clans still forming the ruling bodies of most strongholds and cities. Those dwarves, for whatever reason, without a clan, are the lowest of the low in dwarven society.

Key Differences with Faerun's Version

• The Dwarves argue, rather persuasively, that they are the oldest Kith race in Adra. They track their lineage and histories very precisely, back before the age of humans, or even the age of elves (at least elves on the prime material plane), back to a time which their records maintain was apocalyptic in its chaos and violence when compared to today's world. Supposedly, their time was even far before the Black Reach descended upon Adra. In each Dwarvish hold, even minor ones, there are meticulous records of the history of various clans recorded in stone. In the largest of the Dwarvish Underkingoms, these records are so large and unruly that some folks spend lifetimes trying to understand all of it.
• The Dwarves make up the preeminent political, economic, and military force in the 3rd Age of Adra. They are broken into the 7 Great Underkingdoms, vast networks of strongholds, clans, and client settlements, each bound together by a capital city just beneath the surface. The oldest and greatest of the 7 fell a few hundred years ago - still, despite that setback, the dwarves are attempting to salvage their golden age, and with it, maintain their civilization in the face of powerful rivals. See Cultures of the Seven Underkingdoms for more information.
• Dwarves tend to grow their full beard (if they will grow one) by the age of 50. They will begin to turn grey and wrinkle during their third century - despite this, no matter how old a dwarf looks, most dwarves maintain their strength and vitality well into their life, usually only becoming frail in the last decade of their life.

Subraces of Dwarf

• Duergar: The Duergar are the descendants of early dwarf pioneers who ventured deeper and deeper into the Underdark. For reasons that are still not fully understood, they became corrupted overtime, and now are not considered dwarves at all by regular dwarves. Duergar tend to look pale and grey compared to their surface brethren. See Duergar Culture for more information. Unlike other dwarves, Duergar are Restricted.
• Hill Dwarf: These are dwarves who live most of their lives above ground, and in the sunlight, usually in settlements based around hills. Most hill dwarves in Adra live in the Hills of Malmuir in northern Arathia, while others are commonly found in the Wandering Valley, ruled by the Underkingdom of Canae. Hill dwarves live in other holds and places as well, but might find themselves ill-suited for life lived for long stints underground, getting a kind of cabin fever if they spend more than a few days without seeing the sun. Hill dwarves tend to have darker hues of skin than their mountain kin, and may also often be slightly taller than mountain dwarves.
• Mountain Dwarf: Mountain dwarves are the oldest kind of dwarf, the ones who originally came from the Usgaroth Mountains. They are suited to living in high mountain fortresses, and are well-accustomed to living below the ground for weeks at a time. Mountain dwarves do need to occasionally take time on the surface, and often enjoy hunting and other pursuits good for getting some fresh air. Still, mountain dwarves might also find themselves especially driven to "traditional" dwarven pursuits, such as mining and forgecraft. Mountain dwarves tend to have paler skin, and are often burlier and shorter than their hillen cousins.

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