One of the dwarven families of old Falanar, the Nornvar line was that of stout warriors, peerless rogues, and shrewd merchants that held power from the 28th to the 38th century AS.They were famed for introducing adamantine to the common people in the form of either simple tools or majestic weapons and everything in-between from armours to carriages. The clan was well known for having a harsh stance against wizards, sorcerers, and other magic users as they were believed to invite nothing but trouble and unstable magic. If it wasn't built by dwarven hands it wasn't worth having around.
Clan Nornvar had an extensive and skilled group of rogues that made up the Crownguard along with a select few warriors whom would act as bodyguards. The Crownguard consisted mostly, however, of dwarven rogues who were adept at not only infiltration, but subterfuge and, rarely, assassination should it be deemed necessary.
Lands
For the duration of the height of their power, the Nornvars owned every parcel of land that stretched from what is now Regus to the very edge of the coast nearest The Great Swamp, the large stretch of jagged mountains held countless dwarven holds and kingdoms beneath their crooked peaks, and housed several fully formed settlements including the seat of their power, The Steel Hall.
History
The Nornvar Clan's official founding is subject to skepticism and debate, but it is generally agreed that they must have been founded around the year 2550, due to the prominence of stamped relics from that time period. The house never officially came into any notable power until the 28th century, likely somewhere near 2870 in the tail end of the century, as workers struck one of, if not the world's largest source of Adamantine. Though it is largely unclear how the massive amount of the rare metal came to be found, the dwarven kings of clan Nornvar guarded this and most other of their secrets incredibly closely. It is speculated the a majority of the adamantine forged items that circulate Falanar today are a result of Clan Nornvar, this is backed up by the clan having stamped and dated a majority of their creations.
In rough 3045 AS, such was the standing of Clan Nornvar that it was said they formed relations with Dragons that had shared the mountains with them and that they shared peerless magical knowledge and esoteric magical items that the dwarves would not normally have access to as they were of a mind against magic users. Several sources, although there is little evidence to support the claim, suggest that the Nornvar Clan may have initially declined the dragon's offer, spurring a few months of hostilities where both sides took a number of losses before reaching another agreement.
One of the clan's larger achievements, beyond mercantile dominance over a majority of Falanar, was the research and development of several commonplace pieces of weaponry still in use today, mostly inspired by their conflict with dragons in their early years. During that time, the clan experimented with many alchemical combinations, the best of which yielding what is commonly referred to as black powder, or gunpowder, today. The dwarves were quick to implement this into weapons such as long rifles, handguns, and cannons which fire massive wrought-iron balls of death at high speeds. The dwarves keep gunpowder a tightly guarded secret and hoard it from prying eyes, as the weapons that fire the ammunition are of little use without the specific instructions to create the powder that fires the ammunition, so having weapons stolen is not a concern for most. Not all weapons were black powder based, however, simple adaptations of commonly used weapons were not unrealistic either.
Dragonlance Ballista, which were large chained bolts tied down to massive metal ballista, were used to bind flying dragons to the ground where they were vulnerable. These were, for all intents and purposes, massive crossbows that fired fifteen foot long bolts with tips of various designs and materials, and required typically teams of two to operate efficiently.
Flame Cannons, which were large dragon-mouth shaped cannons which belched massive streams of fire in a line, typically used in siege scenarios to clear attackers from walls or gates. These designs were later discovered and repurposed by other dwarven clans such as those of The Bronze Keep dwarves who used these original designs to model their flame throwers of the current age.
In the 38th century AS, Clan Nornvar suffered a massive loss when the dwarf clans of old decided to defect from the clan, forming almost seventy new clans that went on to become the larger dwarf kingdoms of current day. This loss was brought about by a curse most foul placed upon the king at the time, Barriz-Dur. While the dwarf king was afflicted, he suffered bouts of delusion and madness, culminating in the assassination of his brother and nephews as a desperate bid to avoid his brother from usurping his crown, a plot that never existed to begin with. After this, his rule was questioned by several of his council, all of which turned up dead in the coming months.
Barriz-Dur was found not two weeks after the execution of the last of his council members dead in his home, the Crownguard Leader at the time had taken blame for this regicide and was arrested for the remainder of his life.
Upon the fall of Clan Nornvar, their dwarfholds were forever sealed behind intricate locks and neigh unbreakable adamantine gates, with the rocks above caving in the entrances as a final measure of the clan's final days.
Barriz-Dur was survived by a son, who went on to have children of his own. The dwarven king's blood lives on without his ailment, but with The Steel Halls buried beneath the mountains there is no hold for the dwarf kings to rule, so they are known merely as the Vagrant Kings by the clans who once lived under their same banner.
Weaponry
A Clan Nornvar manned mobile ballista which fired heavy steel-tipped bolts that were up to fifteen feet long and could puncture a stone tower and blast through wooden gates.
The Nornvar dwarves were, first and foremost, known for their lucrative trading and excellent quality products. Their second greatest feat, however, was bringing siege warfare into the current age via the invention of ballista, catapults, cannons, mortars, and most other ways of assailing a fortress's walls. Rather than the traditional method of siege towers or ladders, the dwarves were ill-suited for climbing walls even if they were plenty capable of fighting on the battlements once they did get up there, because of this the Nornvar dwarves developed mobile artillery and siege weapons designed specifically for weakening or outright eliminating the defences most walled settlements or guarded fortresses possessed. This included, but was not limited to, heavy stone walls, large wooden gates, draw bridges, archer towers, and anybody who might be unfortunate enough to be standing on or near any of those things when the dwarves arrived.
Though timely to set up, the mobility of these siege weapons made them invaluable for warfare.
The dwarves rarely went to actual war with anybody, and it never lasted long unless a grievous grudge was issued, but many other warring kingdoms, small time mercenary groups, or small lords looking for defences would but these weapons often, thus the majority of these weapons became commonplace and often replicated with various degrees of quality, though often lesser than the original product for many reasons.