I've been thinking about something I read a while back on the topic of fantasy races. In summary, every fantasy race, be they elves, dwarves, lizardfolk, gnomes, or anything else, get treated as humans with some small differences. Everything in a role-playing game is fundamentally written from a human perspective. Authors and game designers have different takes on this, but what can we as players or game masters do to make different races seem unique while keeping it grounded in something not wholly alien?
I've decided to take a shot at re-imagining dwarves with some ideas borrowed from various sources to suggest a way to depict these characters as more than just short angry humans. I want to draw from our cultures and history, but choose ideas to exaggerate and emphasize in a way that makes them feel fundamentally different to other races and our cultures today. Let me know what you think in the comments below!
Dungeons & Dragons set the standard (for better or worse) with their classic 3x3 alignment grid. One axis is good and evil, and the other is lawful and chaotic, each with a neutral space in between. This leads to a lot of alignment chart debates regarding individual codes versus external legal structures, self-interest versus greed, and so on.
Dwarves are typically ranked as "lawful good" because of their cultural honor codes and devotion to their gods, but this lacks nuance. I would suggest instead that dwarves view matters in a wildly different way within their own clans and culture. I left out the neutral spaces for clarity, but the gray areas are where a character's personal conflict makes an interesting story.
| Clan | Individual | |
|---|---|---|
| Honor | I act for the honor of my clan first, even if it costs my life. | I hold my personal honor above even that of the clan, and must follow that code even if it means ostracism |
| Dishonor | The clan matters more than honor, and such concerns are an obstacle. We do what must be done. | I do what's best for me, whether it means lying, betrayal, or murder. |
This doesn't replace good/evil and law/chaos, necessarily, but it serves as more of an emphasis on the stereotypical dwarf clan and honor ideals first. Consider the Klingons as depicted in Star Trek: The Next generation and Deep Space Nine as another fictional culture with honor and family as the root values.
Worldbuilding is difficult and time-consuming if you're working from scratch. Even I am willing to consider A.I. support for this part of the process. I asked ChatGPT to "create a list of 10 dwarf clan names with a basis in Norse, Germanic, or Old English words. Include translations to modern English for those words. Add a few descriptive words for each clan to distinguish its culture from the others." Here is the result:
Here’s a list of 10 dwarf clan names inspired by Norse, Germanic, and Old English words, complete with translations and cultural descriptors to give each clan a unique feel:
Eisenbart
Translation: "Iron Beard"
Culture: Known for their legendary blacksmithing skills, the Eisenbart dwarves craft the finest weapons and armor in the land. They are fiercely protective of their forges, viewing craftsmanship as sacred.Stormklinga
Translation: "Storm Clang" (from storm and klinga meaning "clang" or "ring")
Culture: This clan is associated with stormy mountains and has a reputation for their warriors' thunderous battle cries. They are hardy, resilient, and often have a connection to the forces of nature.Grimscald
Translation: "Grim's Cauldron" (from grim meaning "fierce" or "grim," and scald meaning "cauldron" or "pot")
Culture: Known for their fierce and fiery temperament, the Grimscald clan specializes in potion-making, alchemy, and controlling volatile magical forces. Their stronghold is said to lie near a volcano.Dunebjorn
Translation: "Brown Bear" (from dune meaning "brown" and bjorn meaning "bear")
Culture: These dwarves have a strong affinity with the wilderness, especially the forests and mountain ranges. They are skilled hunters and trackers, often revered for their strength and the tenacity of the bear.Hrafnblod
Translation: "Raven Blood" (from hrafn meaning "raven" and blod meaning "blood")
Culture: The Hrafnblod clan is mysterious, known for their affinity with ravens and often believed to be blessed (or cursed) by the gods. They are highly intelligent, skilled in espionage, and favored as messengers.Feldurheim
Translation: "Field Home" (from feld meaning "field" and heim meaning "home")
Culture: The Feldurheim dwarves live in the fertile valleys and plains, thriving through farming and crafting tools of the earth. They are a peaceful clan with a deep respect for the land and its resources.Irmungandr
Translation: "The World Serpent" (from irmin meaning "great" and gandr meaning "serpent")
Culture: This clan takes its name from the mythological serpent of the world. They are known for their mastery over serpentine arts, including weaving, metalworking, and defensive tactics.Wyrmgarde
Translation: "Dragon Guard" (from wyrm meaning "dragon" and garde meaning "guard")
Culture: Fiercely protective of their clan and secrets, the Wyrmgarde dwarves believe they are the descendants of ancient dragonkind. They are often seen as keepers of ancient knowledge and guardians of sacred treasures.Thrainulf
Translation: "Thunder Wolf" (from thrain meaning "thunder" and ulf meaning "wolf")
Culture: Known for their swift and deadly warriors, the Thrainulf clan is feared in battle, often using guerilla tactics and the power of nature to strike swiftly like wolves during thunderstorms.Dunewyrt
Translation: "Dark Herb" (from dune meaning "dark" and wyrt meaning "herb" or "plant")
Culture: The Dunewyrt dwarves are healers and herbologists, known for their knowledge of both the medicinal and poisonous properties of plants. They are often found near deep caves, where they grow rare and valuable herbs.Each clan has a distinct identity, from blacksmithing and alchemy to healing and wilderness survival, ensuring variety in both their cultures and the way they approach their world.
I wouldn't just copy/paste this in worldbuilding, and I'd verify the translations given. A.I. is best used as a starting point for brainstorming, not a ready-made end product.
Note that while I chose Germanic and Norse roots because those are the cultures where dwarf folklore originated, I may also consider other root languages. For example, I love how The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind used ancient Sumerian language as part of creating Dwemer culture, although they are technically a tribe of elves and not typical fantasy dwarves.
Dwarves are usually portrayed as a taciturn lot with a long memory when it comes to insults and offenses. In the Warhammer Fantasy setting, grudges are a core of their culture.
You might consider grudges as an inverse of human alliances. Humans seek out alliances, and regard anyone not formally aligned with them as neutral or enemy. A dwarf might see everyone else as neutral with the exception of a few close friends outside the clan, but grudges matter. Insults from a non-dwarf may not mean much, and salights could be brushed off as inconsequential, but crossing a line means eternal hate. Only exceptional acts of contrition could even hope to alter a grudge once it is declared. The consequence could range from shunning the offender and their associates to immediate brutal violence on sight.
A dragon who captured a Dwarf stronghold like Smaug in J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit is an example of an individual targeted by a grudge. This can even extend to entire races. Dwarves and elves are often depicted in conflict ranging from sworn enemies to mere mutual suspicion, but goblins and orcs are usually hated foes of all dwarf-kind.
Within dwarf culture, clan disputes and rivalries can result in grudges as well, so consider populating your world with clans and set their relationships beforehand. I can use the 10 suggestions from ChatGPT above to create an example
| Eisenbart | Stormklinga | Grimscald | Dunebjorn | Hrafnblod | Feldurheim | Irmungandr | Wyrmgarde | Thrainulf | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dunewyrt | neutral | neutral | shun | neutral | hate | ally | neutral | war | neutral |
| Thrainulf | neutral | shun | war | neutral | neutral | neutral | ally | hate | |
| Wyrmgarde | hate | neutral | ally | war | neutral | neutral | neutral | ||
| Irmungandr | war | shun | neutral | neutral | ally | neutral | |||
| Feldurheim | neutral | neutral | neutral | ally | neutral | ||||
| Hrafnblod | neutral | neutral | hate | war | |||||
| Dunebjorn | shun | neutral | neutral | ||||||
| Grimscald | neutral | neutral | |||||||
| Stormklinga | ally |
This kind of table could show which clans are more warlike, which are more likely to bear grudges, and who allies with other clans or other races and kingdoms as well. It's a lot of work, but a world may need a lot of background complexity depending on the kinds of stories you want to tell.
On the other hand, this could be entirely unnecessary if you're in a party of murderhobos who just want to hit meat pinatas until experience points and gold coins fall out. I declare an eternal grudge against such parties outside of one-shot edventures.
Players and Game Masters often benefit from a shared core set of rules for fantasy races. Do dwarf women have beards? Yes, this question is all but guaranteed to arise. There are also more significant worldbuilding matters which may need to be established by the game master up front, or else hashed out in a "session zero" with the players.
I suggest these stalwart characters might be reserved to the point of almost seeming rude when dealing with strangers, contributing to their dour reputation. How would you role-play this as a player or as a GM portraying a non-player character the party meets? How long would it take a dwarf character to consider the rest of the party as more than temporary business partners?
Do dwarves in your world venerate ancestors, worship a pantheon of gods, consider the stone itself divine, or treat craftsmanship as worship? How do player characters and non-player characters portray this?
Does your character belong to one of the main clans in the world, or to a small clan outside the great ones? How does this affect their relationships with their own kind? Will it create conflict that can help tell a story?
Do dwarves tend to seclude themselves in their strongholds, or are they common residents in settlements of humans and other races? How do the other races see dwarves? Is it unremarkable for a dwarf to walk into town, or does a dwarf adventurer draw surprised stares, snide comments, prejudiced disregard, or awe?
Roll a d100, percentile dice, or 2d10. Or just pick one. Or mix-and-match descriptions. I'm not your GM!
| Roll | Result |
|---|---|
| 1-5 | Long braided white beard and hair |
| 6-9 | Bushy white beard and bald head |
| 10-15 | Long gray beard |
| 16-18 | Gray muttonchops and a long mustache with a short goatee |
| 19-20 | Salt-and-pepper hair with neatly-maintained short beard |
| 21-30 | Long black beard tucked into his belt |
| 31-40 | Bushy black beard with a long braided mustache |
| 41-50 | Long brown beard in two braids |
| 51-60 | Bushy brown beard and handlebar mustache |
| 61-70 | Long curly red beard, slightly unkempt |
| 71-89 | Chest-length red beard with silver beard rings |
| 90-95 | Long golden beard in many small braids |
| 96-99 | Wild golden hair and beard, completely untamed |
| 100 | No hair or beard. Why? Disease, shame, oath, or curse? There's a story here! |
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