Duri Hornshield

*"Our first and glorious king Duri Hornshield paved the way for our kin making the correct alliances and secured the Silver Mountains for us to live through a deal made with the kingdom of Forline, this paved the way for his son and successor Figgar Hammersword who continued our kin's legacy."* - Extract from the Dwarven book of kings

Duri Hornshield was a Dwarf who became the first Dwarven king of Baramunz founding the kingdom after the collapse of Forline who provided the Dwarves with their vast amounts of wealth from which they built their kingdom from, Duri orginally was born from the house of Duri who became a mining guild working for the kingdom of Forline leaving Duri to eventually become the patriarch for the house helping reinforce the kingdom's walls and rebuild in new architecture. Despite being under the northern kingdom's rule the Dwarves lived under relative peace not really being involved in any wars or battles however Duri would provide Forline with various siege machines and catapults to help them, after the three kingdoms fell Duri would create a throne in the Silver Mountains from where he deemed this would be the kingdom of Dwarves named Baramunz. The Silver Mountains despite being ruled by Duri would allow for three other Dwarvish houses to rule their own territories within the Silver Mountains before eventually ruling their own mountain kingdoms in other regions across the realm, this would allow for the Dwarves to have an organised society and an eventual sizable army should they ever need it. Eventually Duri Hornshield would pass at the age of 348 being one of the oldest known Dwarves to have ever lived with his crown and title falling to his son Figgar Hammersword.

## Biography

### First Era

#### House of Duri

Before the first Dwarven kingdom had formed various Dwarves lived in tribes which they named them as "houses" with each having a house leader overseeing their house's safety and businesses, at some point in his life Duri would become the new patriarch to his house overseeing their mining expeditions in the northern mountainous regions of Forline which provided him to officially open his own mining guild for his house selling his ores and resources that his guild collected alongside anything that they built both as decorations and tools. By the year 130 of the First Era Duri's mining guild and expeditions would grant his house an audience with the king Gwilithon who ruled the kingdom that his house's mines were currently situated within, the king offered a deal for Duri and his men to receive large amounts of money in exchange for their help in the remodelling of Forline including building defences such as catapults and stronger walls that surrounded the kingdom and its border. During their deal Duri would also add on the demand that his house would permanently be able to settle in the Silver Mountains as his mines and expeditions had discovered and uncovered large amounts of ores and valuable resources for them to use allowing for Gwilithon and his people to be given half of what they mine and create, the king would grant this request and made preparations to help the Dwarves begin settling in their new home from which Duri would rebrand the Silver Mountains with a new name naming it Baramunz.

#### King of the Silver Mountains

Over the years as the Dwarves settled into their new home they remained neutral and out of the way from the wars of the three kingdoms as Duri saw it as non beneficial and no financial gain worth partaking in such a massive war instead choosing to batten down into the mountains and begin building up his treasury, over the decades and the changing of new kings in Forline the Dwarf lord would still honour the deal he made with Gwilithon and funded his son and descendants with the resources they needed for their kingdom. Eventually by 251 of the First Era all of the three kingdoms of man would fall to the dark lord Tozor leaving the realm heavily demoralised and the northern kingdom relatively empty as most of it's warriors would of been killed in the same battle which led Duri to officially claim Baramunz as an independent kingdom for the Dwarves crowning him as their first king, the following year he would help construct his carven throne to be the seat of his power over his own house but also over the other four houses who flocked to the prosperous Silver Mountains. Despite being a united ruler Duri knew this would not last forever and decided to make the leader of the other houses Dwarven lords giving them their own land and smaller kingdoms within the Silver Mountains to rule however two houses which included the house of Blackhorn would choose to move away from Baramunz in hopes of finding their own mountains to help spread Dwarven territories and formulate new lands giving them better strategic advantages, in 317 of the First Era Duri would be gifted with a child naming him Figgar who later went on to be known as Figgar Hammersword. After having consolidated his power Duri would pass at his own behest sitting on his throne in 449 of the First Era making him one of the oldest Dwarves to have ever lived at the old age of 348 years of age.