Az'Unbak

**Az'Unbak** is a shield dwarven city located in the western part of the Dragonback Mountains. The Axebreaker Clan holds this place as their holy city and ancestral home. Though it is a war-torn city under constant siege from orcs and goblins, it is a capable ally of Kormyr and an able defender of Korinth against the Frozen Horde.

## Government

The Ironlord is the sole leader of Az'Unbak, and it is a hereditary position. The Ironlord leads the army and maintains law and order. In 856 AS, the ironlord was Barundar mac Idrin. In the late 1150s AS, this was Torg mac Cei, but he died in battle against the Tuigan Khahan, Hoekun Yamun, in 1211 AS.

In the 800s AS, Az'Unbak made a pact with Kormyr, thanks to the dwarves' friendship with King Halanter I.

Az'Unbak has a long-term treaty of alliance with Kormyr under King Fyrin IV. They also commit forces to the Army of the Alliance against the Frozen Horde in 1224 AS. However, although some observers hope that this would bring closer relations between Az'Unbak and the Heartlands, the dwarves kept apart and remained aloof.

## Culture

The Axebreaker dwarves most value order and honor. They will only fight for a good and just cause, and will accept death in battle for it. They will pull out of a cause if they doubt its quality or its allies, as they nearly withdrew from the Alliance after meeting the orcs of the Frozen Horde, until Fyrin reminded them of their commitment. These dwarves are deeply mistrustful of outsiders from other races, and even of other dwarves, with only a few special exceptions. They especially despise orcs.

They are typically quiet, grim, and moody. They also tend to be battle-hardened veterans, durable and stubborn. Each dwarf is expected to fight or work. They have little time for entertainment, yet on some nights they assemble in the great clan hall to hear songs and stories, and even to dance.

Most of the women and children were slaughtered in the war with the orcs and goblins, so few Axebreakers have families. But they'd fight so long and hard that each dwarf believed their parents to be heroes, so each carried the name of their father, with names like Torg mac Cei and Pryderi mac Immath, where "mac" meant "son of". The few children are taught to fight with staves almost as soon as they can stand. Those dwarves who survive to the age of 50 are expected to choose a mate and establish a family, or "hearth".

War is a central part of their culture, with even their silver cups engraved with scenes of bloody battle against goblins and orcs, and of the dwarves' own gruesome practices. The Az'Unbak dwarves are head-hunters, severing the heads of their slain enemies and taking their skulls as trophies. They take them to a great cavern where they stack them in tidy pyramids. The greater the enemy, the better the skull.

The dwarves are used to subterranean combat, in dark caves and tunnels where noise could echo, hiding enemy movements, and where any light could reveal a position. Therefore, they keep their city and their camps dark and quiet as possible, and the Axebreakers are silent in battle and at work. Fyrin said that silence is a virtue in Az'Unbak. The most noise they make was when victorious in battle, and even that is a low roar that rumbled and rolled as if emanating from deep inside the earth.

Like many dwarven miners, the Az'Unbak miners use canaries that died in bad air, rather than the glowing fungi in the south that changed color but died in the cold. Ironlord Azkal has developed a liking for them, and often carries a cage about with him.

## Military

The Az'Unbak military is commanded by the ironlord. It is orderly, organized, and highly disciplined, and the soldiers trained in armor in harsh conditions to be ready to fight in them. Standards with clan symbols are used to mark and rally troops, while trumpeters and drummers sound orders and kept beats.

Military camps are laid out along straight lines and neatly arranged, unlike in camps of many other nations. Equipment is stored tidily and garbage dumps are kept in separate enclosures. The tents are brown and made of thick felt laced with metal to block sound escaping to the outside; these are designed specifically for the Frozen Horde campaign.

In battle, they wear full plate armor of the famously strong Unbak plate. Some wear scale mail. They traditionally fight with axes (such as battleaxes), swords, and crossbows (such as light crossbows). However, Ironlord Azkal has begun training his soldiers with polearms, having been introduced to them by Fyrin and reading a treatise on polearms from Mercalia. Their heavy pikemen fight in square and massed formations, and focused on fighting cavalry, which made them devastatingly effective against the orc hordes and their warhorses.

## Trade

The main industries in Az'Unbak are mining, smithing, and warfare. The dwarves are talented weaponsmiths, and their axes are sought after. The most prized of all was the famous Unbak plate armor, but this is quite rare, as the dwarves can not spare the time to make new sets for outsiders, only to repair their own.

Though once busy with trade, the siege cut business to a trickle. Some brave peddlers sneak past goblin patrols and through the frontlines to reach Az'Unbak. They sell simple food supplies, such as fruit, cheese, and seeds, and textiles, in exchange for the valuable weapons and armor of Az'Unbak.