Torz Ikhon

“The Stone Holds”

## Government

Torgaz Dwarves, otherwise known as Stone Dwarves, have been ruled by a traditional  form of monarchy that has lasted since beyond reliable historical records. Under this system, the Stone King rules over all Torz Ikhon, with a Stone Thane acting as a proxy of rule to each hold. Stone Thanes are often trusted friends of the Stone King who have demonstrated the pinnacle of dwarven values. Stone Kings and Stone Thanes alike often rely on their own Councils of Elders, made up of the most venerable dwarves from each and every trade.

The current ruler of The Stone Holds is Stone King Kaldor Shatterfist, The Insulter. Raised from birth to become a peerless politician, leader, and warrior, he holds the safeguarding of his people and their traditions far above even his personal values.

Shatterfist’s title of The Insulter is the result of an infamous event of recent history, nearly two centuries ago when Helgradian magitechnicians arrived at the gates of G’zad with a plethora of incredible new strides in technology, claiming a deal that even the Stone King could not deny. After being welcomed into the throne room, such was the arrogance of the magitechnicians that Shatterfist was eventually shaken to his core with anger. At the boiling point of negotiations, The Stone King broke from his calm and shouted the longest and most culturally-scarring insult ever uttered by mortal lips, leaving the visiting Helgradians with permanently shattered spirits and The Stone King with a permanent sore throat. All other details, including the insult itself, have been completely expunged from every known record of the event.

## Character Information

### Alignment

LG

Over the past few millennia, the staunch traditional values of the Stone Dwarves have caused them to stagnate dramatically against the ever-growing tide of technological progress among other nations. Nearly all of the lesser holds have completely died off and crumbled by this point, leaving behind nothing but hollow ruins. The few major holds that remain lie scattered around the outskirts of Helgradian soil. Nonetheless, these holds have stubbornly persevered, even flourished in spite of the technological progress of their competition. Even now within the depths of their rocky holds, they continue to perfect the arts of war and crafts alike.

In the past century, The Stone Holds have begun to slowly accept new forms of technology into their societies, even using their own resources and skill to play a big part in the creation of the lay-lines.

## Culture

The Stone Dwarves are characterized by their incredible work ethic, their peerless sense of patriotism and unity, and their highly-contagious jovial tones in times of celebration and general festivities.

Everyone knows that it takes time to earn a dwarf’s trust and friendship, and that’s doubly true for the dwarves of Torz Ikhon. Stone Dwarves have always been very much adverse towards allowing members of other races into their holds unless the individuals have earned a dwarf’s trust. The very idea of outsiders getting their hands on dwarven wealth, secrets, and especially their families is quite often enough to turn the kindest Torgaz Dwarf’s face red with rage. The events of recent times have amplified this nature, causing Stone Dwarves to be outright hostile towards any trespassers who find themselves in a hold uninvited.

When dealing with a Stone Dwarf, it is as important to make a good impression as it is to call them by their family name; failing to do either will leave you with little but angered glares. Whether a Stone Dwarf will accept business arrangements is often more so dependent on whether they respect and trust you than the actual quality of the deal. If you’re lucky enough to form an unbreakable bond with a dwarf, they may even invite you into a dwarven hold, where you’ll be treated with excellent food, drink, and little talk of serious matters.

## Religion

Nearly all dwarves split their faith between two deities; The Architect (or the Worldsmith, as they call her), and The Reveler.

The Architect has been something of a patron for dwarves since the dawn of history, being proudly acclaimed as the reason dwarven artisans are the best in all of Utharia. Even non-artisan dwarves commonly praise The Worldsmith, believing every walk of life to be a craft in need of perfecting.

The Reveler, meanwhile, is often worshiped by dwarves as the symbol of jovial celebration, abundance gained from long hours of toil, the joys of hearth and home, and even self-indulgence in the form of general greed. There are some cases of Reveler-worshipping dwarves having such immeasurable love for wealth that The Reveler blesses their entire bloodline with the ability to sniff out precious metals.

## History

The major Stone Holds are known to be the oldest and longest-standing civilizations in Utharia, rumored by some to be as old as the original deities. They were certainly the first to create stable agriculture, subsisting healthily off of cave fungi and livestock. Most outsiders do not know this, but the major Stone Holds are not even natural mountains. It is said that, at the dawn of time, they were once cloud-piercing citadels of unimaginable size built up from both stone and the massive bones of the Giant Creatures that once ruled over the world. It is in the first of these citadels, The Summit, that the first Stone King was crowned, rumored also to be a close friend of she who would become The Architect.

Many rumor that the endless caverns stretching under the major holds hide the oldest secrets of Utharia’s history, though they’re far too large for even an entire generation of dwarves to explore in their lifetime. While this has not stopped some dwarven families from trying, many dangers lie in that darkness that best not be disturbed, and there are things to be said about digging too deep...

## Major Holds

G’zad, “The Summit”

Arazil Tik, “The Silver Peak”

Fettun Tik, “The Iron Peak”