Dwarves

Dwarves are a short and sturdy race of sentient beings, who typically make their homes in the mountains. They primarily inhabit the Dwarven Marches.

### History

In years past, the Dwarves were split into two cultural groups - that of Hill Dwarves, and that of Mountain Dwarves. Hill Dwarves lived in the foothills, often forging close connections with human neighbors and living in surface structures, growing surface food, and harvesting wood for most uses. The Hill Dwarves, however, ran afoul of the Elven Hegemony, and after an extended period of conflict and ceasefire, were wiped out, in part by the thrall soldiers of the First Elven Empire. The more defensively situated Mountain Dwarves eventually reached an armistice with the First Elven Empire, a treaty which preserved the nominal independence of the Dwarves, whilst obligating them to conduct all diplomacy with outside races through Elven intermediaries and forbidding them from harvesting trees on the surface. Due to this, in the modern day, the only remaining Dwarves are descendants of the Mountain Dwarves, and follow the ancient cultural folkways of the Mountain Dwarves.

The Mountain Dwarves eventually sided with the humans in the Human Wars of Independence. In the modern day, the Dwarven Holds are more isolationist than they were in elden days, and do not chafe under the nominal suzerainity of the Kingdom of Sertorio. So long as the Dwarves keep the Marches clear of Imperials and bandits, Sertorio is happy; so long as Sertorio asks nothing of them except this service and the agreement to conduct diplomacy only through royal Sertorian intermediaries, the Dwarves remain happy.

### Economy

Dwarven economies are almost entirely subterranean, with surface activity limited to trading, hunting, and woodcutting. Underground farms provide for the sustenance of most dwarves. The dwarven cultivated ecosystem consists of several unique species that are not found elsewhere in Eulana. The four subterranean crops are Dwarf Moss (actually a form of algae), Red Pilean (a mushroom), Oil Cap (a sac fungus), and Corpse Weed (a mold). Corpse weed is not eaten directly, but is used to feed insects, farmed fish, and Stygobitic Cattle.

From these crops, a more complex ecosystem develops. Night Suckers (an insect resembling a fly), Cave Beetles, Cave Scorpions, and Giant Millipedes are sometimes themselves eaten, but more often serve simply as a part of the agricultural ecosystem. Cave Toads and Stygobitic Cattle are the primary livestock of the dwarves. Blind Cavefish and Cavern Eels are raised in aquaculture farms as well as being fished for in the natural underground rivers and lakes of Dwarven Holds.

### Culture

Dwarven culture is deeply traditional and not particularly innovative. They tend to prefer 'mature' ideas, seeing development as consisting of wider implementation of existing ideas rather than the invention of new ideas. A typical Dwarf, for example, would be more likely to see a need for increasing crop yields to be resolved by more intensive or rationally organized distribution of farmwork, rather than seeking new techniques or tools. Another example might be that a Dwarf who wished to improve the output of metalworkers would attempt to ensure that they all had the finest tools available, rather than attempting to discern a new method or mechanism to help them.

Mountain Dwarves regularly fight the blind Troglodytae deep in the caves. The Troglodytae are a semi-sentient race of vicious, eyeless creatures with large, sharp-toothed mouths. Troglodytae spend most of their time in hibernation, waking only for short periods to hunt Dwarves, consume rocks to aid digestion, or reproduce. Troglodytae are extremely hardy creatures, and traditional Dwarven methods of flushing out enemies (smoke, flooding) are ineffective on them. A hibernating Troglodyte appears like a slightly irregularly shaped rock - only when they wake do they stand up and show their distinct, bulbous figure. Dwarves fear and loathe Trologytae as their only true predator. Despite endless attempts to eradicate them, they always seem to return, likely due to the behavior of burrowing to lay eggs.

Dwarves enjoy all forms of alcohol, and alcohol is one of the few products they import into their holds with great regularity. They themselves brew five forms of alcohol unique to their subterranean ecosystem.

* Moss Wine, a wine fermented from Dwarven Moss. Moss Wines are widely varied. While winemaker's guilds produce wine for the masses, nearly every wealthy Dwarven family also have moss farms, and takes great pride in the wine produced from said farms. Wealthy Dwarven families often have their names spread far and wide (and their wealth multiplied) by the production of high-quality wine; those families which do not sell their wine are generally those with small farms. In such cases, even a single bottle of wine is considered a very precious and prestigious gift to receive.
* Moss Brandy, a liquor distilled from Dwarven Moss. Generally, it is distilled twice, further aged after distillation, and spiced for a taste unique to the distillery guild which produces it.
* Pilean Pilsner, a beer brewed from malted Red Pilean stalks. The resulting beer is somewhat bitter and sour, and the most popular Dwarven drink by volume consumed, for it ferments quickly and is easily brewed.
* Red Whiskey, a liquor distilled from Pilean malt and Red Pilean caps. The resulting liquor is around 80% ABV. The two main varieties are known as Mountain Whiskey, and Thaddic Whiskey. The former is a strong-but-sweet liquor with a harsh burn and aftertaste, usually aged in precious oaken barrels. The latter, named for its invention in the Hold of Agunuz-Thad, is a sweet and soft unaged liquor with an only mild burn, triple or quadruple distilled. It is sometimes known as 'The Executioner' or 'Death on the Tongue/in the Throat/in the Belly', because of how deceptively light it is for its alcohol content. Even Dwarves are known to sometimes die of alcohol poisoning by misjudging how Thaddic Whiskey much they can drink.
* Phagean Brew, a stimulant made from Pilean malt extract mixed with fresh Troglodyte blood. By mixing the two and letting it ferment, an orexigenic alcohol congeals. After the 'clot slop' is separated from the 'puree' by swirling the liquid around, yeast is added. The result is a drink with a strongly bitter and salty taste. However, it is very popular amongst the rich due to its fast-acting ability to enhance one's hunger and appetite, allowing one to eat more and enjoy what is eaten more.

### Biology

Dwarves are short, stocky creatures, typically ranging from 4'2 to 5'0 in height. Dwarven lungs have extraordinary capacity to extract oxygen from even highly polluted air, and Dwarven livers have a regenerative capacity that exceeds even that of Lizardfolk healing.