Main Subraces

[Ailander]

Always remember
You will find the typical NPC behavior described below, along with a brief description of their society and history. This does not mean that one can't deviate from these traits during the course of their adventure, nor that this is comprehensive of everything. If you seek more information, the Wiki is your friend!

Shield Dwarf (standard dwarf)
Shield dwarves, also known as mountain dwarves, were among the most common of the dwarven peoples. Once the rulers of mighty kingdoms across Faerûn, the shield dwarves had since fallen by the wayside after centuries of warfare with their goblinoid enemies. Since then, shield dwarves were less commonly seen throughout Faerûn, though during the Era of Upheaval the subrace, spurred on by the Thunder Blessing, began to retake an important role in local politics.They were the most common dwarf in the north of Faerûn.

Shield dwarves were a cynical and gruff people, but they were not, despite a reputation to the contrary, fatalistic, still possessing some hope for the future. Typically, shield dwarves took time to trust and even longer to forgive but the dwindling of their race led many to be more open to other ways of thinking. Shield dwarven attitudes were formerly typically divided between the Hidden and the Wanderers, two separate schools of thought amongst the race, though since the Thunder Blessing this separation began to erode. The Hidden, like the gold dwarves, believed it best to take an isolationist policy towards other races, fortifying their mountain homes and continuing their ancient ways, while the Wanderers were more adventurous, seeking their fortunes on the surface.However, while shield dwarves had not always been so open-minded, there was a long tradition of adventurism in the race and many young dwarves, particularly after the Thunder Blessing, hoped to find glory in doing great deeds in distant lands. Less self-interested shield dwarves also took to the adventuring life to reclaim ancient strongholds or treasures long lost. Whatever the case, most shield dwarves who ventured beyond their homes were fighters or clerics trained in personal combat, leaning on the strong martial traditions of their people against the orcs, goblins, trolls, and giants that threatened the race.

Traditionally, clan and class meant everything among the shield dwarves but as their civilization declined so did the importance of these issues. Although bloodline was still a mark of pride for a dwarf from a particularly strong clan, personal accomplishments came to mean more practically than the old ways, which seemed increasingly irrelevant. Among the Hidden, traditions remained strong, but there was an increasing number of shield dwarves willing to leave the mountains for a life as adventurers or craftsmen among humans.

The original kingdoms of Deep Shanatar were destroyed around −1800 DR when the duergar invaded what was once their home. This was known as the Kin Clashes and left only Iltkazar surviving.More and more dwarves migrated north, leaving behind their old kingdoms and forming Oghrann, Haunghdannar, Ammarindar and Delzoun. Eventually, all of these dwarven settlements fell, the last of which being Ammarindar in 882 DR as a result of the demons of Wulgreth of Ascalhorn.

Skin color(s): Pale to lightly tanned
Hair color(s): Red to light brown; grays to white with age
Hairstyle(s): Long hair
Eye color(s): Green, silvery blue
Typical build: Stocky, broad, muscular

BONUS
+2 con -2 char
Stonecunning: +2 racial bonus on Search checks made in subterranean areas.
Darkvision: Dwarves are able to see in the dark.
Hardiness vs. poisons: +2 racial bonus on saving throws against poisons.
Hardiness vs. spells: +2 racial bonus on saving throws against spells.
Offensive training vs. orcs: +1 racial bonus on attack rolls against orcs.
Offensive training vs. goblinoids: +1 racial bonus on attack rolls against goblinoids (goblins, hobgoblins, and bugbears).
Defensive training vs. giants: +4 dodge bonus to AC against giants.
Skill affinity (lore): +2 racial bonus to lore checks.

Free language:
Dwarven
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Gold dwarf

Gold dwarves, also known as hill dwarves, were the aloof, confident and sometimes proud subrace of dwarves that predominantly came from the Great Rift. They were known to be particularly stalwart warriors and shrewd traders. Gold dwarves were often trained specifically to battle the horrendous aberrations that were known to come from the Underdark. Gold dwarves were stout, tough individuals like their shield dwarf brethren but were less off-putting and gruff in nature. Conversely, gold dwarves were often less agile than other dwarves. The average gold dwarf was about 4 feet (1.2 meters) tall and as heavy as a full-grown human, making them somewhat squatter than the more common shield dwarves. Gold dwarves were also distinguishable by their light brown or tanned skin, significantly darker than that of most dwarves, and their brown or hazel eyes

Gold dwarves were both materialistic and ritualistic, valuing themselves and others by what they possessed and by the reputation of their family. Gold dwarves were deeply conservative, rooting their values and beliefs in traditions that have survived for millennia even as the world changed around them. From infancy, gold dwarves were taught that their life was determined by tradition, from what their profession should be to who they should marry. Gold dwarves who lacked faith in the old ways or who went so far as to challenge cultural taboos were seen as dangerous deviants unworthy of friendship or trust by the majority of gold dwarves, creating an enormous social pressure to conform.In part because of their conservatism and staunch belief in their own cultural superiority, gold dwarves rarely ventured outside of their homelands. The Thunder Blessing was the first event in a long while to push the race out of their conformity, forcing young dwarves to seek their fortunes outside of the overcrowded Deep Realm.

Humans who wandered into the gold dwarven strongholds might be surprised to find a people far more confident and secure in their future than most dwarves. Whereas the shield dwarves suffered serious setbacks during their history, the gold dwarves stood firm against the challenges thrown against them and so had few doubts about their place in the world. As a result, gold dwarves could come off as haughty and prideful,believing themselves culturally superior to all other races and lacking the fatalistic pessimism of their shield dwarven cousins.

However, the drow dominance of Telantiwar was temporary. In −7600 DR, the roof of the caverns that contained Telantiwar collapsed, creating what would become known as the Great Rift. Explanations for the collapse vary, with gold dwarves favoring the theory that Moradin himself brought the roof down while scholars of other races believe the drow had weakened the foundations of the cavernous network. With their ancient enemies battered, the heirs of Bhaerynden returned to their homeland, establishing the Deep Realm. In the millennia that followed, the inhabitants of the Deep Realm, now known as gold dwarves, spread throughout the Underdark, reclaiming much of what had once been theirs and building glamorous cities of fabulous riches, which they traded through history with the many human empires of the surface world, from Jhaamdath to the cities of Chondath.

Like the shield dwarves, gold dwarves were blessed with a surge in birthrate by Moradin in the Year of Thunder, 1306 DR. While the Thunder Blessing was seen as a boon to most dwarves, among the gold dwarves its results were less appreciated, as the Blessing actually causing the previously stable population to swell beyond the capacity of the Deep Kingdom to support. In the years that followed, many displaced younger gold dwarves forsook the isolationist policies of their elders and took to exploring Faerûn.

Skin color(s): Light brown, tan
Hair color(s): Black, brown, gray; usually grays to light gray with age
Hairstyle(s): Long
Eye color(s): Brown, hazel
Typical build: Stocky, muscular

BONUS
+2 con -2 dex
Stonecunning: +2 racial bonus on Search checks made in subterranean areas.
Darkvision: Dwarves are able to see in the dark.
Hardiness vs. poisons: +2 racial bonus on saving throws against poisons.
Hardiness vs. spells: +2 racial bonus on saving throws against spells.
Offensive training vs. orcs: +1 racial bonus on attack rolls against orcs.
Offensive training vs. goblinoids: +1 racial bonus on attack rolls against goblinoids (goblins, hobgoblins, and bugbears).
Defensive training vs. giants: +4 dodge bonus to AC against giants.
Favored Enemy(Abherrations): The gold dwarves are skilled in fighting the monstrosity of the underdark
Skill affinity (lore): +2 racial bonus to lore checks.


Free language:
Dwarven
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Arctic Dwarf
Arctic dwarves were a race of dwarves located in the isolated reaches of the Great Glacier in Faerûn's northernmost reaches. Arctic dwarves had a different origin from most other dwarves in Faerûn and were significantly different physiologically and culturally from other members of the Stout Folk, so much that they might be considered their own race. Arctic dwarves were almost entirely unheard of until a group of them began settling the edges of Luruar around the mid–14th century DR

Arctic dwarves were a very small race, not only in general but in comparison with dwarves as well. The average arctic dwarf was even shorter than a gnome or halfling, standing at just over half the height of a shield dwarf. Physically, arctic dwarves were squat, with pinched faces and stubby legs, being nearly as wide as they were tall. Their fingers and toes were thick and blunt, and their feet flat and wide to help them walk across the snow. Their skin was typically quite pale, ranging from a pale shade of blue to white, except for their cheeks which were a ruddy red. That said, their frequent exposure to the sun meant many were almost always sunburned, although this did not cause them any discomfort. Arctic dwarf eyes were bright blue and their curly hair, which they usually let flow freely grow long to their waists, was white. Unlike most dwarves, arctic dwarf females couldn't grow beards. Males often grew short beards with twisting mustaches. Arctic dwarf dress was typically simple, most often little more than tunics of polar bear fur, and they were always barefoot

In general, arctic dwarves were a gregarious people, open to the company of others. Unlike other dwarves, they cared little from what bloodline another dwarf came from and had next-to-no materialistic drive, believing instead in living life to the fullest. In part, this was derived from the primitive nature of arctic dwarven society, which relied on hunting and foraging to sustain themselves, restricting the accumulation of private property but at the same time allowing for a greater amount of free time than civilized cultures had.While individualistic and open-minded, arctic dwarves rarely ventured beyond their own homelands to adventure. Those that did were usually driven by a spirit of curiosity, falling into the life of an adventurer more by default than by conscious decision

Average height: 2′10″‒3′4″ (0.86‒1 m)
Average weight: 52‒82 lb (24‒37 kg)
Skin color(s): White to icy blue
Hair color(s): White
Eye color(s): Bright blue

Bonus
+4 str +2 con -2 dex
Stonecunning: +2 racial bonus on Search checks made in subterranean areas.
Cold Immunity: Immune to cold damage
Darkvision: Dwarves are able to see in the dark.
Hardiness vs. poisons: +2 racial bonus on saving throws against poisons.
Hardiness vs. spells: +2 racial bonus on saving throws against spells.
Offensive training vs. orcs: +1 racial bonus on attack rolls against orcs.
Offensive training vs. goblinoids: +1 racial bonus on attack rolls against goblinoids (goblins, hobgoblins, and bugbears).
Defensive training vs. giants: +4 dodge bonus to AC against giants.
Favored Enemy(Abherrations): The gold dwarves are skilled in fighting the monstrosity of the underdark
Skill affinity (lore): +2 racial bonus to lore checks.


Free language:
Dwarven