Dwarves

"'Stubborn little midget men...why can't they just stay in the mountain where they belong?'"

Racial Description
Dwarves are a stocky, smaller race of stubborn and gruff humanoids. Most of the time, one can identify a dwarf by their size and general demeanor - They don't often get any taller than 4'0". They're often compared to hogs, with a similar stoutly or stocky shape with plenty of body hair, and a bad temper.

Dwarves characteristically grow a large amount of facial or bodily hair and commonly have beards or mustaches to signify their age and status. Different braiding styles, woven trinkets and length of facial hair can all distinguish dwarven families and houses.

Piercings and Tattoos are quite common in Dwarven society. It is generally encouraged to show their knowledge of heritage and honorable status. Dwarves are a proud and stern race, their short and resilient nature considered a gifted ability, to survive in the dangerous world laid out before them. They are considered, in a general sense, to be physically strong, developing a perk of fortitude, especially in the ability to resist heat and cold, and they made light of heavy burdens. Dwarves live longer than Men often up to 125 years. Dwarves have the ability to learn new artisanal skills quickly, especially those dealing with metal or stone - and they're considered to be amazing smiths and miners in the depths of the world, working where daylight may never reach to gain access to the rarest riches that Raakash has to offer.

Dwarves are typically stubborn, secretive, and fiercely loyal to friends and family. They treat and care for each other, even strangers among their kind like family. They cared greatly about mining, crafting, crafts, gold and gems, their acquisition of which often fuels the forces of evil and draws them near, especially when a large horde of riches is acquired. Dwarves are easily offended by rude comments, and have a tendency to hold long-lasting grudges. Dwarves are often seen as greedy, but their nature gives them resistance to many external influences, such as dark or corrupt magics and practices. While the rest of the world may succumb to such darkness, the Dwarves may be the most likely to remain unaffected, saved by their gold-lust and hatred for anything that could stand between them and what they perceive as their treasure. Although, such a strong feeling is also a dangerous opening to allow the influence of Khaos to slip inside the mind of a dwarf - on occasion, greed and the striving for riches has driven them mad and corrupted dwarves into becoming servants of the dark vessel.

Architecture
Dwarven peoples are known for their diverse and magnificent strongholds that stretch deep into the mountains and the ground below. The strength of their walls is considered to be unmatched by most, if not all races in the world. Their touch and determined attitude makes them incredibly strong adversaries in sieges, and their ability to hold out when outnumbered or outmatched is infamously known, hence the saying, "You can't starve a dwarf."

Notable History
Despite their incredible knack for surviving the impossible, Dwarves have suffered incredible losses that have resulted in entire kingdoms being wiped out. A recent example of such an event, during the Age of Despair, was the fall of the Dwelmir - a dwarven mining clan that had previously resided in the Pale, above the location of the Mines of Karak-Dum. Up to 800,000 dwarves were killed - key reasons being the relentless plagues, starvation, and constant sieges of their strongholds resulting in a tremendous loss of life. Their once-great nation now lies in ruins, inhabited by the horrors that had conquered it. Such an event triggered the great Dwarven Migration, which displaced over 3 million dwarven peoples amongst the kingdoms of Taarun. The only surviving location of dwarven splendor lies in the Golden Wastes.