Café de Nuit

As for NPCs:
I believe there`s a Dwarf NPC in Night of the Walking Dead. He`s a trader and an "immigrant" IIRC.

Alot of this topic reminds me of why I thought a book on the races and demihumans of the Mists would be a good idea. Seperate the dwarves of Ravenloft from all others. There have been so many conflicting views from the vikings of Domains of Dread (dwarves as sea raider... I though dwarves hated water...) to the more well-dressed of 3E. To say nothing of the Dragonlancing of halflings and gnomes (greek-style with togas in 2E to tinkerers and mechanics in 3E).

Hmm, maybe I should do that for the Salon. Races of the Mists. My version of Substance, Shadows and Spirit...

Oh, and the Dwarf in From the Shadows (Azalin's servant) gets a couple lines of mention in Forged of Darkness. Of course I didn't realize he was in FtS much to my confusion at the name dropping as seen in my review of that product.

Shoon VII wrote:For example, dwarves get bonuses vs. orcs and other goblinoids, which are pretty rare. Orcs specifically have been declared to not exist in RL, even as creatures of legend! So the dwarves don't know what an orc is, but if one ever shows up, they will know just how to fight it?!

It's not entirely useless in Ravenloft. Don't forget that orc = half-orc = caliban.

Mangrum wrote: It's not entirely useless in Ravenloft. Don't forget that orc = half-orc = caliban.

true. mechanically calibans and half-orcs are the same. they are, however, an idea driven subrace and thus an idea/explanation/rationalization would have to be concieved to explain this. in addition, orcs, goblins and half orcs are relatively more populous in other gaming worlds. this way, a pool of low-level baddies can exist for indusutrious PCs to vanquish.

comparitively, few calibans (and any other non-human race) exist in RL. While the numbers of claibans are on the rise in places like Hazlan, according to GAZ1, there numbers are still very low when compared to other demihumans like elves and dwarves. for this reason, i would rule out calibans as an appropriate substitute for half-orcs.

I am reminded of Ian McKellan's line in "Fellowhip" when the group enters Moria ... "There are older and fouler things things than orcs in the deep places of the world". It would be reasonable to assume that since, native dwarves in RL did not have the same exposure to orc and goblin-kind, they would marshall their military strength against other, more worthy foes. This is keeping with the popular conception of dwarves as both a culture of craft and a culture of war. who then would the dwarves fight if not the orcs and goblins.

Why not that nasty aboleth dwelling in the lake under the mountain?

IMC I allways gave the orc and goblin bonus in RL to Skeletons and Zombies repectively. I rembr reading somewhere (I think it was one of those thick Fr books they had on them) that Dwarves have deep respect when it came to the dead with week long funeral right and cermonial burial cairns for the higher ups. To them the idea of taking one of thier brothers bones back out of the mother earth and turning them into a walking horror is the worst kind of dessicration.

Jasper o' nine lives wrote:IMC I allways gave the orc and goblin bonus in RL to Skeletons and Zombies repectively. I rembr reading somewhere (I think it was one of those thick Fr books they had on them) that Dwarves have deep respect when it came to the dead with week long funeral right and cermonial burial cairns for the higher ups. To them the idea of taking one of thier brothers bones back out of the mother earth and turning them into a walking horror is the worst kind of dessicration.

this might explain why the dwarves loathe the undead in thier own special way. at least according to denizens of dread under the Dwarven Vampire template.

David of the Frat wrote:Alot of this topic reminds me of why I thought a book on the races and demihumans of the Mists would be a good idea.

Wonderful idea. At the moment, there is very little to differentiate Ravenloft's demihumans from those of other worlds - gnomes are tinkerers, dwarves are miners, etc. A book which really showed how they fit into Ravenloft and gave them a darker, more gothic nature, would be great.

Concerning what dwarves might fear, I'd add water. Not like a phobic reaction, but definitely a healty respect for the dangers that it can represent. Digging a little too close to an underground river can have disasterous consequences when water starts flooding a mine tunnel. And IIRC, dwarves are not, by and larger, good swimmers.

one of the old Quoth Books (the one on Feudalism) has some interesting info on dwarves as well.

Which Quoth is that? Can you give me the number?

Also i was always imagining Arthur Segdwick as a dwarf. Is there anything official on his race somewhere?

The cultural bonuses of different PC races are kind of weird in RL. For example where did Alanik Ray ever learn to shoot a bow or even swing a Longsword? OTOH a bonus to rapier and pistol would be quite fitting...

Perhaps the Mountains of Misery have an older and carefully forgotten name, the Mountains of Madness. Run Lovecraft's famous horror story of the same name in terms of a rescue party sent after dwarven miners who had set off to stake their claim but instead discovered primoridal and alien ruins haunted by horrors even worse than those depicted by the monsterous, weathered, ageless mosaics. A human variation would involve an expedition led by the old professor, from the former university of Il Aluk, who had the run in with the goblyns while studying Forlorn's flora.

As for Dwarven fears, i can only say this: http://www.giantitp.com/cgi-bin/GiantIT ... ipt?SK=161


Seriously though, What I have done to punish one "hard as steel" dwarf player was to make a genetic irrational Dwarven fear of...Goblyns!! Let them take on all the goblinoids in the world, but run like hell when opposed to anything "goblynoid".

Another idea would be some surface-dwelling dwarves who suffer from...claustrophobia!! Think about it. In every single CS or gaming world since the beginning of Lotr...errrr, time everyone depicted dwarves as subterraneal. Why not make a branch of them surface-dwelling?

Hmm, what else...Well, you could also have the classic dwarven fear of running water (rivers, lakes, seas) which can create many a tale of dwarves having vampiric abilities.
[EDIT] ...just read Jasper's reply...meh!!!!

Now, on dwarven abilities, the bonus vs. giants is not so useless IMO. I use a lot of Trolls/Ogres IMC, because they are generally really scary monsters if described correctly. In the same time, I like the RL dwarf= FR gold dwarf, at least stat-wise.

Now, on dwarven domains, I liked the idea of the inverted Midas touch, although the original is even nastier if used properly....Imagine a gaunt dwarf, with his hair, facial and body, falling off from malnutrition. An extended Midas curse, not only everything he touches turns to gold, but everything that touches him as well....
He can't be hand or straw-fed, since food turns to gold as soon as it comes into contact with his mouth. He can't bathe since water turns into large chunks of gold as well and even dust that is blown on his body turns into goldust that he has to get rid of in some manner...Extremely disgusting curse, I'm ashamed of my own mind!!! He can't die from starvation, although he constantly lives with great agony from everburning thirst and hunger.

*makes a mental note.* I have to expand that. Do you like it??