| The Dwarves | |
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Major Clans |
Ironforge Coat of Arms
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Dwarven Nations |
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Leader(s) |
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Language(s) |
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Average Life Span |
250-400 Years (Old Age) |
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Average Height |
3'9" - 5'0" (114 to 135 cm) (Males) |
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Average Weight |
134 - 226 lb. (Males) |
Dwarves are an ancient, bold, and courageous race of people native to the sub-continent of Khaz Modan. Like their Earthen ancestors, modern dwarfkind was created by the legendary Titans, namely Khaz'goroth.
As their civilization quickly evolved, the dwarves built magnificent and awe-inspiring cities in and around the mountains and foothills of Khaz Modan. Today, the dwarven people are primarily categorized into three major clans — Bronzebeard, Wildhammer, and Dark Iron — which are presently unified under the executive Council of Three Hammers and the legislative Assembly of Three Hammers.
From their mighty capital of Ironforge, the Bronzebeard dwarves control most of the central region of Khaz Modan, including Dun Morogh, the Wetlands, and the Loch. To the north, the Wildhammer dwarves rule over the lush and serene Highlands and Hinterlands from their great foothold, Aerie Peak. To the east, the Dark Iron maintain their grip over the charred remnants of the Gorge and the Steppes from Shadowforge City, located within the ancient Blackrock Mountain. Distant cousins, the Frost dwarves, make their home within the Storm Peaks, in their mountain stronghold of Frosthold.
Short of stature and hardy in spirit, the average dwarf is steady, observant, and composed both during work and combat, whilst maintaining the ability to unleash their might and rage when the situation calls for it. While many dwarves possess a keen sense of intuition and tact, along with a penchant for comaraderie, one may quickly find that hell hath no fury than a dwarf scorned.
History
Awakening of the Dwarves
The dwarves are descendants of the Earthen, stonelike humanoid creatures created to aid the titan-forged keepers to aid. These keepers were created by the legendary titan Khaz'goroth, shaper and forger of worlds, in order to establish order at the dawn of the world.
The titan-forged's earliest designs for the Earthen were far too ambitious, however, leading to the creation of troggs, dull and savage creatures made of earth. Unable to bring themselves to destroy these misbegotten creations, the Titans sealed them away within Uldaman, a subterranean vault meant to act as a stasis chamber for the troggs. Despite this, many troggs still escaped anyway, some to Deepholm, others to wander Azeroth. The second design yielded the craggy and kindhearted Earthen, who were far more acceptable to their needs. The titan-forged were tasked with specific roles in ordering and protecting Azeroth, with the Earthen tasked with crafting the mountains and crevices of the new world.
Roughly 10,000 years ago, the violent end of the War of the Ancients brought upon the Great Sundering of the world, inflicting immense pain upon the Earthen, who in turn were forced to retreat to their places of origin — the titanic cities of Uldum, Uldaman, and Ulduar — and hibernate. Thousands of years later, the Earthen finally awoke in Uldaman to find that their powers over stone and earth had waned and that their rocky hide had softened to smooth skin. The Curse of the Flesh, inflicted upon many titanic creations by the Old God Yogg-Saron, rendered the Earthern fleshy, mortal creatures forever more. After emerging from Uldaman, the now-flesh Earthern headed west and established the mighty stronghold of Ironforge, masterfully built within the core of the titular Ironforge Mountain. Accepting their fate, the fleshy Earthern eventually moved to call themselves "dwarves."
As time went on, the new dwarven society quickly developed, soon expanding their reach and control into the surroundings lands, which they named Khaz Modan, or "Mountain of Khaz," after the titan Khaz'goroth. It was here that they also made contact with the also flesh-cursed descendants of mechagnomes, the gnomes, and formed a natural kinship with them. Together, the dwarves aided in the construction of their great city of Gnomeregan.
