Mining, crafting, commitment to clan and tradition– the hearty dwarves of Eberron are similar to the dwarves of any other plane of existence in Dungeons and Dragons . Perhaps it is dwarven stubborness, famous among their peoples, for being so similar across the multiverse.
Origins
The opening of the dwarven description in Eberron starts with
The origin of the dwarves is shrouded in mystery. Some of their legends tell of a great migration that led the ancient dwarves to Khorvaire from “a land of endless ice.” Many believe this refers to the arctic lands of the Frostfell, while others claim that the first dwarves must have come from the frozen plane of Risia. Wherever their roots, these migrant dwarves established a mighty nation beneath the surface of Khorvaire.
Eberron: Rising from the Last War, Chapter 1
It would make little sense for the dwarves to arrive from the material plane, from the arctic lands of the Frostfell, only to burrow into the mountains in the Mror Holds. For one thing, they would have had to have crossed the sea (or an ancient land bridge) to make it. And, at that point thousands of years before humans arrive, why did they not begin an empire to compete with the orcs, goblins, and dragonborn of Khorvaire? It would make less sense for Frostfell to be their origin.
Instead, let’s consider that an aspect of Khyber, that is, the planar underworld of Eberron (not to be confused with a planar afterlife), appears to connect all of the planes of the Eberron cosmology. If you dig deep enough, wander far enough, you might cross through into a demiplane or another plane altogether. Something about the dwarves of the Risia, the plane of ice, caused them to dig deep– perhaps as a means of survival in the harsh elements. Perhaps it was to escape the influence of the frost giants, who might have wanted to kidnap them in the same way that the eladrin were captured from the Feywild.
The deeper they dug, even leaving deep trenches in their cities for the cold to settle in a lower place, the warmer and safer they were able to be. Eventually, a dwarven clan, clan Mroranon if you believe the tales, found a way out of Risia and into the material plane.
Some dwarves remained in Risia, refusing to go out from their home.
Some dwarves got a little lost, finding themselves on the Frostfell, but felt like it was a more hospitable version of their home.
Some dwarves got really lost, finding themselves on the human continent of Sarlona. These dwarves would eventually develop psionic powers, due to the influence of the Empire of Reidra and their Inspired (using the duergar traits).
The rest of the dwarven clans made it together to Khorvaire, likely emerging in the Age of Giants.
Foundations of Dwarven Culture in Khorvaire
A dwarven culture which arrives during the later days of the Age of Giants has plenty of time to dominate the Mror Holds, create wonderous artifacts, delve deep, and wage wars against the goblinoid Dhakaani Empire, the orcs, and likely the dragonborn as well. This would be the majority of their history during the Age of Monsters. Notably, most of the historical accounts of this period state that the dwarves primarily lived in The Realm Below and did not apparently spend much time on the surface.
During this time, and perhaps directly because of the delving done by the goblinoids and dwarves, the aberrations, the daelkyr, emerge from Khyber and threaten the existence of all Eberron. For the dwarves, this meant losing their homelands in the deepest reaches of the Realm Below and behind pushed toward the surface.
Dwarven Culture in the Dragonmarked Age
More recent history, known as the Dragonmarked Age by most non-humans, had the dwarves beginning to rebuild their society when humans landed on the eastern shores of Khorvaire. Humans and dwarves were likely uneasy allies at first, but saw a common enemy in the wider threats of orcs and goblins. Still, the alliance is not equal and the dwarven lands would answer to local human warlords and, ultimately, Korth. During this, the Mark of Warding would appear among the dwarves of the Kundarak Clan.
Eventually, Korth would grow to become the nation of Karrnath under Karrn the Conquerer. This nation would spread over the Mror Holds into what is known as the Lhazaar Principalities and down into the Talenta Plains. A major driving force against the goblinoids would certainly be his elite dwarven forces. During this, certain clans would be given more rights than others for their military service; the first dwarven warlords would be given equal status to humans. This is in spite of the fact that Karrn would fail to conquer the other human nations.
Among the clans, Kundarak would have been gaining power for centuries for their ability to create banks, prisons, and strongholds. While this would primarily be for Karrnath at first, they would attempt to spread their influence as Karrn’s armies marched across Khorvaire. During this, they became a pivotal part of uniting the other dragonmarked clans and families into Houses; the organization known as the Twelve was born as their own allied council. This council would begin The War of the Mark, seeking to eradicate any “aberrant” dragonmarks. This weilding of power is exactly what other nobles throughout Khorvaire would fear and seek to minimize under King Galifar I. Galifar met with the Twelve and established the Korth Edicts, dictating that the dragonmarked houses would remain neutral in wars and political intrigue (within his kingdom) and that they would not be able to hold land or titles; in exchange, they were given the freedom to regulate themselves and support from his government. As Galifar united the Five Nations, the dragonmarked houses were allowed to flourish. For Kundarak, they established banks, prisons, and fortresses across Khorvaire. For the dwarves, this was an expansion of alliances and ideas. The dwarves of Mror found allies in the gnomes of Zilargo. Dwarves who wandered outside of Karrnath found themselves taking on aspects of their new culture and assimilating.
When the Last War came, the dwarves found themselves among the most patriotic of their nations and often came to the frontlines to prove it. However, the dwarves who still lived in the Mror Holds and did not consider themselves Karrnathi were disturbed by the practice of necromancy and conversion to the religion of the Blood of Vol by Karrnath early in the war. This frustration grew to revolution when Mror miners broke back into the Realm Below, discovering a path into their lost kingdom and the terrors they had locked away. The War of The Realm Below recieved no aid from the Karrnathi overlords. The dwarven warlords called a meeting between themselves and all the clan leaders, forming the Iron Council and declaring independence. The battles between the Mror and Karrnathi were few, but fierce. Ultimately, the Karrnathi saw little to gain in fighting the dwarves, and accepted the Mror Holds as a realm separate from itself. While some Mror dwarves from this point still served in the Last War as mercenaries, the dwarves largely focused on the aberrations below and reclaiming their lost kingdom. They would be accepted officially as a nation in the Treaty of Thronehold.
How to Play a Dwarf in Eberron
The first question to answer as a dwarf in Eberron is what subrace are you? (Even though subrace
- Mountain Dwarves are the most “standard” dwarf of the Mror Holds and Karrnath. These are the dwarves who are experts in combat and mining. Some dwarves throughout the Five Nations might still have these traits if they are particularly combative or live in an area with heavy dwarven influences.
- Hill Dwarves are the dwarves who left the Mror Holds have adopted most of the same ideas and ideals as their fellow citizens. As such, they do not have the armor training common in Mror culture and instead developed a resilience making them harder to take down in battle. As such, hill dwarves are the most elite soldiers of the Five Nations. Many of these dwarves, however, have also taken on the kind of faith of their nation, such as the Thranish dwarves converting to the Silver Flame.
- Duergar live almost exclusively on Sarlona and are part of the Empire of Reidra. If your character is a duergar you either are an agent of Reidra or are fleeing them (making you similar to the kalashtar in that way). Your powers are due to the exposure to the psionic energies of the Inspired.
- Dragonmark of Warding are members of House Kundarak. These dwarves could live just about anywhere, but are likely working within the framework of their House/Clan as the dwarven pull for tradition is very strong within House Kundarak (as it is within all dwarves).
I highly recommend giving players options to use 1st level feats as part of developing their character. In addition to other starting feat options, I recommend giving dwarven characters the dwarven feat options from Xanathar’s Guide to Everything.
Finally, a great resource for dwarven characters is Exploring Eberron. Chapter 4 has a section entirely about the Mror Holds.
Thank you for reading!
I’m a passionate fan of the Eberron campaign setting and all of the above is what I consider to be canon in my Eberron. If you found this interesting or entertaining, please consider making a donation to support this blog and my work as a writer.
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