Dwek (Dwarves)
The Dwek are the dwarves of Aradaea. They trace their line to the Haku-Dweka, the proto-dwarves who branched from Aradaea’s first humans, and they have since divided into three heritages, each shaped by the region its ancestors settled. The hill dwarves are the oldest branch, at around 100,000 years. The mountain dwarves followed, and the dark dwarves later broke away from the mountain dwarves, changed by both the deep places they went to live in and what they found to eat there.
Whatever their branch, Dwek are stout, sturdy folk of medium build who live for around 250 years. All of them sense the ground itself, feeling vibrations through the earth, a gift that serves them as well in tunnels as on the surface. Dwarvish is spoken in every Dwek community, usually alongside Aethyrian Common.
What sets the heritages apart is how they live. The hill dwarves keep to tribes and the traditions of their ancestors, the mountain dwarves order their cities by caste, and the dark dwarves of the Underdark live under strict, authoritarian rule and keep their grudges for a very long time.
The Dwek Heritages
Section titled “The Dwek Heritages”- Dwek-Maka (Mountain Dwarves): a highly structured caste society of underground city-states.
- Dwek-Haku (Hill Dwarves): ancestral tribes with proud ancient traditions.
- Dwek-Droki (Dark Dwarves): strict authoritarian communist kingdoms of the Underdark, with bitter rivalries and long-held grudges.