Gold Dwarf Q&A

[DOT]

So after several different trial runs with gold dwarves, I've found a good stride with a bard cleric character (Tal + Ahmed = Barag Bludsmith, the bardic cleric of vergadaine... I didn't go with Talmed for a name because reasons but damn is that a good name). The cleric because its what I enjoy and seems to be a need for in groups.

I also took bard for the "artist" aspect. I making him an architect so figured that's a good fit with his 14 int. I also took bard for the gold dwarves more accepting view of magic.

I'm no expert but I'm using this link for my lore information in reference to character creation. hopefully it's valid. I know we're given some freedom for rp, but I kinda wanted to go with some restrictions for this character, its a fun learning experience.
forgottenrealms.wikia.com/wiki/Gold_dwarf

the description notes that gold dwarfs are shrewd traders, so I invested heavily into appraise with skill and feats
1st feat = silver palm
max skill points into appraise when feasible
2nd feat = skill focus appraise
skill points into persuade

the gold dwarves of the rift haven't suffered the setbacks that their shield dwarf cousins have. so I refrained from the tempting -6 charisma to start, making this dwarf confident, optimistic, and sociable... + for team moral. I managed to get it to 12 cha without gimping cleric spells and keeping his other stats reasonable and acceptable (for myself) str 14, dex  10, con 12, int 14, cha 12, wis 15. will try to increase charisma some more... just something about a beautiful dwarf with lustrous flowing beard-hair . I would have liked the 14 con because dwarf, but eh.

the link also noted that gold dwarfs aren't as agile as their shield brethren. Is a dex of 10 appropriate for this? should it have been 8? what does an 8 or 10 dex translate into visually or rpwise? he's a young dwarf, so I don't think he'd be like ahmed was for mobility. 

He uses a heavy mace and shield, and I'm going to try and make using a crossbow effective with his spells. It looks weird for a dwarf to shoot a short/longbow. I'm assuming rapid reload feat + haste at some point might be useful after some more ic training.

If i missed anything let me know, if anyone has some quick reads with links maybe, that'd be much appreciated. I'm looking for some good ideas for bardic songs or what might be appropriate for a gold dwarf, I noted the well known item below but haven't found much else , suggestions more than welcome.

Cheers!

[Fluffy the Mad]

I'd suggest the books linked as references in that article plus one more for your researching. Namely Races of Faerun, the FRCS, and a third general DND supplement called Races of Stone. The last isn't strictly fitting for FR but could give you some good ideas of general dwarven culture since it doesn't differentiate ridiculously from that.

As for songs, I'd recommend writing your own and checking out the bardic lore section of the forums here for inspiration.

[DOT]

It looks like a lot of the items were taken from that races of faerun book, I'll check it to see if they have it at the local B&N. As for the other, probably going to see if there's a pdf floating around for that one.

[Munroe]

Oct 19, 2016 18:21:46 GMT -5 DOT said:

It looks like a lot of the items were taken from that races of faerun book, I'll check it to see if they have it at the local B&N. As for the other, probably going to see if there's a pdf floating around for that one. :P

If you find a Races of Faerûn book at Barnes and Noble I will be amazed. It's a third edition FR book published in 2003. You're more likely to find it on Ebay or listed with resellers on Amazon. (Resellers on Amazon sometimes have outrageous prices though.) It's not one of the major setting books, so it is probably easier to find than some.

[Pedantry INC]

From my lore forum.

The Samman
~ Races of the Dwarves ~

As enduring as the earth from which they were shaped, the Stout Folk once ruled vast empires that sprawled on and beneath the surface of Faerûn. After centuries of decline, most dwarven kingdoms are gone, but the fruits of their labors survive, unbowed by the passage of time. In recent years, the Thunder Blessing has sparked a dwarven renaissance that might one day restore the Stout Folk to their former glory.


Racial History

Most nondwarven scholars believe that the Stout Folk are an interloper race, not native to Abeir-Toril, who arrived so long ago that they have become one with the earth and stone of Faerûn. However, the collective dwarven racial memory holds that their ancestors sprang fully formed from the heart of the world itself, fashioned of iron and mithral in the Soulforge, shaped by the All-Father's hammer, and then given life by the breath of Moradin. The oldest myths claim that the first dwarves fought their way up from the world's core to the mountains above, overcoming many dangers along the way through strength, skill, and force of arms.

The first dwarven settlements appeared in the great mountain range known as the Yehimal, which lies at the juncture of the three great continents of Faerûn, Kara-Tur, and Zakhara. From there, the earliest dwarves migrated into all three lands. Those who came to Faerûn settled beneath modern-day Semphar before spreading eastward, founding innumerable settlements along the way. Once isolated branch of this great migration settled amid the isolated peaks of the Novularond, and eventually became known as the arctic dwarves.

The first great kingdom of the dwarves of Faerûn was centered in the great cavern of Bhaerynden deep beneath the Shaar. The first great schism of the dwarves of Bhaerynden began more than twelve thousand years ago when Taark Shanat the Crusader led a great westward migration. The emigrants eventually became known as shield dwarves, and established the great empire of Shanatar beneath the lands of Amn, Tethyr, Calimshan, and the Lake of Steam. From their number, Dumathoin created the urdunnir, who moved into the depths and became creatures of legend. Meanwhile, Bhaerynden fell to the drow after the elven Crown Wars and the descent of the dark elves, and the dwarves of southern Faerûn were driven into exile.

In the millennia that followed, new divisions appeared among the Sout Folk. The mind flayers of Oryndoll, deep beneath the Shining Plains, enslaved the shield dwarves of Clan Duergar. Their descendants became known as gray dwarves after throwing off the shackles of their illithid masters and spreading throughout the Underdark. Some dwarves who fled Bhaerynden's collapse reached the Jungles of Chult, where they abandoned their subterranean homes. Members of this isolated branch eventually became known as wild dwarves. After the first drow kingdom of Telantiwar tore itself apart in civil war, the great cavern of Bhaerynden collapsed to form the Great Rift. Those dwarves who resettled the caverns of the Deep Realm surrounding the Great Rift eventually became known as gold dwarves. As Shanatar declined, the shield dwarves migrated north to settle the great kingdoms of the North and eventually migrated eastward along the shores of the Moonsea and into the mountains of north-central Faerûn.

Today, dwarves are found all across Faerûn, although the greatest concentrations are found in the North, the Cold Lands, the Great Rift, and the Underdark. Although the Stout Folk are easily segregated into distinct subraces with distinct racial traits, such distinctions by no means reflect the entirety of dwarven diversity. Numerous cultural, historical, political, and social divisions remain even within the ranks of a specific dwarven subrace.

Dwarven Racial Traits
(subraces may provide alternate ability score adjustments)

• +2 Constitution, -2 Charisma: Dwarves are stout and tough but tend to be gruff and reserved.
  
• Medium: As Medium creatures, dwarves have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
  
• Dwarf base land speed is 20 feet. However, dwarves can move at this speed even when wearing medium or heavy armor or when carrying a medium or heavy load (unlike other creatures, whose speed is reduced in such situations).
  
• Darkvision: Dwarves can see in the dark up to 60 feet. Darkvision is black and white only but is otherwise like normal sight, and dwarves can function just fine with no light at all.
  
• Stonecutting: This ability grants a dwarf a +2 racial bonus on Search checks to notice unusual stonework, such as sliding walls, stonework traps, new construction (even when built to match the old), unsafe stone surfaces, shaky stone ceilings, and the like. Something that isn't stone but that is disguised as stone also counts as unusual stonework. A dwarf who merely comes within 10 feet of unusual stonework can make a Search check as if he were actively searching, and a dwarf can use the Search skill to find stonework traps as a rogue can. A dwarf can also intuit depth, sensing his approximate depth underground as naturally as a human can sense which way is up. Dwarves have a sixth sense about stonework, an innate ability that they get plenty of opportunity to practice and hone in their underground homes.
  
• Weapon Familiarity: Dwarves may treat dwarven waraxes and dwarven urgrorshes as martial weapons, rather than exotic weapons.
  
• Stability: Dwarves are exceptionally stable on their feet. A dwarf gains a +4 bonus on ability checks made to resist being bull rushed or tripped when standing on the ground (but not when climbing, flying, riding, or otherwise not standing firmly on the ground).
  
• +2 racial bonus on saving throws against poison: Dwarves are hardy and resistant to toxins.
  +2 racial bonus on saving throws against spells and spell-like effects: Dwarves have an innate resistance to magic spells.
  
• +1 racial bonus on attack rolls against orcs (including half-orcs) and goblinoids (including goblins, hobgoblins, and bugbears): Dwarves are trained in the special combat techniques that allow them to fight their common enemies more effectively.
  
• +4 dodge bonus to Armor Class against monsters of the giant type (such as ogres, trolls, and hill giants): Tish bonus represents special training that dwarves undergo, during which they learn tricks that previous generations developed in their battles with giants. Any time a creature loses its Dexterity bonus (if any) to Armor Class, such as when it's caught flat-footed, it loses its dodge bonus, too. The Monster Manual has information on which creatures are of the giant type.
  
• +2 racial bonus on Appraise checks that are related to stone or metal items: Dwarves are familiar with valuable items of all kinds, especially those made of stone or metal.
  
• +2 racial bonus on Craft checks that are related to stone or metal: Dwarves are especially capable with stonework and metalwork.
  
• Automatic Languages: Common and Dwarven. Bonus Languages: Giant, Gnome, Goblin, Orc, Terran, and Undercommon. Dwarves are familiar with the languages of their enemies and of their subterranean allies.
  
• Favored Class: Fighter. A multiclass dwarf's fighter class does not count when determining whether he takes an experience point penalty for multiclassing. Dwarven culture extols the virtues of battle, and the vocation comes easily to dwarves.

Source: 3.5 Edition - Player's Handbook page 15

The Stout Folk

Arctic Gold Gray

Shield Urdunnir Wild

Random Starting Ages

Race	Adulthood	Simple¹	Moderate²	Complex³
Dwarf (any)	40 years	+3d6	+5d6	+7d6

¹ The simple classes are barbarian, rogue, and sorcerer.
² The moderate classes are bard, fighter, paladin, and ranger.
³ The complex classes are cleric, druid, monk, and wizard.

Aging Effects

Subrace	Middle Age¹	Old Age²	Venerable³	Maximum Age
Dwarf (any)	125 years	188 years	250 years	+2d% years

¹ -1 to Str, Con, and Dex; +1 to Int, Wis, and Cha
² -2 to Str, Con, and Dex; +1 to Int, Wis and Cha.
³ -3 to Str, Con, and Dex; +1 to Int, Wis, and Cha.

Random Height and Weight

Subrace	Base Male Height	Base Female Height	Base Height Mod	Base Male Weight	Base Female Weight	Base Weight Mod
Arctic	2'8"	2'4"	+2d4	50 lb.	40 lb.	x (1d4) lb.
Gold	3'9"	3'7"	+2d4	130 lb.	100 lb.	x (2d6) lb.
Gray	3'9"	3'7"	+2d4	110 lb.	80 lb.	x (2d4) lb.
Shield	4'2"	4'0"	+2d4	145 lb.	110 lb.	x (2d6) lb. (m)| x (2d4) lb. (f)
Urdunnir	4'2"	4'0"	+2d4	180 lb.	150 lb.	x (2d8) lb.
Wild	2'8"	2'6"	+2d4	50 lb.	40 lb.	x (1d4) lb.

Source: Player's Guide to Faerûn. / Races of Faerûn.

The Gold Dwarves
- Playable Subrace -

Regions: Dragon Coast, Dwarf (gold), Unther, Western Heartlands. Gold dwarves native to the Great Rift should select the gold dwarf region.
Racial Feats: Hammer Fist, Metallurgy, Skyrider, Stoneshaper.
Racial Prestige Class: Battlerager.

Found largely in the South in the immediate vicinity of the Great Rift, gold dwarves are the dominant southern branch of the Stout Folk. Renowned not only for their smith work and craftsmanship but also for their military prowess and legendary wealth, gold dwarves have maintained their empire for millennia, unbowed by the passage of time.

For generations, the Deep Kingdom of the gold dwarves has stood unconquered, dominating the surface lands and subterranean caverns that surround the Great Rift. As their numbers never declined in the face of endless warfare like their northern cousins, the Thundering Blessing has actually filled the great caverns of the Deep Kingdom beyond their capacity. As a result, for the first time in many years, large numbers of gold dwarves are setting out to establish new strongholds across the South and the rest of Faerun, including the Smoking Mountains of Unther and the Giant’s Run Mountains of the Shining Plains.

Averaging 4 feet tall and weighing as much as an adult human, gold dwarves are stocky and muscular. The skin of a gold dwarf is light brown or deeply tanned, and her eyes are usually brown or hazel. Both genders wear their hair long, and males (and some females) have long, carefully groomed beards and mustaches. Hair color ranges from black to gray or brown, with all shades fading to light gray as time progresses.

Like their northern kin, gold dwarves harbor a great deal of pride, both in their own accomplishments and those of their ancestors. They also share the philosophy that anything worth doing is worth doing well, and that the natural world is but raw material to be worked into objects of great beauty. Unlike the long-beleaguered shield dwarves, gold dwarves have not faced a serious challenge to their way of life for thousands of years. Confident and secure in their isolated realm, gold dwarves do not share the pessimism or fatalism of their shield dwarven brethren. To the contrary, having seen the rise and fall of countless elven, human, and shield dwarven empires, their endurance has fostered a deep-seated belief that their traditions and culture are superior to those of all other races.

Gold dwarves have the life expectancy, age categories, height, and weight defined for dwarves in the Player’s Handbook. (Provided in the first post.)


History

Founded more than sixteen thousand years ago, the original dwarven homeland of Bhaerynden occupied a vast cavern deep beneath the southern plains ruled by the elves of Ilythiir. Bhaerynden claimed great swaths of the Underdark, but remained largely unknown in the Realms Above. Little is known about the history of Bhaerynden except that a great exodus of dwarves led by Taark Shanat the Crusader left to found a new kingdom in the west about -11,000 DR. The end of the elven Crown Wars and the Descent of the Drow in the years after -10,000 DR directly precipitated the fall of Bhaerynden. The first drow civilizations arose in the southern Underdark around -9600 DR, but the drow quickly directed their anger against the Stout Folk. Within the space of six centuries, the Stout Folk had been scattered and the drow empire of Telantiwar ruled supreme in the dwarf-carved halls of fallen Bhaerynden.

The collapse of the cavern of Bhaerynden destroyed Telantiwar and created the Great Rift, scattering the drow around -7600 DR, Gold dwarves believe Moradin destroyed Telantiwar with a blow of his axe, but scholars of other races have suggested that the drow weakened the cavern roof through excessive tunneling and reliance on magic to support the ceiling’s weight. In the aftermath of Telantiwar’s fall, there was a great scramble to claim new territory in the Underdark. The Stout Folk quickly returned to their ancestral home and established the Deep Realm, occupying lesser caverns and miles of tunnels spreading out under the Eastern Shaar. Drow refugees claimed lesser caverns to the north, south, and west of the Great Rift, establishing cities in nearby lands.

In the millennia that followed, the Stout Folk of the Deep realm became known as gold dwarves. Once the borders of their realm were firmly established and defended, they set about building great subterranean cities and harvesting the bounty of the earth. While external threats from the drow and other Underdark races such as aboleths, cloakers, illithids, ixzans, and kuo-toa never entirely abated, no other race could match the unity of purpose evinced by the gold dwarves, and the sanctity of the Deep Realm was never challenged. The dwarves profited in trade with each successive human empire that reached their Great Rift, including ancient Jhaamdath, the folk of Mulhorand and Unther in their heyday, the Shoon Imperium at its height, and in more recent centuries the mercantile Chondathan nations of the Inner Sea.

In 1306 DR, the Thunder Blessing shook the gold dwarves out of their millennia-long quiescence. In the decades that followed, a burgeoning population forced the gold dwarves to seek out new caverns to claim and settle across the South, upsetting the long-held status quo of the southern Underdark. The largest exodus to date from the Deep Realm began in 1369 DR, when the Army of Gold set out on a great crusade to reclaim the caverns of Taark Shanat and restore the glory of Shanatar, the ancient kingdom of the shield dwarves. That expedition has become bogged down in warfare with the Army of Steel, dispatched by the gray dwarves of Underspires. Fierce battles rage in the tunnels beneath the Lake of Steam and the Cloven Mountains.


Outlook

Gold dwarves measure others by how much honor and wealth each individual garners as well as the status of his or her bloodline and clan. To gold dwarves, life is best lived through adherence to the ancient traditions of the Deep Realm. The very persistence of their own way of life indicates that other short-lived cultures are inherently flawed. As such, those who lack a meaning cultural tradition or reject their elders’ dictates are untrustworthy and possibly dangerous.

From birth, gold dwarves are taught to conform to the traditional strictures of their society. Every important decision, from choice of profession to their mate, is dictated by the circumstances of their birth. Those who do not act honorably in their dealings are shunned from an early age, breeding a tremendous societal pressure to fit in.

Gold dwarves lack the longstanding tradition of adventuring found in their shield dwarf cousins in the north. However, population pressures induced by the Thunder Blessing have given birth to a new generation of gold dwarf adventurers. Most gold dwarves who wander beyond the familiar confines of the Deep Realm do so in order to found new strongholds of their own, but many find the lure of adventuring hard to ignore once it has entered into their blood.

Gold Dwarf Characters
Gold dwarves are painfully aware that many once-proud empires have been brought low, and they are therefore vigilant about maintaining their own. The keen awareness gold dwarves hold of the dangers too their eternal rule ensure that all gold dwarves are trained to fight from a young age. Most are trained as fighters, although clerics, paladins, rangers, rogues, and even the occasional arcane spellcaster play important roles in defending the Deep Realm. Gold dwarf sorcerers usually trace their ancestry back to a powerful dragon or some creature of elemental earth or fire. Common multiclass combinations include fighter/cleric, fighter/paladin, and fighter/expert.

Favored Class: A gold dwarf’s favored class is a fighter. Only a strong and fierce military tradition has kept the Deep Realm secure from its enemies above and below, a result of generations of gold dwarves training as fighters.

Prestige Classes: Battleragers are legendary dwarven warriors who can enter a battle frenzy through ritual singing. Given to drinking, rowdy and boisterous singing, and drunken dancing, battleragers love to plunge into close-quarters battle, heedless of any danger. Most battleragers are shield dwarves, but a small number of gold dwarves rebelling against the discipline and tradition of their society have joined the ranks of the berserkers.

More disciplined gold dwarves lean toward the dwarven defender or divine champion classes.


Gold Dwarf Society

Gold dwarf culture does not exhibit a great deal of variability, the result of generations of gold dwarves insulated from outside influences. Class and clan divisions are strong among gold dwarves, and great importance is attributed to bloodlines when ascribing social status. However, the Deep Realm is so swamped with petty, decadent royals and nobles that little real power is invested in anyone but the governing council of clan elders. Commerce and craftsmanship both play an important role in gold dwarf society, as does the never-satiated grasping for more riches. Pride and honor play an important role in all aspects of daily life, for disgrace applies not only to oneself, but also to kin, clan, and long-dead ancestors.

Gold dwarves are raised in tight family unites, but the clan elders play an important oversight role in the upbringing of every child. Book learning is common, as is an apprenticeship to learn a trade. All adults are expected to support themselves and their family as well as bring honor and riches to the clan. Ostentatious displays of wealth are important for maintaining one’s prestige, so poorer gold dwarves often scrimp and save to keep up appearances. As gold dwarves age, they are accorded increasing respect for their wisdom. Clan elders form a ruling gerontocracy that strongly enforces traditional practices. Families and clans are expected to honor their elders in death with elaborate funeral rites and tombs befitting the deceased’s reputation.

Outside the Deep Realm, gold dwarves hold themselves apart, forming small, insular enclaves that attempt to replicate traditional clan life. Few gold dwarves have any interest in adopting local practices except where it furthers their ability to hawk their wares.


Language and Literacy

Like all dwarves, gold dwarves speak a dialect of Dwarven and employ the Dethek rune alphabet. They also speak Common, the trade language of the Realms Above. The primary gold dwarven dialect (sometimes referred to as Riftspeak) has changed little since the glory days of Bhaerynden. Gold dwarves dwelling in the colonies in Unther and the Giant’s Run often learn the languages of the nearby lands.

Common secondary languages reflect the extensive trading contacts maintained by gold dwarves with their neighbors in the South and include Shaaran, Untheric, and, to a lesser extent, Durpari, Dambrathan, Mulhorandi, Halfling, and Halruaan. Gold dwarves who have extensive contact with other subterranean races often learn Terran, Gnome, or Undercommon.

All gold dwarf characters are literate except barbarians (who are very unusual among the folk of this ancient civilization).


Abilities and Raciel Features

Gold dwarves have all of the dwarven racial traits listed in the Player's Handbook except the following:

Forgotten said:

• +2 Constitution, -2 Dexterity: Gold dwarves are stout and tough, but not as quick or agile as other races.
  
• +1 racial bonus on attack rolls against abberations: Gold dwarves are trained in special combat techniques against the many bizarre creatures that live in the underdark. (this replaces the attack bonus against orcs and goblinoids.
  
• Automatic Languages: Dwarven, Common, home region. Bonus Languages: Giant, Gnome, Goblin, Shaaran, Terran, Untheric

Gold Dwarf Magic and Lore

Gold dwarves have a strong divine spellcasting tradition, with many of the Stout Folk called to serve the Morndinsamman as clerics, paladins, rune casters, or runesmiths. Arcane spellcasters are much rarer, but they do exist.

Spells and Spellcasting
Gold dwarves favor spells that aid their abilities in combat or assist in craftwork or mining. Most are divine spellcasters, but the gold dwarves’ millennia-old civilization has ensured both ancient libraries of wizardry and strange, sorcerous bloodlines.

Spellcasting Tradition: Many gold dwarves take the Gold Dwarf Dweomersmith feat, which grants them advantages when creating or enhancing weapons with magic.

Unique Spells: Gold dwarves have created many spells over the years, many of which are now employed by the Stout Folk across Faerûn. One such example is detect metals and minerals.


Gold Dwarf Magic Items

Gold dwarves favor magic items that aid in combat, facilitate craftwork, provide personal protection or comfort, guard against theft, or are adorned with fine metals and gems. Blades and axes are commonly crafted with keen, holy, lawful, mighty cleaving, sundering, and stunning special abilities. Hammers and maces are commonly crafted with holy, impact, lawful, returning, stunning, sundering, and throwing special abilities. Armor is typically crafted with fortification, invulnerability, reflection, and spell resistance special abilities, reflecting a long tradition of battles against the drow and other creatures of the Underdark.

Common Magic Items: Magic items particularly prevalent in the Great Rift and the trade cities at its edge include anvil of the blacksmith, belt of dwarvenkind, forge of smithing, hammer of the weapon smith, and tongs of the armorer.

Iconic Magic Items: Gold dwarves have fabricated many unique magic items, but they are best known for the stonereaver greataxes.


Gold Dwarf Deities

Gold dwarves have venerated the dwarven deities of the Morndinsamman since the founding of Bhaerynden, but centuries of relative isolation and security have made their culture far less religious in nature than their shield dwarven kin. Among gold dwarves the churches of Moradin and Berronar are so predominant and have been for so long that many lesser dwarven deities enjoy little more than token obeisance.

High-ranking clerics of both faiths command a great amount of institutional authority in gold dwarf society. The clerics of Berronar’s faith are responsible for preserving records of the extraordinarily ancient genealogy of the noble families and serve as the guardians of tradition in the home and community.

All gold dwarves revere the Soul Forger as the founder of the dwarven race, and his church is the predominant faith of the Deep Realm, centered in the monastic city of Thuulurn. Moradin’s clerics sponsor many crafts folk, particularly armorers and weapon smiths, and serve as the principle judges and magistrates of gold dwarf society. The Soul Forger’s faithful are drawn primarily from those who labor as smiths, craft folks, or engineers, but he is also seen as the protector of the entire dwarven race and is thus worshiped by many lawful good dwarves regardless of profession.


Relations with other Races

Confident and secure in their remote home, gold dwarves have a well-deserved reputation for haughtiness and pride. They look down on all other dwarves, even shield dwarves and gray dwarves whose achievements and kingdoms have matched the glory of their own. Gold dwarves regard elves and half-elves with suspicion after generations spent battling their deep-dwelling cousins. Gnomes, particularly deep gnomes, are well regarded and welcomed as trading partners. Their impression of halflings is shaped by the strongheart inhabitants of Luiren, whom gold dwarves find to be suitably industrious and forthright.

Gold dwarves know little of half-orcs, but usually lump them in with the rest of orc and goblinoid scum. Gold dwarves are very cautious in their dealings with humans, having found great variability in their dealings with Chondathans, the folk of Dambrath, Durpari, Mulan, Shaarans, and Halruaans. Planetouched are almost unknown but are usually viewed in the same light as the Mulan, since most plane touched the gold dwarves encounter are either Mulan aasimar or earth genasi followers of Geb.


Gold Dwarf Equipment

The gold dwarf craft guilds have had centuries to master their artisanship, so almost any finished good has some filigree, runic mark, or other decoration that marks it as unmistakably the work of the gold dwarves. Even a simple bucket will have carefully marked gradations along the inside, graven runes identifying its owner, and a curved handle shaped to fit a thick dwarven hand.

Common Items: Sunrods, thunderstones.

Unique Items: Gold dwarves commonly employ well-engineered equipment such as mobile braces and rope climbers. The hippogriff-mounted skyriders of the Great Rift are known to employ drogue wings and exotic military saddles.

Arms and Armor
Gold dwarves favor a wide range of weapons, including battleaxes, crossbows, gauntlets, hand axes, heavy picks, light hammers, light picks, mauls, throwing axes, and war hammers.

More unusual weapons include dwarven urgroshes and dwarven waraxes. Typical forms of armor include breastplates, half-plate, full plate, scale mail, large steel shields, and small steel shields.

Common Items: Battleaxe, light crossbow, heavy picks, dwarven urgrosh, scale mail, full plate armor. The gold dwarves manufacture adamantine heavy picks and battleaxes for those who can afford such things; adamantine weapons are available at a 10% discount in the Great Rift.

Animals and Pets
Gold dwarves favor small lizards such as the spitting crawler and shocker lizard for pets and familiars. Deep rothe are the preferred type of livestock. They employ pack lizards and mules as beasts of burden, usually breeding the latter from Lhesperan or Meth horses crossed with donkeys. Gold dwarves commonly use riding lizards as steeds in subterranean locales, and war ponies for travel in the surface lands. The gold dwarf skyriders of the Great Rift employ hippogriffs as aerial mounts.

Source: Forgotten Realms: Races of Faerûn

[DOT]

Resharing the below amazing lore for all the new dwarf folk.

Oct 20, 2016 14:00:22 GMT -5 Pedantry INC said:

From my lore forum.

The Samman
~ Races of the Dwarves ~

As enduring as the earth from which they were shaped, the Stout Folk once ruled vast empires that sprawled on and beneath the surface of Faerûn. After centuries of decline, most dwarven kingdoms are gone, but the fruits of their labors survive, unbowed by the passage of time. In recent years, the Thunder Blessing has sparked a dwarven renaissance that might one day restore the Stout Folk to their former glory.


Racial History

Most nondwarven scholars believe that the Stout Folk are an interloper race, not native to Abeir-Toril, who arrived so long ago that they have become one with the earth and stone of Faerûn. However, the collective dwarven racial memory holds that their ancestors sprang fully formed from the heart of the world itself, fashioned of iron and mithral in the Soulforge, shaped by the All-Father's hammer, and then given life by the breath of Moradin. The oldest myths claim that the first dwarves fought their way up from the world's core to the mountains above, overcoming many dangers along the way through strength, skill, and force of arms.

The first dwarven settlements appeared in the great mountain range known as the Yehimal, which lies at the juncture of the three great continents of Faerûn, Kara-Tur, and Zakhara. From there, the earliest dwarves migrated into all three lands. Those who came to Faerûn settled beneath modern-day Semphar before spreading eastward, founding innumerable settlements along the way. Once isolated branch of this great migration settled amid the isolated peaks of the Novularond, and eventually became known as the arctic dwarves.

The first great kingdom of the dwarves of Faerûn was centered in the great cavern of Bhaerynden deep beneath the Shaar. The first great schism of the dwarves of Bhaerynden began more than twelve thousand years ago when Taark Shanat the Crusader led a great westward migration. The emigrants eventually became known as shield dwarves, and established the great empire of Shanatar beneath the lands of Amn, Tethyr, Calimshan, and the Lake of Steam. From their number, Dumathoin created the urdunnir, who moved into the depths and became creatures of legend. Meanwhile, Bhaerynden fell to the drow after the elven Crown Wars and the descent of the dark elves, and the dwarves of southern Faerûn were driven into exile.

In the millennia that followed, new divisions appeared among the Sout Folk. The mind flayers of Oryndoll, deep beneath the Shining Plains, enslaved the shield dwarves of Clan Duergar. Their descendants became known as gray dwarves after throwing off the shackles of their illithid masters and spreading throughout the Underdark. Some dwarves who fled Bhaerynden's collapse reached the Jungles of Chult, where they abandoned their subterranean homes. Members of this isolated branch eventually became known as wild dwarves. After the first drow kingdom of Telantiwar tore itself apart in civil war, the great cavern of Bhaerynden collapsed to form the Great Rift. Those dwarves who resettled the caverns of the Deep Realm surrounding the Great Rift eventually became known as gold dwarves. As Shanatar declined, the shield dwarves migrated north to settle the great kingdoms of the North and eventually migrated eastward along the shores of the Moonsea and into the mountains of north-central Faerûn.

Today, dwarves are found all across Faerûn, although the greatest concentrations are found in the North, the Cold Lands, the Great Rift, and the Underdark. Although the Stout Folk are easily segregated into distinct subraces with distinct racial traits, such distinctions by no means reflect the entirety of dwarven diversity. Numerous cultural, historical, political, and social divisions remain even within the ranks of a specific dwarven subrace.

Dwarven Racial Traits
(subraces may provide alternate ability score adjustments)

Source: 3.5 Edition - Player's Handbook page 15

The Stout Folk

Arctic Gold Gray

Shield Urdunnir Wild

Random Starting Ages

Race	Adulthood	Simple¹	Moderate²	Complex³
Dwarf (any)	40 years	+3d6	+5d6	+7d6

¹ The simple classes are barbarian, rogue, and sorcerer.
² The moderate classes are bard, fighter, paladin, and ranger.
³ The complex classes are cleric, druid, monk, and wizard.

Aging Effects

Subrace	Middle Age¹	Old Age²	Venerable³	Maximum Age
Dwarf (any)	125 years	188 years	250 years	+2d% years

¹ -1 to Str, Con, and Dex; +1 to Int, Wis, and Cha
² -2 to Str, Con, and Dex; +1 to Int, Wis and Cha.
³ -3 to Str, Con, and Dex; +1 to Int, Wis, and Cha.

Random Height and Weight

Subrace	Base Male Height	Base Female Height	Base Height Mod	Base Male Weight	Base Female Weight	Base Weight Mod
Arctic	2'8"	2'4"	+2d4	50 lb.	40 lb.	x (1d4) lb.
Gold	3'9"	3'7"	+2d4	130 lb.	100 lb.	x (2d6) lb.
Gray	3'9"	3'7"	+2d4	110 lb.	80 lb.	x (2d4) lb.
Shield	4'2"	4'0"	+2d4	145 lb.	110 lb.	x (2d6) lb. (m)| x (2d4) lb. (f)
Urdunnir	4'2"	4'0"	+2d4	180 lb.	150 lb.	x (2d8) lb.
Wild	2'8"	2'6"	+2d4	50 lb.	40 lb.	x (1d4) lb.

Source: Player's Guide to Faerûn. / Races of Faerûn.

The Gold Dwarves
- Playable Subrace -

Regions: Dragon Coast, Dwarf (gold), Unther, Western Heartlands. Gold dwarves native to the Great Rift should select the gold dwarf region.
Racial Feats: Hammer Fist, Metallurgy, Skyrider, Stoneshaper.
Racial Prestige Class: Battlerager.

Found largely in the South in the immediate vicinity of the Great Rift, gold dwarves are the dominant southern branch of the Stout Folk. Renowned not only for their smith work and craftsmanship but also for their military prowess and legendary wealth, gold dwarves have maintained their empire for millennia, unbowed by the passage of time.

For generations, the Deep Kingdom of the gold dwarves has stood unconquered, dominating the surface lands and subterranean caverns that surround the Great Rift. As their numbers never declined in the face of endless warfare like their northern cousins, the Thundering Blessing has actually filled the great caverns of the Deep Kingdom beyond their capacity. As a result, for the first time in many years, large numbers of gold dwarves are setting out to establish new strongholds across the South and the rest of Faerun, including the Smoking Mountains of Unther and the Giant’s Run Mountains of the Shining Plains.

Averaging 4 feet tall and weighing as much as an adult human, gold dwarves are stocky and muscular. The skin of a gold dwarf is light brown or deeply tanned, and her eyes are usually brown or hazel. Both genders wear their hair long, and males (and some females) have long, carefully groomed beards and mustaches. Hair color ranges from black to gray or brown, with all shades fading to light gray as time progresses.

Like their northern kin, gold dwarves harbor a great deal of pride, both in their own accomplishments and those of their ancestors. They also share the philosophy that anything worth doing is worth doing well, and that the natural world is but raw material to be worked into objects of great beauty. Unlike the long-beleaguered shield dwarves, gold dwarves have not faced a serious challenge to their way of life for thousands of years. Confident and secure in their isolated realm, gold dwarves do not share the pessimism or fatalism of their shield dwarven brethren. To the contrary, having seen the rise and fall of countless elven, human, and shield dwarven empires, their endurance has fostered a deep-seated belief that their traditions and culture are superior to those of all other races.

Gold dwarves have the life expectancy, age categories, height, and weight defined for dwarves in the Player’s Handbook. (Provided in the first post.)


History

Founded more than sixteen thousand years ago, the original dwarven homeland of Bhaerynden occupied a vast cavern deep beneath the southern plains ruled by the elves of Ilythiir. Bhaerynden claimed great swaths of the Underdark, but remained largely unknown in the Realms Above. Little is known about the history of Bhaerynden except that a great exodus of dwarves led by Taark Shanat the Crusader left to found a new kingdom in the west about -11,000 DR. The end of the elven Crown Wars and the Descent of the Drow in the years after -10,000 DR directly precipitated the fall of Bhaerynden. The first drow civilizations arose in the southern Underdark around -9600 DR, but the drow quickly directed their anger against the Stout Folk. Within the space of six centuries, the Stout Folk had been scattered and the drow empire of Telantiwar ruled supreme in the dwarf-carved halls of fallen Bhaerynden.

The collapse of the cavern of Bhaerynden destroyed Telantiwar and created the Great Rift, scattering the drow around -7600 DR, Gold dwarves believe Moradin destroyed Telantiwar with a blow of his axe, but scholars of other races have suggested that the drow weakened the cavern roof through excessive tunneling and reliance on magic to support the ceiling’s weight. In the aftermath of Telantiwar’s fall, there was a great scramble to claim new territory in the Underdark. The Stout Folk quickly returned to their ancestral home and established the Deep Realm, occupying lesser caverns and miles of tunnels spreading out under the Eastern Shaar. Drow refugees claimed lesser caverns to the north, south, and west of the Great Rift, establishing cities in nearby lands.

In the millennia that followed, the Stout Folk of the Deep realm became known as gold dwarves. Once the borders of their realm were firmly established and defended, they set about building great subterranean cities and harvesting the bounty of the earth. While external threats from the drow and other Underdark races such as aboleths, cloakers, illithids, ixzans, and kuo-toa never entirely abated, no other race could match the unity of purpose evinced by the gold dwarves, and the sanctity of the Deep Realm was never challenged. The dwarves profited in trade with each successive human empire that reached their Great Rift, including ancient Jhaamdath, the folk of Mulhorand and Unther in their heyday, the Shoon Imperium at its height, and in more recent centuries the mercantile Chondathan nations of the Inner Sea.

In 1306 DR, the Thunder Blessing shook the gold dwarves out of their millennia-long quiescence. In the decades that followed, a burgeoning population forced the gold dwarves to seek out new caverns to claim and settle across the South, upsetting the long-held status quo of the southern Underdark. The largest exodus to date from the Deep Realm began in 1369 DR, when the Army of Gold set out on a great crusade to reclaim the caverns of Taark Shanat and restore the glory of Shanatar, the ancient kingdom of the shield dwarves. That expedition has become bogged down in warfare with the Army of Steel, dispatched by the gray dwarves of Underspires. Fierce battles rage in the tunnels beneath the Lake of Steam and the Cloven Mountains.


Outlook

Gold dwarves measure others by how much honor and wealth each individual garners as well as the status of his or her bloodline and clan. To gold dwarves, life is best lived through adherence to the ancient traditions of the Deep Realm. The very persistence of their own way of life indicates that other short-lived cultures are inherently flawed. As such, those who lack a meaning cultural tradition or reject their elders’ dictates are untrustworthy and possibly dangerous.

From birth, gold dwarves are taught to conform to the traditional strictures of their society. Every important decision, from choice of profession to their mate, is dictated by the circumstances of their birth. Those who do not act honorably in their dealings are shunned from an early age, breeding a tremendous societal pressure to fit in.

Gold dwarves lack the longstanding tradition of adventuring found in their shield dwarf cousins in the north. However, population pressures induced by the Thunder Blessing have given birth to a new generation of gold dwarf adventurers. Most gold dwarves who wander beyond the familiar confines of the Deep Realm do so in order to found new strongholds of their own, but many find the lure of adventuring hard to ignore once it has entered into their blood.

Gold Dwarf Characters
Gold dwarves are painfully aware that many once-proud empires have been brought low, and they are therefore vigilant about maintaining their own. The keen awareness gold dwarves hold of the dangers too their eternal rule ensure that all gold dwarves are trained to fight from a young age. Most are trained as fighters, although clerics, paladins, rangers, rogues, and even the occasional arcane spellcaster play important roles in defending the Deep Realm. Gold dwarf sorcerers usually trace their ancestry back to a powerful dragon or some creature of elemental earth or fire. Common multiclass combinations include fighter/cleric, fighter/paladin, and fighter/expert.

Favored Class: A gold dwarf’s favored class is a fighter. Only a strong and fierce military tradition has kept the Deep Realm secure from its enemies above and below, a result of generations of gold dwarves training as fighters.

Prestige Classes: Battleragers are legendary dwarven warriors who can enter a battle frenzy through ritual singing. Given to drinking, rowdy and boisterous singing, and drunken dancing, battleragers love to plunge into close-quarters battle, heedless of any danger. Most battleragers are shield dwarves, but a small number of gold dwarves rebelling against the discipline and tradition of their society have joined the ranks of the berserkers.

More disciplined gold dwarves lean toward the dwarven defender or divine champion classes.


Gold Dwarf Society

Gold dwarf culture does not exhibit a great deal of variability, the result of generations of gold dwarves insulated from outside influences. Class and clan divisions are strong among gold dwarves, and great importance is attributed to bloodlines when ascribing social status. However, the Deep Realm is so swamped with petty, decadent royals and nobles that little real power is invested in anyone but the governing council of clan elders. Commerce and craftsmanship both play an important role in gold dwarf society, as does the never-satiated grasping for more riches. Pride and honor play an important role in all aspects of daily life, for disgrace applies not only to oneself, but also to kin, clan, and long-dead ancestors.

Gold dwarves are raised in tight family unites, but the clan elders play an important oversight role in the upbringing of every child. Book learning is common, as is an apprenticeship to learn a trade. All adults are expected to support themselves and their family as well as bring honor and riches to the clan. Ostentatious displays of wealth are important for maintaining one’s prestige, so poorer gold dwarves often scrimp and save to keep up appearances. As gold dwarves age, they are accorded increasing respect for their wisdom. Clan elders form a ruling gerontocracy that strongly enforces traditional practices. Families and clans are expected to honor their elders in death with elaborate funeral rites and tombs befitting the deceased’s reputation.

Outside the Deep Realm, gold dwarves hold themselves apart, forming small, insular enclaves that attempt to replicate traditional clan life. Few gold dwarves have any interest in adopting local practices except where it furthers their ability to hawk their wares.


Language and Literacy

Like all dwarves, gold dwarves speak a dialect of Dwarven and employ the Dethek rune alphabet. They also speak Common, the trade language of the Realms Above. The primary gold dwarven dialect (sometimes referred to as Riftspeak) has changed little since the glory days of Bhaerynden. Gold dwarves dwelling in the colonies in Unther and the Giant’s Run often learn the languages of the nearby lands.

Common secondary languages reflect the extensive trading contacts maintained by gold dwarves with their neighbors in the South and include Shaaran, Untheric, and, to a lesser extent, Durpari, Dambrathan, Mulhorandi, Halfling, and Halruaan. Gold dwarves who have extensive contact with other subterranean races often learn Terran, Gnome, or Undercommon.

All gold dwarf characters are literate except barbarians (who are very unusual among the folk of this ancient civilization).


Abilities and Raciel Features

Gold dwarves have all of the dwarven racial traits listed in the Player's Handbook except the following:


Gold Dwarf Magic and Lore

Gold dwarves have a strong divine spellcasting tradition, with many of the Stout Folk called to serve the Morndinsamman as clerics, paladins, rune casters, or runesmiths. Arcane spellcasters are much rarer, but they do exist.

Spells and Spellcasting
Gold dwarves favor spells that aid their abilities in combat or assist in craftwork or mining. Most are divine spellcasters, but the gold dwarves’ millennia-old civilization has ensured both ancient libraries of wizardry and strange, sorcerous bloodlines.

Spellcasting Tradition: Many gold dwarves take the Gold Dwarf Dweomersmith feat, which grants them advantages when creating or enhancing weapons with magic.

Unique Spells: Gold dwarves have created many spells over the years, many of which are now employed by the Stout Folk across Faerûn. One such example is detect metals and minerals.


Gold Dwarf Magic Items

Gold dwarves favor magic items that aid in combat, facilitate craftwork, provide personal protection or comfort, guard against theft, or are adorned with fine metals and gems. Blades and axes are commonly crafted with keen, holy, lawful, mighty cleaving, sundering, and stunning special abilities. Hammers and maces are commonly crafted with holy, impact, lawful, returning, stunning, sundering, and throwing special abilities. Armor is typically crafted with fortification, invulnerability, reflection, and spell resistance special abilities, reflecting a long tradition of battles against the drow and other creatures of the Underdark.

Common Magic Items: Magic items particularly prevalent in the Great Rift and the trade cities at its edge include anvil of the blacksmith, belt of dwarvenkind, forge of smithing, hammer of the weapon smith, and tongs of the armorer.

Iconic Magic Items: Gold dwarves have fabricated many unique magic items, but they are best known for the stonereaver greataxes.


Gold Dwarf Deities

Gold dwarves have venerated the dwarven deities of the Morndinsamman since the founding of Bhaerynden, but centuries of relative isolation and security have made their culture far less religious in nature than their shield dwarven kin. Among gold dwarves the churches of Moradin and Berronar are so predominant and have been for so long that many lesser dwarven deities enjoy little more than token obeisance.

High-ranking clerics of both faiths command a great amount of institutional authority in gold dwarf society. The clerics of Berronar’s faith are responsible for preserving records of the extraordinarily ancient genealogy of the noble families and serve as the guardians of tradition in the home and community.

All gold dwarves revere the Soul Forger as the founder of the dwarven race, and his church is the predominant faith of the Deep Realm, centered in the monastic city of Thuulurn. Moradin’s clerics sponsor many crafts folk, particularly armorers and weapon smiths, and serve as the principle judges and magistrates of gold dwarf society. The Soul Forger’s faithful are drawn primarily from those who labor as smiths, craft folks, or engineers, but he is also seen as the protector of the entire dwarven race and is thus worshiped by many lawful good dwarves regardless of profession.


Relations with other Races

Confident and secure in their remote home, gold dwarves have a well-deserved reputation for haughtiness and pride. They look down on all other dwarves, even shield dwarves and gray dwarves whose achievements and kingdoms have matched the glory of their own. Gold dwarves regard elves and half-elves with suspicion after generations spent battling their deep-dwelling cousins. Gnomes, particularly deep gnomes, are well regarded and welcomed as trading partners. Their impression of halflings is shaped by the strongheart inhabitants of Luiren, whom gold dwarves find to be suitably industrious and forthright.

Gold dwarves know little of half-orcs, but usually lump them in with the rest of orc and goblinoid scum. Gold dwarves are very cautious in their dealings with humans, having found great variability in their dealings with Chondathans, the folk of Dambrath, Durpari, Mulan, Shaarans, and Halruaans. Planetouched are almost unknown but are usually viewed in the same light as the Mulan, since most plane touched the gold dwarves encounter are either Mulan aasimar or earth genasi followers of Geb.


Gold Dwarf Equipment

The gold dwarf craft guilds have had centuries to master their artisanship, so almost any finished good has some filigree, runic mark, or other decoration that marks it as unmistakably the work of the gold dwarves. Even a simple bucket will have carefully marked gradations along the inside, graven runes identifying its owner, and a curved handle shaped to fit a thick dwarven hand.

Common Items: Sunrods, thunderstones.

Unique Items: Gold dwarves commonly employ well-engineered equipment such as mobile braces and rope climbers. The hippogriff-mounted skyriders of the Great Rift are known to employ drogue wings and exotic military saddles.

Arms and Armor
Gold dwarves favor a wide range of weapons, including battleaxes, crossbows, gauntlets, hand axes, heavy picks, light hammers, light picks, mauls, throwing axes, and war hammers.

More unusual weapons include dwarven urgroshes and dwarven waraxes. Typical forms of armor include breastplates, half-plate, full plate, scale mail, large steel shields, and small steel shields.

Common Items: Battleaxe, light crossbow, heavy picks, dwarven urgrosh, scale mail, full plate armor. The gold dwarves manufacture adamantine heavy picks and battleaxes for those who can afford such things; adamantine weapons are available at a 10% discount in the Great Rift.

Animals and Pets
Gold dwarves favor small lizards such as the spitting crawler and shocker lizard for pets and familiars. Deep rothe are the preferred type of livestock. They employ pack lizards and mules as beasts of burden, usually breeding the latter from Lhesperan or Meth horses crossed with donkeys. Gold dwarves commonly use riding lizards as steeds in subterranean locales, and war ponies for travel in the surface lands. The gold dwarf skyriders of the Great Rift employ hippogriffs as aerial mounts.

Source: Forgotten Realms: Races of Faerûn