Sundering the Gods

Hello, and welcome to home of the Sundering the Gods Saga. Here you will find a collection of maps and sundry other tidbits to enhance and enlighten your journey into the world of the Sister Continents, so please feel free to browse around or drop the author a note to let him now what you you enjoyed and how your experience could be even better.

Eight Kingdomer Dwarves

(Concept Sketch by Joe Shawcross)

Height: 4'8" (Male) 4'6" (Female)
Build: Stocky
Hair: Typical human varieties
Eyes: Brown, black, gray
Lifespan: 250 years
Decoration: Dwarves of the Eight Kingdoms are very much into the intricate decoration of physical objects, such as their armor being filigreed, but do not typically decorate themselves in permanent fashion, such as tatoos or scarring. They are much more into braiding and weaving gold, gems and other valuable items into their hair and beards so that they may change them out for various holidays and battle. The Ômkinter and Ôkô are particularly known for face and body painting for rituals and warfare.
Weapon Preferences: Axes, swords, maces and shields. Javelins with and without Atlatl, composite bows and crossbows.
Language
Currency: 8 varieties but all based upon gold.
Religion: The Foundations
Religious Tolerance: High
Skill Bonuses

The Kingdomers, as they are known to the outside world, are a single race of dwarves split into eight kingdoms within the mountains known to the dwarves as the Foundations, while most other local cultures call them the Dragon Spans. The Kingdomers recognize twenty-two Foundation Peaks within the extensive mountain range, with each of these peaks having a shrine to the twenty-two gods of the Foundations Pantheon. 

The God Wars were not kind to this pantheon that relied upon relatively small numbers of dwarves for power. The dwarven peoples were seen as a valuable commodity during the God Wars, and so several of the most powerful pantheons did battle with the dwarven gods, the end result being the death of seven gods and the near expulsion of this dwarven pantheon from the Sister Continents. A small number of dwarves continued the worship of the Foundations, so that with the end of the God Wars and entering the Age of Warlords, the dwarves slowly rebuilt their culture and religion. While the Age of Warlords was extremely violent above ground, the dwarves enjoyed a relatively peaceful time, as the world above quite literally forgot about their existence, and the dwarven nations were weak enough that they rarely forayed outdoors. During this time, the dwarves were separated by hundreds of miles of tunnels, and formed twenty-two Nations, with a king in each Foundation Peak. Over the span of the Age of Warlords, this number slowly declined, with wars and marriages and treaties, until reaching a number similar to the final eight that evolved upon reaching the Eras of Stability. 

 

  • Rînkodûl (Rhine-kaw-duel) Storm-Eye, the Lava-Hammer, Father of the Kingdoms and Lord of the First Foundation.
  • Considered by most dwarven factions to be the "father" of the Pantheon, he is not always considered the leader of the Pantheon. Ôkô, Helmvelîn, Barkûx (holders of the First Foundation) & Ômkinter respect him as the head of the Pantheon, while Kâmar, Tûrûrôt, Œerinklîn and Dânlok claim his wife (Estîlu) to be his equal. In small, typically isolated conclaves, his bride is treated as the head of the Pantheon, but this can be considered a tad heretical.
  • Rînkodûl is depicted (most often) in half-plate armor, helmetless, and wielding a hammer of "Living Lava" which priests interpret as being an Earth Elemental in lava form. His beard is black and braided with rubies and gold, and his eyes are said to be "molten gold".

 

Attitudes toward the outside world vary widely from kingdom to kingdom, but they are all reclusive to one degree or another. That being said, there isn't a lack of Kingdomer presence around the world as during the Age of Warlords and the Eras of Stability many Kingdomer Expeditions set forth into the world to reunite with kin who had been scattered worldwide during the God Wars, as well as to discover sources of rare and valuable metals and gems.

The Eight Kingdoms are as follows:

  • Ôko --  One of the most isolationist of the Eight Kingdoms, the Ôko see themselves as the greatest Kingdom, in part due to their theocratic rule.
  • Helmvelîn -- One of the more outgoing Kingdoms, they have open diplomatic associations with humans and under the table trade with some elves. The king here is not a religious figure.
  • Tûrûrôt -- Of the Eight Kingdoms, they are the most visible above ground, often with summer communities out of the mountains, where they farm and raise goats. The most friendly and least isolationist of the Kingdoms, their reputation is one of kindness to a stranger, but unwavering ferocity to an enemy. This may be skewed, as they are the only kingdom more commonly seen fighting above ground.
  • Kâmar -- An extremely xenophobic kingdom rarely heard from in the outer world. Of the Eight Kingdoms, their population was most weakened by the “exodus” of the Dark Water Cult, and they have never quite recovered from that loss of workers and leadership.
  • Barkûx -- Through much of the history of the Eight Kingdoms, this is possibly the most powerful of the Kingdoms, and certainly one of the wealthiest, and with forges and smiths respected around the world.
  • Ômkinter -- One of the smallest of the Kingdoms, these dwarves concentrate more on smithing than mining, tending to purchase and barter for ores more than any other Kingdom. Their smiths are the only rival to the Barkûx in quality.
  • Œerinklîn -- Through the earliest centuries of the First Era, this was a prosperous and outgoing Kingdom, but the eruption of a volcano near the heart of the Kingdom caused great devastation, from which they never fully recover. 
  • Dânlok -- Possibly the wealthiest of the Kingdoms, they are also most prone to traveling and trading abroad, and with political and trade alliances at every turn, most who speak of dwarven goods from the Eight Kingdoms speak of the Dânlok’s wares. 

© 2022 L. James Rice