Mountain Dwarves

"Mountain dwarves they call us, as if dwarves weren't supposed to live in the mountains. We're dwarves, the original dwarves, the undegraded dwarves, the prime example of what a dwarf is." ~Queen Palay Dawi, Thrummaz of Karakadaw

Ideals

Beauty Ideals

The typical mountain dwarf is short, 4’0 to 4’9, but wide as a man or wider. Males are ideally shaped like thick barrels, with long beards and plenty of hair. Females lack the beard and are curvier than the males. Their hair colors come in black, brown, and auburn. Many dwarves will bleach their hair with lye and dye it a startling color. A current fashion among females is to mix colored dye with the zippa mushroom, creating glowing colors.

Gender Ideals

Dwarves emphasize productivity and skill, and have a tendency to disdain those without a trade regardless of gender or situation.

Courtship Ideals

Mountain dwarves courting is a settlement wide affair. Once a year, the eligible females all gather to watch the males compete, though dwarves being dwarves many of the females do a fair bit of competing in these games themselves. The games involve any tests of strength or prowess that one dwarf may convince another to engage in, all overseen by judges who are more often than not belligerently drunk by the time the competitions get underway and therefore much more permissive about the level of danger the competitors are likely to engage in. This festival is followed by a mass wedding ceremony for all of the new couples during which the males and females that found no acceptable partners will hold their own party called the Ganaduke, or “Next Year”. Collectively, the courting and mass marriage is called the Holverstadt, and it is the biggest celebration on the Dwarf calendar.