Simnesh the Smith
The dwarven culture knows of many fairy tales and cautionary tales. But the most famous one is undoubtedly the tale of Simnesh the Smith. It cements one of the core beliefs of all dwarven cultures, no matter where in the Ethorial Lands they are settling today: The belief of not acting out of selfishness.
But additionally it further contains several noteworthy elements that seem to have some basis within reality. However, the story has been told for so long it is almost impossible to make out all the factual elements.
Summary
Once upon the old times, when the caves where still young and the rivers told from wonders within the mountains, there was a dwarf named Simnesh. He was well known all across the clans as the most talented smith ever to walk the earth since Maned himself and he was very proud of that.
One day, he decided to meet with Maned to show the work he was doing in his honor. He searched for him far and wide, on the highest mountain and in the deepest caves. Finally, he came upon him in a mystical crystal cave.
Maned greeted him like a good friend and they drank together and told stories. Together they forged amazing weapons, marvelous armor, and breathtaking apparels. In this time, Maned taught Simnesh a lot of his trait.
But one day SImnesh got sad, because he never could become as good as Maned himself. So he asked him for his Hammer, within it all the magic Maned used to create. Maned, who had grown fond of his companion granted him his wish.He gave him his hammer, with which Simnesh will create the most marvellous tools. But he warned him as well.
"Never may you touch this hammer with your bare skin. For when you do, you will be able to create a godlike item, whatever you imagine. But you will never again lift a hammer or create anything."
Simnesh promised to be careful and with the hammer in his bag, he bid Maned farewell and returned home.
His story spread far and wide and peoplecame to see the wonderful things Simnesh created. And Simnesh was fond of the things he created. But he was careful never to touch the hammer with his bare hands, as Maned had warned him.
After a while a wanderer appeared with black hair and black beard, in his hand a hammer. He wanted to learn from the best he said and became one of Simnesh students.
One day he asked him "Master,can you create a crown, that placed upon your head would make you understand the world?" And Simnesh said, that indeed he could, and gaining knowledge was to him indeed precious. But he was warned by Maned never to do so.
The Black Dwarf urged him for days, told him about all the secrets about that trait he could unlock and the wealth he could gain. But Simnesh never wavered. And time went on.
A few months later a big drought caused terrible hunger in the lands. "Master", the Black Dwarf asked, "Can you not create a barrel, that will always be full of food?" And Simnesh said that indeed he could and staving off the hunger would be something precious indeed.
But again he insisted Maned warned him against doing so. The Black Dwarf and the other students, hunger in their eyes, pleeded with their master. But Simnesh never wavered. And the famine passed.
But after the famine passed, the people were angry about Simnesh refusing to help. So they gathered their weapons and searched for SImnesh. "Master", the Black Dwarf then said "Could you not make an invincible armor, to protect your own life forever?" And Simnesh said that indeed he could. Of course his own life was precsious to him.
But he told himself that Maned warned him against ever doing so. The Black Dwarf left full of fury and told the others were Simnesh hid. And Simnesh fled the town, to a cave of his own.
The years went past and Simnesh watched his daughter grow up. He saw her talent in the trait but she was never as good as he was. This made him sad, because his daughter was him the most precious. The night before she became off age, he took the hammer and took off his gloves and worked all night.
And he created a hammer much like the one he owned, but that was not as powerful as his. Still any dwarf that would wield it would become an extraordinary smith. When he finished engraving the runes of his family into the hammer, he looked up.
"Master", said the Black Dwarf, "You have created something marvelous. But you have to let go of the hammer now." And with a dark gleam in his eye, he stepped forward and took the hammer from Simnesh and vanished.
Simnesh felt weakness and pain all over his body. And he knew the warning of Maned to be true. In his agony, he saw Maned appear in front of him, with a sad smile.
"You could have chosen to be greedy, to be selfish. Yet you chose to create a great future for your daughter. You have learned all that I could teach you." And Maned touched Simnesh and the pain went away from him.
Simnesh never touched a hammer again, he never created anything else. He did not need to. He created the future for his daughter. And he was proud.
Historical Basis
There are no actual records of a smith named Simnesh or his family anywhere in the archives of Aliretar. However, many versions tell of a famine directly followed by a war between the dwarfs. Simnesh leaving for his own cave would fit with the great clan wars around 2000BR, which was caused by a big famine and saw many new clans migrating away from Aliretar.
It was not uncommon around this time, that people interacted with Maned directly. Up until the Second War of the Races and the subsequent Ruling of Coexistence in 0AR the gods all interacted a lot with the mortals, guiding and teaching them.
Furthermore, there is telling of an Artifact such as the hammer in the story. As late as 1400AR, so less then three hundred years ago, there are stories about a mighty smith's hammer, inscribed with the kings crest allowing the wielder to create the best weapons, fit to fight even the creatures of the dark.
It is to hope though that a figure like the dark dwarf almost certainly does not exist. Such an antagonistic creature would certainly appear in the writings of history.However, the theme of a Dark Dwarf appears regularly in the old tales of dwarven lore. It is believed this to be just a generic evil, meant to contest the protagonists.
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