Baruk-Azhik
Overthane Grimm Graybeard
Provinces/Holdings: Four of Baruk-Azhik's five provinces are governed by thanes; the fifth remains the purview of the overthane himself.
• Law: The law of the entire realm resides with the overthane Grimm Graybeard.
• Temples: Moradin's Forge is the one recognized religion of Baruk-Azhik. Dwarves do not worship human gods and do not tolerate priests who try to convert them.
• Guilds: Diirk Watershold of Baruk-Azhik holds the majority of trade here. Moerele Lannaman of Mhoried and Elamien Lamier Elinie battle for the remaining lands.
• Sources: No mages draw power from here.
Army: Naturally, Baruk-Azhik protects itself with an all-dwarf army. The dwarves do insist on receiving some payment for their services—they've got homes to live in and forges they could be working at, after all—but they agree to accept just a minimal payment. Most units actually concentrate on maintaining security around the Orogs tunnels and have not necessarily readied themselves for an invasion from without. Baruk-Azhik's army contains:
• 4 units of dwarf guards.
• 4 units of dwarf crossbows.
Two more units of each type become available, as dwarves will leave their labors in droves to defend their beloved lands.
Regent: The Overthane of Baruk-Azhik, Grimm Graybeard (MD; F/Pr 7/8; An, major, 38; LG), seems a dour dwarf, whose main concern in life is the genocide of the orogs under the Iron Peaks. He acts friendly to proven friends of the dwarven cause and supports his people's ventures enthusiastically, but finds little reason to seek companions outside his own race.
He does not disdain humans, but he wants them to prove their worth before he trusts them with any task or treasure of value. Indeed, he has known some excellent humans in his time, and part of the mission he gives his trading parties is to scout out likely humans for future recruitment to the fortresses of Baruk-Azhik. • Lieutenants: Graybeard has four lieutenants, each with the honorary title "thane" and the power to make decisions for the kingdom. The thanes each also head a clan, so they must answer to the people as well as their overthane. Each thane governs his clan's province, leaving the regent free to respond to their most serious concerns.
Important NPCs: A close friend of Grimm Graybeard, Diirk Watershold ('That's 'Diirk' with two i's!") is the dwarf most likely to encounter outsiders. As the head of Baruk-Azhik's trading guild, he deals with Avonlaers who fight the elements (and the terrain) to trade with the dwarves. This jocular fellow can coldly appraise a person's worth with a glance.
Description: As one might expect of a dwarf kingdom, Baruk-Azhik is mountainous country. Snow-covered peaks and treacherous gorges mark this domain, defying any who would traverse it. The air feels crisp and thin in the upper reaches of the mountains, and the wind can chill a traveler to the bone. Rivers race through the ravines, carving their way through the rock as they've done for millennia.
Hardy aspens cling to the earth, and shrubs cover the entire landscape. The Iron Peaks protect neighboring Khinasi from the worst of Avonlae's weather—which means Baruk-Azhik is buffeted all the worse. The howling of the winds, like lost spirits in these ranges, makes locals whisper that those who lose their lives in the mountains must inhabit the wind for all time.
The dwarves have done little to mar the outer surface of the mountains—instead, they concentrate on building fortresses within. Each province has one such fortress, the home of a single clan. Though the crags outside may grow rough and battered by wind, the interiors of each clanhome are truly marvels.
Though most folks know dwarves as masters of stonework, they have no idea how the race has consummated its art in these fortresses. Great stone blocks hold together with hardly a crack to mark their joining. The ceilings and pillars of the common areas gleam, so well burnished that the rock itself seems to glow. The living quarters and temple areas are places that humans, however trusted, may never see. Even so, to lay eyes upon any room beyond the entry hall of a clan's holding is an honor greater than most Avonlaers ever enjoy.
• Capital: Baruk-Azhik's capital, Caer'Shtoon, is located in Rivenrock, the province the overthane rules personally. All matters of justice the thanes can not decide come before Graybeard here. This settlement has become the domain's center of trade.
• Trade Goods: All items of dwarven manufacture remain always avidly sought by those who value true craftsmanship. However, dwarven goods leave the kingdom only infrequently, as the dwarves tend to trade only among themselves. Trade routes do lead down to Ruorven in Coeranys Shieldhaven in Mhoried , though, and a secret road runs through the Sielwode into its capital, Siellaghriod. Other trade routes include one to Moriel and one to Ilien.
Allies: Baruk-Azhik has no true allies. Though they eventually might need such friends to help in their war against the orogs, the dwarves are too proud to ask for human alliances. Humans, in turn, trade with the dwarves gladly, but they fear they would offend the dwarves by offering aid.
Enemies: Except for the orogs within the mountains, the dwarves of Baruk-Azhik have no mortal enemies. Almost as great an enemy as the orogs are the dwarves of Mur-Kilad, under the domination of the Gorgon A Baruk-Azhik dwarf will attack a Mur-Kilad dwarf on sight, striving to beat the other back into the earth whence it came, so the Mur-Kiladan will not offend the land with its life. Naturally, Mur-Kilad dwarves feel wary entering battle involving other dwarves.
Special Conditions: The orogs under the Iron Peaks grow ever more powerful with every passing year. Every single dwarf lost becomes a victory for the orogs, whereas one lost orog seems little cause for concern to the orog rulers. The population of Baruk-Azhik declines steadily each year, while the orogs' keeps growing. Grimm Graybeard has begun to think the dwarves can solve the orog problem only by sweeping through the beasts' underground caverns with force. While this tactic would mean severe dwarf losses, it also would end the orog threat—at least, for now
Regent: The Overthane of Baruk-Azhik, Grimm Graybeard (MD; F/Pr 7/8; An, major, 38; LG), seems a dour dwarf, whose main concern in life is the genocide of the orogs under the Iron Peaks. He acts friendly to proven friends of the dwarven cause and supports his people's ventures enthusiastically, but finds little reason to seek companions outside his own race.
He does not disdain humans, but he wants them to prove their worth before he trusts them with any task or treasure of value. Indeed, he has known some excellent humans in his time, and part of the mission he gives his trading parties is to scout out likely humans for future recruitment to the fortresses of Baruk-Azhik. • Lieutenants: Graybeard has four lieutenants, each with the honorary title "thane" and the power to make decisions for the kingdom. The thanes each also head a clan, so they must answer to the people as well as their overthane. Each thane governs his clan's province, leaving the regent free to respond to their most serious concerns.
Important NPCs: A close friend of Grimm Graybeard, Diirk Watershold ('That's 'Diirk' with two i's!") is the dwarf most likely to encounter outsiders. As the head of Baruk-Azhik's trading guild, he deals with Avonlaers who fight the elements (and the terrain) to trade with the dwarves. This jocular fellow can coldly appraise a person's worth with a glance.
Description: As one might expect of a dwarf kingdom, Baruk-Azhik is mountainous country. Snow-covered peaks and treacherous gorges mark this domain, defying any who would traverse it. The air feels crisp and thin in the upper reaches of the mountains, and the wind can chill a traveler to the bone. Rivers race through the ravines, carving their way through the rock as they've done for millennia.
Hardy aspens cling to the earth, and shrubs cover the entire landscape. The Iron Peaks protect neighboring Khinasi from the worst of Avonlae's weather—which means Baruk-Azhik is buffeted all the worse. The howling of the winds, like lost spirits in these ranges, makes locals whisper that those who lose their lives in the mountains must inhabit the wind for all time.
The dwarves have done little to mar the outer surface of the mountains—instead, they concentrate on building fortresses within. Each province has one such fortress, the home of a single clan. Though the crags outside may grow rough and battered by wind, the interiors of each clanhome are truly marvels.
Though most folks know dwarves as masters of stonework, they have no idea how the race has consummated its art in these fortresses. Great stone blocks hold together with hardly a crack to mark their joining. The ceilings and pillars of the common areas gleam, so well burnished that the rock itself seems to glow. The living quarters and temple areas are places that humans, however trusted, may never see. Even so, to lay eyes upon any room beyond the entry hall of a clan's holding is an honor greater than most Avonlaers ever enjoy.
• Capital: Baruk-Azhik's capital, Caer'Shtoon, is located in Rivenrock, the province the overthane rules personally. All matters of justice the thanes can not decide come before Graybeard here. This settlement has become the domain's center of trade.
• Trade Goods: All items of dwarven manufacture remain always avidly sought by those who value true craftsmanship. However, dwarven goods leave the kingdom only infrequently, as the dwarves tend to trade only among themselves. Trade routes do lead down to Ruorven in Coeranys Shieldhaven in Mhoried , though, and a secret road runs through the Sielwode into its capital, Siellaghriod. Other trade routes include one to Moriel and one to Ilien.
Allies: Baruk-Azhik has no true allies. Though they eventually might need such friends to help in their war against the orogs, the dwarves are too proud to ask for human alliances. Humans, in turn, trade with the dwarves gladly, but they fear they would offend the dwarves by offering aid.
Enemies: Except for the orogs within the mountains, the dwarves of Baruk-Azhik have no mortal enemies. Almost as great an enemy as the orogs are the dwarves of Mur-Kilad, under the domination of the Gorgon A Baruk-Azhik dwarf will attack a Mur-Kilad dwarf on sight, striving to beat the other back into the earth whence it came, so the Mur-Kiladan will not offend the land with its life. Naturally, Mur-Kilad dwarves feel wary entering battle involving other dwarves.
Special Conditions: The orogs under the Iron Peaks grow ever more powerful with every passing year. Every single dwarf lost becomes a victory for the orogs, whereas one lost orog seems little cause for concern to the orog rulers. The population of Baruk-Azhik declines steadily each year, while the orogs' keeps growing. Grimm Graybeard has begun to think the dwarves can solve the orog problem only by sweeping through the beasts' underground caverns with force. While this tactic would mean severe dwarf losses, it also would end the orog threat—at least, for now
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