Influence of the Stone
Dwarves experience a unique and all-encompassing relationship to their progenitor, the Stone. They are born of it, they serve it in their deeds, and they feel its impact upon their lives in many ways. In
Orzammar, the Shapers who maintain written records in lyrium are said to document the Stone. The members of the Legion of the Dead, those who fight in the Deep Roads, claim their fight is for the Stone.
Dwarves who live underground possess an ability called "stone sense". This ability provides subterranean navigation and dwarves believe that it is derived from their connection to the Stone. Amongst dwarves, Shapers reportedly possess remarkable Stone sense. As well. the Stone is believed to have given some dwarves, those from the mining caste, the ability to find lyrium veins by ear. These dwarves are able to hear "the hums and songs of lyrium", which help guide them to lyrium through rock.
The dwarves who leave the Stone's embrace to live on the surface are so reviled by their brethren that their caste and status is lost and their deeds forever removed from the Memories, or the collective history of the dwarven people kept whole by the Shapers. The only known exception to this rule is made for dwarves who have joined the
Wardens.
Returning to the Stone
Dwarves entomb their dead to return them to the Stone. Nobles and
Paragons are entombed in vast and elaborate crypts while commoners are encased within stone cairns. Dwarves of lesser caste are buried in mausoleums in which the dead from many houses are interred together. Failing that, they are buried in the dirt, though this is never ideal.
The soul of the worthy who were not blind to the Stone's influence and lived by her are believed to return to and to rest in the Stone after the words of a ritual are said. In death, their spirits become part of the Ancestors who guide and care for their descendants for eternity as well as make the Stone stronger. It is believed that the victors of the dwarven disputes and fights are favored by the Ancestors who "speak" by showing their favor. The most worthy, the Paragons who are the greatest examples of lives spent in service to fellow dwarves, are believed to join with the Stone in life and to become the living Ancestors.
The unworthy such as the casteless or surface dwarves are said to be outright rejected by the Stone so that their failings may not weaken her. Even during their lifetime, the surface dwarves lose their connection to the Stone. The spirits that are rejected by the Stone are believed to be unable to rest, and after their death they become rock wraiths or other restless and often malevolent
demons wandering remote caverns.
Comments