A reclusive group of dwarves, named after the iron-rich mountain they reside in. While they mostly keep to themselves, they do export various goods that they are famous for.
Location
The Red Mountain is where most of the dwarves live, and also where many of their mines are located. Through the centuries they have constructed many paths and tunnels to traverse. However, they do not only work and reside here. On the other side of the Red Mountain lie paths leading towards several volcanoes, which is where their primary forges are located.
These forges, and the very existence of the volcanoes, are kept a secret by the dwarves, so that both merchants and bandits only approach the dwarves from their fortified fronts. This secrecy is aided by the fact that frequent tremors prevent proper roads and tunnels from being constructed. Instead, the dwarves are forced to use goats and donkeys for transporting materials and products.
Export Products
The Red-Mountain dwarves produce several types of goods that are not only used proudly by the dwarves themselves, but have also proven popular among merchants and nobles in nearby countries. As such, they will send the occasional well-armed caravan to trade these goods.
Weapons & Armour
The dwarves primarily produce dwarven battle axes and maulaxes, including magically enhanced ones. They export these in small numbers, selling just a handful each year. Magically enhanced armour tends to be only sold once per decade.
Goat cheese
The dwarves hold a lot of goat herds on the mountain sides, some of which they actively use for producing milk. The cheese they produce has proven popular to those with a fancy palate. The dwarves eagerly make people believe the cheese is rare, so they can make a good profit. In truth they consume it nearly every day.
Dwarven Bacon
Both goat herds and the occasional donkey are butchered for their meat, most of which the dwarves smoke for long-term keeping. A lot of meat is slowly cured on the cold mountainside, after which it can be kept for many months. However, some is smoked at the volcanoes. This bacon keeps far shorter, and is refridgerated with clay pot coolers.
By the time dwarven trade caravans arrive, the bacon can only be kept for a few more weeks in cold environments. It takes great riches to produce the ice required to keep the bacon for a lengthier time, making dwarven bacon even more of a luxury food outside trading periods. The peculiar taste, caused by the combination of goat meat and volcanic smoke, makes it a delicacy.
Rye Whisky
Due to the cold weather and sloped terrain, there are few crops that grow well within the domain of the dwarves. They grow a variety of cold-hardened cereals, and the rye is used for both beer and whisky. The whisky barrels are made from timber grown on volcanic mountainsides, which is then cured with volcanic smoke. This helps give the whisky, which matures for fifty years, a unique taste that the rich pay a small fortune for.
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