Winter Dwarves

Thousands of years ago, the white dragon Nabuhe was put to rest by the now long-dead race of ice giants of the snow wilds. Trapped and frozen under millions of pounds of ice and rock, Nabuhe was left to spend eternity in a perpetual state of near-death. However, when the dwarves of the north arrived to mine the glaciers and collect the rare stones that filtered through them, they uncovered Nabuhe. Awoken, and seeing a plan for escape, Nabuhe convinced the dwarves to free her in return for a dragon on their side. However, the corrupting influence of Nabuhe quickly began to turn the dwarves, and Nabuhe was freed from her prison. The dwarves had forgotten their ancient gods—now, there was only Nabuhe.

Nabuhe's Influence

Under the icy glare of Nabuhe, the hearty and affectionate personalities of the dwarves slowly turned to the emotionless ambition and determination of Nabuhe. Carefully weaving her web of lies, Nabuhe began turning the dwarves against the outside world, illustrating their cruelties and miseries, and warning that those who left her realm could never be welcome back. Instead, better to mine the glacier and purport the glory of all Naheim and her queen, Nabuhe. The few dwarves who do leave are frequently forever alone, as they are unadapted to the norms of outside life, and their cold personalities and lack of empathy skills put them at odds with others.

Castes

The winter dwarves are divided into a strict caste system, enforced by the high priesthood with the might of Nabuhe at their back. Each caste consists of a position within a certain industry or area of dwarven life, with further sub-castes dividing each caste based on the importance of their area of work. Thus, a miner is of lower caste than a shop keeper, but a mine operator is of a higher sub-caste than a shop keeper. A dwarf's caste is immediately apparent to others, as noted by the rings of ice kept in their beards which are received at birth. Those who do not have beard rings, such as those who have left Naheim (and therefore had their ring melt) are casteless, and are unable to find work outside of the the lowest castes of labor.

Inuiki

Not all winter dwarves follow the lead of nabuhe. Some, known as the Inuiki, have rejected Nabuhe's leadership, and journeyed even farther south and into the icy caps, where the only thing to be respected is the cold itself. Few have ever seen or spoken with the Inuiki, but those who have are frequently changed by their experiences. The Inuiki are known by their shaved beards (cut with shards of ice), and their frozen monasteries which can be spotted from miles away on a dark night, as their icy spires are lit up in greens, blues and pinks by fantastic auroras that dance the skies.







Winter Dwarf Traits

Living in the freezing cold has caused the winter dwarves to become distinct from their warmth-dwelling cousins. You gain the following features, in addition to the those granted by the base class:

Alignment. Almost all winter dwarves are lawful, and many under the influence of Nabuhe are evil as well.

Ability Score Increase. Your Intelligence score increases by one.

Frost Magic. You know the ray of frost cantrip. Intelligence is your spell casting ability.

Soul of Snow and Ice. You are resistant to cold damage

Art Credit:

Gabriel Rubio, at https://www.deviantart.com/gabrielrubio