AT A GLANCE: The Dwarves of the Forgotten Realms are a short, stocky people who seem to be part of the earth itself, ranging in shade and hue from a rich earth-red to a granite stone grey.
Dour and with a strong distrust towards magic beyond that which a magical axe can lend, they tend to be a withdrawn, sullen people.

ELMINSTER'S NOTES: Like the elves, the Dwarves are a people whose numbers have been dwindling.
In their case, the overall population has been declining since the days when the dragons
controlled the lands of Cormyr, and
the Sunrise Mountains still spouted flames
and steam.

The reason for this decline is twofold:
For ages the Dwarves have engaged in
wars bordering on the genocidal, fighting
against other races, such as orcs
and goblins, who sought out the same
caverns and mines the dwarves
considered their homes. In those ancient days
a live orc was competition both for treasure
and for living space, and dwarven
armies fought and died to protect and
expand their realms. Unlike the goblin
races, however, the Dwarves were slow
to recover their losses, and in time their
numbers have diminished so that in
another millennium the Dwarf may join
the Duergahydra in extinction in the Realms.

The sense of racial loss hits dwarves deeply,
and they tend to be melancholy and defeatist,
yet just as often throwing themselves into their work,
be it crafting blades or seeking adventure.
The last vocation is quite popular with the
few younger Dwarves of the Realms, as
the thinking is that if Fate has dealt a
poor hand to the race, the best one
can do is perform great deeds, so that the
race is remembered in wondrous tales
if not children.

As an additional sense of their loss and danger as a race,
most Dwarves remain secretive about their homelands,
and the small kingdoms of the Dwarves are known about only in
general fashion. For example, the
Dwarves of the Far Hills travel to Easting
for trade, yet no one knows if they
are one community or several, and hwo
they are ruled. More common are those
dwarves who identify their home as
some long-abandoned or enemy
occupied hold, such as the Dwarves
that were of Hammer Hall, or the Iron House,
who had been driven from the Mines of Tethyamar.

Another type of Dwarf that has been on the increase is the Dwarf that seeks
the company of men in its towns and citeis.
Most adventuring Dwarves come from this background, and are conversant
in human styles and customs without abandoning their heritage.
It has been hazarded (but not voiced around Dwarves) that the
beings enjoy being around other creatures more
short-lived than they.

Dwarves come in a wide variety of hair,
skin, and eye colors, regardless of their origin.
The "sub-races" of hill, mountain and city Dwarves are fairly
artificial, and more a matter of taste,
closer to those humans who like the sea
and those who prefer the high country.
Both Dwarvish males and females have beards,
though the femals usually (but not always) shave.

Dwarves remain deeply tied to their roots and their sense of family and nobility.
Dwarven nobles have declined in number with their race, and so are treated with respect by all,
despite any long-running feuds that may develop between Dwarvish kings.

Finally, deep beneath the surface of the Earth dwell a race of twisted Dwarf-like creatures called the Duergar.
Surface world Dwarves view these creatures with a hatred that exceeds that of the elves for the drow.

As the race of dwarves dwindles in the North, there is talk of a great dwarvish kingdom far to the south, beyond the Vilhon Reach.
A mighty chasm greater than Cormyr in size is supposedly rent in the ground, and located on the rim of that chasm are the towers of the city of Eartheart, and within the walls of taht chasm are carved the huge Dwarven nation of Underholme.
These southern Dwarves are said to be very different from their northern cousins; prouder, more haughty, and more energetic.

GAME INFORMATION: Most but not all adventuring Dwarves tend to be young and natives to Dwarven communities in or near human communities, and this contact overcomes the natural dwarven insularity.
A Dwarven PC seeking a purely-Dwarven background may select one from the Dwarven communities mentioned in this book.

PC dwarves are not required to act in the manner detailed above. The above comments apply to the majority of the race, and in every race, even a dying one, there are individuals who go beyond standard restrictions.