H. The Clanhomes
Historical Overview

‘As stout and resilient as a dwarf’ goes the saying (and their stout ale is mighty fine I must add). Indeed, the dwarves of all the sentient species of Shaintar came the closest to extinction during the Dragon War of 2216 A.C. The dwarves were the very first sentient race to set foot on the shores of Shaintar. Legends hold that Shainas, the Great Maker, opened the pathway for the Dwarves to walk forth into a new world.
From surviving records at Castle Gorgon we know that they first settled in the lands called Dranak’Or. A chronicle dated 4283 B.C. describes a picturesque land full of majestic mountains, verdant valleys, and forests. Dranak’Or was where dwarves perfected their metalsmithing & ironwork craftsmanship as the mountains were rich with many metals. Majestic stone cities both above  and below ground grew. Stonewalker’s Stronghold was reported to be a majestic city that spired up high to the clouds and reached down low into the very belly of the world. A great city above and below located somewhere in the center of what is now the Everdark Forest in Shaya’Nor. Dwarven civilization would most likely have remained there had not Vianar’s Fall in 2500 B.C. physically changed the land. 
Iron mined became much darker and more difficult to shape. Much of the iron the dwarves mined was tossed aside as corrupted metal. A shadow seemed to befall the land of Dranak’Or as historical records show more and more creatures of Darkness seemed drawn to the lands. Shalakar or Dark elves gathered and renamed the land Shaya’Nor in 2400 B.C. But even as more sinister creatures of evil moved in the dwarves refused to abandon their homeland.
From 2400 B.C. to 1623 B.C. more denizens of darkness moved into the region forcing the dwarves to cluster together into larger communities as a means to protect themselves from their hostile neighbors. Concentrating themselves into smaller areas in what is now Shaya’Nor made it easier for the events leading up to Hecatomb to happen.
In 1600 B.C. the Necrolord, Haarak Tuul, lead a genocidal war to rid the region of dwarves. Several dwarven cities were completely wiped out. The largest of the cities, one being Stonewalker’s Stronghold, were able to thwart off attack. But continued assaults led to the bitter decision to leave their homeland.
In 1587 B.C. refugees flee southward into the mountains of the Bloody Pikes, Gorgons and Fangs. During the exodus a large group was separated from the main band of refugees as Tuul’s minions continued to press his attack. That group fled west and settled in the mountains of Targon’s Arm. The splitting of the two groups later proved to be freedom for one and slavery for the others.  
The period of 1564 B.C. to 1377 B.C. marked the time when the dwarves improved upon more defensible strongholds and developed stronger fighting skills. They especially became more adept in building fortress cities built in or on the mountainside. The defensible stronghold and the increased stress on a fighting unit & fighting skill was what aided the majority of dwarven cities in the Pikes, the Gorgons, and the Fangs  in holding off Ceynara’s lackeys during the War of Flame that began in 1500 B.C. and ended in 1200 B.C. The majority of dwarven communities settled in Targon’s Arm fell and became slaves under Ceynara’s rule in 1415 B.C. until they were freed when the War of Flame ended.
A long period of minor wars spread across the continent from 1200 B.C. to 1000 B.C. Many civilizations fall but the dwarves remain largely unaffected during this time due in part to living in mountainous regions that most found undesirable. It is of interest to note that the dwarves of Targon’s Arm left their settlements in 1204 B.C. because the region was stripped bare of most metals during Ceynara’s reign. Why they split into four groups and then migrated to the Eastern & Western Walls, the Forges, and the Hellstorm Mountains is largely unknown.
The Age of Peace comes with a sigh but leaves with a broken scream when the 300 years of serenity is shattered with the coming of the Hordes in 700 B.C. Vainar and his hordes sweep over the continent and all the dwarven strongholds save one were conquered. Haarak Tuul would have continued the genocide he began with Hecatomb centuries before had not Vainer commanded him to stop. Instead of death, the dwarves had to endure centuries of cruelty, slavery, and hard labor at the hands of Vainar’s occupying forces. The only dwarves that remained free during the Age of Darkness were those located in Hellstorm Mountains. These dwarves were able to hold back the Hordes due to trade and diplomatic relations with Dregordia. As neighbors, they both protected each other’s backs during the Age of Darkness. 
When the Ascended and their heavenly hosts came to drive out Vainar and the Hordes in 300 B.C. all dwarves were freed. Celebration was short-lived for Vainar released his terrible curse and the dwarves, along with all the other races on Shaintar, died by the thousands until the cure was found in 288 B.C. 
Free from Vainar and his deadly plague the period between 280 B.C. to 380 A.C. marks a time of regrowth and rebuilding of dwarven society. Emphasis on artisan skills suffers as society shifts from a craftsman, engineering, and mining society to a more militarized one. Society becomes more structured when clan chieftains came together to choose a King to unite all the clans under a single banner. Bergen Stonecutter becomes the first King of the Dwarves in 280 B.C. and under his rule many things came about. Clans are organized into ‘army units’; everyone in a clanhome is expected to fight and defend when the need arise. At the age of 8 children are taught how to fight. More formal training begins at age 21 with a year mandatory service in the King’s military forces. Woman and men must serve. Beren declared that in order to survive they must replenish their numbers. The Mid-Spring Census is created to monitor population numbers, determine the ruling clan, and serves as precursor to the Great Feast which is a celebration of life and a chance to meet a mate. 
Dwarven Population remained steady but an unusual amount of births was reported from 270 B.C. to 150 B.C. with many twins, triplets, and even quadruplets born. Population growth exploded at this time of high births. Some say Stonewalker gave extra blessings to the dwarves while other scholars explain it merely a result of a society whose health had recovered from the plague and an ‘over exuberance’ in freedom from Vainar’s yoke. Whatever the explanation there has never been another era where multiple births occurred with such frequency.
The Fang Wars erupted in 387 A.C. between the goblin tribes and the dwarves. Squeezed between Shaya’Nor and the Wolfhead Mountains hundreds of goblin tribes band together and drive out the dwarves in the Gorgons and Northern Range Mountains. It is a bitter defeat for the dwarves as they are once again driven from much of their Clanhomes. It creates a bitter hatred of the goblins that many dwarves still carry today. The Fang Wars also served as an example to the dwarves that while their military prowess was good they had allowed their craftsman skills to suffer such that they had done little to rebuild and refortify strongholds that had been destroyed or weakened during the Age of Darkness.
As Shaintar ushers in the Second Golden Age of the Fae in 500 A.C. so too do the dwarves experience a Golden Age as they ‘rediscover’ mathematics that aid them in building impressive and majestic strongholds to rival the old. Engineering, craftsmanship, and mining all experience a revival as dwarven society now incorporates the importance of these skills in balance with fighting skills. The practice of gem cutting and domestication of animals to aid in tasks emerge at this time.There are even a number of dwarfs who rediscover philosophy and the arts as they choose the Path and become Druids.
Tensions begin to grow between a loose band of human tribes called the Eleran in the northern portion of Shaintar and the dwarves of the Eastern & Western Walls from 980 A.C. to the event of the Great Exodus in 1735 A.C. At first it the clashes were nothing more than border skirmishes. But when Jolokias ki Grilnas unites the tribes under one banner in 1724 A.C., the Eleran m’Kal-a-nar conquered the dwarves of the Walls and cast them into a life of slavery. The Kal Empire’s expansion further south is halted by a contingent of dwarves in the Forges, humans of the Stonebear Tribe, and the elves from the Crystal Forest in 1748 A.C. While some races and humans escaped from the Kal Empire during the time of expansion the dwarves of the Walls did not. To this day they remain as slaves to the Empire useful for their weaponry, machinery, and mining skills.
Dwarves of the Stoneheart Mts. found a new metal in 2200 A.C. and dubbed it White Silver. Initially White Silver’s lightweight and strong properties made it a popular choice for weaponry. Weapons crafted from White Silver proved to be instrumental in fighting the Dragon War and it drew unwanted attention to the dwarven civilization. As the Dragonlords and dragons raged war upon the lands it was discovered that White Silver was a bane to dragons (and later would prove a bane to any creature of Flame or Darkness during the Betrayal War in 3021 A.C.) These discoveries lead the Dragonlords to attack the dwarven civilization to prevent further mining of the metal. Sometime in the early part of the war dragons developed a ‘taste’ for dwarves. Many goblin tribes then offered to supply dwarves for the dragon’s diet in exchange for continued good relations with the Dragonlords and a claim to the dwarven homelands as a reward for their services. The Dragon War perhaps proved to be the most devastating war ever experienced by dwarven civilization. A year after the Dragon War ended in 2234 A.C. the Mid-Spring Census showed that 96% of the dwarven population (in the areas the remained free) had been lost. Census figures in 2235 A.C. showed 15,765 males and 7,141 females survived.
Given the figures it is not surprising that the practice of polyandry, one wife to two husbands in a family clan, was adopted and became common practice from 2238 A.C. to 2900 A.C. The practice of polyandry is rare now due to the leveling out of the ratio of females to males.
The events of the Dragon War continue to have lasting effects up to this day. The Mid-Spring Census and the Great Feast still remain as two very important events practiced throughout the free Clanhomes. Enmity with the goblins and Kal remains high as does an ingrained mistrust of Dregordians whom many dwarves believe are wholly responsible for the Dragon War. Dwarven society remains on the alert for any reappearance of dragons  especially after a reported sighting of one happened near a dwarven settlement near Krinwood during the Betrayal War (refer to the story Kerf, Dragonslayer in Tangible Legends by Chryslyne Evie for more information). 

    Jonkeph Skein
                                                                                       Shaintar: Yesteryears and Today