- This article is about dwarfs in Warhammer Fantasy. For other uses of the term, see dwarf (disambiguation).
In Games Workshop's Warhammer Fantasy fictional universe, The Dwarfs are a race of short, stout humanoids very much akin to the portrayal of dwarves in many other fantasy worlds, such as The Lord of the Rings and Dungeons & Dragons. Dwarves in the Warhammer setting are proud warriors highly driven by honour that never forget a slight. Image File history File links Information_icon. ...
Warhammer or Warhammer Fantasy is a fantasy setting created by Games Workshop, in which many games of that company are set, the best known ones being the Warhammer Fantasy Battles wargame, and the Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay role-playing game. ...
The term dwarf (from Old English dweorg, dweorh; akin to Old High German twerc) may refer to: a dwarf in fantasy fiction: C. S. Lewis Dwarfs from The Chronicles of Narnia, especially in Prince Caspian, but also elsewhere passim Terry Pratchetts Dwarfs of the Discworld J. R. R. Tolkien...
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Games Workshop Group PLC (often abbreviated to GW) is a British game production and retailing company. ...
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A fictional universe is a cohesive imaginary world that serves as the setting or backdrop for one or (more commonly) multiple works of fiction. ...
The Lord of the Rings is an epic high fantasy novel written by the British academic J. R. R. Tolkien. ...
Dungeons & Dragons (abbreviated as D&D or DnD) is a fantasy role-playing game (RPG) currently published by Wizards of the Coast. ...
Homeland
Dwarfs are mainly in the mountains of the "Old World" where they have their strongholds. Their empire once ran as a series of holds throughout the mountain ranges joined by tunnels. Since the peak some strongholds have fallen and the tunnelways lost so the strongholds are more isolated. The loss of the holds has been to orcs and other goblins or to the Skaven. There is a reputed "lost" hold in the Southlands and to the north the Dwarfs there in Norsca have become a little less civilised and more separate from the main - the largest hold there is Kraka Drak. Substantial numbers of Dwarfs have settled in the human nations of the Old World; particularly the Empire where their technical skills are appreciated and some serve in the Imperial armies. In the fictional world of Warhammer Fantasy, the Old World refers to the main European setting where most Human nations are based. ...
The Southland is a geographic term used in several parts of the world. ...
Norsca are a fictional part of the Warhammer world. ...
There are a number of important and named holds in the Dwarf Kingdoms. Only one dwarf hold - Barak Varr - is situated on the sea - where the Dwarf fleet is based.
Dwarfs have also settled in the New World of Lustria. In Games Workshops Warhammer Fantasy fictional universe, Lustria is a region located to the south of the Naggaroth, modelled in many ways on medieveal South America. ...
History Little is known about early dwarf history but dawi as they were known were probably assisted in their development by the mysterious and enigmatic Old Ones. It is said that the dwarfs were foretold of the great catastrophe that befell the Warhammer world by their patron god, Grungni. // Warhammer 40,000 In the fictional universe of Warhammer 40,000, the Old Ones traveled through space and manipulated minor species on several planets to grow into tools for their battle against the Ctan. ...
After the catastrophe of the Coming of Chaos, the dwarfs emerged to find their world changed and warped. Mutated Beastmen roamed freely throughout the land, slaying everyone in their path. Warriors of the Chaos Gods slaughtered all in their path and Daemons created nightmare realms, enslaving entire communities. The term Daemon has several meanings: Daemon (mythology) - see also Demon Daemon (computer software), a background process Dæmon (His Dark Materials) in the Philip Pullman trilogy of novels His Dark Materials Daemon (Warhammer) Daemon (Warcraft) Daemon Sadi (SaDiablo) is a character in the Black Jewels Trilogy by Anne Bishop. ...
It was Grungni himself that forged the first weapons and armour, while teaching the dwarfs to do the same. Then after he forged the first magical runes, capturing the wild winds of magic and harnessing their power into them, creating even more potent weapons, axes and hammers, as well as runes that gave runic protection into armor and talismans. He armed the Ancestor God Grimnir with two axes and armor harder than the bones of mountains, and he and his first runesmiths armed the rest of the dwarves to do battle. Armour sucks ass alottttttttttt Armour was also commonly used to protect war animals, such as war horses and elephants. ...
Soon after their re-emergence the dwarfs first encountered the High Elves from Ulthuan. The two races had a period of prosperous development but a disastrous war known to the elves as the 'War of the Beard' and to the dwarfs as the 'War of Vengeance' almost completely destroyed the two races. The dwarves now live in isolated strongholds of decreasing population and their once proud empire now lays in tatters. In Games Workshops Warhammer Fantasy setting, the High Elves are a race of Elves who live on the Isle of Ulthuan, analogous to Atlantis. ...
The War of the Beard The War of the Beard was the cataclysmic war that took place between the dwarfs of the Old World and the elves of Ulthuan shortly after the great catastrophe. The war was started by Dark Elves, pretending to be High Elves, attacking dwarf colonies and trading parties. The war received its nickname after High King Gotrek Starbreaker of the dwarfs sent an emissary to Ulthuan, demanding recompenses, doubled, for the losses incurred by the Dwarves. Phoenix King Caledor II returned the dwarf minus his beard several days later. To lose one's beard is the ultimate insult to a dwarf and thus the war was known as War of the Beard to the elves while the dwarfs, not to take such things lightly, call it the War of Vengeance. In the world of Warhammer Fantasy, the Dark Elves are a race of harsh, warlike and vicious elves. ...
In Warhammer Fantasy, the Isle of Ulthuan is home to the High Elves. ...
In the Warhammer series of fantasy fiction, the Phoenix Kings are the rulers of the Elven Isle of Ulthuan. ...
Physical Characteristics Dwarfs are on average a good deal shorter than either men or elves of the Warhammer world making them ideally suited to the tunnels in which they live and work. Their bodies seem purpose built for manual labour, solidly muscled, broad shouldered and large thick fingered hands that belie considerable manual dexterity. Dwarfs are a very long lived race with lifespans that can run into centuries. As a dwarf becomes older so his beard becomes longer and thicker. Since dwarfs have a deep inbuilt respect for age it would be unthinkable for a dwarf to cut off or even trim their beards.
Female dwarfs are very rarely seen outside dwarf realms which has led many people to believe that dwarf males can have babies or that dwarf women have beards. However Gamesworkshop have released several models in the past depicting female dwarves, such and Blood Bowl cheerleaders and Queen Helgar, which is still available from Mail Order. These models, like their male couterparts, are heavily built, armed and armoured; are muscular and grim, but instead of long beards have long hair wound into similar braids, worn beneath the helmet. This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...
The word male has the following meanings: In biology, it refers to one half of a heterogamous reproduction system, where the female is the other half. ...
Image File history File links Dwarf_models. ...
Image File history File links Dwarf_models. ...
Magic Magic in its usual forms is distrusted, and even loathed, by a great many of the Dwarfen population. The general consensus is that magic is too erratic and volatile to fool around with, let alone rely on in battle.
However, Dwarfs do place considerable emphasis on embedding magic within certain items e.g. axes, hammers, shields, and armour suits through Runesmithing. Aspiring Runesmiths will spend years and years as an apprentice to a Runelord who will gradually teach them to inscribe items with symbols that have great magical power.
The Anvil of Doom is used by only the most skilled Runelords to wreak devastating destruction upon any foe foolish enough to meet the Dwarfs in battle. Magical stones are placed upon the anvil and runic symbols are hammered into them which results in astonishing elemental power that can be directed against the Dwarfs’ foe.
Society Dwarf society is mainly Monarchistic and organised into strongholds each governed by a king. The kings of each stronghold are largely independent but during times of trouble or war it is The High King who takes ultimate charge. The High King can often be seen at the forefront of the battle, fighting on the front line and leading by valiant example. Outside of strongholds dwarves are organised into clans. Clans are like an extensive family group, all sharing common ancestry although mostly not directly related. “Kingdom†redirects here. ...
A monarch (see sovereignty) is a type of ruler or head of state. ...
See also Clan (computer gaming) A clan is a group of people united by kinship and descent, which is defined by perceived descent from a common ancestor. ...
Language The Khazalid is a deeply conservative language that has not changed noticeably in many thousands of years either in its spoken or written runic form. The Dwarfs are extremely proud of their tongue which they rarely speak in the company of other races and never teach to other creatures. To humans it is known as the ‘secret tongue of the Dwarfs’, sometimes overheard but never understood. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Dwarf (Warhammer). ...
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The Dwarf language includes very few words of obvious Elven or Human origin. By contrast there are many loan words from Khazalid in the tongues of Men, which suggests that Dwarfs must have taught some fundamental words to their taller allies. This is most obviously the case of words to do with traditional Dwarvish craftskills of smithying and masonry, skills which Dwarfs taught Men many centuries ago. In Games Workshops Warhammer Fantasy setting, the High Elves are a race of Elves who live on the Isle of Ulthuan, analogous to Atlantis. ...
A blacksmiths forge For finery forges (making iron) see finery forge. ...
Masonry in action; a Mason at work. ...
The sound of Khazalid is entirely separate from human speech and even further from the melodious sounds of Elvish. It is guttural tongue; comparisons have been drawn to the rumbling of thunder. All Dwarves have deep, resonant voices and a tendency to speak more loudly than is strictly necessary. Khazalid vowel sounds in particular are uncompromisingly precise and heavily accented. Consonants are often spat aggressively or gargelled at the back of the throat. Contrary to Men, whose dialect differs widely depending on Geographic location, the Dwarfs remain fairly consistent in dialect across the Dwarven Empire, although there are notable exceptions (notably Malakai Malakisson from the novel Daemonslayer whose "northern" dialect is represented as a Scottish burr). In articulatory phonetics, the term guttural consonant is sometimes used to describe any of several consonantal speech sounds whose primary place of articulation is near the back of the oral cavity, specifically some velar consonants, uvular consonants, pharyngeal consonants, and epiglottal consonants (q. ...
A thunderstorm over Piracicaba, Brazil. ...
See also consonance in music. ...
A dialect (from the Greek word διάλεκτος, dialektos) is a variety of a language characteristic of a particular group of the languages speakers. ...
Slayers A notable aspect to Dwarf culture is the Slayer Oath. A Dwarf who has suffered a great shame, loss, or humiliation will dye his hair and beard orange, and cut it into a mohawk using pig grease to stick it in place. Before taking up his axe, they will get a blue tattoo on his face and over certain parts of his body. He will then go out into the world, seeking out an honourable death in combat, and in doing so undo his dishonor. Those who continue to survive their repeated attempts to get themselves killed (a Dwarf is psychologically incapable of either suicide or fighting to lose) become fearsome warriors. One of the most (or least, depending on your point of view) successful Slayers of all time is Gotrek Gurnisson, a Slayer made famous by the books written about him by his longtime companion Felix Jaeger. Because of the way they constantly seek death by the hands of a fearsome monster, natural selection takes place and you can be sure that even the weakest Slayer you ever meet will be stronger than even the mightiest "normal" dwarf. Gotrek Gurnisson is a fictional character in the Gotrek and Felix series of books and the Warhammer Fantasy universe. ...
Felix Jaeger is a major fictional character in the Gotrek and Felix series of books that are set in the Warhammer Fantasy universe. ...
Within the game Slayers level of ability is noted by what they are trying to die in battle against - moving up through the progression Slayer, Trollslayer, Giant Slayer, Dragon Slayer, Daemon Slayer. In certain editions of the WFB game all Slayers of different levels formed a single unit albeit that the fighting capabilities of the various elements varied
Influence of Chaos In ancient times, some Dwarfs moved far to the east over the mountains, and were caught by the onslaughts of Chaos. Dwarfs are very resistant to the forces of Chaos, but these changed over time, becoming the evil natured Chaos Dwarfs. In many ways they are the antithesis of the Dwarfs that remained. Where Dwarfs shun most magic except for Runic magic (which is unique to them) Chaos Dwarfs have embraced it; where Dwarfs worship their Ancestor Gods, Chaos Dwarfs worship "Hashut, Father of Darkness". Dwarfs abhor slavery and hate the "greenskin" races (Goblins, Orcs and the like) but the Chaos Dwarfs rely on slaves and are allied with or are overlords of many greenskin tribes, most of them Hobgoblins. In Games Workshops Warhammer 40,000 and Warhammer Fantasy fictional universes, Chaos refers to the often malevolent entities which live in some sort of parallel universe, known as the Warp in Warhammer 40,000 and as the Realm of Chaos in Warhammer Fantasy. ...
Chaos Dwarfs are an off-shoot of the Dwarfs of the Warhammer Fantasy setting who have been corrupted by Chaos. ...
In the game worlds of Warhammer Fantasy and Warhammer 40,000, Goblins (or Gretchin or Grotz in Warhammer 40K) are basically smaller Goblinoids (Orkoids), which are more cowardly than Orcs and are usually used as living shields, to clear mine fields, are stepped on to get through difficult terrain, and...
Orcs are one of the races of Games Workshops Warhammer Fantasy fictional universe. ...
Hobgoblin is a term typically applied in folktales to a friendly or amusing goblin. ...
Beliefs and mythology Dwarfs venerate their ancestors and their deities are the "Ancestor Gods" which are are said to have been formed from the very stone of the world itself. There are three main ones: Valaya, Grungni, and Grimnir. Look up deity in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...
Valaya is one of the Anscestor Gods in Warhammer Fantasy. ...
The Grimnismál, also known as The Ballad of Grimnir, is an Old Norse poem in the Codex Regius, which is part of the Elder Edda. ...
- Valaya is the patron of Runesmiths. It is said she is sleeping deep within the mountains until a time when she is needed again.
- Grimnir was a great warrior with two rune axes. He helped the High Elves defeat Chaos at the northern Chaos Gates and it is assumed he died there. Of his weapons, one axe is now held by Thorgrim Grudgebearer and the other axe is said to be wielded by the Trollslayer Gotrek Gurnisson.
A rune can mean a single character in the Runic alphabet as well as an inscription of several runic charcters or symbols. ...
Gotrek Gurnisson is a fictional character in the Gotrek and Felix series of books and the Warhammer Fantasy universe. ...
Noteable Dwarf characters First Edition Characters: Sigurd Strongarm, Sigrat Blackbrow, Sigrun Slenderhank, Skeggi Brokenback, Saugron Brittlebone and Thorgrim Branedimm. Thorgrim wields the magical warhammer Foebane. They are the characters in the scenario The Ziggurat of Doom (situated in Dwarfstrangle). Gotrek Gurnisson is a fictional character in the Gotrek and Felix series of books and the Warhammer Fantasy universe. ...
- Perhaps the most famous of all dwarfs is Josef Bugman. Bugman was a master dwarf brewer who was world renowned for his famous beers, known as Bugman's XXXXXX. However one night, returning from a trading trip in the Empire, he found his brewery ablaze, attacked by a raiding party of Goblins. Since then Bugman and his rangers have travelled the old world fighting with the Goblins and Orcs. Some believe that he has long since passed from this world, others say he still walks the land with his hardened rangers.
- The current High King of the Dwarves is Thorgrim Grudgebearer who carries the Great Book of Grudges and has sworn to make sure all of them are avenged.
- A well known character amongst reader of the White Dwarf magazine is one who shares its name with the magazine. The White Dwarf (other names include Grombrindal and Snorri Whitebeard) is possibly the most feared and respected of all the Dwarf heroes (by his enemies and fellows alike). He has had 4 miniature incarnations (the 4th being released for 26th May 2007 only) and has had varying background details over the years. He is currently "employed" by White Dwarf to write the Editorial for the magazine.
Thorgrim Grudgbearer is the High King of the Dwarves in Warhammer Fantasy. ...
Cover of White Dwarf issue 90, June 1987. ...
Cover of White Dwarf issue 90, June 1987. ...
Dwarven Technology The dwarfs are by far Warhammer's most technologically advanced race, and are regarded as consummate engineers. Where other races use wooden ships to travel overseas, the dwarfs use ironclad dreadnoughts and nautilius, the Warhammer equivalent of early battleships and submarines. They have also pioneered the development of black powder and steam technology such as cannons, handguns and Gyrocopters (helicopters). They have shared some of this technology with Humans, but still consider the work of the 'Manlings' to be shoddy in comparison to good dwarven work. Ironclad warships, frequently shortened to just ironclads, were ships sheathed with thick iron plates for protection. ...
German UC-1 class World War I submarine A model of Günther Priens Unterseeboot 47 (U-47), German WWII Type VII diesel-electric hunter-killer (SSK) submarine Inside of the Argonaute, showing the typical obstructed, tiny space of a post-WWII diesel attack submarine. ...
In the Warhammer Fantasy world, a Gyrocopter is essentially a small, steam powered helicopter, capable of carrying a dwarf into combat. ...
References Warhammer Army Book: Dwarfs; Rick Priestley Nigel Stillman; Games Workshop; 1993; ISBN 1 872372 66 X
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