Dwarves of the Under Realms

Dwarves of the Under Realms








Beneath the thirteen realms is a vast network of tunnels and caverns. The


dwarves that live in these dark, obsidian-filled depths have organised


themselves into a complex civilization, complete with clear social, military

and governmental hierarchies.



Every archetype of dwarf has a role to play in under realm society, and in the


Dark Lord’s malevolent plans...

Accursed

Accursed dwarves form the bulk of the Dark Lord’s

army. While most are foot soldiers with no rank or

title, an accursed dwarf can attain significant power
if their actions and efforts are recognised by an

underlord, and they are gifted with a dreadhelm.










Cultic


These devout dwarves are the priests of the under

realms. Congregations of accursed dwarves gather in
their dark obsidian temples to offer prayers to Malreos

– the obsidian god of death.












Inflicted

One of the most unusual fates that can befall the dwarves

who fish the opaque lakes of the under realms, is to be

bitten by a white-beaked octopus. A parasite, carried
within the octopus venom, causes blindness in one eye and

a peculiar disfigurement of the face. However, another

effect is a significant increase in the victim’s stamina,
which leads many dwarves to actually seek out these rare

and elusive octopods.

Aqua Skull


Aqua skull face paint is bestowed upon accursed

dwarves who demonstrate aptitude and exceptional
loyalty to the under realm’s military operations for a

prolonged period of time.








After five years of continued faithful service, an Aqua Skull will undergo a sacred ritual . His

aqua paint will be cleansed by a cultic priest and replaced with one of three new colours...


























Ivory Skull Umber Skull Mustard Skull


These dwarves are tasked Beneath the subterranean Only the most cunning,
with patrolling and kingdom of the under realms stealthy and devious Aqua

guarding the upper levels of are seemingly bottomless pits, Skulls will ever don a
the accursed domain. Their tunnels and caverns. mustard visage, for this

role is to kill on sight, any marks them as elite spies –
It is brave Umber Skull
beast or surface dwarf the only dwarves with
warriors who explore these
that somehow finds its sinister depths – fighting clearance from the
way into the under realms. underlords to visit the
monsters and bringing back
surface world and gather
treasures from the deep.
intelligence

Infernal

Even amongst the accursed, there are few dwarves who dare to

venture into the impenetrable darkness of a caranc lair. Those who
do, and are able to slay one of the giant lizard-like creatures, may

choose to drink a mouthful of the beast’s bile. The resulting
transformation is agonisingly painful, but a mutated Infernal can see

in the dark and has greatly-enhanced speed and reflexes .







Corrupted


The blackened skin around the eyes of a corrupted dwarf

indicates one who has wholly given themselves over to obsidian
and to Malreos, the god who whispers from within the black

gem’s inky depths.

These dwarves actually ingest or smoke powdered obsidian. They
gain great power, but lose any sense of who they were. They

become willing slaves – powerful puppets of the lord of shadow.






Mauled

Elite warriors who wish to serve in the personal retinue of

any of the four underlords, must prove their unwavering,
unquestionable devotion by having their faces

ritualistically torn and scarred with the amputated claw
of a baby caranc.


For those known as ‘the mauled,’ their lifelong
disfigurement is a symbol of their loyalty and a source of

great pride.

Fight Club


One of the most popular forms of entertainment in the under
realms is gladiatorial combat, or – as most accursed call it – ‘The

Fight Club.’

There are pits and cages in every subterranean settlement, and all

who fight in them are volunteers. Successful fighters are admired
by all, and are often offered high-ranking positions within the

Dark Lord’s armies.






Burned


Just like the ‘mauled’ dwarves who submit themselves to an
excruciating and disfiguring ritual in order to enter into the direct
service of an underlord, so too are an extremely select number of

dwarves allowed to press their faces into a brazier full of red hot

coals in order to prove their undying allegiance to The Dark Lord
himself, and enter into his direct service.






Demonic


To drink from the bile duct of a slimy caranc is to invite a painful
transformation, offset by some unique physical benefits. To eat the
juicy sac at the base of a caranc brain is to become demonic … and

choose madness.

Demonic dwarves live a life of unending fury. They are consumed by

aggression and bloodlust which cannot be satiated. The rare few
who choose this fate, do so because they also gain levels of strength

and agility unmatched by virtually any other mortal dwarf.

UNDEAD



By harnessing the power of The Ancient Ones, accursed necromancers are able to turn dead dwarves
into a variety of horrifying undead warriors.

























Cadaverous Electrified


A dead dwarf, raised in haste by a single These ferocious undead can be raised quickly
necromancer. These drones aren’t capable of using a combination of gem magic and one of
independent thoughts or actions. They must the portable electro-stimulating machines

be compelled at all times by the mage who invented by Bokank the Unhinged. They are
raised them. energetic fighters, but quite prone to

If the connection between a necromancer spontaneous combustion.

and a cadaverous undead is broken, the
cadaver will fall.
























Possessed Reanimated


A highly-skilled necromancer can temporarily Properly reanimating a dead dwarf requires
transfer their consciousness into a recently- either multiple necromancers, or the singular
deceased corpse and use it as their avatar. power of one that is exceptionally attuned to

Possessed undead are sometimes used for the power of The Ancient Ones.
frontline combat, but are more often utilized
A reanimated undead is capable of basic
for reconnaissance missions, or for exploring
planning, decision-making and speech.
extremely hazardous areas.

WRAITHS


Unlike other undead, wraiths are not the corpses of dead dwarves, but risen souls, given corporeal
form by a powerful underlord. These ghoulish apparitions can only be slain by fire, or by weapons
that are diamond-charged, or direforged.
























Electrified Wraith Possessed Wraith

The dark laboratories of the under realms are filled There can only ever be four possessed wraiths in

with strange and dangerous inventions. One of these existence at any one time, for they are the phantom
is the enormous ‘electro phasmatotron.’ Built by embodiments of the four dark underlords.
Bokank the Unhinged, this machine (when used in
Using these rare and almost indestructible avatars,
conjunction with an underlord’s power) can summon
the underlords can stay and rule their realms, whilst
a deadly electrically-charged wraith which can
simultaneously joining their armies in glorious
shock and stun its enemies
battles.

























Reanimated Wraith Cadaverous Wraith


The ritual required to create a reanimated wraith is A cadaverous wraith is a special kind of
lengthy, risky and requires a substantial quantity of abomination. It is a soul wrapped in the flesh of

finest obsidian. If successful, however, the resulting numerous dwarves – a conglomeration of parts held
wraith becomes a deadly asset for the underlords together by gem magic and iron pins. By selectively
and their dark master, for they are souls which have choosing the best parts from assorted corpses,
been bound together with the essence of Malreos. underlords and their necromancers are able to create

They revel in death and fight with unmatched entities of incredible strength.
savagery.

FIENDS


An accursed necromancer can raise a mindless, drone-like undead in a matter of moments; creating a
fiend, however, takes many weeks, for they are the commanders of the undead and must be taught,
trained and imbued over time with cunning and intelligence.
























Cadaverous Fiend Possessed Fiend


Despite being the most common type of fiend, The transferal of a necromancer’s consciousness
these cadaverous entities are still able to control into a fiend is permanent. Few choose to undergo

large numbers of undead underlings. These brutal this irreversible transition into unliving flesh, but
sergeants of the undead horde are feared, even by those that do become the commanders of the

their own troops, and are devastatingly efficient undead armies and almost unstoppable
warriors. combatants on the battlefield.
























Electrified Fiend Reanimated Fiend


Infused with a self-generating electrical charge, The rarest and most powerful undead of all are the
these fiends are the medics of the accursed armies. reanimated fiends. They were generals in life, and
Their electrical pulses can be used to revive are even more formidable and merciless generals in

unconscious soldiers and to cauterize wounds. death.

Conversely, they can use these electrical pulses to Truly returning the soul of a dead accursed general
burn and stupefy their enemies. to his body, complete with his memories and

strategic knowledge, can only be achieved by the
Dark Lord himself!