Glorin

Glorin is a nation of sun dwarves built into the sandstone pillars that make up the Whistlestone Mountains. The country is ruled by the leaders of the different houses of Glorin, who alternate executive power as they accomplish great deeds. The skeleton of a massive dragon lies buried under Gamé, the first of the Glorin settlements to be founded. According to legend, dwarves were crossing the mountains north when a glint of sunlight caught one of the expedition leader's eyes, causing him to trip and fall into one of the deep crevasses that crisscross the mountain range. When a rescue mission was launched, they found him dead, but also uncovered the skull of a massive dragon, which they've been excavating to this day.

Glorin dwarves have golden skin, and are stout, ferocious, and relentless. The Glorin value material wealth and family above all else. Huge family houses that pass down wealth have lived for thousands of years. Having grown used to attackers seeking their riches, the Glorin have become vicious warriors as well as miners, and have no trouble fending off their family wealth. The Glorin are very fragmented between their houses and will occasionally challenge each other over disputes on who owns what land. In these cases, the head of each house will fight each other until one person surrenders. Each dresses in the house’s armor and uses the house weapon, hugely decorated and powerful weapons that have been passed on from generation to generation. Although they occasionally squabble, no Glorin dwarf would ever kill another Glorin if they were a member of another house. Houseless Glorin are treated as outcasts however, believed to be outbreeded and therefore illegitimate, or disowned by a house for committing an unforgivable crime. The Glorin have goat farms, and the milk is almost as enjoyable to them as ale, believed to be nature’s silver in comparison to beer’s gold. Algaes grown on the towering sandstone walls that stretch to the sky above are also eaten, and wide varieties exist, from disgusting gruel to fine delicacies. Towns generally encompass the house of one of the families, with people living in the surrounding area generally being at least mostly related to the family.

Unbeknownst to the dwarves, this dragon was an ancient and powerful dracolich buried under these mountains by the Anmari 14,000 years ago. The Anmari led a thousand people north claiming that a new homeland lay in wait there, while in reality using them as bait to lure the dracolich in to be crushed by the mountains the Anmari sorcerers eventually mustered up from the sky above. As the dwarves get closer and closer to finishing uncovering the dracolich, he begins to awake...