This article is the sequel to my previous article, Kingdom of Sachrinor, part 1. This entry goes underground to explore the settlements of Sachrinor’s dwarves, specifically the capital, Deephome, and an outlying settlement hidden under a forest, known as Roothome.

While the dwarves of Sachrinor have some slight quirks (like their complete lack of affinity for magic), they are close enough to the typical fantasy dwarves that you can easily rip parts of this out for your own setting, even if you don’t want to use the whole article. Go nuts.

The Underworld

Beneath Sachrinor is a complex network of caves, tunnels, rivers, and settlements. The dwarves have a long history in this region, and have had to abandon settlements for various reasons: They reached the end of the local ore vein, an important tunnel collapsed, or they struck something below the surface that was best left alone.

Historically, most of the settlements were built close to the surface, with entrances dug into the sides of hills or mountains. Not only did this allow easy trade with the surface dwellers, but it also meant it was easy to travel between the dwarven fortresses without trying to navigate the dark and dangerous cave networks. The most notable exception was Deephome, the dwarven capital.

Some of the abandoned fortresses have been stumbled upon by surface-dwelling adventurers, who refer to them (and similar environs) as “dungeons,” a term that seems to come from a mistranslation of dwarven signage.

When Sachrinor was taken over by Ta’rai, the dwarves began tunneling with a greater purpose: Creating a unified underground kingdom, safe from the wrath of the dragon. These tunnels are a closely guarded secret, and “surface-dwellers” are only allowed into them under exceptional circumstances.

The dwarves, as a species, have no magical affinity, but they have found their own ways to manage despite this. They have developed rudimentary mining explosives, allowing them to clear large areas of rock quickly, but they have yet to weaponize this innovation.

Of course, it’s not only the dwarves that live underground. Strange monsters lurk in the caves, and some say that there are sentient species that live even deeper underground, and that they are not looking to make new friends.

The network of tunnels that link the dwarven settlements is known as the “low-ways,” and they vary between smooth rock tunnels with clear markers and natural tunnels marked by the occasional painted arrow or barricaded side passage. Travel along the low-ways is not completely safe, but it is much less risky than trying to navigate the untamed sections of the underworld.

Deephome

Deephome’s exact location is a closely kept secret, closely kept enough that there are rumors that no dwarf is actually sure what is directly above Deephome.

Deephome is connected to a few other settlements by a tunnel network known as the Underways, a combination of natural caverns and engineered tunnels. The entrances are kept secret, and no non-dwarf has been allowed into the Underways.

The main level of Deephome is a grand and impressive sight, with wide corridors and high ceilings supported by stone arches. The corridors are lit by natural gas lamps running along the ceiling, aided by strategically placed mirrors and crystals.

The central corridor straddles an underground stream, providing easy access to water for the residents. Bridges cross the stream regularly, and minecart tracks have been laid into the stone on either side of the stream, allowing material to be easily moved up and down the corridor.

The Grand Forge

Beneath the main level is the Grand Forge. At one end of the complex is a gigantic bellows, feeding air into the forges and smelters. The bellows is powered by dwarves walking on treadmills.

The Grand Forge is not merely functional; its mechanisms are decorated with elaborate stonework, focused on sharp angles, gold inlays, and black stone chevrons. A granite statue of The Great Ancestor stands on an arch above the entrance to the Grand Forge. The Great Ancestor is depicted standing with his hands on his hips, watching his descendants work. Sapphires are embedded in the statue’s eyes, forming the irises. Some say his facial expression shifts between pride and displeasure, depending on the quality of the viewer’s work.

The Grand Forge is used for everything from nails to maces. Without it, production in Deephome, and perhaps the entire dwarven underkingdom, would grind to a halt.

The Temple of the Great Ancestor

The Temple is a plain stone building on the Central Corridor of Deephome. Its halls contain carefully curated records of dwarven lineage and history, accounting for every dwarf born in the Underkingdom in the last 300 or so years. Records of surface-dwelling dwarves are spottier, though some dwarven communities on the surface make a point of keeping their lineage records updated.

A statue of the Great Ancestor stands in front of the entrance, depicting him hammering an axe head into shape on an anvil. Anyone with an interested in dwarven history would recognize this as the head of the legendary axe Thundersoul.

The Temple is not a place where the dwarves gather for regular worship services. They worship the Great Ancestor by working hard and ensuring the prosperity of dwarven society.

The Undercastle

The quarters of the royal family and their servants sit at the eastern end of the main level of Deephome. Gigantic stone gates flank the entrance, open but ready to be sealed in case the worst happens.

Just inside the entrance is a section of corridor with arrow slits along one side, allowing guardsmen with crossbows to shoot any intruders in case of an invasion. This ambush point is connected directly to the guard barracks, where the Royal Guards of Deephome live and train.

At the center of this area is the throne room, a long chamber mined out of black stone, decorated with geometric inlays of gold. At the far end of it sits the Granite Throne, an ornate seat carved from a single slab of granite. The stone of the Throne is visibly lighter than the surrounding rock, and this is because the Throne was not originally carved in Deephome. It was moved here from an abandoned fortress in the north, many decades ago.

The Topaz

The Topaz is a cozy tavern near the center of Deephome. The tables are made of long slabs of stone with benches on either side. Mounted behind the bar is a square-cut topaz about the size of a dwarf’s head, surrounded by fine carvings of dwarven motifs.

To the dwarves, the Topaz is as sacred as the Grand Forge or the Granite Throne. Important promises and pacts are often sworn “on the Topaz,” referring equally to the bar and its namesake gem, regardless of where the dwarves in question actually are. It is said that one who breaks such a pact will never be allowed to enter the tavern again.

Roothome

Roothome is a dwarven fortress built under a dense forest. Roothome is a cozy place, lit by pine resin torches. Its tunnels are cramped and twisting, dug through the soil around clumps of roots. Rooms are dug out wherever there is space, and beds for the dwarves are jammed into whatever spare nooks and crannies they can find.

In the spring, the dwarves of Roothome drill into the maple trees, jam wooden taps into them, and hang buckets under the taps. Every week or so, the dwarves head out again to gather the sap from the buckets. They have to be careful doing this, since while being a dwarf isn’t a crime, being a dwarf in an area where the Claws believe there is a hidden fortress is certainly suspicious.

The Maple Brewery

The brewery is the economic center of Roothome, where sap is boiled down to syrup, and then used to make potent liquors and medicines. The brewery smells sickly sweet, tinged with the sharp scent of alcohol.

The room is filled with brewing equipment; copper lines, flasks, boilers, vats, and so on. If necessary, it could be converted into an alchemical lab.

The Shroom Farm

One of the higher sections of Roothome is the Shroom Farm, a damp chamber with rows of bins filled with wood chips and soil, doused with mushroom spores. The mushrooms that grow here are edible and form a substantial part of the food supply. A cabinet outside the entrance holds roughly a dozen red facecloths, which are worn while in the Shroom Farm as a measure against “lungshrooms,” a condition which is allegedly caused by inhaling the spores. Whether or not lungshrooms is an actual condition is not known, but the dwarves of Roothome would prefer not to find out.

The Main Hall

At the center of Roothome is a gathering hall filled with long tables and benches. A large painting of the Great Ancestor stands at one end of the hall, positioned so it looks like he is standing at the head of one of the tables, raising a stein in celebration. Dwarves can be found here at every hour of the day, eating, drinking, and playing hnefatafl.

The Stockhouse

Low in Roothome is the Stockhouse, where the dwarves keep anything not currently in use: Metal weapons, gems, books, and so on. Ned Warmlegs would be willing to sell some of these things to outsiders.

Inventory
Block and tackle. A pair of pulleys that can be rigged up to a piece of heavy cargo, allowing it to be moved more easily. If your players are more mathematically inclined than I am, you can go over to Wikipedia, grab the mathematical formulae for mechanical advantage with a block and tackle, and make them work out how to rig up their load efficiently enough to move it. I wouldn’t, but you could. 1 GP.
Hooded lantern. A contraption of metal and glass that burns oil (or Torch Fuel, in a pinch) to create light. 4 GP, 1 SP for six hours of oil.
Pick, miner’s. An archetypal pickaxe, great for breaking things, prying things, and piercing things. It also really hurts if you get hit with one of these. 2 GP.
Rope, cave hemp (50 feet). Mildew-resistant and strong enough to hold a fully-loaded dwarf, this is the rope of choice for dwarven miners. 1 GP.
Dwarven Liquors
Miner’s Friend: A fizzy concoction that tastes like dirt, but will let you power through any injury. Functions as a healing potion if consumed. 40 GP.
Roothome Ale: A sweet, light beer with notes of maple. It doesn’t do anything special, but it does get you drunk. 2 SP per gallon; it can be sold for 4 SP at any human settlement.
Torch Fuel: High-proof alcohol, fermented from maple syrup. It is, in fact, flammable. Most dwarves drink it mixed with water. If drunk undiluted, it inflicts the Poisoned condition until the drinker’s next long rest. If drunk diluted, Torch Fuel gives advantage on saving throws against disease until the drinker’s next long rest. 10 GP/bottle; each bottle can be used for 10 diluted drinks.

Dwarves of Roothome

Afterword

I hope you’ve enjoyed these dwarves and their settlements. I’m sure it won’t surprise you to learn that I played a lot of Dwarf Fortress back in the day, or that I only used the ASCII graphics.

Look forward to a third part of this series, covering some of the human settlements of Sachrinor and, eventually, an adventure tying these places together!

-Garm

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