The ultimate Dwarf RP guide.

[stoicreader]

Unfortunately, dwarves get a bad rap. They are modeled off of Scottish axe wielding fantasy characters and are Dark Sun modified to be bald. Physically, they are as exciting as a pile of rocks.

However, dwarves are a wonderful race to play because of one alluring aspect: The focus. And as a staunch stoic, religiously so, the dwarf focus is especially attractive to me. So I wrote this guide for new players who could benefit from my time  doing dwarf RP along with generous staff input!

Please weigh in your opinion. This guide is not the ONLY way to play a dwarf. Don't limit yourself to the opinion of one player, but it's my hope that it will inspire you to visit dwarf RP from a place of excitement instead of annoyance.

Myth 1: Dwarves are not a race.


Dwarves are not a race, they are a philosophy. One that has been biologically coded into a sub species of humans. My belief is that the dwarf was created to become the ideal slaves by an ancient sorcerer king. Not only are they strong at lifting, they are unable to rise above their owners. (because they are so short)

Think about it. The best trained dogs are the ones who are undistracted. A bomb could go off and they will still 'stay put'.

Myth 2: Dwarves are not stupid.


Low wisdom is a coded attribute of the dwarf. Being stubborn and slow witted is a characteristic often used to describe them. But this is a myth. It only would appear they are slow witted and stubborn on the outside, but in reality, they are brilliant geniuses.

Let me explain. The brain of most mammals has five sense organs. Those that see the full color spectrum, can differentiate sounds, and have control of their breathing would be bombarded with sensory data. The body, would be unable to process all of it. Therefore... realistically the brain only captures six to twelve streams of information at any one time. This is why photographic memory is a myth also. (The exception is the sense of smell, which bypasses all of this and is why we get hit with memories of grandmas kitchen when we smell a whiff of soured potato starch)

Biology of a dwarf's brain: The reticulated Activation System. (RAS)


So, there is a filtering mechanism within the brain of mammals. In humans it's particularly well developed. It's called the RAS or Reticulated Activation System. Humans can control from their prefrontal cortex what our filtering mechanism should focus on. This way we can make use of and cope with the billions of bits of information our sense organs gather.

Now imagine the RAS system gets biologically stuck? This is a dwarf. There is a theory of pathogenesis to OCD being related to the RAS system and this is what makes a dwarf a dwarf. Once the RAS system gets locked on, every bit of information the dwarf receives from their sense organs will be filtered through the lens of their focus via a mutation in the RAS.

Have you ever desired to buy a new car and once you start thinking about it you suddenly keep seeing it all over the place? This is the RAS system at work. (at least we think it is) This is what it's like to be a dwarf. This is why a Dwarf, as far as their focus is concerned, is an absolute genius.

Have you ever been so well concentrated playing Armageddon and your spouse asks you something and you don't hear it? (maybe your mom, for you dorks living at home in your 30s) You're so focused that you don't even notice them. You're figuratively in another world! Your RAS is fired up to gather 100% of data from one source that other inputs into your sensory organs get missed.

Does this make you stupid? NO. Does this make you stubborn? No. It makes you focused. This is a dwarf all the time.

Note: If your dwarf is deep in conversation with someone about a topic related directly to their focus, their RAS system should fire up so much that if a magicker threw a ball of fire at the bartender, you would not notice. You're a paleolithic slave biological bred to have an overdeveloped RAS system. So behave accordingly!

Logically the Focus must be formed AFTER puberty:


If it was before puberty then the race would be unplayable and would remain a slave race. Why? Because otherwise the RAS system would lock onto extremely childish ideas.
I can't imagine a bunch of dwarves obsessed with sucking titties for milk, trying to grow up into humans, or whatever crazy shit children think up. I know. I have a child.

"Ohh Stoa, a dwarf pup wouldn't have crazy ideas." Yes. They. Would. Without context granted by life experience a dwarf would lock onto a focus that is utterly out of touch with reality. Therefore, it only biologically makes sense that a dwarf's focus would develop later-on in development.

It's my opinion that a dwarf will have the concentration of a full-blown adult human, as a child, thanks to the mutation in the RAS. But will not lock in on a single focus until AFTER they finish hormonally developing. This explains why dwarves have adult focuses, not everlasting childish ones.
However, some immature dwarves who develop early may have their RAS solidify around a childish goal, so it's not unrealistic to have a crazy goal with your dwarf.

Dwarves would have lots of siblings:


If you play a dwarf, unless you were an orphan, it is likely you have several siblings, likely dozens. The rational behind having a child, to begin with, would be to make the children be in service to the parent's focus.

Why would a dwarf have a child? Think about it. If their RAS got stuck on one goal, and a child could help you in that goal, and you had the scope of a 100-year lifespan, you'd have as many as you could get. With the long-life spans of a dwarf, producing children of great utility is a wise long-term thought.

However, who gets to direct the focus of the child, the mother or the father? Therefore, it is unlikely dwarves would be only children. And it would be difficult for dwarves to align perfectly enough to agree to go through the energy investment of a child.

Furthermore, the dwarf who's focus is to raise children, would have maybe a dozen or so, perhaps more because of their resilient biology and long-lifespans.

Development of focus:


So how does a child develop a focus. Imagine you're a dwarf pup with the ability to concentrate like a full grown human adult. You can service the family as directed and will likely be guided into activities that serve the parent's focus.

Your focus will probably end up being their focus.

If you are an older child, your focus may end up being protective, to protect the younger pups. This is your combat architype. (dwarf children are called pups, and the group of siblings is called a litter, or cohort)

If you are a younger child, your focus may end up being crafting in service to the family. This is your merchant architype.

If you are a middle child, you might feel rebellious that you're being slaved out to do your family's work. This is the sneaky architype or unique focus architype.

As you mature as a dwarf, with the concentration of an adult human being, eventually your biology solidifies in the RAS and you become obsessed. You're now an adult dwarf. Welcome to Armageddon.

Myth 3: Dwarves cannot manipulate


I agree that deception would be hard for a dwarf. It requires temporary suspended belief in the truth in order to lie. A locked up RAS system will make this more difficult unless there was some real effort put in.

However, I disagree that dwarves cannot manipulate. Matter-of-fact I'm of the opinion that a Dwarf is more likely to manipulate because the Dwarf focus will out-weigh concepts of ethics.
This does not mean a dwarf would not be ethical. Depends where they were at, emotionally, when the RAS solidified in the brain.

Encoding codes of conduct into a dwarf's focus:

A Dwarf can encode certain rules into their focus. If they were raised correctly, or are a slave, this could be done by someone else. The RAS would follow a certain stubborn logic. It does in humans, like we say we're incapable of murder, except if our children are threatened. However with a dwarf encoding ethics would have no exceptions.

At the time of forming the focus, if the dwarf has certain rules for that focus, they must follow the rules.

Example 1: It's Diplo's focus to become the best guard in the known. His focus developed protecting his younger siblings. He decides at the time his focus solidified in the RAS that the definition of the "best guard" would be one who would never betray their client. Also, a guard would protect the reputation of the client and never spread rumors or break a secret of a client.

Example 2: It's Magna's focus to manufacture the best cloaks. The best cloaks are true to their material, so she would program the ethic of never embellishing the quality of craftmanship or lie about the material's origin.

Relationships with dwarves:


A dwarf will attempt to use ANYONE who could service their focus. But they will become friends with those who could service their focus AND who also appear concentrated on their own tasks.

Humans and other races who seem without direction would be given contempt and likely not ever get the respect of a dwarf. If that human also cannot service the dwarf's goal, or pose a threat to that dwarf's goal, they would not exist. Just like your mother hopefully ceases to exist, even when calling your name, while you're enthralled in an intense mudsex scene. (You dirty fking pervert.)

Therefore, attractiveness and mating to a dwarf are first with those who have strong motivations and also aligning goals. Sex without the purpose of making children would be considered a mutual manipulation of the other dwarf to get them to service their focus. It would be a battle of wills, who will give into servicing the other's mission first?

Because of this orphan dwarves are born, or single parent dwarves may be born. This may just be you.
However, with deception so difficult, this is unlikely. I'm of the opinion that most dwarves are born to a large litter. But you can play your dwarf however you want.

Don't call it a focus in game:


Focus is an OCC concept. Please use any of the following:

"My Mission"
"My Important work"
"My Goal"
"My Concentration"

Have Fun


Obstacles become opportunities as a Dwarf. You get to learn the essence of Stoicism while playing a game so have fun! If you want reading to help you with your focus please pick up the book by Ryan Holiday called "The Obstacle Is The Way" This is your Bible on dwarf roleplay, and also an excellent resource to live by.

Cheers!

[Armaddict]

A nice read.  I particularly fixated on this blurb at the end:

Focus is an OCC concept. Please use any of the following:

"My Mission"
"My Important work"
"My Goal"
"My Concentration"

Why?  Because I'm of a mind, personally (note: I have not played a dwarf in a -looong- time), that this point actually -might- extend even further, to where dwarves do not even recognize that they HAVE a focus.  They just have something that they are utterly obsessed over, that it takes up their spare time, that any information on it instantly grabs their attention, that it calls to them in dreams that this thing is more or less their purpose in life.

Difference being, I'm not so sure it's a conscious decision like it is in other iterations of the dwarven focus.  In Dark Sun, there were the shades, dwarves who failed to reach their foci, and they were relatively few...which made me feel like they were tormented souls, much like the perceptions of hauntings in real life, who were left unsatisfied or incomplete and therefore stayed attached to the material plane.

ANYWAY, like I said, a nice read.  I always love thought-provoking posts and explorations of the game.

[azuriolinist]

This is amazing. I loved the section on the reticulated activation system, in particular. What an interesting take to understanding the dwarven's mindset and focus.

Humans and other races who seem without direction would be given contempt and likely not ever get the respect of a dwarf.

Contempt might be stretching it. Though this could depend on the dwarf's values, I imagine a dwarf would hardly notice someone's apparent lack of direction, let alone give the time of their day towards feeling contempt. That is, unless this is somehow directed to their focus.

[Miradus]

Contempt might be stretching it. Though this could depend on the dwarf's values, I imagine a dwarf would hardly notice someone's apparent lack of direction, let alone give the time of their day towards feeling contempt. That is, unless this is somehow directed to their focus.

That was the part I liked, though different dwarves might have different levels of introspection on the motivation of humans.

I had a dwarf who was always completely befuddled by the demand for hierarchy amongst humans. He would often question aloud, in amazement, how humans EVER managed to build a city such as Allanak when they probably fell to fighting over who was in charge before three rocks got stacked together.

He was also equally amazed at the way humans would betray and plot against each other, remarking that elves are at least constant with their untrustworthiness and dwarves have a purposeful nature but humans are so inconstant that you can never, ever rely on them.

[stoicreader]

Contempt is the right word.

Imagine your working on something very important at the coffee bar. Your... Taxes.

Then, fifteen ADD frat boys come in and not only are they wild and loud they out rank you socially, they carry weapons, and they all study liberal arts.

Contempt indeed is the right word when a highly motivated person is around idiots.

Humans would seem idiotic. Maybe one frat boy would have a pair of glasses and be quiet and be hunkered down studying engineering.... That one, he ain't so bad. Until he does the keg stands. And you're like, well Fuck, he's still an ADD frat boy.

[stoicreader]

Double post

[azuriolinist]

That's the thing, though. I don't believe a dwarf can be simply compared to a highly motivated person. Humans are (generally) easily distracted and nowhere near as driven as a dwarf. A dwarf, as the documentation reads, "always thinks about their focus." A dwarf has a mind so alien -- compared to humans -- that even if they had a horde of raiders surrounding them, all they'll have in their mind is their focus.

Now, I agree that the focus is developed through the dwarf's childhood -- from habits, cultural ideas, and experiences. All into a singular focus. The focus is rooted in the dwarf's beliefs and experiences. Because of this, if a dwarf was raised to believe that unmotivated people are to be hated, then I can see a dwarf feeling such contempt. Even if it's not seemingly related to their single-line focus.

But, IMO, dwarves would not naturally feel contempt for some unmotivated person. They might acknowledge it as odd behaviour. But they'll go back to thinking about their focus.

[Miradus]

I think the actual attitude is going to be highly dependent upon the dwarf's focus.

If his focus is something that will need humans to accomplish, then he's going to feel frustrated at having such unreliable tools at his disposal. He'll constantly be evaluating levers to change human behavior, either consciously or unconsciously depending upon how smart he is. "This one is motivated by greed, this one by lust, this one by power."

If his focus is something he can achieve on his own, such as to kill the largest scrab in the Known or something similar, then he may look upon humans with amusement, like watching tregils at play or during mating season.

A dwarf in a fantasy setting is largely similar and I don't play mine too different from Faerun dwarves or Tolkien dwarves, except where the setting has changed them. THAT'S the fun of Athas dwarves for me. Dwarves are highly rooted in community and tradition, so what happens if you take away their community and tradition? Dwarves are largely honorable and bold in battle, so what happens when they're thrown into a grimdark world without honor?

What interests me mostly about dwarves in this setting is how their natural inclinations are being either thwarted or outright frustrated due to the setting, and the conflict that would arise from that.

[Insigne]

Thank you for taking the time to write this up! There's a lot of thought-provoking points (both in the OP and following posts) that delve into the mindset of dwarves here. I'll probably be revisiting this thread many times over in the future.

On the dwarven focus and their opinions of non-dwarven races, this is what I could find in their documentation:

Dwarves would begin thinking that all beings are dominated by this same drive. If and when a dwarf discovers that others do not share this focus, they will probably become alienated and possibly acquire a distaste for all non-dwarves - although the interpretation and extent of this alienation and distaste depends on a dwarf's individual personality.

Something I've always appreciated about the racial documentation is how open they are to interpretation. While there are definite staples to the non-human mindsets, there are still so many factors that could ultimately mold their character.

There's no one way to play it out.

[Cind]

Staff once said that a dwarf can have the focus of searching for a good focus, I always like that one, and it answered for me the fact that small dwarf children don't really know what to do yet.

[Shalooonsh]

Stoicreader, I would like to say that this is really good.  I've been dissecting it and digesting it a little bit, and from what I can tell, this is pretty much spot on.

Thank you for your contribution.

[stoicreader]

Stoicreader, I would like to say that this is really good.  I've been dissecting it and digesting it a little bit, and from what I can tell, this is pretty much spot on.

Thank you for your contribution.

I'm adding this to my staff testimonial page!!

[Feco]

These are some key points I've kept in mind playing dwarves:

Remember that dorfs are not motivated by ideals (e.g., justice), and may not be aware of their focus in a direct way.  When asked "why" they're doing something, never answer with an appeal to one's focus or to any sort of grand ideal.  Instead, a dorf might just focus on the next step in their plan.  If someone were to press the "why," they might just continue along the steps.  If they really, really press "why," maybe looking for some sort of deeper explanation, a dorf might just get confused.  I doubt they can usually comprehend what a human might mean by that.

Don't be afraid to make bad decisions and/or overreact to things.  Small things people say, which might run counter to a dwarf's focus, might send them into a rage, a crazed episode of scheming, or completely change their outlook on a person.  Don't be afraid to make stupid decisions because of this (e.g, make enemies with someone you otherwise like, or who is very powerful).  Sometimes a dorf might seem utterly irrational to humans.

If your dwarf often does something that is not generally considered dorfy, like being deceptive, do it like a dorf would.  If your dwarf has a focus that relies on deception, they may have shaped their very personality such that deception comes easy.  Maybe too easy.  Have you ever told a lie and right afterward though, "why the hell did I say that?"  Lie to your friends.  Lie to the barkeep.  Lie to the stablehand.  It's all practice.

Dwarves need not be immune to emotional and mental conflict.  Consider friendship -- it would likely be the result of a person benefiting a dorfs focus, but I don't think that necessitates a dwarf coldly regard them as a tool.  They may very well have an emotional connection to this person.  If a person has been key to ones focus, and has become a close friend, but is suddenly an obstacle, the dorf would no doubt treat them like an obstacle, but it doesn't mean they have to feel good about it.  Even though they would certainly choose their focus over their friendship, they may find it distasteful that it "had to be this way."

[Sorry]

Maybe they should require karma because I get the impression most dwarves (though there's some good ones I've seen that I can't name!) tend to ignore the help files and all of this kind of wonderfully thought out stuff and just go around grinding or killing characters because they can (already ridiculously rich and geared up) really...

... But maybe a lot of the problems would go away if dwarves weren't by default better for fighting in every way for people who don't really care about RP and just want to go around typing kill person - Why would any of those that aren't really in the game for the RP play anything but a dwarf? Should dwarves have higher strength really anyway? They are small, shouldn't it make sense for them to have lower strength since seem to have mostly the same physiology and organs as humans? Then maybe there would be more people playing it genuinely for the character concept really.

[Feco]

They're better in some ways, and worse in many others.

Without going into specific details, size and agility have an impact, especially when it comes to skilled encounters.

[stoicreader]

I would be in favor of dwarf being Karma in light of recent IG events and the amount of effort dwarfing well requires.

But also a dwarf would no longer be playable by me. So in that reguard... If be against it unless some method of aquiring Karma was established.

[azuriolinist]

These are some key points I've kept in mind playing dwarves:

...

These are some great points, too, besides stoicreader's.

[The Warshaper]

A question about dwarves and how they would react to a certain situation.

So everyone agrees that the dwarf mind is always concentrated on their focus. This leads the majority of their actions being around attaining that goal. If a dwarf was tossed in a prison cell would they a)Sit and stew and contemplate their focus while being unable to escape. b)Go wild being unable to follow the actions their thoughts are driving them towards. c) Other.

Not meant to derail, but to encourage discussion and understanding of the roleplay of the dwarven race.

[Miradus]

I would be in favor of dwarf being Karma in light of recent IG events and the amount of effort dwarfing well requires.
...

Locking even more content behind a karma wall?

Recent IG events, if we could discuss them, could be easily circumvented. I've already taken steps to circumvent them with my own gameplay. Apparently, though I haven't tested it, so have staff in the form of new NPC behavior and placement.

Maybe without relying on karma to try and lock this, we could rely on whomever approves new characters to take a look and say, "Hmmm ... brand new account, never logged in before, wants a dwarf warrior in Allanak. Maybe not." I'm pretty sure that if these are just griefers, having to walk their grief-bot from Luir's or Red Storm to the Gaj would probably cull most of those attempts. If someone is THAT committed to griefing, you're not going to stop them.

The recent IG events have VERY LITTLE to do with dwarves and more to do with the way combat works. High strength? Bonus to bludgeoning. Victim unarmed? Bonus. Sitting down? Bonus. Etwo a weapon? Bonus.

Add all that up, and yeah, you're probably going to get a headshot or two in and take your guy down. Even more so if they're scanning, watching, listening, and Waying people around.

You try and get ahead of griefers by locking content away, you're going to end up with nothing but newbies to do but stand around and watch everyone else play.

[Feco]

I think those are both acceptable responses.

If a dwarf is cool, calm, collected -- that sort of thing -- they may take this opportunity to plan.  If they're sneaky, they may think about how to escape.  If they're politically savvy, they may think about how to properly bribe someone.

If they're not in total control of their emotions, it may upset them that they're being kept from pursuing their goals.

It's just important to keep in mind that the dwarven focus might drive them to do really strange things sometimes -- this might manifest as being unnaturally calm or absurdly upset.  It doesn't really matter what they do, just how they do it, and what their motivations are.

If you consider a human and dwarf "bunking" together in prison, you could probably differentiate between the two pretty easier, even if you can't see them.  A human might ask his cellmate what they're in for, and try to follow it with some idle conversation.  In contrast, a dwarf might ask what their cellmate does for a living, and then decide right then whether they should make use of them or ignore them completely.

[Miradus]

A question about dwarves and how they would react to a certain situation.

So everyone agrees that the dwarf mind is always concentrated on their focus. This leads the majority of their actions being around attaining that goal. If a dwarf was tossed in a prison cell would they a)Sit and stew and contemplate their focus while being unable to escape. b)Go wild being unable to follow the actions their thoughts are driving them towards. c) Other.

Not meant to derail, but to encourage discussion and understanding of the roleplay of the dwarven race.

Depends on their focus. If their focus is pretty time sensitive and they believe that the opportunity to achieve it is about to fade away then they might just go a little crazy. Otherwise they might plot.

So a year ago I was playing a dwarf named Butcher Brons who was the Face of the Guild. Over a year now so I think it's legit to discuss him here. His focus was to run a criminal organization. That led to a LOT of steps. Nobody fears your organization? Go out and commit a reign of terror to bring back the fear. Not enough income? Go out and solidify some revenue streams. In the end when it inevitably comes down to blood, I was given the choice of walking away from it and saving what I'd built up, or going out fighting and destroying what I'd built up. What I, the player, wanted to do, was murder everyone. What my dwarf would want to do would be to preserve what he'd built, even if it meant losing control of it. I came up against the hard wall of my original focus. It was a great story arc, but if I'd been a human I could have really done whatever I wanted. As a dwarf I had to be true to the focus.

A broad focus means more opportunity for gameplay within that. If your focus is to build an outpost in the Salt Flats, someone may wonder why in the heck you're hanging out in the Gaj all day. But you could be recruiting masons, making contacts to fund your focus, etc. In that case, being thrown into the prison cell is a 'sit and wait' opportunity. It's not the end, it's a minor delay. If his focus is to protect Little Orphan BigEyes and she's been thrown in the cell next door, he may just go berserk trying to get to her.

What I've always wanted to try was a "broken" dwarf. One whose focus was time sensitive somehow and failed. Like a runaway slave who wanted to kill Lord Highpants Borsail who murdered his family, but before he managed to do it, Lord Highpants Borsail got run over by a carriage. Your focus can literally no longer be fulfilled and you know it. What would THAT do to the dwarf mind? What sort of emergent, nihilistic roleplay would that lead you into?

[Marauder Moe]

A question about dwarves and how they would react to a certain situation.

So everyone agrees that the dwarf mind is always concentrated on their focus. This leads the majority of their actions being around attaining that goal. If a dwarf was tossed in a prison cell would they a)Sit and stew and contemplate their focus while being unable to escape. b)Go wild being unable to follow the actions their thoughts are driving them towards. c) Other.

Not meant to derail, but to encourage discussion and understanding of the roleplay of the dwarven race.

Depends on the personality of the dwarf.  A less patient dwarf might indeed go nuts and try to chew through the door.  A wiser dwarf might just sit tight and think about the best way to negotiate his way to freedom once the templar shows up.  Other dwarfs might find something productive to do in their cell, like crafting, talking to compatriots over the Way, doing push-ups, etc.

[Riev]

idea a dwarf who can't codedly/realistically achieve their focus actually has a chance to become a full on banshee

[stoicreader]

This is a great discussion!!

[Boogerbear]

After shit happened, I feel like that they should either remove the dwarf/HG absurdly strong weapons that cost almost nothing or make dwarves available to people only after they've been around a month or so.

And then I'm like, wait man, there should be more starting options, not less.

Nerfing them isn't the answer.


There isn't a goood answer, just like with the HG debate.