Two hundred years ago, the greatest dwarven city in the world detonated without warning. For three days, eye-witnesses watched in horror as Dammerhall burned with black flame. All six of the great bridges that connected the mountain stronghold to the outside collapsed. The great gates were shut. No one escaped. Not a single survivor emerged from the doomed city.
Ever since that fateful day, the dwarves have tried to retake Dammerhall time and time again with no success. Most expeditions failed to find entry. A few perhaps managed and have never been seen again. The fate of Dammerhall remains a mystery.
What is no mystery is that for the last two hundred years, dwarven fortune has been in steep decline. With their capital destroyed the dwarven city-states fell to squabbling over who was the true heir of the high king. A dozen lesser dwarven kings declared their right to rule. The dwarven nation was split. So fractured, they became easy prey for enemies. Half of the surviving city-states would be destroyed within a century of the fall. Some were overrun by orcs. One was destroyed by a dragon. And most disgracefully, a few were destroyed by other dwarves in brutal civil war.
The surviving city-states turned in desperation to the kingdoms of men. These lesser dwarven rulers signed treaties of mutual defense and, in all but name, were annexed by the human realms. The kings of men were glad to have them. Dwarven craftsmanship, battle prowess and tenacity were legendary. Over the last century the human kingdoms have overrun the dwarves, not through might of arms, but through numbers. These days, men and dwarves live alongside one another. The dwarven city-states are all but gone. The dwarven tongue is rarely spoken. Dwarves are often regarded as another kind of man.
There may come a time in the very near future, where dwarves simply cease to exist as a separate people and are completely integrated into human society. Perhaps this is for the best. Perhaps dwarven glory is a thing best relegated to the past. Perhaps the future of the dwarven people is alongside the tribes of men.
There are a tiny handful of dwarves who cry nay! They see this integration as yet another defeat. There must be a new dwarven high king! But how can there be? The secret of forging true mithral has been forgotten. The regalia of the high king is lost. Dammerhall is destroyed. There is only one answer. Dammerhall must be reclaimed!
Another dwarven expedition has formed. They are not trying to enter the city from above. Instead, they have heard rumors of a seventh way into the city – a secret way. Dammerhall did not just trade with the surface. It also traded with the realms below. Find the dark road into Dammerhall and the dwarves may yet reclaim what has been lost. They may yet find a worthy
high king who can reunite the scattered dwarven people and build a new kingdom.
The old Dammerhall is lost. The kingdom the dwarves build will be a new sort of realm. For the
dwarves to succeed, they must build a kingdom below. Only then can they retake the lost capital and become once more a strong and independent people. The PCs are this last hope. If they fail, another expedition is unlikely. Upon this quest, the fate of all dwarves turns. The campaign begins with the PCs having discovered a cave that leads into the underworld. It is miles away from Dammerhall, but it is the only known entrance. Nothing is known of the underworld
save rumors and hear-say. The PCs are truly venturing into a mysterious new realm.
PATRON
Bryggya The Steel Sister
Goddess of Dwarven Steel, Elemental Earth, and Secrets Under the Mountains
Alignment LN
DomainsArtifice (subdomains available: Construct, Toil), Earth (subdomains available: Caves, Metal), Knowledge (subdomain available: Memory), Law (subdomain available: Loyalty), Travel (subdomain available: Exploration)
Favored Weapon heavy pick
Symbol Violet mushroom, with silver tiger stripes which can only be seen with darkvision
In the time before the world was fully formed, Drychos, The Molder, Dwarven God of Craft and Toil, felt a longing for companionship in his daily work. Having six brothers, none of whom particularly got along, Drychos decided he needed a sister. Travelling to the elemental plane of earth to find the purest iron in existence, he began forging a sister for himself.
From this iron, he created the finest dwarven steel ever crafted, and shaped it into Bryggya, the Steel Sister. Bryggya was the purest thing ever crafted by Drychos, and he breathed within her the fires of life, imparting her with some of his divine power. Drychos wished for an obedient sister, unlike his continually bickering brothers, and he forged her without a mouth, reasoning if she couldn’t talk she’d never disagree with him.
Once she was thus brought into being, Drychos grew fearful. What if his brothers saw this perfect being and demanded sisters of their own? That would never do; Bryggya was Drychos’ and Drychos’ alone. He brought her to one of his hidden forges, in the heart of a volcanic mountain chain. Sharing his sister with no one, he taught her all the secrets of his crafts, often depending on her when the Father’s demands were great. Together, they forged the continents and gave shape to the world.
For Bryggya, these times were filled with learning and wonder. She was created to accompany her brother’s works, and it was in this companionship she found satisfaction. Yet, as time wore on, Drychos spent less and less time in the mountain forge, seeking rarer materials on the elemental planes with which to work his crafts. Bryggya began to yearn for the company of others, to feel the mountain passages beneath her feet, and to learn. She began to explore the range, learning its secrets, shaping new pathways, and becoming known to the Dwarves living there.
Drychos’ absences became longer and more frequent, causing Bryggya to wander farther on these expeditions to find new things. During one of her explorations, she delved deeper than she ever had before, entering the underworld and happened upon the lair of Arrydagia, the Drow Goddess of Fleshcrafting. Bryggya was captured, chained with adamantine, and subjected to horrific experiments by the Drow Goddess. Yet, try as she might, Arrydagia could neither bend nor break Bryggya to her desires, for dwarven steel is stronger than any flesh, and Bryggya’s will was also steel. Indeed after time, Bryggya escaped her captivity, taking with her all the knowledge of Arrydagia’s ways. Later, some would say that Bryggya had arranged for her imprisonment all along as a means of securing this knowledge from the Drow Goddess.
Bryggya use this knowledge and what she had learned from her brother to craft wondrous dwarven steel limbs, enabling her to do more work and travel farther and faster than she ever had before. She used Arrydagia’s knowledge of spidersilk to fashion vast webs of iron beneath the mountains of the world, and taught the Dwarves the means to harvest the iron web and craft it into fine steel. It is said that Bryggya still roams under the mountains of the world, learning their secrets and passing this knowledge down to her followers.
Priests, Temples, and the Church
Bryggya’s priesthood consist primarily of clerics and oracles, although it also boasts a fair number of inquisitors, monks, and paladins Rarer are druid or diviner priests. Priests of Bryggya are responsible for exploring hidden knowledge under the mountains of the world and spreading this knowledge among the worthy, as well as guarding it from the unworthy. They are the stewards of dwarven crafting techniques and are charged with keeping the memory of such techniques alive in the dwarven community- and out of the hands of outsiders.
A typical temple of Bryggya is set in a smithy, inside an inactive volcano, or in a cavern deep below the earth. Services are usually structured affairs, practicing a specific craft or creation, and are usually performed in complete silence except for the sounds of tools being worked.
Bryggya’s churches tend to be clan- or familial- based, with a few outsiders who have proven their trustworthiness included. Typically the priest is a learned craftsman and spends much of his time visiting his congregation, teaching the young ones skills and learning from the elders anything she can. At least once every few decades, the mantle of priesthood is handed to another as the old priest begins a deep journey, a spiritual quest for hidden knowledge in the bowels of the world. These deep journeys can last years, and end only when the priest feels she has accumulated worthy knowledge to share with her church. She returns, sharing her findings with her successor, who, in turn, spreads them to the congregation.
Paladins of Bryggya are charged with protecting the priests and the church, safeguarding both the knowledge and the congregation from outside hands. They often accompany the priest during the deep journey, and act as guardians to caravans bringing dwarven goods to outsiders. A Paladin of Bryggya is expected to be an emissary to the world; providing the benefits of knowledge without sharing secrets. They are expected to be loyal, forthright, and brave in the face of opposition. A Paladin of Bryggya will rarely speak of vows, choosing rather to act in the manner they have sworn. A Paladin of Bryggya is careful in her judgments, but unwavering and unyielding once that judgment has been rendered.
Inquisitors of Bryggya are relentless in their pursuit of those who have betrayed the secrets of the church, rooting out traitors and those who have benefited from the treachery as well, doing their best to contain or destroy any leaks of knowledge to outsiders. When not engaged in these activities, they pursue additional craft, skill, and knowledge for the church, bringing their findings to the priests for further adaptation and growth.
Monks of Bryggya seek enlightenment through the repetition and perfection of specific katas and crafts. They serve the church as guardians, instructors, and explorers. Appropriate monk vows are chains (representing Bryggya’s captivity at Arrydagia;s hands), fasting, silence, and truth.
Holy Days and Celebrations
The church of Bryggya does not generally celebrate mass holy days; rather, each individual member of the church has specific days that are holy days of worship. For example, the anniversary of a member’s first masterwork craft, the celebration of a unique discovery, the beginning or end of a deep journey. These holy days are usually celebrated by sharing the craft, discovery, or journey with one’s community or recreating the item or event.
Aphorisms
Share knowledge, keep secrets. Just as Bryggya’s brother taught her his craft and she passed it down to the Dwarves, so should you teach those in your trust. However, she never shared their secrets with her jealous siblings nor any of the other races of the world, even when under the duress and torture.
Show your steel. When a dwarf’s heart and will are steel, she cannot be bent or broken.
Don’t tell, do. Doing something is better than talking about doing something.
Bryggya shows. Without a mouth, Bryggya’s communications are limited to actions, signs, visions, and portents. She doesn’t tell you what to do or how to do it, she shows you the way.
ESLA(Explore, Seek, Learn, Adapt.) Bryggya doesn’t just keep the secrets she knows, she looks for new ones and learns from them, then adapts them to what she already knows.
Bryggya as a Patron
Perhaps Bryggya has seen the dwindling population of dwarvenkind. Perhaps she has seen bits and pieces of knowledge once only held by her followers slowly drip into the hands of other races. Maybe she has seen the loss of too many secrets once held by her followers: true mithral, elder magics and enchantments, and even the fate of Dammerhall are now lost and forgotten.
There is a way into Dammerhall; not a way of the surface world, but rather an underground, hidden route. Bryggya shows. The way is long, and it will take more than luck to find it. It will take courage and persistence; it will take nerves of dwarven steel.
She has chosen seven keys to unlock this mystery. Some she has shown bits and pieces, some she has called in the only voice she has: hammer on steel. Some she has even saved from what fate would have chosen for them. Not all come eagerly, but all know that if Dammerhall is to be found, if the dwarven people are to ascend once more to greatness, if what is lost can be regained, having the Steel Sister reveal the secrets under the mountain will be an important part of that journey.
Some words about playing dwarves from the Throne of Night’s Author:
From: Appendix: Sons of Dammerhall
Spoiler:
What more is there to say about dwarves? So much has already been written about this arguably most iconic of fantasy races and it is certainly not possible in four pages to equal that already herculean effort. Between the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook and the Pathfinder RPG Advanced Race Guide, you already have a massive array of mechanical options for these short but resilient heroes. Instead, in these few pages we will discuss how to dwarves unique and distinctive in a “Throne of Night” of campaign and how to create a party entirely of dwarves and yet still have a group of characters where PC niches do not too much overlap. In short, I am not here to tell you once more that dwarves often hail from the mountains and are famed as craftsmen and miners. I think you already know that. Instead, I’m going to try and show how run the greatest and most definitively dwarf campaign ever.
Roleplaying Dwarves
Typically, a party of adventurers in any fantasy adventure campaign is a band of diverse wanderers thrown together by fate who in time become close friends and together manage to accomplish great things. Playing in an all dwarven campaign allows you an opportunity to change that fundamental dynamic and play a different sort of party. Here we’ll consider a few suggestions that can make for an interesting departure from a typical adventuring party.
We are family
One dynamic than an all dwarven campaign allows is the possibility that all the PCs are related by blood. In fact, at the Game Master’s discretion, it may be required for all the PCs to share a common bloodline and are members of the same dwarven noble house now bereft of its birthright by a cruel turn of fate. If that’s the case, you should work out who is related to who and how. Are some of the PCs siblings? Are there any twins? If the PCs are related, who is the oldest? Who is whose cousin? Who is any given PC’s father, mother, uncles and aunts?
Take a moment to draw out a family tree of the PC’s noble house. This need not be an exercise in complex genealogy. A few minutes of discussion and a quick sketch can give much ample fodder for roleplaying. Your dwarven fighter is no longer simply Thrundi Steel-Axe. He has become Thrundi son of Thrane, called the Steel-Axe first by his now dead father at the Battle of Bryden Pass.
The PCs needn’t worry about filling out exactly what all that means at campaign’s start. Just establish a few names and shared events and as the campaign begins and you can fill out more details as the story unfolds. For example, later in the campaign, events could make it clear how father Thrane died and why Thrundi blames himself for his death and how this quest allows a guilty son a long overdue chance to redeem himself.
Family dynamics allows for all sorts of interesting roleplaying situations. If a PC is captured by a [redacted] patrol in the Fungal Jungle, it’s not a random friend you met a few weeks ago who is facing torture and death at the hands of the cruel [redacted]. It’s your younger brother. How much more urgent does that make his rescue?
Family relationships are also a great source of manageable but entertaining intra-party conflicts. Siblings may squabble. Older family members may decry younger, bolder relations as reckless. One branch of the family may not see eye to eye with the other. Ultimately such conflicts should not become so intense that they sunder the party. Instead, they should be the sort of conflicts that make events of the campaign more meaningful.
We are Royalty
A variation upon playing a family is not just playing any family of dwarves. The PCs are instead all that remains of the once great house of the High Kings of Dammerhall. In the blood of their veins flows the royal claim to rule all dwarves throughout the realms.
Just as in any family, you should still establish who is related to who, but now the Game Master should also establish the order of succession. Who should be king first? If one of the PCs dies who is next in line for the throne? Are some of the dwarves here not full blooded members of the royal house, but instead more distant relations or household retainers?
You should also choose a name for the royal house. In the campaign, by default, the royal house of Dammerhall is called House Tarnhammer. But there is no reason a Game Master could not change that to something the PCs concocted on their own. Rather than dictating what it means to be dwarven royalty, let the PCs discover that on their own. As not just any family, but a royal family, the PCs have all the intricacy of normal familial relations with the additional pressure of dynasty and destiny. Will they succeed in reclaiming their lost birthright or are they destined to be the last of their royal name?
We are Our Peoples’ Last Hope
One very important theme in the “Throne of Night” Explorer’s campaign is that the dwarves are a scattered people in decline. The calamity of the destruction of Dammerhall has been a blow that has all but destroyed this proud race. The widespread, fast-breeding, energetic race of men now seems poised to become the world’s true masters. The grandeur of the dwarves fades with every passing year. Their great sagas are but tales to be told...
The PCs are the last chance to change that fate. If they cannot find a way to restore dwarven glory, then no one will. The quest of the PCs ultimately is not about a place. Dammerhall is just a ruin. Instead the real heart of this quest is to build once more a powerful, independent dwarven realm. The world has not seen such a thing in a hundred years. This mission cannot be accomplished in the surface realms. The myriad kingdoms of men are too entrenched. The dwarves have neither the will nor the numbers to fight against humanity. Instead, if there
is to be hope, it must come from below. Within the underworld, there is space enough for the dwarves to thrive and rebuild. The task will not be easy, but it is, with courage and resolve, at least possible. The dwarves have not yet sung their last song of glory.
(Overcoming) Dwarven Xenophobia
One thing that each party must determine on their own is how willing they are to make allies. It seems natural that a party of good-aligned dwarves would naturally be friendly to allies. And in Book One, there are some potentially very bizarre allies to be made indeed:[redacted] just to name a few. But in fantasy literature, there is also a deep tradition of dwarves been a mysterious and xenophobic people who trust only their own kind. Adopting this position can make for some interesting roleplaying situations and conundrums. Yes, the [redacted] need the dwarves and vice versa. But can they overcome their own petty mistrust and bigotry to work together against a common foe?
And if this quest is truly about reclaiming dwarven glory, how can that be accomplished in a realm overrun with and built by the efforts of non-dwarves? Perhaps the great lesson of this campaign is that what lead the dwarves to ruin in the first place was the belief that they needed no one. When Dammerhall faced its greatest peril, the dwarves did not seek much needed outside help. Instead, they closed their gates and ensured their own destruction. Will this happen again?
Making Dwarven Characters
Spoiler:
The following is a slightly modified version of what the author has written:
Making a dwarven character for the “Throne of Night” Adventure Path is similar to making characters for any campaign using The Pathfinder Roleplaying Game with just a few modifications.
Step 1 – Determine Ability Scores
(Modified) Focus and Foible
Choose a Focus, an ability score at which you excel. You receive an 18 in that score.
Choose a Foible, an ability score that is your weakness. You receive an 8 in that score.
The other four, roll 2d6+6 four times in order. There are no rerolls or moving of ability scores. Those are your other four scores.
.
Step 2- Race: Dwarves Only
(Modified) Ability Score Traits
In order to make dwarven characters more versatile the player may opt to take one of the following race traits. These replace the usual dwarven racial ability score modifiers: +2 Constitution, +2 Wisdom, -2 Charisma. (Some of these were modified because they gave bonuses to two physical or mental ability scores.)
Clever Hands You are born artisan, cunning and quick with your hands and mind. Whether you have chosen to use these gifts for noble pursuits or becoming a thief does not matter, you are mistrusted regardless by your fellow dwarves.
Benefit: +2 Dexterity, +2 Wisdom, -2 Charisma
Respected Speaker You are a rare dwarf who is both eloquent and a born leader. Your words are given extra consideration amongst your people. However, by dwarven standards you are physically inept.
Benefit: +2 Charisma, +2 Constitution, -2 Strength
Scholar of the Ancient Ways You are a learned dwarf, well steeped in the ancient lore of your people. However, all this focus upon book learning has kept you away from more physical pursuits. You are thus small and sickly by dwarven standards.
Benefit: +2 Dexterity, +2 Intelligence, -2 Constitution
Trickster and Singer Dwarves have a reputation as being a stolid, humorless people. But there are few dwarves, usually fine singers and storytellers, who are given leeway for being charismatic and quick of hand and wit. Of course, these brash tricksters are still often in trouble,
Benefit: +2 Charisma, +2 Dexterity, -2 Wisdom
Warrior of Legend You were born for war. No one matches your prowess in battle, nor your personality, but alas also no one matches your recklessness.
Benefit: +2 Charisma, +2 Strength, -2 Wisdom
Step 3 – Pick Your Class
All classes are permitted but a few classes require
some special considerations.
Clerics, Inquisitors and Oracles are permitted but if the PCs are using the optional Patron system below, be sure that these characters worship either that Patron or a god who is philosophically compatible with that Patron. It might be advisable simply to require any divine PC to worship the Patron chosen by the party to avoid unnecessary intra-party religious conflict.
Druids are permitted but face some unique challenges in an underground campaign. Normally common components such as mistletoe or berries will be hard to find. Animal companions who can operate in the dark (such as dire bats or giant beetles) will have an edge over more typical choices. Also the cave druid archetype is a good choice to make this class more viable.
Gunslingers are not permitted as this adventure path assumes by default that firearms do not exist. There are no guns found in the treasure or adversaries who use firearms.
Ninja and Samurai are permitted but the campaign as written makes no special allowances for them. Thus there are no eastern weapons or armor in the treasure (katana or naginata, for example). Further you must explain how a dwarven samurai came to be allied with western dwarves.
Rangers will find that Humanoid (elf) and Aberration are solid choices for their favored enemy.
Sorcerers of any bloodline are permitted. Elemental (earth) sorcerers are a particularly good choice.
Step 4 – Pick Skills and Select Feats and Traits
This campaign runs with a house rule that gives everyone two more skill
points per level. The PCs will often be on their own in the underworld for much of the campaign and will have difficulty relying on others for skills. This house rule will make them more self-reliant.
Campaign Traits
These traits are specific to “Throne of Night” and each player should select one of these traits and an additional trait from any other trait category.
Anvil Heart You were born in a forge and for you, such places will always be home. You are the heir of a long tradition of dwarven craftsmanship.
Benefit: You receive a +2 trait bonus to one craft skill involving metal-working (for example, blacksmithing, weaponmaking or armorsmithing). That skill is always a class skill for you.
Cast Iron Stomach There is little you cannot gain sustenance from.
Benefit: +2 trait bonus versus ingested poisons or drugs and “get along in the wild” survival skill rolls that are trying to find food for you receive a +2 bonus.
Dwarven Nobility Within your veins flows the true blood of dwarven nobility.
Benefit: You receive a +1 trait bonus on saving throws against spells, spell-like abilities, and poison.
Heir of Dammerhall You have a direct claim to the title of High King of Dammerhall and the royal Tarnhammer clan. Of course without possession of Dammerhall and the crown, scepter and sash of the High King this title is only symbolic. Still it earns you great respect amongst other dwarves.
Benefit: +1 trait bonus to Diplomacy skill checks made when dealing with dwarves. Also if you take the Leadership feat, gain a +1 trait bonus to your Leadership score as long as all your followers are dwarves.
Impressive Beard Your beard invokes nothing less than awe and respect amongst your fellow dwarves. As a cultural bias, they tend to trust your word perhaps more than they should.
Benefit: +1 bonus to both Bluff and Diplomacy skill checks made with dwarves.
Keeper of Songs You know by heart an impressive repertoire of old dwarven songs. When you sing them, your fellow dwarves are inspired by your tales and may even sing along strengthening your bardic magic.
Benefit: +1 bonus to Perform (sing) skill checks when dealing with dwarves and a +1 trait bonus to Perform (sing) checks on any bardic performance when dwarves are present.
Legendary Drinker Your ability to hold your liquor is almost without equal. In fact, you feel nowhere as at home as in a bar with your fellow dwarves enjoying fine dwarven ale.
Benefit: You are never sickened by drinking alcohol and a night spent in a bar restores you hit points equal to your level.
Old Money Your family possesses great wealth.
Benefit: Your starting cash increases to 900 gp.
Relic of the Dwarven Smithy You possess a weapon forged in the foundries of old Dammerhall.
Benefit: You begin the campaign with a free masterwork melee weapon of dwarven construction. It is missing a gemstone from a socket. If that gem were restored, the weapon would likely become magical.
Scholar of Dwarven Lore You know much of the rich history of your people and can recall it without a moment’s hesitation.
Benefit: You get a +1 trait bonus to all Knowledge checks that deal with dwarven matters.
Secrets of the Dwarven Brewers You are privy to the secrets of the dwarven brewers of old. You can, with the right equipment, make beer of legendary quality.
Benefit: You receive a +2 trait bonus to Craft (Brewing) skill checks and Craft (brewing) is always a class skill for you. Additionally, if working with masterwork tools for Craft (brewing) your equipment bonus increases to +3, instead of the normal +2.
Step 5 – Buy Equipment
Characters begin with average starting equipment per class.
Step 6 – Finishing Details
As normal except that evil alignments are not allowed.
