Red Dwarfish
"They're not born cruel. They're just... too much. Too angry, too clever, too loud, too sad. The fire changed their hearts to coal, and now they burn everything they touch." -Maven Dusksledge, Dwarfish widow.
A tale whispered in every mine of Everwealth warns of Dwarfs who delve not into The Hells, and come back cackling. These are the Red-Dwarfs, a young and fevered offshoot of the Dwarfish. Born just before The Great Schism when the first fissures between Gaiatia and The Hells were torn open as Devils marched across our world in The Fall that caused it. What began as Dwarf experimentation with infernal flame and transmuted steel became something irreversible. They were scorched, not merely in flesh but in essence, their temperaments amplified, their passions ungovernable. The Hells magick remade them, as it does all Dwarfs who venture in, as parodies of their kin, shorter, louder, cleverer, crueler, and infinitely more alive. They dwell now in the volcanic rifts of Everwealth’s underbelly, caverns where magma glows like dawn and smoke hangs sweet as incense. Their foundries and amphitheaters pulse with light and laughter, ruled by no kings but by contracts, wagers, and songs. They treat flame as sacrament, craft as confession, and performance as truth. To the Red-Dwarfish, destruction is revelation: they believe that all things must burn to reveal what was hidden within. Whether this creed is theology or madness depends on how long one listens to the forge.
The Red-Dwarfish are a younger race, not even a thousand years old, first recorded when the Hells were newly discovered. Their proximity to the first breach, and their willingness to bargain, made them the Hells’ earliest apprentices. But Red-Dwarfs do not serve Devils; They study them and their world, mingle. Some claim the infernal tongue itself reshaped their speech, that their laughter carries the same rhythm as a summoning chant. Yet for the first Dwarfs traveled into it, and were changed, they remain undeniably Dwarfish, master-craftsmen, pact-keepers, and perfectionists who would rather burn a creation than see it dull. Relations with their kin are strained but enduring. Mountain Dwarfs revile them as traitors, yet still trade in secret for their cursed alloys. Shadow Elfese of Kibonoji buy their tools and mimic their forges, though each race calls the other damned. The Red-Dwarfish are not isolationists, they are opportunists appearing wherever there is gold, or sin to be had. Their craftsmanship has quietly shaped Everwealth’s darker economies, slave galleys, black markets, and auction houses alike glitter with their rune-forged chains. They claim these bindings are only “contracts,” not shackles, but few who wear them agree. They are the laughter echoing from the furnaces beneath the Schism’s birth, a people who stepped too close to the first crack in the world and found it beautiful. The Red-Dwarfish remind all who meet them that fire does not create or destroy. It merely changes. And it always leaves its mark.
Naming Traditions
Feminine names
- Seara.
- Emberline.
- Brigha.
- Flareth.
- Magdred.
Masculine names
- Durnis.
- Cindrik.
- Kaelthar.
- Braighen.
- Torrak.
Unisex names
- Ashen.
- Blaze.
- Pyren.
- Glint.
- Vauren.
Family names
- Ashcloak.
- Flickerflame.
- Gleaming Grin.
- Marauder of Forges.
- Descendant of Shadows.
Other names
Culture
Major language groups and dialects
- “Gláir” Fire.
- “Lásrach” Spark.
- “Téanam” Let us go.
Culture and cultural heritage
Shared customary codes and values
- Never Break a Contract: A Red-Dwarfish's word, once sealed, is ironclad.Every agreement, even a jest, is sacred, for to the Red-Dwarf a broken word is the only sin the Hells still punish.
- Pranks Over Malice: Harm should be indirect, achieved through wit rather than brute force.
- Claim What's Yours: Red-Dwarfish believe in earning their possessions through cunning, not inheritance.
Average technological level
Common Etiquette rules
Common Dress code
Art & Architecture
Foods & Cuisine
Common Customs, traditions and rituals
- The Emberwalk: A ritual dance performed around a blazing fire, celebrating cunning and resilience.
- Infernal Binding: A ceremonial contract sealed with magick, often used for alliances or trade deals.
Birth & Baptismal Rites
Coming of Age Rites
Funerary and Memorial customs
Common Taboos
- Breaking a prank-pact.
- Refusing to return a trick.
- Stealing a forged item without being caught.
- Revealing one's true name aloud.
Common Myths and Legends
- The First Red: The Dwarf who challenged death, entered Hell, and emerged as laughter and fire incarnate.
- Ashthorn’s Smile: A Red Dwarfish who tricked a devil into polishing his boots for eternity.
- The Cursed Trove: Fable of a Red-Dwarf who lured mortals with treasure, then fed them to the chest that hungered.
Historical figures
- Kaelthorn the Gleaming: Forged the Hellraiser Blade, which screams with every kill.
- Ashira the Whisper: Whispered a lie so convincing it cracked a mountain range.
- Vauren Flickerflame: Burned down their own capital to keep it from falling into mortal hands.
Ideals
Beauty Ideals
Gender Ideals
Courtship Ideals
Relationship Ideals
Major organizations
- Some Red Dwarfs' laughter can ignite candles.
- Their blood smells faintly of cinnamon and brimstone.
- Children are raised in rhyme, every rule is a song.
- Fables often end with “...and then the Red-Dwarf grinned.”
- They’re rumored to vanish if caught telling the truth three times in a row.
- “Follow the crackle, find the coals.” Warning about obvious bait.
- “He drank the flame too young.” Someone who lost their mind early.
- “To shake the ember’s hand.” Making a deal you will regret.
- “Coin too warm to keep.” Stolen or cursed wealth.
- “Laughing from the Hells.” A warning that a Red Dwarfish’s revenge is not done.
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