The Battle of Black Flame Gate

In 1950 BGW, during the height of dwarven prosperity, the Battle of Black Flame became a grim reminder that even in times of plenty, shadows can rise without warning.

For centuries, the dwarves of Dumatharun watched as the elves waged war in the east beneath the dark boughs of Lumispire. The distant clash between the High Elves and the Duskborn seemed little more than echoes on the wind—far removed from the quiet and sturdy halls of the mountain.

But darkness does not stay idle.

The Night the Shadows Rose

One autumn night beneath a clouded sky, Dulmir Grudgehammer, Forgefather of the clan descended from Halgrak the Grudgekeeper, stood watch at Black Flame Gate—the first bastion defending the outer approaches to Dumatharun.

It was Dulmir himself who spotted them first. As the moon hung low, shapes darker than night ascended the rocky slopes beneath the gate. They slithered over stone, their forms shifting unnaturally, as if the very mountain rejected their presence. The Drith, shadows born of Draidiff’s deep sorcery, had come.

Dulmir, recognizing the threat, sounded the Horn of Emberfall, an ancient signal calling the Deepguard to arms.

The Battle Begins

Within hours, the Deepguard, led by Dulmir and his second-in-command, Thurdek Frostmantle, formed ranks along the ramparts of Black Flame Gate. Braziers filled with molten oil were tipped, casting rivers of fire down the mountainside, yet the Drith slipped between the flames like smoke.

The dwarves knew neither the source nor the purpose of this attack. To them, the Drith were invaders threatening their homes. In truth, the creatures were drawn by the faint pulse of something buried far beneath the mountain—the Crown of Dominion—though this knowledge was beyond even Dulmir’s understanding.

A Long and Bitter Night

The battle raged for three days and three nights, the Drith endlessly pressing against the dwarven lines. Torches flickered and dimmed in their presence, and the mountain air grew cold as the shadows encroached. Dulmir, wielding his ancestral warhammer Grudgekeeper, led the defense from the front, his strikes shattering the Drith wherever they fell.

Despite the dwarves' resilience, the Drith’s numbers grew, spilling over the stone like a black tide. On the third night, at the height of the assault, The Great Maw, a Drith of immense size and strength, emerged from the darkness and struck down Thurdek Frostmantle, breaching the second line of defense.

Dulmir, seeing the breach, descended alone into the thick of the battle. With hammer in hand, he met Vrakal in single combat beneath the arch of Black Flame Gate. Their clash lit the night as molten silver from the forges above poured down upon the battlefield. Dulmir struck Vrakal down, but not before the Drith tore through his armor, fatally wounding him.

The Aftermath

Though the Drith were repelled by dawn, the cost was steep. Dulmir Grudgehammer’s body was recovered at the gate, his warhammer shattered at his side. With his death, the dwarves mourned the loss of the first Forgefather to ever fall in battle—a descendant of Halgrak, whose line had carried the honor of defending Dumatharun since the earliest days of the mountain.

Dulmir’s hammer, broken and scorched, was enshrined in the Hall of Embers, beneath a statue bearing his likeness. The dwarves reforged Black Flame Gate, reinforcing it with veins of silver and Drakthorite, ensuring it would withstand future assaults.

Legacy of the Battle

The dwarves did not know it at the time, but the Battle of Black Flame was the first sign of the darkness stirring beneath Kharak-Dur. The Drith sought something ancient—a power long hidden in the roots of the mountain.

The Deepguard remains vigilant to this day, patrolling the outer slopes and lower tunnels, ensuring the shadows never rise again. Each year, on the anniversary of Dulmir’s sacrifice, the Lanterns of Black Flame are lit along the gate, a solemn reminder that even the brightest fires can flicker in the face of shadow.

The battle is remembered not just for its toll, but as a testament to dwarven perseverance. In the face of unknowable darkness, the dwarves stood firm, hammer in hand, and the mountain endured.