Dwarven Underholds

Dwarves are the most secretive and exclusionary race of any in Malex. Dwarves make their homes in the Underholds below the Malexian Munds mountain region, and it's rumoured that their underground cities and tunnels stretch throughout the mountains of eastern Malex. The few dwarves who live outside of the Underholds claim that no other race has stepped foot inside the Underholds, and certainly if any have, they haven't lived to talk about it.

From the little that is known about dwarven culture, dwarven worship is tied to the perfection of their craft, with each craft broken up into Guilds. Each Guild has their own collection of Artisans, dwarves deified in life for the extraordinary accomplishments. Troja Silverstone was a famous stonesmith, a living legend and Artisan, one of the few known of outside of the Underholds, who believed dwarves should take a greater interest in the world beyond the Underholds. The Silverstone family was exiled for leaving the Underholds and carving the elven capital of Elysium out of the side of the mountain on the great island continent.

The only point of contact of dwarvenkind with the world outside of the Underhold is the Dwarf Gate, two sets of massive double doors carved in the side of the mountain. Periodically, dwarves will open the outer set of doors and allow trading with elves and humans, though none other than Underhold dwarves have ever been beyond the second set of dwarves.

Underhold dwarves are famously paranoid of the outside world, including any of their own kind who are interested in life beyond the Underholds. For any number of reasons, dwarves may leave or be expelled from the Underholds, and those who are skilled in craftsmanship or combat are well regarded or infamous on the mainland. Once a dwarve leaves or is expelled from the Underholds, they are never allowed to return. Dwarves outside the Underholds are reticent to speak of their homes and dwarven culture, an inbred trait of the seclusionary race from being raised to be suspicious of outsiders.