The Waking Delve
Long ago - 19,866 years ago to be exact - the Duagnar deities arrived at Cartyrion. The third of the Astralar to arrive, they chose to make their marks not upon the surface of the new world, but beneath it. And so, in a vast cavern beneath the tallest peak on all Cartyrion, two hundred and eighty-eight Dwarves were shaped out of the stone and the Six Energies, and drew their first breaths. And while their descendents have expanded to all parts of the world in the many years since, many Dwarves still work to shape their first home, and to seek the riches hidden beneath it. They call this, their first home, the Waking Delve.
The Dwarven Chronicles read like accounting ledgers rather than colorful history, thanks to the nature of its authors. But the Delve is not without an interesting history. Thanks toi the work of Mother Trudanna, some of the first Gnomes appeared in the midst of the Delve just 197 years after the Dwarves themselves appeared.
The first conflicts with the Giantkin began not long after their appearance in the world approximately 360 years after the Dwarves. The Jotunar had decided to Awaken their children in the cluster of mountains not far from the Waking Delve, in what is now known as the Grimstone Peaks.
The first Goblins were encountered in the tunnels and mines of the Delve about a thousand years after the Dwarves Awakened. The goblin gods Awakened their children across Cartyrion in places where they would interact with Dwarves and Elves.
Alternative Names
The First Delve
The First Home Under the Mountain
Founding Date
17,696BCR (before the Common Reckoning)
(19,866 years ago)
Location
south of Evermist Lake in the Tyrnabay region
Population
45,000+
Demographics
Dwarves: 84%
Gnomes: 9%
Goblins: 4%
All other Folk: 3%
More recently -- two thousand years ago - the Armies of the Delve fought on the side of the The Gods of Consent in the The Great Strife. At the end of the god-war, the remnants of the defeated forces of the The Gods of Coercion were pushed into the lands near the First Delve. As a result, the Dwarves of the Waking Delve have considered themselves as not-quite-wardens, keeping an eye on the descendents of the defeated to ensure they don't rise up again.
This is the uppermost region of the Delve; it occupies many levels that reach high up within the mountain itself. Channels have been carefully carved to guide fresh water in from the melt of the mountain's glacial cap; other shafts allow sunlight to filter into specific areas - usually community garden or park areas.
Over the years, the Dwarves have cultivated mushrooms like Humans have cultivated grains and trees; a wide variety with varying flavors can be found growing in the Farms of the Waking Delve. Some varieties are even used to brew ale and distill spirits.
In the smelteries of the Forges, raw ores are refined into pure iron, copper, silver, gold, tin, and other metals. In the forges, these are worked into alloys and then into finished products ranging from weapons and armor to items of fine art.
A variety of elaborately carved stone sarcophagi, mausoleums, and tombs in various portions of the Tombs suggest stylistic changes over the many years. Elaborate burial places are also a Dwarf's last chance to demonstrate success and gathered wealth in life; it is common for Dwarves to have their graves built to strict specifications many years before they are occupied.
The mines extend far beneath the mountain, far deeper even than the level of the nearby lakes and far-off sea. After nearly 20,000 years of being worked, they extend beyond the roots of the mountain itself.
The Dwarven Chronicles briefly mention occasions wherein some of the deepest shafts dug have been filled in because of "evil things" found there. They are vague, however, as to just who or what these "evil things" are.
History
The Waking Delve is, as its name implies, the place where the first Dwarves were Awakened, and they have been working it ever since. For the first half of its twenty thousand year history, much effort went into expanding the caverns to establish more living and working space. At the same time, other areas beneath the mountain were developed for the growing of food, and for working the ores and stones carved out of the ever-expanding mines at the very bottom of the Delve complex.The Dwarven Chronicles read like accounting ledgers rather than colorful history, thanks to the nature of its authors. But the Delve is not without an interesting history. Thanks toi the work of Mother Trudanna, some of the first Gnomes appeared in the midst of the Delve just 197 years after the Dwarves themselves appeared.
The first conflicts with the Giantkin began not long after their appearance in the world approximately 360 years after the Dwarves. The Jotunar had decided to Awaken their children in the cluster of mountains not far from the Waking Delve, in what is now known as the Grimstone Peaks.
The first Goblins were encountered in the tunnels and mines of the Delve about a thousand years after the Dwarves Awakened. The goblin gods Awakened their children across Cartyrion in places where they would interact with Dwarves and Elves.
The Waking Delve
The First Home Under the Mountain
(19,866 years ago)
Gnomes: 9%
Goblins: 4%
All other Folk: 3%
More recently -- two thousand years ago - the Armies of the Delve fought on the side of the The Gods of Consent in the The Great Strife. At the end of the god-war, the remnants of the defeated forces of the The Gods of Coercion were pushed into the lands near the First Delve. As a result, the Dwarves of the Waking Delve have considered themselves as not-quite-wardens, keeping an eye on the descendents of the defeated to ensure they don't rise up again.
Precincts
Like all Delves, the Waking Delve is divided into several regions called Precincts. Each serves a specific purpose in Dwarven life.The Hearths
The largest of all the precincts, this is where the homes, shops, taverns and temples of the Dwarves living in the Delve can be found.This is the uppermost region of the Delve; it occupies many levels that reach high up within the mountain itself. Channels have been carefully carved to guide fresh water in from the melt of the mountain's glacial cap; other shafts allow sunlight to filter into specific areas - usually community garden or park areas.
The Farms
Around the edges of Hearths, and especially near the water-carrying channels, the caverns of the Farms are where the Dwarves grow a variety of fungi whch they use for food.Over the years, the Dwarves have cultivated mushrooms like Humans have cultivated grains and trees; a wide variety with varying flavors can be found growing in the Farms of the Waking Delve. Some varieties are even used to brew ale and distill spirits.
The Forges
Just beneath the Hearths, this precinct houses the workshops and factories of the Delve. Vast caverns house ore refining and metalworking facilities. Channels cut in the stone lead to mountainside vents which billow smoke of the forgefires night and day.In the smelteries of the Forges, raw ores are refined into pure iron, copper, silver, gold, tin, and other metals. In the forges, these are worked into alloys and then into finished products ranging from weapons and armor to items of fine art.
The Tombs
Between the Forges and the Mines lies the most sacred of spaces to the Dwarves of the Delves: the precinct called the Tombs. Here, the remains of Dwarven ancestors extending all the way back to the first two hundred eighty-eight can be found. This precinct is also the home of a sect within the Dwarves that calls itself the Tombkeepers; they are dedicated to ensuring the continued sanctity of the resting places of the ancestors.A variety of elaborately carved stone sarcophagi, mausoleums, and tombs in various portions of the Tombs suggest stylistic changes over the many years. Elaborate burial places are also a Dwarf's last chance to demonstrate success and gathered wealth in life; it is common for Dwarves to have their graves built to strict specifications many years before they are occupied.
The Mines
The deepest and most expansive of the precincts, the Mines include the tunnels and chambers where the Dwarves are constantly working to seek out new veins of ores and new pockets of crystal treasures.The mines extend far beneath the mountain, far deeper even than the level of the nearby lakes and far-off sea. After nearly 20,000 years of being worked, they extend beyond the roots of the mountain itself.
The Dwarven Chronicles briefly mention occasions wherein some of the deepest shafts dug have been filled in because of "evil things" found there. They are vague, however, as to just who or what these "evil things" are.
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