Dwarves.

History

Dwarven history is sung. The elders recall the history of their people and the young listen and learn so that one day they may sing the songs of the past to their young.

The histories talk of building great underground mines. Of demon wars fought in their mines and of how they dug deeper and deeper to escape the demons of the surface. They have legendary heroes that fought and held back the demons whilst other dwarves built heavier fortifications. They also talk of magics that were sewn into the very construction. Some dwarven histories claim the Undercities as great Dwarven achievements, built before the fall. Undercity scholars dispute this. The Circle would view this as heresy if it were true.

There is no Dwarven 'history' that matches the Undercity version of events where dwarves are descendants of those who left the Undercities earliest and were stunted by the radiation still present.

In the last few centuries times they have formed a trade alliance with the Dark Elves. The dwarves exchange fresh food with the dark elves for simple technologies that they use in their mining. the dwarves are not allied with the dark elves but are rather neutral in their dealings with them.

Religion

Dwarves believe in a system of gods, each one controlling  different aspects of life. Oddly the gods of elves of the far south city of Borden and the Dwarves of Yolknar appear to be similar. The Dwarven gods are depicted as great heroes Dwarven in appearance but far larger.

The Great Halls, doors, passage ways, even simple dwelling are on a grand scale fit for giants.

Technology

Unlike the other peoples of the south Dwarves are accepting of technology. Their usage is minimal, to make their mining more efficient. They use GeoThermal power, steam from water pumped thru underground heat sources. Mostly used to power mining equipment but it is also used in some homes for cooking, heating and washing.

Some dwarves are fascinated by technology and will wander looking for more. They normally will head to the north and setup up workshops in shanty towns. A lucky few will gain entry to an Undercity.

The dwarves are wise enough to keep what little technology they have hidden from outsiders, lest they be mistaken for demons

Undercities

Dwarves survive quite well in Under cities. The claustrophobia of being underground and the constant hum of the city reminds them of home. They quickly find jobs making repairs to the sewerage, recycling transport, roads, ducting and buildings etc. With time some even learn to use electrical devices.

Language

Dwarven is its own language, it does borrow slightly from gnomish and elven but it is felt that these words are recent additions. The language it self is low and guttural with a nearly sing song nature to it. Dwarves use runes to write, each rune having several meanings and no set sounds. The written form is by no means phonetic and it is one of the hardest written languages to learn.