Musings from Elsewhere

I figure a ttrpg all about dwarves needs to have interesting and diverse dwarves.

In one instance, I've been into the idea of dwarves inspired by central american, First nations, and Mexica influence (imo a criminally untapped wealth of culture and vibes for fantasy). Here's the resulting ancestry draft from my ttrpg, Those Under the Mountain.

Espantekatl: the Redmane

“If a mild-mannered Redmane exists, they likely plucked the feathers and left to live with the bloody gnomes.”

—Arnja Bor, year 704, the age of heroes.

Redmane Features

Jungle Ambushers: Redmane begin play proficient in stealth and marksdwarfship.

Mistsight: Vision tuned to jungle mists, Redmane can see twice as far through obscuring fog.

Volatile: Redmane receive disadvantage on diplomacy checks when dealing with non-dwarves.

Heritage (choose one)

Children of the Great Dragon: The most prolific of Redmane lines, these dwarves are particularly resistant to poison, and thus have built a strong cultural identity as those who make and hunt with it. All Children of the Dragon have resistance to poison damage, and are proficient in herbalism.

The People of Crimson: These Espantekatl worship the blood god, and are passionately militant. Adorning their bodies with deep red tattoos. They wear and display trophies of their kills such as teeth, claws, and fine jewelry of bone. They begin play proficient in a martial skill as well as butchery, and have the Bloodbath feat.

The Leopards of the Old Jungle: Proud, wise, and known for their vast stone citadels in the deep green places of the west, the Leopards have distinctive skin patterning of darker and lighter greens and grays, typically tiger stripes or leopard spots. Their plumage is patterned with black and brown. The affect altogether is that they are well camouflaged in most forest and jungle environments. They gain the Natural Camouflage Redmane feat, +1 to DEF, and begin with proficiency in masonry and riding.

Appearance, behaviour and lore

Hailing from dangerous jungles and ancient swamps, the Espantekatl are the most mysterious of the dwarvenkin. Little is known of them by the outside, and their reputation is as red as their plumage. With bright feather-manes, the Espantekatl roam the deepest forests atop giant snapping turtle mounts, and employ poisons to paralyze prey. They favor weapons made from fine obsidian, and are known for their blowguns and atylatyl.

Espantekatl are slimmer than mountain dwarves and have complexions ranging from dark jade green to seafoam. They sport feather hair and beards of incredible colors, all in patterns unique to the individual, often bright red. Their eyes are typically all black with thin greenish or red irises, and they’re known for intricate tattoos, usually with feathered serpent and snapping turtle motifs.

Person: "What kind of ttrpg are you making?"

Lines vs finished. This is the current cover art for Those Under the Mountain, and def will need updating for full release. Otherwise, I love how it implies all the things you can do in the game. There are artisans working, dwarves exploring a newly found cavern, some armed, and lurking danger. In the middle of it all, there's a fortress architect annoyed with the big hole in the south corridor.