#dwarf witch

I'm super sorry about the hiatus, I've just been burnt out on writing for a while. I'm not even sure why, it just kind of plunged into a spiral of lack of motivation and inspiration. I'm going to try and keep this going for now, we'll see how that goes. Anyway, let's get to the reason you're here: today's NPC.

In the deep places, under the plains and forests, betwixt the roots of the mountains: this is often the world of the dwarves. And it is a strange world, a place that we might not recognize as being part of the overall plane or planet that comprises our prime reality. Places that have never known sunlight, without many of the features of a biome we might consider ubiquitous. Things we would consider very strange exist in the deeps, and things long forgotten by us surface dwellers may still linger in those ever-dark caverns. Dangers that can kill and destroy, things we may have no defense against simply because we don’t live with their threat. But the dwarves do, and because of this they may turn to means and methods we might consider unsavory, reckless, or even antithetical. Perhaps the need for power is too much, causing some dwarves to turn to unorthodox sources. That’s right, today’s post on The Daily NPC features the Dwarf Witch!

Of course the dwarves likely have magic-users such as clerics, paladins, and wizards. They are all inherently practical and useful professions that have immense benefits to dwarven society. Rangers can also play an important role, and druids and sorcerers (while odd and potentially disruptive) can also help their fellow dwarves. The witch, though, is likely a path taken out of desperation. After all, you could be a cleric of a reliable and understandable deity, or at least work hard to learn the spells of the wizard. Why make a pact with some strange, potentially unknown and hostile entity? Well, maybe the dwarf in question doesn’t have access to a teacher, either spiritual or arcane. Perhaps they are an outcast, fighting every day to survive in the caves and tunnels. The dwarf could have a deep distrust of the gods, or at least those who serve them.

In conclusion, the dwarf witch is a good choice for an NPC that has connections to worlds very alien yet not that far away from our own.

Nuka [Patron: Agility]

Survival is paramount, and power is a key component of survival. Nuka agreed to a bond with a great coyote spirit, who gave them magic and taught them to be quick. In exchange, a portion of what Nuka steals is left under rocks or buried in sand for the spirit to take. Sometimes though, Nuka is told by the spirit to steal from shamans or priests of other spirits. So far, it hasn't been a problem, but their targets have been getting more and more difficult.

Umber-eyed Seong-jin [Patron: Shadow]

The dwarves are children of the mountains and caves, staying beneath the safety of stone and soil. Skies can turn sour, the sun is fickle and far away. And yet the surfacers keep trying to convert the dwarves to their accursed gods. The dwarven gods say their people can't take up arms against these sky-addled idiots, but Seong-jin's magic doesn't come from the gods. He has allied with a being of darkness, an enemy of light. It wants the same thing as him, to drive away the sun and sky. There are a few tasks it wants him to perform, odd people or places he must find, but it promises him a world entirely covered by a safe and static roof of stone.

Mojisola of the Undersea [Patron: Water]