#dwarfpower

Dwarves are one of the longest-lived races of Faerûn, with only the elves outliving the Stout Folk on a regular basis. Although it is difficult for other races to discern because of the rather craggy physique held by almost all of their kind, dwarves mature at a rate much slower than that of a human, reaching adulthood only at the age of fifty.

On average, natural causes will take the life of a typical clansdwarf in around the first few decades of their fourth century, much as the majority of humans pass away in their seventh decade of life. Also like humans, however, many do not have the good fortune to die of old age. Almost fifty percent of all dwarves perish due to unnatural causes within their third century, pulling their average lifespan down to their mid-three-hundreds. This is largely considered to be a result of the interminable warfare suffered by almost every clan of the Stout Folk throughout Faerûn, although some human scholars have posited that the more likely cause of this decline in average lifespans is the incredibly taxing and high-risk occupations so esteemed by the dwarven people coupled with an inherent strain of obstinate belligerence that can be found in almost every dwarf.

Highborn Dwarves (I.E., dwarves with blood ties to line of Taark Shanat or to the Ancestor Lords) are considered to be blessed by the Morndinsamman with longer life, such that they may better guide and serve their people. As a result most Highborn tend to live naturally into their late fourth century if not longer. Additionally, members of the Dwarven Clergy often live anywhere from five decades to a century longer than average. This too is considered to be a result of the Morndinsamman’s favor.

As the majority of their healing is done by the Church, which rarely (if ever) charge dwarves for such services, wealth does not play a large factor in dwarven aging or lifespan. Wealthy dwarves rarely live more than a decade or two longer than their less-wealthy kin, although they obviously have much more comfort in their final years. As a general rule all dwarves, regardless of birth or bloodline, only grow more powerful with age.

Youth (Beardlings) Infant: 1 - 5 Child: 6 - 10 Dwarfling: 11 - 49

Adulthood (Youngbeards) Shortbeard: 50 - 99 Fullbeard: 100 - 199

Seniority (Oldbeards) Longbeard: 200 - 299 Greybeard: 300 - 399 Oldbeard: 400 - 499 Greatbeard: 500 - 599 Ancestor: 600+

Dwarf-to-Human Aging 1-10 ~ Dwarves of this age group mature at a rate equivalent to that of a human. This age group encompasses both infancy and childhood among the dwarves.

11-49 ~ Dwarves of this age group mature roughly at a quarter of the speed a human does, a fifty year old dwarf comparable to a twenty year old human in maturity and responsibility. Dwarves between the ages of eleven and forty-nine are considered adolescents with fifty being the age of majority.

50-99 ~ Dwarves of this age mature slightly less than one-quarter the rate that a human does, a hundred year old dwarf comparable to a man of thirty. Dwarves within this age group are considered to be going through their early adulthood.

100-199 ~ Dwarves of this age mature at at a rate roughly one-fifth of the speed of a human, with a hundred-and-fifty year old dwarf comparable to a man of forty, and a two-hundred year old dwarf comparable to a man of fifty. Dwarves within this age group are considered to be going through their midlife.

200-600 ~ Dwarves of or over two centuries in age mature at about one-tenth the aging rate of the average human, gaining roughly a decade of maturity for every century. A dwarf of three-hundred is comparable to a man of sixty years, a dwarf of four-hundred like that of a seventy year-old human, and so on and so forth. It is exceptionally rare for a dwarf to live to be six centuries old, with only one or two dwarves in every five hundred or so reaching such a venerable age.

Dwarves between the ages of two-hundred and three-hundred-and-ninety-nine are considered to be going through their mature adulthood, while dwarves four-hundred or older are thought to be going through their late-adulthood. It is worth noting that dwarves do not weaken as they age, unlike humans, for the vast majority of their lifespan. Rather, a dwarf will grow progressively more and more powerful as the years go by. This lasts until the last two or three years of a dwarf’s life, at which point the speed at which they age multiplies rapidly and swiftly overtakes them. As such any dwarf that does live to be six-hundred or older soon grows feeble and passes away in their beds within a handful of years.

Note on Greatbeards: Although most dwarves readily look forward to going to Dwarfhome and the Halls of the Ancestors to serve the Morndinsamman faithfully for eternity, a rare few resist. Unsurprisingly it is these dwarves that are most likely to reach such ages that they become known as Greatbeards, living for five hundred or more years. Such dwarves are exceedingly rare with usually only one or two in an average clan at any time.