Odekor - Day 13

Dwarves.
Dwarves hail from the continent of Birichir, in the southern hemisphere of Odekor.  Birichir is a cool, rocky land. It has a mountainous interior and vast stretches of subarctic desert. Forests thrive only on the northern edge of the continent, where it rains constantly.  This is the land that the dwarves called home, and, like Birichir, the dwarves could be harsh, cold and surprisingly fecund.
Dwarven society was divided into various tribes which belonged, in turn, to various clans. Each dwarf clan claimed ownership of a certain area and defended it zealously.  It is widely said that the first dwarven structure was not a home, but a fortress.
For centuries, the dwarves lived in fractious bliss, delving deep into the earth for metal, to feed the clan war-machine.  War was a way of life among the race and every dwarf child longed to serve his tribe and clan as a fighter.
Among the dwarves, war was a way of life. There were strict rules and etiquette to follow before, during and after battle.  Those who violated these rules invited merciless reprisals from their enemies and the condemnation of their allies.
When the elves arrived on Birichir, the dwarves they encountered were simple fishermen from a minor tribe.  They seemed strong and sturdy and easily charmed.  The elves took them as slaves and so the enmity between elves and dwarves begun.
For centuries, the elves tried to establish a foothold on Birichir. They never succeeded. The best they could do was raid the coast for slaves.  Over the decades, hundreds of dwarves were taken as slaves by the elves and shipped back to Ashada.  The only thing the elves managed to do was unite the dispirate dwarf clans into one homogenous nation.
Then, one day, a new race arrived on the shores of Birichir.  They were humans from the continent of Choan.  Initially distrustful of the humans, the dwarves soon forged an alliance with them when the elves foolishly declared war upon Choan.
Elven arrogance would lead to the destruction of their homeland, the erradication of their culture and the enslavement of their race. It would also lead to an extremely profitable alliance between dwarves and humans.
After the Elfwars ended, the dwarves went from formal allies of the Empire to loyal subjects. The unification of the dwarves with the Empire was even formalized with several ritual weddings between humans and dwarves.
In the Empire, dwarves served primarily as soldiers and craftsmen, although dwarf administrators and sages were not uncommon.  Dwarf names became popular and the fascination with dwarven martial culture never completely died out among the Empire’s human nobility.  Dwarves embraced the humans prophetic religion wholeheartedly and a dwarf general led the Empire’s forces on the Day of Judgement, when the Forces of Heaven descended to Odekor for the Last War.
Sadly, the dwarves faced a similar fate to that of their human comrades.  Most of the dwarves were killed by the godstorms that ravaged Edokar.  Today, dwarves are rare and most can be found in the mountain-fortresses of Birichir.  They have neither the numbers nor the interest in rebuilding the Empire and keep themselves to themselves.