The Dwarven race (or Dwarva as they call themselves in their language) are a people that live under the surface of the earth, Proud warriors and astute craftsmen, the dwarven people
prior to the War of Chaos 10,000 years ago, the Dwarves were the undisputed masters of the undergro
und realm, the collection of their territories being united under a High King, his dominion being called by the surface dwellers as The Dwarven Empire, controlling over a 1000 subterrainean towns, and with a population in the billions, the dwarven empire was split up between 12 semi-autonomous kingdoms, based around the 12 Great Cities, among whom a High-King was elected, under the reign of the High King's the Empire was undoubtedly a clear rival to the great empire of the Elves, and was unquestionably the richest. But this changed with
the Gate of Gundaar, considered one of the wonders of the world
the coming of Amerok.
When the Daemon-King Amerok tore the barrier between the mortal realm and Hell wide open, the Dwarfs ultimately forged an alliance with humans and the elves in a effort to beat back the Deamonic presence, and ultimately with the assistance of the Daemon Hunters, Amerok was banished back to Hell and the rift was closed, but not without great cost: the last of the High-Kings had been slain in the final battle, and most of the Empire beyond the Great Trench had been lost, the remaining Kingdoms of Gundaar and Kargas would be all that remained of the once vast dwarven empire.
Ages of the Dwarves[]
Age of the Ancients -50,000 years BCW (Before Chaos War): the Dwarves are seperated into many clans, fighting amongst themselves for survival and resources in the Underdark, it is here that the dwarf known as Endrin Stonehammer becomes a chieftain of one of these clans, and manages to unite the Dwarven race into a single nation, naming himself King, the next 300 years are spent carving out a vast kingdom for the dwarves to live in, and upon Endrins death he is proclaimed as a Paragon of the Dwarven people, the first to be named as such.
Rise of the Empire -40,000 BCW to -30,000 BCW: the successors of Endrin Stonehammer continues his campaign, conquering more of the Underdark and bringing it into the growing Empire, until finally King Aeducan Stonehammer claims the title of High-King, upon the discovery of the Arkenstone, which he takes as a sign of his Divine Right to rule, upon his death his vast empire is split between his 12 sons (which is considered a miracle in itself) into semi-autonomous Kingdoms, all of them electing their youngest brother, Kharaz, as High-King. These Kingdoms would later take the names of the brothers.
The Golden Age -30,000 BCW to 0 BCW: the Dwarven Empire would continue to expand its dominion over the course of its golden age, but it would largely remain a period of peace and prosperity, the different castes of dwarven society living in contentment with themselves as the Dwarven people grew rich from the vast seams of Gold, Silver, Mithiril, Diamonds, and other precious minerals, practically having a monopoly over the supply of most kinds of metal, however this wealth would lead to corruption, and in the last centuries of the Empires existance over 19 High-Kings would be found assasinated for political reasonings, thus depriving the Empire of strong leadership and leaving the Empire divided between warring factions when the Daemons came...
The Chaos War: At first the Dwarves were hesitant to join the alliance between the Elves and Humans, figuring that the Daemons wouldn't bother to look underground, but that changed when the Ork's broke free with Daemonic assistance, it was only after the fall of several Kingdoms that the Dwarves as a whole joined the new coalition, urged on by King Ungar of Kargas, and thus the Dwarven Empire would play a significant role in the war effort, providing much-needed manpower and technological assistance, but over the course of the war the dwarven capitol of Kal-Kharaz, and thus the Arkenstone, was lost, and when the last High-King died in the final battle against Ameroks daemonic legions, none of the surviving Dwarf Lords could lawfully proclaim themselves as the High-King, and thus the Empire came to a de facto end, although its successor state of Gundaar would continue to proclaim itself to be the true successors, through bloodline until its ruling dynasty faltered sometime in the 3rd millenium after the war.
The Dark Ages 0 ACW to present (10,000 ACW): for the past 10,000 years the remaining Dwarves have barely held their ground, despite constant campaigning the Ork menace plagues the survivors to this day, with only the Kingdoms of Gundaar and Karga remaining, the dwarven people number barely a million strong, and they are barely able to replace the losses they suffer every year from their constant war, which has led to a bitter saying among the dwarves "while the war has ended for the surface dwellers, we are STILL fighting it". However in the past 200 years, King Thorgrim III of Gundaar has been able to not just halt, but turn back the Ork onslaught, becoming the first King in a millenium to retake land that once belonged to the dwarven people.