Just stay away from them when they're exploding.
Exploding Dwarf
Splinter - The Burning Lands
Class - Tank
Size - Exploding Dwarves, like regular Dwarves, are extremely heavy for their size. Although they are only as large as a small Human, each has the mass of a boulder. Many argue that this characteristic is what keeps them on their feet during one of their explosions.
Lifespan - Exploding Dwarves’ lives are even shorter than those of traditional Dwarves, who live for 35-40 years on average. This particular Fire variety of Dwarf only lives until about 25, and that’s just if they’re lucky enough to die from old age.
Weapon - Naturally, the most effective weapon of the Exploding Dwarves is the Explosion Attack. Somehow, these monsters are able to charge an enemy as their own flesh bursts into flames. Upon contact, a huge explosion does tremendous damage to the victim, but miraculously leaves the Dwarf unscathed. Even though they need little else in terms of weapons, Exploding Dwarves greatly enjoy fighting with hammers and chains.
Habitat - The Exploding Dwarves first emerged from the caverns of Molten Mountain, apparently freed through Kobold mining. Since then, they have spawned several new generations of Dwarves and are living throughout the Splinter. There are rumors that some of the Dwarves have even settled in the wasteland of the Unknown.
Diet - Wherever Exploding Dwarves settle, they plant and raise potatoes for food. Their potatoes are a special breed, magically designed to grow quickly in all sorts of ground. They eat meat when they can, but are capable of surviving long-term on nothing but potatoes.
Allies - The Exploding Dwarves have not allied themselves with any other races in the Burning Lands, as they are still trying to settle in. They have extremely tight family units, and in Exploding Dwarf culture, family pride can often lead to lengthy feuds.
Enemies - As they expanded throughout the Burning Lands, Exploding Dwarves made quick enemies of the Fire Demons, who were not happy to see yet another breed of monster join their clutter. They only explode when absolutely necessary, but the explosion can take down nearly any enemy.
Pastimes - As far as any inhabitants of the Burning Lands can tell, the Exploding Dwarves enjoy moving. There’s always a long line of Dwarves somewhere in the Splinter, shuffling slowly along, looking for the next place to call home. It makes the people wonder why they don’t just go back where they came from.
The Dwarves of the Molten Mountains live deeper than any other has dared to venture. Their extreme heaviness requires them to take caution in the caverns, only settling on the most stable grounds. It is said that in the days of old there were massive Dwarf cities deep beneath the ground, but those cities, like Dwarf power, has been consigned to the realms of history and myth. The following tale has never been known by the people of the Burning Lands.
The Battle For Prujic
In the very recent past, some ten years ago, there was a thriving Dwarf city of great magnitude beneath the Molten Mountains. Far below the mapped territories of the caverns, thousands of Dwarves had kept a haven, totally free and safe from the madness of the Splinterlands. It was their refuge, their paradise, their home. Everything they needed was there, from the fungi grown for food, to the cool, clean waters that ran plentifully beneath the mountains. This great city was called Prujic.
Countless generations of Dwarves had lived and died in the confines of Prujic, hearing only stories of the chaos on the distant surface from their Dwarven elders. It was a peaceful life for all Dwarf kind. From the walls of their home, they mined precious gems and minerals for their sheer beauty, crafting them expertly into magnificent sculptures and ornaments of stone. But one day, the Dwarves grew careless, and like so many fools before them, the Dwarves dug too deep.
A well-meaning Dwarf named Kippo had been tasked with crafting a new centerpiece for the great Circle of Prujic. With the Hundred-Year Festival on the horizon, Kippo was determined to create the ultimate centerpiece; he would find the most beautiful stones in the depths and do his people proud.
While chasing the green tail of a magnificent peridot, Kippo worked his chisel into a particular crevasse, and after his hammer came down, nothing would ever be the same for the Dwarves of the Splinterlands.
A spew of scalding steam was released as new air from below flooded into the cavern. This air had been trapped for hundreds, perhaps thousands of years, deep beneath the Molten Range. When Kippo approached the vent, he could feel the ground shaking from some disturbance below. It almost sounded like… marching.
This was the beginning of the Battle for Prujic. From the vent, known as Kippo’s Bridge, more than a thousand Exploding Dwarves made their destructive entrance into the Splinterlands. These Fire Dwarves had never been seen by the common Dwarves of the Molten Mountains, and over the course of the horrific four day battle, nearly every Dwarf of Prujic was slaughtered.
The incredible timeless monuments of the Dwarves were brought down, their exquisite cave homes were collapsed in favor of wide open caverns, which the Exploding Dwarves preferred. No regard was given to preserving the culture, art and history of the Dwarven people, and the few Dwarves that survived and fled were left with a bitterness that will surely haunt their ancestors forever.
Fortunately, the Dwarven city of Prujic had been built deep enough to protect the shallower civilizations upon its collapse. Very little damage was done to the Caves of the Molten Mountains, which explains why this great battle went widely unnoticed. Over the next ten years, the Exploding Dwarves consolidated their power in the ruined city of Prujic and gradually began making their way out of the caves. Their primary objective is to locate the remaining Dwarven refugees in the Splinterlands and finish the extermination. Survival of the fittest.
