ancient race respectfully. Even though they live apart, their shared ancestry binds them in ways most humans would never understand.
ceremonies. The first is the Gathering. This yearly event involves an invasion by the dwarves into elven villages. While this may seem pretty violent (and there are some injuries, but death is very rare) this is all a part of complex mating ritual. When the battle is over the dour dwarves actually show a side that they normally keep hidden and join in the festivities planned by the Elf maidens. Slowly as the night progresses, couples will sneak off for some private celebration of their own.
last only a short time) to their partners of the night before and quietly return to their mountain homes. Sometimes when they leave, they will take any boy who showed promise of being a warrior by trying to protect the village and do so with any innate skill. This leads us to the second shared ceremony.
children begin to show their dwarvish ascpect (it is to be noted that elven, half elven and dwarf children develop at a rate twice as slow as human children ie. a 14 year elf maiden would only look like a 7 year old human girl). Up to this point they resembles their sisters (without the pointy ears). They begin to broaden and slow down in height growth. Also peach fuzz begins to show on their chin (dwarven males begin growing facial hair before they enter puberty). It is at this time, the elves gather up the boys and deliver them to their fathers. The ceremony is solemn with the elven maidens stopping 10 km from the city and telling the boys to move on. At the end of their journey, the guildmasters of the dwarves await the children to decide which guild the child will be assigned to.
lives. Elves live in forest communities that are very communal in nature. They share the work amongst each other and have a very loose hierarchy. Generally the oldest elf is the defacto ruler for the day to day running of the village. Important matters are generally decided upon by the whole community. Elves also have no organized religion. They believe that living thier life and keeping Arlenia in their heart is worship enough.
their mines and Fortresses (a combination of above and below ground defenses). They have social status based on ones level in his guild and how that relates to the other guilds. Ranking from the lowly apprentice all the way up to Guildmaster and the Mountain King, a dwarf knows his place in his society. Throughout his life until he can attain the rank of High Craftsman, a dwarf's life revolves around testing of his ability to determine the level of his ability. An example of dwarven ranks is Journeyman Weaponsmith Rank 2 (one being the best and ten the worst).
magic and the worship of Aia and Vord. They handles the many dwarven ceremonies through out the year. The most important of these is Vord's birth on midsummer eve. Acolytes of the guild follows different hierarchy then the other guilds and their Guildmaster does not vote in the Guild Council. But their influence in dwarven society as advisors is still significant.
member of the Guildless. These are grunt workers, soldiers, farmers and miners of dwarven society. While looked down upn by members of the guilds, most elder dwarves recognizes their contribution to dwarvish society.
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Pics from Lodoss War
