Goblin Wars

 The Goblin Wars were a period in Dwarf history when Orcs, Vermintide, Trolls and Ogres besieged most of their holds. They ended when High King Elskrig Steelborn allied with the human tribes led by Enguerrand dit le Beau and defeated the Orcs in the First Battle of Screaming Cavern Pass.

The Goblin Wars When the natural disasters shook their mountain realm, the Dwarfs were left vulnerable to the attacks of new foes. The many invasions that followed began a disjointed series of battles that the Dwarfs call the Goblin Wars, for Goblins were the most numerous of the enemies arrayed against them, although in truth, there were also Orcs, the verminous rat-men known as Vermintide, Trolls, and Ogres.

The attacks began before the last of the aftershocks had finished. Enemies infiltrated through unguarded tunnels, overwhelming outposts with surprise attacks. Previously, the mountain fortresses of the Dwarfs had proven impenetrable, regardless of an invader’s numbers, but that was no longer the case. Defensive walls had been toppled and lower levels hopelessly compromised by innumerable pits and gaping chasms. Routes into the mountain kingdom now lay unguarded. Rune-covered gates that could withstand the titanic blows of a Giant now hung off their hinges or lay split in pieces. Upon scenting weakness, armies hungry for plunder appeared like wolves at the door.

In these troubled times, even if a weak hold managed to get a messenger past their attackers, it mattered not, for no help was coming - war had come to all parts of the West. A new era descended upon the Dwarf World, threatening its very existence. Contact between strongholds was lost, and outer mine works and outposts were truly on their own. The Dwarf realm was reduced to isolated islands, each surrounded by a sea of foes. This harsh new reality changed the nature of the Dwarf realm forever.

Across the Dwarf Land, the attacks were so numerous that the record-keeping of the Dwarfs could not keep up. Columns of smoke rose high above snow-covered peaks, each marking the destruction of a small settlement or mine. Desperate refugees, escaping from lost holds and shattered mines, attempted to cross through winding mountain passes. Further tragedies befell the Dwarfs on the road, for all paths were full of peril - hunting packs of wolf-riding Goblins, mobs of hungry Trolls and all manner of beasts were drawn to the scent of blood. Dwarfs that attempted to traverse those passages of the Underway that had not collapsed found them, too, full of deadly foes. Whole sections were now being fought over by Night Goblins and Vermintide, although both races set aside their quarrels at any sight of Dwarven prey. During these dark times, the destruction of sacred burial tombs, and the complete eradication of ancient clans, sent many Dwarfs mad with rage and shame. Monster Slayers, previously somewhat rare, became an all too common sight in the remaining holds.

Khagh Uluhm

Khagh Uluhm was the first of the major strongholds to fall, its caverns and halls becoming infested by Night Goblins in -1700 BT. The greenskins emerged unztopped out of the deepest mineworks, appearing suddenly in the very centre of the Dwarf city. By the time the Dwarfs were alerted to the attack, it was already too late. Pushing bloodthirsty packs of Gronx before them, the Orcs rampaged through the city’s living quarters. As they had already passed the dozens of interlocking levels of defence that surrounded the outermost layers of the mountain, there was little in the way of organised resistance to stop the tide, though that did not mean the Dwarfs would not try.

Here and there, handfuls of warriors stood back to back and attempted to hold off the attack, but one by one, even these defended tunnels were taken. King Elskrig, of the Steelborn Clan, gave the order to abandon the city. To allow time for the refugees to escape, King Elskrig himself led a hopeless counter-attack, holding the foe at bay in a heroic action. Knowing it was the only way, he ordered the secret tunnels to be collapsed behind the last of the retreating Dwarfs, sealing himself and his bodyguard in with the foe. The last sight the refugees ever had of King Elskrig was the lord still singing his a dwarf song while he swung the fabled rune axe known as Foekiller, before the archways were demolished behind the last of them as they made good escape.

Hankahldur Hankahldur, the great city and mining complex overlooking the Drovems Basin, had been the richest source that the Dwarfs had yet found of the highly coveted Fefrite. They had been mining for over a thousand years, in some instances still following the original vein, when the great earthquake struck. So great were the tremors that the waters of the lake began pouring into the lower levels through wide cracks in the rock. Many thousands of Dwarfs drowned immediately, and a hoard of treasure, including many runic artefacts of great power, was washed away. And that was only the beginning.

With no warning, one year after the fall of Khagh Uluhm, the Vermintide attacked Hankahldur from below and Orcs assailed the outer defences. Trapped between these two merciless foes, the Dwarfs had little chance. Despite mounting a ferocious defence, within a year of the initial onslaught, Hankahldur had fallen. Most of its population died in the bitter underground warfare, although a few clans managed to fight their way to freedom, some of them making their way to Barndarom where they came to aid in its defence.

Barndarom The Dwarf city-fortress of Barndarom, one of the largest dwarf holds, resides in a deep chasm down the mountainside from Drovems Basin a few days hike from Hankahldur. High above the city, a huge waterfall cascades from the lake and rushes fiercely down the chasm - a natural wonder that Dwarf Engineers use to turn thousands of water wheels, which in turn power drop hammers, ore crushers and all manner of mining operations. The earthquakes broke the outermost fortifications and drained the lake, and even as the giant wheels creaked to a halt, the attackers came. Orc tribes lay siege on all sides while from numberless tunnels below came Vermintide and Night Goblins. Fighting spread along the length of the chasm and much machinery was wrecked. At one point, the Dwarf defenders were driven back into their halls, before they stubbornly advanced to cast many foes down the mountainside. To their amazement, so much blood was spilt into the chasm that the few unbroken drop hammers began to work again - devices quickly put to work driving the remaining foes out. Barndarom held only after the lower levels were collapsed. It would take over a thousand years to rebuild.

Gurarum, Dalbor and The Wukx Slopes Other major losses included the mines at Gurarum, which were sacked by Orcs in -1593 BT, driving the Dwarfs entirely out of the Gnyth Heights. Also, the watchtowers of Hidden in Smoke Pass are taken over by Night Goblins and greenskins pour in from the east.

In -1567, the gold mines at Mount Dalbor, the richest mines in the East and the only source of Moon Crystals, were taken by Night Goblins and, although its defenders held on through two decades of bitter back and forth fighting, known as the Silver Road Wars, The Wukx Slopes was eventually lost to Orcs led by Warboss Zok Laughingskull, who renamed the ruined hold Mount Skullbone. The entire eastern side of the Dwarves kingdom was abandoned.

The Troll Wars In -1325 BT, Thunder Mountain, a volcano which had been dormant since the beginning of time, stirred violently once again. The eruptions drove a migration of Trolls towards the remaining Dwarf holds. To combat these creatures, the High King Throdget Treasuregrip declared the Troll Wars. It was the beginning of a series of desperate counter-attacks that would last almost four hundred years, managing to retake some minor settlements and repair and re-seal some damaged ancestor tombs.

Although everywhere was still besieged, the Dwarfs fought on. Sometimes, through their fury and tightly packed shieldwalls, the Dwarfs won back lost settlements or opened up safe routes of passage between strongholds. At other times, they were perilously close to destruction. This was a bloody and brutal era, where the Dwarfs could not be wiped out, yet nor could they break free and rebuild their kingdoms of old. Eventually, the rising pressures became too much, for a great number of the Orcs and Goblins came from the Far East to join the war.

After almost a thousand years of defiance, the Dwarfs lost three major strongholds in the span of fifty years. Kelgari, pride of the mountain kingdom of the Dwarfs, fell after an epic struggle in the vast network of tunnels and vaults beneath that great city. Vem Kuldor was stormed and sacked, but its treasure hoard was never found — the Orcs were themselves eventually forced to leave, as the ruins became the quaters of a Dragon. Khirndor was attacked and captured, becoming the Orc fortress of Uddadziz.

The once-glorious Dwarf empire now lay shattered. Where in the past its power dominated the West, its armies now struggled to defend a handful of remaining strongholds. Orcs and Goblins infested the halls where Dwarfs once fashioned matchless arms and artefacts; now, their treasures had been taken out of massive vaults and scattered amongst the conquering hordes. Trolls and worse desecrated the tombs of Dwarf Kings and gnawed upon their bones, while Vermintide scurried through the lower catacombs, spreading disease.

Return to Hankahldur In -1203 BT, Runesmith Kavir Stonebender cleared the ruins of Hankahldur, driving the Vermin into the deeps. He discovers a rich vein of Fefrite and miners flock to Hankahldur to extract the coveted metal.

However, in -1163 Orcs ambushed and killed Kavir Stonebender on the shores of Drovems Basin. Kavir's last act was to throw his rune hammer into the water to prevent it falling into the enemy's hands. Within a decade the Dwarfs were forced out of Hankahldur once more.

Battle of a Thousand Hammers In -1078 IC, High King Morni Morgrimsson led a massive Dwarf army in an attempt to retake Khagh Uluhm. The Dwarfs cleared the southern valley and gate, but were ultimately driven back. Morni led the remnants of his army back to Karaz-a-Kazak and died shortly after.

Naraz Garash Resists In -978, Night Goblins attacked Vem Kuldor but were defeated, but the greenskins go on to attack Naraz Garash where they gained a foothold in the western halls and lower deeps. The Dwarfs fought for another ten years before they finally expelled the invaders at great cost.

Fall of Kelgari In -901 BT, Dwarf Miners working in the depths of the reclaimed Kelgari broke into a Vermintide tunnel. The Dwarfs were alarmed at the extent of the ratmen’s burrows.

Two hundred years later, enemy attacks increased until daily life became a battle for survival. Using poisoned gas, the rats drove the Dwarfs into an ever-diminishing realm as one hall after another fell. King Gur ordered his followers to rune-seal the ancestor tombs before fighting his way out. He vowed to one day return.

Fall of Vem Kuldor and Khirndor In -714 BT, Orcs destroy Vem Kuldor although they in turn are driven out by a Dragon. Now with a taste for plunder, the greenskins then attack Khirndor and take it, renaming it Uddadziz. Over the following years the lands between Hidden Smoke Pass and Fire Mountain are taken over by Night Goblins save for Yendazluk. Although besieged, Yendazluk holds out, largely due to the influx of Dwarfs from the lost strongholds.

Breaking of Dwarfcrusher In -635 BT, Orc Warboss Bilge Dwarfcrusher led his hordes to attack Karaz-a-Kazak. The invaders destroyed many smaller settlements and captured the Dwarf High King Elnir Proudbeard, who never recovered from his great shame. Orc armies continued to rampage until the following year when they were defeated at the Battle of Drovems Basin.

Alliance with Enguerrand Following the loss of several major cities, there began a time of retreat. It grieved them to do so, but many Dwarfs forsook their ancient homeland, leaving the familiar peaks behind. Led by surviving clan members from Kelgari, Vem Kuldor and Khirndor, these Dwarfs fought their way westward, where they established new strongholds. These dwellings were rough-hewn and humble with mines that delved for copper and tin, rather than gold. Through non-stop industry, these holds were expanded and refined, though they would never rival the great works of their ancestors in scale, mine production or architectural wonder.

In the West, the Dwarfs established new trade routes, or in some cases, refurbished old roadways made when they traded with the Elves.