36 thoughts on “What is your favorite thing about dwarves, as a fantasy species?”

  1. I like honorable dwarves. I like it when dwarves make stuff. I love dwarves as underground ecologists. I love that dwarven beards look so ridiculous, and hope that our culture catches on to how silly it is, soon. I love the idea that they’re made of stone. I love that their sexuality and procreation are ambiguous. I love the gruff-but-kindhearted thing. I love their tirelessness. I love their ferocious loyalty and how hard but rewarding it is to become their friends.

  2. I like honorable dwarves. I like it when dwarves make stuff. I love dwarves as underground ecologists. I love that dwarven beards look so ridiculous, and hope that our culture catches on to how silly it is, soon. I love the idea that they’re made of stone. I love that their sexuality and procreation are ambiguous. I love the gruff-but-kindhearted thing. I love their tirelessness. I love their ferocious loyalty and how hard but rewarding it is to become their friends.

  5. Love their homes and architecture. Why such high ceilings? Why no guardrails on balconies or staircases? In a fantasy world with dwarves you could find a Crack in a cliff wall and find it leads to a gigantic sprawl of hallways, staircases and pillar filled galleries

  6. Love their homes and architecture. Why such high ceilings? Why no guardrails on balconies or staircases? In a fantasy world with dwarves you could find a Crack in a cliff wall and find it leads to a gigantic sprawl of hallways, staircases and pillar filled galleries

  13. I think Will P just cut to the heart of the matter.

    I like the space they occupy in the scope of fantasy. In a traditional sense, they’ve always been the more relatable of the two aloof demi-human faces. To me personally, the Dwarf’s “fuck this noise’ demeanor always felt more relatable than the sad sack Elves.

    All that said — three cheers for Dwarves portrayed in ways other than northern European cultural analogs.

  14. I think Will P just cut to the heart of the matter.

    I like the space they occupy in the scope of fantasy. In a traditional sense, they’ve always been the more relatable of the two aloof demi-human faces. To me personally, the Dwarf’s “fuck this noise’ demeanor always felt more relatable than the sad sack Elves.

    All that said — three cheers for Dwarves portrayed in ways other than northern European cultural analogs.

  15. I like the Dwarves Before Tolkien; as the artisan in the dark, withdrawn from the world to find things of beauty and to craft things of greater beauty. The greed and the craftsman’s honor; the aloofness, but fundamental membership in greater society.

    And the flooding outward. We always picture dwarves marching as armies above ground, or like warrior-miners below. We always skip that moment, though, when the enemy is incoming… and from holes in the earth emerge, like an avalanche from below, this tide of boulders and blades to crush the oncoming horde.

    Yeah, dwarves are okay.

  16. I like the Dwarves Before Tolkien; as the artisan in the dark, withdrawn from the world to find things of beauty and to craft things of greater beauty. The greed and the craftsman’s honor; the aloofness, but fundamental membership in greater society.

    And the flooding outward. We always picture dwarves marching as armies above ground, or like warrior-miners below. We always skip that moment, though, when the enemy is incoming… and from holes in the earth emerge, like an avalanche from below, this tide of boulders and blades to crush the oncoming horde.

    Yeah, dwarves are okay.

  17. Dwarves are cool because they are short, and burly. They feel sturdy. And they drink a lot of beer. And the voices.

    There aren’t a lot of analogs in non-Euro fantasy that doesn’t quickly devolve them into more “goblin-y” type species. Are there?

  18. Dwarves are cool because they are short, and burly. They feel sturdy. And they drink a lot of beer. And the voices.

    There aren’t a lot of analogs in non-Euro fantasy that doesn’t quickly devolve them into more “goblin-y” type species. Are there?

  23. Chris Shorb for the past year, all the Dwarves in my life have been ottoman inspired. For me it started when considering the patterned and geometric art styles.

  24. Chris Shorb for the past year, all the Dwarves in my life have been ottoman inspired. For me it started when considering the patterned and geometric art styles.

  35. I like that folkloric dwarves have crow’s feet or backwards feet that make their trails hard to follow, and that they spend the daylight hours as toads.

  36. I like that folkloric dwarves have crow’s feet or backwards feet that make their trails hard to follow, and that they spend the daylight hours as toads.

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