Duergar
Duergar
Duergar — The Sundered Deep Clans
Duergar are a sundered branch of the dwarven people. Their ancestors were deep clans trapped below during the collapse of the giant slave kingdoms, when escaping dwarf rebels sealed shafts, gates and military roads behind them to stop pursuing armies. Surface clans remember the sealing as the desperate act that saved the revolt. Duergar remember it as the Great Betrayal: their kin reached freedom and chose who would be left behind.
The abandoned clans survived in giant slave mines, forgotten deep roads and under-realms reaching toward Svartalfaheim. Some seized giant workshops, some made bargains with powers of the deep earth, and all endured generations of darkness, poison, scarcity and subterranean war. Over time their bodies and magic changed, producing the grey-skinned, deep-adapted people now known as Duergar.
Duergar also inherit fragments of the oldest dwarven guardian-craft. Golem-making predates the schism and belongs to the shared dwarven past, but deep clans adapt the tradition to sealed gates, mine defence, prison roads and fortress warfare. Ancient guardians can therefore recognise command marks older than the distinction between surface dwarf and Duergar.
Duergar remain unmistakably dwarven in many ways. They organise themselves through clans, fortified settlements, mines, craft traditions, ancestral memory and old oaths. Their feud with surface dwarves is therefore a family war as much as a war between peoples. Some clans preserve archaic names and rites from the old dwarven reverence for the Primal Titans, although Duergar religion is not uniform. See Dwarves — A Playable People of Earth and The Shattered Crown.
Generations in the deep changed Duergar magic as well as their bodies. Many can vanish from sight, enlarge themselves in battle and endure conditions that would cripple surface dwellers. These abilities are part of their long adaptation to lightless mines, deep roads and wars fought in confined underground terrain.
Duergar enlargement magic is especially feared in tunnels and gatehouses, where a warrior can suddenly fill a passage and turn a narrow defensive point into a killing ground. Their invisibility serves the opposite purpose: scouting, ambush, escape and movement through spaces where open battle would be costly.
Duergar warfare is built around confined terrain, prepared positions and disciplined clan units. War picks, crossbows, javelins, traps, collapses and concealed approaches all suit fighters who know every turn of a mine or fortress. A Duergar stronghold should feel engineered for defence rather than like a random cavern occupied by monsters.
Relations between Duergar and surface dwarves remain bitter because the original grievance has never been resolved. Some Duergar clans raid surface mines, seize captives or sabotage water and roads; some surface clans answer with extermination campaigns and sealed borders. Others trade cautiously through intermediaries or maintain truces older than the human states above them. The Great Betrayal explains the feud, but it does not force every Duergar clan or individual into the same policy.
Duergar 5e
Duergar Pathfinder
Duergar
Medium humanoid (dwarf), lawful evil
Armor Class 16 (chain mail, shield)
Hit Points 26 (4d8 + 8)
Speed 25 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 (+2) | 11 (+0) | 14 (+2) | 11 (+0) | 10 (+0) | 9 (-1) |
Saving Throws Str +4, Con +4
Skills Stealth +2
Damage Resistances poison
Senses darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 10
Languages Dwarvish, Undercommon
Challenge 1 (200 XP)
Sunlight Sensitivity. While in sunlight, the duergar has disadvantage on attack rolls, as well as on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight.
Enlarge (Recharges after a Short or Long Rest). For 1 minute, the duergar magically increases in size, along with anything it is wearing or carrying. While enlarged, the duergar is Large, doubles its damage dice on Strength-based weapon attacks (included in the attacks), and makes Strength checks and Strength saving throws with advantage. If the duergar lacks the room to become Large, it attains the maximum size possible in the space available.
Innate Spellcasting. The duergar’s innate spellcasting ability is Intelligence (spell save DC 10). It can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components:
At will: detect magic
1/day each: enlarge/reduce, invisibility (self only)
Actions
- War Pick. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 6 (1d8 + 2) piercing damage, or 11 (2d8 + 2) piercing damage while enlarged.
- Javelin. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft. or range 30/120 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) piercing damage, or 9 (2d6 + 2) piercing damage while enlarged.
- Invisibility. The duergar magically turns invisible until it attacks, casts a spell, or uses its Enlarge, or until its concentration is broken, up to 1 hour (as if concentrating on a spell).
Duergar
This bald, long-bearded dwarf has dull gray skin, low arching brows, and eyes that seem to absorb rather than reflect the light.
Cousins to dwarves, they are foul-tempered creatures that loathe intruders to their underground realms – but not nearly as much as they do their kinfolk closer to the surface.
Duergar dwell in communities deep underground, and appear as darker, more twisted versions of their kinder kin. Their skin is a dull gray, as though rubbed with dust or ash, but this is a natural coloration that better allows them to blend with their underground surroundings. They are a race of slavers, but while non-dwarven prisoners are usually put to backbreaking work, dwarven prisoners are generally slain on the spot.
In combat, duergar fire crossbows from a distance, then shift to the warhammer after a few rounds. If outnumbered, or given sufficient threat (and space), a duergar will use its enlarge person ability and begin lashing out at its enemies.
| Duergar CR 1/3 |
| XP 135 Duergar warrior 1 LE Medium humanoid (dwarf) Init -1; Senses Darkvision 120 ft; Perception +1 |
| DEFENSE |
| AC 17, touch 9, flat-footed 17 (+6 armor, -1 Dexterity, +2 shield) hp 7 (1d10+2) Fort +4, Ref -1, Will +1; +2 vs. spells Immune Paralysis, phantasms, poison Weaknesses light sensitivity |
| OFFENSE |
| Speed 20 ft.Melee warhammer +3 (1d8+1/×3) Ranged light crossbow +0 (1d8/19-20) Spell-Like Abilities (CL 3rd) 1/dayenlarge person (self only), invisibility (self only) |
| STATISTICS |
| Strength 12, Dexterity 9, Constitution 15, Intelligence 10, Wisdom 13, Charisma 4 Base Atk +1; CMB +2; CMD 11 Feats Weapon Focus (warhammer) Skills Intimidate +1, Stealth -3; Racial Modifiers +2 Perception relating to stonework, +4 Stealth Languages Common, Dwarven, Undercommon SQ slow and steady, stability |
| ECOLOGY |
| Environment any underground Organization solitary, team (2-5), squad (6-12 plus 3 sergeants of 3rd level and 1 leader of 3rd-8th level), or clan (13-80 plus 25% noncombatant children plus 1 sergeant of 3rd level per 5 adults, 3-6 lieutenants of 3rd6th level, and 1-4 captains of 9th level) Treasure NPC Gear (chainmail, heavy steel shield, warhammer, light crossbow [20 bolts], 3d6 gp, other treasure) |
Lore
Characters with the Knowledge (nature) or Knowledge (dungeoneering) know more about dwarfs than the common layman. When a character makes a successful skill check the following lore is revealed, higher DCs reveal all information from lower checks
| Knowledge (nature) or Knowledge (dungeoneering) | |
| DC | result |
| 12: | This short grey humanoid that is bald yet has a full beard is in fact a dwarf known as a duergar. They are evil beings that dwell deep underground. This reveals all hill dwarf traits that apply to duergar. |
| 18: | Duergar can see twice as far as a normal dwarf in darkness, but are sensitive to the point of distraction in bright light. They spend their lives in toil and are at constant war with other dwarves. |
| 20: | Druegar are not skilled with traditional Dwarven weaponry. They wear drab clothing and jewelry meant to blend in with their environment. |
| 24: | Druegar are capable of minor spell like abilities once per day as follows:enlarge person, invisibility. They are immune to poison, Paralysis, and many illusions |
Duergar Characters
Duergar are defined by their class levels; they do not possess racial Hit Dice. All duergar have the following racial traits.
- +2 Constitution, +2 Wisdom, -4 Charisma: Duergar are hearty and observant, but also stubborn and belligerent.
- Slow and Steady: They have a base speed of 20 feet, but their speed is never modified by armor or encumbrance.
- Darkvision: Theycan see in the dark up to 120 feet.
- Duergar Immunities: They are immune to Paralysis, phantasms, and poison. They also gain a +2 racial bonus on saving throws against spells and spell-like abilities.
- Stability: They receive a +4 racial bonus to their CMD against bull rush or trip attempts while on solid ground.
- Spell-Like Abilities: Duergar can cast enlarge person and invisibility each once per day, using their character level as their caster level. Both of these spell-like abilities affect the duergar only.
- Light Sensitivity: Duergar are dazzled as long as they remain in an area of bright light.
- Languages: Duergar begin play speaking Common, Dwarven, and Undercommon. Duergar with high Intelligence can choose bonus languages from the following: Aklo, Draconic, Giant, Goblin, Orc, Terran.