The Dwarven Focus
Dwarves can show great variability in their personality - indeed, almost as much as humans. But one thing that they
all share is: The Dwarven Focus.
What is the Dwarven Focus?
It is a single, overwhelming goal which motivates every thought and action in a dwarf's life. A dwarf may do
things unrelated to the focus - but it will always be at the back of their head, nagging them. A dwarf will never do
something contrary to their focus, ever. A dwarf likely does not refer to their focus in terms of "this is my focus."
To them, it is entirely natural; the focus is what it means to be alive. The focus is not bothersome or alien to the
dwarf at all. Dwarves would begin thinking that all beings are dominated by this same drive. If and when a dwarf
discovers that others do not share this focus, they will probably become alienated and possibly acquire a distaste all
non-dwarves - although the interpretation and extent of this alienation and distaste depends on a dwarf's individual
personality.
What Constitutes a Good Dwarven Focus?
The simple answer: Anything. As in all things, you should design this aspect of your character with enjoyment in
mind. We're all here just to have fun, so you should create a focus that you, as a player, would enjoy going
through in the game. That said, your focus should be grounded in the history and personality of your character.
Since a focus is not an alien presence that comes upon a dwarf, but rather a natural feeling that is inseparable from
them, the nature of their focus should arise from what comes naturally to them. For most dwarves, their life has
been hard and their needs rudimentary - and their focus should reflect this. A focus of providing food for an ailing
relative, escaping slavery from a cruel master, serving a kind master with absolute trust, gaining revenge on a man
who killed your brother - these things are all taken from the day to day life of the dwarf, and thus, are appropriate.
Similarly, dwarves who have been brought up in luxury will have a different trend to their foci. Spreading a
philosophy? Organizing a guild? Documenting the history of their race? A dwarf who has had an easier life will
naturally gravitate to foci less concerned with day to day survival. A dwarf who has gone insane could have all
sorts of bizarre foci - get to one of the moons? eat only ginka fruit? Teach a vestric to talk? The bottom line is that
your foci should arise from the facts of your character's personality and background.
Also, as a general rule, a focus should neither be impossible nor easy - but rather, something that is possibly
attainable over a long period of time if it is worked hard upon. The focus should be something your character is not
close to achieving - the point of it is that you have to play through the attainment of the focus. This is a general rule
and, in rare cases, foci which are either impossible, or attainable more quickly, may be appropriate.
What Happens When a Dwarf Achieves Their Focus?
Yes, as a dwarf you can achieve your focus. It will be replaced with a new one. Keep in mind the natural way in
which a dwarf deals with their focus when going through this. Some dwarven cultures may advocate rituals to
determine the goal of a future focus - but if this is the case, it is entirely symbolic. It will not be as if the character is
thinking, "I have one goal under my belt, what do I do now?" To have a focus is to be a dwarf, the focus is
achieved - it is no longer thought of. Now, the mind is turned entirely to other things. Similarly, a dwarf cannot go
insane if they have no focus - a dwarf will never have no focus, even if that focus is finding a new one.
Given that
the original focus was the overwhelming nature of the dwarf's life, and given that a dwarf's focus arises from their
natural tendencies - it is logical to assume that the new focus will be related to the last. And this is indeed what will
happen in most cases. An extension - more difficult - of the original focus may become the new focus. "I have
freed myself from slavery to a cruel master... now I should free the other slaves." This is sound and direct
reasoning for a dwarf, but it is not necessary. If you feel it would be more appropriate, or more enjoyable yet still
appropriate, for your dwarf to have an unrelated focus - go for it! You can be the exception to the rule, so long as it
is well thought-out. One of the most interesting things about a game like Armageddon is letting others dictate the
direction of your character - rather than dictating it yourself. With this in mind, you should pay much attention to all
the things that have happened to your character in the game, when you consider a new focus - or indeed, when you
consider anything.
Also, do not be afraid to make your character vulnerable. Being vulnerable and imperfect tend to make the game
more exciting - not just for you, but for everyone! It can be said that a dwarf's focus can be their undoing. Sure, he or she
may have freed themself from slavery and gotten away with it. But what happens when they tries to free every slave?
Likely, this will be their downfall. While sometimes difficult, you should not shy away from such situations.
How Does a Dwarf's Focus Affect Interaction With Other Races?
While you are free to design the personality of your dwarf with as much liberty as you would if they were human,
you have to keep in mind the focus - how it interacts with the personality of your dwarf, and how their personality
affects the focus. In the same way, the dwarven focus should play a part in every interaction they have - even when
the interaction does not involve the focus in any way.
A dwarf always thinks about their focus. That is what makes them fearless - not because they necessarily has a
will of steel (although many do), and not because of some genetic immunity to fear - but simply because they do
not stop thinking about their focus long enough to be afraid. If a horde of raiders surround an unarmed dwarf, the
dwarf will still be thinking about how they can free the slaves (or whatever the focus is), and so this supersedes
any sort of anxiety, fear, panic, or other emotions relating to anything other than the focus.
In the same way, a dwarf will be considering their focus every time they meet someone, thinking "How can this
person help me or hinder me in achieving my focus?" Exactly how cold-hearted this manipulation becomes depends
entirely on the individual nature of the dwarf - but every dwarven player should be aware of its presence. There is
no such thing as a random, useless encounter to a dwarf. Everything fits into the scheme of the focus. And the
character should act appropriately.
So Are Dwarves Deceptive and Manipulative?
No. It's a very fine line. Very few dwarves are deceptive. The overwhelming nature of the dwarven focus makes
all dwarves very single-minded. Deception requires subtle thought, lies, and trickery. And while these traits are not
foreign to dwarves in and of themselves - they do require a quick and clever wit. If a dwarf were to ask himself,
"Hmmm... what can I do to make that elf think the nobles have found his tribe?" the only possible answer would
be: "Bah! Who cares! How am I going to free these slaves!?" (or, of course, whatever his focus happens to be.)
Now, if deception and manipulation can help attain the focus, then a conflict appears. A dwarf has infinite patience
and determination when it comes to their focus. It will be difficult for a dwarf to be deceptive, due to the subtle
thought involved, but the dwarf will think and think and think about it for seven years, and then they will know
what they have to do. While an elf will use deception as a reflex, it is something that takes immense effort for a dwarf.
If unprepared or surprised, a dwarf should not be deceptive. But the dwarf should, by all means, spend a long time
dwelling on it - forcing their single-minded intelligence to think about being subtle - and then acting with absolute
deception.
In Other Books, Dwarves are Loyal, Miners, Have Beards, etc. Why Not Here?
Dwarves on Zalanthas are quite different from the dwarves of other similarities (or else they wouldn't be called dwarves!). What you should do is throw away all the preconceptions
you have about what a dwarf is, then understand the nature of the dwarven focus, then throw back in all of your
preconceptions and see which one of them makes sense in terms of the focus. Because of the single-minded nature
of a dwarf, it is quite easy to interpret them as being loyal; but at the same time, you can see that a dwarf committed
to escaping from the bonds of service can be the least loyal being in the world!
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