Nestled in a twisting ravine amid the Luminous Desert’s endless windblown dunes, Rifthammer is home to a desert-dwelling tribe of dwarves. Hidden in the cool shadows of their cliff-side home, these reclusive folk offer peaceful seclusion for those seeking refuge from the desert's relentless heat, or simply the troubles of the wider world. However, not all is as idyllic as Rifthammer’s dwarven masters pretend, and a festering ruin of otherworldly creatures in the darkest recesses of the rift threatens all who reside above. 

• Ruler: Senior Councillor Chekorak Angbannar

• Government: Council

• Population: 122 (120 dwarves, 2 humans)

• Alignments: LN, LG

• Languages: Common, Dwarven

• Resources & Industry: Stone, textiles, iron, copper

Hidden in the cool shadows of the two-mile deep Arnafiq Rift, Rifthammer is a secret sanctuary nestled in the bosom of the unforgiving Luminous Desert. Cut into the sides of the chasm, the dwarven hold of Rifthammer straddles the rift with centuries-old arched stone bridges of exquisite dwarven craftsmanship.

Four millennia ago, Senkajor Azhai—the temple-city of a terrible and blasphemous cult—stood where Rifthammer now stands. A savage earthquake, however, created the Arnafiq Rift,  and cast the temple-city into its depths. These ancient, forsaken ruins now lie hidden miles below Rifthammer in the rift’s lightless depths amid the black waters of a nameless lake in which horrible, alien things dwell.

Rifthammer’s prideful and insular dwarven families settled along the Arnafiq Rift 1,508 years ago. Exiled from their ancestral hold, Thor Dilak, after losing an inter-clan dispute the dwarves sought refugee from their enemies and the desert’s blazing sun in the rift’s cooling shadows. The industrious dwarves cut Rifthammer from the chasm’s living rock and delved deep into the unending darkness of its deepest reaches. They built the mechanical paternoster pump that powers the Deepwell and even cut now all but forgotten stairs all the way to the rift’s floor. 

For centuries, the dwarves lived prosperous and secluded lives until 553 years ago when the emergence of a disease—swiftly dubbed “stoneshame”—of unknown origin ravaged the population. While the dwarves survived the initial outbreak, it returned a century later to claim more lives and has followed this pattern ever since. Stoneshame turns living flesh into solid stone. Some of Rifthammer’s folk believe stoneshame is a curse laid on their bloodline by the gods, while others insist it was brought to Rifthammer by foreign traders. Stoneshame's origin remains a mystery to Rifthammer's dwarves, for every time they have successfully expunged it the disease re-emerges a generation later. Many dwarves believe, the ancient, ebon-cloaked ruins lying far below Rifthammer hold the answer to the disease’s origins—and perhaps even hide a means of eradicating stoneshame forever. Due to their prideful nature, however, the dwarves have refused outside help and hide those afflicted away from outsiders’ prying eyes.

Notable Locations

Most of the village comprises peasant homes. A few locations, however, are of interest to adventurers: 

1. Council Hall: This once opulent council hall has fallen on hard times as Rifthammer’s population slowly dwindles.

2. Angbannar Home: Here dwell the Angbannar family.

3. Hall of the Six: All Rifthammer’s clergy perished from stoneshame; their temple now stands empty.

4. Foveg’s Hammer: A large wooded pavilion stands outside Rifthammer’s largest forge and smithy.

5. Tenderlands: Tiered gardens carved into the rift walls grow much of Rifthammer’s food supply. 

6. Quinar’s Home: The human necromancer Quinar and his young daughter live here.

7. Rifthammer Garrison: The Rifthammer guard’s depleted ranks are based here.

8. Animal Pens: These pens hold giant lizards and other unusual animals used as livestock in Rifthammer.

9. Deepwell: This clockwork paternoster pump hauls water up from the rift’s depths. 

10. Endra Mine: The dwarves mine copper, tin and iron in these tunnels. They use played out areas as tombs.

11. The Lift: This hand-powered wooden lift ferries cargo to and from the surface or (rarely) down into the rift.

Want More?

Rifthammer is available in 5e, OSR and Pathfinder (1stand 2nd) editions here at the Raging Swan Press store.