(no subject)

Player Name: Kira
Player DW: narva
Contact: narwa
Character Number: First.

Character: Dís, daughter of Thráin, son of Thrór
Source: Tolkien Compendium, with the Peter Jackson movies as a supplement canon.

Things that are taken from PJ and override Tolkien information are: Some of the ages of the dwarves of the company; looks of the company, most prominently amounts of beard and Kíli's hair colour, but also general style of dress; that Azog survived the battle of Azanulbizar and that Thorin finished him there; generally happenings of the Hobbit that she wasn't present for.

As a note, Dís is a very minor character in her canon with little personal canon, but the history of her family and people is quite detailed and there is no reason why hers should differ form theirs (the only really debatable thing is when she died). Likewise, we know a good deal about her family's personalities and how dwarfs work, so inferring information about her from there is fairly reliable. Of course that's rounded off with headcanon. So she falls into the "character of limited canon" category.

Appearance:

Dís is a dwarf, which means that she relatively short and of very heavy build: Imagine a muscular 2m human compressed into a 145 tall person without losing any mass. This however also means that she's quite a lot more sturdy than a human. Her hair and beard is per cast request able to change its colour depending on mood ginger and starting to turn white at this point. Like most of her family, she's actually tall for one of her kind.

Her hair is worn half in braids and half open, and as dwarves usually do when traveling over land she'll be wearing armor and have a good deal of weapons on her when arriving in Demeleier. For non-dwarven, particularly human, eyes she'll be indistinguishable from a male dwarf. At the point that I'll be taking her from she will be of a slightly advanced age, in her late 258, though a few more creases aside that doesn't make much of a difference as dwarves remain hale, strong and fearsome warriors until they fall in battle even at a high age - which she isn't of yet, in 1st-world-modern human years she'd be roughly 60.


History:

Dís was born the third of three children, Thorin, Frerin and her, into the primary line of the royal family of the great dwarf kingdom of the Lonely Mountain; her grandfather was at that time the king of the Longbeards of the line of Durin, the most renown of the seven dwarf clans. When she was young, the mountain was attacked by a dragon and the dwarves had to evacuate it. Years of poverty and homeless wanderings followed, only interrupted by the war between dwarves and orcs that followed her grandfather's, the king's, death and claimed Frerin's life. Eventually, they settled down in the Blue Mountains. Around the time that her father vanished without a trace on his way to reclaim their ancestral homeland, she married and had two sons, Fíli and Kíli.

Their economy recovered and the dwarves of her now-king brother's settlement became wealthy once again, Fíli being the new crown prince. When she was in her late 100s, her brother and her sons as well as a few other men went to reclaim the Lonely Mountain and succeeded, but the former three didn't return. The whole colony in the Blue Mountains as well as other dwarves of their kin who had been in exile elsewhere returned to the Lonely Mountain, as did Dís. It became her homebase for relatively frequent traveling. She saw the perils and the siege of the Lonely Mountain that came with the struggles against Sauron, and finally died half a life after having buried her sons.

A more in-depth history can be found here.


Timeline: About to leave for Elrond's council (she won't go there in the end because she'll be talked out of it on grounds of her being needed more under the mountain, but that's why she is all ready for travel).


Personality:

Dís is first and foremost a dwarf. She might have a few more atypical traits - she travels a lot for a woman and despite being born towards the end of the third age speaks some Sindarin - but generally she is quite typical.

One example of that is her attitude towards the races. Dwarves, in her worldview, are the beings in Middle Earth who have the greatest talent for crafting, and (except for some of the elves) every finer piece of craftsmanship that belongs to one of another race must have either been traded in or stolen. Dwarves are the only people who are truly trustworthy and the only ones who inherently deserve respect. Elves she distrusts deeply, hobbits are weak, spiritless peasants, men are artless and fickle, and the evil races have her undying hatred. Races which she doesn't know will be met with a cautious distrust, and that goes for strangers in general. That however doesn't mean that non-dwarves cannot prove themselves to her, or that she would be irrationally unfriendly to them. It simply means that if possible she will keep to her kin, and that she will not easily open up to others. It also means that she will think little of the handiwork of members of other races, either because she thinks them unskilled or because she assumes there to be a trap buried in them. In contrast, Dís takes a strong pride in her own racial affiliation and it comes first should she be asked to affiliate herself with a group, her "nationality" being second and her belonging to the royal family being third. She has a high opinion of the dwarves: They are the only trustworthy people, the most fearsome in battle and skilled in the processing of stone, metals and gems (there lies a good amount of truth in those claims, but they are absolute to her).

She will, however, not show this attitudes to the degree that some other dwarves (like her late oldest brother) would and isn't as quick to resentment. Members of other races might still consider her too straightforward and no-bs to truly call her diplomatic, but for a dwarf she is. Serving as member of diplomatic envoys in more recent years and having been raised since childhood in situations where frequent diplomatic interactions with the men of the villages that she and her people came to, or lived close by, she picked up a lot of things and also had the chance to decide how far she would want to go herself with diplomatic behaviour, the elven and human kind of which she often perceives as dishonesty.

A habitually shut-in and secretive people, dwarves tend to have little contact with the other races. Despite having spent large parts of her life in much closer proximity with humans than most dwarves (due to being in exile; a dwarf living in a dwarf kingdom of old would only encounter humans if they did the trading with them, since dwarves do not produce food themselves and thus rely on this connection) and having travelled extensively ever since her last direct family's deaths, the second trait is firmly intact. She still wouldn't talk to a stranger about many techniques or much of the inner workings of her kingdom, she'd be unlikely to reveal her personal name to anyone and she could spend days and weeks on a treck with someone without that person realizing that she's female.

She, is, however, less shut-in than most dwarves, which is made even more unusual by her being a woman: Dwarves basically only leave their kingdoms for trade and war, and women do so much less than men*. But after spending long periods of her youth wandering, and with the death of her sons and brother losing the last of those that would have made the Erebor home, she took every excuse to travel, be it for trade or diplomacy or other reasons. That has broadened her mind a bit, but the whole situation also means that it is easier for her to be away from home and among mostly strangers and non-dwarves, and that even the presence of elves doesn't put her on edge as much as it would have before.

[The ratio of males and females is 2:1 and thus dwarves tend to be overly protective of their women, particularly of those that might still reproduce. That criterion has nothing to do with age or fertility: Dwarves are intensely monogamous, and not only do not remarry; they also do not marry if their heart belongs to someone who is already taken. In addition, there are dwarves of both genders who would rather dedicate themselves to a craft than marry, and that is completely accepted by their culture. Still, even females who are not yet out of the marriage market might go to war or trade under certain circumstances - Dís's taking part in the war of the dwarves and orcs is an example: There was no safe home to stay behind at, and the duty to vengeance easily rallied the whole family to their weapons, no matter how underage they might have been. To protect themselves, dwarf women tend to not correct people mistaking them for males - for the above reasons a female would be more of a target than a male to enemies, and teaching an enemy to read cues would be a danger not only to the individual dwarf.]

Speaking of her sons and brother dying, Dís has been through a lot of shit - her homeland being destroyed, living as a refugee with all the poverty, humiliation and starving that that entailed despite knowing that she was of the most noble blood that a dwarf could have, going through a disastrous war, and more than that: Outliving every single member of her family by decades (and eventually over a century), including her brothers, husband and sons. But she has pulled through, and the restlessness aside, she appears relatively unscathed. This is only partly true. While on the one hand she has recovered relatively well, partly aided by loss of that kind being a frequent enough factor in the life of the Longbeards during the third age for a mentality that prepares both the individual dwarf and the community to deal with it. But there also were friends and cousins to help her through it, and like most dwarves she grieved deeply but then carried on without forgetting, turning to new tasks (not to a new nuclear family though, because of how dwarves marry).

Family, extended family, and her people (not so much her entire kin) command her loyalty to the highest degree. Her pride as a dwarf and the well-being of her children, brothers, husband, parents, cousins and all Longbeards would, should they ever conflict, fight a hard battle in which the loyalty to her relatives and people would most likely win. Dwarves as a whole do notably not command that loyalty. The dwarven folks have a history of only seeing to their own - all sub-clans of the Longbeards would have the duty to vengeance if the king of the primary clan got killed, but if Nogrod goes to war upon a similar matter Belegost does not have to follow. In that line, Dís will have a higher default opinion of any dwarf, but will not feel the default loyalty towards them that she would feel towards any Longbeard. And this loyalty is firm and strong, and shows especially when one is insulted and cannot avenge themselves (usually because they are dead. Dwarves have issues with dying peacefully, especially in the third age), as pride figures in in those cases. But she'll also stand firmly by relatives in other situations, and will try to work towards their best both as their princess and a fellow kinswoman.

Vengeance and duty are two important keywords that I want to say a few words more on. Vengeance actually figures higher for a dwarf, and thus also for Dís, than material gains - if someone kills your friend and you could either kill them back or gain all the riches in the world, you kill them back. Duty is a very strong force in Dís's life. Duty to her people for the most part, she's been raised as a princess and in a society with very horizontal structure, where the king works with his hands just like the lowest member of the society does, and for most of her childhood, youth and much of her adulthood the primary concern of the royals was to ensure the people's safety. But also duty to certain principles and goals - the duty to vengeance was already mentioned, but her family for example also had the duty to win back their ancestral homeland, the Lonely Mountain. In her case, living up to that meant letting both her sons go on the dangerous journey to win it back for their people (as a woman, she did what was expected and stayed home, running the matters of the settlement in the Blue Mountains in her brother's absence).

Not only a sense of duty and loyalty makes her hard to sway in certain matters, though - she can be stubborn and if she has thoroughly made up her mind about someone or something, it will be hard to change her opinion. If she considers someone reliable, loathsome or useless, it will take her a long time to arrive at a different conclusion, and if she has set her eyes upon a certain goal, she will take very good reasons to sway from it.

Despite this background, she's practical to a fault and in the face of crisis mentally strong and quick to think, enabling her to stir not only herself but also a group that depends on her through troublesome situations. But also in peace she is used to having and wielding authority, to running a huge household (and not only the kids in that one could be rather unruly...). On the one hand that means that she's quite dependable and responsible but also commands respect and a certain degree of obedience. On the other hand that means that she knows how to delegate, how to split up and assign tasks. She isn't a charismatic leader however, more a practical organizer. If necessary, she can rally people together and give a speech, but she's not a trained orator.

Being from a people that strongly relies on trade to eat - literally, dwarves do not keep livestock or harvest, so hunting aside they have to trade in all their food - she has a keen eye for trade and will take some time to adjust to a society where not every thing that she gives to or does for a non-dwarf (who is not her guest at that time) directly gives her something in return. She's not so much greedy (she has the whole gold lust issue of her people, but that's a different story) as just very used to exchanging wares and services being an exchange where you of course try to strike the best deal.

While not a coward - she'd dive right into any battle, she would put herself between a weak person and a danger, and go to investigate a dangerous place without much wavering - Dís does have fears. Those mostly pertain to things that she has no chance to gain control over: Ghosts are among them, because one cannot touch them and they are as a rule evil-spirited in her world (she's not afraid of the places where the dead rest, because she doesn't connect those with ghosts - bodies are just bodies to her, it's the spirits that you got to look out for). She's not afraid of death, not by way of being suicidal but simply by way of having accepted it as a part of life; yet she is afraid of death by fire, having seen her mother burn to death as a young child (being from a people that under normal circumstances would never do cremations yet having had to see her brother's body, among with many others, be burned after a traumatic war did not help). And she's not reckless, unless in the middle of a battle maybe; her bravery is usually as practical and to the point as much of her speech and behaviour.

Yet, and this at last, she does have a sense of humour, and while she is by no means a troll or even frequently teases people, she sometimes will and certainly knows to appreciate a jest. She loves hearty song and dance, a good story and a good, hearty meal. She's also generally a friendly and, within the limitations of all the above, generally helpful.


Abilities:

- Dwarves are a lot stronger and sturdier, more durable and blessed with more stamina than humans. They are built to withstand high temperatures and other dire conditions, due to having been grafted with what resembles apocalyptic circumstances of a continent of fire, tectonic activity, destruction and general hostility as a living space in mind. They aren't the fastest runners but have a lot of endurance, and it is hard to stop a running dwarf (partly due to the sheer mass of their bodies).
- Dwarves are, as a rule, very skilled craftspeople. Their average abilities in any given craft are at the very upper end of any other race's skills, and there are very few that could rival their craftmanship when they specialize in something. Dís's speciality is smithing, and while she has fluctuated between high-end weapons and silver and gold since returning to the Lonely Mountain she used, for practical reasons, to specialize in mundane metalwork and simple weaponry.
- She speaks Khuzdul, Westron and the dwarven sign language fluently and is reasonably able to understand Sindarin (because it's useful to know what those bastards are talking behind your back).
- Like most dwarves she is a fearsome fighter, able to fight with all the weapons that she carries. She has a lot of experience, too.
- Again like all dwarves she sings, and has a fairly nice voice. She also plays a type of flute.
- She can cook and while she isn't a medic she has taken care of the wounded and everyday accidents and sicknesses enough to have a profound basic medical knowledge.


Inventory:

Basically what she travels with, since she was about to hit the road before coming to Demeleier:
- A battle axe, a longknife, a dagger, bow and arrows, and a normal knife for mundane tasks.
- Her clothes, including chainmail, heavy boots, a cloak with hood, pants and shirts, gloves and belts.
- Personal jewelry that her family made for her. A locket with their pictures.
- Writing utensils.
- Some money.
- Her flute.
- Food for three days, spices for cooking.
- A repair and tool kit
- A "good" shirt and some additional hair ornaments.
- Toiletries.


Prose Sample:

The village is abandoned now and has fallen to ruins for the most part; the men who live down the valley do not come close to what used to be Thorin's Halls, the dwarven exile settlement in the Blue Mountains that she spent such a crucial time of her life in. Where she joined axes with her husband, and where she lost him; where her children came into the world, and where she got word that they left it.

She climbs the slope of the mountain, past the ghostly remnant of what used to be their living quarters, the huge household where her brother used to fight with Dwalin until she kicked both of them out to go and let off steam somewhere else. Where she and Thorin would teach the boys how to use an anvil, and Dwalin and others joined them to show them their way around weapons. Where they would sit around the fire in the evenings and listen to Balin's stories or sing together. Where they finally found a resting place after too many years of wandering. She's not going there, and she never again will. That part of her life is over, it died over half a century ago, far away outside and under the mountain that she now calls home. Though a home that lacks that which would have truly made it home: Her family, her sons, her brother. She has gotten over it, moved on, and while she will carry their memory for all her life it is an old grief now, the mourning having ended long ago and settled into that place where it is still there, still a part of her, but not affecting her everyday life anymore. She'll never be without them, just like she'll never be without her husband or her other brother, or her parents or grandfather. They are a part of her, for better or worse, and it is just one of many reasons why she is glad to not be of the race of men that she can rest assured to see them again, eventually (though really, who would want to be a man even if they didn't depart from the halls to an unknown place? Short-lived, weak and easily swayed as they are).

Yes, it has settled, but there are times when the memory returns, when she needs a place to take it. Today is one of them. Two weeks before Durin's day, a long time ago... She reaches the end of the path that has all but vanished during the years and enters a cave that overlooks the valley. Only a few feet in, she is already walking between tombs, but it takes a while before she reaches the one that she is here for. The safety of a mountain above and around her comforts her as she rests a hand upon the name carved into the stone, masterful carvings surrounding it.

She stands there for a long time, leaving only in time to safely get back by daylight to where she and her travel companions have put up camp for the night. And leaves behind the dead when she steps out into the soft light of the sinking sun, returns to the living and their own tasks. They might have come here for the purpose of remembrance, but tomorrow they will travel further to arrange some trade agreements, and that is what is at hand and necessary now. The dead may rest within her, and their life and passing have impacted her and made her who she is, but that doesn't mean that they steer her daily life, or that she should linger with them. She has duties to her people and tasks to do, and there will be songs and food down in the valley, and Lori will tell one of his stories.

Her thoughts are on tomorrow's dealings when she descends on the path that is a mere memory, the ruins on the way barely more than a part of the landscape on the roadside towards the base camp.

Journal Sample:

Link!