The Hwemenocter estate, located in the Vault of Kings in Gauntlgrym is a fantastic piece of dwarven architecture, unique in its design and execution, since it was built specifically for the treasured human concubine of a historic dwarven hero. It takes into account certain aspects of design not common to such venerable dwarven residences, but that are prized highly by other races, for example: private washing facilities (rather than relying on public steams and baths) and stout doors to separate private dwelling space from communal areas. The dimensions of rooms are of course, generously scoped out to comfortable accommodate even the tallest non-giant races.
The estate is fronted by a small, but meticulously designed moss garden that provides excellent privacy despite its modest size. The original design of this refuge dates back to the time of high cubism but has also been influenced in later adjustments by the principles of new elaboratoria and second romantic minerology. These influences are especially visible in the addition of the hot-water fountains that house the colorful algae collections, and the use of wrought-iron trellises to guide the growths of caveberry and chalkblossom.
The ceilings of the estate, which reach a peak height of 120 feet in the dining room, once were part of a multi-bulb magma chamber filled with a particularly mineral-rich brew of molten rock. When the chamber was drained, a thin layer of ores and mineral stayed behind, causing the ceiling to glitter and glisten in swirling colors. Once the city of Gauntlgrym was built, and this parcel of the King’s Vault was developed, these magma chambers were then deepened, and interior walls constructed from the finest hand-hewn Gracklstugh basalt. The floors have been laid in with petrified zirkwood, which is not actually a wood, but the silicated stem of a rare giant mushroom.
Of note is also the use of oiled Yartar oak wood, from which the elaborate privacy screens for washing and dressing rooms in each suite have been lovingly carved. Use of wood in any dwarven dwelling is a symbol of utter luxury since it is fuel spared from the forges and fires that make up Gauntlgrym’s source of wealth and fame. Each room’s screen is themed according to a prized sky-side beast: badger, mole, rabbit, otter, fox, bear, groundhog and mouse.
For the comfort of its residents, triangular hearths are placed at regular intervals in the dwelling, and a network of sub-floor steam pipes create both a pleasant temperature, as well as easy access to bath water. We must, however, warn you not to drink this water, as it has not been filtered after its use for the cooling of the forges, and may still contain traces of dawn titan essence. Instead, make use of the generous storage facilities accessed behind the kitchen and find large quantities of stout, pokeberry wine and of course, forge whisky and firespit drop.
The estate comes with a modest share in the famous Gauntlgrym forges, which, while not providing its owners with much income, more than suffices to maintain the estate and pay for staff. Administration of income and upkeep of the estate will be done by the Gauntlgrym Abacial Council, of which a thrice-annual report of its calculations can be requested.
Hwemenocter does not have outbuildings, but stabling and kenneling services for animals and pets may be requested at the offices of the vault’s Quartermaster, and space for storing bulk and precious cargo can be arranged via the same.
Unlike most sky-side estates, this dwelling has no live-in staff, and no quarters are present for their stay. Instead, a large number of families share the care and maintenance of the various estates in the Vault (this being a part of all adult dwarves’ communal service requirement), meaning that there is often a rotation for who is present when. However, since humans and those of other races often prefer to see the same faces, an arrangement has been made to provide a limited complement of staff to facilitate the residents’ comfortable stay. We kindly point out that the concept of body servants is unknown to the dwarves, and such services will not be provided.
Please also note that our staff members are not servants in the truest sense of the word. While Gauntlgrym has a monarch and we do observe certain social distinctions, we see our estate staff as valuable working professionals, not as chattel. When their treatment does not reflect their status, a complaint may be lodged with the Gauntlgrym Non-trade Workers’ Board.
Staff
Household Foredwarf –Ludgard Aurumfeldt, a male dwarf of dark complexion whose advancing age and decades spent in service have given him the patience and meticulousness required to make Hwemenocter run like a well-smeared machine. He has lost a lot of vision in one eye, and has gone somewhat hard of hearing and is sensitive about people noticing this. He is quite worldly and greatly likes to let his earlier travels and experiences with other cultures shine through in how he addresses people (messire, madame, etc) and how he organizes any chance for entertaining. He has a vast family of children and grandchildren (as well as great-grandchildren) of whom he rarely speaks. However, you may occasionally see him accompanied by a granddaughter or grandson, especially when he is not at work. He was approached for the position here at Hwemenocter by the chamberlain of His Majesty himself – having prior experience with the party, he felt that they would benefit from someone who knows the ins and outs of Gauntlgrym high society.
While his knowledge of sky-side is somewhat dated, he has a great number of friends and acquaintances throughout the city and one would be wise to ask him where to get help, counsel or services arranged.
Monitor Victualia – Kirge Veinfinder, is a youthful female dwarf whose age belies her experience as a cook for the finest and most prestigious clan halls in the Vault. For a time, she seemed poised to accept a position as Vice Monitor of bread and pastry at the court of His Majesty Bruenor Battlehammer himself, but she eventually refused due to a conflict of personality with the Monitor Victualia already established at court. When she heard that Hwemenocter would be once-more occupied, and learned who would take up residence in it, she petitioned the Chief Rosterminder for the position of Monitor. Due to her talents and insistence on taking the job, she was quickly affirmed.
She comes from the northernmost tribe of hill dwarves and has the associated reddish hair. Anyone who wants to keep on her good side, will not make jokes about her (supposedly also-fiery) temperament, no matter how tempting. She can be curt and is decidedly stubborn, but takes her work very seriously. When she is at the estate, no one will go hungry. Furthermore, she has a sense of humor that can be both dry and lewd, but is quick to defend those she considers vulnerable or in need of assistance. Her lifestyle is extremely sober since she sends most of her earnings home to support her mother and younger sister, since their father passed away in the mining of a risky passage through volcanic rock. The quickest way to earn her allegiance (and to find baked goods suddenly appearing in one’s room), is to display and explicitly value familial loyalty.
Chief Warden – Onk Rockbender, while he is a half-orc, we assure you that he is both capable and trustworthy, and comes with the highest references. He has a complement of guards dwarves under his command and will assign them to the estate as needed.
Onk is a deep-voiced, deep-minded, well-read man who has a great fondness for everything involving strategy and tactics. He is accomplished at dragon chess and will never refuse a bout. However, he abhors gambling, and will never place a bet. He has a talent for handling animals of all sorts, and can be trusted to take care of mounts, dogs and other animals, all of which will trust him immediately. His looks may be ferocious (he wears silver caps over his lower tusks to indicate his position of command) and his fighting style deadly to the extreme, he is, at heart, not a violent man. He is a teetotaler, and feels uncomfortable at events where much alcohol is consumed. Children, like animals, feel drawn to him immediately, and he will, when needs must, babysit the children of a few of his friends during his time off. He does not speak of his family, but will cheerily speak of his friends and companions of the present. In his free time, he likes to whittle, and a gift of a piece of sky-side wood will get you in his good books for a long time.
Craftsdwarves (on rotation)
(note: Should you struggle to tell them apart, Mal has a small scar just visible above his impressive moustache)
It has occasionally taken people several years to figure out that there actually are two Splitfault brothers, especially since twins are exceedingly rare among the dwarves. Like the others in their family, the Splitfaults are of that rare kind that can make anything their eyes see, not just in metal, but in wood, stone and other materials. It was their seven-times great-grandfather who designed and made the woodcarvings Hwemenocter is known for, and the family has maintained their patriarch’s handiwork ever since. They will often accept work at other dwellings and estates to round out their working days.
Mal is the more talkative and jocular of the two. Nic is often quieter, except when riled up by his brother, or when he’s seen occasion to partake of the spitfire drop. When at work they are serious and inspired, often finding ways to add a little flair or flourish to even the most mundane job (if one ever wonders why the nails on the claws of the clawfoot tubs are done in gold leaf…). However, once off-duty, they are some of the most extravagant partiers in Gauntlgrym and not every tavern will admit them. Never play cards with a Splitfault, unless your pockets are too heavy.
Domesticants (on rotation)
Olv Kuypenmack, a dour old dwarf with a tarred and pleated beard who irons the bedsheets (his iron is actually just that: a giant hunk of shaped metal which he wields with tongs) after making the bed and cleans smudges off furniture by spitting on a handkerchief the size of a table cloth. Will call anyone younger than Methusalah ‘dear boy’ or ‘dear girl’, and will get this wrong with elves about 25% of the time. If engaged, he will relish telling of the two trips he’s even made to the surface, once to visit a small dwarven outpost for a wedding of his sister, and once to assist the city’s Wildlife Wrangler on a mission to reclaim several rothe, since he was the only one well enough to ride during the Great Flu that happened 87 years ago (even His Majesty himself was ill, just ask anyone!)
Hilde Alsesdottr, an adult female dwarf who, by the standards of her kind, looks ephemeral and elegant. Her hair and skin are both exceptionally pale, and her build is very light (there is some rumor her mother may have had a gnomish lover, but no one who values their lives will ever mention this to Alse, her husband Kef or Hilde herself). She is gregarious and quick to smile, and has a fondness for studying military history. She is mildly suspicious of magic, unless it has to do with the city’s forges, and is somewhat more dependent on her parents than could be expected of someone her age. If asked about romantic entanglements, she merely stutters (but sometimes she can be seen with a particular dwarf from the Gauntlgrym guard, whose name is Rafk Bellowforce). Her somewhat unusual last name (a matronymic) is a custom of a small subset of eastern mountain dwarves, from which she is descended.
Annekje Silverbeard, this young, dark-complexioned female dwarf is the newest addition to the ranks of service staff in the Vault of Kings. Not one to continue her education for longer than absolutely necessary, she has been assigned to Hwemenocter rosters as a young adult to gain experience and encounter people outside of her (large, deeply devout) family. As one of the few of her line not pursuing positions in the faith of Moradin, her parents and siblings eye her with suspicion, of which she is often not aware. She is chatty and easily distracted, but can be petty when she feels slighted (which is often). Luckily, she also forgives and forgets quickly. She feels more at ease with those who show some sign of having faith, and can occasionally overstep the bounds of professionalism when she thinks a lack of faith poses a danger to someone’s soul.
Ferg Hammerstruck, an exceptionally good-looking young male dwarf with brown hair, beard and eyes, who is particular about the niceties of service, especially when it comes to table settings and dinner service. This makes him a favorite of Ludgard when entertaining (and Ludgard sees himself as the mentor of the young man). Reads voraciously, especially in books of etiquette from all races and cultures. Likes the finer things in life and spends most of his wages on fine fabrics, and quality accessories. Is an accomplished huntsman, and not a bad cook, who will occasionally help Kirge during busy times. Can be a bit shy when approached, but quickly warms to people, especially if he finds they have good taste.