Arnorn the Shining Champion Lore
Laughing, shouting, stomping, and singing, clad in glimmering scaled plate, Arnorn the Shining is impossible to miss. He is, after all, the Mountain King of Hrothglime, the Gilded Canton of the Glimmering Caverns, in the Skyiron Dominion. Famed for its hardy miners, vast gold reserves, magnificent opulence, and fiercely proud citizens, Hrothglime could not have a more appropriate leader than Arnorn, who embodies these traits — some say — to the point of excess.
The gold from Hrothglime’s mines flows into the Royal Mint, Skyiron’s only such manufactory. Each year many thousands of coins, each a masterwork impossible to counterfeit, are produced there, and go on to grease the wheels of the Dominion’s unstoppable engines of trade. Without Hrothglime’s mineral wealth, Skyiron’s global trade network would grind to a halt. Arnorn is well aware of the importance of his canton and, by extension, himself.
The heraldic beast of the Hrothglime canton is the golden cave monitor, a fearsome giant lizard. They are the apex predators of the caves they rule over, fearing nothing, not even armed Dwarves. Their scales have a polished golden hue and stand out starkly in the dark caverns, shining when exposed to the smallest glimmer of light. Having nothing to fear, the lizards’ coloration is no detriment to their survival, and they use it to signal their fitness to potential mates. The Hrothglime Dwarves revere the monitors for their strength, beauty, territoriality, and tenacity — all qualities that they themselves strive to demonstrate. The ceremonial armor of the Mountain King of Hrothglime is styled after these magnificent shimmering reptiles.
In demeanor and style, Arnorn is the quintessential Hrothglime Dwarf. He is flashy, chatty, boisterous, bold, and delights in wealth and comfort – whether golden baubles, fine food and drink, or the company of only the finest entertainers and companions. But his ostentation is not mere vanity, and he does not indulge lightly. What outsiders might call decadence, Arnorn considers a tribute to the hard work of his subjects who bring Hrothglime its prosperity. Being a stunning, captivating display of that collective toll is, Arnorn believes, a vital duty. Their wealth is hard-earned and well-deserved, and to downplay it would be to show ingratitude and thus dishonor it.
Any who perceive Arnorn as a soft and pampered dandy would do well to witness him on the field of battle. Being famously prosperous means Hrothglime is perpetually beset by thieves and raiders, and has even fought petty wars against other cantons over the centuries as other Dwarf factions sought to take a portion of Hrothglime’s resources for their own. For his unswerving devotion to Hrothglime’s defense and his eagerness to personally wade into combat at the forefront of his troops, Arnorn is well respected among his fellow Mountain Kings, for all his ‘excesses’. He is every bit as invested in the martial success of his people as his generals, strategists, and mightiest warriors.
The Dwarves respect kings who don’t shy away from battle, but even Arnorn’s subjects — especially his long-suffering bodyguards — think that Arnorn sometimes goes too far in his eagerness to ‘get stuck in’. One out of scores of battles against a gang of Orc and Ogryn raiders particularly stands in the memories of most. Bellowing taunts and warcries and hacking apart the surface-dwellers, Arnorn did not notice he had been separated from his honor guard and was dangerously isolated. By the time the enemy sounded a retreat, Arnorn was on the verge of collapse, moments away from being overpowered and dragged off as a hostage. When his bodyguards arrived at his side, he chided them for failing to keep up with him – not the first time he had made such a complaint. As far as Arnorn is concerned, any fighters wishing to stand by him had better be as tough and fearless as himself and by putting himself in danger, he spurs his underlings to fight even harder and hone their skills.
Another notable escapade of Arnorn’s was a diplomatic mission to Port Wretched, where he offended the Mountain King of Gloomdeep Hold, Duran, with an exceptionally generous gift. The dour and jealous Dwarf already had a low view of Skyiron after meeting the Skyiron Admiral and seeing the ‘gaudiness’ of his uniform. It took all of Duran’s will to not refuse, an act which would have enraged Arnorn, who would have hated to see his people’s work scorned, but Gloomdeep’s Mountain King was furious nonetheless. Arnorn pays little attention to distant rivals, preferring to dote on his spirited wife and their many beardlings — his most valued treasures – growing up in the halls of his gilded palace. His lineage is secure, and with it, the future of Hrothglime. The richness of his life comes alongside great responsibility, and with much to be grateful for, he has much to defend.