How can Dwarves actually fight...

How can Dwarves actually fight? Maybe it's a brainlet thought but realistically in most fantasy settings they're of very short height and prefer to wield very low range weapons (axes, hammers). It seems like it's be a struggle for them in any fight.

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magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/metadwarfosis-2005-11-23-0
youtube.com/watch?v=dkhpqAGdZPc#27m43s
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warhammer and the settings it inspired often give them guns and other tech

...

You know how some prarie predators like big cats catch their prey? It's probably like that. They're small, but they have a huge amount of muscle for their size, and when compared to their lower weight relative to a human, they essentially pounce and beat or chop their opponent to pieces. It's only due to their dense musculature that they're able to preform comparable to a human.

You've used the word realistic in the same sentence as the word fantasy. Sit down and contemplate that.

Physically fit, stronger than baseline humans, etc.

If you're fighting mainly underground, height isn't a big deal.

When will they learn??

Spears, short swords and shields backed up by crossbowdwarves/gunners.

Yes this is the more practical method, much better than more stunties with goddamn axes.

This.

so dwarf is the most anime race?

Being the guy who tattoo'd a steroid midget is probably the most cyberpunk anyone of this generation will be.

they are basically like manlets at the gym, they are fucking short but make gains real fast now multiply it by ten thanks to dwarf testosterone that gives them ultra tenacity

I'm reminded of that MtG lore guy trying to design dwarves "logically" and step by step the end result was just a goblin.
magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/metadwarfosis-2005-11-23-0

Dwarves make no sense.

He's a low-test faggot.

Probably a tree-lover too.

I mean if he wants to design dwarfs, there's the concept of mole people.

squinty eyed fuzzy mean with big meaty arms and hands digging through the earth.

Mole people instead of dwarves sounds pretty cute for a fantasy setting.

Unless they are star-noses, those things are freakish.

In formation fighitng, the best weapons for dwarf squads would probably be polearms. Them having a small body profile and being very strong would help in creating almost inpenetrable phallanx. Couple that with crossbows/firearms in 2:1 ratio (2 pikeman for every gunner) and you have basically mobile shooting strongholds, that would only be threatend by artillery or magic.

I'm thinking full early Tercio, 1-1 Pike and Shot. It kind of fits with Dwarves being thought of as one of the higher tech races too.

This doesn't still make axes the more sensible weapon choice for them.

If you're fighting underground weapons you have to swing around instead of stab with are a worse idea.

Adding to , fighting a dwarf with a shield would be rediculous hard for a human. The height difference would mean a dwarf holding a shield to protect his head is also going to be covering all the other lines of attack towards his body. A human, even trying to strike low, is going to be unable to avoid the shield’s rim, while the center would protect high the high line. Dwarfs don’t need massive towe shields, a good (dwarf) sized Viking shield would do the trick admirably. It would actually be really hard to break a Dwarven shield wall. Plus their high strength low center of gravity means you do not want to get into grappling range of them; they’re gonna fuck your shit up with Dwarfjitsu. The best way to beat Dwarf is polearms to keep them at a distance, or cavalry (which they usually lack). But even then a good shield wall is going to be hard to crack. In all honesty, Stunties would be very hard to crack on the battlefield, and your best of using strategic mobility to outmaneuver and defeat them. Hit and run tactics, scorched earth etc. Trying to take a Dwarf fortress would be damned near impossible without amble magic or gunpowder weapons (the late also being a traditional dwarf niche).

Better muscle fiber and stronger bones. More like a chimpanzee than a human.

>Mole people instead of dwarves sounds pretty cute for a fantasy setting.

That's more goofy than scary

I thought pretty much the same, but with steel shields or dwarf pavises to beef up defense even further

Star-Noses are Duergar, changed irrevocably by living deeper underground and for longer without the light than other dwarves. Where other dwarves see poorly in the light, Duergar are completely blind, navigating entirely through their incredibly sensitive facial tendrils.

They're basically dwarven morlocks.

Patrician dwars use spears and pikes. A dorf shieldwall in a tunnel is probably nearly unbreakable.

Spears are for goblins and gnomes faggot.

>not line infantry

A much smaller target who has much greater physical strength. They could wear armor that’s both smaller, saving material, that could also be heavier due to their frame.

>Risking gunpowder weapons in a tunnel
>giving the enemy smoke to cover their advance
Best to keep the powder weapons for bigger caves or above-ground.

You might like Digger, it's a webcomic about a wombat person which is kind of like a mole person. The gnolls in the comic are pretty cool too.

Reach stops mattering as much when heavy armor and/or shields are involved. Having your shoulders closer to the height of the target also improves your effective reach. Video showing this:

youtube.com/watch?v=dkhpqAGdZPc#27m43s

This. Sometimes they aren't very short, it's because they are so bulky that makes them look smaller. Imagine a 4" Hulk, with proportial strenght. Even with the shorter arms and legs, it can run a lot and if catch you, well you are fucked. Also they are much more resistent than average humans

They have to be short, a human sized dwarf would be like Space Marine lvl, and a SM sized dwarf would be just fucking OP

Good luck swinging that axe in a tunnel or hallway, Urist McRetard. I hope you like whacking your own guys.

You can very easily swing an axe in a hallway, especially when you are a 3-4 feet high person with a smaller than normal axe.

Spears also are not very good when you can't continuously move backwards and kite a sword/axe user. Hard to move backwards in a confined space.

P I K E S

I'm writing a fantasy novel and this is ostensibly one of the races. Looks wise they're kind of like a cross between a kinder and a naked mole rat, but they're a mountain dwelling race known for their skilled craftsmen as they have extremely deft hands. Problem is most of what they make is fit for a human child of 8 or 9 years. They're less based on dwarves and more "I need to put some race in this mountain range. What makes sense, draw it out to it's logical conclusik
On". I could go on and on but nobody wants to hear that much about my shit so.

The logistics of carrying a 12-20 foot long stick in a cave system is enough of a problem to make pikes an obvious no

Quite the opposite, user! Please, do tell us about your shit.
Hell, I'll beta read it if you want.

Spearwall, unmovable wall of shields and points.

>maneuvering a spear block in a tunnel

SKREEEE STOP STEALING THE THINKY THOUGHTS OUT OF MY BRAIN SATAN

Though to be fair, my quicklings are more like rats+halflings, and are nomadic or live in shitty mound villages

My Dwarves are a combination of dwarves and boar orcs, extremely territorial but skilled makers of bronze and ceramic who supplement their diets with rocks

You on't have to outmaneuver, you just have to seal the tunnel.

Sure, once I have a rough draft that'd be swell. I'm still working on outlining, only done the worldbuilding so far. I don't want to just vomit a wall of text and eat up the thread so I'll give a quick overview. Other than the Molerat guys we've got Tree People, strictly carnivorous and veritably immortal, though they die when giving birth/inseminating and to live a long life is considered cowardly. Upon death turn into basically a wine cask where if you drink their fermented blood you can experience their memories, ergo literal "hall of spirits". A couple races of beastmen, one of which is part wolf and able to interact with other races, others more or less just "wereX's". Very "unique" dragons, but otherwise just dragons. Various fun animals. Magic system is based around contracts with spirits, including "demons". I'll be happy to elaborate on any one of those that sounds interesting.

>this post
when will they learn?