Tarrag Duun - the Lost Dwarven Fortress

 

Tarrag Duun used to be a bustling dwarven stronghold, with over 3300 dwarven souls. It was founded in the northeast of Karameikos back in AC 302, when the dwarves of Rockhome were colonising outside Rockhome's borders. A band of dwarves from the Torkrest clan followed the Altan Tepes mountains south between Darokin and Ylaurum. They encountered bands of chaotic humanoids who were easily brushed aside but then they ran into much tougher and larger foes - frost giants. The giants killed some of the bravest dwarf warriors and devoured them in front of their horrified kin, who promptly fled. The dwarves took refuge in a cavern with a narrow entrance that the frost giants could not squeeze through. While the giants waited outside, the dwarves looked around their new shelter and recognised ores embedded in the rock - iron and silver.  And the cavern went deeper and deeper into the heart of the earth, with iron and silver ores appearing all along the walls. 

Cut off from Rockhome by the frost giants to the north, the dwarves had to venture south to find food and trading partners - and so they came into contact with the gnomes and humans of the Traldar. The cavern became the mining town of Tarrag Duun, and its defences were made strong and cunning, able to repel a wide range of foes, especially the hated frost giants. 

Trade with Rockhome was sporadically established during the summer months, as the giants retreated up into the colder glacier-covered peaks of the Altan Tepes, allowing the dwarves to travel along the relatively safe\and warm valleys. 

image by Alex Guiness, source

The vast bulk of Tarrag Duun is underground - only a sturdy bastion stands out on the surface, an elaborate gatehouse controlling entrance into the lower halls. 

For over five centuries Tarrag Duun was a thriving community and fortress for the dwarves of Traladar, and the dwarves dug deep and expanded the mines, the living quarters and the fortifications. 

But in AC 830 twin disasters struck. 

Firstly there was a supposed concerted campaign to destroy the frost giants. Allies from Rockhome and other dwarven strongholds were supposed to meet up with Tarrag Duun's finest warriors in one of the deep valleys and then march on the frost giants' glacial dens. But rather than allies, the dwarf soldiers found themselves surrounded by frost giants and their humanoid lackeys - orcs, ogres and gnolls. The chaotic horde rushed down into the valley from all sides and in a mighty battle the dwarves were slain almost completely. Only a dozen survivors escaped, unable to comprehend what had happened but treachery and subterfuge is the most plausible explanation. 

The second tragedy happened less than a week later when miners deep under Tarrag Duun accidentally tunneled into a natural cavern that was home to a major goblin tribe of over 6000 members. This caught both sides by surprise but the goblins seized the initiative and pushed up into Tarrag Duun. Had there been more dwarf warriors surviving from the earlier frost giant ambush, the dwarves might have held back the goblins and perhaps sealed the breach. But the dwarven defences were expecting attacks to come from the surface, not deep below and had too few defenders. And the goblins were aided by monstrous allies, including trolls, minotaurs and a small family of black dragons. The dwarven defences broke, and hundreds of dwarves fled out of the bastion and made their way into Traladar. Many other dwarves died trying to flee or desperately trying to defend their home. 

The majority of the survivors headed south and west, especially Highforge, where the gnomes gave refuge to their dwarf cousins. Some made their way north back to Rockhome where they reported the bad news. 

 

These days (AC 1000) Tarrag Duun is all but forgotten. Only the oldest dwarves remember it, and dreams of reclaiming it for the glory of the dwarves have been abandoned. But occasionally bands of dwarves or other adventurers try their luck, usually starting at Castellan Keep and heading north. Fewer than 1 in 3 such expeditions return but those that do come back say that not only are there still many orcs and goblins there, but that they are bolstered by other, more terrible creatures, including at least one surviving black dragon. Yet these returning adventurers often come back with gold and silver coins of ancient dwarven stamps, and the occasional enchanted dwarf-forged weapon or shield. 

In terms of game design, Tarrag Duun is intended as a multi-level megadungeon, filled with dwarven riches, monstrous denizens and cunning traps (some set by the dwarves long ago, others by more recent residents). It was inspired by (and very loosely based on) the Mines of Moria (from the Fellowship of the Ring) and Erebor, the Lonely Mountain (from the Hobbit).