Calling all M-e historians. Could someone please point me in the direction of a time/place/event where the Easterlings/Wainriders/or Balchoth etc that warred with the dwarves? This will help me as LM to place an important plot item in place.

CIRCUMSTANCE:
During last week's campaign continuation (see the Iron Hills and Dorwinion thread for more details), the heroes tracked down a bandit/brigand posse who kidnapped the crew of a wine-barge, led by a leader who claims he is a long-lost heir or descendant of the Balchoth. After dispatching his band, the heroes knocked the brigand leader into submission and hauled him to justice to be dealt with. This leader used a spear (to great effect) against the heroes, and they claimed the spear as their - the Beorning who was Wounded and Weary by him took an active interest in holding it as a trophy of the weapon that bested him in combat. Because the player took such a vested interest in the spear, I would like to reward his interest in the story development by giving the spear some sort of history.

It would play in nicely to my campaign's current story arc if it could somehow tie into the dwarves of the Iron Hills specifically - perhaps used to kill a number of dwarves in the hands of an ancestor. The plan would be a hint dropped that delivering the spear to the dwarves of the Iron Hills it would earn them "favor" and prestige among the dwarves to set up future interactions and plot hooks by the dwarves.


As a last resort I'll try to make this all fit like a square peg in a round hole, but I try not to veer too far from the plausible historical canon of the Middle-earth history. Therefore, if it is written that Dwarves "NEVER" were confrontational with such cultures in the wars of history, then I'll refrain from working this angle - but it's one things to explicity know something "never" happened, and not having anything written one way or another to draw ones one conclusions from.

Hi SirKicley,

To my knowledge there is no positive evidence that the Dwarves were not in conflict with these people at some time, but there is also no proof that they did so. Thus IMO it depends how plausible and believable the background is developed.

We know that the Dwarves had no problem in making war upon anyone if it served their interests (probably mostly wealth-related). They even warred with other dwarves, so IMHO they would have absolutely no moral problems with fighting Easterlings of whatever origin. Practical problems (actual casus belli, stakes at hand, numbers, odds etc.) should be important IMO. Ideological causes play a role as well (see the war against the orcs), but IMO these are in the minority.

Cheers
Tolwen

With "no positive evidence" of Middle-earth history existing, I'd recommend plundering some historical events for inspiration. First, conflicts between the Holy Roman Empire and the Avar. Second, conflicts between Caesar and the Germanic tribes. (Caesar's Rhine Bridges leaps to my mind. This tactic goes perfectly with Dwarven ingenuity and pride to me!) I suggest these as they involve river frontier confrontations ... as you're running your campaign up and down the River Running, this may give you some ideas.

Considering how far east the Iron Hills were located, and how much wealth the Dwarves had and how little they'd be willing to share with others, I'd be surprised if there hadn't been some conflict.

Maybe there's an option to have a disputed history attached to the weapon - a sort of dolorous blow analogue, with some kind of mistaken conflict occurring resulting in tragic deaths. Two versions of a story which can be uncovered which alter the PH's perceptions of certain groups.

Perhaps some dwarves deny events, some are angry about them, some take a more forgiving view. Equally the same could go for the Earterlings, and you have some complex seeds of future conflict ripe to be exploited by agents of The Shadow.

Maybe? Shooting from the hip and a lack of coffee this morning...

Edit - oh there's some nice territory to be covered with steel quenched in wine, but also figuratively quenched in dwarf blood, and then the two things being linguistically interchangeable. That'd annoy dwarves one imagines...