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Svirfguard
Zigny Rubynkle, a small but feisty deep gnome, lived among the clans of
the Southern Reach. He often took the warmwatch at the Doorway, the
rear entrance to a cave complex often used by the few traveling gypsy,
known as the Vaaga or "People of the Mists" and merchant gnomes who
traded at the city market. The caves were also used by orcish and
goblin raiders who sought the gems and treasures of the gnomes. The
most northern Houses of N'Tel, the dark elf nation, had in times past
attempted to wrest control of this warren from the svirfneblin, but the
last try had been ages ago when N'Tel had been quite a bit more
powerful. Since then the svirfneblin had flourished, while the drow had
suffered a military overthrow and rebellion, then the Succession Wars
between the Houses had begun winnowing out the weak drow families.
Now the two dozen deep gnomes that made up the warmwatch
lounged in the guardhouse while only Zignabioltinus Rubynkle Third
Sergeant of the Seventh Pick of Gargin stood watching from the hidden
vantage, and a handful watched from other posts. He had hated the
standing law that all young men of adult age must enlist in the
Svirfguard for at least four years, especially when he had seen the
attitude of his peers. He was determined to do his job honorably and
earn his new status as full member of the clan and his share to all
earnings of the family mines. His fellows wanted their shares, but
wanted the waiting over for they saw their four year enlistment as
nothing more. By the end of his first year he had distinguished himself
to his superiors and gained the rank of Fourth Sergeant, second to the
Warmwatch C'Mander and tenth highest ranking officer in the garrison.
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C'Mander
Derviskopal was a lifer, he had seen three goblin wars and fought the
dark elves and deep dwarves hundreds of times, he had thousands of
stories to tell and scared the new recruits with tales of sneak
attacks, drow ambushes and Vaaga kidnappings every night in the Hall of
FireStones by the hearth. He rarely left the Hold. Though he would
stomp every inch of the grounds popping in on every guard at random
intervals, he almost never travelled to the borderwatch posts beyond
the main gates. Warmwatch C'Mander Frijolipur Derviskopal was Second
Sergeant of the Seventh Pick of Gargin, third in command of Southreach
Hold and took his position very seriously, as he had for nearly a
century and a half.
Only three border outposts were manned by the garrison.
The Doorway rarely saw visitors, especially during daylight hours,
making it the most boring of the three outposts, even during the busier
coldwatch. Second was the Caverns, which were often invaded by drakes,
purple worms, or umberhulk, making it easily the most dangerous of the
outposts, but it also had the most elaborate defenses. The Cavern Wall
was designed to keep any invader from attacking while allowing the
svirfneblin to attack from the defended position behind the wall. The
third outpost, called the Passage, saw the underground travellers. The
Daaga (deep dwelling relatives of the Vaaga), gnomes, svirfs, dwarves
and other underground races who desired peaceful trade, all used the
tunnels as subterranean roads. The Passage connected Zigny's town,
Sparkside, to the underground road.
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