T​he 
S​ecrets 
of 

D​warves 
 
by Aaron King 
 
Dwarves live in a city in a mountain at the bottom of the world. This 
city is never named because no one is allowed to find it. Every day, 
they celebrate their skills and seek to discover the gifts the gods left 
them. These secret gifts give them great joy, so they like to keep and 
reveal their own secrets as well. Every night, they keep the demons of 
hell from escaping their prison at the center of the world. 
 
A single game of ​The Secrets of Dwarves​ reflects one day-and-night 
cycle in their nameless city at the bottom of the world. 
 
Goal:​ To end the game alive, with at least one of your secrets revealed 
and at least one secret still secret. 
art by ​Kevin Budnik 
 
 
 
 
 
   
Character Creation 
Dwarves have built their society around seven Virtues: 
GROOMING (beardcraft, accessorizing, bespoke, make-up, tattoos) 
DRINKING  (ale-guzzling, shots, keg stands, drinking games, leading rounds) 
CRAFTING  (stonecraft, jewelry, wood carving, sculpting) 
STRENGTH (lifting, throwing, pulling, pushing, wrestling) 
POETRY (family sagas, slam poetry, doggerel, song) 
DIVINING (finding ore, finding water, casting runes, telling fortunes) 
ROMANCE (mostly indescribable) 
 
Assign your Virtues a number, 0-6. Each number can only be used once. A higher number indicates greater accomplishment and more likelihood 
of success. 
 
The values assigned to Grooming, Drinking, and Crafting are public. The others can be hidden. 
 
Create two secrets. One is potentially revealed by winning a contest related to a Virtue of your choosing. One is potentially revealed by losing a 
contest related to a Virtue of your choosing. 
 
Lastly, choose a gender for your dwarf. This is kept secret; it is your most delightful secret and will be revealed only to the dwarves you marry. 
Possible genders are nearly limitless, but here are some options: agender, androgyne, bigender, boy, demiboy, demigirl, dirt, gem, genderfluid, 
gendersmash, girl, intergender, man, metal, nonbinary, ore, pangender, polygender, stone, woman, rock 
 
 
Round One 
Characters are celebrating the night’s victories and the day’s marriages. In round one, each player must challenge one other to a contest in a 
Virtue of their choice. The oldest player goes first. Play continues to their left. 
 
Both players roll a die and add their skill number to the roll. The higher result wins. The characters receive appropriate tick marks in the “wins” and 
“losses” columns of their sheets. Any applicable secrets are revealed. 
 
Example: Hrothgar High-Rock has the secret, “Left pinkie finger is an immaculately constructed prosthetic,” and that secret is only revealed on a 
loss of a Crafting contest. Jillian the Hammer-Headed has the secret “Can sculpt lead like water” that is only revealed on a win in a Crafting 
contest. 
 
Jillian challenges Hrothgar to a Crafting contest. They plan to make busts of each other. Jillian rolls a 5 and adds their 3 Crafting for a total of 8. 
Hrothgar rolls a 4 and adds their Crafting of 1 for a total of 5. Hrothgar loses, and both dwarves reveal a secret. 
 
Round Two 
Night falls. The demons are here. Each player, in turn, adopts the identity of one of the manifold beasts of hell, starting with the player who went 
last in round one. Demons need a realm of origin, terrifying features, and at least one name. 
 
Each demon chooses one dwarf to challenge. The demon chooses which Virtue will decide the challenge, and it has a 6 in that Virtue. The dwarf 
may recite the tales of as many of their wins as they’d like, regaling the demon with how they were achieved. This wins are “bid” on the battle. 
 
On a win, the dwarf gains a number of wins equal to the number they recited plus one, as their listed deeds are amplified by besting a demon. 
Also, secrets may be revealed depending on their conditions. 
 
If the dwarf loses, there are a number of potential consequences: 
- The wins they recited are converted to losses. They gain an additional loss as well. 
- If the dwarf has any unrevealed secrets, the demon may demand it reveal one if it so desires. 
- If the dwarf recited wins and they’ve already revealed both of their secrets, that dwarf is killed. However, it destroys the demon as well, 
overcoming it with the power of their deeds. 
- If the dwarf ​did not r​ ecite any wins and has already revealed both secrets, the dwarf is killed, and their body is tainted by their cowardice 
and inhabited by the demon. It will rise in 24 hours as an unholy thing. 
- A secret may be revealed if appropriate based on the Virtue and win or loss of the contest. This happens after the fight is concluded but 
before​ the dwarf dies, if applicable. 
 
After all demon challenges are completed, the night is over. 
 
 
Round Three 
Living dwarves return home. They must bring any corrupted and possessed compatriots with. These dwarves are ritualistically slain, and the player 
of the slain dwarf must distribute their losses to the other dwarves, using each loss to cancel out one win. 
 
Once this grisly duty is completed, dwarves with wins may propose marriage to any other dwarf. The two must discuss the terms of their contract, 
including property ownership, sexual allowances, and so on. If they come an agreement, they are bound forever. They reveal their genders to each 
other, each gaining an unrevealed secret (their spouse’s gender). 
 
Once the marriages are finalized, the players may drink. Those characters with at least one of their secrets revealed ​and​ unrevealed are seen as 
successful within dwarven society.