Iron March is a province in the mid-north of the Divine Empire and is the centre for mining, metallurgy and manufacturing. With the coming of the Higher Races the region was heavily influenced by the Hovarden Dwarven clan who tutored the local humans in their skills and sciences.
The Stalen Mountains on northern Warlderia were and are still rich in iron ore and have been mined since the Dwarves arrived in the region. The ore was smelted and then blended to make the best steel. The Hovarden Dwarfs were fair masters to their human wards and trained them well in exchange for dutiful service. Over time many of the humans adopted the hard working and dower manners of the Dwarves but chided as they were and could never be seen as equals.
Dwarves are very proud and protective of their lineage so it is not a well-known fact that over the many years of interaction between the Hovarden Dwarves and their human acolytes that a degree of inter-breeding occurred. There are always a number of male Dwarves that exceed the number of female Dwarves and normally these lifelong bachelors channel themselves in to their crafts. With the close dottiness of their human servants it was not unknown for a degree of intimacy to develop between Dwarf and human.
In Dwarven society breeding with a non-Dwarf is a taboo bringing shame on both the individual and his whole extended family. Due to the proximity of Dwarf and woman in Iron March a relatively high number of these mixed offspring occurred that became a shunned sub-culture with the area. This minority was bitter towards their Dwarven fathers and when Kaegor’s revolt began they enthusiastically joined it. In turn the Hovarden Dwarves expelled all their human followers and subsequently alienated them as well. The Dwarves were faced with a bitter low intensity conflict of ambush and flight for which they were not at all suited. Even though the Dwarves held the fortresses and settlements the countryside around them was rife with rebels and assassins. As matters worsened elsewhere in Warlderia the Dwarves withdrew to the west of the Stalen Mountains and expelled all humans from those lands leaving what is now Iron March for its disloyal human ex-subjects.
The Kombel Family of Half-Dwarves now rules Iron March from their industrial city of Debdric. Within their family they appoint the Iron Masters who swears allegiance to the Divine Emperor but otherwise rules as they see fit within his province. The Kombel family have long studied the old Dwarven texts and now develop their own techniques for the blending of metals and the creation of devices.
The settlements tend to be centres of manufacturing and industry, they can be polluted and conditions generally poorer than in the countryside but the workers are better paid. There are often temples or shrines to Bleredd the god of metal and smiths as well as to Pelor the healing god.
The countryside tends to be much less interfered with by the Iron Masters who are content to let the locals to themselves provided they supply the towns and cities with foodstuffs and raw materials. Here the Old Faith is most common with a much more sedate pace.
Surprisingly Iron March is a very mixed province where any and all races may reside, even Dwarves. There is a relatively high number of Half-Elves, Halflings and Gnomes in the province plus it is a haven for Half-Dwarves from all over Warlderia. The Iron Masters will not tolerate those who seek to stir dissent and animosity amongst its peoples and agitators have been known to ‘go away’ at a moment’s notice.
Iron March is a province of contrasts from the grim industrial settlements to the sedate countryside steeped in the old ways. With a mixed and varied population under the benign but stern eye of the Iron Masters.