Auxiliary race for Dwarves

[Leogun_91]

I second them having humans if they are to have any sidekicks.

[grumbaki]

I always thought that human mountain clans would be excellent auxilliaries for a Dwarven army; think Scottish Highlanders.

The fluff explanation is that these humans migrated into the mountains centuries or millennia ago. They're too few to survive on their own, owing to the harsh conditions and continual greenskin/skaven/chaos/ogre/chaos dwarf raids, but they've entered into pacts with the local Dwarf lords for their own protection. The humans grow crops and raise livestock in exchange for Dwarf manufactured goods, and serve alongside the Dwarves in battle. They've adopted a wide range of Dwarven cultural traits, including a strong sense of honour, stubborness and liking for fermented grains. Who do you think grows the grain for that Dwarf beer? Is it all fungus based, or are there unknown clans of Dwarf farmers we've never heard of. And the notion of carting the grain from the Empire is nonsensical at best. So, humans must be living nearby.

Typical units would be archers, light cav, skirmishers and scouts. The idea is that they're raiders and light infantry, who complement the Dwarf heavy infantry and war machines. They're the Dwarves' aboveground eyes and ears, complementing the Rangers and watchtowers normally used.

It makes perfect sense to me, and I think could be something that the Dwarf army book seriously needs. Because we really need someone to act as light troops, it's a gaping hole in our book.

WFRP 1 had this. Sadly, I no longer have the book with the info, but a few dwarf holds have small human towns near them. The dwarfs are somewhat like feudal lords who can call up the humans in battle. The article even had a section on human heroes who fought for the dwarfs. It also mentions that in many cases the humans will act more dwarven than the dwarfs, as they feel that they have something to prove.

[Promethius]

If anything, I think it would be something like the knockers:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knocker_%28folklore%29

Which are basically spirits that legend has it would live in mines, warning miners of dangers, being mischievous and taking a small quota of supplies as payment. They would be a little like the 40k dark angels watchers, rather than units that fight in combat.

[Urgat]

Things like that, the dwarfs would hunt them the same way they would goblins, if you ask me

[CommanderCax]

Yup Gnomes were a cheaper version of dwarves back in the old days. The last list they had iirc was the old forces of fantasy army book.

They were still in the WFB 3rd ed. supplement Warhammer Armies. If I remember correctly they had S 3 and T 2 and access to spears (though Dwarfs of that time also had access to spears IIRC) and as mentioned were rather cheap pointswise. Look here for Citadel Gnomes.

[Skopey]

BRING BACK BARRY THE BOLD!!!!!! Awesome. Might have to try and get me a few