With the release of Shadow and Flame, some new warriors have marched to join the Free Peoples. Being Dwarves, they haven't marched very quickly ("Keep breathing, that's the key! Breathe!") but they're here now to take their rightful place. The Dwarves in Shadow and Flame represent the folk of Moria and Erebor, stalwarts in the fight against evil, great craftsmen and hardy warriors. Though not the swiftest or most graceful of the Free Peoples, the Dwarves are rightly respected throughout Middle-earth. Without further ado, let's dive in and take a look at what they have to offer.

UNYIELDING AS STONE

The key advantage that Dwarves have is a simple one: Defence. These doughty folk are incredibly hardy, capable of great feats of endurance and of shrugging off blows that would injure or kill another. Added to this is their great craft with metals of all kinds, leading to the creation of armour that is superior even to that produced by the Elves. Together, these factors make the Dwarves the toughest race in Middle-earth. Even the most lightly armoured Dwarves have a Defence of 6 without a shield, and a Defence of 7 with one. This, as you can imagine, makes them a very challenging proposition to slay.

AND MY AXE!

Dwarves are not only tough in defence they're also fairly solid in attack too. With a Fight value of 4 they are able to draw combats with Uruk-hai and can beat Orcs hands down. Combine this with their resilience, and a despairing Evil player may think his only option is to pincushion the sturdy fellows (a difficult enough proposition with Defence 6 and 7). Alas, for the Forces of Darkness, the Dwarves are no more easy pickings at range than they are in close combat. Bringing great expertise and craftsmanship even to their bows, Dwarves pack quite a punch at range as their arrows hit home at Strength 3. Before the forces of Evil despair entirely, this increased power comes at a price – Dwarf bows have only a range of 18"/42cm.

LET THEM COME

The final advantage a Dwarf player can muster is that of Dwarven bravery. With a Courage value of 4, Dwarves are more likely to pass their Courage tests than they are to fail – a useful thing when trying to attack those terrifying creatures, and in the final phases of a battle. As normal, this slopes pretty steeply with Captains and named characters taking Dwarven Courage to the same level as that of Elves – Dwarves do not run if there is a chance of enduring.

THE ELDER DAYS ARE PASSING

Like the Elves and Ents, Dwarves are one of the Elder races and, in the closing days of the Third Age, are in decline. While mightier than the younger races and having some distinct advantages, all of these advantages come at a cost. Dwarves are expensive – nearly twice as expensive to field as Men and Orcs – but given that a Dwarf is easily the equal of two Orcs (naturally) this is not such a problem. The main disadvantage they suffer is a lack of mobility due to their short legs. Dwarves may be natural sprinters, but larger bipeds can leave them behind with great ease. Fortunately for the Dwarves the key footsoldiers of Sauron – Orcs and Goblins – move no faster than they do, which serves to even the score somewhat.

THE DWARF LORDS

Mighty Heroes lead all of the races of Middle-earth and the Dwarves are no exception. Chief amongst these are the cousins Gimli and Balin. Both of the ruling line of Durin, each has survived great perils in their lives, Balin in the quest to free Erebor and Gimli in the War of The Ring. Unfortunately, while Gimli's tale continues well into the Fourth Age of Middle-earth, Balin's ends in tragedy within his ancestral halls of Moria. With very little to choose between the two in their profiles it is very much a personal choice as to which you want to field. Gimli has more survivability, while Balin has more Will and is a little cheaper, and also has the option to carry Durin's Axe. Either way, they are both veritable mincing machines and are quite capable of challenging any of the Evil Heroes. Of course, you can always include them both. Dwarven Captains and Kings are in the traditional way progressively better than basic Dwarves. Accordingly, they are your best value way of holding weak sections of the line. With a high Fight and Defence and with plentiful Might you can quite happily leave these guys to their own devices while you worry about other portions of the battle.

THE KHAZÂD GUARD

A final mention should be given to the doughty defenders of the Dwarven Lords: the Khazâd Guard. Clad in heavy Dwarven armour, and wielding two-handed axes, these individuals are truly great fighters. Such is their great power, their blows hit home with a Strength of 4, and when this is combined with their two-handed axes, they can cut down all but the toughest foes with ease. You needn't worry about them being overwhelmed either, as they can always switch to using their hand axes to increase their chance of winning a fight. The final, and in some ways most important, thing about Khazâd Guard is their unshakeable courage. Given their nature as a bodyguard, Khazâd Guard are always assumed to pass any Courage tests while their nominated ward is still alive. Admittedly with their high Courage Dwarves don't tend to fail many tests, but a certainty is always worth trading for a possibility.

Next: On The Battlefield