Weekly Beasties: Helpful Delver (d20)
The Helpful Delver is a Weekly Beastie developed by Gorgon Breath Games! You can support additional monsters through a pay-what-you-want donation¸ or backing our Patreon. Check out our home page for more details!
When civilized races first began constructing their dungeons¸ one of the first discovered creatures were the delvers. This intelligent race lives deep underground¸ burrowing through caves and bedrock to design elaborate lairs. While not especially antagonistic¸ many delvers came into conflict with surface races who encroached into their territory.
Most delvers dug deeper to maintain their solitude¸ but a few proved willing to engage with dwarves and surface races in trade. In exchange for food or protection¸ delvers agreed to help craft their dungeons. While initially skeptical¸ most races ultimately accepted these deals when they realized delvers could forge tunnels far quicker than their own craftsmen. A few even convinced delvers to breach the dungeons of rivals¸ allowing armies to quickly reach their enemies.
Despite their monstrous appearance¸ delvers are not mindless beasts and will respond in anger to anyone attempting to deceive them. At a minimum¸ surface dwellers who attempt to betray the delver's favor can expect their expensive armor to be destroyed by acid¸ leaving them naked and defenseless underground.