In the cold lands of Skutagaard it is customary to burn the bodies of the dead and to bury their ashes in tumulus. Outsiders believe that this is just a religious custom of the northern peoples, but the reason is much darker. In Skutagaard, when someone dies and a proper ritual is not performed, the Lich Lord can turn the corpse into a Draugr. Inhabitants of the wild lands beyond Birfost, the Draugar are faithful servants of the Lich Lord: an unstoppable force of darkness who seek to conquer the lands of Skutagaard, relentlessly attacking the various peoples who inhabit it. Immune to all needs, fear and pain, they are soulless war machines, with the sole purpose of killing and increasing the troops of the Lich Lord, until all Skutagaard is under their rule.

With most Draugar in the ranks of the Lich Lord, some ancient ones are sealed in olden tombs of previous eras, killing the incautious adventurers who dare to unseal their doors to seek fortune and relics.

The proud Dwarves of Skutagaard, tempered by the cold winds and thousand adversities, are excellent hunters, warriors and artisans who have settled in the core of the Skutagaard mountains.
The Mountaineer’s clan is one of the few clans to live in the surface, in a Dwarven village called Huskald, built on the slopes of snow-capped mountains. Each Dwarven Clan is administrated by a Jarl, a powerful and charismatic leader who is vassal of the elder Mountain King, true ruler of the Dwarves of Skutagaard.

The Mountaineers, thanks to their natural toughness and resilience, are extremely skilled in chasing and  taking down large animals and monsters, whose resources are used to improve their equipment and nourish various dwarven Clans throughout Skutagaard.
By living and hunting in the outside world, the Mountaineers of Huskald established bonds of exchange with different ethnic groups, or, in other cases, a continuous battle as against the Svartwood Trolls and their King Drugvandel.
While this is a menace that the Jarl of Huskald and his mountaineers can keep at bay, the entire army of the Dwarves King will be needed to protect Skutagaard from the clutches of the corrupt Lich Lord and his terrifying Frostmetal Orcs and Ogres.

Dwarves who defeat the fiercest monsters are given the sacred Huskald Ceremonial Mask, which is said to accompany these warriors even to their cairns, when their souls reaches their ancestor in the Great Mead Hall.