One quick question. I know that often time dwarfs are shown as having beards in Shadowrun. Other than dwarfs being dwarfs does anyone ever give a reason they don't just shave? I mean does the beard just grow too fast? I only ask because it seems if I looked like a stereotypical dwarf the last thing I would want is a garden gnome look to add to it.

Dwarves have far to broad shoulders to look like garden gnomes. They also lack the pointy hats.


As to the main question, The Dwarves of shadowrun trace there origin back tolken's work. And in the Lord of the Rings dwarves have all have beards.

I'd imagine that dwarves beards do in fact grow at an accelerated rate when compared to humans.

The main reason dwarves usually have beards, however, is probally because it's expected of them. Beardless dwarves look wierd and you get a whole bunch of questions from the big folk about why you shaved off your beard and what not. It's far more simple just to live a sterotype then fight it.

However, it should be noted that by no means all dwarves are bearded, it's just the most common look for them.

You could say that dwarfs have coarser hair than elves and humans, and on top of that there seems to be a tendency for dwarfs to be workaholics and regular shaving is simply more time consuming than keeping a beard. Other than that, it's probably a combination of stereotype, social pressure, and out-of-game expectations that build so many SR dwarfs in that mold.

Actually, beardless dwarves have been pictured in some of the older SR books. I'm fairly certain one of the Contacts books for either SR2 or SR3 pictured a couple beardless dwarves in the art.

And you're right... they look weird.

Arthur Vogel doesn't have a beard.

For the Vogel Pic, try the Dunk's Secrets book

I was just reading that the other night, actually. Ah, for the glory days of Super Tuesday

Yes, the good old days...

Which isn't necessarily a bad thing...

Because beards rock?

Especially since it means you don't need to shave, just get it trimmed now and then.

A better question is, why don't you?

Thats why I have a goatee. I am doing way to much to shave all the time, and lets face it, the around the mouth and chin area is the biggest pain to shave, so its a time saving device. Dwarves are just ahead of the curve on this one, I look for humans to catch up by the 7th or 8th world.

You're a three foot tall Adult.... in a world where the vast majority of three foot tall people are children. Or baby trogs.

How do you distinguish yourself as an adult?

Don't shave.

Oh sorry, thought you were referring to my post. Mea culpa.

Nothing to read here, then. Move along!

Isn't the hacker on the cover of the BBB a beardless dwarf?

...at least the two female dwarves in the sample character section SR4 BBB don't have beards. Would be real tough on the one who is the face.

...in one other game [which should not be mentioned] it was also said that female dwarves could also have beards. Thankfully Shadowrun didn't follow that line.

Dwarves have beards? Since when? Surely some do and some don't. If you want to talk about a natural state, then men have beards unless they shave. But lots of men don't have beards. So I don't see why dwarves, who come from every human culture in existence would be any more likely to have a beard than a human.

I don't remember anything in cannon that said a dwarf must or should have a beard. I don't see why any other races should have significantly different hair patterns, either. My second favourite troll character has a big head of ginger hair.

Well it could be that the dwarf race tends to grow facial hair easier. I know some guys that shave twice a day, and some that only need to once a week. It's never stated, like in SOTA 63 where it talks about dwarfs tending towards a higher than average lean towards being left handed.

On one hand I have a beard about the length that they show dwarves so I like them. On the other hand I can see drawves shaving just so they don't get them caught in machinery!

Sort of like Blacksmiths. Despite what you see in movies, historically blacksmiths were one of the few people in a village who didn't have a beard. That is because hair burns well!

Ahem! Going back to second edition: aren't dwarfs classified " homo sapiens pumilionis"
That seems to imply faster growing / more profuse body hair. Doesn't it?

I must add that I am very happy with female dwarfs, orks and trolls actually looking feminine right now. I love the chinese ork gunslinger in the BBB. The dwarf face looks wrong, though.

Cheers,

Max

Maybe that dwarf was ugly.

I always thought that the BBB cover dwarf was just a dude wearing a jersey and some track shorts with a long braid. Hmm, maybe I should get my eyes checked again.

I have to agree that I enjoy the fact that Troll female doesn't mean Chyna or some other freaky looking bodybuilder chick. Course, I couldn't imagine the fetishes that would crop up from having 4 new species to play with.

Dwarf Santa?

First: Why are you necroing threads from 3 weeks ago? It's not that I mind, its just, unusual to necro a thread with a two word post.

Second: In a game-that-shall-not-be-mentioned I played female dwarves shaved their beards out of practicality. They also invented bras for the same reason. I can't see any wage slave dwarf who works with machinery to not get their beard removed during a lunch break sometime in their first year of work.

Dwarves have beards because they're too short to reach their chin and shave it.