When most people think of dwarves they think of mountain dwarves. Living in tall mountains or vast hills allows them easier access to useful minerals and superior defenses. The abundance of ore leads many mountain dwarves to become smiths, especially weaponsmiths and armorsmiths. Exporting these goods is frequently the cornerstone of a thriving mountain dwarf economy. Indeed, there are many stout folk that trace their lineage to fallen dwarven kingdoms of old, dreaming of restoring lost glory even if the present is already affluent enough. 

Even with the myriad of cultures present to choose from, there will always be those who prefer to march to the beat of their own drum. A lone wanderer shirks all connection to the cultures and communities around them in favor of making their own path. No two lone wanderers are alike, even those that might share a heritage—they all have their own personal goals, superstitions, and traditions. Because of this, lone wanderer culture is the most diverse as well as the most disjointed.

In a forgotten corner of the Dreaming lies a territory called the Twilight, a silent world perpetually under the dim light of the setting sun. This place is home to the kithbáin, or the twilight-touched, halflings who’ve lived for generations in half-light, filling up its silence with the voices of ken. There is no sound in the Twilight but one’s own thoughts, and after long enough, the thoughts of others. 

Some wanderers may not have grown up with a single place to call home. Their culture is a mix of many, allowing them to see things from different angles and perspectives. Always outsiders yet able to blend in with ease, such folks benefit from the wisdom of a wide range of peoples, customs, and places.

Characters raised as itinerants share a variety of traits in common with one another. 

Great civilizations provide shelter and comfort. As empires and kingdoms grow and the corners of the map are filled in, the dangers and threats beyond the ever-expanding borders can seem more distant and irrelevant. Safety is assured, the next meal is never found wanting, and many living these sheltered existences do so confidently knowing that things will go on as normal, and that the days, weeks, and months will pass uneventfully to blur together into a humdrum life. 

Some dwarves never settle in underground kingdoms. They live in surface communities, trading, learning, and creating. Known as hill dwarves, they are gregarious, friendly, and worldly. 

From seamless marble towers and brightly lit castles carved into mountainsides to modest cottages made grand with intricate style, high elf culture takes credit (sometimes incorrectly) for the magnificent architecture for which elves are known. Elvish architectural masterworks are remnants of a once vast high elf empire. While many such structures are maintained by high elves and those under their charge, far more lie abandoned, ruined, or claimed by invading forces. High elves live in the twilight of their golden age. 

The godbound were raised among the faithful. Such communities vary from temples and monasteries to massive theocracies that span entire continents, their rulers either divine or the anointed representatives of greater entities. 

In world-shaking catastrophes where magic, disasters, and monsters ran rampant, there were those that gritted their teeth and adapted to survive rather than flee their homes. Such cataclysms are now stories of a distant past, and descendants of the survivors continue to channel and embrace the unpredictability of the magical energies surrounding their ruined lands. 

Despite having lost most everything—sometimes more than once—these people remain optimistic. They are not bound by tradition and are the culture least likely to be obsessed with the glory of past kingdoms. 

The forgotten folx are even more secretive than the notoriously reclusive forest gnomes. These communities almost always share a strong, familial bond with each other, even those they aren’t related to. Entire villages raise children communally, provide for each other, and survive primarily by bartering craft goods. These settlements have a lot of love to give and are more than happy to take in wanderers or adventurers who stumble across their homes.