This is 3e though, not 5e - there's no such thing as Blade Pact. closest equivalent is Eldritch Glaive - but it looks more like a sword than a glaive.
Given that he's exactly the same height as Durkon, I think it's probable that he's related to dwarves in some way.
It's not 3e. Rich had a post about that when 4e came out. People were asking if the strip would go through a period of "World change" like 3,0 to 3.5 had way back at the beginning of the strip. Rich said it was inspired by particular RPG editions, but he felt comfortable including things from whatever source was interesting.