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<blockquote data-quote="The Sigil" data-source="post: 1062705" data-attributes="member: 2013">Nitpick - the Silmarils were not divine - they were created by Feanor, an elf.I think the whole thing comes down to the nature of dwarves as portrayed in D&amp;D.&nbsp; They are very much &quot;materialistic&quot; in the sense that they want to see and touch and feel things.&nbsp; They create things out of stone and metal because such things last and are enduring.&nbsp; This makes them &quot;more&quot; materialistic than wood (which rots, cracks, gets waterlogged) etc.Magic, being something you cannot see and touch (you may be able to see and touch the results, but not the magic itself) is much less intuitive to dwarves.In Tolkien's myths, the dwarves were creations of Aule, who was most in love with the work of his hands.&nbsp; They received that love from him.&nbsp; Dwarves love what they have made with their hands... since stone and metal require more shaping than wood, that also makes them instruments of choice (not to mention that because Aule hid the creation of the dwarves from Yavanna, she cursed them not to love living things - like trees - as she did).&nbsp; Magic is not something you have shaped with your hands and the result of magic is thus not the result of &quot;honest work and labor.&quot;&nbsp; Magic is a shortcut... and I have always felt that dwarves respect the work that went into the product far more than the finished product itself.&nbsp; That's why a fantastically made item is so valuable to them - not because it's so intricate and cool-looking, but because the dwarf can imagine to himself all the work that must have gone into it.&nbsp; Thus, magic just simply doesn't command respect among dwarves because it takes little effort compared to the results.LOL... kind of like the paperless office thread.&nbsp; Dwarves want tangible stuff like paper.&nbsp; Paperless is more ephemeral and anathema to them (magic).--The Sigil</blockquote>

[QUOTE="The Sigil, post: 1062705, member: 2013"] Nitpick - the Silmarils were not divine - they were created by Feanor, an elf. I think the whole thing comes down to the nature of dwarves as portrayed in D&D. They are very much "materialistic" in the sense that they want to see and touch and feel things. They create things out of stone and metal because such things last and are enduring. This makes them "more" materialistic than wood (which rots, cracks, gets waterlogged) etc. Magic, being something you cannot see and touch (you may be able to see and touch the results, but not the magic itself) is much less intuitive to dwarves. In Tolkien's myths, the dwarves were creations of Aule, who was most in love with the work of his hands. They received that love from him. Dwarves love what they have made with their hands... since stone and metal require more shaping than wood, that also makes them instruments of choice (not to mention that because Aule hid the creation of the dwarves from Yavanna, she cursed them not to love living things - like trees - as she did). Magic is not something you have shaped with your hands and the result of magic is thus not the result of "honest work and labor." Magic is a shortcut... and I have always felt that dwarves respect the work that went into the product far more than the finished product itself. That's why a fantastically made item is so valuable to them - not because it's so intricate and cool-looking, but because the dwarf can imagine to himself all the work that must have gone into it. Thus, magic just simply doesn't command respect among dwarves because it takes little effort compared to the results. LOL... kind of like the paperless office thread. Dwarves want tangible stuff like paper. Paperless is more ephemeral and anathema to them (magic). --The Sigil [/QUOTE]

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