Also referred to as “Dwarves”.

Yanyok are rare these days. They got the short end of the stick after the Great War, many centuries ago, and they were mostly exterminated by Skeldahr – deep in the Underground the Skeldahr still dwell, and are near impossible to root out. Dwarfs have persisted here and there and still sort of thrive, but even after many centuries are still thoroughly shellshocked and embittered. Many have grown xenopathic and abhor humankind that in their mind betrayed them. Dwarfs are essentially a native Dreamland species that were largely unaffected by the Living Dirt, and they hate the “Waking Lands” and their accursed Dreamers with a vengeance.  Woe bestride a Dreamer that manifests as a Dwarf. Most Dwarf Dreamers are slain outright. 

Physiology

By and large a Dwarf is best described as a hirsute and wrinky humanoid built like a bulldog. Physically Dwarfs can best be described as about 120 centimeter, very densely muscled, hirsute, very leathery humanoids with thick jaws, heavy teeth, deepset pale yellow-in-black eyes. They backs are set in some kind of scales, although are not reptilian. Dwarfs have short stubby tails hidden under their garments. Dwarf hair and skin coloration ranges across typical human equivalents. Yanyok either have four arms (Ukyi) or Three arms (Tsul), which is determined by genetics. Four armed Dwarves have four relatively similar arms which can be used completely quadrudextrously which, combined with extreme dwarf toughness makes them dangerous adversaries. Tsul appear in two types – Two normal Ukyitini arms on the left side, called Tsulqa – and these Dwarfs tend to be outwardly going, gregarious and have a greater aptitude for engineering. Tsulqa have a solid, massive arm with three opposing fingers on the right. Their “sinister” brethren are more rare and called Tsulipv, and have the dominant muscled arm on the left. These are generally tattooed as they organize in semi-monastic cliques, they are racially homosexual and tend to be quite martially motivated. Occurance of male Dwarfs is 50% Ukyi, 35% Tsulqa and 15% Tsulipv. There is an incidence of about 0.2% Dwarfs that have more or less human two arms and these are niversally albinoid. Yanyok females (which are anatomically indistinguishable from males) Tsulipv are not lesbians or “homosexual” and operate completely ‘normally’ in Dwarf society. They can be thus recognized by having no tattoos.

Psionics

Yanyok are psionically endowed. By default, they among themselves have the ability of silent communication via a robust telepathic ability. Psionic latency among dwarfs is quite common, about 15% and if it occurs remarkably strong. Younger dwarfs in their own culture do not speak – they have to literally learn the Angelic analogue language of the Northern Kingdom. Dwarf society is not in any way comparable to typical human society. There are numerous differences – for starters Dwarf thinking is thoroughly and organically three dimensional. Their cities are hard to traverse for humans. Next, dwarf cities are muted. Dwarfs can hear just fine, but none of their communication depends on the spoken word. It’s all telepathic. In fact, one of the main psionic languages Seijo is a condensed derivative of Yanyok language.

Procreation

Another major difference with humans is that Yanyok have a breeding cycle once every ten years. They make pilgrimages home to find a wife, and make babies. Most Dwarfs except the “lefties” engage in sexual activity outside of these breeding stages, and even then the sexual activity with the Tsulipvsi is mostly ritualized group masturbation. During this mating season Yanyok become hairless and quite gregarious. Outside mating season their skin thickens to a hardness that’shard to cut with a knife, and they become covered in thick bodyhair. The year before mating season dwarfs may in fact be mistaken for a type of chimpansee.