Onyx dwarves' aetherial power comes from working with stone to make complicated devices. They also work with metal and gems, and they gain power from gates energy through structural channeling. They craft devices and mausoleums and great locks as part of their societies. They gain powers such as knowing when someone will die, shaping stone, and being able to see in the dark. They can also guide and protect souls if they are powerful enouigh.

All dwarves are known for their steady feet, their inborn toughness, and their shrewdness.

Onyx dwarves live in deep caves below mountains, where they craft incredible cities from stone mechanisms. They are a very religious nation. Their cities are centered around series of gates and locks, and within each gate is a different facet of society.

Outside their cities live the miners, herders, and others who supply the cities. They live in small communities or alone, and they answer to the wandering clerics who enforce the laws and pass judgments. Within the first lock of a city are the laborers and craftsmen who take rough materials and make them usable. Within the second lock are those who take those materials and make more refined things from them. Within the next lock are those who take refined materials and make them into greater works. Within the last lock are those who use all the works and create incredible devices.

During certain hours, different locks and gates are open. People can pass freely. During those hours, people are social and take part in family and friends and basic community needs. When the locks are closed, they get to work on their specific crafts.

Within each lock, a group of elders are in charge, and within the fourth lock is the thane and the religious order that runs the whole of onyx dwarven society. The religious elders choose the thane from children born within a certain month every century. The old thane steps down when a new thane reaches maturity, becoming a religious elder. The new thane is raised from birth to lead.