Erebor Miner
The finding of ores, the construction of new halls, and the excavation of the precious minerals and metals that are the cornerstone of dwarvish wealth: this is all included in the duties of the miner.
Miners hew away at the interior of the Dwarvish strongholds constantly, working day and night to uncover precious mineral lodes that lie beneath the halls the Dwarves frequent every day. Yet carefully they must work, to prevent cave-ins and the damage of their treasured underground homes. Despite this, mining is still a dangerous task, and Dwarves are killed every month in cave-ins. The duties may be onerous, but miners oftentimes are the richest of all the Dwarves, and near close to the toughest. The miners' knowledge of the labyrinthine tunnels and the surrounding areas they lead to have brought about more than one victory for besieged Dwarves. After all, the heavy pick a miner carries can split an orcish skull just as easily as well-crafted axe!
In both the Lonely Mountain and in the Iron Hills, the tradition of mining runs strong: rare is the dwarf who has not served in the mines at least a bit, or has no relative who is a miner. The iron and silver lodes in the Hills remain strong and extensive, and the more valuable ones beneath the Mountain still have years of mining left in them, but have shown signs of drying out, causing an increase of the Hills population due to migrating miners. In both homes, full-time miners who have shown they can move up from the drudgery of being a mines labourer become members of their clan's mining workforce, much as the stonewrights work, and competition for patents from the King Under the Mountain or the Lord Steward in the Hills is high, largely between Bundazanul, Mazarbul and Barazin in Erebor and between the Farizhald and Dhurenfal in Emyn-Engrin.
The ranks of the miners run as follows:
- Laborer
- Miner
- Mining Foreman
- Master Delver
