Talk:Caste

According to some texts from the PDF of the Dragon Age RPG Set 2 Open Playtest the upper castes only include the Warrior Caste, the Smith Caste and the Artisan Caste. The lower castes include the Miner Caste, the Merchant Caste and the Servant Caste:

"The dwarves of the lower castes do the hard work day after day that keeps Orzammar functioning. Its castes are Miner, Merchant, and Servant. The Miner Caste is the most prestigious, particularly those that do the dangerous job of mining lyrium. The Merchant Caste is the next important, as they bring money into the city and arrange valuable trade deals. The Servant Caste is the lowest, though even they rank above surface dwarves and the casteless. Of this group it is the members of the Merchant Caste who are most likely to leave Orzammar or become adventurers. Trade deals often lead to contact with humans and the surface dwarves were originally part of the Merchant Caste. Sometimes a member of the Merchant Caste will join his kin on the surface despite the loss of status at home. This happens more rarely with members of the Miner and Servant Castes, though it is not unknown for miners to sell their expertise to human nations for gold and other riches."

"At the top of dwarf society are the noble houses, whose feuds and fights go back many generations. The rest of the population is divided into castes, the top tier of which are the Warrior Caste, Smith Caste, and Artisan Caste. The Warrior Caste is the most prestigious for obvious reasons. The warriors fight a never ending war against the darkspawn in the Deep Roads, as well as providing the rank and file soldiers of the noble houses. There are so many warriors that the caste is actually divided into several sub-castes, such as the Soldier Caste, Guardsman Caste, and Officer Caste. The Smith Caste is the next important and again the reasons are clear. How would the warriors fight without arms and armor? Finally, there is the Artisan Caste. They too are highly esteemed in dwarf society, for they are the builders and makers that make Orzammar hum. Since upper caste dwarves have privileged positions in Orzammar, it is rare for them to leave for the surface world. Some are exiled for committing crimes or being on the wrong side of a dispute between houses. Others may be sent on missions to the human lands, though this an unusual occurrence. If you want to play an upper caste dwarf who has left Orzammar, you should talk to your GM about the circumstances of your departure and whether this will lead to loss of your caste should you return home."

Thus the hierarchy is as follows:

1. Noble

2. Warrior, 3. Smith, 4. Artisan

5. Miner, 6. Merchant, 7. Servant

8. Surface

9. Casteless

Regards, Krylancelo