The son of a family of brewers, Breumin of Clan Timber, fifth of his name, grew up in the small hamlet of Twinshade, nestled between the dueling shades of a deep forest and a high mountain. At a young age, his village was raided by bandits from within the forest. From a hole in a cask where his parents had hidden him, Breumin watched as his father was cut down and his mother was carted away. When the ale-soaked youth emerged, sore from treading and somewhat drunk, he found his village razed, the ones who had survived or evaded capture in mourning.

Weeks after, dwarves visited from a fortress near the summit of the mountain for their seasonal stock of ale and wine. They found the city still in tatters, the few gnomes remaining struggling to rebuild. One dwarf in particular, Thissil Caskshoulder, an ironic name given he was a terrible brewer, found the lonely Breumin trying his best to repair the family's brew works. Feeling sorry for the child, Thissil took him under his wing and brought him to live with the dwarves, where he worked in their small brewery to bring the gnomish flavors the dwarves loved to light.

Nicknamed Brew by the dwarves, for his heritage and knack for flavoring malt, he grew up as happy as he could, though a distant look in his eye left an unsettling feeling in the stomachs of any who stared too long. Thinking he could distract the child with activities, Thissil taught Brew the artificer's trade, crafting armor and artillery for the militia. The boy had a solid knack for it.

After thirty years in the care of the dwarves, Thissil had no more to teach him, and Brew had trained a brewing apprentice of his own, a younger gnome from the village he grew up in, slowly rebuilt over the years. Despite working with metal for most of his life, Brew still felt anger in his hands and sorrow in his heart. Pledging to never take an apprentice but to be the best artificer he could, and to seek vengeance for his fallen family, Breumin of Clan Timber, last of his name, bid farewell to his dwarven family and went out in the world as Breumin Caskshoulder, master artificer.