The Warring States of NPF - New Hobbit Trailer

Biiiig article discussing behind the scenes material, including some interesting information on the psychology of the individual dwarves

I'm just posting the ones that stood out to me.

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Oin (John Callen) is the group's apothecary, hauling lotions and potions and tending to the sick, although Taylor also describes him as one of the group's "old battlers." Callen offers this tidbit of character building he developed with Hambleton:

So we thought Oin and Gloin� Gloin is the father of Gimli, and we decided that probably, I was assisting at the birth of Gimli, and he turned out the way he did because I dropped him on his head.

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Bifur (William Kircher) has a somewhat more complicated (not to mention tragicomical) backstory. Poor Bif has a goblin axe buried in his skull, and since we're in a pre-surgical world, whoever was tending to him decided to leave it in there. Bifur is a toymaker and normally a gentle soul, but that axe has left him with two rather pronounced problems: First, he suffers from a sort of foreign language syndrome, and can speak only an ancient version of Dwarvish that no one else can understand. Two, he becomes at times extremely violent, forcing whomever is near him to wrench the axe until he becomes docile again. It's no great surprise that he's looking for the fellow who tried to chop his skull into firewood.

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Bombur (Stephen Hunter) is the brother of Bofur (Jimmy Nesbitt) and cousin of Bifur. The -ur Dwarves are peasant farmers. "[T]o us it still means quite a lot to go and take over the mountain," Hunter says, "but we're just going along for the ride." Bombur is quite na�ve, and doesn't know what to expect on this journey, but don't underestimate him. He can use his beard�which is braided into an enormous loop�as a weapon. He throws it over his enemies' heads, pulls them into his massive girth, and strangles them. Otherwise, he mostly cooks. While other Dwarves carry heavy armor and weapons, Bombur carries a tiny bag and his trusty ladle.

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Bombur is quite terrified of Dwalin (Graham McTavish), as well he should be. Dwalin is the veteran warrior, and he, like his brother Balin (Ken Stott) and Thorin, witnessed Smaug's arrival in Erebor. Dwalin realizes that this trip is going to be much more harrowing than the young Dwarves expect. He's also a particularly violent character.

Dwalin has taken up this quest in order to reclaim the homeland and restore the honor of his people. The tattoos on his head and arms are an illustrated history of the Dwarves, including their defeats at Erebor and Moria, a permanent reminder of all the Dwarves have lost. He grew up with Thorin and is staunchly loyal to his lord. His belief is that you must show undivided loyalty or else you're an enemy. It's no wonder that he believes everyone is an enemy until proven otherwise. When Bilbo shows up and Thorin is less than pleased to have him join their company, Dwalin shares his lord's displeasure. Bombur and Bilbo, on the other hand, get on quite well.