Tribes of HorkNuth

The Tribes of HorkNuth have a long and storied history upon the continent of Alkeria.  There's no record of of the origin of the Orcs from Akeria, other than what's been what's told by their deity, that the first orcs were born upon the splitting of a Titan's skull.  Over time, the Orcs multiplied and scattered, forming multiple tribes among the wastes.  It was impossible to maintain a large tribe in the early years.  The resources required to maintain a large tribe were simply unobtainable.  The few times multiple tribes combined in a location, the monsters would converge and ultimately, the tribes would be wiped out.  And the orcish warbands equilibrium would maintain.  And thus began the legend, that one day, a master warrior, tactician, and diplomat would rise above the bickering, and create an orcish utopia.
Until then, the Orcs continued their blood feuding, marauding, and violent tendencies as a way of life.  It was very much a defend against the environment, and take from those weaker than yourself.  In the Orcish community, only the strong survived.  Those that weren't strong, died.  A few 'lucky' ones were kept as slaves.  Neither choice was pleasant.  Living as an orc was brutal and harsh.  And nothing changed for multitudes of generations with one exception; the orcs continued to get tougher, meaner, and more brutal.
Then along came Xandu.  Through his trek in the Wastes, he encountered several orcish tribes.  While they posed him no threat, they did provide him an opportunity for an intelligent brute front line force.  For a race that respected brute force, it didn't take much for Xandu's evisceration of tribal leaders to quickly gain the Orc's respect.  Word spread fast among the Orcish horde, and it didn't take long for all the tribes to fall in line.  Xandu had a starting army.
But not all the Orcs were happy with the situation.  Xandu was more than willing to sacrifice Orcs to whatever whim happened his fancy.  It could be dispatching a troublesome beast that was of no concern to anyone.  It could be to probe in pregnable defenses of the Elvish forests.  It could be simply for entertainment, watching the Orcs kill each other for survival in the pit.  
And an underground movement started.  Legends stated that an ORC would unite the tribes, not this interloper who would create a new vision for the Horde.  And it was this vision that began pushing the Orcs to look for a way to dispatch the so called King.  Over the centuries, the Orcs continued their vigil, looking for a way to dispatch Xandu while orcs died brutally each and every year.  Every so often, an underground circle would be discovered and eliminated, only for the knowledge to reappear in another circle some years down the road.  Help finally came in the most unlikeliest of sources.  The pathetic little humans.  
In particular, a human (name TBD) who claimed to have knowledge on how to potentially destroy Xandu, but needed information that was outside his reach.  One particular Orc, HorkNuth, an orc of some repute, took the lead on establishing an orcish spy network right under Xandu's nose.  It took years to obtain the information, and many spies were lost, but in the end, the locations of key magic points were exactly what the Champions needed to confront, and ultimately trap Xandu.
Upon Xandu's disappearance, there was chaos.  Many of the creatures that Xandu had spelled were released, and the chaos spilled out all around the Wastes.  Horknuth took lead in managing a defense for his people, and ultimately, ended up replacing Xandu on his throne in the capital.  An HorkNuth took charge.  The Orcs cleaned house, forcibly destroying anything and everything that wasn't Orcish.  For the first time in nearly an Eon, the Orcs were free.  HorkNuth was hailed as the hero from legend, and ruled peacably enough for another 20 years.  This period of time was the most prosperous the orcs ever had.  A near sense of civility ruled the Orcs.  Violence was mainly contained to the fighting pits where disputes were held.  The lack of deaths allowed teh population to boom at a rate that hadn't been seen in hundreds of years.  HorkNuth himself led several raids into the Wastes to take down predators that threatened the city, and it was on one such occasion where an unlucky charge by a gargatuan Villididor impaled HorkNuth.  The beast was taken down, but HorkNuth didn't survive.  While he died in combat, normally a glorious death, the Orcs were dour.  Their hero was dead.
The selection of a new leader is always a matter of great interest in a tribe.  It's typical that trial by combat allows only the strongest to lead.  And with this size of force, there were hundreds interested in taking their shot at it.  Normally these fights were a one on one combat, but because of the numbers, the orcs were forced to combine combats into mass combat.  Several heats of 20 on 20 were performed for nearly two days.  The top 5 survivors out of each wave were allowed to rest and recuperate for the next fight.  Two hundred Orcs were reduced 20 in the first day, and 40 after the second day.  Day 3 reduced the numbers to 10, and Day 4 to 4.  The final day saw the last combatants in the ring, but the rules of the ring were changed.  Losers, instead of being slain in combat for a glorious death, would instead be exiled, along with their extended families and followers.  
Finally, there was a winner, (name TBD), who took great liberties with his new found powers.  Focusing only on himself and lust, greed, and revenge, the great tribes of HorkNuth slowly began to erode.
The losers took their groups and headed out into the wastes, understanding that they would be starting over, and vowing revenge over the indignity - promising one day that they would be a threat to be reckoned with.
While most (smart) people stay away from what is known as the HorkNuth plains, rumors have it that the Orcs have had it in bad shape.  Legions of vultures have circled the city of late, leading most to believe that something very, very bad had happened within the city recently.

Type

Geopolitical, Clan