Orc (Or-k)
"Orcs, or Orekai in Orcish, are simple folk. They fight, they eat, they sleep. Some farm, some lead, and some weave, but almost all Orcs love to fight. Even the ones who turn away from constant war and destruction often must stave off the urge to fight."
-The book of all species
Basic Information
Anatomy
2 arms, 2 legs, large muscular bodies, two large tusks on their bottom row of teeth, Human-like skeletal structure. Each arm has a hand with 5 fingers, and each leg has a foot with 5 toes.
Biological Traits
A different type of Orc, called Orogs, are randomly born in Orc Tribes, and are usually more intelligent than most Orcs. These Orcs are blessed by Gruumsh's sister, Luse, and are often highly cunning. While their births are unpredictable, if a tribe of Orcs is under threat, Orogs are more likely to be born.
Genetics and Reproduction
Orcs reproduce sexually, with pregnancy finishing within 2 months. They often give birth to two children at a time.
Growth Rate & Stages
Orcs reach adulthood at age 12.
Ecology and Habitats
Orcs can live just about anywhere, but they live best in temperate forests.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Orcs are Omnivores, but they favor meat and nuts over fruits and vegetables.
Biological Cycle
When Orcs reach their teenage years, at around 7 years, they will begin gaining a drive to fight.
Additional Information
Social Structure
Orcs do not have an advanced social structure. They have a Chief and everyone else. And below them are the weaklings.
Domestication
Some orc tribes have been "Domesticated" by private militaries. These orcs are treated as cannon fodder for the actual soldiers to be able to fight the enemy. Sometimes an orc can enter a chain of command, but usually aren't even allowed in the same dining area as these non-orc soldiers.
Facial characteristics
Tusks, wide, humanoid face.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Orcs are located everywhere. Just about every large continent has some form of Orc.
Average Intelligence
Orcs are considerably less intelligent than most other races, typically being only slightly smarter than an Ogre.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Orcs are able to see up to 60 feet in darkness.
Symbiotic and Parasitic organisms
Orcs and ogres tend to work with each other in raiding weaker people. Orcs have also managed to train and ride Dire Wolves.
Civilization and Culture
Naming Traditions
Orcs use First names and Clan names.
Beauty Ideals
A beautiful women in the eyes of an orc is one adorn with the most amount of trinkets from the enemies she has killed
Gender Ideals
Both genders are seen as capable of fighting, and therefore usually both must fight.
Courtship Ideals
The female orc always seeks companionship with stronger male orcs. Typically, Male orcs challenge their Female counterparts in fights. If they win, the Female has to agree to be together. If they lose, the Female has to reject the advances of the Male. Sometimes, the gender roles are reversed, but the rules still apply.
Relationship Ideals
Orcs love plundering, to the point where their relationship goals would go all the way to "Someone who can plunder weaklings with me to the end of our days."
Average Technological Level
Most Orc Encampments can make basic weapons and armor, as well as steel tents and stone walls, although they usually don't have access to the materials required for this.
The Orcs from the Wild lands, because they managed to build on top of a Mine, had also managed to create firearms and explosives, and even invented the Cart-Mounted Gatling Gun, called by them the Ulkura Daka Zag, shortened to "Daka."
Major Language Groups and Dialects
Orcs speak Orcish. Orc Warchiefs can speak Common.
Common Etiquette Rules
Orc Greetings are done with a heavy punch to the chest of their greeter. Goodbyes are done with grabbing the other person's hand and shoulder checking them. Most Orcs who try to integrate into other species' society tend to accidentally start fights because of these greetings.
It is considered wrong and weak to deny a challenge from another orc.
Common Dress Code
Orcs wear armor all the time while in the encampment
Culture and Cultural Heritage
It is a common misconception to believe that orcs are only just brutish uncultured monsters. The average orc living quarters has trophies and treasure from plundered villages. However, when an orc completes a feat of strength, he is typically memorialized in paint. Tribe shamans come together to create a painting to capture the memory all while making the orc in question seem even more impressive. These pictures are typically sought after by collectors, as they are surprisingly high quality, and very colorful, often using bright greens for trees and grass, and odd colors for the sky, like pink or yellow. Creatures in these paintings are colored in ways that help bolster something about themselves, like an Orc champion with golden armor, a Victorious Orc with Red face paint towering over an Ogre with somber blues.
Color itself is also apart of Orc culture. Most colors represent different aspects of orc life, and specifically war. Red typically means blood, combat, and war. They often cover weapons, armor, and explosives in shades of red. Blue means intelligence, guidance, and mysticism. Shamans, and clerics of Gruumsh often wear blue, as well as magical items. Yellow means Treasure, and oftentimes those designated to carry weaponry to battle have yellow face paint and treasure tents have yellow flags on them. Green means ally. Non-Orcs are often painted with green paint, so that when fighting begins, the tribe will know who to not attack. Some settlements will sometimes have a green flag placed infront of them, signaling the nearby War band to not attack. Purple means hidden, darkness, and trickery. Ambushers and the rare spy are painted such colors. Grey means big, mighty, and strong. They are reserved for artillery's, such as ballistae and trebuchets, as well as large auxiliaries, such as Hill giants and Ogres. Black means despair. Orcs paint things black as a warning, often painting what the warning is. Black Dragons are often a source of Orc Superstition.
Common Customs, Traditions and Rituals
Whenever a great raid had taken place, Orcs have a massive feast. These times of encampment are so great, that even slaves of the orcs are allowed to attend the feast and merriment. Before this feast, the Orcs hunt the biggest animal they can find, and serve it on a massive table in the center of the camp. A shaman would "bless" the food and grog in the name of Gummsh, and then the party would begin, where the orcs would eat, party, and play sports.
Besides wrestling and racing, Orcs love playing a game called "Head Ass." In this game, a group of Orcs select an area to play in, usually in a small clearing, and two Orcs picked at random to move into the circle. The two Orcs take turns headbuting eachother doing so until one is knocked into the other Orcs, or until one falls over due to taking far too many headbuts. Once an Orc loses, both Orcs leave the center of the circle, with the loser leaving the circle, and two other orcs are picked at random, doing the same thing until one loses. This process repeats until only two Orcs are left. These Orcs take turns headbutting eachother until one falls over unconscious, whith the last one standing being declared the winner.
They also enjoy playing "How to kill an Elf." A group of Orcs come together, usually around a feast, and try impress each other by describing what they will do the the next elf they see. The first Orc will start with how he will kill an elf, and each subsequent Orc must try to come up with a worse way to treat an Elf. The game will go on until no one can come up with worse way to kill an Elf. The Orc with the "best" description of how they would harm the next Elf they see wins the game.
Common Taboos
Befriending an Elf is the most taboo of all orc traditions. It's to the point where if a tribe is conquered by an evil elf who wants their strength, the orcs would rather die trying to end his life then serve him.
Worship of the Orc God Malaboo is completely outlawed in all Orc Clans, with exception of clan Vadokan. Though, such a god does not exist.
History
Orcs are one of the first races on the Material plane. They where created by the War God Gruumsh, on a random island, in 10wr. Guumsh had made the Orcs with their only purpose to fight each other for Gruumsh's entertainment. To keep them on the island and never think about their existence, he made them incredibly warlike and stupid. The Orcs would fight for years with Gruumsh making sure that no matter what happens, the Orcs would continue fighting. The biggest instance of this was when the Le'aft Orc clans had defeated the Ro'aght Orc clan and took their castle in 180wr, Gruumsh had convinced the Le'aft clan that the Orcs currently in the castle and in all of the settlements they had captured from the Ro'aght where actually all full of traitors and that they haven't actually captured anything. However, in 300wr, Gruumsh was bored with his creation, as the Orcs have now become far too predictable, and wanted a reason to move them somewhere populated with non-orcs. His wishes are answered when he received a prayer from a desperate elf begging for assistance. The elf cleric was contacting multiple different war gods for some form of assistance against a massive raid from the cult of plagues, and she had remembered reading about the strange war god who was always excited about fighting. Gruumsh had taken this opportunity for excitement by sending assistance in the form of taking his entire species and placing them in the city of Shanor.
The Orcs would fight the Cult for days, and is the only known history in which elves and Orcs had fought alongside each other. Eventually, the Cult was forced out of the city. An hour of peace had found the city. However, after the hour of peace, Gruumsh would invade the minds of every Orc, telling them that the Elves had taken them from their holy land, and that if they killed the elves, the Orcs would be able to go back. The next few months would become a long and bloody conflict for Shanor. While the Orcs had far greater number than the elves, the elvish gods where once again capable in aiding their followers once more, causing a more even fight with the Orcs. The Elves would be victorious in their fight for survival, with many Orcs retreating out of the city, or into the underground sewers.
Those that fled from the city would create new tribes and clans, dotting the continent of Godsen. Inevitably, they would encounter the other races of the world, most notably Humans and Dwarves. Their first encounter with humans was in 301wr. The newly created tribe known as the Norfs needed new weapons, as they did not bring many with them. They had fled to the icy area of Vilharou, and encountered a Human tribe hunting seals. Mistaking them for elves, they attacked the Humans, and eventually made it too the Human tribe's encampment. It was then that the Orcs had realized that the creatures they where killing were not elves, and chose to take the humans with them to make their weapons.
The first encounter Orcs had with Dwarves was in 304wr. While at this point Orcs had encountered Dwarves in Human settlements, they believed them to be short humans, until this specific year, when two Clans, the Retrisk and the Quarelf, had ended up discovering the Dwarf stronghold. The clans had no interest in the stronghold, until they witnessed a large caravan of weapons, armor, and money exit the stronghold. Almost immediately, the Orcs began raiding the Stronghold, though the raid was swiftly repelled by the dwarves superior defenses. IN the next 3 months, the Orcs began strategizing ways to take the Stronghold, ending up with having the Retrisk clan to sneak in and destroying any of the defenses the Dwarves had laid out. They would get beyond the entrance hall, and made it to the main halls before eventually succumbing to their losses by the dwarves' superior weapons, tactics, and knowledge. The Quarelf clan would be killed, while the Retrisk would manage to escape utter demise.
The Orc tribe, Dergmonath, would attempt to return home in 1342wr, but they could not find the Island. They had even stolen a map of the world from the Elves, and had went to the dot on the map that they believed to be their Island. When they reached the area that housed the Island, they found nothing but empty sea. After sailing for months, they eventually reached Ovak. The Orcs knew it wasn't their home, but when they tried to return to their ships, A Bronze Dragon destroyed it, as it was in violation of one of his laws. The tribe was stuck on Ovak, though the many dragon lairs, and likewise Dragon Hoards, where intoxicating enough for many of them to want to stay and go dragon slaying.
During the Calamity event, in the Wildlands, an Orc kingdom had formed, called the Bandiotas, named by the Clan who lead the other clans into creating the kingdom. The Clan had made a business out of bullying and robbing "weaklings," as well as selling aberration parts to the people they steal from. As of the current date, the Kingdom has expanded greatly, moving further the settlers areas.
Historical Figures
Tachanka, the inventor of the Ulkura Daka Zag
Common Myths and Legends
Many Orcs speak of something called "Gruumsh's Blessing," while others refer to it as "Gruumsh's Curse." All Orcs have an innate want for battle, and no matter how hard they wish to fight it, it always lingers over them. It is believed that Gruumsh forced his own fighting spirit into every Orc ever born, forcing them to either kill something, or go through similar conditions of withdrawl.
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
Orcs are considered a "monstrous race", and likewise is hated by most races. Howerever, Orcs do not hate most other races. They see all other races as "War Rivals," and wishes to conquer them just because they enjoy fighting and winning. They do not usually understand that most other creatures hate their presence.
They absolutely hate the Elves and the Goblins, however. They hate elves for taking them away from their home, and they hate Goblins because they find goblins annoying.Hobgoblins hate Orcs as well, due to their initial meeting and the Orcs culture being at odds with the Hobgoblins'.
Orcs, due to their belief that the strong should rule, also have a respect towards Goliaths. They see Goliaths as a rival group, and love fighting them, and will allow Goliaths to become warchiefs. Likewise, Orcs respect Ogres, but do not allow them to become warchiefs, as even the Orcs understand that allowing an incompetent creature who is not fit to lead is a bad idea. Half-Ogres and Ogrillions are usually smarter than Ogres, and only lose a small pittance of that might, so Ogrillions can and usually do become a Warchief of an Orc Tribe.
Orc Organs
Orc skin Grafts
Orc Adventurers
An Orc Adventurer isn't unheard of, but they are still rare to find. This is because most Orcs stay in their family clans, for safety purposes. An Orc adventurer may be an Adventurer because they did something so bad that they had to flee from the tribe, or maybe their clan is currently in such disrepair, that they must go out on their own. However, the most common reason an Orc will go out on an adventure is because their own emotions. If an Orc meets someone they like, either as a friend or otherwise, it's very common for the Orc to leave the tribe with the friend, and if that friend is an adventure, than the Orc will be one as well.
Genetic Descendants
Scientific Name
Homo Oresian
Lifespan
50 years
Conservation Status
This species is considered a plague race.
Average Height
5'11"-7'2"
Average Weight
230lbs-280lbs
Average Length
2'
Average Physique
Orcs have massive builds, typically being wider and larger than the average human.
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Different shades of green and gray. Most Orcs are either Forest Green, Light Gray, and Blue Heather.
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