Khalag {Orcs}

Description

The eastern Orcs, also known as the Khalag are a tall, green- or grey-skinned species of humanoids. They are native to the Eastern Steppes and mostly found there, although they have spread across the world as traders and travelers. They were some of the first humanoids to domesticate animals and train them for riding, in particular Aurochs. They are a nomadic people who mostly roam around in smaller tribes led by a Khalar. Most of these tribes make their living by herding and hunting animals and trading with the smaller individual settlements spread around the Steppes or with border settlements.
According to the creation myths, they were created by Argor, shaped from Elemental Fire in an attempt to create a race that is both well-suited to hot environments and passionate like fire themselves. This is also why many Orcs prefer to be cremated on an open pyre when they die, to return to the fire that created them. For the same reason there is also a common coming-of-age tradition where the soon-to-be adult Orc goes out by himself to hunt down a beast, and upon their successful return they hold a feast where they burn the beast's heart and eat the rest. The kind of beast they killed is sometimes added as an honorific suffix to their name.

Culture

The Khalag are mostly pastoralist nomads, they raise herds that they move with them. A tribe headed by a chief (also called a Khalar) will usually move throughout a specific area that they 'claim', and the other tribes tend to respect these rough boundaries. They move between different spots each season to give the sparse pastures a chance to recover, rather than depleting them beyond recovery. Historically they have had little interest in assimilating others living within these lands. Occasionally however, multiple tribes have banded behind a single charismatic leader forming a large empire and in the past these large congregations have at times invaded nearby lands such as Middenland. However these empires would usually fall apart after the leader's death and the individual tribes would either retreat back to their former lands, be destroyed or end up mixed in with the population of another tribe or a nearby country. This also means that Orcs are commonly found in other countries as well. During the more recent invasions, recent being well over a century at this point, some figured out that they could extract more goods through taxes and they installed themselves as an imported nobility of sorts. As part of a peace deal, a few Orcs were allowed to retain some lands as vassals to House Volan of Solland.
In recent years many of the tribes have been unified under a single banner by Gorok, the Great Khalar through a combination of strength and undeniably effective leadership. However this time appears to be different from the past, Gorok has not seemingly made any preparations for war. He has even offered all settlements that are tied to other countries or autonomous the choice of remaining autonomous or being assimilated with all accompanying benefits. This has at times led to tensions as laws between the New Khalag Empire and villages may differ, allowing settlements to legally harbor criminals of the empire. But it has also served to convince other countries of his peaceful intentions. He has however expended significant resources on acquiring more control of trade along the trade routes running through the Eastern Steppes. This has lead to increased prosperity within the New Khalag Empire and drawn in more inventive people looking for some of the rare goods being traded here. It could be theorized that this last part was part of his intentions, as Gorok has been sponsoring a large number of these inventors and has shown interest in new inventions that could help his people keep up with the rapidly changing world.

Religion

Many of the tribes practice(d) a shamanism that included not only religion, but also medicine, reverence of nature and ancestor worship. During extensive rituals incorporating drumming and specific herbs, shamans can call upon the Spirits of past great clan leaders for physical and spiritual help.
Due to their undeniable presence, worship of the Gods has existed along this shamanism. As their creator and patron deity, Argor is especially popular among the Khalag. With the recent rise of the New Khalag Empire, more of the Khalag have settled down in larger settlements and this has resulted in an increase of worship of the Gods, while shamanism has been decreasing.

Statistics

Rebalanced statistics for use in a campaign based on this lore:

Ability Score Increase.
Your Strength Score increases by 2, and your Constitution Score increases by 1.
Speed.
Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Darkvision.
You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can't discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.
Nomadic Hunter.
You gain proficiency in the Survival and Nature skills.
Natural Rider.
You have advantage on Animal Handling checks to control traditional mountable creatures and while you are mounted on a creature, its movement speed is increased by 10 feet.
Toughness.
Your hit point maximum increases by 1, and it increases by 1 every time you gain a level.
Languages.
You can read, speak and write Common and Orc.

Basic Information

Biological Traits

Orcs mature faster than humans, reaching adulthood at 12 years and rarely living longer than 75 years. They are larger and bulkier than humans. Combined with their long tusks, they can be an intimidating sight, but they are not naturally inclined to more aggressive behavior than humans.

Lifespan

60 years on average.

Average Height

1.8m-2m on average, with some exceptions.

Average Weight

100-130 kg

Average Physique

Generally tall and muscular.

Half-Orcs

In the Eastern Steppes

Naturally, as the Orcs have intermingled with the human tribes of the Eastern Steppes, Half-Orcs have been born. In most cases, where the tribes of both parents get along well enough, these newborn are celebrated just as much as any other, if not more. However, if the parent's tribes are rivals, they can often be caught in between the arguments of the tribes or used as pawns, perhaps having to live with one parent while unable to see another. For the most part, these half-breeds seem quite stable and they appear to combine the best of both kinds, with both a superior physique and still a degree of adaptability that their Orcish parents do not display.

In Middenland

While there have been plenty of small border wars and raids in the past, there have been plenty of times of peace (as it is now) between the Khalag and the Middenlanders, which is beneficial for trade. Many of the wandering traders of the Khalag frequently visit the larger cities in Middenland to peddle their wares, such as hides, horses and silk. Sometimes they even settle down to create a trading post where the rest of their brethren can offload their goods and sell them more efficiently. Regardless, whether they are only traveling through or settle down, they come into regular contact with humans and from this relationships are occasionally born. It's tough to take a child on the long trek from Middenland through the Eastern Steppes, so often they stay with their parent(s) in Middenland where they grow up among the other children, treated no different from them. However, just like Middenlander humans, unless they are born to a noble, they will forever at best belong to the middle class, and this appears to clash with their freeborn nature and irritate them more than most humans. Either way, due to their strong physique they are often in demand for manual labor jobs...or unfortunately, as thugs, for which they can be influenced from a young age.