Orcs

Genius of an Orc

It is rumored that there is nothing an Orc can't do. Gifted with quick wits and an insatiable love for the challenge of learning new things, it is typical for an Orc to harness their talents in multiple ways. It is not uncommon for an Orcish blacksmith to be skilled not only with their forging hammer, but in the arts of magic and battle as well. Most Orcs have natural talent with magic, making the art of spirit magic and learning magecraft come easily to them.
As skilled craftsmen, warriors, mages, and scholars, it is no surprise that Orcs are also talented engineers. They are so talented, in fact, that Orcish engineering abilities are second to none. If not for Orcs, the crafting of guns and harnessing of black powder would still be a dream. Along with being geniuses in physical craft, Orcs are also highly empathetic with deep bonds. Unlike some races that go into battle for status or to prove their own strength, an Orc will sacrifice everything for out of sheer love for those closest to them.
This love for their friends and family and desire to express this affection is the basis for nearly all great inventions, magical innovations, and fine crafts. When these things cannot be given as gifts, it is typical for the results of their hard work to be dedicated to their families, friends, or those they serve. Orcs that have chosen to go into construction relish the challenge of working with other races and most often see it as a chance to hone their leadership and communication skills.
Due to their adaptability, Orcs often find themselves in leadership roles, and often express their love for the Fire Eternal by providing services to the churches transitioning from volunteer to Priest or, if a warrior, becoming a Paladin of the Fireforge. The strength with which Orcs form bonds is something of a point of interest to many. It is a known fact that Orcs that spend more time training with tools and weapons seem to form bonds with the objects of their trade. It is not uncommon to hear of an Orc that has named their most used tools and weapons and prescribe them their own personalities. At first, this was regarded as strange, but the tradition has since been taken up by many others as a way to pass down their legacies and heritage or to denote a weapon as having achieved great feats in battle.
When the world was yet younger than it is now, Orcs farmed the land and worked hard to ease the strain that it placed on the bodies of their loved ones.. Over time, they created simple machines and tools that have helped make farming and agriculture much easier to do - allowing for a life that allows for more time with those they care about most. Flawed Masters Orcs, while skilled in many things, have their flaws as well.They are not the strongest, nor the tallest, nor the quickest - they are however indeed the smartest. This intelligence has acted as a double-edged sword to no few number of Orcs as they work to master anything and everything they set out to learn.
While, given enough time, an Orc will succeed in their chosen area of study they are aware of their own intelligence and tend to become egotistical. The check to this ego, however, is that Orcs are plagued by their own high standards for themselves. Though, on the surface, it may appear that they have succeeded in their goal their ego and their own impossibly high standards for themselves cause them to never reach the mark they have set for themselves no matter how diligent they are. In the worst cases, an Orc can become so caught up in their own standards of perfection that they lose sight of why they began in the first place. Self-loathing and perfectionism can drive them to be aggressive, controlling, or manipulative in making things appear closer to their standards despite their knowledge of the truth of how they got there. These Orcs tend to be regarded as Mastery Zealots that have thrown away their emotions in their single-minded quest to become the undisputed best at their craft whether that be smithing, battling, or leading.
The only way for an Orc to avoid this sort of self-destructive cycle is to listen to their heart and keep their focus on those they love. An Orc that is in tune with their emotions and what they need is an Orc that is safe from becoming power hungry, or insatiable in their quest for greater power and mastery. Any time an Orc falls into a depression about their work or becomes hyper-focused on their task they are in very real danger of becoming unreachable or misguided as they lie to themselves and shun what is truly important to them.
Some say that this polarity between work-focused and community-focused individuals is why Orcs and Coursers see eye to eye most of the time. Though they are on opposite sides of the spectrum - they still find their way toward one another by virtue of their abilities to compromise and meet in the middle on most topics.
If an Orc can curb their hunger for power and eternal drive to be the best, they may find themselves revered as the Wisdom Speaker of their study. Those that are Wisdom Speakers have achieved an uncommonly achieved peace with the fact that they will never be perfect and that they will be surpassed. These Wisdom Speakers consistently surpass their peers while cheering them onward to greater heights while waiting to pass on their knowledge to the next generation and the youth that will one day, surpass their own achievements.

"It’s true that Orcs are a hardy, kind, and intelligent people - but it is also true that we wield a power greater than most others that seeks always to drag us down. This is what makes us dangerous allies, and this is why it is important to take the guidance of the Fire Eternal. Does having that much power really mean anything at all? Remember that our intelligence is just as much our weakness as it is our strength. Find the fire within you and remember from whence that flame came." - Telen Venthesium, Arch Mage and Grand Master

The Seven Strikes of Fire and Flame

The Orcs marveled at the Dwarves. The strength of their hearts, mastery of the forge, and the power that they were given by the Fire Eternal gave the Orcs much to aspire to. Enthralled by their Dwarven kin, Orcs mimicked the Dwarven culture down to the types of strikes used by blacksmiths to forge weaponry and armor. They learned the use of runic gems that decorated and empowered their armor, and strove to aid them in their duties in every way they could.
The Dwarves, then tasked by the Fire Eternal to create the Fire Forge and police the World of Adia were spread thin and tired as they took on these duties alongside those given to them to push back the forces of The Abyss. In time, when the Dwarves were not able to rise to all of the responsibilities given to them, the Fire Eternal showed mercy as he had realized the Dwarves were burdened and tasked with too much. When he asked his creations how he could help the Dwarven King Altuumis thought first of the passion in the eyes of the Orcs, their empathetic nature, and drive to give aid to his people when they were over-burdened.
King Altuumis told the Fire Eternal that the Orcs should take up the mantle of the Fire Forge as they had proven themselves hard workers with kind souls and a will to fight. The Fire Eternal recognized the truth in Altuumis' words and granted his request.
The Fire Eternal struck the Anvil of Fire two times, and the Orcs were blessed with the sight of fire and heart of flame. To this day it is unknown what merits these gifts possess for the Fire Eternal is not without a sense of mischief. He struck for the third time, and the Orcs were granted overflowing Spirit making them in-tune with their Fire Forge spells and abilities. the Fire Eternal was pleased with this. He smiled, and struck his anvil again, this time granting the Orcs keen ears with which to hear the heart behind a speaker's words. This made their sense of truth and intuition hard for any other to match. The Fire Eternal raised his hammer and called upon his angels. Each angel laid their hands on the hammer, and, after each angel from the most remote to his most trusted guardians had given their blessings, he swung again. This sixth hammer fall granted the Orcs hardened armor wrought from fire and flame and blessed with the spirit of protection that they might better shield the other races.
The Fire Eternal took up his war-hammer and smote it in two to reforge as a gift to the Orcs. The new hammer became an Orcish hammer of Fire and Flame, granting the Orcs the ability of eternal strength and guiding their hands in combat. The Fire Eternal smiled at his work for he saw it was good.
He bestowed a final gift to his new peace bringers. Knowing the Orcs were not swift as the Coursers or Cenzai, but knowing Adia was large with much land on her surface, he struck his anvil one last time and a trail of fiery speed, a charge, was granted to the Orcs.
The Fire Eternal was content with his work and spoke to Altuumis “These Orcs will be my Fire Forge Paladins. Go and tell them the good news. Tell them their Fire Forge commander is born.”Altuumis went and told the Orcs of the good news, and glowing in golden armor decorated in Fire Eternal gems stood the first of the Fire Forge commanders, Gundren Haldstor.
The Orcs felt invigorated as the spirit magic coursed through them. They could feel the Fire Eternal’s spirit magic, and hear his voice. They wept tears of joy at the birth of the new Fire Forge.The Orcs stood tall as those chosen to pick up this mantle and to inherit such a gift from the Fire Eternal.

Naming Traditions

Feminine names

Gawnya, Aynwynn, Audrey, Harmony, Kyla

Masculine names

Gundre, Danilkar, Theo, Brent, Aiken, Darren, Wheeler

Family names

Haldstor, Farbrance, Lightbinder, Intellison, Cordwender, Smithell, Alekell, Kwindle, Venthesium