Orcs

Glory, honor, and a desire to please their gods is what drives the orcs as a culture. Ironically, orcs are probably *the* most religious race in the region/world. They call themselves Urkuresh, "the Godsworn." An orc warrior seeks to appease his gods, his honor, and family. Shamans and healers seek for signs and omens to guide the actions of a tribe. "Orc" is actually a bastardization of "Urk."
If the orcs served under restful gods, they would likely be a peaceful people. Sadly, the greatest of their gods, Gruumsh, the One-Eyed, together with other warrior deities Ilneval, the War Maker and Bahgtru, the Leg-Breaker , drives them to conquer, raid, and ravage. Worshippers of Luthic, the Cave Mother and Gruumsh's wife, keeps their traditions and culture alive, tending to the tribal hearth, raising warriors to one day conquer the world.
The names of Yurtrus, the White Handed god of disease and death andShargaas, the Night Lord, the god of darkness and the unknown, are rarely spoken above a whisper and only ever in reverence or fear. The shamans of Yurtrus decide whether an orc joins Gruumsh's armies in the afterlife or goes to Shargaas in the darkness.
Surprisingly for a race whose gods push them towards bloodshed, orcs put a high emphasis on cleanliness. This is because orcs desire above all else to die a glorious death on the battlefield, not a death laid low by infection or disease. The six-fingered White Hand of Yurtrus is the symbol of healers among the Urkuresh, yet it is also feared, for the White-Handed One is also a god of death. A White-Hand healer can kill just as easily as any illness and with far more surety, mean that an orc who dies to disease will almost certainly not join Gruumsh war host in Acheron.

Civilization and Culture

Beauty Ideals

Orcs wear their hair in a ceremonial braid that grows long when they are undefeated in battle. When they are defeated or killed, their braids are cut in shame. Long braids are seen as very attractive for both men and women.
It is interesting to note that dwarves took this custom from the orcs, rather that the supposed reverse (not that any self-respecting dwarf will admit that).

Courtship Ideals

The female usually initiates the mating ritual, when she draws the males blood to get his scent. She does this by biting or clawing at his face or neck.

Relationship Ideals

Orcs mate for life

Culture and Cultural Heritage

When a chieftain dies, the matriarch of the tribe (a priestess of Luthic) will arbitrate the Rite of Succession, determining who is eligible to be warchief. She narrows the options to two or three candidates, who then fight for the right to lead the clan. In the case where the warchief has an eligible heir, they will usually be considered for the succession, with other candidates choosing not to challenge.
Whenever a warband clashes with another group of fighters, whether they clash with orcs or not, afterwards shamans of Yurtrus will go around the battlefield tending to those who can be healed quickly and marked those who are honored to be sent to Gruumsh. The surviving warriors they perform ak'voh for the fallen.

Common Customs, Traditions and Rituals

R'uustai "The Bonding" - During this ritual, two orcs join their Houses, clans, or tribes by adopting one another. This is most often done when an allied family comes near to collapse (usually because of too many deaths coming too quickly). It can also be done when adopting an individual outside of orcish society.
Ak'voh "The Mourning" - When a warrior dies in battle, his allies will make sure the body's eyes are open before screaming and roaring to the sky, a battlecry to let Gruumsh know that a warrior is soon to join his Warhost. The warriors allies will then stay with the body (or bodies, as may be the case) to defend it from predators while the spirit journeys to the afterlife. The bodies are then pile and pyred. It is said that Bahgtru counts the foes that a warrior has slain, and credits them to that warrior upon their arrival with the Warhost.
Hegh'bat "The Time to Die" - The Hegh'bat is a traditional orcish ritual suicide. By right and ritual, when a orc cannot stand and face their enemies as a warrior and they have become a burden to their family and friends, it is the time for Hegh'bat. The honor of helping the warrior falls to a family member, preferably the oldest son. That person's role is to hand the incapacitated orc a knife so that they could plunge it into their own heart. The family member would then remove the knife and wipe the blood on their sleeve.

Common Myths and Legends

The origin of the Urkuresh is when after Gruumsh fight with Corellon, the Archeart, Gruumsh removed a piece of bones from his leg, and fashioned from it the first orcs. Gruumsh has since walked with a limp that slows him when walking, so Gruumsh instead runs at his enemies.

"The orcs are a culture like any other. Some of them are proud, honorable warriors. Some of them (most of them) are bloodthirsty killers. And some of them..." Cyrus reached up and touched the scars across his jaw. "Some of them are ex-girlfriends that try to tear your face off to get intimate with you."