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| | [[Races]] | | [[Races]] |
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| − | == Orc ==
| + | [[File:Example.jpg]] |
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| − | Orcish life is a montage of violence, gluttony, and hate. It could be accurately said that humans are creatures of emotion, and it can be just as accurately said that Orcs are their emotions. Orcs are a race of barbarous marauders, bent on pillage and destruction. The allies of the orcs are few, and their enemies are many, but they would have it no other way. Most of Orcish life revolves around feats of strength, showing of power, and religious zeal. While small changes have occurred with orcish society over the ages, it's ways and goals are more or less retained. Here now is a document of Orcish life, from birth to the bitter end.
| + | == The Orcs == |
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| − | '''In the beginning; Mating, Birth and Childhood'''
| + | From the mountains and jungles of the south, guttural chanting can heard. The clash of blades resound through the caverns and valleys of the great volcano, Burz'kal. Before looms the mighty Orc. Imposing in stature and ruthless in battle, these Green skinned killing machines live for one purpose..to please their blood thirsty god, Gruumsh. |
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| − | Orcs are by nature a misogynistic people. Due to the physical weakness inherent of the female frame, and the orcs being a zealously patriarchal society, female orcs are mostly looked down upon. Typically thought of nothing more than a cow, females are prized for the sole purpose of birthing the next generations of warriors. There are few positions open to a female, though a peculiarly strong one may earn some type of respect. While there isn't really any sort of traditional marriage within the culture of the orcs, male orcs often claim female orcs as their own property and will ferociously defend it.
| + | But not all is as it may seem. Behind their scarred chests beats the heart of the noble savage. Though countless encounters with these mighty beasts speak of their savagery, few in the other races truly understand the ways and purpose of the mighty Tribe of Burz'kal Hont-Ob. |
| − | When orcs mate, impregnated females birth litters of orcs. There are no real familial lines within the orcs, those of the same litter will typically not even recognize any sort of relation. To an Orc, a related Orc is just another Orc. When ready to give birth, the females are brought to the "Breeding Pit", this place beginning the infant Orcs' induction into a life of warfare and survival. All newborn orcs are tossed into the pit, typically a large hole with a ladder extending part way down the side. In this pit, food is scarce, often only the scraps thrown in after the adult orcs' meals. From day one it is a fight for survival, the young orcs fighting amongst themselves for food and dominance. In here, the orcs also learn some of their more barbarous traits, cannibalism for one. In a squabble over precious little food, the defeated young Orc typically becomes food himself, every aspect of these early stages of life truly defining the term "survival of the fittest".
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| − | Those orcs that are strong enough, crafty enough, or just plain lucky enough to reach the ladder will eventually climb to freedom after sufficient maturation. As they reach the top, they are introduced to a rather lavish point in life for the orcs, considering what will follow in the harsh years after. The Orc children are brought into the mothers' den, a hut used for the caring of these adolescent orcs, and typically one of the few jobs that females can hope to attain. In the mothers' den, they are well fed and treated to beds and other luxuries any human child would accept as necessity. For these precious few years, they live what any Orc would consider a luxury, until the coming of their thirteenth year.
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| − | '''The faceless years; becoming pugs in the Orcish society'''
| + | Come Sit by the fire, grab a choice hunk of meat and listen Shaman's words... |
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| − | On the night of an Orcs thirteenth year, in the middle of sound slumber, the male orcs come into the mothers' den. The teenage orcs are dragged off in the middle of the night, and their indoctrination into a life of war truly begins. In the first night alone they are victims to savage beatings and torture. They are brought to the barracks, where they will begin their life as a warrior. These orcs continue what began in the breeding pit, being pitted against their fellow pugs for food. Vicious war games devised by the Sergeants in charge of the barracks train them for a life full of violence and hardship.
| + | Gruumsh summons you to battle, will you answer his wild call? |
| − | In one training exercise, walls of mud bricks are built up, and the young orcs expected to run through every last one. Each Orc must fight for their daily meals, many of these fights ending in death. After these first few months, life becomes more normalized for the poor pugs. They are placed under the command of Orcish officers and finally sent out along with the grunts to real battles. It is at this point, where life may take important turns.
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| − | The Adult Years; where life may guide you
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| − | At these points in life, the proper Orcs on the lookout will see talent where it lies and guide the pugs into what they will most likely serve as until they die. If a pug shows himself to be a gifted warrior, he will most likely be spotted by a watchful sergeant and be taken in as a part of his maubur. If the young pug shows an inherent connection to Gruumsh, one of the Shamans may typically bring him before the Church of Gruumsh, where he will begin his life as a Shamanic Priest. There are also some orcs that may prove to be useless in battle, but are no less invaluable to the tribe than any other Orc. It is at these points in life, where an Orc takes his so-called "profession".
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| − | When the gifted warrior is seen by the mindful Sergeant, he will eventually be told to join the Maubur of the Sergeant. A Maubur is a regiment of Orcs, under the command of a Sergeant. When he becomes a part of the Maubur, he is thereby promoted to the rank of Grunt. Grunts are the mainstay of the Orcish army. A grunt is a developed warrior, and as any male Orc of proper age is, he is expected to fight in the many violent campaigns that will undoubtedly happen through out his lifetime. A particularly ambitious Orc (though rare, as the common Orc is more inclined to be resigned to his lot in life) may hope to some day slay his Sergeant in combat and ascend to his former master's position. Orcs, being a warlike people, are particularly short-lived, typically seeing no more years than fifty. A grunt that manages to survive a few wars will eventually be promoted to Taar'Grunt, a sort of veteran status.
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| − | When an Orc shows an outstanding zeal, and a connection to Gruumsh, the Lord and Creator of the Orcs, he is typically a candidate for a Shaman, the priests of the orcish religion. When brought into the church, hopeful Shamans are typically given the worst jobs and often the most mundane to carry out for the elder Shamans. They are taught the ways and words of Gruumsh, and indoctrinated into this way of life. When the young Shaman is deemed worthy, he will be given a great trial. This Shamanic prospect is given the blood corroded sacrificial dagger, and expected to remove his own eye without so much as a sound. Failure would result in the utter shame of the Orc, and being that one has only two eyes, trying again is not an option. The shamed Orc may return to the Pug barracks, but it is not unheard of for the Orc to take his own life to end the shame of his failure. If successful, the Orc moves on to full Shaman status as a Lazguoi, Priest of Gruumsh.
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| − | Then there are those who seemingly have no combat ability, no connection to Gruumsh. These Orcs are typically thought of as useless, and spit upon. They are usually the smallest orcs that somehow managed to survive the terror of the breeding pit, they are the Makurs. While their use in war is laughable, their contribution to the tribe is invaluable. Most makurs begin their lives as rejects, Pugs that no Sergeant would ever choose for his Maubur. Yet they have strange talents for an Orc, perhaps tinkering with small contraptions, an interest in building something, or a habit in watching the metalworkers toil at the war forge. These orcs are usually brought before the Makur'goth, and given the tools of their trade and taught to work for the betterment of the tribe. While they contribute nothing in ways of fighting, without their work no fighting would happen.
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| − | Orcs who choose a life outside of the clans living amongst other races are considered betrayers. Typically, these orcs are considered below snaga by the orcish clans and killing them is met with overwhelming approval. Betrayers are thought of as too soft or weak to survive in Gruumsh's army, their survival of the pug years is considered a mistake, and their deaths are the correction of that mistake. Betrayer orcs are not allowed within the sacred lands of Burzkal Hont-Ob.
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| − | '''Common-day occurrences; Day to day life of the Orcs'''
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| − | The Orcs, being a war minded people center most of their free time on feats of strength or skill. While they wish to be always at war, one cannot realistically fight all day and all night. Thus the orcs typically fill their free time with drinking, feasting, and games of skill and strength. A favorite of the Orcs is darts, throwing daggers or throwing axes. They tend to play these games a lot, which inevitably leads to a lot of bragging about their good aim, and excellent eyesight.
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| − | Often while sitting around, an Orc might challenge another Orc to a duel for fun, as honing one's combat skill is always desirable.
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| − | Drinking contests to test the strength of one's liquor tolerance are a common occurrence also, and eating contests of who can gorge themselves on the most food.
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| − | Aside from games though, common Orcish enjoyment comes from such acts as fishing, which is considered a sort of blessed event in it's self. The Orcs tend to believe that fish are a gift from Gruumsh, the only food that delivers it's self freely and offers no fight in return.
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| − | Game hunting is also very popular among the orcs, tales of who brought back the largest and most vicious boar bragged about for weeks.
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| − | Bragging is also a popular Orcish game, I might add. The Orcs seem to love sitting around and bragging about their wartime exploits, regardless of if they hold any truth or not. Which leads to a lot of calling out, and a lot of fights over accusations of lying. But fighting can be considered enjoyable to an Orc.
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| − | '''Worship and Praise; The Religion of the Orcs'''
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| − | The Orcs were created by their God, Gruumsh, as the enemies of the elves. So they say that he created the Orcs to force the elves to recognize the power of the Gods due to their insolence. Gruumsh is the head and uncontested ruler of the Orcish pantheon. Though there are many lesser Orcish Gods, most are little known and less praised. It is common within the tribe for Gods such as Bahgtru and Ilneval to be praised by the warrior caste, though the most reverence is of course saved for Gruumsh. Gruumsh is an unforgiving and brutal deity, demanding nothing but strict obedience and ever-spreading war from his people. In the view of Gruumsh he and his people were cheated out of land they deserved, thus all land belongs to the orcs, but more importantly Gruumsh. Worship of Gruumsh usually involves self-mutilation, ritual scarring, frequent blood sacrifice and unceasing battle. Depending on the leadership of the Tribe, as a whole it may be more or less zealous.
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| − | The Church of Gruumsh is led by the High Shaman. He alone has proven his strength in Gruumsh, more than likely defeated his predecessor and risen to the top of the Church. His power remains undisputed and he makes the major religious decisions for the Church and the tribe. When the tribe is governed by secular leadership, he is more often than not the Advisor of the War boss.
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| − | Underneath the High Shaman are the Lazguoi, regarded as full priests of Gruumsh. They will typically give blessings before battles, do sacrificial proceedings and commonly lecture the Orcs on the words and will of Gruumsh.
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| − | At the bottom of the Church is the Naakh'hont-ob, or hands of the Eye. These are the least regarded members of the Church, and typically the ones stuck with all the dirty work waiting until they have proven themselves worthy of the plucking.
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| − | Clan Ranks and Hierarchy; the Commanding of a War machine
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| − | In most times, the tribe is typically ran by the warrior caste, though it is not unheard of for a particularly charismatic and powerful Shaman to rise to the rank of war boss. Thus, Orcs often have two differing types of hierarchy. In times of secular rule by the Warrior caste, a War boss will typically reign with the High Shaman of the Church of Gruumsh as his advisor. When a Shaman manages to rise to power, he will typically name a General as his war advisor to watch over the campaigns of the Clan.
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| − | Clothing and Armors; the garments of the Orcs
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| − | The orcs, being a strength minded people, typically have a drip-down system of equipment. All the strongest Orcs will typically be adorned in the finer armors and clothing, while the lesser ranked Orcs typically get the garbage that no self-respecting Taar'Grunt or Sergeant would be seen in.
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