These are large creatures that many often believe to be malevolent due to their brute strength as well as their combative culture. They rely on brute strength and possess an impressive amount of weaponry. They can be super aggressive and many often use creatures they capture in battle. Not all are truly evil, but they are often feared due to their large size and intimidating appearance. They often have a crude and aggressive nature whilst retaining intelligence. They tend easier to outsmart outside of battle or to trick as they are quite skilled in battle tactics. Some tribes are so aggressive that they often fight each other and will try to eat other smaller beings. They can mostly be found in Aldrakh and Dugmaghord.
Though their overall culture is very combat-focused and many are indeed as violent as many view them. However, there are the exceptions as there are a few peaceful tribes or even sometimes those who break free from their culture.
For example, the Nabarask Tribe is known to be peaceful.
Lifespan: 300 years at most
Height: Up to 10 feet
Orc Hierarchy
Grand Chieftain - Highest of the Orc ranks.
Chieftains - This position is held by the head of an orc clan. There are four major orc clans in Avalia. These are not the wisest, not the oldest, but the most powerful orcs in the clan. Orcs become chiefs by killing or defeating the previous chief in combat This is position is contended from time to time, but not taken so easily.
Priest/Shaman - This title usually goes to orcs that have outlived their peers and missed the opportunity for a glorious death. They use their wisdom to advise chieftains in strategy. These orcs ensure traditions maintain and may sometimes offer spiritual council.
Captain - This rank was not created by orcs, but adopted from the dark elves to create structure organization to Orc Raiders. Captains have authority over raiders and often give their Raiders some form of identification, whether it be a tattoo, scar, or even by the use of a title.
Raider - The majority of orcs. Most call them warriors, but a true orc will tell you all orcs are warriors. These orcs are often found moving in groups of up to a dozen. Either enough for a successful raid or as many that happen to be eager to assert their dominance. Orc society calls young orc raiders Grunts or Pups.
Raider - These are the lowest of the orc ranks.
Outcast - Very often there are orcs who leave their clan, either by banishment or by choice of their own. There are many reasons why an orc may become an outcast, just as there are many reasons why one may rarely see one. Usually alone, but can be found in the company of as many as five orc outcasts.
Orc Rites
They have abilities of strength beyond compare and combat skills few can rival. Yet what makes them special in the world?
The strength of them can be rivaled, the weapon skill they have is only as good as their body allows. In a world of magic and chaos, a strong body can be rivaled quickly with magic boosting and magic weapons. They have lives that can be long so mastering a weapon is no problem, yet to an elf, that is at most a quarter of their lives, so why are they a threat? They are a nuisance at best in the grand scale and probably should have been wiped from this world years ago by just the introduction of guns, flying ships, and war weapons.
So what if they do have a magic all their own?
A magical rite that can be done to give greater strength. This rite allows for Orcs to harness the powers that they first kill after the rite is complete. This includes all creatures, insects, animals, monsters, and even people.
They gain the power of the thing they kill, but this is also a very hard thing for Orcs to do. To not kill that fly that is bothering you, to not kill an animal while you are hungry while on the hunt for more worthy prey. This is an extreme difficulty for most Orcs, to temper yourself to such a degree, to not lose sight of your goals. There are few Orcs who have reached such power, but they are terrifying.
The most known powers gained is that from:
- Flies- Slowed vision in combat.
- Beetles- Increased Durability.
- Mosquitoes- The ability to consume the blood of other races to heal. Requires immense amounts of blood to heal wounds, and recreating body parts requires months and extremely large quantities of blood.
- Boars- Increased Strength and Durability.
- Bears- Greatly Increased physical strength and durability as their skin becomes extremely tough and hard to hurt and cut.
These powers move up in strength as creatures become tougher.
As the Orcs are even able to gain the powers of magic from creatures, one thing is for certain though, it is always weaker, and if it is unrelated to combat and fighting, either they do not get it or it will become something very combative, like the control of plants might either become extremely aggressive plant growth that can kill someone with vines that are thronged with thorns filled with poison, or it'll just allow them to grow plants and launch them like large projectiles.
In any case, this rite is always some form of combative nature, even if it is a non-combative thing you gained from a creature, it will be changed to a much more aggressive form of it. Like the ability to talk to animals might be changed to being able to control animals, which is where their beastmaster comes from.
Their powers are unique as it can be many things, yet many Orcs are too simple and rash to ever reach some of the higher tiers of power because of their nature. Either they kill something for quick power, they don't think about what can be killed and gained, and some just killed insects that were annoying them and now have to live with being known as "Fly Squisher", a loving term used to mark anyone who has killed anything smaller than a boar.
The Rite can be done at any point in an Orc's life, but it can only ever be done once, any more times it will kill the Orc.
For an Orc to kill an Orc during their rite, either the power they possessed beforehand would then be passed on, more powerful than before. Or they gain the knowledge, memories, and experience of the Orc they kill.
The Shaman are not the only ones to administer the rite, they also use it to pass down their knowledge. As many near older ages, they are known to find one like them and deem them the next Shaman. As when the rite is commenced, the Fledgling will kill the Shaman and gain all of his knowledge. This can sometimes warp, change, or alter their personality as they take in the knowledge, experience, and wisdom of a long line of Orcs before them.