Orc

The orc is a creature unburdened by the illusions other mortals take for granted.
When the world was created, each race was granted dominion over a different part of creations; elves kept the forests, dwarves ruled the mountains, but the orcs got nothing. Everything the orcs have was clawed for and seized and held onto jealously, living with the eternal threat that it may be taken away.
Orcs know that all things are fleeting, the empires of man, kingdoms of elves and dwarven strongholds appear strong, but they are brittle. There will be a time when they will break, but orcs will never fall, orcdom is forever.

Basic Information

Biological Traits

Orcs are powerfully muscled, uniformly built to give and take punishment. Though a large-bodied people, they are always hunched over, as if waiting to strike at a moment's notice.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Orcish society has a deceptively simple pecking order, on the outset; superiors are to be obeyed and underlings obey. In practice, this is fraught with complications, leading an horde of orcs is like herding cats. Orcs have big egos and each one thinks they could do a better job than their boss. Orc chieftains are constantly defending their place in the horde from usurpers, and require judicious applications of force to keep them in line. Orc leaders need the respect of their underlings to keep their heads, a leader can only survive as long as they continue impressing their underlings. Heroic feats, glorious victory and bountiful plunder are need to maintain the esteem of the horde and keep dissent down.

Average Intelligence

Orcs are commonly thought of as unintelligent, but they are just as smart as any human. They are impulsive, thinking with their gut most of the time, and prefer to take the simplest course of action in any situation. That said, they have fiendish cunning and a knack for out-of-the-box thinking, lending to their unpredictability.

Civilization and Culture

Naming Traditions

An orcling is only given a name after they survive their first year, afterwards they are officially introduced and adopt their clan name. Orcs who perform acts of renown are given an honorific "deed name" which is typically substituted for the clan name. This deed name is either gained from peers like a nickname, or for feats of particular distinction awarded by a chieftain or clan elder. Deed names reference the actual accomplishment in some way, in the distinctive orcish manner. If the orc continues to perform great deeds and sire many children, they may inherit the name themselves and begin a minor clan.

Major Organizations

The Clan Mothers are a constant presence within every orcish tribe. A congress of the oldest and canniest orcesses of their respective clans, their primary purposes is to keep the histories and cultures of their peoples. They also conduct rites to honor the gods, educate young orclings and provide advice to chieftains and warlords.

Common Etiquette Rules

Orcs are the most polite of all mortal races, as an orc learns early to hold their tongue or lose it. Insults that other races could easily brush off are settled in the most efficient application of violence available to the slighted party. This may seem to be incongruous with how orcs are seen to behave, as they insult each other constantly. But this is something of a game they play, picking on each other to thicken their skins against injuries physical and mental. The blows they exchange are not serious fights and seldom draw blood.

Common Dress Code

Gruumsh made every orc to be a warrior, and their clothing reflects this. If not clad head to toe in armor with blade in hand, orcs always wear at least one article of armor and have a weapon somewhere on hand. This can be a simple studded-leather girdle, a iron helm, or somesuch, whatever the orc can afford. The weapon is commonly a utilitarian broad-bladed dagger, used in day-to-day tasks such as shaving, eating and digging.
An orc who does not wear these items is seen as soft and unprepared, even if they are an skilled artisan who is too valuable to risk combat.

Common Taboos

Orcs fear weakness, as it draws the enmity of Gruumsh, their god.