Orc
Basic Information
Anatomy
Orc's on average are large, bipedal creatures, two arms and two legs, and are plantigrades, walking on the soles of their feet, with toes and soles flat on the ground. Orcs have 5 toes on each foot and four fingers and a thumb on each hand. They have evolved so that their bottom two incisors have grown to tusks about and inch in length.
Orcs, like all Rularian people, evolved from the Tal, living on a harsh wilderness north of Ixmoria, the Orc's had very little land for farming. As such they evolved to become excellent hunter and gatherers, evolving their tusks to tear into meat more easily. Through this the evolved to be able to keep pace with a wounded creature, and to carry even the heaviest of deer back to their family. They also kept the Darkvision of their ancestors, but at a reduced distance and can only perceive colour as shades of grey in darkness.
Biological Traits
Thaltical Orc
Thaltical Orcs are a subspecies of Orcs that didn't choose to follow Inday into the Shadowfell and become Shadow Orcs. They retain the abilities and specilisations of the Orcs as they evolved on Oxdara.Shadow Orcs
The Shadow Orcs were those who chose to follow Inday and leave for the Shadowfell to find new life outside of Oxdara, after feeling dejected from the other nations of Rularia. Living in the Shadowfell and the changes that Inday oversaw the Shadow Orcs undertake has allowed them to regain some of their ancestral Darkvision, being able to see out to 120ft and discern colours. The Shadow Orcs have also developed to stand taller and be more lean, many suspecting the changes made with Inday's magic has brought them closer to how the Tal originally looked, being as close to the ancestral species as the Elves are, though each being changed by different magic - Elves Fey magic and Orc Shadow magic.Genetics and Reproduction
Orcs, like all Tal descendants, are mammalian and reproduce via internal fertilisation and live birth, after 9 months.
Growth Rate & Stages
Orc's go through childhood and adolescence through their first two decades, experience puberty around 13/14 and become adults at around 20. Orc's will spend most of their lives physically fit and strong, from about 16-60, and start slowing down after their 60th birthday, entering into a more relaxed and wise role in the clan. These older Orcs are often Elders, leaders, or shamans, continuing to protect the clan, but in political or spiritual matters.
Additional Information
Facial characteristics
Orc's tend to have quite strong and square features, with ears that come to a three-quarter to half inch point. Growing facial hair, keeping their beards short rather than the long and groomed of the Dwarves.
Civilization and Culture
Naming Traditions
Orcish first names are very similar to the Dwarves, with very guttural sounding names, however unlike the Dwarves they have no difference for male or female names lending to the Orc's gender ideals. (For real world naming conventions look to Celtic and Germanic names)
Orc's surnames also lend from the Dwarves, typically a titular name, and often times earned through a feat or accomplishment, like Wolfscar - someone known to hunt wolves that posed a threat to the clan - or Doubleblade - someone known to wield two swords in combat. It is very rare for a Orc to use their parents name has a surname.
Major Organizations
There are two major Orcish organisations, that of the Shadow Orcs in the Shadowfell and the Orc's of the New Thaltical Republic. Little is known about the Orcs in the Shadowfell, only that they are there under the protection of Inday, and that they have a tense relationship with the Raven Queens Shadar-Kai.
The Orcs of the New Thaltical Republic however are the last remnants of the old Thaltical from before the war against the Dark Wing empire. After retreating across the old mountain border between Thaltical and Ixmoria, the remaining Orcs set up a refugee city in the, at time, principality of Horan's Rise, named New Blackstone. After the war the Orcs wanted a new region they could establish as their own, a wide open region sharing a lot of features with the thought lost Thaltical. They moved to the Exterior Wilds, establishing their first city, New New Blackstone.
Relationship Ideals
Orcish relationships work as a unit, with a strong sense of community and communal raising of the children. This unit relationship develops into romantic and sexual relationships, with monogamous relationships being very rare, though not unseen. Paternal relationships do still exist, as does a family unit, though a unit may consist of more than two parents, and children not being discerned between adopted and born.
Because of this communal raising the Orc's have no real concept of orphans, as when a child looses their parents the clan will raise the children together.
Major Language Groups and Dialects
Orc's speak Orcish, or Thalticalian, with a deep connection to recounting thier history through oral recounts, with written Orcish only really coming about from the Dwarves who ancestrally shared a border with the Orcs. Because of this written Orcish uses the Dwarven script.
Most of the Old Orcish dialects have died out on the material plane, due to Inday's deal most Orcs to give them a new home in the Shadowfell. In present day the two main Orcish dialects are that of the New Thaltical Republic and the Shadow-Orcs of the Shadowfell.
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
The Orcs are a proud people, though not resistant to help from others, especially since the founding of New New Blackstone. They work to make sure their place in Rularia is as important as the larger nations, and have developed a close relationship with the citizens of the Underdark they neighbour.
Dragonborn/Dragon
After the founding of New New Blackstone, the Orc's became very close with the Dragonborn and Dragon's of Polantia, becoming one of their greatest trade partners, with Polantian ships moving through New New Blackstone on journeys to and from Venka. This relationship blossomed during the reinvigoration act after the war against the Dark Wing Empire.
Scientific Name
Talis Orcium
Origin/Ancestry
The Tal
Lifespan
100-120 Years
Average Height
6'6'' - 7'7''
Average Weight
230lbs - 280 lbs
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Orc skin tones range from dark to light grey, greens and pale blue. Whilst many Orcs have tattoos the Shadow Orcs have their lower portion of their limbs covered in a swirling inky blackness of shadows - their forearms down to their fingers, and shins and feet.
Geographic Distribution
Related Organizations
Related Ethnicities
Related Myths
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