Orc

 

Physiology

Orcs are large humanoids with overdeveloped musculature and very low body fat. Their skin tones are similar in range to goblins', running from muted greens and browns through to greys and blacks, and their hair is black and wirey. Their teeth and sharp, as unlike most other humanoid species, orcs are carnivorous and cannot digest grains or vegetables. They also cannot drink alcoholic beverages, so the stereotype of the 'violent drunken orc' is discriminatory trope. Orcs drink water, milk and blood, and enjoy a particular mixture of milk and blood that prevents the blood from coagulating, allowing it to be kept longer. Orcs average 170 cm and 80 kg, with both males and females being heavily muscled.

Life Cycle

Orcs are highly selective in their breeding, and both genders are highly invested in choosing the most physically powerful reproductive partner they can, with the aim of having children that can survive the harshness of orcish culture. Orcs usually select partners by falling in alongside potential mates in battle, fighting side-by-side and observing the prowess of potential partners until both sides are happy with their selection.

Orc pregnancies are very long - around 400 days - though females do not present as pregnant until quite late, gaining most of their size in the last 50 days. In this last stretch of pregnancy, the unborn child grows very rapidly, and the the mother can become incapacitated and vulnerable to rivals. The male must remain close at hand to protect the female during this stage. Surprisingly, despite the rapid physiological transformation, orcish maternal mortality is quiet low, and most orc females recover completely from the trauma of childbirth within twenty days.

Orc children are born very large and well developed, often reaching 20 kg at birth. Orc babies are not nearly as competant as goblin babies, and cannot fend for themselves from birth, but they are much more capable than most other humanoid babies, and can typically walk and climb (and get into all kind of trouble) within days. By the age of two, orcs will reach adolescence, and by this time, most breeding pairs have gone their separate ways and the young orc has bonded either with the mother or the father for training. and the parents end their breeding partnership. By three orcs are young adults; physically as formidable as most humanoid adults, and at this stage they are typically on their own.

Most orcs will have four or five children in their life, though normally only two to three of those will survive long enough to have children of their own. The orcs life cycle is only 2 years long.

Culture

Orc societies are warlike and violent. They typically live in small nomadic raiding tribes, with local warlords keeping one another in check. Occasionally, strong leaders will arise, subjugating other tribes until a horde arises and attempts to seize regional power. Orcs often combine with goblin tribes, usually subjugating them, though occasionally being subjugated by them, and while goblin tribes tend to be more invested in settlements - particularly mines or cave systems, orcish tribes are more nomadic and more involved in trade with other tribes, and even with organized societies. Larger mixed hordes of goblins and orcs can become quite wealthy and powerful with goblin lairs acting as hubs for generating resources such as metal, coal, and weapons and armour, and orcs conducting trade or raiding, or both. Because of their small size, goblins do not usually find much use for subjugating people they conquer - most other humanoid species don't fit in the tight underground spaces goblins prefer. But orcs don't have this problem, and will absolutely indenture those they capture into servitude, forcing them to do menial labour, often under abhorrent conditions and subjected to terrible cruelty.

Occassionally individual orcs, or even small tribes or clans will, will break from the normal orc culture and integrate into organized society. This typically happens when an aging group of orcs who have been highly involved in trade realize that they are not likely to survive the next few years if they continue living the nomadic, raiding lifestyle. Sometimes, groups of a dozen or more orcs will arrive at a city with a large shipment of goods and a request for amnesty and a kind of refugee status. Different states will deal with these appeals differently, but as often as not, these refugee orcs will be accepted and granted legal identities and the right to seek certain kinds of employment.

Second generation orcish families who have integrated into organizaed society seem to have little problem setting aside the anarchic patterns of orcish tribal existence. While they are remain extremely physically capable by nature, and tend to find success in military organizations or guilds focused on physical labour, they seem no more or less likely to be violent or to express criminal behaviour than other humanoids. They do, however, tend to face constant discrimination, and despite their capacity for exceptional performance in many domains, larger societal biases make it very difficult for orcish families to climb the social hierarchy within organized society.

Adjustments

Orcs are physically powerful and mentally disciplined, granting them bonuses to their Strength and Will and also their Health, thought they tend to be autonomous and somewhat fickle in their loyalties, making for a penalty to their Conviction. Their size makes them easier to hit, but otherwise, they are fearsome in combat, starting with Apprentice level of mastery and a free initial roll in the Combat - Offensive skill field, and the Weapon Mastery perk, as well as a bonus to damage.