Orc

## Overview

Orcs are a quickly-maturing race with boundless endurance and inborn strength. Natural predators and conquerors, one would expect orcs to dominate all lands that they enter due to their instinctual reliance on violence and bloodshed to solve any problem they encounter. However, the only trait that orcs possess that outstrips their brutality is their stubbornness. As a race, orcs have an extremely weak sense of self-preservation and almost no concept of surrender or defeat, as well as a severe lack of foresight. Together, this results in orcs taking on challenges that others would consider impossible and refusing to give up or change course, no matter what. Those orcs who succeed carry their scars as trophies of their victory, while those who do not are the main reason why orcs have not rampaged across the world. With orcish status determined by the wounds that they sustain and the trials they overcome, it's not uncommon for orcs to utilize their limited intellect to find an easy solution to a problem only to choose to do things in a more difficult manner anyway.

## Mechanics

Standard Racial Traits

* **Ability Score Modifiers**: Orcs are brutal and savage. They gain +4 Strength, –2 Intelligence, and –2 Wisdom.
* **Type**: Orcs are humanoids with the orc subtype.
* **Size**: Orcs are Medium creatures and thus have no bonuses or penalties due to their size.
* **Base Speed**: Orcs have a base speed of 30 feet.
* **Languages**: Orcs begin play speaking Orc. Orcs with high Intelligence scores can chose from the following: Dwarven, Giant, Gnoll, and Goblin. See the Linguistics skill page for more information about these languages.

Offense Racial Traits

* **Ferocity**: Orcs possess the ferocity ability which allows them to remain conscious and continue fighting even if their hit point totals fall below 0. Orcs are still staggered at 0 hit points or lower and lose 1 hit point each round as normal.
* **Weapon Familiarity**: Orcs are always proficient with greataxes and falchions, and treat any weapon with the word “orc” in its name as a martial weapon.
* **Darkvision**: Orcs can see perfectly in the dark up to 60 feet.

Weakness Racial Traits

* **Light Sensitivity**: Orcs are dazzled in areas of bright sunlight or within the radius of a daylight spell.

## Society

Whether living among other races or by themselves, orcs find settled, urban life to be too easy to be worth bothering with. In some cases, this is because other races find their casual use of violence to be disturbing and tactfully ask them to leave, but many more are due to a lack of challenge. Consequentially, orcs tend to gather around the outskirts of settlements, especially on the frontier, enjoying being able to freely satisfy their bloodlust by taking care of monsters, bandits, and similar threats while hunting, exploring, and expanding their territory at their leisure. Orcs avoid any activities that don't allow them to use their physical strength or that are repetitive without being challenging. Most orcs organize themselves naturally into clans of extended families with positions of prestige granted to those who've endured the greatest trials, who then consult leaders to resolve inter-clan disputes and direct them towards larger goals. Overarching leadership among orcs is usually left to whoever takes on that challenge first - as there is no glory in directing others to do hard work, there are relatively few orcs who are power-hungry. Those that do take up leadership positions often end up there as a result of attempting to figure out some logistical problem that got out of hand and then failing to give up.

## Religion

Orcs have a strange relationship with the divine - they pay respects to deities who embody racial ideals of power, persistence, and perfection in violence, but the majority of their worship is more akin to taunting godly wrath than anything else. Zhihao Jin is the patron deity of orcs, who see him as testament to their race's infinite potential and a grandfather figure to every member of their society, although their reverence is often too simpleminded to truly please the forward-thinking god. Pahala Kadam speaks directly to the orcish love of violence and strength, while Agathon is portrayed as representing the joy that can be found in enduring pain. Outside of these three deities, orcs prefer to mock and belittle the gods, wishing to pick fights with Basang Ba's storms, smash down Ketar Mozog's fortifications, eat up Alessandra Juntoso's virulent diseases, shatter Nothing Left of Quibatus' chains, punch death directly in the face while Masik watches, win staring contests with Fa'qamuu Twice-Heavenbound's treasured sun and moon, break down Vicenta Salcedo's beautiful works, conquer everywhere Petya Naumov has walked, and burn the books of Jolein Composed of Desire. Dowager Empress Kyouko tends to escape orcish wrath more often than not because they forget that she exists.

## Relations

By and large, orcs tend to intimidate or disturb smaller races, and dismiss even more out of hand due to perceived weakness. Aasimar, changelings, tieflings, aphorites, elves, fetchlings, ghorans, gnomes, halflings, kitsune, kobolds, lizardfolk, parmans, sylphs, and vanara fear orcs for their tendency to use violence as a solution to every problem, no matter how small.

Dhampir and skinwalkers enjoy the respect that their dangerous reputation garners them among orcs, but those who don't have the requisite skills to match quickly end up dead.

Drelmans are wary around orcs, but when they share goals, they find enough common ground to create powerful bonds and mutual respect.

Drow find that orcs are hesitant to treat them lightly, knowing of their volcanic origins and their terrifying temper, and can usually use this attitude as a stepping stone towards understand orcish behavior, though any friendships between the two races will be cut short due to the limited lifespan of orcs.

Dwarves take the existence of orcs as a challenge to their own stubbornness, and consider them rivals, sometimes friendly, sometimes not.

Duergar consider orcs to be well-intentioned idiots who share much of duergar behaviors but absolutely none of their wisdom or philosophy.

Ganzi don't understand why orcs all tend to value similar things, finding it unnatural, but those ganzi that can prove themselves skilled in combat and grow closer begin to receive appreciation from the orcs and deeply appreciate them in turn.

Grippli have no fear of orcs at all, and the bravery of the frogfolk often intrigues orcs enough to create a dialogue which inevitably includes topics of ancestry and spirituality.

Hobgoblins and nagaji consider orcs to be savage but impressive - after a nagaji ensures that their own community isn't under threat by an orc, they are glad to take the opportunity to work together.

Orcs consider ifrits to have the souls of orcs even if their bodies are weaker, and whenever both races gather, impulsive and self-destructive acts will surely follow.

Oreads and ratfolk respect orcs in theory due to their familial loyalties, but in person they find that their presence generates too much chaos to enjoy. Orcs who have grown up alongside oreads, however, tend to treat oreads as older siblings or parental figures, trusting that unlike orcish parents, their oread companion won't recklessly die proving themselves.

Suli pity orcs, believing that whatever strength they gain due to their forms isn't worth the corresponding loss in foresight and dignity.

Tengu, while fearful of orcs, often find that orcish legends and weapon techniques are more tempting than any potential injuries that they might gain from angering an orc, and eagerly approach them seeking partnerships.

Undine think of orcs as annoying, but easily outmaneuvered and little danger. Vishkanya agree, but while undine simply avoid orcs and return to their daily life, vishkanya seek to unleash orcish violence against others in the most destructive manner possible.

Goblins and orcs get along due to a shared lack of thoughts, love of battle songs, and a fondness for the colors green and red, either in skins and eyes, respectively, or in the world around them.