Rong

> *"RONG IS STRONG"*
>
>

**Rong** was a half-orc barbarian of the Uthgardt tribe.

## Backstory

### Early Life

Rong was one of many sons of Faust Brussus belonging to the Blue Bear Tribe by his mother, Yaru, the favourite concubine of his father. This makes Faust a strange man by Uthgardt standards, given their hatred of Orcs.

Faust raided an Orc camp over 20 years ago and stole Yaru from there, he didn't realise at the time that this is quite a conventional way of marrying amongst Yaru's Orc tribe (Ice Shield) so she became his concubine.

Faust originally took Yaru on many raids with the hope she might earn a worthy death and he wouldn't be as ostracised amongst other Uthgard, but ultimately her prowess in battle won him over.

A few years later they made Rong. While he was the dimwit of the family and the scapegoat for many things that went wrong amongst his brothers, the local shaman told him he was meant to go out into the world and slay many beasts to bring honour to his clan so that he might be respected.

Rong had it in his mind that he needed to work his way up to killing a dragon in order to make his family happy and bring them honour. Within half a year of his travels he decided to sell some wolf skins for shiny coins he sometimes would see the tribe shamans trade with wagon men.

See also: Timeline of Episodic Violence.

## Appearance

Rong was a hulking pale blue Orc draped in an assortment of heavily worn rags and animal hides. His yellow/grey tusks protruded several inches out from his mouth. He spent most of his life in the wilderness and it shows, from the leaves and twigs trapped in his clothes to the mud and blood on his hands. Rong was bald but had a decent amount of body hair from his Blue Bear Tribe heritage. Rong would proudly show a few scars from some of his lighter skirmishes with other Uthgardt tribes and carried a great-sword in a cloth guard on his back. Rong wore a crude, but new set of hide armour made from the wolf pelts of his most recent kill.

## Personality

What Rong lacked in intelligence (which was considerable) he made up for in brute strength. He had a limited vocabulary but could just about string broken sentences together common, elvish and more fluently in his native tongue of Bothii. Rong had almost no interest in historical, educational or political topics unless they involved some form of hunting or battle. His lack of social awareness meant he could be subject to manipulation and veiled insults often directed his way, but he could be prone to violence if he felt he was being mocked too much.

Rong was most entertained by brawling, hunting, feasts and music, as this brought back fond memories of the few times his family had been guests of other Uthgardt chiefs. Rong was keen to prove himself, build honour by slaying monsters and would generally do as instructed, leaving morality of actions to other people.

Rong knew only the most basic rules of civilisation, people trade shiny coins for items or help (jobs), taking items belonging to weaker people can cause armoured men to attack or capture you, the people who farm are usually under the rule and protection of people in big stone buildings.

Rong knew many people are scared of Orcs and generally wary of Uthgardt tribes, he interpreted this as a respect they have for his might, rather than understanding he was viewed as a savage.

While many Uthgardt tribes view magic with disdain, Rong could not differentiate between shamans and other spellcasters, so he would often mistake both the elderly and casters as the shamans of other tribes, affording them a degree of deference.

Due to his life in the wilderness, Rong was more likely to be positive towards other Barbarians, Rangers, Druids and Wood Elves, he would often mistakenly believe they were either part of the Ghost Tree tribe, or residents of the High Forest.

## Abilities

Rong relied completely on strength and rage in battle to ignore wounds and deliver significant damage with his great-sword. His half-orc heritage meant he could deliver more damage when critically striking his enemies and once between long rests he could withstand a devastating blow which would otherwise fell a normal fighter. His main tactic was to compete with raw force but would occasionally set traps for prey that would otherwise outrun him.

## Ideals

As a member of the once destroyed Blue Bear Tribe of Uthgardt, Rong believed that might rules all, raiding and pillaging in force is acceptable and to be expected. He knew little of the civilised world but did know that such actions would cause anger and retaliation. Rong was under the impression his family did not believe he had proven himself and was therefore looking to collect trophies from the beasts he intended to slay as proof of his worth.

His goal was to eventually improve his hunting to build up his tribal totem and one day hunt down a dragon, he believed this will please his family.