Orcs

A people with iron for skin and fire for blood, Orcs are a proud race of the south, and are known for their inherit strength, desire for personal freedom, and above all else, passion for ones work. Second only to Humans in sheer numbers, no other group is as dedicated to their varied crafts as Orckind, seeing development of personal skills and talents as paramount for success. Primarily living on the south side of the continent, Orcs have an advanced matriarchal social structure that spans from the Trading Dynasties of The Southern Mantle to even the vastly different structure of the federalist union of the The Cabal of the Brass Arrow. Orcs are dedicated people, who hone whatever path they choose in life to near perfection. It is rare to meet an Orc who is a jack of all trades,as primarily, they are masters at whatever skill they seek out in life. Despite being a populous species, many visitors to Halintar don’t see the orcs or their settlements due to their existence as a primarily southern-living race.

## Physical Features

Orcs range from 5'10-6'5 in terms of height, the shortest recorded Orc being 5'2 and the tallest being at 7'4. Orcs have slightly bowed legs and muscular arms. Their ears flap downwards slightly, and have sharp points at the end of their lobes, like elves. Orcs have pig like nostrils that point downwards, and they have some control over the movement of them. Skin color wise, Orcs vary from Orange, Grey, and Green, with green being the most common. Hair tends to vary from black to white, with little variation unless outside species blood is in the mix. The most notable things people notice about Orcs are their large lower tusk that can range from just an inch outside the lip, to well over 8 inches long. Female Orcs are larger than male arcs in terms of weight, and tend to be a few inches shorter.

Orcs from the mantle tend to be either grey or green, and seem a bit stockier than their desert counterparts. common clothing varies from silks of various colors due to the high abundance of silk producing insects in the region. Orcs of the mantle as tend to have shorter hair or just be bald, and adorn themselves in artful tattoos. Orcs from the Badlands wear leathers, and are normally littered in scares which they proudly show off, from either fighting in the several pit arenas, or braving the harsh deserts of the region.

Other weird BIOFACTS

* Full Blooded female orcs have two uteruses, and give birth to two babies at a time
* Male Orcs have four sets of tusk that grow in at different stages of their life, replacing the old ones, while females have three.
* Orcs have four toes, and some orcs have been recorded to have small tails.
* Orcs and humans are highly compatible, and often result in happy in healthy children.
* They are also compatible with merfolk although successful children being born is highly unlikely, there has been no records of Orc Elf or Orc Dwarf hybrids however.
* There are slight physical differences between orange grey and green orcs, not withstanding the slight cultural differences between them.
	+ Tusk Size: Grae > Green > Orange
	+ Size: Green > Grey > Orange
	+ Hair Growth: Orange > Green > Grey

## Culture

Orcs love challenges. Orcs enjoy showing off their scars and marks, often boasting about the dangerous situations their work puts them in front of; a warrior will show off scars just as proudly as a seamstress will show the pricks on their fingers. Orcs tend to appreciate ideals of freedom of beliefs and lives, preferring free enterprise cultures where overbearing governmental entities have little influence on their work. Orcs also appreciate tradition and hierarchies, often leading to monarchies based on lineage or prowess. Frontier justice and free enterprise are ideals that permeate amongst orc societies, and above all justice. This has lead to most Orcs aligning themselves with Tephra and Dinante, and having a strong distrust for the authoritative Ester Pyx.

Most of the orcs that live in the densely packed Southern Mantle travel around, farming the highly fertile land and challenging adventures Orcs that live in the mantle have a slight inclination towards neutral to chaotic. orcs will bicker among themselves on concepts like free trade and physical prowess more than most, and are in constant competition with one another for notable spots in their community. If there is a disagreement between two orcs in the Mantle, the quickest way to solve it, and the way to solve it the most, is through physical challenge. Whether it be one on one combat, or a simple race. Mantalian Orcs, when under the banner of the Iron Legion, united for one purpose. Slaying Crusaders and enemies of the homeland. Mantalian Orcs are highly patriotic.

Orcs from The Badlands are a bit more relaxed in nature, but also have a deeper desire for personal strength due to the culture of the badlands. Pitfighting is a highly competitive sport in the badlands that most Orc enjoy watching and performing in. Badlands Orcs also have a slight aversion to magic, and find it difficult to trust a wizard. They don't feel this way normally about high ranking cabal members however.

All Orcs feel some connection To Tephra, and care deeply about her. It is said that Tephra chose to present herself in mortal form as an Orc, and crafted their bodies from the magma of Cataclysm, and filled their blood with fire. Orcs all around see Tephra as their one true creator.

## Playing a Orc

Orcs strive to do well in whatever life-task they see themselves doing. Figure out what that Life-task is. If your Orc doesn't have one, why not? Orcs have a slight aversion to magic outside of necromancy, and have many superstitions. Orcs make strong bonds with other races and are highly amicable to them, being some of the most tolerant races of Halintar with only a slight aversion to tieflings and merfolk.

All orcs have the following features:

**Ability Score Increase.** Orcs are strong and hearty regardless of where they’re from. Your Strength increases by 2, and Constitution increases by 1.

**Age.** You don’t live long compared to most, normally dying around 70 years of age. In rare cases, some orcs reach the fragile age of 80 but hardly any have lived past that.

**Alignment.** Orcs are Chaotic with few exceptions. Most Orcs are either evil or neutral, although you can make a strong case that they are good if you hail from the Badlands.

**Size.** You are tall, meaty, and strong, averaging out at 6’2" with smaller and taller Orcs.

**Speed.** You run just about as fast as everyone else does, so 30 ft per round.

**Darkvision.** You can see 60 feet in front of themselves in the dark, but only varying shades of gray.

**Languages.** You speak Common and Orcish, unless you are from the Sea of Salt. Orcs from that region can only speak Orcish

**Relentless Endurance.** When you are reduced to 0 hit points but are not killed out right, you can drop to 1 hp instead. Can only be used once per long rest.

**Savage Attacks.** When you roll a critical hit with a melee weapon, you can roll one of the weapon’s dice again and add it to the total.

Beyond this, there are three “subraces” of Orc- Green, Orange, and Grey, each with their own unique skills.

### **Green Orcs**

**Quick Tactics.** Twice per encounter, you may “size up” an opponent. As a reaction or bonus action, roll a Wisdom check while an enemy is within your line of sight. The DC is up to DM discretion, based upon how familiar you are with this creature as well as your level compared to the creature’s CR. If successful, you learn one special attribute you do not know yet about the creature. You may specify learning about a specific resistance/immunity/vulnerability, ability score, or other abilities. You only learn a single attribute of the creature.

**Adaptable Travelers.** You are quick to adapt to the environment’s changes around you. After spending 24 hours in a new environment, you adjust to its landscape to the point where it no longer hinders you. You can walk normally through naturally occurring difficult terrain in this region for as long as you remain in it. This ability goes away after spending 24 hours outside of the given region.

### **Orange Orcs**

**Draw Back.** You move strategically behind an ally, distracting your foes and preventing them from striking as you shift back. To use Draw Back, you must end your turn directly behind an ally. If you do so, make a Strength check to move your ally. The DC for this check is based upon the weight of your ally- if they’re under 100 lbs, DC 7; under 200 lbs, DC 14; under 300 lbs, DC 21, etc. On a success, you and your ally can both shift backwards 5 feet without provoking any attacks of opportunity.

**Brash Assault.** In desperate times, your instincts kick into overdrive, allowing you to counter enemy attacks. If an enemy attacks you and hits you while you are bloodied, you may make a counter strike against them. This can only be initiated after their attack confirms to hit you but does not yet deal the damage. As a reaction to their attack, you strike at them with a single attack of your own- hitting them if within melee range and throwing your weapon at them if ranged. This damage resolves before their damage resolves, negating the attack they hit you with if you incapacitate them or remove their means of attack. This can only be done once per day.

### **Grey Orcs**

**Heat Adapted.** Your body has adjusted to the broiling heat of the Mantle. You are resistant to Fire damage.

**Steady Stance.** You focus on regaining your expended strength, opening yourself up to attacks from enemies. At the beginning of your turn, you must decide if you want to use Steady Stance- if you do, your movement speed becomes 0 for this round, and attacks against you have advantage until the beginning of your next turn. However, doing this allows you to regain one once-a-day ability (for example, Relentless Endurance) of your choice. This can only be done during an encounter, and can only be performed once per encounter.