Orcs

Orcs’ inclusion as a member of the Many Races is oft debated. Orcs are said to have arrived at the same time as the other races, but only in tribal communities far from the Grand Cities. Today, even in a metropolis you’ll rarely see an orc as few orcs choose to leave their tribes. Some use this as a reason to claim that they are beasts, and cannot be trusted, but the majority simply except that, like all the other Races, they were given a role and are living it.

Orc tribes usually live amid squalor and constant mayhem, and intimidation and brutal violence are the glue that holds tribal orc culture together. Battle is the most common way of settling a dispute, and winners are free to take what they want from the losers. Strength reigns supreme for the orc, and this bleeds into their relationships with nearby towns and cities. Orcs will often attack other settlements to gain their goods and even their homes. Despite this ferocity, orcs are actually very lazy and would rather pass the work off to a weaker orc. This passing of the buck will usually travel down the pecking order until it reaches the lowest members of a tribe or gets passed on to a slave.

Orcs usually leave their tribes only after losing out in a power struggle. Facing humiliation, slavery, or even death at the hands of their own kind, they opt instead to live and work with members of other races. Orcs who fail to rein in their tempers and the instinctive drive to dominate rarely last long once they strike out on their own. Though orcs who do manage to get by in other societies often enjoy the luxuries and comforts these societies can deliver, they still tend to dream of returning home, seizing power, and taking revenge.

Orc stats, traits, subraces, favored class options, alternate racial traits can be found here