Manic Typist Posted November 26, 2006 Report Share Posted November 26, 2006 I have a problem. I like a little bit of everything, and I often try to incorporate a little of bit of everything. So, I like to have the drow from Forgotten Realms, and the Dark Elves from Warhammer, etc. Or orcs. The many different kinds of orcs, goblins, hobgoblins, etc- I like the variety. However, I'm also pretty big on reason, consistency, and logic. Which makes tying together these disparate elements rather difficult. While I was studying (or not, as might be the case) political science the other day, I had a sudden brainstorm that I think made my life much easier. I figured out where orcs and their kin came from, and how they reproduce. Enough posturing, here it is: The origin of orcs and their continued presence Long ago, a council of wizards organized to solve a most troublesome problem. They felt that they had not received their proper dues, and decided to conquer the world so that everyone would finally recognize their inherent superiority. These would be gods knew, however, that as powerful as they were, they needed some sort of army to enforce their will. After all, their attention (and spells) could only be in so many places at once. So they set about creating an army of magical constructs to serve as their tools of conquest. What they ended up with was orcs: strong, brutal, efficient, fearless, without mercy or compassion, unhesitating, and ultimately, a failure. The wizards did not create what they had intended to create, and considered the orcs to be a lesser product than what they had intended. What they wizards were hoping for is unknown. Perhaps they wanted more resilient or intelligent creatures, or just simply "more" from the orcs. Whatever it was, the world was spared a terrible fate when the wizards' spell came up short. As a matter of fact, the word "orc" translates into "failure" in the long lost tongue the wizards spoke. Not many people know this however, and how could they? The council decided to make do with what they had, and went to war. An epic struggle ensued, with nations rising and falling, heroes and villains emerging, and legends being born. Ultimately, a band of heroes stormed the citadel of the would be god-wizards and destroyed the control mechanism that mentally dominated their orc armies. The wizards were subsequently slain and the orcs were defeated once they ceased to be an organized fighting force. Originally, orcs had no means of reproducing. Whether this was by design or accident is uncertain, but the world quickly determined that the orc threat would, eventually, be eliminated. If only that were the case. The wizards had been extremely powerful. So powerful in fact, that the spell that they had used to create the orcs was not complete. It "recognized" that the orcs were failures, and it continued to attempt to finish what it had been cast for. However, no one knew that this was occurring. Whenever orcs set up camp for any significant amount of time, they dig a pit. It is usually around thirty feet deep and fifteen feet wide, but it can be exapnded. More on this later. Orcs instinctively toss their dead in these chambers, which frequently serve as a latrine for the orc band. The decomposing bodies, blood, offal, rainwater, and mud mix as the spell begins to take root in the chamber. Eventually a thick morass forms. This sludge spawns more orcs, who attempt to climb the slick and steep walls of the chamber (sometimes the walls even curve in towards the opening, making their task more difficult). Those strong enough to escape join the tribe. Those that aren’t are “recycled” by the spawning chamber. The exact nature of the orc that comes out of the spawning chamber is strongly influenced by what is put in the chamber. If you toss in children, gnomes, halflings, then you will typically get goblins. Goblins typically escape through luck or clever bargaining. Sometimes they will attach themselves to orcs who are trying to climb out, who often don’t even notice their passengers. However, if too many goblins attach themselves to an orc, his chances of escaping will be thwarted. He will either die in the chamber (and so to the goblins who hoped to ride him to freedom), or kill the goblins to lighten his load. Thus, clever goblins will fight off any other would be passengers in order to ensure their own survival. Often this symbiotic relationship will continue even once the orc and goblin have escaped. Another way that goblins escape is by working together to form “ladders” so that they may escape. However, only a small number can benefit while the rest will be abandoned, and this select few succeed through lies, manipulation, and treachery. The result is that only the most treacherous, clever, and strongest creatures escape the spawning chamber. Elves, dwarves, the amount of armor or weapons that the corpses had when “chambered,” and even the dirt composition all influence what is created. Hobgoblins, black orcs, sea orcs, orcs that are resistant to magic or blades are all a result of different “recipes.” Sometimes the orcs toss in prisoners who are not yet dead. If the poor soul manages to survive the brutal conditions of the chamber (as well as any orcs or goblins that spawn) they will eventually become an orc in turn. The spell even reprograms them with the same hatred and aggression that all other orcs have, and nothing remains of the original personality. There is one important difference between “spawned” orcs and “turned” orcs: the latter are capable of independent reproduction. Imagine the initial confusion of an orc tribe when female orcs first emerged from the spawning chambers! I’m sure there were a few unwary orcs who were quickly used to demonstrate that their new companions were just as cruel and aggressive as their male counterparts. It is from these “artificial” orcs that half-orcs (and subsequent diminutive lineages) emerged, typically as a product of rape. What is truly important about orcs (purebred or otherwise) that are born is that they have crucial differences from all other orcs. The larger the generation gap between them and a spawning chamber, the less magic in their makeup and even orc psychology. A purebred orc who parents both came from the chamber would only have about half the predisposition of aggression and hatred that makes other orcs exultant killers. The progeny of that orc (purebred or otherwise), will have even less of an instinctive urge to fight and kill and in general behave like a typical orc. Eventually, you have an orc on your hands who is completely free of the wizards’ spell, and is like any other individual. Regardless, if the orc was not created in the spawning chamber, then it has some measure of free will, and therefore some possibility of becoming a moral being. However, even “untainted” orcs can be raised to be killers, like any other beings. Whether raised by their tribes or by society, it is difficult for an orc to escape the stigmata of his or her blood. Remember, most people have an ingrained hatred of orcs, and rapeget suffer doubly from this. What do you guys think? So far, I am really excited about the possibilities this entire process offers. You have a logical and detailed explanation for why some orcs can be killed without guilt (the perfect mooks), or you can instead force the players to confront moral issues: “He was raised that way!” or “Why did you do that? He was peaceful! Murderer!” If a player wants to play a orc or a half-orc, but dislikes the idea of taking any sort of “rage” Disads, he can play an orc that is “far” from the chamber. Or, if he would like to play an orc that is struggling with its inner rage, then it can be “close” to a spawning chamber. I think this allows for a lot of mix and matching options for a player to select from, as well as a template that can be incorporated into their character’s background. Comments? Questions? Suggestions? I am especially looking for suggestions about different “names” I can give the different types of orcs in regards to how magical (and therefore enraged) they are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mulgar Posted November 26, 2006 Report Share Posted November 26, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction That is fabulous, repped!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CraterMaker Posted November 26, 2006 Report Share Posted November 26, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction Wonderfully self consistant.. I like it a lot! I can't come up with anything cool to describe their distance from the pit.. Pitbourne? I got nothing..wait.. Spawn for direct from the pit.. Descended for successful generations.. Bastard or Hybreds (sp intentional) for living creatures transformed by the magic in the pit.. So "We're facing a thousand OrcSpawn, led by Hybreds(Bastards).. We're expecting the Descended to start joining up as the Horde makes its' way inland." -CraterMaker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barwickian Posted November 26, 2006 Report Share Posted November 26, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction Very impressive. It's an original, consistent and intriguing backstory for orcs. There are a lot of implications and ideas for future development as well - for instance, perhaps one day a well-developed purebred settlement will decide not to dig a pit and create a peaceful orcish community. Imagine a party's surprise at discovering, not a murder band, but orcs enjoying a simple agrarian lifestyle. Will they still put the orcs to the sword? I love the idea of the orc and his faithful (and cleverer) goblin life companion. This is such a great piece of work. I almost wish I hadn't read it, since I'm working at my own FH campaign world at the moment, and it's going to be very hard to come up with an orcish backstory as good as this. Repped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cantriped Posted November 26, 2006 Report Share Posted November 26, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction Repped, really good backstory, it's original, yet is consistant with their archetype. (Though I think you stole the imagery for it from the LoTR movies, it seems similar...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmadanNaBriona Posted November 26, 2006 Report Share Posted November 26, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction Nicely done. Quite possibly stolen at some point in the nebulous future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beast Posted November 27, 2006 Report Share Posted November 27, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction very good tho until you put in the tossing in of other live humaniods you where going to get diminising returns on what got tossed into the pit a good hook would be that no one has found out about this or after any battle all the corpes would be burned should they hold the battle field and why orcs never go out to sea Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McCoy Posted November 27, 2006 Report Share Posted November 27, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction very good tho until you put in the tossing in of other live humaniods you where going to get diminising returns on what got tossed into the pit a good hook would be that no one has found out about this or after any battle all the corpes would be burned should they hold the battle field and why orcs never go out to sea Yep, my first thought was "no corpse left unburned." Would suggest one addition. If the orcs move on, they cover the pit before they break camp. Usually any orcs that are going to emerge dig their way out in a week or so. Sometimes however the contents of the pit forms a "cocoon," an underground capsule where the contents sometimes go into stasis, to emerge yers of centuries later, or contiue to change, later releasing some large, unique humanoid monster. (Maybe this is how trolls bagan? A hacked up ent thrown into the pit and buried?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted November 27, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction Repped' date=' really good backstory, it's original, yet is consistant with their archetype. (Though I think you stole the imagery for it from the LoTR movies, it seems similar...)[/quote'] The initial concept I came up with without any concious focus on the LoTR. However, as I developed the imagery, I began to to think about LoTR and draw some inspiration from this. McCoy- actually, I had intended something exactly like that while I was brainstorming, but I forgot it. Thanks for reminding me! Another idea is that some adventurers accidentally fall into one that had been covered over (think of it like a sinkhole just under the ground) and don't manage to escape... Crater- all of those appeal to me. I shall ponder this. Thank you! AndyStaples- please, steal as much as you like! Beast- if you want, you can use it to create sea orcs. Have the chambers be dug along the shore, with heavy saltwater and sand influences. Driftwood, tossing in drowned sailors and any merfolk that get tangled in a net... whatever. Trolls... trolls need to be pondered. I like the idea of extended incubation!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beast Posted November 27, 2006 Report Share Posted November 27, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction I was more suggesting a weakness in their psyche for they cannot be reborn if they are lost at sea [quote=Manic Typist;1214939 Beast- if you want, you can use it to create sea orcs. Have the chambers be dug along the shore, with heavy saltwater and sand influences. Driftwood, tossing in drowned sailors and any merfolk that get tangled in a net... whatever. Trolls... trolls need to be pondered. I like the idea of extended incubation!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted November 27, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction I was more suggesting a weakness in their psyche for they cannot be reborn if they are lost at sea Ah. I see. Thank you for clarifying. Good point. Additional note: I was also planning on linking a Disad as a part of an orc package deal based on how close they were (lineage wise) to a chamber that would make them more susceptible to mental domination. Also, I think only orcs produced in a chamber will have a predisposition to create a chamber themselves. I think this would more reasonably allow for peaceful orcs to emerge on their own. Of course, if they accidentally create a chamber of their own.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaft Posted November 27, 2006 Report Share Posted November 27, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction Very cool. Repped. This might be the forum to throw in a minor idea I had once for a villainous NPC: How is it that we have Half-Orcs and Half-Elves, but never half-elf/half-orcs? My theory is that the two races hate one another so much that on the rare occasions where any interbred child are born with that heritage, they are killed upon birth (or earlier if possible). However, if one were to survive, he'd have to be quite the badass to see adulthood. He'd have the same physical toughness as a traditional half-orc, the gracefulness and spell affintity of a half-elf. Like a mutt, he blends the best of both breeds, and doesn't suffer from the intelligence and charisma penalties that half-orcs usually have, and doesn't have th frail physique of Elvenkind. Needless to say, he also has nightvision, keen hearing and a keen sense of smell. He has lived to become one of the baddest shamans in the orc kingdoms, and enjoys torturing information out of unfortunate PCs. While he holds the orcs that he has come to rule over with contempt, he despises the elves even more. With no racial loyalty to connect him to anyone, he seeks even more power for himself, and has no problem with killing anyone who steps in his way and sending hundreds of orcs to their death in the process if that is what it takes. My inspiration for this idea came from Scorpius in Farscape: half-Sebacian and half-Skaaren. This would basically be a fantasy "translation" of him. As I am not running a Fantasy Hero game these days, I have no opportunity to use him, so I thought I'd put him out to the community in hopes of finding him a happy campaign to live in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vondy Posted November 27, 2006 Report Share Posted November 27, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction This echoes the Gargun in Harnworld, albeit with significant departure points. Its an interesting backstory for them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susano Posted November 27, 2006 Report Share Posted November 27, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction Cocoons could produce trolls, ogres, giants, or ettins. In fact, some of the multi-headed/-limbed creatures from legend could come from pits that have been covered over and left alone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted November 28, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction I like the villain prompt... nice! Did you ever workup a character sheet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaft Posted November 28, 2006 Report Share Posted November 28, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction I like the villain prompt... nice! Did you ever workup a character sheet? Not yet. As I said, he's just an idea I've had floating around. I'm not running a fantasy game, but perhaps I'll send my Champions PCs to a fantasy realm to meet him. If I were to write him up, I would not want to make a "half-elf/half-orc" race package. The appeal (to me) is the uniqueness of the character, and making a package out of it implies that there is more than one. I'd build his "race bonuses" as straight bonuses justified by his unique breeding. If this intermixing becomes more common, it risks becoming the type of thing you see on the Star Trek fanfic boards where everyone is a half Vulcan/quarter Klingon/one eighth Cardassian/the other eighth Irish-setter or something (seriously, you can only put so many racial identifiers on one forehead... but I digress). The interbreeding between an orc and an elf gives a lot of benefits, but the social stygma of being one should be very problematic (kinda like being a "good" drow, and we see how many of those are running around now). But I would build this character in scale to the PCs. He'd be worth about 1.5 times the value of any lone PC; so if the PCs are 75/75, he should be ~225 pts, with one third of his pts in attributes, another third in warrior skills and tricks, and the last third in spells and mystic powers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arcady Posted November 30, 2006 Report Share Posted November 30, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction Very cool. Repped. This might be the forum to throw in a minor idea I had once for a villainous NPC: How is it that we have Half-Orcs and Half-Elves, but never half-elf/half-orcs? In the last fantasy setting I did with Elves and Orcs (both of which I no longer use), the name I had for a half-elf/half-orc was 'human'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaft Posted December 1, 2006 Report Share Posted December 1, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction In the last fantasy setting I did with Elves and Orcs (both of which I no longer use)' date=' the name I had for a half-elf/half-orc was 'human'.[/quote'] *eww!* I bet they banned that theory in some of the schools. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheQuestionMan Posted December 1, 2006 Report Share Posted December 1, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction Excellent work Thank you ......SNAGGED!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badger Posted December 1, 2006 Report Share Posted December 1, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction A question that popped into my head: What of a wizard, near-death, getting thrown in and transformed? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LoresLost Posted December 1, 2006 Report Share Posted December 1, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction A question that popped into my head: What of a wizard' date=' near-death, getting thrown in and transformed?[/quote'] Ogre Magi!!!! I just had to say it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost-angel Posted December 1, 2006 Report Share Posted December 1, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction I like Orc breeding pits. Reminds me of the Zerg from Starcraft a bit. Which were my fave race. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Posted December 1, 2006 Report Share Posted December 1, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction Ogre Magi!!!! I just had to say it. Actually, that would make sense with the setup given. Another option could be that a magic-user tossed in would act as a "wild card" effect, expanding the variety of beings coming out. Maybe that's how you get this world's version of Uruk-Hai, or just something smarter and nastier than the average orc or troll. Or maybe that was how undead came to be on this world. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arcady Posted December 2, 2006 Report Share Posted December 2, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction *eww!* I bet they banned that theory in some of the schools. For me it just makes sense. In any world where humans mix with elves on one end, and orcs on the other, and produce fertile in-between stage results; humans seem to be the mid-point on the graph. All three are really the same species, just different ethnic groups, with a dymorphism more like that seen in the canine genus than the primate genus in out own reality. In that setting, it was a known truth, but a disliked one. It also gave both Elves an Orcs a sense of 'fear' of humans not just in terms of conquest, but in terms of being 'bred out of existence' in the same way that some 'racial groups' in the real world are so hostile to 'mysogenation'. And it helps to explain human advantages - they have the widest gene-pool. Some efforts existed to stamp out the idea, the same as you see in Japan with efforts in popular dialog the deny their heritage as a mix of Koreans and Polynesians by claiming to be a 'pure race' rather than a 'mixed one'... (of course, all human ethnic groups are actually mixes... but we love playing denial games about it). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted December 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 2, 2006 Re: Fantasy Reproduction The mage could result in anything you wanted. A orc that was immune to magic. Can you imagine if he became a chieftan? A particularly powerful shaman. Especially if the wizard survived the chamber. If there were a large number of bodies in the chamber, or a couple of big bodies, I could easily see something of an ogre, with magical abilities. Perhaps some sort of golem that is similar to the chamber? It can walk and fight and slowly changes those around it... A true horror. Or anything else you want to come out. Oh, another visual I wanted to toss out there: usually orcs move around a lot (especially if an ogre emerges, ask me about that another time), so they only have one chamber in their temporary base. However, if orcs spend an extended period of time at a location, or multiple tribes visit the same spot... multiple chambers will be built in proximity. Over time, this chambers can become connected with tunnels. Sometimes created by earth movements, water flow, or even creatures trying to escape, it creates an intricate network of spawning chambers connected by tunnels. Who knows what could be lurking down in such an extensive spawning network? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.