Orcs

The concept of the orc is a new one, coming into the popular cultural imagination before the Great War. There have always been endless variety of humanoids in the Dreamlands, but throughout the centuries repetive interspecies breedings gradually resulted in a loosely definable species of degenerate animal and humanoid aspects condescendingly slurred as Orc. 

The cultural symbology for this species is about as negative as you can get. The concept is strongly associated with physical repugnancy, moral degeneration, major impulse control, criminal and violent conduct, murder, carrying diseases, sexual deviancy and rape. In many places the term is taken as an insult and a good way to get challenged to a duel.

Most orc species don't live long naturally, dying mostly of exposure or famine or diseases before the age of 40. Orcs breed however very fast under literally any condition. So whereas comfortable humans stop procreating in large numbers, Orcs will keep on producing large litters, and do so very often, several times yearly.

Recognizing Orc Types in the Landscape

The Brall (The Conquerors)

• Signs in the Landscape: Look for large swaths of desolation. Brall leave behind destroyed villages, scorched earth, and fields of impaled bodies—symbols of their cruelty and dominance. Their settlements are often fortified, surrounded by slave pens and crude totems of victory. Smoke and distant battle cries are telltale signs of their presence.
• Distinct Traits: The Brall are the warlords of orc-kind, uniform in appearance and terrifyingly organized. They move in massive warbands and build crude but defensible encampments.

Kzyru

• Signs in the Landscape: The presence of Kzyru is marked by a perversion of the natural world. Plants may wither or mutate, water sources turn brackish, and an unnatural chill pervades the air. Look for rune-inscribed rocks, crude effigies, or arcane symbols carved into nearby trees or ruins. Their camps are littered with spell components, broken relics, and glowing crystal fragments.
• Distinct Traits: The Kzyru are wiry and emaciated compared to other Orcs, their forms twisted by the arcane energies coursing through their bodies. Their skin often has a faint glow, appearing in sickly hues of green, blue, or purple. Their eyes are unnervingly bright, radiating an inner light, and some are even born with horns, elongated claws, or vestigial wings.

The Layerlings (The Subterranean Scavengers)

• Signs in the Landscape: Look for labyrinthine burrows and caves with faint screeches echoing in the dark. The ground may be riddled with shallow tunnels, hidden pit traps, and signs of strange fungi. You might also find gnawed bones scattered near entrances or evidence of ambush sites.
• Distinct Traits: Smaller and wiry, Layerlings rely on numbers and the element of surprise. Their grotesque bat-like ears and uneven features distinguish them.

The Shadowlands Orcs (The Guerilla Warlords)

• Signs in the Landscape: Their presence is heralded by dense, eerie silence. These Orcs make camp in forests or cliffs, blending seamlessly with their surroundings. Their lairs are marked by makeshift watchtowers, traps hidden in foliage, and skeletal remains draped in ominous shadow-paint.
• Distinct Traits: Ashen skin and glowing eyes; these are nocturnal hunters, experts in ambush warfare.

The Skekra (The Cursed Experiments)

• Signs in the Landscape: A Skekra presence is unmistakable. Look for sickly, foul-smelling swamps or abandoned ruins where the air itself feels wrong. You will see grotesque, cobbled-together skeletons of their kind and failed creations, as well as strange arcane glyphs or fetishes.
• Distinct Traits: Mutated and malformed, the Skekra move with unnatural jerks and hisses. Their bodies are patchworks of pain.

The Unterlanders (The Beastial Tribes)

• Signs in the Landscape: They live in burrows or in squalid dens. Their presence is marked by crude claw and tooth marks on trees, trails of broken branches, and dens filled with refuse, bones, and scraps of fur.
• Distinct Traits: They resemble mangy animals: pig snouts, rat tails, and drooping, savage maws.

The Vaell (The Archetypal Orcs)

• Signs in the Landscape: Vaell leave behind evidence of scavenging. They camp in abandoned structures, crude huts, or hollowed-out trees. Look for piles of stolen goods, discarded bones, and signs of makeshift tools.
• Distinct Traits: Short, stocky, and brutally utilitarian, they favor practical weaponry over elegance and engage with grim efficiency.

The Zoll Orcs (The Degenerated Cannibals)

• Signs in the Landscape: Stay vigilant for skull piles, bloodied ruins, and areas devoid of life. The Zoll spread disease and corruption wherever they go. Their lairs are disgusting pits filled with filth, bones, and the remains of their victims.
• Distinct Traits: They appear grotesquely feral, with reddish mottled skin, jagged teeth, and warped, animalistic deformities.

The Thuaks (The Misunderstood Brutes)

• Ah, the Thuaks—oft mistaken for Orcs by those who lack the eye for detail, yet they are a people of their own kind. These hulking, brutish humanoids are a tragic mix of violence and potential. Though they share the brutish appearance of Orcs, they lack the inherent cruelty or chaotic instincts that define their cousins. Instead, the Thuaks are more misunderstood than malign, often tolerated when their physical prowess proves useful, though never fully trusted.
• Signs in the Landscape: Thuaks are not subtle in their habitation or movements. Look for large, crude shelters made of scavenged wood and stone, often resembling oversized animal dens. Unlike Orcs, Thuaks are less destructive to their surroundings—they use what is available without stripping the land bare. Their settlements are orderly in their own rough way, with cooking pits, communal sleeping quarters, and crude forges where they fashion their tools and weapons.
• Tracks and Traces: Thuak tracks are immense, with a wide gait and deeply imprinted steps due to their weight. You might also find remnants of simple crafts—wooden carvings, rudimentary weapons, or basic charms. Unlike Orcs, they don’t adorn their camps with gore or trophies, though you may spot large animal skulls used as totems.

2 - Dealing with Each Orc Type

The Brall:

• Tactics: Engage them at range, if possible. Brall are disciplined and dangerous up close. Their warbands are heavily armed and well-coordinated. Do not underestimate their leaders—eliminating a Brall Warchief may turn the tide.
• Avoidance Tip: Do not try to negotiate; Brall view mercy as weakness. Flee unless well-armed and supported.

The Layerlings

• Tactics: Avoid their tunnels if possible. Force them into the open where their cowardly nature and poor combat discipline are weaknesses. Torches and fire are effective in driving them out of their burrows.
• Avoidance Tip: Keep close to high ground; Layerlings avoid exposure and will not chase prey far from their subterranean lairs.

The Shadowlands Orcs

• Tactics: These Orcs are hunters, so turn the tables by setting traps of your own. Their nocturnal nature gives them an edge in the dark; strike during the day when they are less alert.
• Avoidance Tip: Always scout ahead for ambushes; they will never attack directly if they can help it.

The Skekra

• Tactics: Magic or alchemical fire is your best weapon. The Skekra are difficult to kill conventionally, as their flesh and spirit are unnaturally bound. Aim for their hearts or sever them entirely.
• Avoidance Tip: Never approach them alone or without knowledge of their creator—Skekra rarely exist without a master nearby.

The Unterlanders

• Tactics: They are animalistic, so treat them as such. Disrupt their pack formation to confuse and scatter them. Use fire, which they fear, and avoid melee combat, as their savagery knows no limits.
• Avoidance Tip: Keep provisions and resources secured—Unterlanders are opportunistic scavengers and can be bribed to avoid conflict.

The Vaell

• Tactics: Vaell are pragmatic. If you can offer them something of value, they may avoid unnecessary confrontation. In combat, exploit their lack of discipline and focus. Strike quickly before they can retaliate.
• Avoidance Tip: Leave no tracks; Vaell are expert trackers and will pursue prey tirelessly.

The Zoll Orcs

• Tactics: Zoll are chaotic and self-destructive; turn their frenzy against them by forcing them into disarray. They are immune to intimidation but prone to blind rage—use this to bait them into traps.
• Avoidance Tip: Never engage a Zoll tribe unless you have no other choice. Disease and corruption follow them, so always purify any location they occupy.

Kzyru

• The Kzyru are cunning and unpredictable, wielding both physical and magical attacks. When confronting them, your first priority must be to identify their spellcasters, as Kzyru magic is volatile and highly destructive. Disrupt their casting with ranged weapons, flash powder, or anti-magic techniques. Close combat should be avoided unless absolutely necessary, as their physical forms often carry magical traps—runes or sigils that can trigger on contact.
• Fire is Your Friend: Kzyru are resistant to many forms of elemental magic but remain vulnerable to flame. A torch or alchemical fire can weaken their defenses.
• Dispel First: If you possess access to anti-magic or dispelling abilities, use them liberally. The Kzyru draw strength from lingering magical energies, and disrupting these can turn the tide.
• Neutralize Leaders: The Kzyru are often led by a single, more powerful sorcerer or shaman. These individuals are linchpins of the group and must be eliminated swiftly to break their cohesion.

How to Deal with Thuaks

• Tactics: Thuaks are strong but not inherently aggressive. Conflict with them often stems from misunderstandings or territorial disputes rather than outright malice. They are not natural warriors but will fight fiercely to defend their kin or territory. If forced into combat, you must approach with respect and caution.
• Diplomacy First: Thuaks value strength, but they are not unreasonable. A show of respect—offering food, tools, or even a shared task—can win their trust or at least defuse tension. Avoid mocking or dismissive language, as they are deeply prideful.
• Overwhelming Force: If combat is inevitable, strike hard and fast. Thuaks’ endurance is remarkable, and a prolonged battle will only favor them. Aim to disable or disarm rather than kill, as they will often back down if their leader is incapacitated.
• Avoid Killing Their Leader: Unlike Orcs, Thuaks are loyal to their leaders and may fight to the death if one is slain. Subduing or intimidating the leader is often enough to dissolve their resolve.

Additional Notes on Thuak Behavior

• Pragmatic Survivors: Thuaks are resourceful and practical, using whatever they can scavenge or craft. Their settlements are crude but efficient, with an emphasis on communal living and survival.
• Slow to Trust: While Thuaks can be reasoned with, earning their trust is a slow process. Once trust is established, however, they can be fiercely loyal allies.
• Mistrust of Magic: Thuaks are deeply suspicious of magic and its practitioners, associating it with the horrors wrought by Orcs and Kzyru. Avoid overt displays of magic in their presence unless absolutely necessary.
• Avoidance Tip: If you wish to pass through Thuak lands unnoticed, avoid traveling in groups larger than five—they are wary of large numbers. Carry visible tools or items of trade, such as grain, cloth, or metal, to signal peaceful intentions.
• Strengths: Incredible physical strength and endurance, making them formidable foes in close combat; Pragmatic and resourceful, capable of adapting quickly to new environments; Deeply loyal once trust is earned, making them reliable allies.
• Weaknesses: Slow thinkers—strategic maneuvers can confuse or outpace them; Deeply prideful and prone to misunderstanding intentions, which can escalate situations unnecessarily; Distrustful of magic and outsiders, making diplomacy a challenge.
• Final Thoughts on the Thuaks: The Thuaks are not your enemy unless you make them so. Their brutish appearance belies a surprisingly pragmatic and adaptable nature. Treat them with respect, and they may become steadfast allies; treat them with disdain, and you will face a foe of unrelenting strength. Where other Orc-like creatures are driven by chaos or cruelty, the Thuaks are driven by survival and loyalty.
  

Final Advice to a Knight

Above all, do not underestimate any Orc type, Sir Alden. While the details may differ, their capacity for destruction remains a constant. Always remain vigilant, rely on your comrades, and never let your guard down. Orcs thrive on arrogance and hesitation; do not let them exploit yours.

May your blade stay sharp, and your resolve sharper.

Yours in service,

Elriath Greymark

Master Ranger of the Silverwood Guard