Orc

Orcs are a race of humanoids created by Gruumsh, the Ruiner.

Appearance
Exandrian orcs can reach a height of eight feet and are muscular, weighing up to 280 pounds.

History
Orcs are among the youngest races in Exandria. According to legend, they were created during a battle of the Calamity where Corellon pierced the eye of Gruumsh and his blood seared elves in the field, who became orcs. From this story, many believe that all orcs and half-orcs have the blood of Gruumsh, driving them to a violence and anger orcs call hgar'Gruum, the curse of ruin. Despite widespread belief in this among the orcish and among others, the curse of ruin does not exist, and orcs are only drawn to violence and anger for the same natural reasons as other mortal creatures.

After Gruumsh was defeated and banished, many of his orcish war clans splintered and went into hiding. Included among these were the Odakar orcs who held the Ashkeeper Peaks. Splitting from this group were some leaderless droves who migrated north into the Rime Plains, and these orcs suffered a schism between those who succumbed to Gruumsh's influence (the Jez-Araz marauders) and those who found inspiration in Kord, the Stormlord (the Boroftkrah clan). The latter went on the create the eponymous settlement of Boroftkrah.

Some orcs settled around the site of one of the bloodiest battles of the Calamity, which had plenty of weapons to salvage; this settlement was called Bladegarden, and for a time it was a part of the Julous Dominion. After the Julous Dominion fell to the Dwendalian Empire, the empire reached out to some of the more approachable members of the settlement, offering wages and access to goods and services. Many accepted, and Bladegarden was incorporated into the empire; other orcish clans who disagreed with this accord were driven east towards the Brokenveil Marsh.

The Mighty Nein briefly stopped at the house of an orc veteran who had hide armor and meat for trade. Matthew Mercer intended for the character to possibly offer some mentoring to Fjord, encouraging him to embrace his heritage. Since Fjord decided to stay outside during the encounter, some of those same threads were later introduced in the character of Wursh.

On their way to Bazzoxan, the Mighty Nein raced on moorbounders past a small settlement of orc marauders in the Barbed Fields. They deployed a fireball and an insect plague to discourage the warg-mounted orcs from following.

Tal'Dorei
In Tal'Dorei as of 812 PD, nearly every living orc was a ruthless killer, and the exceptions were uncommon enough that people didn't believe stories about tender or merciful orcs. This is partly due to many orcs on the continent belonging to groups like the Ravagers that worship Gruumsh, who commands his followers to conquer and destroy, and to feel nothing but fury or joy; they are sometimes hypnotized by their god's gaze from beyond the Divine Gate and fall into a strange bloodlust. The shunning of orcs by "fairer folk" was a self-fulfilling fear, creating resentment among some of those orcs that drove them toward lives of chaotic destruction.

Dwendalian Empire
Bladegarden is both a military training complex and the core of orcish society within the Empire; it secures the empire's eastern border. Following the incorporation of Bladegarden into the Empire, orcs are among the most celebrated imperial soldiers, but many folk still fear the curse of ruin.

Menagerie Coast
Orcs and half-orcs alike, believing that the curse of ruin caused them to lash out at loved ones, seek respite in the city of Othe via spiritual peace and belonging.

Greying Wildlands
The orcs of Boroftkrah have a strong community that communes with Kord (particularly during thunderstorms) through contests of tracking and hunting, and makes offerings of strong prey. The settlement welcomes outsiders who are strong in the eyes of Kord, but it clashes frequently with the Jez-Araz and sometimes with hunting parties from Uthodurn.

Xhorhas
Xhorhasian orcs primarily live in nomadic, mixed bands with humans and bugbears, taming the beasts of the wastes and mostly trading peacefully with the Kryn Dynasty. Though nomadic orcs welcome the city-folk of the Dynasty to join their clans, they become angered when Kryn souls are reborn in orc bodies.

Due to the superstition about the curse of ruin, it is strictly taboo for orcs and goblinkin to have children, as the latter are known to carry the all-too-real Curse of Strife and the nomadic elders fear the madness that would come from a soul afflicted with both curses. So despite living in bands with bugbears, most half-orcs in Xhorhas have human or drow blood.

NPCs

 * Lukash: in charge of construction and organization of the Vo village on Rumblecusp