Blooded Marks

As The Blood War raged a gristly ritual rose among the Orc ranks. Upon killing their first Elven enemy, they use that elf's blood to ritually scar themselves. These simple marks are typically made on their chest or arms. They may perform more ritual scarification later in life but it is taboo to use Elven blood again, nor will those new ritual scars touch the original Blooded Marks.

Origins

Orcs gain the Ancestral Bond through their bloodlines. For Orcs of the Second Revelation, the connection between blood and power was made before they fully understood the nature of their Ancestral Bond. They believed that by taking on the blood of their enemy they could also tap into the fallen Elf's power. By the time the secrets of the bond were more fully understood, the tradition of Blooded Marks had already propagated.

Also, Orcs understand that the Elven enmity sprang from their view of the nature of Orc blood, or the Taint of the Orc. It is believed that intermingling their blood with their enemies is the ultimate affront to the Elves.

Participants

As every Orc is considered responsible for the defense of Val'Dorath, to be considered a full adult an Orc must serve a term in The Blood War that is typically is four years. In this time if they have not had the opportunity or been able to gain their Marks, they are considered a coward or otherwise deficient and will be treated as less than an adult when they return to Val'Dorath. With the expansion of Orcish settlements to Nexus and other Spheres, returning to fight in The Blood War is harder to accomplish. Still, Orcs that never serve can be seen as adults but are seen as less than those who have. For these Orcs serving in The Blood War is considered a nearly religious experience, the final step to proving your worth to inherit your Ancestor's power. In reality, proving oneself in any hazardous situation can be enough to begin inheriting their power.

Application

Because the Marks are applied in battle, they do not have consistent patterns or motifs. The Orc typically slashes their fallen enemy with their to Macuahuitl to coat its obsidian shards in blood then fall back to carefully slash themselves light enough to intermingle their blood and create scars. As fresh Orc warriors typically are a small percentage of an Orc Warband, the leadership turns a blind eye to this practice as it takes a few seconds. However, that does not mean the practice is not without risk and overly bold fresh warriors have a tendency to fall when enacting this ritual.

Taboos

Only One Blooded Mark

While it is believed that a Blooded Mark is necessary to be considered a full adult in Orcish society, it is known that Elves propagate their soul through the blood of their descendants. While the Ancestors can protect an orc from the influence of the Elf that their mark comes from, it is believed that multiple Elf souls can overwhelm the orc.

Some notable Orcs who indulged in multiple marks were later viewed as historical villains. As they became cautionary tales their tendency for multiple Blooded Marks became a symbol of their folly.

No Scarification Before Blooding

To purposefully create scars oneself before gaining your Blooded Mark is considered the height of hubris and can lead to disownment and being barred from serving in The Blood War as you are seen as a glory-hound who will get yourself killed and probably your comrades with you. This leads to warrior training being surprisingly less risky than other cultures. Orcs preparing to join The Blood War are trained with mock weapons up until their deployment to prevent premature scaring.

Heat of Battle

The blooding must happen in the heat of battle. Killing an Elf out of battle, not as part of a military operation typically on Darkwood is viewed as cowardly and can have serious social consequences for the Orc that is marked this way.

Only Elves

Fighting a foe other than an elf is unworthy of being marked. This leads to highly experienced warriors from beyond Val'Dorath to go most of their lives unmarked before they join the The Blood War.

Significance

Blooded Marks are the final step into true adulthood on Val'Dorath and for Orcs in general.

Rights

Marriage

It is rare for marriages involving a unmarked Orc to occur as it is believed that it tempts death when they join The Blood War. Though it can happen on isolated settlements far from Val'Dorath where one party is Dotorvor or has proven themselves in other battles.