Orcs of Largitas

Orcs are among the most morphologically diverse ancestries in all of Largitas, displaying a remarkable ability to adapt rapidly to their environment. This is due in part to:

• Shorter lifespans (averaging 40–55 years), which lead to faster generational turnover
• High reproductive resilience, allowing for population recovery even in harsh climates
• Innate environmental plasticity, possibly tied to spiritual or biological ancestry linked to the Hunt-Mother and Bone-Father

As a result, different Orcish populations across Largitas can differ wildly in appearance, size, coloration, and physiological adaptations—while still retaining shared cultural and ancestral roots.

Core Traits (Common to All Orcs)

Despite regional differences, most Orcs share the following anatomical features:

• Thick musculature and high bone density
• Pronounced lower canines, sometimes tusk-like
• Forward-set eyes for depth perception
• High body heat retention, often radiating a noticeable warmth
• Obligate carnivore digestive systems, with a short, highly acidic gut
• Rapid healing of minor wounds, though scarring is common and often worn with pride

Regional Morphological Variants

Orcs adapt quickly and visibly to their environments. A few prominent morphotypes include:

Ash Orcs (Southern Highlands)

• Ash-grey or soot-black skin
• Resistant to high heat and smoke inhalation
• Broad noses and flaring nostrils adapted to sulfur-heavy air
• Often develop ash-colored sclera over time

Bonecrag Orcs (Mountainous regions)

• Extra knuckle joints for cliff-climbing
• Stockier, with stone-pale skin
• Thicker bones; many wear calcified calluses like armor

Saltfang Orcs (Coastal/Maritime tribes)

• Webbed toes, strong swimmers
• Oily, dark green or slate-blue skin
• Slightly longer limbs and flexible spines for shipboard life

Plains-Orcs (Inland diaspora)

• Lighter skin tones with reddish or ochre tints
• Broad shoulders and deep lungs for running and endurance
• Often culturally adapted rather than anatomically extreme

Frostclad Orcs (Far northern reach)

• White-grey fur-like body hair across back and shoulders
• Narrowed eyes with nictitating membranes for snow glare
• Low, rumbled speech due to thickened vocal cords and cold-air adaptation

Genetic Memory & Spiritual Theory

Many Orcish Spirit-Speakers claim that this adaptability is not merely biological, but spiritual inheritance passed through blood and bone. They say the Hunt-Mother molds each child in the image of the land they are born into.

Some claim that a child born far from their ancestral land will physically shift to match their new environment by their second or third decade—though this may be poetic allegory more than hard fact.

“The gods made Orcs with no fixed shape, because they knew the world would never stop changing.”

— Traditional Orcish proverb

Orcs are obligate carnivores, biologically adapted to a meat-centric diet. Their stomachs are highly acidic, capable of processing raw meat, bone marrow, and fat with ease.

They cannot survive long on grain or vegetation, though they do consume certain medicinal roots and herbs:

• Bloodroot, Ash-thistle, and Cragmint are commonly used for healing, clarity, or spiritual preparation.
• Many Orc dishes are raw or seared—smoked, spiced, and salted, but never heavily cooked.
• Overripe fruit is sometimes fermented into ceremonial brews but never eaten directly.

Spirituality

The Orcs follow animistic beliefs, where every blade, beast, and breath has a spirit.

• The Hunt-Mother (goddess of pursuit, hunger, and protection) and
• The Bone-Father (god of death, endurance, and legacy) form the twin pillars of Orcish faith.

Clans keep Ancestor Totems, bone-charm necklaces, and "wind-chants"—vocal invocations carried into battle to call on the spirits for strength.

Shamans often paint their skin with charcoal ash, and rituals frequently involve blood markings and bone music (played with flutes or drums made from animal remains).

Warfare & Ethics

Orcs do not glorify war for its own sake—they revere worthy battle as a means of testing the soul.

• Dueling and martial tournaments are common.
• Killing without cause or cruelty to the weak is dishonorable.
• A defeated enemy who fought well is often given burial rites—or, in rare cases, honor adoption into the tribe.

Their weaponry is pragmatic and brutal: bone-carved axes, hide-wrapped cleavers, stone-weighted spears. Steel is revered, but rare in the southern wilds.

"We are not cruel. We are not kind. We are the knife that knows its edge, and the hands that carry the dead with care."

— Skar’ha Redfang, Spirit-Speaker of the Bonefire Crater Clan

Diaspora & Adaptation

Though most Orcs remain in the south, many now travel across Largitas. They are found as:

• Mercenaries, beast-trainers, or ritual guides
• Artisans of meat, creating cured dishes and bonecraft items of legendary quality
• Co-settlers aboard city-ships like the Iron Leviathan, where they’ve blended cultural practices with Dwarves

Wherever they go, Orcs carry the deep, burning pride of a people who survived the gods’ hardest trial.

• Keen night vision and strong peripheral hearing
• A highly developed sense of smell, often used in foraging or spiritual rituals
• Natural orientation toward spatial awareness and combat reflexes
• Some Orcs possess vestigial echo-location "clicks" when navigating caves

Orc society is tribal and oathbound, with each tribe led by a Chieftain, advised by Spirit-Speakers (shamans, seers, and spiritual healers). Power is earned through trial, merit, and blood-oaths, not inheritance alone.

Key Values:

• Strength through challenge – Trials are essential for maturity and leadership.
• Honor in conflict – Combat is sacred, and cowardice is spiritual rot.
• Spirituality in survival – Every kill is a ritual. Every fire has a prayer.
• Kinship and Legacy – Elders are revered, ancestors worshipped, and names passed on to those who earn them.

The Orcish homelands lie in the seared, jagged wilds of Southern Largitas—a scorched and craggy continent where rivers boil, mountains stab into burning skies, and beasts compete with men for dominance. In these lands, nothing soft survives.

• Food is scarce, water is precious, and strength is sacred.
• Entire clans build their villages into cliff faces, lava vents, and crater lakes.
• Most travel on foot or by tamed megafauna adapted to the brutal terrain.

Orcish myths claim they were birthed from the blood of the world itself, hardened in the sun’s glare and made flesh by the Hunt-Mother and Bone-Father.