Rise of the Orcs - The Deadtime (House Item)

Book Text
"Rise of the Orcs - The Deadtime"

Second Edition

This book details the histories of several orcish tribes when they were nothing more than savage beasts.

The following historical account details the early years of the orcish people. Not much is known about these savages, for most that has been written about them speak only of their predations rather than their personal histories. The following facts have been taken from many different sources ranging from fragments of parchment to tales told by elderly elves.

The Deathfist Orcs - Before the Rending, Antonica was much larger than it is today. Many orcs would roam this once great continent, banding together in tribes. One of these tribes called themselves the Deathfist orcs. Making their home near the city of Freeport, they were a deadly threat to travelers.

Preying upon merchant caravans traveling to the nearby fortress of Highhold, the Deathfist orcs would acquire goods of all types, ranging from foodstuffs to finely crafted weapons. Attracting the attention of nearby brigands, they would ultimately come to an unspoken agreement to not get in each other's ways, sometimes even joining forces with each other.

Working alongside their Dervish Cutthroat partners, the Deathfists would become enough of a threat to Freeport that the city started issuing bounties for proof of their deaths. This would continue for many years to come, but the city was never able to fully exterminate these ruthless savages.

Snow Orcs - One of several tribes of orcs living on the great continent of Antonica, the Snow Orcs had managed to thrive by choosing to migrate to a desolate, frozen wasteland. Living in the land that was once called Everfrost, the Snow Orcs had only one major enemy to contend within upon those frozen plains - the barbarians of Halas.

An uneasy peace would exist between their barbarian neighbors and themselves. Due to this truce, The Snow Orcs were able to devote more time to worshipping their god than their other tribal counterparts in other lands. One of the few tribes known to have shown signs of having more than just animal-level thought, the Snow Orcs would create small temples to perform primitive rituals and ceremonies to Rallos Zek.

The barbarian clans would eventually unite, causing the shaky truce to come to and end. Destroying every temple they could find, the barbarians would wage war upon the Snow Orcs for the coming centuries. During this time, the Snow Orcs would revert to savagery, all but forgetting their shamanistic qualities.

The Crushbone Orcs - Another tribe that would by migrating far away were the Crushbone Orcs. In a weird chapter of orcish history, the Crushbone tribe would build a great fleet of crude boats and rafts and sail off to the former continent of Faydwyr. Never before had anyone seen a level of ingenuity evidenced by these primal savages. Many of the orcs would survive the crossing of the ocean, which is the most astounding part of this tale.

Wasting no time in making new enemies upon this new continent, the Crushbone orcs would begin warring with the native dwarves and soon after, the elves. Being overwhelmed by the cooperation of the dwarves and elves, the orcs would be routed battle after battle. Were it not for finding an abandoned outpost in a secluded vale, the Crushbone tribe's history would have ended there.

Using the fort as a base of operations, the Crushbone orcs would soon begin to turn the table on the elves and dwarves. Launching surprisingly organized raids upon the tree city of Kelethin, the Crushbone orcs would become a force of destruction rather than annoyance. Eventually seeking aid from adventuring types, the elves would find that the Crushbone orcs had organized into a haphazard army, but one that could not easily be put down even with the combined might of the elven and dwarven nations. In hindsight, this would be the first warning of what was to come.