Dungeons and Dragons Lore: Orc

The Orc, the history, culture, pantheon, ecology and psychology of one of fantasy literatures most enduring primative humanoid species.

[@ROTTERDXM]

A young orc who can fill a whole night with stories of where they got their scars, is considered a warrior of worth. That is awesome.

[@DCdabest]

"You wanna know how I got these scars?"

[@tibik.8407]

@@rachdarastrix5251 Excuuuuuuuse meeeee, but... Tolkien himself said that not all of his orcs are evil. He just had difficulties representing the kind(er) ones in his universe, for obvious reasons. #justicefororcs

[@MadAtreides1]

@@rachdarastrix5251 I don't remember if it was in the Hobbit or the LOTR appendices but Tolkien stated that the orcs are master of engineering feats, like the caves they excavated under the Misty Mountains, they just don't like doing themselves the hard work and prefer to rely on slaves. So it seems they are perfectly able to think for themselves...

[@sigmagrey3236]

​@@DCdabest No, but I know where you got these. 🦇🤡

[@lewdcharizard9902]

Their lives are so short. Unless they learned everything twice as fast it would be difficult to train an Orc into a master of a craft equal to that of the longer lived races. Then again, it's quicker to raid a black smith than to learn the trade.

[@AJPickett]

Indeed, and imagine a nursery rhyme that taught how to use a battle axe.. that is Orc childhood for you.

[@t2av159]

Lorc= orc lich

[@lordmurderkitten6098]

“I give you all that was owed to us. I give you riches and glory for a hundred years, And when we come home at last, we’ll raise a city from the stones we took from theirs. One great enough that even in a thousand years they will tremble at the return of our Horde!”

[@kevinchristiansen4348]

the best way to keep orcs fresh in dnd is give them class levels

[@AJPickett]

Give them round actions (legendary actions) that allow them to break stuff.

[@willynthepoorboys2]

And here I thought I knew orcs, I was so wrong. I would love to hear more lore about these amazing creatures.

[@budahbaba7856]

Ok, here is something i don't really understand. The orc pantheon is actually quite cohesive -even remarkably so, considering how divergent some of them are from the rest. I mean, the pantheon even makes room for the shunned & despised outcasts among the orc race -& keeps them within the horde. So... again, how exactly is orc society Chaotic Evil? That sounds to me like a metric placed upon them by the pretty peoples. I am skeptical of orcs seeing themselves or their society as evil. From their point of view, they are the ones who have been wronged by the pretty peoples & their treacherous gods.

[@AJPickett]

First, it is important to consider the point of view of the Orcs, to them, Elves are an evil race and represent many things they despise, Humans relentless territorial expansion and desire to dominate is also very evil to Orcs, the Goblinoids also have a strong drive to control all of the world, even their god, Magubliet, would seek to take over the Orc Pantheon if it was not for the protection of the fearsome Gruumsh. Second, Orcs grow fast, the crave action and they NEED battle in order to build renown and, essentially, an identity for themselves, so, they seem, to the perceptions of those who live close by, to attack and attack and attack, recklessly and chaotically... because they do not understand the cultural and social reasons why Orcs behave this way. Very good question, thanks Goblintrain!

[@ROTTERDXM]

Goblintrain All good, valid points.

[@coldrage20t8]

Goblintrain In my setting i changed orcs there to lawful evil and have given them a Spartan\ orc culture mix. I think you can already see some of that ideal in the tribal now so i just advanced the clock alittle on it.

[@budahbaba7856]

I can see that happening. In AD&D (1e&2e) orcs were LE, and when you read the lore at the time, it seemed an appropriate change from their designation in OD&D as CE. But here is what i am seeing too. Something has happened to Orcs, as the mythology and lore surrounding them has expanded. They have expanded immensely in complexity and variety. They are no longer the one-dimensional soulless evil miscreants of the Tolkien books. They have evolved into a people all their own, with No longer just mindless pawns of evil overlords, they are now on similar ground as the fair races in having both their own collective consciousness as a species, and sense of destiny and identity as individuals. They have evolved autonomy -or something that in the LDS church we call "free agency". So what does this mean? It means, like what Mr Pickett's video touched on, Orcs now live in the "Big Tent!" There is rational and believable room for all varieties of ethos. Sure, i can easily imagine some orcs as Chaotic Evil -for example, the demon infused Orcs of Warcraft lore when they served the Burning Legion. There are Orcs too, CG, -free wheeling lovers of life. Lawful Good, Lawful Neutral... or my particular favorite "LN with evil tendencies..." and everything in between. The point is, i don't see any one group as representing "Orcs" as a species. They have outgrown that. And it brings me back to a point i mentioned made in the Bugbear Lore comments. I have a notion among the monstrous humanoids that there is a significant undercurrent of "big tent" thinking. While in our own hyper-regulated culture we get accustomed to things being predictably the same at each contact, like a big-mac at McDonalds -all the same, we also take it for granted that when the books tell us who this deity is, and what his followers believe and practice, we take it far too literally. We default to likening their religious expressions to that big-mac at McDonalds -all the same. But why should that be? If a comparison with humankind holds any relevance at all here, the monstrous humanoids would not be anywhere close to homogeneous in their theology -even among the membership of the same cults, and worshipers of the same gods. In response to the rejection of that notion of uniformity, i am thinking more & more of the deities like Gruumsh & Maglubiyet as "Big Tent" gods. They are no longer just gods of the goblins & orcs respectively. They are too big to "just" be gods of battle. Their domains of influence cover myriad spheres of thought & consciousness. Appropriate to this evolution, there are many different versions of theology, different forms of worship within these churches. Whether competing, contrasting, complimenting, or contradicting each other, they all co-exist, -and this does not mean peacefully. The label of heretic is not just a human invention. There are innumerable splinter groups within these races. In a sense, this is inherent in their system of oral tradition. Oral tradition ensures that each and every time the lore is taught in lessons, or shared as stories around the fire, that it is colored with nuances from that teacher in that moment. But the point is, the ethos of the cults, the alignments of the worshipers, even the nature of the gods as understood and taught, is all liable to change over time, as the followers of different versions and aspects of the gods, grow and decline in influence, both regionally and as a whole. And i think this idea holds true to us as well -that even the gods & the lore as presented in the books is only a version -an interpretation through the lens of the fair races. And you notice how much our versions change just from one generation of role-players to the next. But then... do they? All our attempts to describe the monstrous races is an attempt to strip them down to an essential essence that we can understand in human terms. But how successful are we? Clearly defining and describing them is as elusive as doing so for ourselves. BTW: that orc picture at the very end of the vid: AWESOME!!! :_)

[@twilightgardenspresentatio6384]

Budahbaba the individuals live chaotic ideals and justify evil behavior despite the order instilled by a divine panthaeon

[@michaelkelligan7931]

"KILL!....FOR GLORY OF ONE-EYE!"----Toothlicker-Haargh,high shaman of clan Vislick

[@almitrahopkins1873]

I was playing in a rather long campaign years ago, right after Monster Mythology came out, as I recall. I had just lost my character and I was rolling up a new one in the corner while the other players retreated from a near-TPK. I ended up rolling an unbelievable strength, but an intelligence of 7, I think. Being as the character would have to be something that lived nearby the orcs, I decided to make a priest of Baghtru. The players sat down at the next session and started playing, wondering when I would be jumping in. The DM said, “you haven’t found him yet.” As they fought their way through, the came across the chieftain and several of the higher-leveled orcs. The party’s paladin did what paladins always do and charged forward. The combat was a nightmare, but as they were slowly being surrounded, the paladin put the chief down by himself. The DM looked at me and said, “what are you doing?” I just said, “attacking,” and rolled a natural 20. The damage was so high from that, it would have killed our party’s mage outright, but it laid the nearest orc to me out rather nicely in one hit. The players lost their minds when I turned to the rest of the orcs, pointed at the paladin and said, “him chief now.” And that’s the way a priest of Baghtru came to be an ally of a paladin. We didn’t even question it as my alignment shifted slowly towards Lawful Good and I was still receiving spells.

[@tonyromasco1735]

I once played a chaotic evil cambion wizard that became a boogeyman to orcs.... He liked to polymorph them into elves, then teleport them back to their tribe after he grew bored with watching them have a nervous breakdown when handed a mirror.

[@marcosreed9894]

Thank you for another great lore video. Orcs have been Viking-like raiders wreaking havoc for thousands of years. They are legendary for their atrocities across the civilized world of my/our homebrew campaigns. The lore at our table is that the Orc god was slain by the elven creator (who lost His eye that is now one of the two moons) in the last epic battle during our version of the dawn war and following Dragon age. The result is a different pantheon of Orcs and the Elves are still recovering from the backlash this event.

[@lorenzonunez6972]

Thanks AJ, so glad you made this! Orcs have always been one of my favorite fantasy creatures!

[@slyguy8931]

I roleplay an orc raised half orc and I find myself comic back to this video again and again. Great work, I’ve gotten a lot of utility out of it

[@AJPickett]

Glad to hear it!

[@Ed-qo4oz]

My brother dm’d a campaign where I was playing a neutral good intelligent orc warrior that left his tribe. They are fun to play, I was level 8 and during a campaign I had found a magical sword, my current sword had been broken in a fight where I was separated from my group as well, fighting so they could escape. Once I grabbed the sword hilt it knocked him out for 3 days, where he went through many dreams involving a being of pure light taught him holier ways of living. It was a special holy avenger crafted by the god Torm, whoever gripped the blade and was found worthy of it became a Paladin. My brother did it because I didn’t like paladins lol. I actually developed a love for the class through it. The sword had other added abilities on top of a regular holy avenger, granting longer life and a few minor abilities, immunity to sickness and disease, cure medium wound 3/day, played him up to level 16 before retiring him to the npc life where he roamed an area protecting villages from a distance. Ended up with a ring of truth as well which I never bothered removing as it came in handy since I could usually discern if people were lying or not lol this was back in 2nd edition days

[@mikegould6590]

Thanks AJ. Half-Orc is my favorite player race, and I often rail on about Orc mythology to those who stand too long in one place ;) I've even gone to the length of adding on to the mythology through my "Out of the Box" series on Nerdarchy (Shatterfall), as well as writing my own Orc language that I use at the table where I DM. The wife HATES that our dog is now responding to commands in Orc. Hell, I've talked to my youngest daughter in Orc, enough so that she's starting to understand, if only from context and body language. :D Great job. Cho sebak ko chunga vazhu! Hala! (You always make great things to be seen/indeed)

[@AJPickett]

If Klingons can have a language, Orcs sure should!

[@thedarkmaster4747]

XD

[@Sgt-Wolf]

Something tells me you like orc women.

[@calebsmith4530]

"...and sadly roasts a chicken." caught me off guard and I spit out my drink.

[@AJPickett]

😎

[@Daimon-X]

Orks Iz Da Best! Da red wunz go fasta! WAAAGH^^

[@thedarkmaster4747]

XD

[@-Siculus-Hort-]

WAAAAGH.

[@gasmonkey1000]

Daimon X I seez youz ar a git of culture

[@kimsey0000]

You guys would be fun to play with on return of reckoning

[@jakebaczik7785]

Tankz ta Gork 'n Mork

[@michaelkelligan7931]

Loved the Orcs of L.Good alignment. Farmers and such! Freaked me out the first time i read up on them in the monsterous compendium.

[@danieldeihl8237]

An almost 40 min video on Orcs, very nice AJ ! BTW I believe the orcs were screwed over by the other gods

[@Swatman170]

Daniel Deihl And that is why we must kill the lesser races and take what we want from whoever we want.

[@gabrieladerre2862]

This is a great late night suprise! Thanks AJ! I was hoping that you'd bless us with a new video soon! And orcs are one of the subjects that I'd have expected, but it's pretty awesome, since orcs are so classic, yet I know very little about them in the D&D settings! Thank you AJ!!!

[@NemesisoftheGods]

Excellent, AJ! I only wish I could share with you all the lore and history of the Orcs I have applied to my world over the years. Great work! Again, thanks for this video (amongst many) on my favorite D&D antagonists. Be well and may the One-Eye see you favoured with strength, sons and death to your enemies.

[@ChrisD4335]

It Tolken mythos Orc was just another word for goblin, this kind of orc was just a particular type of orc bread for war called the Uruk-hai

[@themagictheatre2965]

Would you consider doing a video about Eberron? I love that setting a lot and I feel like it's under-appreciated among D&D youtubers.

[@AJPickett]

I'll keep including Eberron lore in my vids, I'm getting more and more curious about the rich lore involved with that setting.

[@smuggrog9821]

Is it just me or is it kinda weird that Orcs and Ogres are not related? They look rather similar, they have been know to ally with each other, and interbreed quite often. Hell even the word orc was synonymous with ogre in old norse.

[@AJPickett]

It's amazing that any of these species can interbreed at all.

[@elricengquist9989]

Yeah it is kinda odd. Always felt that even if not directly related, that maybe the different orcoid an goblinoid races might be from the same world (though maybe from different time-frames). Though one of my group ad created a theory, and detailed out an idea of the Orc, Orge, and Goblin races belonging to a single race that like some insects had several different stages of life they went thru. In the idea the first stage was the Golblinoid stage, which was kinda like the young/child stage of life for them, the orc stage was the adolescence/ teenage stage, you would than have the either the Hobgpblin or Orge sage as the adult stage. but than you would also have a final stage that was detailed as being very race to be attained (the reasons varied for why) an was the Tarrasque. I found this quite interesting an it slotted into the setting quite nicely, as it explained why many gods, and even civilized races would cull, and keep these races from developing. I mean imagine if this group grow developed enough that reaching those last two stages was not uncommon (most of all the final one).

[@draxthemsklonst]

Creative idea, Elric Engquist. Spriggan and mogg are more 'subspecies' name ideas. Need to homebrew them a bit...maybe spriggan could be a magic user/sorcerer-type innate caster (that's the impression the art gives)

[@elricengquist9989]

I don't think my version of the Spriggan would fit as well in concept with what the manual uses, but I had them more as a steriod-using gobliniod. What I mean is that they could flood their body with chemicals that would boost either their physical stats (strength, dex, con. An the associated sub-stats), or their mental stats (intel, wis, and I used a will-power stat) for short periods of time. Though that also comes from my own potion-master that brewed all sorts of potions to boost, and imbue himself with power, yet as a side effect outside of using them he was a very fail an feeble character. You would need to create some balancing, and checks to such a system in the race like that after using the abilit an it wears off it would cause other negetive effects to happen.

[@draxthemsklonst]

Elric Engquist, that makes me think of jet & psycho from Fallout Edit: and stim packs/combat drugs from Warhammer 40k

[@chaddixon9764]

My favourite orcs have got to be the Orkz of 40k. They speak with cockney accents and are all basically psychic but they can't consciously use their abilities. Their ramshackle gear works literally because they decide they do. The sheer psychic power of their race as a whole race bends the laws of physics in small ways to allow weapons that should not function to do so but only in the hands of an ork.

[@AJPickett]

I am very familiar with the Orks, as one of my favorite species, I have devoured all information on them. I'd love to make a video about them.

[@draxthemsklonst]

Red doesn't just go fasta?

[@thedarkmaster4747]

They are heaven aren't they. 🙂

[@twilightgardenspresentatio6384]

Wow

[@Fankas2000]

Sorry but Warhamer40k is just silly.

[@unusefulidiot]

Are there orc child soldiers? A hoard of kids with daggers is a bit dark but it might be fun to see how the moral dilemma plays out.

[@jacobfreeman5444]

unuseful idiot probably not as we would think of it, but given how orcs are I cannot see orc children not having weapons to dispatch anyone foolish enough to turn their back on orc children. I doubt they delibrately put their children on the battlefield but would likely expect any of their children to fight for survival against any invaders. So imagine a horde of savage orc children descending upon a band of adventurers infiltrating their camp.

[@AJPickett]

Orc kids grow up very fast, they are Adults at 11 to 14 years of age, a six-year-old Orc would be the size of a human teenager and as strong as an adult human male.

[@unusefulidiot]

Then it seems like a viable and rational tactic to use orc child solders in a long lasting war of attrition against humans, especially with an non-orc or evil ruler. Just tell the six-year-old Orc a six-year old human will harm their mom when they are older and see what happens. Or when a Paladin Do-Gooder party killed all the adult warriors and only children and women are left to get food from the helpless travelers. It's fun to minimize the perception of evil by pointing out economic pressures and rational self interest of the enemy :D

[@michaelkelligan7931]

1st and 2nd edition they never let their children fight until they came of age!

[@H3xx99]

WHAAAAAAAAAAGH!!! wait, wrong franchise....

[@AJPickett]

Warhammer 40K Orks are one of my favorite species every created.

[@H3xx99]

AJ Pickett Mine too. I'd love to play an Orc Artificer and be a Mekboy.

[@H3xx99]

AJ Pickett The Party awakes to find their wagon and horses have been crudely painted red. Gorg patiently explains that da red wunz go fastah. To the party's astonishment, the horses now pull the cart 5mph faster than before....

[@AJPickett]

There is absolutely no reason why Faerun could not have an Ork Space Hulk fall out of the sky one day, smack bang in the middle of the Dalelands... things just got very interesting on Faerun!

[@H3xx99]

AJ Pickett Great, another campaign I need to write. Lol

[@SuperVegeto00]

A bit different in my homebrew world Orcs originate from their native homeworld of Vulcan, in a separate binary Solar System having a Verdant Sun (it brought life and vegetation) & Umbral Sun (brought death as life would wither in it's light). Their world was harsh with many predators but the Orcs worked together forming their collective tribe and formed bonds with an animal species called Pheopards, the relationship between them is like a tribleman and his wolf. Then a celestial entity called the Terraphim spread her grace on the world letting the orcs enter a new age although some wanting to be more civilized while others remained in their tribes. The orcs peacefully spit into two groups and the civil ones made their capital "Hebeth" around a large chasm. The Hebethian orcs became technological advanced being able to traverse the stars and colonize their solar system. Eventually Hebethian orcs and the Wandering Orcs fell to war, then their civilization fell to a dark armada. The orcs managed to retreat on many ships meant for long distance travel to find a new home this made the "Long Scar" were they had to be violent to ensure survival during the voyage and many ships were hunted down and destroyed leaving only a few orcs who made it to other worlds but had to adapt back their primal lifestyle.

[@rockinbells8351]

One of favorite monsters. Glad you finelly covered them.

[@Lonit-be]

Shoutout to the helicopter flying over at 26:47

[@marsstrider3705]

Thanks for the shoutout to us Pathfinder Players!

[@MisterTutor2010]

Orcs are to LotR what StormTroopers are to Star Wars.

[@connorchristensen2869]

MisterTutor2010 cannon fodder?

[@RockstarRacc00n]

@@connorchristensen2869 They're built up as this unstoppable force of killing machines, but end up being useless once they come into contact with the heroes.

[@heartstrings892]

At least they can hit more

[@RockstarRacc00n]

@ I love it! Always like muddling the waters of "good and evil" with stuff like that! I've always felt that the idea of a whole race / culture that is explicitly evil is boring, uncreative, and has some uncomfortable implications when you try to apply those stories to the real world. That's one of my main problems with a lot of these settings...

[@kak_0096]

@@RockstarRacc00n Here’s a solution for you. Don’t apply it to the real world. I’ve never understood people’s desire to learn some kind of lesson from fiction, or apply something meant for escapism to reality. It’s fine if a story does that, but certainly not necessary. As for an entire race being evil, kinda hard for them not to be when they were formed for the express purpose of serving evil, or if it’s simply part of their being. Nuance is cool, but again, I don’t understand why people simply can’t seem to tolerate settings that simply distinguish good from evil in a more black/white way.

[@elricengquist9989]

So much variety, and interesting lore, while also so much room to create you own version an history in it. I always loved to play a orc or orge paladin, or what I called a savage paladin, but which used alot more of a mentality fitting a regal druid. Normally was a savage brutal character, but once you showed your ability to survive in the brutality of the wild world an your worth would be quite honorable an humble. If you ever get the chance look into the Stormbringer setting, and maybe do abit of vids on the races an concepts in the setting. Think you and others watching might really like the style an how different it is from other settings (even warhammer to a point.).

[@maanze9284]

Very enjoyable. Please keep making vids. :)

[@AJPickett]

Maanze always!

[@triyuga]

Killer channel bro. Epic.

[@AJPickett]

Thanks 🙂

[@cameronpearce5943]

Orc Sorcerer or Bugbear Wizard...

[@legostarwarsbattledroid5272]

Goblin barbarian

[@kadencrosby9584]

I played a orc thief granite he to say the least was not the brightest bulb and he once got a large chunk of his head chopped off then self healed by using herbs and barb wire best character I’ve ever made

[@sagesheahan6732]

Did you ever make that half-orc video? That'd be an interesting one to see. :)

[@Abadhan]

I was looking through your archive and I couldn't find your Half-Orc video. Did you end up making it?

[@sebbychou]

I like the principle that Orcs are functionally a society of angry, wild teenagers and all that it implies.

[@SuperVegeto00]

Orc subtypes are different Grey Orcs, Arctic Orcs, & Volcano Orcs • Grey Orcs: The regular orcs who dwelled in mountains and the ones who built their cities. • Arctic Orcs: Orcs with blue skin & covered in white fur looking like a yeti. Adapted to cold they are survivalist who live in their hunter, gatherer clans. They were the wiser of the orcs subtypes rarely lifting a blade to their own kin. • Volcano Orcs: Red skinned orcs adapted to the volcanic mountains of Vulcan, very temperamental and their diet is a lot more different than the carnivorous orcs being able to gain nutrients from rocks & gems.

[@tedfields1923]

I really enjoy these videos, thanks for all the hard work!

[@craigw6557]

I watched this with CC, and with your accent, the auto English typed the "Church of England observes few holy days"

[@thedrizzle899]

Half orc video would be great, always wanted to play one. Great vid as usual.

[@MRDicristofaro]

i was going to go to sleep but orcs tho lol

[@heimko3618]

So can someone make a list of all the orc subraces mentioned in the video? It's a bit hard to remember all of them.

[@timmorris8932]

This is the tale the shamans tell, in the camps of the orcs when the night is deep on the world and dawn is far away: In the beginning all the gods met and drew lots for the parts of the world in which their representative races would dwell. The human gods drew the lot that allowed humans to dwell where they pleased, in any environment. The elven gods drew the green forests, the dwarven gods drew the high mountains, the gnomish gods the rocky, sunlit hills, and the halfling gods picked the lot that gave them the fields and meadows. Then the assembled gods turned to the orcish gods and laughed loud and long. “All the lots are taken!” they said tauntingly. “Where will your people dwell, One Eye? There is no place left!” There was silence upon the world then, as Gruumsh One-Eye lifted his great iron spear and stretched it forth over the world. The shaft blotted out the sun over a great part of the lands as he spoke: “No. You lie. You have rigged the drawing of the lots, hoping to cheat me and my followers. But One-Eye never sleeps; One-Eye sees all. There is a place for orcs to dwell . . . here!” With that, Gruumsh struck the forests with his spear, and a part of them withered with rot. “And here!” he bellowed, and his spear pierced the mountains, opening mighty rifts and chasms. “And here!” and the spearhead split the hills and made them shake and covered them in dust. “And here!” and the black spear gouged the meadows, and made them barren " There!” roared He- Who-Watches triumphantly, and his voice carried to the ends of the world. “There is where the orcs shall dwell! There they shall survive, and multiply, and grow stronger, and a day shall come when they cover the world, and shall slay all of your collected peoples! Orcs shall inherit the world you sought to cheat me of!” In this way, say the shamans, did the orcs come into the world, and thus did Gruumsh predict the coming time when orcs will rule alone. This is why orcs make war, ceaseless and endless: war for the wrath of Gruumsh. "The Gods of the Orcs", Roger Moore Dragon Magazine Issue #62

[@amberkat8147]

Like militant Rom. Rom/Roma people believe that the world was stolen from their people, forcing them to wander and to trick and steal from outsiders to survive. As far as they are concerned they are merely taking back some of what was stolen from them. They're like if you mixed Rom with Spartans.

[@almitrahopkins1873]

That was also reprinted in Monster Mythology.

[@avery4704]

Gives a new idea to the term "get trolled"

[@granttrain3553]

THe Orc are based on a real world norse tribe. Look up the Orkney islands Orkney means "Islands of the Orks". It is also where I am from.

[@akaSnockis]

"Ork" possibly originally from a Pictish tribal name meaning 'young pig'. Source: Waugh, Doreen J. "Orkney Place-names" in Omand (2003) p. 116.

[@rummugtheorc1675]

We Orcs ain’t evil necessarily..... We are just misunderstood. #OrcKnivesMatter

[@joefixxit]

In 3.5 my favored race is Deep Orc(another variety of Orog), they excel in almost everything they do. I believe they are also the only breed of that's have sorcerer as one if they favored classes. My character has gone up against multiple CR 25 ememies at once and won ( bleeded and cleaved) but was the victor never the less. +2 lvl adjustment and 2ftr 3barb +3 frenzied berserker., im just happy that someone did a video on both sides of Orc living . P.s corellian would have never won his battle with gruumsh if another god hadnt interfered. The teardrop rejuvenated corellian and that was the only way you could have beat grummsh

[@MyJC19]

YESSSS!!!! I was waiting for a new video

[@johnobrien7626]

Great video, plenty of ideas to work from

[@bray2964]

*_Orks is the Biggerst and the Strongerst!_*

[@DED_MEEM]

WWWWWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA~wait these are orcs not orks...

[@phantom6014]

They can be total war orcs

[@DED_MEEM]

I mean I'm not gonna tell 'em they can't, but still...

[@thomastakesatollforthedark2231]

D E A D M E E M in Dutch they are

[@joefixxit]

Orog( Races of Faerûn, p. 71) AttributesSize:MediumBase speed:Land 30Strength:+6Intelligence:+0Dexterity:−2Wisdom:−2Constitution:+0Charisma:+2Level adjustment:+2Space:5 feetReach:5 feetAutomatic languages:Home Region , Orc , UndercommonBonus Languages:Common , Dwarven , Elven , Giant , Goblin Description Although everyone in Faerûn knows about the orc hordes of the North (the mountain orcs) and the nomadic orcs of the East (the gray orcs), only a rel-ative few know of a third sub-race that hails from the deeps below ground. The Underdark is the chosen haunt of these terrible creatures, the orogs. After thousands of years of survival in the harsh and dan-gerous Underdark, the orogs have changed to match their home, becoming more fero-cious and better able to cope with the dangers found there. Physically, an orog looks similar to a large mountain orc, except that the ears are somewhat larger, and their eyes are huge and pale. They average six and a half feet tall. Over the centuries, orogs have mastered the art of forg-ing armor and weapons from the strange ores found in the Underdark. They favor half-plate and full plate armor, which are typically adorned, with armor spikes. Orog weapons are festooned with a multi-tude of hooks, spines, and redundant cutting edges. An orog rarely goes anywhere without being fully armed and armored. Orogs use the following aging effect characteristics, as described on Table 6-5 in the Player's Handbook: Race Age InformationOrog365065+2d10 years Orogs are bigger and more powerful than most other peoples of Faerûn, and use the following random height and weight characteristics (see Chapter 6 of the Player's Handbook): GenderHeightWeightOrog , male5'10"+2d10160 lb.× (2d6) lb.Orog, female5'2"+2d10125 lb.× (2d6) lb. Regions: Anauroch, The North, Silver Marches, Orc, or Orog. Racial Feats: Daylight Adaptation, Headlong Rush. Racial Prestige Class: Orc warlord. CombatRacial Traits Orogs all possess the following racial traits: +6 Strength, -2 Dexterity, -2 Wisdom, +2 Charisma: Orogs are incredibly strong, and they make natural leaders despite their ferocious appearance.Medium-size.Orog land speed is 30 feet.Darkvision up to 120 feet.Proficient with greatsword and throwing axe. All orogs train with some sort of martial weapon from a very young age.+2 racial bonus on Craft (armorsmithing) and Craft (weaponsmithing) checks. Orogs train from an early age at their tribal forges.+2 natural armor.Light Blindness (Ex): Abrupt exposure to bright light (such as sunlight or a daylight spell) blinds an orog for 1 round. In addition, orogs suffer a -1 circumstance penalty on all attack rolls, saves, and checks while operating in bright light.Resistances: Orogs have fire resistance 5 and cold resistance 5. They are inured to extremes of temperature.Orc Blood: For all special abilities and effects, an orog is considered an orc. Orogs, for example, can use or create orc weapons and magic items with racially specific orc powers as if they were ordinary orcs.Automatic Languages: Orc, Undercommon. Bonus Languages: Common, Dwarven, Elven, Goblin, Giant.Favored Class: Fighter.Level Adjustment: +2. Orogs are more powerful and gain levels more slowly than most of the other common races of Faerûn

[@glorbojibbins2485]

You stumbled alot in this one, but still a rad video... For a human.

[@michaelwescott8064]

What happened to the very pig faced orcs from the original adnd monster manual?

[@AJPickett]

That was certainly a dominant artistic style for Orcs for the early editions and is echoed in the more bestial Orc cross breeds mentioned at the end of the video.

[@edsapp6678]

Yes pig faced orcs please

[@bloementuintje9356]

hi This has so enriched my own campaigns. I thought i knew about orcs. Stats and such, but then this vid, i saw. Now I love orcs. and so need my players. Or atleast survive them.

[@Yuudaddy]

Damn it AJ! Now even Orcs seem awesome... That said I would love to play as a half-elf half-orc ;]

[@TheCreativeKobold]

Creatures in D&D: Orcs Scro Rocs One of these are not like the others.

[@Kirk9019]

LOL

[@TheTrueMorningStar]

According to Wizards of the Coast's new stance Orcs are just Humans with green skin now and no longer have their own unique,abilities, traits, cultures or, traditions because that would be "problematic". Soon we won't have any monsters to fight because it will become "problematic" to call anything evil even if that thing is an actual devil.

[@AJPickett]

Orcs have grey skin... maybe watch the video and learn something

[@TheTrueMorningStar]

@@AJPickett I am painfully aware their skin is grey, I am loyal subscriber and have watched this video a few times already, I have also been playing since I was 10 with my father. I was pointing out that Wizards does not care about being true to the games lore. They literally said that orcs having grey skin was problematic and was going to be changed to green in the next printing, their words not mine. In particular I am referring to the current twitter outrage about orcs and how WoTC has said they will be retconing all of the lore surrounding Orcs and replace them with green-skinned happy go lucky people with tusks in the next printing. Apparently according to WoTC Orcs having grey skin or a equine culture is racist. As someone who was introduced to the game in AD&D I don't appreciate Wizards changing the game because of outside social/political pressure, this feels just like the "satanic panic" is happening all over again. P.S. I love your videos and I really appreciate the great job you do. I watch your videos to help me prep for the game I run for my family including my Father who got me into the hobby as a kid and he really appreciates all of the great lore I am able to include because of you videos.

[@TheTrueMorningStar]

@@AJPickett They have said they are going to do the same thing to Drow's culture as well but have yet to say what they will be changing their skin color too like they will be with the orcs. Appetizingly Drow culture being evil and their skin being purple is racist, to whom I'm not sure but Wizards is changing it anyway.

[@AJPickett]

Well WotC is not Dungeons & Dragons... We are. If they want new Orcs and Drow, then they can make new settings for them... They already have, it's Magic the Gathering, unfortunately, they are too scared to fully commit to it, because they know Faerun sells better.

[@TheTrueMorningStar]

@@AJPickett Agreed! I don't have an issue with different settings having lore, I enjoy that part of the hobby, a lot in fact, and we mostly play in Eberron these days. Unfortunately though it seems they will be imposing these changes on all settings going forward, and specifically on The Forgotten Realms since it is their flagship setting and all. Luckily nothing is set in stone yet but it is definitely something to watch.

[@kyskei]

this gave me an idea for an interesting video. slaves on toril / the forgotten realms

[@Joshuazx]

good video!

[@DerEwigeKodex]

Ahoi! This is (as ususal 😉) great stuff! Thank you very much!!!

[@destonlee2838]

I imagine Ytttrus and the oinodemon have a special relationship.

[@chrishamby1614]

My Human fighter character was raised by a orc woman who is a powerful druid and alchemist. A badass that most avoid even mildly annoying. But is actually very nice to her "kids"

[@sipofsunkist9016]

anyone play minecraft for hours while having these play in the background?

[@michaelparker6521]

You mentioned the Dawn war. Was that a creation of fourth edition lore? Where do things stand with the forgotten realms planes after fifth edition? I would love to see you do a video on the planes of existence and the changes between third, fourth, and fifth editions explained, and the status of the current cannon.

[@AJPickett]

Well, I did an overview of the current D&D cosmology, more of a glossary of terms and features.

[@michaelparker6521]

Cool. I’ll check it out.

[@destonlee2838]

The smoothest stones sharpen the chosen's blade, to carry the message as Luthic bade, like a wildfire carried on summer winds feeds the eagle hunting on high as creatures run from the clawing flame, Gru'umsh made us to do the same!

[@dovakiin4257]

Very good lore always

[@Uriel77200]

Whatever happened to orcs having pig or bore like faces? This is how they were described back in 1st edition. I always thought the Gamorian Gaurds from Star Wars were what orcs were originally supposed to look like.

[@AJPickett]

Basically its the reverse of what happened to the Klingons in Star Trek.

[@baonkang5990]

Apparently there a two types of orc.

[@flibbernodgets7018]

I LOVE ORCS!!!!!! dey iz mah favurit race. Not quite sure why though. I also love the fact that nearly every Sci-Fi setting has Space Orcs in one form or another. Like the Klingons of Star Trek, or the Luxans from Farscape. And Holy Cow, I never realized how cool Shargas was!

[@thedarkmaster4747]

Klingons and luxans aren't really orcs, they are both to civilized and don't eat their slaves and prisoners when they get to hungry. luxans would hate orcs, as they control their rage, they're noble, intelligent warriors. but klingons would love them(as enemies to fight.) because orcs would be perpertuall source of battle. the reavers from the firefly/serenity universe are close-ish to orcs. maybe the magog from andromeda universe aswell.

[@flibbernodgets7018]

Hm, I may have been looking at them through rose tinted glasses, or thinking about the WarCraft orcs. They're kinda noble. I like the idea that there are several subgroups. There should be a place for the savage orcs and the noble orcs, imo

[@AJPickett]

In the latest series, Discovery, the Klingons do eat the body of a starship captain after they kill her.

[@thedarkmaster4747]

AJ Pickett i haven't watched Discovery and i don't know if i ever will. i think picard is a better captain than kirk, and i can respect the artistic opinion of those who think otherwise, but as far as discovery goes, i find my limit & i end up feeling like somekind of heretic burning priest. i suppose it is okay if someone likes it who's never seen star trek before... but i 🔥JUDGE🔥 although in my defence, i would say it comes from a place of "love". 😵❤😵

[@AJPickett]

I love any and all sci-fi, I will consume it all with equal gusto and just be thankful for it. Change is inevitable, it is a fundamental aspect of the universe, fighting it is futile, just learn to love the ride.

[@Biogeddon]

AJ, was your adventure involving the orcish bounty and the Shargaas shaman homebrew, or was it from a published source?

[@Biogeddon]

Thanks for the "like," AJ. I assume then, that it was just a homebrew encounter.

[@probablythedm1669]

Needz moar dakka! Orks can NEVER have enuff dakka! MOAR DAKKA! Though giving the orcs in my Faerûn games actual guns seems a bit... unorcish (unless a player decides to play an orc gunslinger, then there will be lots of dakka). I think I'll just settle with giving my orcs javelins and throwing axes - for now...

[@AJPickett]

A quiver of stirges :D

[@TheItalianGentleman2394]

Orc barbarian path of beast make him a wereboar and kill everything

One thing is stupid about D&D. Tendays. Month has four quaters. Week is one quater of the moon. Does toril Month last fourty days?

[@judowrestlerka]

Sounds like D$D has been reading up on 40k. Imitation is the highest form of.....WHAAAAAAGGGGG!!!!!

[@_elifilen]

Orcs my favorite prey in d&d

[@randyayo2846]

I always made my Orcs long distant Kin of the Elves. Tied by blood. I’m one campaign the Drow aided the Orcs by retraining them and bringing them back to their once great status

[@kalanap]

Hey, AJ, random question. Where does Gruumsh come from? As in, what are his origins? I have looked high and low, but have found little to no information regarding that particular subject.

[@slyguy8931]

Are orc chieftains the only ones allowed to mate and reproduce? Also, under what conditions would a half-orc be tolerated and allowed to live in a tribe?

[@marrqi7wini54]

I don't know D&D but I would assume half orcs born of war bounty. (AKA slaves)

[@abnegazher]

NOT ENOUGH DAKKA

[@AJPickett]

You need to see my video on orKs, get it in yer brain meat Humee!

[@jacobhexum7017]

what do you get with an orc drow mix?

[@AJPickett]

An outcast. Actually, I will be talking about Orc/Elf cross breeds in my video on Half-Orcs.

[@michaelkelligan7931]

Ann Hexum a "Dork" 😁

[@thecuter0]

I like the idea of orcs being peaceful, but they use great brutality to scare off attackers. They actually think elves are beautiful in their own way, due to their long lives and capabilities, so they try to scare them even more. Basically, take as much of the broad strokes and flip them to them not wanting to fight, you can even have the myths that they tell of their gods be different based on if they're telling it to their tribe and those without.

[@brianroberts783]

Is there any official lore about the homeworld of the Orcs? If not, I'll definitely have to homebrew something for a Spelljammer/Planescape campaign I'm planning.

[@AJPickett]

I have heard of something like six different Orc worlds.

[@michaellarson938]

First mistake, Orcs were a real tribe of Picts, of whom Julius Caesar Himself described in his writtings about his conquests in Britain. This would be about 30 ad.

[@AJPickett]

No relation to D&D lore what so ever.

[@michaellarson938]

@@AJPickett yes, where do you think they developed the monster description for the Orcs, it was from the descriptions of the real orcs

[@AJPickett]

@@michaellarson938 No it wasn't

[@dragonballtalk8527]

do a ervis Cale trilogy video

[@AJPickett]

I'm not doing fantasy novel book synopsis videos DBT, thanks for the suggestion though.

[@kallenb5935]

So are Neo-Orogs the same as the Black & Red orcs mentioned in the video?

[@wratched]

Seems to me that D&D's been taking some worldbuilding tips from Warhammer and Warcraft in recent years.

[@AJPickett]

Warhammer has better Orks... There, I said it. 🧙🏼‍♂️

[@Shadowofwampyre]

I would like to hear anything about the sub-race of orcs called the Sharakim

[@AJPickett]

archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ex/20041203a&page=3

[@imlaughing2death]

I was going to mention them as well, thanks for beating me to the punch.

[@marcusblacknell-andrews1783]

What if an Orc mated with a Wereboar?

[@AJPickett]

Honestly it's a win for both sides there.

[@jeremysnead9233]

Why did the Orcs Split from Goblinoid? What Race would unite these goblinoids like races? Which race would have the most to fear if they were to unite?

[@AJPickett]

In Dungeons and Dragons, currently, Orcs are totally unrelated as a species to any of the Goblinoids, and all the Goblinoids are derived from the base race, which are the Hobgoblins.

[@jeremysnead9233]

I see why DnD split them off because of the redundant natures of bugbears and Orc.

[@jeremysnead9233]

I also tend to think of ogres, gargoyles, and gremlins of a similar nature. Like they came from a dying world do to some deal between gods.

[@RockstarRacc00n]

"The World's Greatest Role-Playing Game" Highly debatable, to the point that I doubt the vast majority of people who'd played other games would say so, but ok then...

[@AJPickett]

in 2017 there were 12-15 million people playing D&D in North America alone, making D&D more popular now than at any other time in its history. In 2018 it reached 61% of all games being played on VTT sites like Roll20 and Fantasy Grounds, in 2017 there were about 620 thousand games being actively run on those platforms, so, more than half of all of those. No other RPG appears on the Amazon Best Sellers list, In 2016 the 5th Edition Player’s Handbook appeared at #92. In 2017 it rose to #40. In 2018 the Player’s Handbook climbed #21. Perhaps more significantly, the Dungeon Master’s Guide jumped in at #71, the Monster Manual made the charts at #76, and the Xanthar’s Guide to Everything supplement even squeezed in at #100. That would be my opening salvo in the debate, I look forward to your reply :)

[@RockstarRacc00n]

​@@AJPickett Popularity is entirely different than Quality. The argument you're making is completely irrelevant to the claim that it's the "greatest", and would be thrown out as a complete logical fallacy in any structured "debate" (I'm not going to debate with you, I'm going to discuss with you). You took the time to type it out though, so I'll elaborate, just to make that clear. The first reason D&D is popular is because it is the oldest, giving it the best name recognition and the most time to build reputation. It also had that religious scandal which got the name in the news. The second reason D&D is so popular is, because of the first reason, it was bought and sold between increasingly large companies as a major asset, and eventually ended up in Hasbro's catalog, where it was given a massive budget for advertisement. None of this is a result of superior quality, but random chance. The reason that people who've played a few other games typically consider D&D to be so weak is because it doesn't do anything better than any given game. Want a game that feels brutal? Call of Cthulhu. Want a game that builds narrative tension? Storyteller / World of Darkness. Want a game that builds a strong narrative around your character the moment you start making them? Burning Wheel. Want a game that is easy to learn and can be molded to any setting? Savage Worlds, GURPS, and FATE. Want a game that provides more depth to the non-combat situations than D&D does? That's about 90% of other games, because D&D's non-combat skill system was tacked on as an afterthought and never moved on from that. Want a game that's easier to teach? For most of the games I just listed, anyone can get a brand new player from zero knowledge to having a full sheet that they are ready to play their first session with in under an hour. As someone who's designed for multiple systems, I can tell you that D&D uses way more complicated math than it needs to to create a structure which gets between the player and actually playing, slowing down activity with odd math, creating strange probabilities with tiny numbers added to a D20 roll, and pushing players away from non-combat situations by structuring its mechanics around the sub-par combat system. 90% of it seems to be holdovers from the original rules, which have been holding it back as a game for 40 years. That's why I disagree with your description of "greatest", and I felt the need to call you out because too many people actually believe that without having ever played the numerous BETTER games that I listed. It bothers me that you would refer to a game like that as the "greatest" when so many of us have spent so much time and passion developing systems which excel at the many things D&D falls short on, only to watch people gravitate to this one game that we all agree is sub-par. Here's my suggestion to you before we continue this discussion: you should go look into some of these other games, because I've played every D&D system since 2e, including Pathfinder, and I've played or at least analyzed the mechanics of over a dozen games which avoided the D20 system entirely, and I legitimately believe that the majority of people who've done so would come to the same conclusion.

[@AJPickett]

@@RockstarRacc00n Heres the thing, you are making one serious error... I have played ALL of those games listed, and a huge number of others, as I have been roleplaying since the 1980's and I never stopped playing between then and now. I have written articles, I had some work published by palladium books in Rifter #23 "The Blade Mage", I wrote an article for Nerdarchy and I had a paid RPG blog for a while, over the years I have written loads of material with others, I had a fairly popular web site for the Heroes Unlimited RPG, I play Traveler, Warhammer 40K, Star Wars, Toon, Paranoia, Numenera, Lamentations of the Flame Princess, Savage Worlds, Robotech, Atomic Robo, Judge Dredd (and the many settings covered by Mongoose games)... The people I typically hang out with and roleplay with regularly switch to different game systems when they feel like a break from D&D.. but we always come back to D&D. So, with all due respect, one gamer to another, you most certainly have a right to your opinion, but we are going to differ on this one. In my experience, D&D is the core of this hobby, it always has been, it certainly is now, and you may believe what you wish, it is not my place to enforce one on you, likewise, your points have not compelled me. Using the 5th edition ruleset, I can run games with all of the qualities you attribute to and I believe are saying better convey through their mechanics, the other games, sure if a new roleplayer only has access to the 5E core rules, they won't have the scope of different genres and experiences to bring to the table as someone who has played all the other systems or read tons of fantasy and sci-fi, watched loads of movies and so on. I am not arguing against playing lots of different game systems, I am not saying D&D is the best game in every situation... I am saying it is the most famous, most played, most reliable, most widely acclaimed, most award-winning, most supported and most likely to be a new player's first introduction to the hobby, therefore, it is the greatest role-playing game.

[@RockstarRacc00n]

@@AJPickett ...Did it cur off part of your comment?

[@AJPickett]

@@RockstarRacc00n Starts with Heres the thing, ends with The Greatest Roleplaying Game.

[@ChasoGod]

Wish they had sub-races for Orcs and Half-Orcs in 5e.

[@AJPickett]

me to.

[@doobiesmoke15]

30:16 Where is that pic from?

[@LostArchivist]

11:06 So a WWII FPS map then?

[@dantobarbarian4842]

The awkward moment when you realize you are basically a half-orc... Loves fights, regards battle scars as a thing of pride and beauty and had anger management issues in the past!

[@akshane5570]

Orog are ogre(f) and Orc(m) ogrillieon are ogre(m) and Orc(f) what about a Ogre magi?

[@johnadger6699]

Can Orcs breed with Hobgoblins? I always thought they would pair up instead of Orcs and Humans to make half Orc.

[@AJPickett]

Nope. I am under the impression that goblinoids can't breed outside their own species. (Thankfully, otherwise half goblins would be a core playable race)

[@johnadger6699]

@@AJPickett That's to bad AJ, they look like they would've made cute monster babies together.

[@ChasoGod]

I've always wondered something: What would happen if a Half-Orc and Half-Elf fell in love and tried to have a child? Would the elf and orc blood cancel out resulting in a human? Would the child be born either half-orc or half-elf? Would the bloodlines refuse to blend resulting in no conception?

[@AJPickett]

If you ascribe to 5th edition's elven reincarnation lore, then the elves have a particular problem here.. they can not in good conscience allow half orc/half elven babies to be raised outside of their culture can they? Are these children even elven? Do they have an elven soul? For the orcs, this is clearly an offense to Gruumsh, sworn enemy of the elves, how can they suffer such cross breeds to live when they offend their creator god? The answer, is that not everyone is going around murdering babies in the name of religious doctrine, even in fantasy worlds where they KNOW that gods are real... they will raise those children and give them a chance to be whatever they are destined to be, after all, who really knows what the gods want? Perhaps its part of some plan, some prophesy, and their reluctance to murder a baby is just the divine realm telling their heart that the child deserves to live.

[@ChasoGod]

@@AJPickett True. Then you have couples who live in human settlements who would raise the child like all the others. My question is more of would such conception be able to take place and what would they look like? Ignoring the elven reincarnation cycle and Grumsh, I want to know about the biology and such.

[@MeTaLISaWeSoMe95]

I know that WOTC decided recently to remove the idea that all orcs are evil... But I'm honestly wondering... Who hadn't doesn't that already? Every group I've played in has treated orcs as barbarian people's, but no more evil than any other. They fight and raid to survive, and while they are brutal, so are other barbarian people's. Now not everyone does this, don't get me wrong. But it's pretty common.

[@AJPickett]

There is no good or evil, there is only the society and the individual, the environment and survival.