Fiction:The Firmament/Orc

"I want them elves to know who's in charge of this world. It ain't no giant tree. It ain't no fancy pompous king. It's ME. Me and my horde! We take what we want, and we crush anyone who stands in our way! That is the way of the orcs! We fight, we kill, and we win!"

- Monzrat Earthrender, legendary orc Warlord

Orcs are a fierce race of humanoids characterized for their physical might and natural ferocity. They are close relatives of the goblinoids and are among the races collectively known as the Greenskins.

Biology
Orcs are imposing humanoid figures averaging over two meters in height. Both males and females are tall, broad and muscular by nature, and they mature very quickly for creatures of their size, though they are generally shorter lived than men. Orc skin comes in many shades of green, their eyes are predominantly red, their hair is usually raven black and they all possess prominent tusks. They sport a pair of pointed ears, though unlike elves, orc ears point upwards in the vague silhouette of horns.

History
The orcs, like all Greenskins, descend from Primordials who pledged their allegiance to the demon lord Druacath during the cataclysmic arrival of Varagarash Narahil, hoping that by doing so, they would be spared of destruction. These traitorous Primordials fought their own kind in the name of the demons, though were evidently unsuccessful, with the Goblinkin races emerging from the northern wastes of Gromkazul around 8,000 years in the past. Originally made up of hundreds of bickering tribes, the orcs of Gromkazul were only marginally considered a threat to the elves of Eondrassana. However, an orc Warlord by the name of Monzrat Earthrender would rise among the chieftains, and with a combination of military prowess and intimidation, unified the tribes into a horde that would march south into the lands of the elves.

Backed by the rakash of Skitterfall, the orcs rose from simple savages into an army of fearsome and competent warriors, leading to the rise of the brutal nation of Druacatakh. The Great Eondrassana War, as it became known, saw the orcs cause untold destruction across inner Dryadala, reducing the elves to a shadow of their former selves. Much to the luck of the elves, however, the rakash could not resist betraying the Greenskins, leading a furious Monzrat Earthrender to shift all his focus on hunting down the treacherous ratmen and completely disrupting the flow of his invasion. The Warlord was eventually killed by elven druids after they succeeded in hunting him down, causing his disorganized horde to retreat back north and to the war to end, though they would continue raiding and pillaging the borders of Eryliana for generations to come.

The rise of humanity led the orcs to find a new enemy, for they had settled in the land the orcs had once taken from the Elves. The orcs of Druacatakh in particular found much fighting against the Rusclanders, who found fit to testing their mettle against the Greenskins very often. Some smaller tribes of orcs in Dryadala, descended from warriors of the war who did not or could not return home, have begun to interact in a less violent manner with their neighbours in recent years, offering their services as craftsmen or mercenaries to the likes of Meerland, Merovaren and Arkhanset.

Culture
Orc culture is brutal and unforgiving, and the weaker among them are damned to a life of servitude under their warrior lords. Centered around strength and martial prowess, Orcs revel in destruction, raiding and killing those they see as beneath them. Orcs are temperamental creatures and often make their decisions in a reckless manner, though they are generally capable of admitting their own mistakes - to hide your flaws which can be improved is seen as cowardice better reserved for goblins. While destructive and bloodthirsty, orcs are not known for their cruelty; they often kill their enemies in a quick and direct manner, being largely uninterested in prolonged torture unless it is a particularly hated foe.

Religion
Orcish religion is hardly unified, and each tribe generally worships their own collection of deities, which are organized by revered shamans. The most common among those are the demon lords, especially in the land of Druacatakh, where the official state religion is that of Druacath, the father of all Greenskins. Going south of Gromkazul, it is easier to find orcs worshipping other gods, particularly the local forces of nature.

Relations with other races
Orcs are often accompanied by goblin servants, who they typically treat as cannon fodder. They are fierce enemies of all elven cultures; even the dark elves, who are creatures of darkness and bloodlust like the Greenskins, relish in tormenting and torturing orcs when they get the chance. Humans and dwarves are also constant foes of most orcish tribes, sometimes seen as worthy foes, though the former have shown the capacity to coexist with them when it suits their interests. Because they despise cowardice, orcs hate the rakash, and to this day, any ratman spotted in Druacatakh is killed on sight for their ancient betrayal during the Great Eondrassana War.