Orkhan
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| Population | ~38 Million |
| Traits | Tusks, Pointed ears, draconic scales |
| Homeland | Ecithian Empire, Ecith |
| Leader | Empress Cyntaera III |
| Art | [1], [2] |
Fast Facts
Height: 5'9"-7" Males, 5'6-6'8" Females
Weight: 160-300 lbs. Males, 130-230 lbs. Females
Lifespan: Adult (18 Years), Elder (70 Years), Deathly (100 Years)
Notable Features: Tusks ranging from small to very prominent. Pointed ears. Dragon scales.
Player Restrictions: None.
Racial Ability: Dragonkin- In moments of extreme duress, Orkhan can manifest dragon scales on parts of their bodies, most commonly on the forearms, shins, along the spine and parts of the face. These scales recede over time but can be called upon at-will for most Orkhan. Additionally, Orkhan are naturally able to form claws on their hands and feet in order to use them as weapons if the moment calls for it.
Population: 38,000,000
History
While the elves of Sol’Valen built gleaming cities of silver and gold and the giants roamed the lands of the mainland Ransera, the wilds of the continent of Ecith remained untamed and savage. It was a land where the hope of building anything remained a far off dream as the ability to do so required savagery of unparalleled depths. In this landscape, it was Malgar who looked upon the wildlands of Ecith...and smiled.
The Blood of Dragons
Malgar, the Dragon God of Suffering, looked upon the wildlands of Ecith with a sinister smile. He had little taste for the gleaming cities of the elves, where the benevolence of the other gods ensured that they would know only peace and prosperity. He was as a shadow to them, an unknown monster that lurked on the edges of every nightmare. The Madgod desired to upset the carefully built circle of protection that surrounded the elves but in order to do that he needed to test the limits of what exactly a mortal could endure before breaking. What better place than lands where beasts reigned supreme and the very earth itself seemed ready to swallow a mortal whole. The Madgod walked the continent of Ecith until he found a great and terrible grandwyrm of the Wild Dragonflight. A beast without equal, with scales that shone brilliantly with the majesty of its ferocity. The Dragon God of Suffering slew the mighty beast and from its blood he fashioned a new creature. From the scales, Malgar pulled the great strength and durability of the dragon, ensuring that the creatures he created would be hale enough to weather the challenges of Ecith and all he threw at them. Into the new creatures blood, Malgar poured the ferocity of the dragon, that these new creatures might bear without fear in the face of horror. Instead they would, as the wild dragon did, grow in the face of adversity.
From this act, the Orkhan were born. Malgar looked upon them and was pleased. As the elves of Sol’Valen and the other elder races began building the foundation of their Boundless Empire, Malgar fed to the Orkhan the wine of Suffering. He bade that the young orcs pursue every monster, clash with every beast and douse themselves in the fires of his unyielding push toward facing every obstacle no matter the grotesqueness of the feat. As expected, the Orkhan dwindled in number at first but with each passing generation, they grew stronger and more ferocious. Then the Rift Gates of Sol’Valen collapsed and the rippling effects of their fall cascaded across the world of Ransera. A spark was lit within the Orkhan as the world shook under the weight of the onslaught. The savage beasts of the wildlands of Ecith grew worse and for the first time in their young history, many Orkhan felt fear. Some cried out to the Dragon God of Suffering to lend them strength but he would not. To live was to suffer. To survive that suffering was to grow stronger. He willed that they either survive or fall and turned his attention to the elves, whose brightness and prosperity he had always sought to challenge.
Many orcs were slain and for a moment it seemed as though all Orkhan would perish. But it was not to be as from the shrouded realms of the Mistlords, the Burning King stepped forth from the dust and ashes that surrounded the orcish homelands. In them, the Mistlord Akrivar saw the will to persevere, to endure and the power to bend the world and many others to their whims. Akrivar offered to the mightiest warriors of the Orkhan, a single ember of his great flames. Not wishes to perish in the face of the terrible foes both native to their homeland and unleashed by the Rift Gates, the warriors accepted and were transformed. Furious that another would dare intervene with his creations, Malgar unleashed his wrath upon Akrivar. But the Ash Knight would not be denied and defeated the Dragon God of Suffering in battle. Swearing vengeance upon the Mistlord, Malgar abandoned the Orkhan who now welcomed the Burning King into their hearts.
Akrivar did not attempt to dissuade the orcish peoples from the path of ferocity stoked by the suffering of Malgar, rather he guided it differently. Under his sway, the Orkhan were saved from annihilation and were able to break away from the endless cycle of carnage and bloodshed that had held them back. With the embers of Akrivar’s flame burning inside of them, the Orkhan drew the attention of Fyraea, Dragon Goddess of Fire, Industry and Craftsmanship. She came to the orcs and taught them how to harness fire for more than just destruction. As Akrivar taught the orcs to cull and subdue the world around them that they might conquer it as opposed to simply destroying it, the Orkhan drew the eyes of Skar, the Dragon God of War, Strength and Honor. For their ferocity and unquenchable passion, the orcs finally drew the attention of Suion, the Dragon Goddess of Love, Passion and Desire. All in thanks to the Burning King’s embers, the Orkhan found themselves and were able to push past the chains of mere savagery and violence. They had purpose. They had freedom. They had a way forward.
The Orcish Heroes
As the Orkhan moved away from the mindless savagery of Malgar, they began to find themselves in a world they desperately sought to understand. No more could they survive on pure rage and ferocity alone. They had changed, just as the world around them had changed. It was either that they changed with it or they perish under the tide of time. From these challenges many rose and fell but among them there are those who stood out as the greatest of all Orcish heroes.
Nadia of Blades
Among the heroes of the Orkhan, there were none so honored as the Warchief Nadia of Blades. A warrior who was peerless in battle, who bore within her an ember of the Burning King, the proud fighter was one of the most ferocious defenders of the orcs following his intervention and guidance forward. While she scoffed at the intervention of gods, choosing firmly to believe in the inner strength and honor of a mortal spirit, Nadia still respected them. She lived by a code, one that demanded that those with strength put it toward the survival of kin and cause. She tolerated no threat to family and any who challenged her were brought low either by her blades or through the strength of her convictions. For many, she was seen as the mightiest of the Orkhan and because of this she earned the loyalty of many lesser tribes of her people. Her leadership saw them thrive where others faltered in the face of a world ravaged by the changes of the broken Rift Gates.
There came a day however when a beast, touched by the corruptive power of the fallen gates, came to the great village of the clans that Nadia lead. It rampaged through her people. The great warrior’s first instincts were that of a guardian standing unmoved against the onslaught of a terrible beast. Nadia did battle with the monster and was victorious. Her bravery and her unyielding resolve garnered the attention of Akrivar. The Burning King bore witness to the Orkhan woman’s might and was moved. He came to her and enfolded her into his care. Care turned to longing, longing turned to lust and lust turned to love. The Mistlord fell in love with Nadia and from their union was born a child. So was born Raxen, the demigod son of Akrivar.
Nadia raised her son, bathing him in the fires of battle, teaching him the importance of adhering to a code and the significance of the oaths one keeps in this life and any other. This pleased Akrivar and he too taught and guided his son. The Burning King showed his son that a code only had meaning if one had the strength of will to endure it. It would also only survive if one carved out a world where it could survive. The Mistlord of Tyranny and Oaths showed his son the importance of weathering the world but of also subjugating it and others so that the world might be one’s own. Raxen took the lessons of his mother and father to heart, growing from a child and rising into manhood. He learned to be a warrior from his mother and a leader from his father. His prowess drew the attention of Skar, the Dragon God of War and under his guidance, the demigod blossomed into a true disciple in the ways of battle.
Pyrec of Songs
An Orkhan who lost his arm in battle, Pyrec could not follow the ways of a warrior after his near death at the hands of a terrible beast. For many years, he wandered, listless and as though he was without purpose. He gave himself to drink. He was pitied by many. He was viewed with contempt by others. It is in one night, where Pyrec was lost to his own sorrows that he began to sing. He found the means to put words to his grief and his suffering. He sang of the trials he’d faced, of the warrior he once was, of the burden he had become. His song was heard around a campfire and it moved many to tears. For in his words, many found an echo of their own lives as the life of an Orc was one of hardship in a land where only their ferocity seemed to allow them to survive. In his song there was a yearning for something more. Pyrec began travelling and began gathering the stories of those he travelled with. He began to sing the tales of those he encountered and soon he began to chronicle the very story of the Orcish people as a whole.
His songs eventually attracted the attention of none other than Myshala, she who is the Spider Most Elegant. Myshala came to the orc warrior turned bard and told him a story. She told him a tale of loss, a tale of joy and a tale of possibilities. From this story she asked that he weave a song unlike any the world had yet heard. And so, Pyrec sang and by the song’s end, Myshala shed a tear and was moved. The Mistlord of Flesh shared of herself with the orc and departed. Many seasons later, Pyrec found a young girl on the doorstep of his home. In her hands she bore a scroll and it shared with him only her name. Syren. As the young girl grew, she learned music, song and poetry from her father. As with him, she proved an unparalleled songstress with a voice that could move others to tears, to laughter, to joy and to rage. It was as Syren entered womanhood that her true nature as a demigoddess became realized. It would come to pass that followers flocked to Pyrec and his daughter Syren. All who travelled with them became great storytellers, bards and from Syren they even learned the pleasures of the flesh. In time, Pyrec passed but his daughter lived on.
Lavistae of the Painted Veil
Magic was not common among the Orkhan. It was never something they pursued and it was never accepted widely across their people. But that was not to say it didn’t exist. Among the Orcs there was a sorceress who devoted herself to the art of Summoning. In the lands of Ecith monsters roamed that could never be tamed but must be thwarted in order to survive. Lavistae was of the mindset that monsters should be used to fight monsters. It was because of this that she threw herself into the art of Summoning, devoting all that she was to the craft of conjuring spirits, beasts and other entities in order to ensure the survival of her people. She was peerless in her art and her pursuit of knowledge. In her travels, Lavistae compiled many great tomes of arcane lore which she carefully guarded as she documented the secrets of the lands of Ecith. Her mysticism, intellect and her tenacity eventually caught the attention of Aileor, Dragon God of Divination, Foresight and Peace. The two fell in love and from their love was birthed a daughter whom Lavistae shared her wisdom. Galetira, would grow to become a formidable sorceress just like her mother and it is due to the guidance of Galetira that the ways of the arcane became not something to be feared but respect in the eyes of the Orkhan. While it remains a careful respect, no longer were the magics of the world viewed with such disdain as they had in generations before.
The demigods Raxen, Syren and Galetira would rise to prominence among the Orcish peoples. Stepping into the roles largely held by their parents, they became figures of prominence and influence among the Orkhan. The Triumvirate, as they began to be called, saw followers flock to them in droves as they matured and travelled the breadth of Ecith. Raxen’s steadfast adherence to precepts of honor, strength and warfare enhanced the prowess of Orcish warriors. The songs, stories and passion of Syren fostered in the Orkhan a love of storytelling, of music and of more carnal desires. Through Galetira, the life of a scholar, the curiosity with mysticism and occult ways as well as being unafraid of the future ahead of them, the Orkhan devoted more time to pursuits other than mere survival. These three became the primary guardians and guides of the Orkhan taking up the mantle of God-Queens and King.
The Age of Wonders
The troubles of Sol’Valen did not stay within the boundaries of the lands of the Ranseran mainland. Across the seas, the troubles of the conflict with Illixidor the Betrayer and the rising armies of Shaeoth visited even the lands of Ecith. With their combined might, the Triumvirate were able to repel the worst of these dangers allowing the Orkhan to continue to prosper in peace under their guidance. However, the threat continued to grow and the three began to encounter troubles that not even their might could dissuade entirely. Convinced that this threat had to be stopped, it was Raxen who travelled to the mainland Ransera. He journeyed through the ancient forests of Turoth. He fought with mistspawn and witnessed terrors that mere mortals would have quailed against.
But even Raxen’s might would eventually meet its match in the face of a terrible beast warped by the dark sorceries of Illixidor’s madness. The demigod was saved, however, through the intervention of a human hunter. The young man saved Raxen’s life. The man introduced himself as Arcas and be bade that Raxen travel with him as they were safer together in those uncertain times. The Orkhan demigod accepted. The two were fascinated with one another. Raxen had never seen a human before. Arcas had never seen an Orkhan before. They journeyed together, travelling the lands of Ransera learning about one another and where they both came from. Raxen taught Arcas the ways of the sword just as his mother had before him. With his guidance, the human became just as formidable with a blade as he was with a bow. Arcas taught the gruff demigod the importance of selflessness and justice in the face of brutality. The two became inseparable and together they faced many perils. In the mainland of Ransera, Raxen bore witness to the hubris of the elves and the weakness of the humans. At first, he was repulsed. But Arcas managed to convince him that even in the heart of darkness, a light could still be found. Rather than turn away from the continent and abandon it, Raxen was moved to help.
As events spiraled and eventually the armies of Shaeoth gathered to sweep across the lands, Raxen remained by the side of his friend standing with him all the way until the end. When Shaeoth and Arcas did battle, Raxen swiftly tried to come to his friend’s aide but was barred through the intervention of one of the dark demigod’s generals. Unmatched in his prowess in battle, Raxen slew the general but that delay, momentary though it was, allowed Shaeoth the time they needed to best Arcas and deal the killing blow.
But though he was dying, Arcas called forth the power of the Dragon King and banished Shaeoth and his greatest followers from the lands. Weeping, Raxen gathered the body of his companion close and remained with him until he passed. To the Dragon King himself, Raxen swore to honor the fallen demigod and with great sorrow, the Orcish demigod carried the body of his friend back to the lands of Ecith where it was entombed. His friend had always wanted to see the shores of Ecith. Raxen fulfilled that wish.
So the Age of Wonders ended and the threat from across the seas was thwarted.
Age of Conquest and Clockwork
With the threat of Shaeoth and their armies defeated, the Triumvirate resumed guiding the Orkhan. In time, the lands of Ecith came into contact with the mainland of Ransera on a greater scale. Trade, commerce, and ideas began to flow freely between the two continents. Due largely to the presence of the Triumvirate, the legions of the Clockwork Empire were never successful in progressing to make much of a foothold within the lands of the Orkhan. As a result, the Orcs remained a distinct and independent culture and civilization throughout the Ages of Conquest and the Age of Clockwork. It was only as the Age of Clockwork ended and Kaitos Diraegon went on his crusade again all forces of the divine that the Orkhan truly began to feel the full force of the empire’s wrath due to their avid worship of and the presence of the three demigods. Even so, the bitter war being fought was one where the Clockwork Empire was forced to fight tooth and nail for every inch of ground it gained, what little it did.
The Sundering of the World
The Godspire was activated...and the world was changed irrevocably. The Triumvirate, seeing the devastation unleashed by the Sundering, pooled their power together and worked to hold back the storm of destruction caused by Kaitos Diraegon’s arrogance. It was in that moment that Malgar, the Dragon God of Suffering, chose to take his vengeance upon the Mistlord Akrivar for swaying the Orkhan away from him all those years ago. As Raxen worked with his fellow demigods Galetira and Syren, to hold back the tide of destruction, Malgar struck. He attacked Raxen while the demigod was vulnerable and would have succeeded in slaying him if not through the intervention of both Galetira and Syren. The three demigods harnessed the devastation unleashed by the Godspire and used the surge of power sweeping across their lands to strike back at Malgar. The Dragon God of Suffering was blasted by their combined power as well as the power of the Sundering. He was gravely wounded and forced to retreat.
This act, while saving the life of Raxen, saw the three lose concentration on holding back the power of the Sundering leaving the lands of Ecith open to untold destruction. The lands of Ecith were sundered. The kingdoms of the Orkhan toppled and the Triumvirate were powerless to stop it. Raxen fell comatose and, weakened and vulnerable, Syren and Galetira withdrew in order to protect the comatose body of their fellow demigod.
While they did not abandon their people, their power was vastly diminished. So began an era where the Orkhan, reeling from the Sundering, were bereft of the guidance of their most honored gods.
The Orkhan, lost without the guidance of their God-Queens and King, fell to in-fighting in the wake of the Sundering. Old grudges, held at bay for centuries, boiled to the surface. Monsters again roamed the lands of once peaceful places. The Orkhan were forced to embrace their savage origins in ways that had not been embraced for millennia. This feuding for resources, for survival only ended when the Moratallen showed themselves in the lands of Ecith and beseeched the Orcish people for protection. Many were turned away but eventually the half-giants found refuge among several Orkhan clans.
Because of the legacy that flowed in their veins and the way of life that many Orkhan led, they fared better in the Age of Sundering than most. With the worst of the in-fighting having passed, they remained largely unified in their approach to survival in the new world that had sprung in the wake of such destruction. Better though they fared, they were not without troubles. Old horrors became new realities and daily occurrences, the lands themselves seemed to turn against them. These troubles mounted but the Orkhan managed to establish homes again. They built the cities of Dratir, Kythera and Ailos, modelling the three cities closely after the philosophies and teachings of the three demigods whom had sacrificed so much to ensure their survival.
For a time, things seemed hopeful. This changed when a group calling itself the Cult of Mending surged to prominence. Bringing with them promises of a dark salvation. The Cult gained footing within the Orkhan but it was not long before the Menders true intention were revealed. By then it seemed much too late as the dark ones sought to twist and corrupt all in their path. It was only through the intervention of a group of heroes calling themselves the Dawnmartyrs that the Cult of Mending was pushed back. These guardians, displaying codes of honor and conduct that so strongly reminded the Orkhan of the ways of their Triumvirate, took their presence as a sign from the gods. The Dawnmartyrs were welcomed in the lands of Ecith with open arms most everywhere they went.
When the Cult of Mending unleashed the Graveplague and sparked the War of Souls, it was to the lands of Ecith that the remaining Dawnmartyrs returned, making a home for themselves in the city of Ailos.
Age of Steel
The Gelerian Imperium, which had grown powerful in the mainland of Ransera, turned its gaze to the lands of Ecith. For reasons that yet remain unclear, the Imperium waged war with the Orkhan and committed many of its forces to engaging in warfare both naval and land based with the cities of Dratir, Kythera and most prominently, the city of Ailos. The Orkhan were once again forced to rally together and repel the invasion. The armies of the Orkhan managed to hold their own against the Imperium but it quickly became a war where they slowly lost ground. More and more they were forced to retreat until eventually the city of Ailos was sacked and much of it was burned to the ground. Most relentlessly, the Imperium seemed hellbent on hunting down every Dawnmartyr and thus had committed the majority of its resources toward Ailos. Toward the end of the siege of Ailos, the demigods Raxen, Syren and Galetira returned aiding the Orkhan in a decisive victory. Their return saw a swelling of Orcish morale and the Orkhan went on to assist the Alliance of Nations alongside the Kingdom of Atinaw, Republic of Cathena, the Dwarven Freeholds, the Kingdom of Dalquia and the Kingdom of Auris. The Imperium was forced into a ceasefire and the tentative peace has held ever since.
With the return of their Triumvirate, many expected the three to resume their roles as the God-Queens and King of the Orkhan. The demigods declined and instead aided in the formation of the Ecithian Senate who then elected an Emperor from among themselves. The Orkhan were truly unified then and began the formation of the Ecithian Empire, a nation that has quickly become one of the strongest in the world due to its mastery of the seas and the prowess of its armies.
Physiology and Biology
Orkhan are a hearty race. If the legends surrounding their origins are to be believed, then the Orkhan as a species carry the blood of dragons within their veins. While not all believe this, it is something that the Orcs take pride in. Physically, the Orkhan tend to possess robust musculature with broad shouldered builds and tall, imposing statures. The males tend to be square jawed with the females, while being somewhat softer in appearance, still have a sharpness to their features. All orcs have a slight point to their ears. They bear tusks that vary in their protrusion from the very slight to the very pronounced. Skin color for Orkhan range from ebony black and ash in color to shades of green and even brown. In the rare occasion there are albino orcs with pale white skin and hair to match. Hair color for Orkhan leans toward dark black, browns and light browns. While blonde, auburn and the like are not unheard of, they are not common. Eye color for orcs run the gamut from brown, to blue, to yellow and all manner of shades.
Orkhan are extremely durable. Their origins and their lifestyles stemming primarily from the lands of Ecith have shaped them into a people highly adaptable for survival. What the Orkhan display is a relentless ability to endure all manner of suffering thrown their way. This leads them to having quicker recovery times in the face of injury. They are not as prone to disease as some other races.
Psychology
Honor is everything to the Orkhan. It is their most defining trait and it is what makes many admire them. From the most pious zealot to the most lowly bandit, there is honor to be found in practically every Orc that a person encounters. The idea of living by a code that comes to define their lives is something that is upheld with a religious reverence among Orkhan society and families. It is both the quickest way to earn their respect and also the quickest way to bring them to anger through slighting their honor. The Orkhan are an ancient and proud people who have weathered the test of time far better than many of the races of Ransera. For millennia they have withstood attempts at conquering them, grinding them into annihilation and have developed a culture born of a belief that they are as favored by the gods as any elf or human. Stemming from this belief there is a widespread arrogance among the Orkhan leading them to believe they are a superior people to any other. Orkhan hold very dearly to the ideals of merit, where everyone and everything has a place in society and an individual’s worth is only as good as what they can contribute. Whether that is prowess with a sword or in the achievements of a scholar, devoting oneself to a cause and only half-meeting the goal is considered shameful. Orkhan face pressures in the home, in their main society and abroad to always excel and that failure is not an option.
Culture
Orkhan are a warrior centric culture by necessity. In the earliest days of their existence up to the present day, it is the strength of their warriors and their capacity for survival that has ensured they continued into the present day. Their civilization has, since its inception, been under constant threat of attack both from marauding tribes and from creatures that roam the landscape. This threat, while waning during the Age of Conquest and being somewhat subdued in the Age of Clockwork, escalated following the Sundering and has steadily continued into the current era of the Age of Steel. As a result, the Orkhan possess a mindset regarding ethics and morality that, while similar to many mainland Ranseran cultures, differs greatly in several key ways. Compassion, while something honored by the Orkhan, is something they are often cautioned to approach with wisdom. Compassion is earned not given. The Orkhan prize virtues centered around ideals of courage, a sense of duty to one’s people, moderation, pragmatism, forgiveness where warranted and fairness in the eyes of the law. Loyalty is also a key Orkhan virtue and it is something regarded as central to their beliefs and a cornerstone for their continued survival.
Family is of the utmost importance to the Orkhan. While families alternate between whether being patriarchal or matriarchal depending on where they are from, the eldest living parents are the absolute authority in all matters of family and even in many legal standings across the Ecithian Empire. For example, an Orkhan couple have seven children. The mother and father establish their household and have authority over all who live within their household in totality with the mother and father possessing equal standing between each other. However, even as their children grow and begin households of their own, the parents still retain absolute authority over the dealings of their families. Leadership of the family passes to the eldest child and their family following the death of the original couple. This right of sovereignty extends even to property. When a child marries into a different family, they pass into the authority of that family’s hierarchy. Fathers have final say on the upbringing of their sons while mothers have the final say on the upbringing of daughters.
Children face extreme pressures in Orkhan society and unwanted children are often sold into slavery, given away or simply abandoned. Sons and daughters are pushed to pursue those lifestyles mirroring their parents expectations. If a father wishes for his sons to pursue lives as soldiers or as craftsmen, his word is absolute. If a mother desires for her daughters to become scholars or politicians, her word cannot be contested. This authority, however, falls in line with the hierarchy of the family. If the Patriarch and Matriarch of the family have other interests, they can override the desires of the immediate parents.
At large, the Orkhan carry martial prowess in the highest regard, with great emphasis on maintaining a rather militaristic society. However, the achievements of scholars and their contributions toward the continuation of their people are not without recognition. Orkhan prize the strength of a warrior but celebrate the mind of a leader, as the saying goes. While it was not always the case, with an appreciation for it only truly returning in recent times, the works of artisans, craftsmen and other skilled workers have seen greater support in Orkhan society as a whole.
While Orkhan can be found across the world, they are primarily located in the lands of Ecith across the southern seas of Ransera. There the Ecithian Empire reigns unchallenged with a unified banner where the bulk of Orkhan society pledges fealty to the emperor.
Religion
Orkhan are a deeply religious people whose first loyalty are to the Triumvirate. Owing to the fact that the three demigods have been the driving force behind Orkhan survival and progression for much of their people’s existence, it is exceedingly rare to see or find an Orkhan that does not at least offer prayers to them in passing.
Raxen of the Vigilant Blade, the demigod son of Akrivar, Mistlord of Tyranny and Oaths is the patron of warriors, soldiers, leaders and fathers in Orkhan society. He is seen as the epitome of what the Orkhan masculine is to many and is viewed ultimately as a protector-god. He is fervently worshipped with temples across the Ecithian Empire paying homage to him as both a deity and one of the Orkhan’s greatest heroes. Raxen’s disciples profess the importance of martial prowess, of a life lived with honor upholding notions of courage, truth and a duty to one’s people.
Syren of the Blessed Word, the demigoddess daughter of Myshala, Mistlord of Flesh, Wishes and Bargains. She is the patron of bards, musicians, storytellers and the name invoked in moments of lustful passion. She is the great artist of the Orkhan and is seen as equally enthralling as she is fickle. Syren is seen as the goddess who emboldens the Orkhan and inspires them toward their passions. She is the patron of maidens and is seen as the ideal Orkhan feminine because of her ferocity, independence and cunning. Syren’s disciples profess the importance of expression, individuality and the preservation of the art in all its forms. She is also viewed as a fertility goddess.
Galetira of the Winding Path, the demigoddess daughter of Aileor, Dragon God of Divination, Foresight and Peace. Galetira is seen as a calm, maternal presence for the Orkhan. She brings a balance to the Triumvirate that prevents them from becoming tyrannical and destructive in many ways. She is the patron of magic, scholarly pursuits, history and mysticism among the orcs. She is the guide for many matriarchal figures in their society. Her disciples profess the importance of wisdom, knowledge and forethought in one’s life. Her teachings of compassion are balanced with the sometimes harsh reality of what the Orkhan have faced living largely in the lands of Ecith.
These three demigods have been responsible for shaping much of the Orkhan’s mentality into the present era, having even ruled as the God-Queens and King for millennia. While they no longer occupy such roles in the present day, their presence in most Orkhan societies is heavy and hard to miss. While other gods are honored by most Orkhan, typically one of the Triumvirate serves as the chief focal point of reverence in an Orkhan household.
Reproduction, Aging, Death
Reproduction in Orcs is not dissimilar from that of humans. Generally speaking, Orkhan tend to be monogamous in their relationships but are known for having large families. Their lifespans are similar in length to that of the average human with several generations usually living either in the same household or in close proximity to one another. As a result of the often intense and harsh upbringing that Orcish children face, it is not unheard of for runaways to abandon their families and never be seen or heard from by their families again. Family is important to many Orkhan but that is not to say it is perfect. Elders are honored for their wisdom and insight into life’s many experiences, with grandparents often having total authority over the younger generations of their families. As a result, there is usually either very clear veneration for one’s elders or a quiet resentment depending on the individual dynamics of the family. When the time comes to put a family member to rest, the Orkhan typically cremate their dead and scatter the ashes either to the winds or to the seas. However, it is not unheard of for more prominent families to entomb their dead.
Language
Ecitharese is the language of the Orkhan. It is described as a very expressive language with an emphasis on tone and the incorporation of body language to infer many of its nuances. As the Orkhan tend to be a rather expressive people in and of themselves, their wording tends to match that perception.
Naming conventions in Orkhan follow that of ancient Greek and Roman principles. Males names include things such as Stergios, Periklis, Marcus, Gaius, Caelus etc.
Female names follow the same conventions with names such as Maveria, Canola, Laelia, Caecia, Nomiki, Ekaterina, etc.
