Category: RuneQuest

Orcs have been defined in nearly every fantasy setting in one way or another. This is the RuneQuest.orc take on orcs.

Orcs are burly, well muscled humanoids. Although somewhat squat in nature, they are roughly the same SIZ as humans with a tendency to be broader in the shoulder and chest. Their skin generally appears light yellow in colour, although a vaguely green tint is evident under sunlight. Prolonged exposure to the sun increases the green tint in the skin, and a much tanned orc may appear to be bordering on dark green in colour.

Orcs have elongated lower canines which are sometimes confused as tusks. These canines differ from orc to orc, some being barely visible while other specimens being large enough to support the tusk theory. Their ears are elongated and pointy, more like that of a dog than an elf. (Never tell an orc he has elf ears unless you are suicidal.) As with the canines, ears differ in shape and size from orc to orc. Ears are also the subject of body modification in many tribes and are oft clipped and pierced to such an extent that they no longer resemble olfactory organs at all.

The orcs of history may have at one time been a nocturnal species. The habits of the modern orc are however generally diurnal. The evidence that they were once a nocturnal species becomes evident in the darkness, where their sight is far keener than that of a human in the same circumstances. In the case of utter darkness where there is no source of light at all they are equally disadvantaged with humans.

Orcs are wily, cunning creatures. In some ways they are almost human in their mannerisms and actions, in others they are brutish, barbaric and unfathomable of motivation. They are boastful creatures who enjoy nothing more than having the last say on any matter. Beware the adventurer who gets embroiled in an orcish boasting session! (Boasting is a specific communications skill that orcs learn as a matter of course).

While orcs have quarrelsome nature and are constantly on the lookout for how they may gain from any given situation, they also possess a keen sense of self preservation. An orc who feels threatened in a situation will not hesitate to turn tail and retreat if such an opening to save his skin exists.

Orcs use a varying array of weapons. Certain tribes may prefer certain weapon types. One item which unifies all orcs is that only the females will use a bow. This is possibly why orcs think that all elves are females, because the concept of a male using a bow is very alien to them. Males of certain tribes have been known to make use of crossbows although they do face ridicule and the occasional thrashing by less broadminded orcs.

The origin of orcs is unknown. Orcs are NOT related to elves in any way! What is known is that they are mammals whose ancestors were non simian. Apart from a non common ancestor, orcs share many anatomical similarities with humans. Internal organs are in roughly the same locations although orcs tend to have larger hearts and lungs, which accounts for their greater resilience in tasks that require muscular activity.

The female has a gestation period of roughly 170 days and gives birth to a small orcling which she will initially suckle at one of two tiny teats, one of which is located below each breast. These secondary breasts are usually hidden from sight beneath the bulge of her main breasts and secrete and thin, clear substance which sustains the newborn orlcing during the first days of its life. Gradually the orcling is weaned from the small secondary breasts onto the more regular milk of the main breasts. Due to the short gestation period it is not uncommon for a mother to have two or more orclings of varying ages on the breast at the same time.

Newborn orclings are far smaller than their human counterparts and require a larger degree of care from their mother than a newborn human. Although less robust at birth, an orc grows fast and is soon more robust than a human of the same years. Once weaned (one and a half to two years old) an orcling grows fast and may reach the same height although be less bulky that an adult within nine summers. While they may look like adults physically, they are however still children and lack worldly experience. Although orcs may grow quickly, their bodies only mature sexually many summers later – in fact humans reach sexual maturity earlier than orcs do. On average an orc will be ready to start breeding after twenty summers.

The bodies of young orcs (both male and female) produce large quantities of testosterone during their adolescent stage. Adolescents compete fiercely between each other and differentiation between male and female is difficult. The females even possess an enlarged clitoral sheath that resembles a penis during this stage of development. As sexual maturity approaches the clitoral sheath shrinks and breasts develop as the female’s body replaces testosterone production with oestrogen as it readies itself to bear children.

It is during the adolescent stage of development that many young orcs are encountered. As they compete to establish themselves within society they will journey into other lands to raid and do battle with whomever they believe that can win an encounter with. This is not to say that older orcs do not do the same – the adolescents just tend to go further and take more risks in order to establish their rank.

Orcs are not great believers in magic and most have no time for it. Those who do use magic tend to tread the divine path although the occasional shaman practitioner of spirit magic may be encountered. This is not to say that orcs do not recognise and respect the gods just that they do not rely on them very much. Sorcerers are reviled and anyone found to be practicing the dark arts will be expelled population if they are lucky. The less fortunate will simply be killed.

Orcs can be divided into three main types. These types can interbreed but usually do not due to clannish ways and geographical separation.

Common orcs are the most prolific and widely spread of the three and are thus the most likely to be encountered. The common orc has a greater tendency to bear twins than the other two types. They prefer to settle in habitable lands, the same as humans which as often as not brings them into conflict for resources. Fortunately common orcs are least hostile of the three types and peaceful trade is as possible as war between them and their neighbours. Their culture is barbaric but civilised populations are encountered from time to time.

Great orcs tend to live in more hostile regions such as mountains, apparently by choice. They pride themselves in their fighting prowess and look down upon the other orc types as inferior. A tendency towards isolation means that they are rarely encountered outside of their mountain strongholds unless it is raiding season. Their hostile homelands necessitates that they breed slower than their common orc cousins. Twins are also a far rarer occurrence. The great orcs have a barbaric culture. Those who do leave their homeland and journey into the world generally end up selling their sword for a living. In an army situation, great orcs will invariably be in some sort of specialised unit as they do not co-operate well with others. Do not think that great orcs are stupid, they are as cunning as their common orc cousins.

Mottled orcs are a rarity in many regions. As their name implies, their skin is usually blotched in appearance, some blotches being natural, others scar tissue. Their culture is usually primitive or barbaric. They have a lean, wiry build and are known for their aggressiveness toward strangers. When not fighting among themselves they have been known to make the occasional raid. Mottled orcs are the most sadistic of the three types. They enjoy inflicting pain on their captives and are the least likely to flee an adverse situation. They breed as fast as their common orc cousins but have been known to abandon their infants when food becomes scarce.

Common to many worlds, Lizard Men / Folk (hereafter referred to as the Giss) are the founders of a great empire on Gæa.

Giss lizard folk are large bipedal reptiles which resemble humans in certain aspects. While their countenance from tip of snout to tail is lizard, their pelvis and shoulders are similar in certain ways to those of a human and they stand erect, on their hind legs. They have a protruding jaw, which houses a mouth lined with canine teeth, much like that of a crocodile, although shorter. Eyes are set much like that of a lizard. They have a four fingered hand (three fingers and a thumb) and a five toes foot.

The Giss are considered to be poikilothermic (cold blooded), but their physiology has developed to a stage where they are able to maintain their own body temperatures for moderate lengths of time. Thus, one may be able to survive a short snow storm and the cold weather associated with it without having to hibernate, but will most certainly not outlast a protracted cold winter.

They are ovoviviparous, but not give birth to many young. A mature female may produce up to nine infants at one time, but numbers of three to five are more common. Their gestation period is one hundred and fifty days, which means that a healthy female can produce two broods per year.

Like humans, Giss differ subtly through their genetic coding. Some have yellow eyes while others eyes may be red, green or blue. Their skin may vary from a light green, through deep green, to a muddy, brown-green. Some may have a small crest on their head and/or down their back while others may possess a pair of small, blunt vestigial horns on their head.

They are highlly intelligent creatures who are skilled in many of the crafts and lore that humans know. Although generally civilised, small numbers of primitive and barbaric tribes may be encountered. They are most prolific in warm environments, such as deserts, plains and jungle and tend to clothe themselves accordingly, favouring loose togas and loincloths.

Although they are carnivorous by nature, some Giss have been known to eat fruits and vegetables in desperate times.

The Giss may be one of the first creatures i ever defined. RQ 3rd ed never defined Lizard People, although later on once i got my hands on the Glorantha Bestiary it was evident other similar concepts ad been considered, such as the Newtling and Slarg

This reptile was inspired by an old Viking Forge / Tabletop Fantasy / Asgard Miniature called “Land Dragon with Lizard Man Rider”.

These large bipedal beasts are not dragons at all, but rather large relatives of the Desert Walker, whom they resemble in many ways. They live in arid, open expanses such as deserts and semi deserts and are carnivorous. Although they live almost exclusively on fresh killed prey, they have been known to take carrion and even eat their own kind at times.

In the wild, these are solitary animals who only meet to mate. Males will often fight for supremacy when they do come into contact with each other. Land dragons are vicious beast who have been known to run down and devour many unsuspecting travellers

Their almost limitless endurance in hot climes has, like the desert walker, many of these large, horse sized lizards to be domesticated so as to provide mounts and, on occasion, to act as beasts of burden. They do not however make good draft animals as their tail, with its lethal bone spike tends to cause much damage to any wagon they are hitched to.

Due to the fact that the land dragon is so viscous, domestic ones are reared from egg. It is extremely rare to encounter one that has been tamed from the wild. Although they thrive in almost any conditions, bar sub zero arctic climes, they are most suited to warm, open places. Land Dragons average between an eleven and eighteen year life span and are oviparous.

The Land Dragon was initially defined on VII August MMII

This Hydra was designed long before I obtained the Elder Secrets box, which also contains details of a Hydra. Later on, I also noticed that the Monster Coliseum box has different statistics for a Hydra as well as the Glorantha Bestiary. This one is quite different to the others however, which I hope will mean that it is quite fun to come up against. It also gives any owner of a d30 an opportunity to use it.

This article assumes a quadruped creature and not the alternative serpentine bodied version.

Hydras are extremely rare terrestrial dragonoid creatures with many heads, that prefer to inhabit swamps and salt marshes (mangroves). Some hydras have however been encountered in river estuaries, shallows of lakes and jungle rivers. The most common ones have three heads but there have been tales of ones with seven heads. They are relatively intelligent and have the ability to breath fire and/or noxious gas. Hydras are solitary by nature and only converge for their infrequent mating.

he smaller wild hydras prefer to avoid confrontation with anything unknown and are likely to withdraw and hide if approached. They will fight however if they feel threatened or are attacked. Larger, intelligent hydras are more often than not in the employ of dragon kind or powerful sorcerers, drawing on their employers vast sources of knowledge in return for services rendered.

No one really knows where hydras come from. Some cults believe that they are the offspring between the dragon god and an unknown partner while sorcerer generally believe them to be the result of an arcane experiment. Shamans on the other hand know full well that hydras are manifestations of spirits, bonded together and trapped in the body of a serpent by a powerful shaman, centuries ago. The statistics below are for fully grown hydras.

These hydra statistics were first defined on MMVI July MMII.