Orcs

To feel the thunder of orcish war drums outside the gate and to hear a chorus of voices growling, "Gruumsh!" is the nightmare of every civilized place in the world. For no matter how thick its walls, skilled its archers, or brave its knights, few settlements have ever withstood a full-scale onslaught of orcs.

Volo’s Guide to Monsters – 82

The Orc

Are orcs the default go-to racial monster of D&D? They were. (Or should I say, they are far more prevalent in the classic modules I've read than any other "low-level" monster.) I wonder if they still are? They are viewed by some as noble, warrior race, somewhat Klingon in their life view, in which combat and honour are paramount.

Or have they?

Orcs are savage raiders and pillagers with stooped postures, low foreheads, and piggish faces with prominent lower canines that resemble tusks. MM5e – 244

Were they always so?

Where do orcs come from, anyway? Mythology? Fiction?

Both, actually. Most of our early monsters do. Most were lifted directly from literature and myth, although some were actual beasts. Horses and wild boars are real, obviously; there’s no doubt about that. So are dinosaurs, although we likely know a lot more about them now than we did when the Monster Manual was published in that Neolithic age, 1978. Manticore, griffins, and chimera are without doubt mythological. So too cockatrice and lamiae. Banshees and mummies and vampires are the by-products of our fear of death and the unknown, and the heebie-jeebies brought on by twilight and the dead of night.

Which brings us to orcs, or goblins and fairies, more specifically. The ones populating the Monster Manuals aren’t really like those creatures of myth told in fairy tales, are they? Why? Because they’re not; they’re adapted, stat-ed; and because those creatures of folklore were rather fluid; never, ever, really concrete in folklore, either, were they? Goblins and kobolds were a panoply of beings, interchangeable with fairies, elves, brownies and gnomes. That’s all well and good in fairy tales, but we needed baddies to fight, didn’t we?

Enter our kobolds. Enter our goblins. And enter our orcs.

But what is an orc, exactly?

The Encyclopedia Britannica tells us that an Orc [is] a mythical creature (such as a sea monster, a giant, or an ogre) of horrid form or aspect.

What? A sea monster? Yes, a sea monster.

The word orc in English has two distinct sources. Orc in reference to a vaguely cetacean sea monster is borrowed from one or more Romance words, such as the French orque or the Italian orca, all ultimately descended from the Latin orca, which probably denoted a small cetacean such as the killer whale. In Ludovico Ariosto’s epic Orlando furioso, the heroine Angelica is set out as a victim for a man-eating orca, in a literary recasting of the Andromeda myth.

That, is most certainly not the origins of our orc. This one is more familiar:

A different word orc, alluding to a demon or ogre, appears in Old English glosses of about AD 800 and in the compound word orcnēas (“monsters”) in the poem Beowulf. As with the Italian orco (“ogre”) and the word ogre itself, it ultimately derives from the Latin Orcus, a god of the underworld. The Old English creatures were most likely the inspiration for the orcs that appear in J.R.R. Tolkiens' The Lord of the Rings.

Orc | mythological creature | Britannica

Orcs make their first appearance as ogres, reimagined as Grendel in Beowulf.

I suppose that makes orcs creatures of fiction and not myth, since Beowulf is an epic saga and not actual folklore, but their roots are there. I am surprised by that? Yeah. I am.

But the proof is in the original Old English text of the poem. Not in modern English translations.

Beowulf and Grendel

Wæs se grimma gæst Grendel haten,

mære mearcstapa, se þe moras heold,

fen ond fæsten; fifelcynnes eard

wonsæli wer weardode hwile,

siþðan him scyppend forscrifen hæfde

in Caines cynne. þone cwealm gewræc

ece drihten, þæs þe he Abel slog;

ne gefeah he þære fæhðe, ac he hine feor forwræc,

metod for þy mane, mancynne fram. 

þanon untydras ealle onwocon,

eotenas ond ylfe ond orcneas,

swylce gigantas, þa wið gode wunnon

lange þrage; he him ðæs lean forgeald.

Grendel this monster grim was called,

march-riever mighty, in moorland living,

in fen and fastness; fief of the giants

the hapless wight a while had kept

since the Creator his exile doomed.

On kin of Cain was the killing avenged

by sovran God for slaughtered Abel.

Ill fared his feud, and far was he driven,

for the slaughter’s sake, from sight of men.

Of Cain awoke all that woeful breed,

Etins and elves and evil-spirits

as well as the giants that warred with God

weary while: but their wage was paid them!

Beowulf (Old English version) by Anonymous | Poetry Foundation

Beowulf (modern English translation) by Anonymous | Poetry Foundation

The translation above doesn’t use the word “monsters,” it uses “evil-spirits,” but one imagines those were one and the same, in oral tradition. It’s interesting how elves and ogres age bundled together. But elves were malicious, mischievous beings once upon a time.

Tolkien changed all that, separating one from the other for all time. It is because of him and his little tales that we have a very different understanding of what elves and ogres are today. And orcs, for that matter. And it is in Tolkien where we are first, truly, introduced to the term we know and “love” today.

Orcs are twice mentioned in Tolkien’s Hobbit, but only in passing—goblins are to be found there.

"A bit low for goblins, at least for the big ones," thought Bilbo, not knowing that even the big ones, the orcs of the mountains, go along at a great speed stooping low with their hands almost on the ground.

Before you could get round Mirkwood in the North you would be right among the slopes of the Grey Mountains, and they are simply stiff with goblins, hobgoblins, and orcs of the worst description.

The Hobbit – JRR Tolkien

They are first specifically referred to in The Lord of the Rings:

That name the hobbits only knew in legends of the dark past, like a shadow in the background of their memories; but it was ominous and disquieting. It seemed that the evil power in Mirkwood had been driven out by the White Council only to reappear in greater strength in the old strongholds of Mordor. The Dark Tower had been rebuilt, it was said. From there the power was spreading far and wide, and away far east and south there were wars and growing fear. Orcs were multiplying again in the mountains. Trolls were abroad, no longer dull-witted, but cunning and armed with dreadful weapons. And there were murmured hints of creatures more terrible than all these, but they had no name.

The Lord of the Rings – JRR Tolkien

Where did they come from?

They were created in the First Age:

Thus did Melkor breed the hideous race of the Orcs

But of those unhappy ones who were ensnared by Melkor little is known of a certainty. For who of the living has descended into the pits of Utumno, or has explored the darkness of the counsels of Melkor? Yet this is held true by the wise of Eressëa, that all those of the Quendi who came into the hands of Melkor, ere Utumno was broken, were put there in prison, and by slow arts of cruelty were corrupted and enslaved; and thus did Melkor breed the hideous race of the Orcs in envy and mockery of the Elves, of whom they were afterwards the bitterest foes. For the Orcs had life and multiplied after the manner of the Children of Ilúvatar; and naught that had life of its own, nor the semblance of life, could ever Melkor make since his rebellion in the Ainulindalë before the Beginning: so say the wise. And deep in their dark hearts the Orcs loathed the Master whom they served in fear, the maker only of their misery. This it may be was the vilest deed of Melkor, and the most hateful to Ilúvatar.

The Silmarillion – JRR Tolkien

We get our first description of an orc in Lord of the Rings:

But even as they retreated, and before Pippin and Merry had reached the stair outside, a huge orc-chieftain, almost man-high, clad in black mail from head to foot, leaped into the chamber; behind him his followers clustered in the doorway. His broad flat face was swart, his eyes were like coals, and his tongue was red; he wielded a great spear. With a thrust of his huge hide shield he turned Boromir's sword and bore him backwards, throwing him to the ground. Diving under Aragorn's blow with the speed of a striking snake he charged into the Company and thrust with his spear straight at Frodo. The blow caught him on the right side, and Frodo was hurled against the wall and pinned. Sam, with a cry, hacked at the spear-shaft, and it broke. But even as the orc flung down the truncheon and swept out his scimitar, Andúril came down upon his helm. There was a flash like flame and the helm burst asunder. The orc fell with cloven head. His followers fled howling, as Boromir and Aragorn sprang at them.

The Lord of the Rings – JRR Tolkien

That’s good, isn’t it? Very evocative.

Are the orcs of D&D similar?

Orc 1e

Orcs appear particularly disgusting because their coloration - brown or brownish green with a bluish sheen - highlights their pinkish snouts and ears. Their bristly hair is dark brown or black, sometimes with tan patches. [MM1e – 76]

In general, they resemble primitive humans with grey-green skin covered with coarse hair. Orcs have a slightly stooped posture, a low jutting forehead, and a snout instead of a nose, though comparisons between this facial feature and those of pigs is exaggerated and unfair. Orcs have well-developed canine teeth for eating meat and short pointed ears that resemble those of a wolf. Orcish snouts have a slightly pink tinge. Their eyes are human, with a reddish tint that sometimes makes them appear to glow red when they reflect dim light sources in near darkness. [MC2e]

Tolkien’s prose is far better, but his was fiction, and not exposition. They’re ugly, in either case. And, so is their choice of dress.

Even their armor tends to be unattractive – dirty and often a bit rusty. Orcs favor unpleasant colors in general. Their garments are in tribal colors, as are shield devices or trim. Typical colors are blood red, rust red, mustard yellow, yellow green, moss green, greenish purple, and blackish brown.  [MM1e – 76]

Regardless what they look like, orcs are dangerous in Tolkien’s works. They are in D&D, too, despite being categized low HD in the first Monster Manual:

FREQUENCY: Common

NO. APPEARING: 30-300

MOVE: 9"

HIT DICE: 1 [that would be 1-8 hp, compare that to a human’s 1-6 hp]

INTELLIGENCE: Average (low)

ALIGNMENT: Lawful evil

SIZE: M (6'+ tall) [somewhat larger than a human]

MM1e

Orc 2e

Big, strong, and surly; that about sums them up. But as far as low HD monsters go, they’re definitely stronger than kobolds and goblins, not to mention humans; yet they’re still pretty low on the totem pole of monster hierarchy.

Kobolds, goblins, orcs, etc. are all powerless to affect elementals because they have neither magical property nor four or more hit dice. [MM1e]

That said, I wouldn’t want to pick a fight with one.

The best way to humiliate an orc is to defeat it in single combat. An orc’s friends will gather quickly for revenge, and in large numbers, so don’t hang around after striking the final blow. [Into the Unknown 4e – 9]

They generally travel in large groups, it would seem. That would make them tribal.

Orc 2e

Orcs are a species of aggressive mammalian carnivores that band together in tribes and survive by hunting and raiding. [Monstrous Compendium2e]

Orcs band together into loose tribal associations. The strongest individual in a tribe leads as a despotic chieftain. Individual bands within a tribe might wander far from their native lands, but they still recognize orcs from the same tribe as kin. [MM4e – 205]

Orc tribes are mostly patriarchal, flaunting such vivid or grotesque titles as Many-Arrows, Screaming Eye, and Elf Ripper. Occasionally, a powerful war chief unites scattered orc tribes into a single rampaging horde, which runs roughshod over other orc tribes and humanoid settlements from a position of overwhelming strength. [MM5e – 244]

Fit only to bear children?

Known arc tribes include the following: Vile Rune, Bloody Head, Death Moon, Broken Bone, Evil Eye, leprous Hand, Rotting Eye, Dripping Blade. If orcs from one of those tribes are encountered in an area, it is likely that all other orcs nearby will also be from this tribe. [MM 1e – 76]

What do we know about their tribal nature?

Orcs are patriarchal: women are fit only to bear children. [MC2e]

Females are prized possessions at best and chattel at worst. Males pride themselves on the number of females they own and male children they sire [….] [MM3e – 147]

Orcs have marriage customs, but orc males are not noted for their faithfulness. [MC2e]

And, oh yeah, they’re evil.

Orcs have a reputation for cruelty that is deserved, but humans are just as capable of evil as orcs. [MC2e]

Although not as monstrous as we imagine them.

Orcs are carnivores, but prefer game meats or livestock to demihumans and humanoids. [MC2e]

Cannibals can be of all races, as we well know.

Orc 3e

But, we cannot deny that they are evil as a rule, and always have been.

ALIGNMENT: Lawful evil [MM1e – 76] [MM2e - 241]

Hereafter, there is an inexplicable shift in their alignment from Lawful to Chaotic, seeing that they are still described as being tribal; but I suppose game designers wished to stress an “only the strong survive” mentality.

Monstrous races, such as kobolds or orcs, are more likely to cast out one of their own because of a petty or violent disagreement, with the outcast the loser. Into the Unknown 4e – 9

Alignment: Usually chaotic evil [MM3e – 146]

Alignment: Chaotic evil [MM4e – 203,204] [MM5e – 246]

Why are they evil?

Grummsh

Because they’re born to it. Grummsh has decreed them to be so.

Bloodthirsty marauders and cannibals, orcs venerate Gruumsh and thereby delight in slaughter and destruction. [MM4e – 205]

Orcs worship many deities […]; the chief deity is usually a giant one-eyed orc. Orcish religion is extremely hateful towards other species and urges violence and warfare. Orc shamans have been noted for their ambition, and many tribes have suffered because of political infighting between warriors and priests. [MC2e]

Gruumsh [is] the mightiest of the orc deities and their creator. The orcs believe that in ancient days, the gods gathered to divide the world among their followers. When Gruumsh claimed the mountains, he learned they had been taken by the dwarves. He laid claim to the forests, but those had been settled by the elves. Each place that Gruumsh wanted had already been claimed. The other gods laughed at Gruumsh, but he responded with a furious bellow. Grasping his mighty spear, he laid waste to the mountains, set the forests aflame, and carved great furrows in the fields. Such was the role of the orcs, he proclaimed, to take and destroy all that the other races would deny them. To this day, the orcs wage an endless war on humans, elves, dwarves, and other folk. MM5e – 244

Orcs often demonstrate their faith in Gruumsh by gouging out one of their eyes and offering it as a sacrifice to their one-eyed god. [MM4e – 205]

That seems a needlessly harsh custom, even as religions go; but they’ve a reason:

Corellon Larethian

According to myth, Corellon shot out Gruumsh’s eye with an arrow. For this reason, orcs hold a special hatred for elves and eladrin. [MM4e – 205]

They cannot help but be reminded by the mere sight of their shamans, the Eyes of Grummsh, that all other species, and especially elves, are their enemy.

Within what passes for orc society, there are orcs that fill special roles. Eyes of Gruumsh are orcs with a special connection to their fierce god. They offer sacrifices, read omens, and advise the tribe’s chieftain of Gruumsh’s will. Orc bloodragers are tribal champions feared for their strength and ferocity, and they also make excellent subchiefs or bodyguards. Orcs often fight alongside ogres, and they can be coerced or bullied into serving any dark overlord or wicked monster powerful enough to command their obedience. [MM4e – 23]

Orcs don't revere their gods as much as they fear them; every tribe has superstitions about how to avert their wrath or bring their favor. This deep-seated uncertainty and fear comes forth in the form of savagery and relentlessness, as orcs ravage and kill to appease the gods in order to avoid their terrible retribution. [Volo’s Guide to Monsters – 82]

The Gods:

Gruumsh, He who Watches

Ilneval, The War Maker, is the god who plans the attacks and devises the strategies that allow the forces of Gruumsh to dominate the battle and fill their war wagons with plunder and severed heads.

Bahgtru, The Leg Breaker, is the deity who epitomizes the physical might and ruthlessness that orcs use to overwhelm their foes.

Luthic, The Cave Mother, is the force that keeps the explosive rage of Gruumsh from bursting the orcs apart.

Yurtrus, The White Hand, [is the necromantic god of death,] consumed by rot and covered in oozing pustules, utterly repulsive except for his hands, which are pure white and free of any blemish.

Shargaas, The Night Lord, is a god of darkness and the unknown.

[Unearthed Arcana – 118-121]

[Volo’s Guide to Monsters – 82-85]

If there is one thing the orcs have learned, it is that the gods do not suffer the weak to live.

Ores believe their gods to be invincible. They see the principles that define them and their deities at work every day in the world around them—nature rewards the strong and mercilessly eliminates the weak and the infirm. [Volo5e – 82]

Nature rewards the strong.

Orcs value territory above all else; battle experience, wealth, and number of offspring are other major sources of pride. [MC2e]

Lots of offspring is very important to them. Life is short. And not just because they war on jest about ever species they come in contact with:

Orcs have an average lifespan of 40 years. [MC2e]

To that end, the males are especially aggressive, because only the strong will ever have an opportunity to mate.

[Males] were their battle scars proudly and ritually scar themselves to mark significant achievements and turning points in their lives. [MM3e – 147]

In order to replenish the casualties of their endless warring, orcs breed prodigiously (and they aren't choosy about what they breed with, which is why such creatures as half-orcs and ogrillons are found in the world). Females that are about to give birth are relieved of their other roles and taken to the lair's whelping pens, where they are tended to by Luthic's followers. [Volo5e – 85]

Luthic

Luthic, the orc goddess of fertility and wife of Gruumsh, demands that orcs procreate often and indiscriminately so that orc hordes swell generation after generation. The orcs' drive to reproduce runs stronger than any other humanoid race, and they readily crossbreed with other races. When an orc procreates with a non-orc humanoid of similar size and stature (such as a human or a dwarf), the resulting child is either an orc or a half-orc. When an orc produces young with an ogre, the child is a half-ogre of intimidating strength and brutish features called an ogrillon. MM5e - 244

Half-Orcs: As orcs will breed with anything, there are any number of unsavory mongrels with orcish blood, particularly orc-goblins, orc-hobgoblins, and orc-humans. Orcs cannot cross-breed with elves. Half-orcs tend to favor the orcish strain heavily, so such sorts are basically orcs although they can sometimes (10%) pass themselves off as true creatures of their other stock (goblins, hobgoblins, humans, etc.). [MM1e – 76]

Orogs: Elite orcs, or orogs, are a race of great orcs, possibly mixed with orcish blood. […] They are highly disciplined warriors and have their own standards and banners which they display prominently [….] Orogs can be found at the vanguard of large orc armies, but are rarely on patrol. [MC2e]

All others are lucky to survive, if they can.

The children that can't endure the rigors of a life of combat are culled from the main body of the tribe, taken into the depths of the lair, and left for the followers of Yurtrus or Shargaas to accept or reject. [Volo5e]

This includes other orc tribes, as well.

Orc tribes are fiercely competitive, and when they meet it is 75% likely that they will fight each other unless a strong leader (such as a wizard, evil priest, evil lord) with sufficient force behind him is on hand to control the orcs. Being bullies, the stronger will always intimidate and dominate the weaker. (If goblins are near, for example, and the orcs are strong enough, they will happily bully them.) [MM1e – 76]

It goes without saying for all other species are not afforded those same rights.

They believe other species are inferior to them and that bullying and slavery is part of the natural order. They will cooperate with other species but are not dependable: as slaves, they will rebel against all but the most powerful masters; as allies they are quick to take offence and break agreements.  [MC2e]

Orcs gather in tribes that exert their dominance and satisfy their bloodlust by plundering villages, devouring or driving off roaming herds, and slaying any humanoids that stand against them. After savaging a settlement, orcs pick it clean of wealth and items usable in their own lands. They set the remains of villages and camps ablaze, then retreat whence they came, their bloodlust satisfied. [MM5e – 244]

The weaponry of orcs is shown typically below:

sword & flail 5%

sword & spear 10%

axe & spear 10%

axe & pole arm 10%

axe & crossbow 10%

axe & bow 10%

sword & battleaxe 5%

spear 10%

axe 10%

polearm 20%

MM1e

Orcs 4e

They plague the civilized races of the world and also fight among themselves for scraps of food and treasure. They love close combat and plunge furiously into the thick of battle, giving no thought to retreat or surrender. [MM4e – 23]

Orcs employ sniping and ambush tactics in the wild. They do not obey the “rules of war” unless such is in their best interests; for example, they will shoot at those who attempt to parlay with them under a white flag unless the orc leader feels it is advantageous to hear what the enemy has to say. They abuse human rules of engagement and chivalry to their best advantage. [MC2e]

This should come as no surprise.

Although this might:

Orcs believe that battle is the greatest challenge, but some leaders are pragmatic enough to recognize the value of peace, which they exact as high price. If great patience and care is used, orc tribes can be effective trading partners and military allies. [MC2e]

Why do they carry on so?

Orcs believe that in order to survive they must expand their territory, and so they are constantly involved in war against many enemies: humans, elves, dwarves, goblins, and other orc tribes. [MC2e]

The territory that orc war parties cover can extend for many miles around the lair, and any encampment or settlement of elves, dwarves, or humans in that area is at risk. If orcs come upon a target that is too large to assault directly, they will lurk along supply routes, taking out their frustration on caravans and travelers. Left unchecked, a tribe can subsist on this sort of prey and booty for quite some time. [Volo5e – 85]

Orc 5e

Their lust for slaughter demands that orcs dwell always within striking distance of new targets. As such, they seldom settle permanently, instead converting ruins, cavern complexes, and defeated foes' villages into fortified camps and strongholds. Orcs build only for defense, making no innovation or improvement to their lairs beyond mounting the severed body parts of their victims on spiked stockade walls or pikes jutting up from moats arid trenches.

When an existing territory is depleted of food, an orc tribe divides into roving bands that scout for choice hunting grounds. When each party returns, it brings back trophies and news of targets ripe for attack, the richest of which is chosen. The tribe then sets out en masse to carve a bloody path to its new territory.

On rare occasions, a tribe's leader chooses to hold onto a particularly defensible lair for decades. The orcs of such a tribe must range far across the countryside to sate their appetites. [MM5e – 244]

It is for this reason that orcs will be one of the first evils faced by humans, along with goblins. Both prey on humans.

An orc lair may be a cave, a series of wooden huts, a fort, or even a large city built above or below ground. [MM3e – 147]

Orcs favor hills and mountains, places pocked by caverns easily turned into defensible lairs. [MM4e – 205]

Orc lairs are underground 75% of the time, in an above ground village 25% of the time. [MM 1e – 76]

Orcs dwell in places where sunlight is dim or non-existent, for they hate the light. In full daylight they must deduct 1 from their dice rolls to hit opponents, but they see well even in total darkness (infravision). [MM1e – 76]

Orcs don’t build settlements of their own, instead improving existing shelters with crude fortifications.

They prefer to settle in natural caves or structures abandoned by other, more skillful races. Orcs can manage simple ironwork and stonework, but they are lazy and grasping, preferring to take by force the tools, weapons, and goods other folk make. [MM4e – 205]

Orcs are accomplished tunnelers and miners. They note new or unusual constructions underground 35% of the time and spot sloping passages 25% of the time. [MM1e – 76]

If the lair is underground, there is a 50% chance that there will be from 2-5 ogres living with the orcs. If the lair is above ground it will be a rude village of wooden huts protected by a ditch, rampart, and log palisade. The village will have from 1-4 watch towers and single gate. There will be 1 catapult and 1 ballista for each 100 male orcs (round to the nearest hundred). [MM1e – 76]

Most of the orcs that stay behind when the warriors go on their raids are weaker than their tribe mates or otherwise not suited for a life of battle. Worshipers of Luthic fall into this category, as do some of those that revere Yurtrus or Shargaas. But even these orcs are trained in combat, and all of them are expected to act like warriors if the lair is attacked or threatened. Their numbers are augmented by any orogs in the tribe, which are primarily responsible for making sure that the lair is protected from intruders. [Volo5e – 85]

When orcs attack a settlement of humans or halflings, they will kill anyone who presents a threat, but they are more interested in grabbing plunder and food rather than in wanton slaughter. The elderly, children, and any who seem weak or meek enough might escape death. If they leave the population more or less intact, the orcs leave themselves the option of returning to raid the community over and over. [Volo5e – 86]

There are those halflings who’ve survived their ordeal at the hands of the orcs, who’ve escaped to tell their tale and warn their kin. It is from these that halflings have learned the dialects of those orcs that have preyed upon them.

Halflings speak their own language, their alignment tongue, and the common speech. In addition they speak the language of gnomes, goblins, and orcs. [MM1e – 50]

Allies?

That is a very good question. Do they have any allies, to speak of?

No.

But they do have use of other species, on occasion.

Some are bullied:

Kobolds, for instance.

In addition to the tongues of lawful evil and kobolds, these monsters can usually (75%) speak goblin and orcish. [MM1e – 57]

And goblins.

The languages spoken by goblins are: their own, lawful evil, kobold, orcish, and hobgoblin. [MM1e – 47]

Others are not.

All boars can be found in small groups called sounders. Domesticated dire boars can be found among all sorts of humanoids. [MM1e – 35]

Where there are boars, there’s always the possibility that one or two might by lycanthropes.

Wereboars live in small family groups in remote forest areas, building ramshackle huts or dwelling in caves. They are suspicious of strangers but sometimes ally themselves with orcs.  [MM5e – 207]

Ogres can frequently be found amongst them.

Aggressive, strong, and dull-witted, ogres are the quintessential big, dumb brutes. Many creatures (particularly orcs) take advantage of ogres and convince the monsters to work for them. [MM4e – 198]

Whenever possible, ogres gang up with other monsters to bully or prey on creatures weaker than themselves. They associate freely with goblinoids, orcs, and trolls, and practically worship giants. [MM5e – 238]

Ogrillon

When an ogre mates with a human, hobgoblin, bugbear, or orc, the result is always a half-ogre.

The half-ogre offspring of an ogre and an orc is also called an ogrillon. […] An adult half-ogre or ogrillon stands 8 feet tall and weighs 450 pounds on average. [MM5e – 238]

Ogres speak their own language as well as that of chaotic evil, orcs, trolls, and stone giants. [MM1e – 57]

Ettins, too, if less frequently, and only in mountainous regions.

Whatever the truth of the ettins' origin, orcs treat them as distant cousins, and orc tribes often entice ettins to serve as guards, scouts, and marauders. An ettin isn't particularly loyal to its orc handlers, but the orcs can win it over with the promise of food and loot. [MM5e – 132]

It is evident from their appearance that ettins are closely related to orcs. Their animal skin dress is typically moth eaten and filthy. Ettins use spiked clubs and similar weapons. [MM1e – 40]

In ancient dialects of Common, the word "ettin" translates as "ugly giant." Legends tell of orcs that once stumbled upon a temple to Demogorgon, the magic of which transformed them into giant mockeries of the twin-headed Prince of Demons. Driven to near madness, these creatures scattered into the wilderness to become the first ettins.  [MM5e – 132]

Sometimes, it is the orcs who are bullied, abused, used.

Hobgoblin 1e

They are always leery of hobgoblins.

[Hobgoblins] will bully nearby orcs or goblins given the opportunity, and hobgoblin leaders are sometimes used in bodies of goblins or orcish troops to keep them in order and drive them into bottle. [MM1e – 52]

Legions often supplement their ranks with less reliable and more expendable troops, including goblins, bugbears, orcs, evil humans, ogres, and giants. [MM5e – 185]

Most hobgoblins speak goblin, orcish, and the rudimentary tongue of carnivorous apes in addition to their racial and alignment languages. 20% of hobgoblins can speak the common tongue as well. [MM1e – 53]

Even more so of gnolls.

Gnoll 1e

The gnolls' frenzied bloodlust makes them an enemy to all, and when they lack a common foe, they fight among themselves. Even the most savage orcs avoid allying with gnolls. [MM5e – 162]

Gnolls will generally be on friendly terms with orcs, hobgoblins, bugbears, ogres, and even trolls - providing the weaker types are not very much weaker in numbers and the gnolls are relatively equal in strength to the stronger monsters. [MM1e – 46]

Gnolls are strong, but they dislike work and are not good miners. They have infravision. They speak their racial tongue, chaotic evil, troll, and often (60%) orcish and/or hobgoblin. [MM1e – 46]

Trolls 1e

Even more rarely with trolls.

Born with horrific appetites, trolls eat anything they can catch and devour. They have no society to speak of, but they do serve as mercenaries to orcs, ogres, ettins, hags, and giants. As payment, trolls demand food and treasure. Trolls are difficult to control, however, doing as they please even when working with more powerful creatures. [MM5e – 291]

They also understand that to some creatures, they are little more than slaves.

Green dragons accept the servitude of sentient creatures such as goblinoids, ettercaps, ettins, kobolds, orcs, and yuan-ti. [MM5e – 95]

Enemies:

It is said that orcs have no natural enemies, but they work hard to make up for this lack. [MC2e]

Enemies very a very long time, indeed

Dwarves and orcs have been enemies very a very long time, indeed.

Dwarves fought giants and orcs in ancient times. [Into the Unknown 4e – 9]

Due to their great hatred of goblins, orcs, and hobgoblins, all dwarves gain a bonus of + 1 on their dice rolls to hit these opponents. [MM1e – 35]

Be that as it may, orcs have a certain respect for the savagery dwarves war with them. And let’s face facts, dwarves make the very best lairs, don’t they?

Orcs treat dwarves somewhat differently from other foes, because they covet the homes that dwarves fashion for themselves. If a tribe succeeds in fighting its way into a dwarfhold, the orcs will butcher any dwarf that stands against them, but it's really all about the property—they would be just as happy if all the dwarves ran away. [Volo5e – 86]

Dwarves speak their own tongue and those of gnomes, goblins, kobolds, and orcs. It is 75% likely that dwarves will also speak the common language. [MM1e – 36]

“Whole nests of the things would gorge themselves in the killing caverns of the orc wars. The beasts were so intent on shoveling the dead into their mouths that you could slip right past them, if you could stand the stink.”  —Korag, dwarf outcast

Into the Unknown 4e – 92

Eternal Enemies

But if the orcs have a racial enemy, it is the elves.

It is almost as if they have been fighting one another since the beginning of time.

The war between Corellon Larethian and Gruumsh continued throughout the ages in world after world. The battles of this war soiled each place that they touched and produced betrayals and atrocities that authored line after line in The Book of Sorrows of the elves and The Tales of Greed of the dwarves. [OJ11]

[Corellon] wept for yet another world that would be soiled by this eternal conflict. However, to give the world to the Unclean (the orcs and humanoid allies of the orcs) was anathema. His elves needed allies and the orcs needed more enemies. [OJ11]

Thus, their hated runs deep. And eternal.

Orcs are cruel and hate living things in general, but they particularly hate elves and will always attack them in preference to other creatures. [MM1e – 76]

The have a historic enmity against elves and dwarves; many tribes will kill these demihumans on sight. [MC2e]

When orcs fight elves, all of that changes. The enmity between the two races cuts to the core, and no orc will leave an elf alive. Orcs become so frenzied in combat against elves that they forget all about taking loot and valuables back to the tribe—the only trophies of any worth are the heads of their enemies. [Volo5e – 86]

Why?

Orcs hold a particular hatred for elves. The elven god Corellon Larethian half-blinded Gruumsh with a well-placed arrow to the orc god's eye. Since then, the orcs have taken particular joy in slaughtering elves. Turning his injury into a baleful gift, Gruumsh grants divine might to any champion who willingly plucks out one of its eyes in his honor. [MM5e - 244]

[Orcs] take slaves for work, food, and entertainment (torture, etc.) but not elves whom they kill immediately. [MM1e – 76]

It is no wonder that elves speak orcish, seeing that they have fought one another for so long.

Elves are able to speak the tongue of goblins, orcs, hobgoblins, and gnolls, in addition to common, alignment, elvish, halflingish, and gnomish. [MM1e – 39]

All this said, orcs are not without intellect. They are not mindless brutes, even if most of them are brutes. They have customs, they have culture, and they, some of them, have the propensity to speak they languages of those they butt up against.

Orcs speak Orcish, a language derived from older human and elvish languages. There is no common orcish, so the language has many dialects which vary from tribe to tribe. Orcs have also learned to speak the common tongues, but are not comfortable with them. Some orcs have a limited vocabulary in goblin, hobgoblin, and ogre dialects. [MC2e]

Civilized? Integrated?

I need mention that not all orcs are cut from the same cloth.

Some are civilized.

Some are integrated.

And some are valued citizens in the lands they reside.

Zeif is home to many orcs. Roughly a tenth of the population is likely orcish in some way or another. Orcs in Zeif are descendants of the first mercenaries which fought for the Baklunish Empire against the Suel Imperium, more than a millennium ago. [Living Greyhawk – Players Guide to Zeif – 6]

Most orcs in Zeif work as miners, labourers, or scavengers, and none hold political office, or any other position of power, save the military.

The only real opportunities of Orcs in Zeif lies in the Uruzary Corps, a brotherhood of military heavy infantry which act as the Sultan’s personal guard and task force. [Zeif – 7]

Half-orcs are tolerated in Ekbir, but suffer prejudice. Some half-orcs make successful careers in the military, however, Ekbiriens are well aware of the danger pure stock humanoids constitute in the regions of Udgru, Yechas or Yatils.

Humanoids are repellant to most Baklunians, as a rule; nevertheless, some of these have been convert to Exalted Faith. [Ekbir Gazetteer]

Reviled

But as a rule, orcs in Greyhawk are reviled.

Evil orcs, or euroz, are all too common across the Flanaess. Undisciplined, bestial, and savage, orcs have severe tribal rivalries and do not cooperate unless controlled by a very strong leader. Major tribes include the Vile Rune, the Bloody Head, the Death Moon, the Broken Bone, the Evil Eye, the Leprous Hand, the Rotting Eye, and the Dripping Blade. Orcs are frequently encountered as mercenaries in the Empire of Iuz, Pomarj, Bone March, and across North Kingdom. Orc-ogre crossbreeds are particularly dangerous and are known in several areas.

Half-orcs (the children of orcs and humans) are usually born under unhappy circumstances in border areas between orc and human cultures. Dark of mood and nature, many half-orcs achieve renown despite their rejection by their parents' folk and many others. In this regard, they are similar to the much rarer half-ogres. [LGG – 11]

You decide. Are orcs slaves to Grummsh and His nature.

Or are they driven to it through their brutal, violent culture?

However, one might be wary in one’s presence; for orcs, and especially half-orcs, may be far more clever than you imagine:

Not all orc weaklings are taken by those who serve Yurtuus and Shargaas. Some are sent forth into the cities dominated by humans, on dark missions. Beware them.

—Elminster

Volo’s Guide to Monsters – 84

One must always give credit where credit is due. This piece is made possible primarily by the Imaginings of Gary Gygax and his Old Guard, Lenard Lakofka among them, and the new old guards, Carl Sargant, James Ward, Roger E. Moore. And Erik Mona, Gary Holian, Sean Reynolds, Frederick Weining. The list is interminable.

The Art:

Orc-Head by maxgrecke

Beowulf-vs-Grendel by thefool432

Orc by mr--jack

Orcs, from Monster Manual 1e, 1977,1978

Orc, by Jim Holloway, from Monstrous Compendium 2e, 1989

Orc, by Les Dorscheid, from Monstrous Manual 2e, 1995

HEX-Orc-female-Rogue by rafater

Orc, from Monster Manual 3e, 2000

Gruumsh by jeffdee, from Deities and Demigods, 1980

Corellon Larethian, by D.A. Trampier, from Deities and Demigods, 1980

Luthic, by Kerim Beyit, from The Plane Above, 2010

Orcs, by Ralph Horsley, from Monster Manual 4e, 2008

Orc Chief detail, from Monster Manual 5e, 2014

Orc in shaft, from Into the Unknown 4e, 2012

Boars, by Jim Nelson, from Monster Manual 4e, 2008

Ogrillon, by Albie Fiore, from Fiend Folio, 1981

Hobgoblin, from Monster Manual 1e, 1977,1978

Gnoll, by David C. Sutherland III, from Monster Manual 1e, 1977,1978

Trolls, by David C. Sutherland III, from Monster Manual 1e, 1977,1978

Orc-VS-Dwarf by yopparattanosaru

Elf-Vs-Orcs-Copy by garrotefrancell

Orc, smoking, with cat by Brenoch Adams

Orc by pierrick

Sources:

1015 World of Greyhawk Boxed Set, 1983

2009 Monster Manual, 1e, 1978, 1979

2013 Deities and Demigods 1e, 1980

2102 Monstrous Compendium, Volume 1, 2e, 1989

2128 DMGR4 Monster Mythology, 1992

2135 PHBR10 The Complete Book of Humanoids, 1993

2140 Monstrous Manual, 1993

11552 Monster Manual, 3e, 2000

11743 Living Greyhawk Gazetteer, 2000

Deities and Demigods 3e, 2002

Monster Manual, 4e, 2008

Into the Unknown, 4e, 2012

Monster Manual, 5e, 2014

Volo’s Guide to Monsters, 2016

Dragon Magazine 342