Goroth'caul

Population: 200,000+ Orcs

Founding Date: Unknown

Major Religion: Orcus, Demon Prince

Meaning, "Origin of the Call", the Orc breeding pits of the Western Mountains. A vast series of caverns are spider webbed underneath the ground. It is at Goroth'caul that these caverns break the surface and allow vast amounts of Orcs to travel above and below.

The Orcs are generally a leaderless people and lay claim to no land of their own. This place is considered theirs only because they seem to always have been here. Ever since the Fall, the Orcs have risen from these dark pits. For the most part, the Orc people are simple-minded and gather around here for recruitment into a Nath'caul, "Blood Calling" in Common. A Nath'caul is a war band organised by an outside party. Hobgoblin generals, Kobold leaders, Goblin tribes, dragons, and any other force that requires mercenaries to fight.

Local Dungeons: Gusty Caves, Fat Kroll's Cave, the Weird Spot, Den of the Half-Brains

History

Not much can be said. The Orcs have no language of their own, they have no scholars, mages are few, and literacy is scant at best. What the world knows about the origins of the Orcs comes from the histories of the races that encountered them. The men of Ganzorig Hall know them best as their immortal enemies. The two races have clashed ever since the first Orc war tribes marched out of the Balmadaar Pass.

The disciplined Hobgoblins, who are known to be both friend and foe to Men and Dwarves, first discovered Goroth'caul. Word spread of this race of black and green skinned brutes. Even in these early years, the Orcs were disorganized. Hobgoblins were the first "Mongrel Lords", a series of races that presided over the Orc race.

Era of Hobgoblin Lordship

From 122 A.F.- 189 A.F. marked the era where Hobgoblin warlords took advantage of the leaderless Orcs. Hobgoblins are cunning, tactical warfighters. The Orcs helped bolster their armies in numbers. This extra leverage allowed the Hobgoblins to march out of the fortress valley of Rith'nak. The first wars between Ganzorig Hall and Rith'nak occurred during this period.

The Orcs are far from thoughtless though, and over time they felt scorned by their Hobgoblin superiors. This era ended with a general revolt by the Orcs of Goroth'caul, slaying an envoy of Hobgoblins looking to "recruit" the usual warband of Orcs. A Hobgoblin counterattack was quickly overwhelmed by sheer numbers of Orcs. However, this rebellion fell apart once the Hobgoblins withdrew.

Era of Draconic Lordship and the Traitor Night

This era lasted from 201 A.F.- 248 A.F. Shortly after the Hobgoblins lost control over the Orc legions, a White Dragon named Glacieus arrived with a small, but powerful army of Dragonborn. Her home on the western peak was a domain built on the bones of a dead giant kingdom. Her eyes now looked the to the eastern peak, where a Giant king named Grore'kin still commanded an army of Giants and half-breeds of themselves, an intelligent and cunning race called Orogs.

Glacieus played upon the Orcs sense of fraternity with the Orogs. These are Orcs that were "dirty-half breeds" and are working against them. Glacieus was able to win the trust of the Orcs with promises of food and glory. Now with the full might of the Nath'caul behind him, Glacieus fell upon the Eastern Peak with an army of Orcs.

However, Glacieus failed to strategize this war. The Giants held a strategic position above the mountain trails and were no strangers to defending their keeps. Glacieus was ready to sacrifice a million Orcs if she recieved victory at the end. The first early battles in the War of Brotherhood were bloody affairs. The Orogs were intelligent, but were still slaves. Black blood ran from the mountaintops. In the battle lines, the Orogs noticed Giants never fought. Orcs noticed the Dragonborn commanders were eager to launch attacks, but never joined them in combat. They froze in animal hide tents and fed on frozen bread while the Dragonborn sat in magically heated tents.

Secret communications were initiated between Orogs and Orcs. Messages carved into corpses, notes left in quivers and left under fallen weapons. The few Orcs who could read Undercommon got the message. "The Dragons are Using You".

Glacieus sat on her throne in Icecall Peak and knew nothing of the day to day management of his troops. The Dragonborn did not speak Undercommon and knew nothing of this undercover diplomacy. After a few weeks of back and forth, the Orcs spread the message throughout their ranks. Not ones for subtlety, they immediately rioted in their mountainside camps. The Dragonborn were overwhelmed, outnumbered 10 to 1. When Glacieus heard of this defeat, her wrath was great. She left the Orcs to freeze on the mountain and left for Goroth'caul to punish the Orcish people for their "treason".

Glacieus killed many Orcs, but was driven back after realizing there was no feasible way for her to commit genocide in a single day. She still hates the Orcs and never went toward Goroth'caul ever again.

Era of Anarchy

From 305 A.F.- to 492 A.F., the Orcs were bereft of leaders. Now outside forces desired to gain the Orcs might and they soon turned on each other. Leaderless, Goroth'caul became fraught with infighting and clan wars. Many Orcs fled their homeland and moved outwards. Some settled farther north, making friends of the Silendi, the mountain men. Others traveled to the vast deserts of Azuran. Their fates are mixed. Those that traveled south were met by the still vengeful spears of the Ganzorig.

This black period of Orc history destroyed whatever progress towards civilization they had made. Goblins became common friends and allies of Orc tribes. This turbulent period brought the Orcs into direct conflict with the weakening Dwarven kingdoms. The Dwarves still were grappling with a plague brought by the Fall. Their numbers were few and their only defense was to withdraw into their deep fortresses. It is during this time that the Dwarves disspaeared from the outside world entirely. Many escaped the fortress cities and traveled to outside lands. In 321 A.F., the fortress of Duraz'und fell to Orcish assault. This insult scattered the Dwarvish people.

Era of the Mongrel

Spanning from 527 A.F. to the present day, the Hobgoblin returned to Goroth'caul. Lightly armed and on foot, it was a sign of peace and camaraderie. They had seen, and felt, the riotous period the previous two centuries had unleashed. Now the Orcs were beginning to settle. Their marches not so furious, their wars not so brutal. The Hobgoblin leaders sensed a change was coming. Soon the Orcs may self-organize under their own banner. That could not be allowed to happen. If the Orcs were to rise again, it would be under the Hobgoblins.

They offered once again to "protect the Orcish people". However, the Orcs had indeed changed. Instead of a ready appetite for blood, they debated. Many Orcs wanted to join the Hobgoblins. Many felt that they did not need them. In the end, the Orcs split. Some went with the Hobgoblins, other remained in Goroth'caul, hoping to create a true home for themselves.

Those that went with the Hobgoblins fight their wars, but also receive tutelage, have housing, and are trained in martial arts. Still soldier-slaves, they are not considered stupid animals as they once were. Known as the "Mongrel Race", the combined forces of Hobgoblins, Orcs, and Hobgoblins continue to threaten the world of man over and over.

The Orcs that stayed in Goroth'caul have made little progress. Undercommon is wider spread, but few are still considered "scholarly". They have built simplistic structures. Their greatest accomplishment is the Wall of Spears, a fortification of stone to the east. It is regularly patrolled by organized and armed Orc forces under the banner of what many are calling the first Orc Warchief. His name changes depending on who tells the story, but the Wall of Spears is seen as the place to barter with the Orcs.