|
Races / Ogre
Alignment : good, neutral, evil History:The first time the ogres appear as a race in the history books of Aabahran is around the years 100 - 125 PC when talk started about a strange new race having being spotted in the lands. These odd intruders had come in from the Great Chasm, where they supposedly had lived for some time rather unnoticed. Their true origin is lost in time. Dark legends give account of a time of blood and war, where the dwarves who had dug up from the Underdark caused a massive cave-in in the newly founded ogre town of Marak with many casualties. The bloody retaliations that followed and developed into what was later called the "War of Night", as large battles were fought below ground lead to the almost complete destruction of Marak. It is reported that the ogres proved superior in the end and the dwarves retreated, sealing most of their tunnels to the ogre town forever. The victorious ogres rebuilt their city, using prisoners of war as cheap workers. After the city had been rebuilt, far surpassing the original town, a heated discussion amongst the ogres started about what was to be done with the surviving prisoners. In the end, the faction refusing to just have them killed won and the dwarves were chained and imprisoned in the new palace, a memorial to all to think twice before bringing war to the mighty ogres. With peace and order restored to Mark, the ogre Crunch took the duty upon himself to keep these laws, becoming Chieftain of Marak. Over the years, many young skilled ogres have taken up the position of warleader for their people, however Crunch kept the administrative power and the final say in all matters of law. He rules in Marak still, an ancient ogre sitting on his throne of bones, surrounded by portraits depicting his past and the founding of Marak. After things had quieted down somewhat, other strong ogre fighters sought glory and riches outside of their hometown and soon enlisted in the almost forgotten Warmasters. Grishnak and Smash, the son of Crunch, were among the first to stand victorious against the early Savants. With the aid of Ulraut, Ryspantherin and others, the Warmasters quickly rose to power, and - for a while - became the most powerful force in the lands. Grishnak attained the Leadership of the Warmasters. It is rumored that Smash retired from the fray after a long dispute with Ulraunt, and returned to Marak, siring a young ogress daughter with one of his wives. This daughter, Madelle, lives in Marak with her grandfather Crunch still. Smash died many years later as a very old man, something not often seen these days within the Warmasters. Ulraut, an ogre who had become one of the strongest Warmasters of his time, befriended a Savant mage by the name of Krendenn and was cast from his organization and executed for this offence. But also the next generation of ogres had its famous children, one of the most remarkable of these was a young ogre by the name of Dunlith. Son of the warleader Domran, he received intense training from a very young age, but his path utterly changed its direction when he killed his best friend Garnak in the heat of battle. To atone for this sin he set out on a new path, under Sirant's guidance, and eventually became his new god's avatar and gained the position of Bull of the Theran Wind, a force assembled to battle the threat of the Dreadlords, who sought death and destruction. He met his end at the hands of the vampire Ellowyn, the leader of the Dreadlords. Soon other sons and daughters of Marak gained positions not only in the tranditional fighter organization of the Warmasters, but also in others like the Knights, Nexus, Justice, Syndicate and at later times the Watchers and Tribunes. Many gained fame and glory, amongst them the Warmaster Rompkei, the Knight Thandaeius and his enemy the Nexus Askarran, the Watcher Kronit and many others including the powerful Archfiend Triathix, one of the most feared combatants in Aabahran's history. To this day the race brings forth some of the strongest fighters. Usual Height:Larger than minotaurs, only slightly less tall than the bigger giants Hometown:Marak Religion:Ogres are a superstitious people in general, often led by tribal shamans. These tribal ogre shamans do not commune directly to their chosen deity, but rather specialize in foretelling the future through signs, such as the flight of birds or the innards of sacrificial animals. Their prayers and sacrifices guarantee the tribes' good fortunes. While some ogres follow the various religions preached to them by their village's shamans since early childhood, others reject all faith in the supernatural and prefer to believe solely in their own brute force and the power of their club. Physical Features:Large, broad and thickly muscled ogres are anything but gracile. While their general body-shape is humanoid, they are far taller than humans. Ogres are in several ways superior to the giants they are sometimes mistaken for. Having a similar frame, they possess an incredible metabolism granting them great strength and speed. They heal at an unheard of rate while possessing a constitution and health that far surpasses any other race. Many scholars claim that the ogre's natural ability to tab into the very weave of Magic unconsciously is the reason for their uncanny healing abilities as well as for their surprising intelligence. However this very advantage turns to a horrible disadvantage when ogres encounter magical attacks in battle. Any magic disrupts their connection to the Weave, weakening their very life-force and thus they suffer more than any other creature from spells and other magics thrown at them. Many claim that this is also the reason why there are no ogrish mages or clerics, despite the fact that they are more than intelligent enough. They are already tapping into the very weave of magic permanently, making it very hard to draw enough surplus power to cast spells without suffering severe brain damage. Their skin color varies from a deep dark brown to a greenish grey, depending on the ogre's origin. The race as a whole suffers from a speech impediment caused by protruding incisors or tusks. Their eyes often shadowed by heavy bone ridges and their features heavy-boned and square ogres are only ever found attractive by other ogres. Most ogres care little about hygiene and let their thick hair grow wild, cut only by whatever comes to hand when it starts getting in the way. Their females tend to be only slightly less broad and tall and often are as fond of physical combat as their male counterparts. Society:Most ogres live in small nomadic villages moving often as they forage for food and prey, usually led by a chieftain. Tribal shamans or wise women tend to be their spiritual leaders. While many ogres stick with their hereditary style of life a large group has abandoned their nomadic ways and settled to the north of the Great Chasm, founding the ogre village called Marak. Their social order is determined by skill in combat, their chieftains are often chosen in battle and the leadership is usually not hereditary. All ogres, no matter their gender, receive some martial training in their youth, either as warriors, berserkers or rangers. In some of the more barbaric tribes clubbing your prospective wife or husband unconscious and dragging them off is the usual and socially accepted way to find a spouse. Customs and traditions vary from the most bloody rites and unholy sacrifices to a caring and mostly harmonious way of life, the martial aspect however features in all ogre communities. Relationships with other Races:While ogres usually get along well with giants and minotaurs as well as any martially oriented member of other races they look down upon the slighter built races such as faeries and elves, considering them flimsy and weak. Some ogres have been known to convey their feelings for the slight physical built of these races to their mental inclination and think of them as unstable and unreliable. Many ogres exhibit a heavy distrust or even enmity to mages and scholars; communers however are broadly accepted, being similar to their own tribal shamans. Other races often consider them stupid strong beasts, employing them as guards, bouncers or "meat shields". |