Orcish Games

Fun and Games
"When I was first captured, I was certain they would kill me at any moment. But a few days passed, and me death blow never came. About a cycle later, the orcs threw me into a pit. I thought they were goin' to bury me alive! But when they tossed the worg in there with me, I quickly found out that they had other plans. I managed to kill that worg, but not before I took out me eye! When the orcs started cheering, I realized that this was to serve as both me execution and a game! I survived a few more fights and would have eventually died if it hadn't been for a crazed centaur that went ripping through their camp one afternoon they had me fighting. I managed to scramble away in the fray, and thank the Gods for that! Orkish games are definitely not for humans!" -One Eyed William Ferguson, Former Captive

Background
The humans and other races of the Empire have long oppressed the orcs of Aelyria after their defeat and their lands taken from them. The orcs were no longer able to roam about and carry out their frustrations and natural desire to fight. They were packed into small areas of the Empire or were forced to huddle their horde within the great walls of their orkish city of Ire. The dire conditions they have had to endure for far too long now have sparked a need to entertain, release built up frustrations, and to help control their populations. For these reasons within the great city of Ire and even in the small clans that now roam the empire, orkish "games" have been created.

Description
As non-playful as orcs are, they do actually play games even though the results usually end with someone or something dead. These games are so brutal in nature that other races have no interest (or enough stomach) to watch most orkish games played out. There are different games for all ages of orcs just as in the human race. The term "game" is used very loosely in orkish culture, and games are played mainly to serve a higher purpose or take care of a problem.

Types of Games
There are five types of orkish games:

Religious: games of this type are played out to satisfy a god or goddess. Even sacrifices to the orc gods are done by playing a game to make the "thrill of the kill" more enjoyable to the bloodthirsty orcs. Shamens stage these type games when they feel one of their Gods needs appeasing.

Festive: games of this type are meant to be for entertainment though it's not funny for the participants of the game. Festive games are not always planned as the orcs' love for the brew causes these games to spring up out of drunken stupor. That is probably the only way some of the festive games can even get started as a sober orc would probably never voluntarily subject himself to the abuses of these games. Festive games may include orcs or non-orcs.

Child: the life of an orkish child is no easy one. Orcs scratch out a living by sheer brute force or cunning. Orkish children have neither of these traits thus have a harder time at trying to survive. Their existence is confounded more due to the overcrowding of their homes and the small spaces they are forced to live in. Most child games are played to control their numbers and to weed out all weaker orcs.

Sport: games of this type are played to hone future battle skills and to measure the metal of another orc clan. Teams are usually formed with each team being made from orcs of the same clan or mob. These teams are pitted against each other in some pretty intense, almost battle-like sport games.

Judgment: orcs have many problems but each clan does have a set of laws set by their leaders usually to ensure their own power hold upon the clan is not threatened. Orcs that break those laws, if not executed on the spot, will be taken. Judgment games are played to either give the victim orc a chance to exact his revenge for any wrong-doings against him upon the aggressor or allow the offender a chance to fight for his life pitted against a much greater opponent.

Examples of Games

Religious:

Kromtaum Jorel (Rite of Jorel): This game is staged when a shamen suspects or has a message from a God that there is a non-believer (or religious offender) orc in the clan. The rules are that one orc, who is in good standing with the Gods, is chosen and blindfolded. The blindfolded orc is given a crossbow with three bolts or a bow with 3 arrows. Five orcs of the clan are picked by the shamen, one is the known or suspected non-believer (offender). The five orcs stand surrounding the blindfolded orc in the center. The five orcs cannot speak or make sounds but the crowd watching may direct the blindfolded orc to fire at the orc that they believe is the offender (in fact, only the shamen may or may not know). The blindfolded orc begins firing his three shots by directions the crowd gives. It is not uncommon for the innocent orcs to be killed but the shamen justifies it by stating that the orcs faith in their God slipped and that caused his death. Usually the shamen will end the game when the orc he knows or suspects is the offender is hit. If the arrow or bolt does not kill the orc, the shamen will finish off the orc in the name of their God. Sometimes a stray bolt or arrow will kill or injure a spectator but that just adds to the thrill of the game. This is a game to test belief but it is nowhere close to precise. Sometimes the true offenders of orkish religion are never killed either because the blindfolded orc ran out of arrows/bolts, or the shamen calling a halt to the game because he felt the offender had been killed. Shamen will never admit he was wrong and so justifies the outcome of the game, whatever it is (even if nobody dies), as the will of the Gods.

Festive:

Krirog (Slash): This game is played in the beer tents and brothels of the orc camps and cities. Two orcs will stand in the center of the tent or brothel with cheering spectators sitting around them chugging ale, and gnawing on meat. The two orcs both have a long knife and take turns making cuts on the others torso. The game ends when one orc falls to one knee, passes out, or dies from the loss of blood. This game is usually played by intoxicated orcs that want to show off their pain/injury tolerance. The scars from this game are very impressive to orcs.

Wedding Kromtaum (Wedding Rite): This game was originally part of the orkish mating ritual but was taken and made into a game by the female orc clans. A male orc is chosen from a male mob and pitted against half an entire female clan. The male orcs object is to abduct and carry back to his mob, as many female orcs as possible. The female orcs beat the male orc with clubs as he tries to grab the female. It is played in turns with each mob sending one single male orc to represent them. A turn is over when the male orc is no longer able to abduct a female due to the injuries he sustains. The game is over when all mobs playing have had a turn. The winner is the mob with the most females abducted. The female clans, it seems, gain nothing from this game but in fact, the clans use this game to help decide which mobs they want to mate with in the future mating season.

Child:

Thop (Scramble peak): this game originated from the orc clans of the mountains. The children orcs would climb steep cliff faces in a race to the peak. This free climb was complicated by the addition of kicks, punches, strikes, and gouges that the orc can use to cause his opponent to loose his grip and fall. Some of the cliffs or peaks that this game were played on were so high that whenever an orc fell, the others would stop what they were doing and stretch their necks out to see the fatal splat of the orc against the rocks below. After the splat, the children would give a giggle, and then carry on with the game as if nothing had happened. This game spread as a favorite childhood game of strength to the other clans around the Empire. Clans that were not near tall peaks instead constructed towers for the kids to climb. Spikes or burning oil pits were added to the base of the towers to increase the excitement of the fall. If towers were not available, the children would simply climb tall trees and around the tree stood other children with clubs ready to beat the orcs that fell from the tree.

Sport:

Lufutaum (Catapult): This game is a sport used to teach young, inexperienced orcs how to assault with and capture siege engines in battle. The tactics used by each team are unique and it isn't uncommon for an orc warlord to watch these sports and use the tactics in actual battles. The sport is began by choosing two teams of 10 to 15 orcs. Each team is given one catapult. Each catapult needs a crew of four orcs thus the others not on the crew are used as assault/ defense troops. This is an all out battle in all respects but the orcs don't try to kill, just disable their opponents. If one happens to die, it is just a loss they deal with. There are no rules as to what hand weapons the teams can use. The catapults are placed at the farthest edge of the opposing catapults' range and the teams must start out standing beside their engine. The catapults are fired at the opponent orcs at first and when the opponents get too close to use the catapult, the opponents catapult is targeted. The game is won by disabling the opponents catapult either by capture, no opponent left standing to operate their catapult, or by direct hit from the opposing catapult (causing it to be unusable).

Kal (Horse): another popular sport that brings out the cruelty of orkish culture is Kal. A field scattered with obsticles hosts two teams of five orcs. At the two far ends of the field is a small marked zone or goal. The objective is to take a newly severed horse head and get it and all the big pieces that fall off of it, into the opposing teams goal. There are no weapons used but punches, tackles, passes, kicks, gouges, and headbutts are but a few of the ways to get the head and its pieces into an opposing teams goal. The only other rules are to stay on the field and don't "try" to kill an opposing team member. Game is over when the head all its pieces are in a goal zone. The team with the most gore in their zone loses.

Judgment:

Drop (The pit): there are no courts in orc society. All offenders of the laws set up by the clan (if not killed immediately for their offenses), are dealt with by sending them to the pit. The pit is a gladiatorial type game where two orcs are placed in a steep-sided hole or pit. The two orcs are both law offenders, one an offender and the victim, or the offender and a grossly larger and better skilled opponent. In the pit, there are no rules except only one orc may emerge alive. The orc must enter the pit with the weapons of his choice but the winner claims all weapons, armor, etc., from the loser upon his death. The pit is used to settle disputes or offenses to laws and usually end with the death of the offender. There are times however, when the offender does prevail. In these cases, the orc is excused from his infraction. Another game played in the pit is done so more as a Festive game where a pit is dug in the center of a brothel or beer tent and the game is carried out there with several intoxicated, rowdy orcs watching and cheering on their favorites. The difference with the festive pit game is that the two in the pit fighting are not orcs. Usually slaves (humans, elves, dwarves, goblins, etc), are pitted against each other or a large beast (IE: troll, centaur, worg). If the slave wins, he is simply spared one more day or so until his next match in the pit.

These are just a few of the games that orcs play to pass their time and satisfy their lust for blood and violence. Orc games are constantly being created though and over the years, they will get more and more violent and bloody.