WHAT IS AN ORK?
by Schlitzie Martini, Big Boss of the Waaaugh!
Elf Clan's Ork allies
Heya folks. I've found that many of you, while very familiar elves, pixies, and other "light" races of fantasy and even their "dark" counterparts (dark elves for example) aren't quite as familiar with one of fantasy's oldest and dearest adversaries, the orc. So I have decided to write this here blog to get you familiarized with them, their relationship to Elf Clan, and why I dig anything and everything orky.
The idea of orcs were first conceived by JRR Tolkien. In his stories they were elves that were twisted and misshapen by Melkor. They were brutal, twisted, ill tempered, and vicious beasts.
This concept later was taken by Dungeons and Dragons and they were added as a race onto themselves, meant to be used as adversaries for the players.
From that moment on, many games have taken the idea and added their little twist to them. Every new game or story that includes orcs/orks has added new elements to them, thus making them ever more varied, arguably even more so than elves.
I myself have tried to take the most interesting concepts of orky behavior and blend them into Elf Clan. So here is a list of what makes an orc/ork in my conception (and yes there's a difference between an ORC and an ORK, yet they are the same....confused yet? lol)
I've mainly drawn my concepts from Warhammer and World of Warcraft, being as these two concepts fit very well into what I have in mind.
Orcs, while seemingly stupid, are actually quite cunning. They love to play 'country dumb' with the other races, making them think orcs are nothing but stupid grunts incapable i of thoughts higher than "ME SMASH!" While there are those orcs that are just that dumb, and orcs do love to smash things, the cunning orc smashes things that matter. They love to be underestimated....it's what makes them formidable opponents during a war.
Orcs love simple things. Food for example...they can and will eat just about anything, but they prefer a carnivorous diet and are not above eating their own fallen in battle. In peacetime however, they are quite content to just nab a quick nosh at the local eatery...or snatch up any hobbits that come wandering too close to their home, which ever is easier.
They also love to fight. Usually this entails weapons, but some orcs have found other types of competition amusing as well.
Orcs also have a very high and simple code of honor. It doesn't take much to make an orc mad, but they love to huff and stomp. You cross his honor however, and you are in for a world of hurt!
I think that about covers things for now, but I will ad more to this blog later.
After the initial results of the first ORK/PIXIE war, something has come to my attention. Many do not seem to grasp ork logic. It's quite simple really. it goes like this:
Orkz love to fight.
Orkz love to win.
If orkz fight and win a battle, they win.
If orkz fight and lose a battle, they STILL win because they got to fight.
See? simple. Orkz fight, Orkz win.
Part 2 Schlitzie answers questions about Orks
1) You mentioned Ork honor. Some greater detail as to what Ork honor is and how it works would be most interesting for our readers.
Ork honor, as it stands within Elf Clan anyway, is pretty simple. Orks hold strength as a great asset, and strength comes in many forms...most obviously physical strength, but strength in wisdom is also very highly regarded. Orks live by their word, and will hold to that word by pain of death. Of course orks can vary on how far this honor is extended. Some view all sentient beings as capable of honor and strength and extend this to all who they feel worty, while other orks are more xenophobic viewing other races as weak, therefore not worthy of such honor. Many orks hold to a form of warrior code, much like bushido of the samurai.
2) The actual difference between Orcs and Orks. Most folks don't know.
The two terms can be used interchangeably, thus throwing much confusion over which is which.
ORC is usually the more generic of terms, used in many fantasy genres and fiction, especially when refering to those of Middle Earth. It is also the preferred spelling by elves and men.
ORKS or more aptly ORKZ is the spelling used when orks refer to themselves. It also best describes the space orks of Warhammer 40,000, which is where I get most of my inspiration.
3) Ork logic. It's far different from other races (more akin to Klingons I think). Fill us in.
This was covered earlier in the post, but bears repeating I believe:
Orkz love to fight.
Orkz love to win.
If orkz fight and win a battle, they win.
If orkz fight and lose a battle, they STILL win because they got to fight.
4) How'd you come to be the leader of the Orks on Second Life?
Just like any self respecting ork warboss...I was the BIGGEST and LOUDEST. I simply said "I'M DA BIG BOSS!" and da other orkz sed "YOOZ DA BOSS!"
5) Why did the Orks decide to support Elf Clan and how'd you get to be our oldest and most loyal allies?
That goes into quite a bit really, quite simply put Elf Clan has always been very positive and supportive to all things orky, so we stuck with them.
6) What are "grots", "gretchins" and "snotlings"?
ahh, the wee gitz! here's the break down:
Gretchin are the WH40K term for goblins, which are related to orks. They tend to be more cunning, but very cowardly unless encountered in large numbers. They also tend to be lackeys to bigger orks or nobz and even to big bosses.
Snotlings are smaller and stupider versions of goblins, very animal like and vicious. They are also very tasty and end up eaten if they aren't quick enough to get away from a hungry ork.
Grot is a term orks use to refer to things smaller and weaker than they are, mainly in reference to the smaller greenskins mentioned above, but sometimes in reference to anything smaller...usually as an insult (another fun pastime for orks, hurling insults).
Squigs should be mentioned as well. These are nasty critters that can vary widely in size AND in uses. Orks cannot grow hair, so they use specialized "hair-squigs" for this purpose. Some squigs are merely meant to be eaten, while some are bred for fighting, while some can be grown to gigantic proportions and used as battle wagons...these are known as squiggoths and be as big as a house.
7) What is a dakka dakka?
DAKKA is a word orks use in reference to guns and gunfire. One can usually hear a Flash-Git or a Shoota Boy yelling "DAKKA DAKKA DAKKA!" as he fires rounds in battle. Dakka by itself is usually a reference to automatic guns and machineguns.
Part 3 Ork Heirarchy
Ah some of you might not know what the ork hierarchy is, so here's the breakdown lowest to highest
GIT or GROT: also used as insults, this rank is usually held by gretchin
BOYZ: Also used in to refer to orkz as a whole, this is the basic rank and often used after a word to describe what sort of boy the ork is for example SLUGGA BOYZ are melee fighters, SHOOTA BOYZ are gunners and such.
'ARD BOYZ: these are boyz that have fought more than a few battles, and harder to take down. Veterans of many battles.
NOBZ: When orkz grow more powerful, they grow in size. Nobz are like elite soldiers...they bigger, meaner, and in charge when the boss ain't around.
MEGANOBZ: These are nobz that have been augmented with cybernetics and power armor, and much harder to take down than a nob.
BOSS: Ork leaders, but not the top leader. This title is held by orks who lead squads and are usually meaner versions of the squad they lead...they are usually nobz.
BIG BOSS: The head honcho, the big kahuna...the biggest and meanest ork in a WAAAGH and usualy the one who called it. These orkz are huge in size, meaner than mean, and very cunning. You don't get to be a big boss without having some kind of tactical smarts, and the big boss can be quite sneaky when it comes to warfare, using logic thought unknowable amongst the orks.
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