Orogs

[Question]

Are they considered to be a race in their own right or are they a goblinoid sub type or something?

[irdeggman]

They are their own race.


In BR goblinoids tend to be surface creatures and didn't suffer any penalties for light. In BR goblinoids are

Orogs, on the other hand, were creatures from the underground (hence the bane of the dwarves since they fought for the same land as it was).

Make sure you don't step into the puddle that a lot of people do - they are not related to orcs in any way - nor are they the BR equivalent of orcs. They are tougher, smarter and better organized.

BRCS Chap 9 (Creatures):

Goblin, Cerilian

All goblinoids are viewed by Cerilians as part of one species – thus, goblinkind is divided into small goblins (goblins), medium goblins (hobgoblins) and large goblins (bugbear). They generally live in intermixed tribes, with common/small goblins accounting for about 50% of the population, medium goblins for about 30% and large goblins for about 20%. The favored class for all types of goblins in Cerilia is barbarian. Cerilian goblins are as likely to have character levels as humans; many are fierce warriors that are equal to all but the mightiest of heroes. Cerilian goblins may learn the wolfrider feat. Common and elite goblins are +0 ECL races; huge goblins are a +3 ECL race.

Orog

Medium-Size Humanoid (Orog)


Hit Dice: 3d8+3 (16 hp)

Initiative: +0

Speed: 20 ft. (banded mail), base 30 ft.

AC: 18 (+6 banded mail, +2 large shield)

Attacks: Battleaxe +5 melee or light crossbow +2 ranged

Damage: Battleaxe 1d8+3 or light crossbow 1d8

Face/Reach: 5 ft. by 5 ft./5 ft.

Special Qualities: Darkvision 60 ft., Light sensitivity

Saves: Fort +4, Ref +1, Will +1

Abilities: Str 17, Dex 10, Con 12, Int 11, Wis 10, Cha 8

Skills: Listen +3, Spot +3, Ride +2, Warcraft +3

Feat: Power Attack

Climate/Terrain: Any mountains and underground


Organization: Gang (2-5), band (5-50 plus one 3rd-level sergeant per 20 adults and one 5th-level leader), or tribe (20-200 plus one 3rd-level sergeant per 20 adults, one 5th-level lieutenant per 50 adults and one chieftain of 7th-9th level)

Challenge Rating: 2

Treasure: Standard

Alignment: Usually neutral evil

Advancement: By character class

Orogs are a subterranean race of miners and warriors that inhabit Cerilia’s mountain ranges. They consider all other races to be their foes, and constantly wage war upon them. Orogs are slightly taller than humans, and more powerfully built, with a somewhat apish face and long arms. They have hairless skin, ranging in color from leathery gray to black. Orogs speak their own language; most also speak dwarven, and many learn other tongues as well.

Combat

Orogs are excellent planners and strategists, and strive to maximize advantages and minimize weaknesses in combat, in a fairly rational manner. Orogs sometimes ride large, subterranean lizards into combat, equal to 5 HD giant lizards.

Light sensitivity: Orogs receive are nauseated by sunlight and even other light sources, suffering a -1 circumstance penalty to all attack rolls while in sunlight or within the radius of a daylight spell.

Skills: Orogs receive a +2 racial bonus on warcraft checks.

Orog characters

The favored class for orogs is fighter. Like humans, most Orogs have a PC or NPC character class. Orog leaders are usually fighters, assisted by adepts and clerics. Orog clerics worship Torazan, and can access any two of the domains noted for that god. Orogs are a +3 ECL race.

[Fizz]

Yup, definitely not goblins. And definitely not orcs. Though i have heard some people compare them to uruk-hai, given they are tougher, smarter and better organized (but sensitive to light, and riding giant lizards). It's only a slightly better comparison.

Are there any really good pictures of orogs? I doubt the sketch on the card that comes with the BR boxed set does them justice.

Favored class of Barbarian for all goblin types? Hmmm... i'd have thought rogue for the small variety.

-Fizz

[geeman]

At 09:42 PM 12/11/2005, Question wrote:

>Are they considered to be a race in their own right or are they a
>goblinoid sub type or something?

When BR came out "orogs" were a subclass of orcs; they were the
half-race mix of orc and ogre. Though there are ogres there are no
orcs in BR or, at least, none are ever mentioned existing on Cerilia
nor on any of the nearby continents (though our info on them is
somewhat slim) so orogs would, at least, be considered "a race in
their own right" in at least three senses. First, they are not
related to goblins--at least, they are not comparatively any more
closely to goblins than other Cerilian races like gnolls or humans,
for that matter. Second, they have their own, distinct nation/states
at the domain level of play and they do not "intermix" any more than
any other race (less, really) of the continent. That is, one isn`t
going to give a lot of orogs living amongst goblins any more than one
finds dwarves living among humans. There are some Cerilian
"wildlands" where various races live in tribal kinds of arrangements,
but in those regions orogs are no more likely to blend in with other
races than any other. Third, they do not mix genetically with any
other race. There are half-elves in Cerilia, so in this sense orogs
are their own race more than either humans or elves.

Gary

[ausrick]

IIRC Orogs and Ogrillons in other campaign settings were half-breed creatures, but In BR I've always been under the impression that they were a race of their own. The total non-existance of orcs also would lend to this interpretation. In the original boxed set there was an Orog 8.5"x11" insert sheet that had a full picture of an Orog, I don't have it in hand, but IIRC it was kind of a large, muscular looking human, very barbaric face, tusks coming up from the lower jaw. Blueish gray skin, and wearing what looked like eastern-flavoured armor, with a scimitar I think. This is all from memory as I haven't looked at that picture in maybe a couple of years.

[Rhiannon Faramiriel]

I think you're right Ausrick. That is the mental impression I have of them.

Jenn

[ausrick]

Just saw a picture of one under their entry in the downloadable BRCS playtest. It looked as I remembered except it had brownish skin. Also, from what I could tell it had what looked to be a spangenhelm with maybe an arabian/asian flair and antlers. . . Where would an entirely subterranian race get stag antlers? The picture I remember from the past had them too. Underdark Stag? or is there a story behind this that someone would know?

[Doyle]

<snip> Also, from what I could tell it had what looked to be a spangenhelm with maybe an arabian/asian flair and antlers. . . Where would an entirely subterranian race get stag antlers? The picture I remember from the past had them too. Underdark Stag? or is there a story behind this that someone would know?

IMC (and probably based on a mis-reading of the Orog / Goblin card that comes with the boxed set), but I've always played that a set of (small) antlers are as much a part of the Orog as it's oversized tusks. Now that I think of it, it's probably more that I thought that such an inconvenient natural item to have for fighting with melee weapons would suit such a proud / egotistical species.

[geeman]

At 11:10 AM 12/13/2005, ausrick wrote:

>Just saw a picture of one under their entry in the downloadable BRCS
>playtest. It looked as I remembered except it had brownish
>skin. Also, from what I could tell it had what looked to be a
>spangenhelm with maybe an arabian/asian flair and antlers. . . Where
>would an entirely subterranian race get stag antlers? The picture I
>remember from the past had them too. Underdark Stag? or is there a
>story behind this that someone would know?

That`s really funny. I`d never given it much thought before, but
you`re quite right. Antlers wouldn`t be very helpful when trying to
squirm around underground through tight quarters. Of course, in D&D
there isn`t really any penalty for such a thing, but realistically it
would probably be a problem. Some comments:

1. Orogs aren`t an entirely underground species. In fact, they have
some rather large above ground nations--just not any in Anuire, where
they are relegated to the depths of the earth. It has been presented
that the dwarves of Baruk-Azhik are fighting a losing war with the
orogs, but it might actually be the other way around, or the tide of
the war shifting in favor of the orogs might be a recent thing. The
orogs might be ones who have been hard-pressed. They would prefer to
live above ground, but are forced to live as they do by other
Anuirean races, particularly the dwarves of BA.

2. Maybe orogs have taken to the underground fairly recently in their
history--in the last few thousand years. After developing in the
open surface of Cerilia their war with dwarves, elves and humans led
to them being forced deeper into the earth. That would seem the most
likely rationale for their strange physical attributed in relation to
underground living.

3. Their antlers need not really be THAT big. Such things can, after
all, break or be trimmed, sharpened, etc. Those orogs who live above
ground might find pride or even vanity in their horns, but the ones
who fight with the dwarves of Baruk-Azhik might lose theirs as part
of their underground existence. They might even cut them off--an act
of supreme humiliation--in order to survive underground. I can
picture a whole system of ritualistic antler trimming as part of a
ceremony that marks an orog warriors passage into manhood (oroghood?)
in which he swears never to allow his antlers to grow fully while his
people are suppressed. This would help explain their hatred of those
who dwell above ground, or who force them to live below the surface.

4. The population of orogs that live in the mountains under BA and
the lands of the Chimaera are completely undocumented. We have no
idea what their population might be. I suspect they must exist in
numbers that are roughly equal if not a little larger than those of
the dwarves of BA since they are supposedly winning that war against
the dwarves, but since that war has been going on for a very long
time it is possible that something else is a factor in that
process. It`s a fairly standard fantasy theme that the farther one
delves into the depths of the earth the more likely one is to run
into bigger, nastier things. Perhaps the orogs have found something
that has led to their resurgence in the battle against the dwarves?

Gary

[Fizz]

I'll check the picture from the original boxed set when i get home, but it seems to me the antlers were part of a helmet, not the orog itself.

-Fizz