Bloodfist

Warrior Tribe
One of the three major tribes, the Bloodfist are the most war-like of the four Orcish tribes. Same as their other tribal cousins, the Bloodfist originated in the Eastern Steppes in northern Amenta and the neighboring regions of Thyris Nod. As the orcs of Antiquity split into separate tribes, the warriors remained banded together, forming the Bloodfist.

Physical Characteristics
Both in height and shoulder width, the Bloodfist are the largest of all the orcs. Their size is a result of a protein-rich diet and grueling physical training begining at puberty. Standing on average six feet, Bloodfist are bulky around the chest, arms and shoulders, carrying a dense and muscular upper-body. Their hair is normally long and dark, the color of pitch, and often matted or kept in dreadlocks. They have extended lower jaws, which display a row of bone-crunching teeth. Bloodfist skin tone is a muddy, dull gray.

Society
The society of the Bloodfist stands apart from the other Orcish tribes. The tribe is strictly made up of hunters and warriors. Warriors are typically hunters, but hunters do not have to be warriors. The hunters provide sustenance for the tribe and skin game to manufacture materials for clothing, accessories and shelter. The warrior role is specifically designed for going to war against any foe. All Bloodfist are trained as hunters during puberty, but only the strongest become part of the warrior class.

Bloodfist are patriarchal only in the sense that the role of Chief is reserved for males. Outside this role, any orc, either male or female, may join the warrior class if deemed skilled and strong enough. Once an orc becomes a member of the warrior class he/she no longer performs the responsibilities of a hunter and is deemed socially superior. Contrary to conventional wisdom, the females of the tribe choose mating partners. Mostly this is a primitive practice of sexual selection wherein the female chooses the best equipped male to impregnate her with a strong child. Once impregnation occurs the male is absolved of any social obligations related to caring for the mother or raising the child. Moreover, once giving birth, the mother is also absolved of any direct responsibility associated with the child. The child is reared by the tribe as a whole instead of by birth parents, a practice common among nearly all the orc tribes.

Religion
Unlike the other Orcish tribes, the Bloodfist devote themselves to a single deity: Vera'Tyr. Once believed to be a leader of the orcs before humanity appeared on Doa'Dane, Vera'Tyr (also called "The Shepherd") is worshiped as the strongest and purest of all orckind, and thus he is associated with divinity. Vera'Tyr classified as the Elder God of Bloodshed. The Bloodfist believe that the more blood they shed the closer they get to their deity, thus making them the most violent of the Orcish tribes.

Native Tongue: Orcish

Origins: Central Danic Steppes

Usage: The Orcish tongue is divided into three dialects based on tribal use: Antler dialect, Bloodfist dialect, Talisman dialect. All three dialects only differ in lexicon, so mutual communication between the tribes is possible. Since the Bloodfist dialect appears to be the oldest and most prolific, it is the dialect taught to outsiders. It is believed that the orcs once had an ideographic system of writing, a system that predates anything made by either human or elf. Supporters of this theory assert the orcs once recorded their language on clay and sandstone tablets before a catastrophic event nearly caused their extinction. Tablet fragments have been found, yet the majority of scholars claim the ideographs are unrelated to Orcish. There is currently no written form of Orcish language.

Kinship: No known intelligence language from Doa'Dane exists similar to Orcish. Until such a discovery, the language is considered unique and only shared among the orc tribes.

Restrictions: The orc tribes reside in parts of Amenta and along the borders of Thyris Nod. For the most part they are isolated and do not welcome visitors. For that reason Orcish may only be learned as a Ranger or if one attends Her Holy University at Milorvagr, where extensive studies of the language have been conducted in partnership with deciphering the tablets.

Bloodfist are not currently playable, even as a half-orc.