"Kill all they send, and they will stop coming."
-Lt. Col. Nguyen Huu, We were soldiers.-
Intro: After some inspiration from the 'GW bursting at the seams again' thread of creating a sort of Goblin/Orcish Insurgency game, I decided to give it a shot, whether I will find any players to play as the opposition or invading forces is another matter! But I decided it was worth setting up a background and getting the figures together!! What rules I will use is another matter, but any suggestions would be great!
Miniatures:
Insurgents: Well given the shortage of Goblins and Orcs around here, it shall be a mixture. The Goblins, or a majority of, will be Games Workshop, done by either me, or the 'Boss'. The Orcs will all be done by the 'Boss' and are actually, older than me, so any help identifying where these orcs came from would be appreciated!
Elves: Mantic/Reaper Elves done by me, will be showing these tomorrow (fingers crossed).
The Green Frontier!
The Orcs of the Fenatian Valley's had for centuries been an isolated society. The large Mountains surrounding their homeland had helped greatly in keeping outsiders out. And for the most part, the Fenatian Orcs were grateful for it.
To the East of the Fenatian Valleys was a vast expanse of land known as the Steppes of Kethos. Roaming tribes of Centaurs, Satyr and Human Horse Tribes dominated this stretch of land, and, because of the mountains, rarely ventured near Fenatia nor even deemed the place worthy of plundering. To the north sat the Great Lakes; mostly a vast wooded wilderness with little in it save for the Human Domain of Cyrus, nestled in its own valley similar to Fentia, and conveniently inbetween the two Great Lakes of Capracia and Terus; an important trade route between the Western and Eastern civilisations.
The Fenatian Orcs rarely had to worry about the Kingdom of Cyrus either, the Humans and their 'colonials': enslaved Elves, Orcs and other beings, rarely saw Fenatia worthy of being probed for resources or farmland. Especially given the sizeable expanse of nothing in between them, the dangers and logistical issues it was never considered worth the effort.
South of Fenatia was in some cases a different story. For this land expanded into the many and varied human Kingdoms if one travelled long enough. And more often than not Human expeditionary forces of various peoples would often brave the Troll ridden passes leading to the Valley in search of trade or plunderable goods. But rarely did that ever pose a threat to Orcish sovereignty in Fenatia.
However, that all changed in the year 300 PE. For, in the East, beyond the mountains that separated the Fentian Valley with the rest of the world, grew none other than a great and powerful Empire. The Imperial High Elves had, after much turmoil, finally ended the Civil War over which family would form a new Dynasty and Ruling Elite. The new Ruling Family, the Amandan Dynasty, after securing their position with much bloodshed, quickly began plans for expanding the Empire.
Of these Plans, which involved a renewed attempt at subjugating the Kingdom of Cyrus, a new path way to the Steppes and a buffer zone between the Empire and the Southern Human kingdoms became a top priority.
This of course, meant that the Fenatian orcs soon found themselves in the wake of a large, invading Elven Army. Within a few weeks, the vast majority of Orcish villages and tribes had been decimated, either by Elven Dragons, or by Elven Scouts and Rangers: Elite troops who would always soften the enemy before the larger chunk of the force moved in.
However, the Elven Armies pursued their conquest of the Fentian Valley with such vigour and aggression that they made no attempt to send their forces to pursue the Orcs fleeing their destroyed homes. Nor did they think to send their troops into the greater areas of the mountains to decimate the always problematic Goblin Tribes. This error would in effect cost the Elves dearly, and soon, the scattered Orcish Tribes would quickly regroup, and after much 'negotiation' with their new goblin Neighbours, form the basis of an Insurgency, to regain Fenatia.
The First Tribe: The Gromaz Tribe.
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The Gromaz had dwelled within the southern regions of Fentia. Numerous in comparison to the other tribes, they were often more prone to having a warlike nature that dwarfed the already aggressive nature of other tribes. However the Fenatian Orc Tribes are an Orcish race unto themselves, and this should be explained first before continuing with the Gromaz. There are many types of orc, and many live hundreds if not thousands of miles from each other. Some orcs, are large, Brutish, bloodthirsty, such are the Orcs that dwell in the Breccan Wilds or along the Frozen faults. Other Orcs are more majestic in nature and in many ways have the civilised manner of a human or elf, whilst retaining a sinister tribal ferocity only an Orc can possess. The Fenatian orcs, one type of orc amongst many, however, are considered the bottom of the pile. They are Cowardly, often weak, stupid, and come in a variety many would consider a result of a fault in the gene pool. For instance, some have two heads, whilst others are the size of Goblins, some are built heavier than an ogre, whilst others have the physical strength of a Gnome. They are, in short, the rejects of the Orcish world.
The Gromaz tribe however, despite its often crippling variety of orcs, was not one to give in lightly, in Fentian Orc society, with so few Strong, Aggressive Orcs, there is little competition between them over who will be Chief, and these orcs would often form big gangs to bully the other orcs and to do battle with the bigger orcs of other tribes. At the Time of the invasion, the Gromaz Tribes Chief, Lord Gromaz the Unimaginative and his advisor Tibut the Unfortunate, had the very fortunate gift of having time to react to the Elven invasion, and quickly fled the Elven Dragons swooping in to decimate their home. Along the way Gromaz would plunder the stores of other Orcish tribes that had fled, or that had been left after the attacks if any. He quickly recruited the other orcs of other tribes (the vast majority of Bigger meaner orcs having been incinerated as they tried to fight of the Elven Dragons).
Soon Gromaz had a sizeable force he could call upon, and it would be Tibut who would soon implement the wonders of waging a very devious, cowardly yet effective insurgency campaign! A very Fenatian War it would be indeed!
After retreating into the mountains, Gromaz soon found himself beset by Trolls and Goblins, but soon found his tribe a new home, after jack booting a minor Goblin Tribe: The Spoutnoses into submission. He soon used this as his base of operations and began planning the overthrow of the Elven Imperialists and the conquering of all Fenatia to form his own mighty Empire!
However there are always drawbacks to any campaign, but this did not come in the form of logistics or discipline, Orcs never considered this a grave problem in the first place. Instead it came in the form of Gromaz's younger brother, an orc who even other Fenatian Orcs considered a waste of good green flesh and bone: Bruntus the Annoying. With everything going so well even Gromaz whos brain is mostly made of Green mush... Or mashed Peas, could foresee Bruntus surviving the Elven onslaught only to curse the Bulky Chief with incessant questioning and silly blunders, that would ultimately lead to a terrible migraine.
And every orc knows the only way to be rid of a migraine is, killing something, taking a club to ones own head, or pushing crayons up your nose.
Chief Gromaz the Unimaginative in all his glory, this orc lost his eye supposedly in battle (though some eyewitnesses claim it was a pointy branch) he is mean, he is green, and its debatable whether he truly is a killing machine. On the other hand, he has kept his tribe safe thus far, and has proven an able commander for Fenatian orc standards.
Tibut the Unfortunate. Many confuse this filthy cloaked shaman as a Goblin, that being the curse of a Fenatian orc. Tibut is often the target of bad jokes made by the other orcs in the Gromaz Clan, but he is extremely clever, something that is just as rare with Fenatian orcs. Many say Tibut wandered the world, and was once taught by some of the more majestic Orcish cousins who live beyond the lands of Cyrus. He is the mastermind of the Fenatian War Machine, but he himself wouldn't last a second in battle.
Bruntus the Annoying. This orc, the brother of Gromaz, is often found lounging about in the old tribal Warmeet, a place where Orcs of all levels of society would meet up, drink, fight, tell bad jokes and stories and generally do things most other beings would lose control of their gut over. He is useless in all aspects of orcish life save for being useless. Alas Gromaz still puts up with him, as for Tibut, despite Bruntus often being the source of Tibuts bullying, the shaman also wishes for the village idiot to keep breathing.
Captain Wolfmop Hide. Wolfmop Hide is Gromaz's right hand orc. Wolfmop was once a Fenatian Mercenary and served under the command of various Brigands and Raiders across the steppes, rumour even has it he was once hired by a band of Pirates, and has fought both the Mercians and the Hrodmen in the west. He is adept at barking out commands, and even has the ability to keep ogres in check, which is something.
Thanuk Warriors. The Thanuk are a rare breed of warrior orc within Gromaz society. They are in some ways the Knights of their civilisation, they just do not have any aspect that Human knights could relate to. They Bully, they murder, they lie, and are generally the most anti-social of all Fenatians. However, their expertise and heavy armour makes them the heavy elite troops of the Gromaz Tribe, and are often used as the Hammer upon the Anvil in ambushes on Elven troops.
When Tibut began reorganising the Gromaz forces, it was the orcs who could use a bow, and were quick footed that Tibut made a heavy emphasis on. Though fairly green (excuse the pun) at their job, the Gromazin Skirmishers and Sharpshooters are insurgents in the making. Often targeting Elven officers, Dragon riders, or simply carrying out hit and run, they try to damage any morale that the Battle hardened Elves may even vaguely need to keep fighting.
Logisticorcs. These orcs, are meant to the orcs who are just too unreliable in battle to bother putting in the field. Many would stay at home and act as what we would call 'civilians' but since the elves are quite adamant on wiping out all orcs, Gromaz has made sure all Orc, male or female, who cannot fight, is now apart of Tibuts 'Logisticorcs' or in Gromazin 'Logiz!' These lot are put to work keeping the war machine of their Chief going. However more often than not Real fighting orcs are needed to keep them working!
Ambushers! Who can fight an Insurgency without a good deal of hit and run? Gromazin Ambushers are not primarily designed to kill the enemy, though they will do so if the chance shows itself. These orcs, much smaller than other orcs, often hide in the undergrowth, in long grass, or in dark forests, they will hide in the brambles alongside narrow pathways, and wait for the enemy to pass by. They will then probably use their weapons to kneecap the foe, maim, injure and kill when possible, before withdrawing into the wilderness. They often act as the Avant-Garde of Fenatian forces, and are used to sabotage elven communications. However, the Ambushers also suffer the highest fatality rate of all the forces involved!
More ambushers!
More orc pics of the Gromaz tribe, the -other- orc tribe and more still to come!
24 June 2008, 02:14:33 PM
