Orc Clans of the Eastern Cruth Mountains

art by Stanton Feng, source

The orcs of the Cruth Mountains have long been the most persistent and frequent enemies of the halflings of the Five Shires. As with orcs in other regions they band together in clans that consist of multiple tribes, with tribes being from 20 to 100 individuals and usually gathered into a single lair, whereas a clan may have tribes over quite an area and may include up to 1500 individuals. Clans typically have a central stronghold where the clan chief presides with his advisors and where tribal leaders deliver reports and receive orders. 

Here are some of the most significant orc tribes in the mountains north of Eastshire. This is by no means exhaustive. My homebrew rules for orc shaman and orc warrior NPCs can be found in this post. 

The Flaming Axes Clan

Headquarters: Shatterpick Mine (former dwarf tin mine)

Population & Fighting Strength: 450 (300 warriors)

Notable Troop Types: 

• The Brethren of Gruumsh (elite unit of 2nd level orc warriors, numbering 25. They listen to their shaman Wazzugga the Blessed and are led by Malrax)
• Headslammer’s Slammers: 10 ogres and 1 ogre leader sometimes hired as mercenaries. 

Notable NPCs: 

• Wazzugga the Blessed: 9th level orc shaman. He is convinced he is receiving visions of war and conquest from the Great Orc Gruumsh himself. He is unhappy with his chief’s timid leadership
• Zothog Hinslayer: 9th level orc warriors, leader of the Flaming Axes clan. He is naturally cautious and not attacking until victory is close to certain. He rides his pet cave bear Rendclaw into battle. He is getting fed up with his chief shaman’s rantings about launching immediate invasions of the Shires. 
• Malrax of the Brethren of Gruumsh: 7th level orc warrior, wielder of the two-handed sword Fleshripper. He is a true believer of Gruumsh and is on Wazzugga’s side, and is considering how to take the chief’s throne, either by open challenge or by treachery.  

The Red Spears Clan

Headquarters: Overcliff Tower (crude orc-built tower on top of steep precipice)

Population & Fighting Strength: 600 (400 warriors) + 40 undead

Notable Troop Types: 

• Varrath’s Dead Company (about 40 animated skeletons and zombies under Varrath Ghostspeaker’s command). 
• Red Spears Spear-orcs. About half of the Orc warriors are equipped with spears and trained to set spears and fight in close formation.  

Notable NPCs:

• Gornax the Brute: 10th level Orc Warrior with 18 Strength & 16 Constitution. Nominal leader of the Red Spears clan. He can defeat most living foes, even hill giants and trolls, but fears the supernatural and respects his shaman, nearly always listening to his shaman’s advice. 
• Varrath Ghostspeaker: 11th level Orc Shaman. Varrath has visited the tomb of Shordoth and is more interested in the force of Chaos than the orc immortal Gruumsh. He is interested in necromancy and has acquired some unholy items that help him command the undead. He finds it easy to manipulate his chief, Gornax the Brute, and considers him a useful figurehead. 
• Dalgosh: 6th level orc warrior. More intelligent than Gornax. Dalgosh has spoken with members of the Circle of Forgotten Secrets about hiring the Red Spear orcs as mercenaries. Varrath has not directly intervened but does not trust the human mages either.   

The Hill-Stomper Clan

Headquarters: Pikehead Camp (palisade & ditch on hill top with wooden buildings) not far from Darokin

Population & Fighting Strength: 650 (430 warriors) + 200 kobold slaves

Notable troop types: 

• Kobold Slingers. Those kobolds trusted with weapons are generally used as scouts and skirmishers, equipped with slings and long daggers. Currently there are 40 of them. 
• Worg Riders: About 15 of the most elite warriors (3rd level orc warriors) ride worgs into battle. 

Notable NPCs:

• Eegorn Warhunter: 8th level orc warrior. Eegorn has begun a process rather unusual for orcs - trade with certain humans. Such humans are usually amoral and sometimes aligned to Chaos. This means that Eegorn can get better weapons and armour. He has recently got kobolds to mine gems from local seams and selling the gems to these humans for gold. 
• Norstrol Swordbreaker: 6th level orc warrior. Leader of the largest tribe within the Hill-Stomper Clan, Norstrol is not interested in trade and thinks that any non-orcs should be attacked. However, he keeps being put back in his place by the chief, Eegorn. 
• Barrvoss: 6th level orc shaman. Barrvoss is not sure about his chief’s new business ventures. As a follower of Gruumsh, Barrvoss believes in bloodshed and conquest, but he can also see the benefits of prosperity. He has had several non-violent interactions with chaos cultists and although he is not going to convert to their cause, he can see they can be useful allies. 

The Screaming Raven Clan

Headquarters: Raven Roost, a large natural cave complex halfway up a mountain, with many traps and pitfalls. However, deeper in the cave are a roost of Deep Glaurants who have started attacking the orcs

Population and fighting strength: 750 (500 warriors) + 50 kobold slaves. 

Notable Troop Types: 

• Raven Archers (about 100 warriors from all the component tribes are trained with shortbows and arrows)
• Raven Slayers: 15 experienced orc warriors (2nd level) with better than average dexterity (13 dex, +1 to hit with missiles and -1 to AC) armed with longbows.
• Gannish’s Rockhurlers (30 orcs and kobolds trained and equipped with ballistae and onager catapults)

Notable NPCs:

• Scarrag The Angry: 10th level orc warrior. Scarrag has found himself having to fight two separate opponents, the halflings of the shire and the Deep Glaurants who have taken a dislike to his orcs. 
• Gannish the Clever: 7th level orc shaman. Gannish has spent time with the mysterious Modrigswerg (molder dwarves) of the Northern Reaches and has learned much about craftsmanship and contraptions from them. He now oversees the crews for several siege weapons and has organised the construction of traps guarding the clan's caves. 

The Hungerers

Headquarters: The Bone Pit, a large natural cave in the mountains with excavated extensions. Decorated with lots of bones. 

Population and Fighting Strength: 500 (340 warriors) + 20 ogres + 30 gnolls

Notable troop types: 

• 40 orc berserkers (1st level orc warriors) & 20 battle ragers (2nd level orc warriors) who never check morale and never retreat, getting +1 to damage like human berserkers
• Droog’s Hackers: 10 ogres + 1 ogre leader equipped with huge battleaxes (1d10+2 damage)

Notable NPCs

• Hraak the Eyegouger: 7th level orc shaman. Hraak has spent time in the Altan Tepes along side The Ravening Maw cult and has picked up their beliefs and gruesome traditions and brought them over to his tribe in the Cruth Mountains. As far as orcs go he is very charismatic and has swayed most of the Hungerer clan to his newfound cult, even changing the name (formerly they were the Broken Boulder clan). Every full moon he organises a horrible feast where their slain enemies and other hapless victims are devoured. 
• Marvorg: 6th level orc warrior. Marvorg is nominally the chief of the clan but he has conceded that now Hraak is running the show. But as a Gruumsh-following traditionalist, he is not comfortable with these new-fangled beliefs. Marvorg is uncomfortable with cannibalism: orcs eating humans, halflings and even kobolds is understandable, but orcs eating other orcs just seems wrong. He is considering leaving the Hungerers clan for a less radical one; Perhaps the Hill-Stompers will accept him?
• Reshhee the One-Eyed: 5th level orc shaman. As a Gruumsh-believing traditionalist, Reshhee is not happy about Hraak and the Ravening Maw cult. She is also a female orc shaman which is not common, and is facing prejudice from other orcs who want to keep their females firmly under control. Unlike Marvorg she is not intending to leave but to kill Hraak and re-establish the old order of Gruumsh. 
• Droog the Paunch: Ogre leader. Droog is not an orc, but he is Hraak’s strongest ally, and he and his ogre gang are more than happy to brutally suppress dissent within the clan and promptly devouring those slain. His epithet is as a result of his prodigious appetite. 

The Unhallowed Tomb of Shordoth

History

Over one and a half thousand years ago there was a powerful sorcerer of Chaos known as Shordoth. He made his home in the Cruth Mountains between Highshire and the town of Dolos in the Republic of Darokin. Despite his dark allegiances, he kept a low profile and was content with influencing rather than conquering the lands nearby, though his instigations were often baleful. It is claimed by his followers that he encouraged the discord and infighting among the halflings that led to the Clanstrife of 811BC where the hin descended into civil war. It is also believed that he encouraged King Thrail of the orc tribes to invade the halflings’ lands in 802BC. For the next fifty years Shordoth tried to coordinate the forces of Chaos, particularly orcs and gnolls, to subjugate the hin while he stayed hidden in his mountain lair. Humans, dwarves and even corrupted halflings also served as his agents and footsoldiers while kobolds worked on his stronghold. However, in 740BC he was slain by brave halfling heroes after his identity and activities were revealed to the leaders of the Five Shires by the spy Meriadoc Hardbottle. 

Source

His surviving followers placed him to rest in a tomb under his mountain stronghold and there his mortal remains have stayed. However, his corrupt influence endures, particularly within his stronghold. There are a number of orc tribes around his stronghold who still fear the place, and orc shamans will refer to it as the tomb of the ancient master. Many of his followers who died in that fortress have become undead, while chaotic creatures are now drawn to the ruins.   

The Surface Ruins

The stronghold of Shordoth has a significant presence on the surface, with the central keep, curtain walls and wall towers still mostly standing though many of the smaller buildings have completely collapsed. The Ragged Eyesocket tribe of gnolls are based in one of the towers and gnolls will patrol the rest of the surface buildings unless there are more dangerous monsters than they can handle - the gnolls avoid the central keep for this reason where a Red Ogre and a number of normal ogres have made their lair.  

The Dungeons and its visitors

Beneath the main keep the first level of dungeons is believed to contain many barracks and guardian monsters, while the second dungeon level holds Shordoth’s extensive libraries and laboratories. The third level is the catacomb where Shordoth and many of his faithful minions were buried, as well as shrines to the cosmic force of Chaos, foul chaotic immortals and Chaos Princes. This third level has a powerful unhallowed aura that disrupts the spellcasting of lawful creatures and also makes them both fearful and nauseous. Even clerics cannot turn undead creatures as they would in other dungeons, and given the wraiths and spectres in these catacombs this is a dangerous situation for mortal adventurers to enter. 

And yet mortals do still enter. Some are simply after treasure, both mundane and magical - a risky proposition though one or two adventurers have emerged with gems, jewellery and unusual magic items.  Some are followers of Chaos, sent by their patrons or masters to retrieve books and scrolls from the libraries or strange ingredients and equipment from the alchemical laboratories. These chaotic folk are often completing tests of service, and proving themselves capable and worthy of continued patronage.  Because they are of chaotic alignment they are not as affected by the unhallowed aura, although they generally do not get a free pass from the monsters and undead. The rarest type of explorers are those trying to put a final end to the evil influence of Shordoth. None have succeeded, and only one has made it out alive. 

The Circle of Forgotten Secrets 

The Circle of Forgotten Secrets is a relatively small group of chaotic mages and their followers, not based in Shordoth’s keep itself but in a manor house in the Cruth Mountains nearby. They claim to be the successors to Shordoth’s apprentices and followers, and the circle is intent on both learning Shordoth’s secret research (hence occasional expeditions into the dungeon libraries and laboratories) and carrying on Shordoth’s plan of encouraging the humanoid tribes to disrupt and possibly overrun lawful civilisations such as the Five Shires. Like their dark hero, the Circle of Forgotten Secrets is unlikely to reveal itself, preferring to operate behind the scenes. 

The most senior member of the Circle is Druusheena (20th level human mage), a powerful mage exiled from Darokin for her unacceptable interest in the Cult of Chaos and abhorrent experiments on kidnapped citizens. 

Her second in command is Zorpheus, (16th level human Twisted Summoner) a Glantrian wizard who tried (and failed) to kill and usurp his master using summoned monsters. 

Farloth the Bloody is a Chaos Warrior (16th level) who dreams of leading legions of Chaos to devastate his Darokin homeland which he hates with a passion. 

Ralsheeni (8th level halfling) is their main spy. She is bitter with her fellow halflings for what she sees as unfair treatment and disrespect as well as being passed over for appointments in the Shires. Her fellow halflings would point out her previous awful behaviour as their real reason. Nonetheless, she will often visit the Five Shires, keeping a low profile, and then report back to the Circle. 

 

My thoughts about Gaz8: The Five Shires and high-level Halflings

 

Art by Clyde Caldwell, source

I like this one. Interestingly it is written by Ed Greenwood, who of course is famous for being the creator of the Forgotten Realms. It's interesting that TSR also asked him to work on other worlds such as Mystara here, and I think he rose to the challenge well. 

It's difficult to write about D&D halflings without thinking about Tolkein's hobbits. The name of the nation, the Five Shires, is a clear homage to the Shire where Frodo and Bilbo Baggins lived and where Tolkein's most famous adventures (The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings) started. So are these halflings just hobbits with a name changed for copyright reasons? Not exactly. There are similarities, with the rolling countryside and sylvan forests. But these halflings are tougher and are more willing to both defend themselves and explore the wider world. In fact there is a halfling militia, halfling commandos/vigilantes known as Fangs and halfling pirates on whom there is a whole chapter. This differentiates them from Tolkein’s hobbits sufficiently to grab my interest. 

And they do need to defend themselves. The biggest and most obvious threat is the orcs of the Cruth Mountains. Throughout the history of the land the orcs have raided, invaded and occasionally tyrannised the halflings. However, the hin (the halflings' name for themselves) have also had major problems with both humans and dwarves. The dwarves are no longer a substantial influence in the area. The most significant human threat is from the Black Eagle Barony in the east, just over the border in Karameikos, though pirates on the Sea of Dread (from Ierendi and possibly Minrothad and other coastal realms) have also been an occasional problem, particularly around maritime trade. Halflings have also had horrible experiences with mages of Glantri, whom they now fear and distrust. Although it can be assumed that orcs and halflings are automatically enemies, the halflings of the Five Shires have enough friendly and business interactions with humans that many more opportunities for intrigue and diplomacy can be found. Is that merchant from Karameikos actually a spy for the Black Eagle Barony? Is it possible to persuade the pirate captain to leave the coast of Seashire alone? The wandering Glantrian wizard has generated a lot of suspicion but is he responsible for some disappearances in nearby villages? 

And despite mostly being peaceful villages and rolling countryside, the Five shires have their own collections of carnivorous monsters, particularly the Deep Glaurant. Unlike some gazetteers, the opportunities for adventures and dungeons are plentiful in the borderlands of the Five Shires, and I am glad for that, even if the resident halflings have reservations.  

High level Halflings

One of the aspects of halflings explored in this gazetteer is what happens with halflings after 8th level. According to the B/X rules, halflings can reach a maximum level of 8 (Sheriff, or in this gazetteer Knight-Guardian). This is a severe restriction even in Expert-level campaigns where halflings will find themselves left behind while human characters are continuing on to name level, and even elves and dwarves have a bit more growth available. There are two possible answers to this. Firstly the attack ranks and accompanying abilities detailed in the Companion Rules are a solution for those halflings that prefer to keep a martial focus and develop their weapon skills. Secondly this gazetteer introduces the Halfling Master, a sort of prestige class that gives halflings that qualify powers similar to druids. However, at least according to the Gazetteer these halfling masters are guardians of the Five Shires, not wandering adventurers. If DMs stick to this idea then perhaps becoming a Master is not a good option for a halfling PC hoping to join his high-level adventuring companions in far off lands and deep dungeons. If the DM drops this requirement then Masters could become a bit too popular, eclipsing the martial halflings progressing through attack ranks. I have not quite decided on my prefered way of handling this. 

This does sort of reflect my post on high level elves where borrowing ideas from Gaz5: Elves of Alfheim, I went with the idea of high-level elves progressing as either Elven Lords (with relatively simple advancement) or Elven Wizards (who require specialist training in Alfheim to progress to the next level).  What if halfling masters could wander from the Shire and join their human and elven adventuring party, but when they are ready to level up they need to spend time (two months or so) in the Shires, training with their fellow masters?  If they don’t or cannot return to the Shires then their progression is paused. This seems like a reasonable compromise though I have not playtested it. 

Long-running followers of this blog might remember I created the Halfling Defender class long ago, a sort of fighter/cleric for halflings. But that was for Kaelaross, long before I got hold of this gazetteer. I have barely noted its existence since writing about Mystara, and as such I don’t think I’ll use it, at least not in Mystara. In some ways this is a bit of a pity. Dwarves have the standard dwarf warriors and also dwarf clerics (a class from Kaelaross that I have brought over to Mystara) while elves have their standard elf spellswords (casting magic user spells while wearing full armour) and the elven ranger. Halflings, at least at low levels, seem to just have one class to choose from. But seeing as Halfling Masters fulfil the role of halfling clerics, Halfling defenders now seem rather redundant. I shall ponder this but for the moment defenders are out, masters are in.