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In addition to Sir Kickley's excellent points concerning D&D (what a memory you have!), MERP & some other games have tweaked Orcs. One of the things you can do is name the tribes, & thus develop traits that pertain to each tribe.

One example is to include different crests emblazoned on their shields or banners. Note this passage from Sam's exploration of Cirith Ungol: Two liveries Sam noticed, one marked by the Red Eye, the other by a Moon disfigured with a ghastly face of death; but he did not stop to look more closely.

Another example is to give them a simple touch, such as Fire Orcs that paint a single red line around their arrows to terrify their victims, or tactics that reflect their origins.

Here are some of the ones I've written-up if it helps - they're in two different groups, as it were (Eriador & the North on the one hand, & Mordor & the South on the other ).

Orc ceremonies include the burning of foul-smelling substances, the beating of great drums, and the clangor of bronze bells, together with blood sacrifices. Their places of worship are old, filthy, and dark, adorned by grisly bones and skulls (their crests are rampant upon the sickly night unless otherwise noted):

• Uruk-ghâshoth (Fire Orcs)—Carn Dûm (Red Fortress—Leaping tongue of flame)
• Uruk-ongrum (Skull Orcs)—Mount Gundabad (The pale Iron Skull)
• Uruk-bagronk (Creeping Doom)—Mount Gundabad (A dagger dripping blood)
• Uruk-burzum (Darkness-bringers)—Moria (The Black Chasm—Two crossed red scimitars)
• Uruk-gurhoth (Death Orcs)—Moria (The Black Chasm—A purple bat)
• Uruk-durbatulûk (Orcs of the Serpent)—Cirith Forn en Andrath (The High-climbing Pass of the North—A great Black Adder upon plum)
• Uruk-ngaurhoth (Wolfin)—Mount Gram (A lurid green ravening wolf’s maw)


• Uruk-Guniga (Orcs of Rage)—Gorgoroth (Plateau of Terror—The Red Eye upon a field of night, which they still wear out of reverent fear of the Dark Lord)
• Uruk-Gor (Orcs of Dread)—Mirkwood (Red snake entwined within a skull)
• Scara-hai (Orcs of the Green Claw)—Durthang (Dark Oppression—Green Claw)
• Uruk-Strigurth (Orcs of Creeping Death)—Imlad Morgul (the Vale of Sorcery—Bloody knife on a field of deadly nightshade)
• Uruk-Burzrik (Orcs of the Black Ash)—Seregost (Tower of Blood) and Nargroth (Fire Caves—Mount Doom erupting)

So again - if you're okay not going strictly with gospel of Middle-earth, I suggest using some other game supplements (Orcs of Red Hand, or Orcs of Harn, or Midnight, or Pathfinder goblins, etc), and borrow those ideas and develop some of the tribes of orcs in your game.

Lord of the Rings Online have various orc tribes located in different places. They do look a bit differently and they even have different fighting style tendencies. But they all die the same when my Warden meets them.

Mim wrote:
• Uruk-ghâshoth (Fire Orcs)—Carn Dûm (Red Fortress—Leaping tongue of flame)
• Uruk-ongrum (Skull Orcs)—Mount Gundabad (The pale Iron Skull)
• Uruk-bagronk (Creeping Doom)—Mount Gundabad (A dagger dripping blood)
• Uruk-burzum (Darkness-bringers)—Moria (The Black Chasm—Two crossed red scimitars)
• Uruk-gurhoth (Death Orcs)—Moria (The Black Chasm—A purple bat)
• Uruk-durbatulûk (Orcs of the Serpent)—Cirith Forn en Andrath (The High-climbing Pass of the North—A great Black Adder upon plum)
• Uruk-ngaurhoth (Wolfin)—Mount Gram (A lurid green ravening wolf’s maw)


• Uruk-Guniga (Orcs of Rage)—Gorgoroth (Plateau of Terror—The Red Eye upon a field of night, which they still wear out of reverent fear of the Dark Lord)
• Uruk-Gor (Orcs of Dread)—Mirkwood (Red snake entwined within a skull)
• Scara-hai (Orcs of the Green Claw)—Durthang (Dark Oppression—Green Claw)
• Uruk-Strigurth (Orcs of Creeping Death)—Imlad Morgul (the Vale of Sorcery—Bloody knife on a field of deadly nightshade)
• Uruk-Burzrik (Orcs of the Black Ash)—Seregost (Tower of Blood) and Nargroth (Fire Caves—Mount Doom erupting)

This is precisely what I was talking about. I believe these are very similar if not the same as those found in LotRO.

Essentially orcs found bearing the white-hand are different than those of Mordor, or those from Carn Dum. Those three specifically have better leadership and are more organized and tougher.

Then there are various lesser tribes scattered about usually ravaging countrysides and hiding out in holes all of the place. They are much less driven and have little leadership or direction and lack organization and are typically easier opponents. They're more like raving lunatics, and chaotic bouts of mayhem, and rampaging: livestock slaughter, small farmstead attacks, roadway assaults, etc.

But they're all named as belonging to various tribes - in the same nomenclature as Mim's suggestions above.


Thanks, Mim for providing those details; that would go a long way towards colorizing a campaign and various encounters.

Thanks Mim. This is what I was looking for, it makes them more interesting than just put them in the world for Heroes to kill em off. Just to make them more interesting. But still try to stay close to Tolkien orcs. This was a great write-up, thank you Mim and Sir Kicley.

I actually require players to specify which Orc Tribe in my games, as I feel 'Enemy Lore: Orcs' is too broad. One player has Enemy Lore: Orcs of the Mtns of Shadow as a result. I recall that MERP did identify the different orc tribes, I think in the Gorgoroth module.

Robin S.

Now it's time for Francesco to appear and say "orc tribes get some coverage in the upcoming The Heart of the Wild".

roodie wrote:Now it's time for Francesco to appear and say "orc tribes get some coverage in the upcoming The Heart of the Wild".

Or a new product.....

"Scourge of the Wild"

roodie wrote:Now it's time for Francesco to appear and say "orc tribes get some coverage in the upcoming The Heart of the Wild".

+100

From what I know and I specialise in Dwarf lore and Beorning Lore but I will give this a shot.

Dwarves are not going to like orcs which inhabit or took over Dwarf holds which would include Orcs from:

Gundabad the mountain where Durin the Deathless awoke, now a stronghold of the orcs,dwarves have a special hatred of the orcs from here.

Moria-Obvious why dwarves would hate orcs from Khazad-Dum

Grey Mountains-Parts of these mountains hold orcs as well as dragons/drakes which still dwell there

Elves and the Woodsmen of Wilderland:

Any Orc from Dol Guldur for the elves and that plus orcs from goblintown for the woodsmen

Beornings

Any Orc from the Misty Mountains

Hobbits

Orcs from Mount Gram(in case you have a player who wants to play a hobbit slayer)

Rangers and Elves of Rivendell

Pretty much any of the above more attention paid to angmar and mount gram orcs as well as orcs in the misty mountains

Agreed. This is a good way to develop Dwarves & how they really feel about Orcs. I'm going to use these points.