We love orcs. They're our lovely little fighting monster featured in - one way or another - so many narratives. They can wear many different hats! The created as slaves to a dark master's army variety from Lord of the Rings. The noble shamanistic species corrupted by dark magics that we see in the Warcraft series. The brutal, fungal monsters created to be an army of insane football hooligans that we see in the Warhammer 40k universe. WAAAAGH! etc. A Face only a Mother could love. -- Orc mask, Grim Zombie. CC-by-SA. In all of these, they act as a narrative device. They're an antagonistic force that is meant to be battered against and survived. Or not, as the case may be. In TTRPG fantasy, the orc exists in an ecosystem of such forces. Demi-human or humanoid monsters are there in the various monster manuals to be faced as antagonists. But each one fits a distinct niche. Goblins are craven, sneaking thieves and murderers who make due on the fringes of society. Bugbears ar...
We didn't play Stonehell this weekend, unfortunately. But, that doesn't mean I can't share a fresh article! The party is six days into a fourteen day journey across the Highwind Plains. They've been very meticulous in tracking their rations, spending time foraging and hunting, finding fresh water, and setting camp. The GM is rolling for random encounters one or two times per day, and an encounter has come up three times in a row. The GM braces themselves, lets out a low breath, and rolls the d6. 6. Again. The thought of running another combat against 2d6 wolves is galling. But a good GM can weave together a story - maybe the grassy plains are rife with wolves who've been pushed out of the nearby wood by hunger and now roam wide, seeking to fill their bellies with whatever they can catch be it rabbit or man. But what if you want to run something that has a bit more of a mystery to it? Something perhaps that rewards the players for exploration with either a curiosit...