older editions" did not have the same goal as we see more modern games having. Back in ye olden days of yore, orcs were EVIL AND SAVAGE! (Evil: "Morally bad/wrong; causing harm, pain, suffering" // Savage: "Wild; not civilized; barbaric"). They were specifically 'designed' so that it was an automatic "Kill them" response for the Players because from the PC's perspectives...any orc would ALWAYS seek to raid, pillage, kill and eat anyone or anything (including other orcs). The "goal" of the orcs being described as "evil and savage" had nothing to do with anything other than setting it up in-game for the human players at the table to not feel bad about killing them and taking their stuff.
Same with any other "evil race" described similarly. They were there to be KILLED not, talked to or reasoned with...because, in the context of the game, they were monsters. And the definition of a "monster" in early editions was basically "inherently evil, cruel and vindictive, with a desire to cause pain, suffering and death" (basically, look at the Evil alignment).
So much of this is factually inaccurate.
Here is the definition of
monster from the AD&D PHB (p 40):
It is necessary to stress that the usage of the term "monster" is generic for any creature encountered during the course of adventuring. A monster can be exactly what the name implies, or it can be a relatively harmless animal, a friendly intelligent beast, a crazed human, a band of dwarves, a thief - virtually anything or anyone potentially threatening or hostile.
When your referee indicates your character has encountered a monster, that simply indicates a confrontation between your character and some type of creature is about to take place. The results of such a meeting will depend on many factors, including the nature of the monster and your character's actions. All monsters are not bad . . .
Here is the (briefer but similar) definition from Moldvay Basic (p B29):
Any creature that is not a player character is called a monster. Monsters may be friendly or unfriendly, wild or tame, normal beasts or fantastic. The DM will choose, from these monsters, the friends and enemies of the players.
The same book has the following glossary entry (p B63): "
monster - Any creature or character not controlled by a player."
And from the Rules Compendium (p 152):
A "monster," technically, is any creature that is not a player character. This chapter describes many different types of monsters . . . Monsters are not always ravenous beasts that automatically attack PCs and ferociously fight to the death. Monsters may be friendly or unfriendly, wild or tame, normal or bizarre. Some will be random, dangerous encounters; some will be long-term enemies of the PCs; some will be one-time or permanent allies of the PCs. The Monster Reaction Table from Chapter 7 can be used to determine how monsters respond to the PCs at first if desired.
As well as these generic definitions, there are the rules for reaction rolls, which include modifications for conflicting alignments and racial preferences (which only make sense if combat is not the default); the example of play in Moldvay Basic (p B28) where the PCs try to parley with the hobgoblins; the rules for using Orcs and other "humanoids" as miners in the DMG; the rules for hiring Orc and Goblin mercenaries (including Goblin wolf-riders) in Marsh/Cook Expert (p X22); etc.
There is nothing in these various versions of classic D&D that entails or even suggests that Orcs and the like are to be KILLED rather than talked to or reasoned with. That may have been how you played the game, but it does not have textual support.