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Message: <blockquote data-quote="The-Magic-Sword" data-source="post: 8758134" data-attributes="member: 6801252">In Children of the Wind, "Orc" is a slur given to the Onika by their elven foes, the Onika themselves are a subset of the Vahar (who use half orc stats, but represent a common ancestor to all Goblin-like peoples instead of a hybrid) who defied the imperial rule of the empire of Vahako by retreating to the mountains, where they began to worship Oni spirits who taught them the arts of war and altered them via their blessings. Onika means 'Disciples of the Oni' in their language-- the Oni themselves in Pathfinder are typically giants and much more magical, so the Onika take on the more direct identity of horned humanoids with leathery skin (the defining feature of the Vahar descended ancestries.) The blessings and training of the Oni make them strong, and they emphasize smaller groups of singular fighters who can take on larger numbers of soldiers, especially in the mountain passes they call home.There are 7 Oni peaks, each of which has its own type of Oni and corresponding <a href="https://2e.aonprd.com/Heritages.aspx?Ancestry=19" target="_blank">Onika heritage</a> that make up the population that live on and around those sacred mountains. One of the more popular elements of their lore, in terms of my players, has been their funerary rights:The elves believe them to be savage cannibals, but in reality, when a member of their community dies, their body is ritually prepared for consumption, and a lavish feast serves as their funeral where their loved ones and friends consume them, while telling stories of and toasting to the greatness of their fallen. It is believed that their greatness will rub off on those who participate in the funeral, and it is also believed that skill and greatness confer superior taste, so Onika spend their lives striving for greatness knowing they will someday be consumed by their loved ones, a parting gift to their community. In my setting, this is where the expression that a skilled and experienced person is 'seasoned' comes from. I did this partially as a deconstruction of 'Orcish Savagery' but also a nod to Shuten Doji and other traditional Oni stories that feature cannibalism.Here are three examples of the entry write ups for their mountains:[ATTACH=full]260054[/ATTACH][ATTACH=full]260055[/ATTACH][ATTACH=full]260056[/ATTACH]</blockquote>

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