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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Yaarel" data-source="post: 9225294" data-attributes="member: 58172">In Forgotten Realms, Orog culture and possibly Orok culture are advanced civilizations of the Orc species.The Orogs are the Orcs of an Underdark region below the Anauroch Desert. They descend from an ancient migration of the Skullbiter tribe, a Mountain culture from the World Spine. Orogs built numerous Underdark cities in volcanic caverns that are lush with fungal life, which they farm. They are known for advanced metallurgy, especially their magic greatswords, greataxes, and spiky armor. There is a network of traderoutes among their cities and elsewhere. Today, there are also Orog cities on the surface, such as one near the ruins of elven Myth Drannor in Cormanthor by the Sea of Fallen Stars. Some Orog communities sail the Astral Plane in spelljammers. In the Nether Mountains north from the High Forest, relationships between a local imperialist Orog outpost and the resistant nomadic Mountain Orcs are uneasy.The Orok is an Orc culture that remains obscure to the sages of Faerun. The hidden elven city of Callidae is known to include Orok citizens, perhaps a thousand or so, among the city population of about 50,000, whose 40,000 are Elves of the Aeven-drow culture. Callidae takes pains to stay unknown, and their exact location remains uncertain, except to be in the arctic glaciers of northernmost Faerun. Judging by the report of minority populations at Callidae − Orok Orcs, Ulutian Humans, and Kurit Dwarves − namely all arctic populations, the Orok are likely an arctic Orc civilization, who are east from the World Spine, perhaps in the arctic glaciers along the Ice Spires mountain range.The Ice Spires encircle a geothermically warm lowland that is remote from the rest of Faerun. The lowland inhabitants are the Human Kingdom of Hartsvale, and including Firbolg citizens. The Humans are an Illuskan culture. In earlier times, the Humans violently conquered the warmer land from the various Giant species there. Today, there is an uneasy peace between the Humans in the lowlands and the Giants in the surrounding mountains.The Orok civilization of Orcs is possibly advanced, coexisting among the other Giants along the Ice Spires. Glacial Frost Giants, volcanic Fire Giants, Ogres, and Underdark Fomorians, each developed civilizations with various magics there. The Ice Spire culture of Ogre tends to be cave-dwellers known for primal magic and mastery of runes. The Orok civilation of Orcs, who are Humanoid Giants, would be there in the Ice Spire mountain range, known to the other Giants, but with little or no contact with the Humans in Hartsvale, thus remaining incognito to the rest of Faerun. While other Giant species previously inhabited the lowlands as well, the Oroks were always only in the mountains of the Ice Spires. The Orok would remain independent of the Giant Ordning, but with cooperative relations with the Ice Spire Giants.The Human royal family of Hartsvale is rumored to have partial Giant ancestry.Here is a link to a huge, official, detailed, map of <a href="https://media.wizards.com/2015/images/dnd/resources/Sword-Coast-Map_HighRes.jpg" target="_blank">NW Faerun</a>. It is from 2015 Wizards of the Coast for the 5e Sword Coast regional setting of Forgotten Realms. Most of the Orcs on planet Toril are in the northern area of this map, inhabiting north and west from the High Forest (in green). The Kingdom of Many Arrows is northmost toward the center, and Ice Spires are the entire mountain range east from it surrounding Hartsvale. (The Eastern Ice Spires are under the High Ice.) Anauroch is the vast desert (in yellow) where the Orog civilization thrives in its Underdark. The Rauvin Mountains (unlabled), where the Orc species likely originates, are the smaller mountain range north from the Nether Mountains, which is northeast from the High Forest.</blockquote>

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