Orc is region-agnostic — the published habitat is 'Any'.

Orc

· · CR Unknown

Orc at CR 1/2 is logged as a medium humanoid; alignment chaotic evil. AC 13, 2 hit dice, 30-ft speed. Habitat: any. Senses include darkvision 60 ft. Speaks common and orc. Notable trait: Aggressive — As a bonus action, the orc can move up to its speed toward a hostile creature that it can see.. Sourced from Monster Manual (5e 2014).

Stat Block

Challenge Rating: Unknown
Type: —
Size: —
Alignment: —
Speed: —
Habitats: Any
Sources: Monster Manual (5e 2014)

Ecology

Orc clans inhabit high steppes, broken hill country, and frontier badlands, following game and raiding seasonally. They organize around war-chiefs whose authority lasts only as long as their strength does, and challenges for leadership are frequent and bloody. Orc settlements are semi-permanent: hide tents, stone hearths, weapon-racks, and meat-drying frames that can be packed and moved within a day. They breed swift, hardy mounts and maintain alliances with worgs and great wolves, treating these as honored partners rather than beasts.

Behaviour

Orcs value strength, candor, and decisive action above all. Cleverness is admired but suspected; long deliberation is considered weakness. They speak loudly, laugh easily, and grieve openly with public mourning rituals that can last days. Friendships among orcs are forged by shared danger and broken by perceived betrayal, with little middle ground. They hold grudges across generations but also honor debts of life-saving with equal permanence. Outside cultures often miss the depth of orc social bonds because they read directness as crudeness.

Origin

Orc creation myths cast their first ancestor as a warrior born from a mountain-god's wound, raised on bone-broth, and gifted with the rage to outlast every winter. Scholars suggest orcs evolved from a hardy proto-humanoid line that adapted to harsh climates earlier than other races. Whatever the truth, orc clans maintain oral histories stretching back centuries, recited by elders who hold a tribe's memory in chants tested against rival clans' versions to keep the record honest.

Any