Orcs of Casadia

Excerpt from Harsik’s Addendum to Cultural Observations of Casadia:

Judging by the nature of Casadians and Orcs, one would hardly expect the two to be compatible. Orcs are an oft-shunned people inclined towards chaos; Casadians are by the Code defined as defenders of order. In spite of these seemingly irreconcilable differences, the currents of the empire have brought these two people together. The details of this curious story shall be explored in the following passage.

The first interaction between Casadians and Orcs came in 210 A.I., when Casadian settlers first arrived in Kybalia. Less than a decade prior, the forces of the Chaos Orc met their end in the Battle of Dur Throm Post in southern Kybalia. A few Orcs had remained in Kybalia, forming small settlements in what would later become the realm of Pia Xao. The Casadians, having not seen Orcs before, treated them with a kindness not shown by their imperial brethren. These early interactions laid the foundations for friendliness between the two newly formed realms. The creation of neutral territory between the two realms strongly signaled a diplomatic relation with Orcs that differed greatly from the other realms, many of whom had not forgotten their losses at the hands of the Chaos Orc.

The first step towards the integration of Orcs into Casadian society came in the years after the Unraveling. Many of the Orcs in Pia Xao departed the empire to try to forge a new life in the ill-fated Ark. Those that remained found themselves disorganized and seeking purpose. In need of both, they turned to their Casadian neighbors. Casadia took in the Orcs, offering them better land and protection than could be found in Pia Xao. There were conflicts in these early days, to be sure, as the chaotic tendencies of the Orcs led to occasional trouble. It was not until the conversion of the Orcs to the Path of the Unburnt that the Orcs became comfortable in Casadian society.

It was this conversion that ultimately made Orcish integration possible. The ideological elements of the Path, along with the known effects of consuming bloodfyre, tempered the Orcs’ chaotic nature and gave them a sense of purpose. Orcs became some of the most fervent followers of the Path. Orcs found their strength, both spiritual and physical, venerated by their Casadian brothers and sisters, not feared as it often was. Orcs have since regularly found places among the elite of Casadia’s army, with Orcs often making up the lion’s share of the Guardian’s personal guard. Resentment for Orcs in the empire still lingers, but the Orcs of Casadia hope the respect they have earned in Casadia will one day be shared by the empire as a whole.