Zeroth

Why Were We Reincarnated as Orcs?!

@Guy0fV4lorAh yes, the drug addict who dug too deep! Subarashii, Guy-kun. Choose ONE!

The Eldritch Powers are not to be trifled with lightly, little one. You are far from ready...and I hope in this next world, you will exercise more caution. I have seen much worse than steel giants roam these lands, eager to devour the unwary...and far greater powers than even they still slumber beneath the surface...

• Type Analysis - Rank I - Choose a specific Type for this Skill: Creature, Magic, or Material. Upon analyzing a target, information relevant to the chosen type will be displayed. Higher Ranks will grant more detailed information. (For example, using Creature Analysis on a Slime would tell you the most generic, widely known information on Slimes as a species)
• Danger Scan - Rank I - Detect non-living threats within 10 feet, such as hazardous terrain, traps, etc. Remain acutely aware of them for 1 minute.
• Rune Scribe - Rank I - Normally, this Skill requires the User to be capable of at least one other Magic Skill. Use a personal writing system to imbue magical effects. At Rank I, the scribed Rune has only half the effectiveness of the original Spell and fades after 1 day. (For example, one could use this with a piece of parchment to produce a consumable Scroll of Fire Bolt--or place the Rune somewhere in the environment with certain spells to create a sort of booby-trap.)
• Earth Wave - Rank I - An AOE spell focused on the caster, with the associated Element's effect. At Rank I, Earth Wave creates a seismic movement within a 5 foot radius all around the caster, violently throwing targets affected by it to the ground where they're battered and pushed until they're outside the area of effect. Even if a target manages to keep their balance, moving over the terrain becomes very difficult.

Divine Spirit Jehanne

@ERode@King Cosmos@Lucius Cypher@ReusableSword@Crusader Lord@SubjectVision@Kazemitsu@Such A Birch@Unkown58 IC IS NOW UP!

Why Were We Reincarnated as Orcs?!

---

You died.

---

The crystal clear memory, the moment of your death, burns at the back of your vision in exquisite detail. In this image, time freezes and every minutia stands out for you to ponder at your leisure. Behind it, the rest of your memories stretch into infinity like an endless hall of mirrors. Somehow you know you will never forget any of it. Moments of bliss and despair, weakness and triumph alike, engraved into eternity.

It would seem that you are alone, in this “eternity.” Endless darkness stretches out in every direction. Yet you feel claustrophobic, as if sealed in a box waiting to be opened. You stand upon a floor, but to look down reveals no shadow nor footprint. You are not sure if the pristine, featureless expanse is emptiness, or shadow. You have a body, but your eyes, nose, and every nerve may as well be nonexistent for all the perception they provide.

Yet your ears hear a voice.

“Awaken, O bereaved spirit of another realm…”

THE VISION OF JEHANNE

The Gentle Lady

In black, there is now white, and with this disparity comes a return to sensation, to feeling. A blinding white light tears a rift in the darkness, spreading up and then to either side as if a great pair of doors are swinging open before you. Within this chamber of light, you see her. Where she stands, the hem of her gown ripples into the floor and moves like gentle undulations across a still pool of water. Drifting feathers from her many wings float past you, trailing tiny golden motes as they stroke your face with the gentleness of a mother.

“Greetings, mortal soul.” She extends a hand to you, as her loving smile takes you off guard. “I am Jehanne, Divine Spirit of Light, Redemption, and Conviction.” But she senses your hesitation, and turns her palm to sweep towards the floor. She presents an image below your feet...an entire world laid out before you. A world that is not your own.

“By grace, I have been allowed to speak to you across time and space. For you have been selected to be reborn.” She bows her head for a moment, and the infinite expanse ripples.

"The world you see below you is called Aedven. In some ways, it is like your Earth, as it was long ago…in fact, there is a striking level of similarity between this world, and the myths and legends of your own.” Jehanne begins to spin the globe, and the image grows closer and closer. “Brave knights of Men, with shining blades, and wise sorcerers wielding mysterious magics, fight against the likes of monsters and demons here alongside Elves and Dwarves. This is a world plagued by Demon Kings…”

As she spoke, a shadow emerged beside you, startling you to an extent you hadn’t thought yourself capable of experiencing any more. This “thing” was much like yourself—but it seemed made of pure, writhing shadows. It slowly walked to Jehanne’s side…and sat down near her feet, like a sulky child called to heel by a strict parent.

“...and rescued by Heroes.”

On your other side, another “thing” entered the chamber, but its form was almost too bright to look at, and so warm it might burn you without meaning to. It too knelt at Jehanne’s feet, taking a knee and bowing its head like a knight before royalty. Then it relaxed opposite the dark shape…though the two seemed to glare at one another every so often as Jehanne continued. Her smile faded somewhat, as she cast a sober eye over you once more.

“Unfortunately, you were not called to play out such a tale.”

She holds out her hand again, but this time she beckons you forward. Before you can move, however, a sharp, soundless breath is drawn out of your non-existent lungs. You feel a vital part of yourself drawn out by her power, numerous threads wound into a single ball that condenses until its smooth, marble-like surface is smoother than glass.

“Thus, I bestow upon you the only gift I am able.” Jehanne begins to roll the sphere between her hands, though it seems to float in her palms. You see your life playing out again over its frictionless surface, but the images are growing brighter and brighter. “In this world, when Souls re-enter the Cycle…Every memory, emotion, attachment, and experience, is scrubbed clean. Like skim from milk, these things are taken and purified. The Soul, now stripped of everything it once was, takes on a new life in the physical realm…and what is left is poured into the Sea of Mana to become the fuel for Magic.”

She casts the marble back to you, and as it enters your chest you feel a new sensation thrumming through you where your heartbeat used to be.

“Instead, I return this to you in its purest form. You shall retain all of who you were…and the Magic it has created shall be imbued in your very Soul, no matter what form your new body takes.” She then redirects your attention to the image of Aedven.

You now see a settlement of some kind. Even that, perhaps, is too complex a term for it. It’s…a camp. Something primitive, barbaric, as if you are looking into an era of Earth long gone. Jehanne continues to speak. You can only partially pay attention, but she seems to know everything about you…and she gives you a choice, of some kind, related to the “Magic” that now rests within you…Hesitantly, you reach out as a floating parchment filled with words you only think you understand floats in front of you. You make your choice.

“You will be Blessed, to understand all tongues, as is the way of Otherworlders. You will, as one who retains this memory, have a Connection to the System not present for most native beings. But, in return for this, your new life shall be quite different. You shall become an Orc—a race with many enemies, and many flaws, but much potential. This is why you were called.” Jehanne closes her eyes for a moment…and when she opens them again, her kind expression and bright eyes have become subdued. You realize that there is steel within her—that the armor she bears is not merely for regal ceremony. And the realm around her seems to shiver with her power, as the dark and light figures to either side of her flinch back.

“Show me, then, what you can become.”

The great doors swing open again, and a powerful wind like air being sucked from a space shuttle pulls you backwards. Even if you struggle with all your might, it tugs you inch by inch. As you watch, Jehanne turns away from you, and the figure of bright light waves goodbye before it too turns to follow her.

The dark one, however, continues to watch you. It has no face, and yet you feel as if…it grins.

Then you are pulled through the doors, and they slam shut with a deep, reverberating shock. Moments later the sound repeats itself, even though all light is gone. And again. And again.

Your heart is beating again. You can feel stone under your back. You open your eyes.

You are reborn.

---

The Orc Camp: Your New Home

---

You awakened with what was possibly the worst headache you’d ever known. It felt as if you had just had a vivid dream that lasted…days? Weeks? Months? You dreamed you were a little creature, a miserable Runt of a thing, and that you struggled to survive every single day even as an infant. You dreamed memories that weren’t your own, names that didn’t make any sense, and other creatures that were bigger, stronger, and far meaner than you.

Then you realized it hadn’t been a dream. But you, the real you, had indeed woken up.

You found yourself in the Brood Pit, a large, circular dugout beneath an overhang of rock. The entire camp rested at the base of a mountain, with a sloping ledge and trails at its edge that led down past rocky brushland to a dense treeline. Many of the camp’s shelters were thus carved into the rocky outcrops and cliff faces, though tents and crude wooden buildings were scattered around as well. The Brood Pit’s name came from the fact that this was where baby orcs were left while the broodmothers went about their other activities. Hidden from the sight of flying raptors by the rocks, and kept from escaping by the walls of the pit and several guards who were always on duty, the infants would be quite safe here until they matured into proper Runts.

Which became the case for yourself and many others, as of today.

“OI! WAKE UP, YA BUNCHA MUKHS!” A mukh was some kind of insult to the Orcs, implying low status, subservience, dumb muscle…a mook, basically. You saw several of the other Runts snap to attention. And a huge, looming figure appeared above the pit—the Head Warrior, Auguz.

“Today’s the day, Runts!” he roared, causing some of the younger infants to start bawling. The wetnurses, a couple of pudgy, older Orc females, began gathering the babies to them and hushing them with food—such as fat, squirming grubworms and some kind of pasty gray gruel. Auguz looked over you and the rest of your generation with an appraising eye, and subtly nodded. He opened the wicker gate of the Brood Pit’s protective fence, and forcefully gestured until all the Orc Runts filed out.

“Today is yer first hunt!” He walked around the group like a drill sergeant, though the Runts were the furthest thing from disciplined or trained. “You’re to go into the forest, find somethin’ good to eat—and kill it, pray-fur-ably!—then bring it back here! IN ONE PIECE!” He violently pantomimed to get his point across. “Ya don’t eat it! Ya don’t tear it up! Ya bring it back, to PROVE to us that ya gots what it TAKES!” He suddenly drew a long, somewhat worse for wear sword and began waving it around, almost putting out more than one eye with it.

“If’n ya comes back alive, then ya gets to come outta the Brood Pit for good, and start trainin’ to be a REAL Orc! And if ya can’t do that…” His voiced lowered to a threatening growl. “Then don’t come back at all!”

“Uh…if we couldn’t get back, uh, alive…wouldn’t we’s be deads?” piped up one Runt. Auguz whirled and smacked him with a backhand across the face, knocking him to the dirt.

“THAT’S THE POINT!”

Mutters and mumblings began breaking out among the other Runts, and it seemed a few of them were already scrambling back to the pit to grab what few possessions they had available to them. Some proudly declared what they would be hunting or where they would go. Those dream-like memories within you bubbled up again.

You knew very little about this world. But your human mind had long been able to process what was going on around you, even as an infant in your new body. Thus, you had overheard other Orc hunters talking about their activities. You had seen creatures brought in, butchered for their meat and other useful things. And perhaps even an “attack” or two, where some unlucky mukh wasn’t watching where he stepped or the camp guards got caught lacking. So you knew about a few kinds of creatures and resources in the area.

You just had to decide what to do from here.

A New Quest is Available.

Quest Giver: Head Warrior Auguz
Quest Details: Find Something to Eat and Bring it Back Whole.
Optional:

• Kill a Creature
• Keep the Target in High Quality Condition
• Return to Camp Uninjured

SELECT YOUR TARGET:

Monsters

• Slime - You know Slimes are quite common in the Forest, especially in areas where leaves and other things have broken down into compost.
• Dire Rat - You know Dire Rats often burrow among the rocks around the camp’s perimeter, or in burrows out in the Forest. You also know they have a very painful bite that sometimes makes Orcs very sick.
• Jackalope - Jackalopes are supposedly very common in the Forest, but you’ve heard they’re quite fast and sensitive to sounds and thus difficult to catch. Their horns are very sharp, but they’re not as aggressive as other monsters.
• Elwet - You’ve seen these creatures being caged up around the camp from time to time. They’re a very strange sort of chicken-like bird, but quite aggressive and territorial. They can be caught in the forest, and don’t seem capable of flight…but you did see one set an Orc’s backside on fire one time…
• Tatzelwurm - Supposedly it’s like a half cat, half snake? And poisonous? You’ve overheard Orcs talk about watching the trees for them, because they blend in with the branches and leaves.
• Random - Maybe you should just go out there and see what happens…

Materials

• Healing Blossom - A green plant with shimmering, blue-white flowers and a minty smell. You know the leaves are edible, or sometimes made into tea, and that it seems to be used as medicine. It’s supposed to grow in places where there’s lots of “mana?”
• Red Cream - An unmistakable red mushroom that oozes a red, creamlike substance when its bulbous head is cut. You once heard an Orc say a single mushroom could keep someone full for several hours. But they only grow in dark places…like caves.
• Topapo - A thick, tuberous root that has poisonous leaves, but can be peeled and prepared a variety of ways. Orcs like to bake them in hot coals. You’ve heard they grow wild in dark, loamy soil and produce thin crawler vines that latch onto whatever they can.
• Leppa Fruit - A round, blue fruit that grows in certain hardwood trees. An Orc that used to guard the Brood Pit got ambushed while picking them and was killed a while back, so maybe they grow somewhere dangerous?
• Ven Fern - A purple fern of some kind with curly, pipe-cleaner like stalks. Like the Healing Blossom it seems to be used a lot in tea. You’re not sure how edible it is, but it seems to be “prescribed” often by the Orc Shaman…
• Random - Maybe you should just go out there and see what happens…

SYSTEM

[[OOC: Feel free to add or flesh out anything about the scene that you feel would’ve prompted a response from your character. The “target selection” only applies to what you’re hunting for the Quest—there are plenty of other things you might find if you go looking for them! Ask if you need any further details and feel free to go off in search of named NPCs or interact a bit before heading out…or whatever you decide to do!]]

Why Were We Reincarnated as Orcs?!

Aighto, and when does the IC go up?

@ERode

@Guy0fV4lor is still working on his character, but he'll round out our 10 so I will start working on the opener ASAP. It will probably be up by tomorrow night at the latest (I'm on CST, right now it's like 5 PM for me) if I don't finish it within the next few hours.

Like I said, the GM updates will likely be mostly on weekends though, maybe one here or there about mid-weekish? I know everyone usually gets excited when an RP first starts off so the pace is a little faster, but I'm hoping to be much more stable and consistent than some of you remember my last RP being towards the end there. (Not being ground into dust by the corporate cogs should help with that.)

Why Were We Reincarnated as Orcs?!

@SubjectVisionAnother tragedy of the human condition! Take your ONE and don't pay any attention to these tissues! *sound of a trumpeting elephant*

We all make our own choices in life, for the things we value the most. Your brother's choice wasn't wrong--and neither was your life. You were not a mistake. Yet it is often the most tragic circumstances which bring out the most noble characters of mankind. It is my hope that you will remember your nobility, and the drive that pushed you to do the very best you could.

• Tough - Rank I - Passive increase to one's natural defenses. At Rank I this increase is small, but every little bit helps.
• Aura - Rank I - Reduce damage from physical attacks while burning Magic Power. Stronger attacks will require greater amounts of MP to nullify. At Rank I, damage from non-Skills can be reduced as much as 50%, but Skill-enhanced damage will break the Aura.
• Suppress Presence - Rank I - Magically dull your vital signs to become more stealthy. The User does not suffer negative health effects, but simply becomes harder to detect. (The kind of person in a room who avoids attention, or fades into the background)
• Mortal Strike - Rank I - In a self-sacrifical move, deal greatly increased damage to a target. At Rank I, the user's HP must be below 50% before this Skill can be activated and damage is equivalent to a Critical Hit with the chosen attack/weapon.

Divine Spirit Jehanne

@Crusader Lord Yes, Tough is essentially the "physical tank" kind of toughness, where damage is mitigated by sheer durability rather than somehow blocking or evading the damage. Recover still has to be "activated," it's not a purely passive skill, but it's essentially a magical healing factor. As its Rank increases, the amount it heals or the restrictions around it will change. Although I will say, don't expect the upper limits to be like Wolverine or anything.

@Zeroth Ah yah, I was more curious as to how to tell if stats increases, or where people with x skills stand in terms of attributes compared to others with y skills.

@ERode

Character's "raw stats" can increase in natural ways--doing lots of pushups and situps and drinking plenty of juice--as they Level Up, or by the use of skills (such as Chief Agronak's Windsprint, which temporarily increases his speed) that affect specific attributes. Being able to compare your abilities with other characters would be something a higher ranked Analysis skill could accomplish, as well as using certain items, spells, or your own careful observations. It IS possible for someone with raw stat advantage to outperform someone using a skill, but it'd generally require being higher level or more evolved than the Skill user.

The number of Skills you have regarding a certain attribute don't necessarily mean that your attribute is going to be higher than someone else's--but generally, people gravitate towards what they're good at, so if you see an NPC with lots of strength skills it'd be fair to say he's probably pretty strong. Especially in the case of actual "people" in this setting, since they can learn Skills with effort rather than relying on Ingesting them or gaining them through level ups like Demons do. For instance, in order to get the Smash skill, a human probably had a lot of practice lifting something heavy over his head and then hitting something really hard with it.

However, having a clear preference for certain skills WILL open up Evolutions that benefit those skills. For instance, if you have several Fire Spell Skills, you're more likely to evolve into a fire-aligned form. That form will likely offer stat increases that benefit those Skills as well--but, even if a certain evolution "Greatly increases strength," if you were a wimp beforehand then that increase might only push you back up to average.

@ReusableSwordHonestly, I'm unsure. My experience with Discords associated with RPs has been...a mixed bag. Personally, sometimes I think that having a Discord can kill activity within the RP itself, because I've seen Discords where more speculation or OOC crack-scenarios play out than actual posting in the topic, or where the community gets bogged down in interpersonal drama and whatnot that they let color the IC interactions. I'll be thinking about it.

@King CosmosHow dare you blame MY hubris for YOUR creativity! Demon Kings can't be blamed for having hubris! It's a CLASS PREREQUISITE!

Yep, "using a stance" is pretty much it. Imagine it as that moment before the sparring match where you take your deep breath and focus in on the opponent before the bow-in. That's what activates the skill...at least until you get much higher ranked and those cool "block something attacking you from behind without thinking about it" moments kick in! And also this! VVV

Presumably, without the skills, she can perform the moves but would not get any additional bonuses out of it, so it’d just be a raw stat check as to whether or not her punch does anything.

@ERode

Why Were We Reincarnated as Orcs?!

So how is Magic Power calculated when one doesn’t have any like, magic skills to begin with?

@ERode

Basically, while there aren't a bunch of stats and dice rolling like in a tabletop game or regular RPG, I've sort of got this arbitrary system running in the background. As players test their limits with different skills, get into fights, etc I'll let them know when they're "running low on MP" or "HP is decreasing over time," and so forth. It's just a "soft magic" form of the usual Isekai Numbers Game in an RPGverse. If you'd like a more detailed explanation to start with, for a "constant" spell like Frost Arc, I imagine at this level a thirty second continuous application would drain all the MP Esfir has. Within that thirty seconds though, it'd be like exposing an enemy to a relatively severe ice storm.

Why Were We Reincarnated as Orcs?!

@ERode Very well done, y u gotta make me sad like dis? :( Choose ONE from the following list!

...In some ways, perhaps your world is just as brutal as ours, despite its lack of magic and monsters. I am filled with sorrow by the misfortunes you have suffered, though I am sure an apology from myself--no doubt, to you, a half-baked sympathy of empty condolence--means little.

I will not promise you utopia, nor equality. All I am granting is...perhaps...an opportunity.

• Frost Arc - Rank I - An expanding spray of icy cold, over 10 feet in one direction and 5 feet wide at its furthest edge. The cold is more intense the closer the target is to the origin, reaching its lowest temperature within a span of about 2 feet. It constantly expends Magic Power the longer the cone is maintained.
• Scavenge - Rank I - Ingested Skill. Quickly identify useful items in the surroundings. When the User concentrates, "useful" items within 10 feet of them will appear to glow to their sight.
• Resist Frost - Rank I - Passively increase one's resistance against cold temperatures, the Slow status effect, and ice elemental damage from Spells or physical attacks.
• Fury - Raise physical attack power greatly at the cost of the ability to use other Skills while this one is active. Consumes Stamina.

I will hope that, despite its differences, this world can somehow offer you more than you had before...

Divine Spirit Jehanne

@Lucius Cypher *jumps to a higher foothold and throws cape back dramatically* Yet another returns to bend the knee! But wait--is this...aahhh, I see. By all means, then, FOOL! COME AT ME! *throws all the robes and belts and anime-fantasy gear off with a single tear from the shoulder, Yakuza style* ...Oh, and also pick ONE.

You...you almost seem an Orc already, in Human flesh. Though perhaps you will do well here, I must admit it seems to go against the grain of this...trial. I cannot help myself, for it is in my nature to encourage you thusly: It is not too late to change your path. To redeem yourself.

• Breakthrough - Rank I - A single powerful strike, from any type of physical attack, that will ignore an enemy's defenses. At Rank I, the specific target's defense is treated as halved (Strike a shield, the shield's DEF bonus is the target. Strike their arm, whatever protection they have on that limb is treated as the target. Etc).
• Guard - Rank I - Increase Physical Defense automatically when attacked for a short time and block attacks with muscle memory. At Rank I, this lasts for a single attack and using other Skills at the same time is impossible.
• Smash - Rank I - Powerful Bludgeoning Attack to enhance a blunt weapon, fists, etc.
• Tough - Rank I - Passive increase to one's natural defenses. At Rank I this increase is small, but every little bit helps.

Just because others see you as a monster, does not mean you must become one. Your strength could protect many more than it has harmed, if only you wish to do so...

Divine Spirit Jehanne

@King Cosmos How else would you build an Orc, save with muscle? Also, curse you for exploiting my passion for Karate! Pick your ONE and go already!

Too late do many children learn that their parents, too, are merely mortal--flawed, subjective in their perceptions, and not always able to see the world through any lens save their own. But you should know, that though it was a flawed, subjective, and sometimes selfish love...it was love just the same.

• Martial Arts (Goju-ryu) - Rank I - Increase physical power and close combat accuracy when there is no weapon equipped. Individual Styles may have secondary effects that imitate, alter, or tie into other skills. At Rank I, this Skill must be actively triggered, and consumes extra stamina when active.
  • Goju-ryu, the Hard-Soft Method: Secondary effect produces a small additional boost to counter attacks after receiving a blow with the traditional blocks.
• Rapid Strikes - Rank I - Strike multiple times in the same fashion (slashes, punches, etc) at high speed. At Rank I, three attacks can be made at half the power of a normal strike.
• Riposte - Rank I - Parry or block an attack and deliver a counterstroke with increased damage. At Rank I, this increase is roughly 25% added to the original strike's power.
• Flicker Step - Rank I - Move at high speed in a straight line over a short distance. Rank increases distance and speed. At Rank I, the distance is equivalent to two times the User's full length stride.

...Personally, I am a believer that, if a criminal victimizes another...you cannot know their true intentions or their capacity for evil. In light of that lack of knowledge, I believe the defender should act as if the greatest possible threat were a certainty, and do whatever they feel they must.

Divine Spirit Jehanne

@ReusableSword It just makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside, doesn't it? ...Or maybe that's just the new lava I had poured in my Demon Palace moat... Anyway, choose ONE! And why are you making me sad too, ya bastard?!

Some say that the Orcs were born on the battlefield; the twisted hearts of soldiers in trenches and mass graves, brought out by years of brutal conflict like a blooming flower in the warmth of spring. As if within the heart of every man or elf is an Orc waiting to be set free--the intrusive thoughts, the trauma within the soul, the battlefield that many soldiers never return from even after their bodies are back home among family and friends. I will hope that your experience with war was not so tragic.

• Field Scan - Rank I - Ingested Skill. Detect life signs around the user within 30 feet, and remain aware of them for 1 minute.
• Familiar Bond - Rank I - Create a magical bond with a creature to tame it. Unlike Summoning, this often requires a great deal of time spent, and the creature must remain by the tamer's side. Rather than expending magic power, the proper resources must be present to maintain the Familiar's needs. At Rank I, only Tier I creatures can be persuaded to become a Familiar.
• Channel Weapon - Rank I - Produce a special physical energy aura to increase the power and durability of a given weapon. Consumes Stamina as long as the aura is maintained, or until after a successful attack has made contact. At Rank I, the boost is roughly 5% the weapon's original qualities.
• Danger Scan - Rank I - Detect non-living threats within 10 feet, such as hazardous terrain, traps, etc. Remain acutely aware of them for 1 minute.

If it is any solace to you, the truck driver was not harmed, and though your family has been broken by the loss, they are well cared for by loved ones and friends...

Divine Spirit Jehanne

@Crusader Lord Why do I want to yell "Bazinga" after reading her backstory? XD Pick your ONE Skill to carry over, then!

...Oh my. Are...are you sure that curses don't exist on Earth? The sheer probability of all these disasters...I shall hope that this Luck statistic does not carry over into the next life for you. And I have high hopes for you in this experiment--many have long wondered if intelligence is the primary factor that makes the Orc race so brutal. I look forward to seeing the changes you will most certainly bring about!

• Type Analysis - Rank I - Choose a specific Type for this Skill: Creature, Magic, or Material. Upon analyzing a target, information relevant to the chosen type will be displayed. Higher Ranks will grant more detailed information. (For example, using Creature Analysis on a Slime would tell you the most generic, widely known information on Slimes as a species)
• Magical Memory - Rank I - Normally, this Skill requires the User to be capable of at least one other Magic Skill. By spending a required amount of time in preparation, a Spell can be set to "auto cast" under a specific circumstance. At Rank I, only 1 Spell can be set at a time, its autocast is half as powerful as normal, and it must be reset every day.
• Tough - Rank I - Passive increase to one's natural defenses. At Rank I this increase is small, but every little bit helps.
• Recover - Rank I - Slowly heal in small increments while not moving. Other healing spells or items used while this skill is active are more effective, but the User cannot perform any other Skills or major actions while this Skill is in effect. Continuously drains Magic Power while in use.

Divine Spirit Jehanne

*wipes sweat from brow* Good Lord please tell me that's everyone? Once you've chosen your Isekai Skill, just let me know and edit it in! I think every profile I've looked at so far can be approved at this point, and added to the CS tab.

Why Were We Reincarnated as Orcs?!

@Such A Birch Looks good! Pick ONE of the following Skills!

One could never imagine an Orc willingly giving its life for the sake of protecting the innocent--save, perhaps, for their own progeny. But for a member of another species? I daresay even I am not sure it has ever happened in this world's history. You present a great potential...but I also fear you may encounter great difficulties. Brace thyself, innocent protector, for this world is not kind, least of all to the Orc.

• Summon Contract - Rank I - Create a magical contract with an intelligent being to temporarily borrow its power. At Rank I, only Tier 1 Creatures with fitting intelligence can be contracted. Upon Summoning, they will instantly perform 1 Skill/Attack before the Summon period ends. (For instance, a summoned Slime with no Skills would simply lunge at the opponent as if tackling them, and vanish immediately afterward.)
• Familiar Bond - Rank I - Create a magical bond with a creature to tame it. Unlike Summoning, this often requires a great deal of time spent, and the creature must remain by the tamer's side. Rather than expending magic power, the proper resources must be present to maintain the Familiar's needs. At Rank I, only Tier I creatures can be persuaded to become a Familiar.
• Guard - Rank I - Increase Physical Defense automatically when attacked for a short time and block attacks with muscle memory. At Rank I, this lasts for a single attack and using other Skills at the same time is impossible.
• Alchemist's Tongue - Rank I - Learn a Material Component's properties by tasting it. Warning: Negative Effects will still harm the User. At Rank I, the Material Component must be thoroughly chewed, but swallowing is not necessary.

If it is any consolation, both the child and the innocent beast have remained unharmed...thanks to you, gentle one...

Divine Spirit Jehanne

@Kazemitsu Yep, everything checks out. Pick ONE from the list!

How strange, that in a peaceful world such as yours there are some who still choose to learn the arts of violence. Then again, I suppose peace is something experienced by the whole, rather than the individual. In either case, it is something that Orcs have little experience with...or use for. I hope that your form of violence, codified by discipline, will be enough to protect you...both from the monsters around you, and the one within.

• Martial Arts (Style) - Rank I - Increase physical power and close combat accuracy when there is no weapon equipped. Individual Styles may have secondary effects that imitate, alter, or tie into other skills. At Rank I, this Skill must be actively triggered, and consumes extra stamina when active. (Specify which Style)
• Smash - Rank I - Powerful Bludgeoning Attack to enhance a blunt weapon, fists, etc.
• Rapid Strikes - Rank I - Strike multiple times in the same fashion (slashes, punches, etc) at high speed. At Rank I, three attacks can be made at half the power of a normal strike.
• Guard - Rank I - Increase Physical Defense automatically when attacked for a short time and block attacks with muscle memory. At Rank I, this lasts for a single attack and using other Skills at the same time is impossible.

Be careful, warrior, that you are not swept up in the bloodlust and rage of the Orcs...

Divine Spirit Jehanne

Why Were We Reincarnated as Orcs?!

Did everyone die at the same-ish time? Do you have a particular year in mind, if so?

@ERode

The idea is that the Player Characters, pre-Isekai, were all from our modern world. They don't all have to have passed at the same exact moment, but as far as timey-wimey shenanigans go I think it should be kept within the last couple of years. Part of the "experiment" is to see how this vastly different mindset affects their growth as Orcs.

@Unkown58 Accepted! You may add her to the CS tab!

Why Were We Reincarnated as Orcs?!

@ReusableSword Oh yes, it's much, much better--even a little boring sometimes, lol.

@Unkown58 Nice work, especially so quick! After taking a look at her backstory, here's the list of Skills I think would be most suitable for her to choose from. Pick ONE of these to carry over into her new Orky life!

It is such a tragedy to see a life cut short, just before life's greatest experience has truly begun. And yet, how much had you experienced already, my dear, through the tales of others? That is the beauty of books: to be transported to places and times we may never know ourselves, and to share the perspectives of those whom we may never meet. Not even Death may take this knowledge from you...

• Type Analysis - Rank I - Choose a specific Type for this Skill: Creature, Magic, or Material. Upon analyzing a target, information relevant to the chosen type will be displayed. Higher Ranks will grant more detailed information. (For example, using Creature Analysis on a Slime would tell you the most generic, widely known information on Slimes as a species)
• Rune Scribe - Rank I - Normally, this Skill requires the User to be capable of at least one other Magic Skill. Use a personal writing system to imbue magical effects. At Rank I, the scribed Rune has only half the effectiveness of the original Spell and fades after 1 day. (For example, one could use this with a piece of parchment to produce a consumable Scroll of Fire Bolt--or place the Rune somewhere in the environment with certain spells to create a sort of booby-trap.)
• Magical Memory - Rank I - Normally, this Skill requires the User to be capable of at least one other Magic Skill. By spending a required amount of time in preparation, a Spell can be set to "auto cast" under a specific circumstance. At Rank I, only 1 Spell can be set at a time, its autocast is half as powerful as normal, and it must be reset every day.
• Summon Contract - Rank I - Create a magical contract with an intelligent being to temporarily borrow its power. At Rank I, only Tier 1 Creatures with fitting intelligence can be contracted. Upon Summoning, they will instantly perform 1 Skill/Attack before the Summon period ends. (For instance, a summoned Slime with no Skills would simply lunge at the opponent as if tackling them, and vanish immediately afterward.)

May your tale be as gripping as any you have ever read, little one...

Divine Spirit Jehanne

Why Were We Reincarnated as Orcs?!

The World of Aedven

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Orc Camp

General Description

"The entire camp rested at the base of a mountain, with a sloping ledge and trails at its edge that led down past rocky brushland to a dense treeline. Many of the camp’s shelters were thus carved into the rocky outcrops and cliff faces, though tents and crude wooden buildings were scattered around as well. Usually only the stronger or more renown monsters lived in the natural caves, with the rest being forced to make do with tents and teepees—in the case of some poor Grunts, it was the best they could do to make an A-frame shelter with a bed of leaves."

"The orcs’ settlement was essentially on the bottom of a wide, ramping valley that only went a short distance vertically up the mountain base—but being backed into the rockface at least seemed like a good defensive strategy."

Shaman's Cave

"The Shaman enjoyed a rather cozy home by comparison: the cave itself was set at an angle to a curved rock face, and the lean-to had been built as an extension of sorts. It was similar, perhaps, to a covered patio or porch built as an add-on to a human house. A few of the Shaman’s personal belongings and knicknacks could be seen around the corner of the stone entry, but the outer area seemed to serve as her “workshop,” or ritual area…maybe even a lab?"

Bowbh's Blacksmithy

"Several tall wooden posts had been planted into the earth, and thinner branches formed a frame for a sloping straw roof on one side. Underneath this shed, a furnace of fired clay bricks had been built along with bellows made from animal skins. Crude tables of both wood and stone held various tools and a few works in progress, although for a "blacksmith" it seemed like he worked as much with tree branches and knapped blades as much as he did with any actual metal. In place of an anvil he simply had a huge, square slab of stone."

Shamar's Hunting Yurt

"Shamar, the Head Hunter of the tribe, could be seen near a large, yurt-like dwelling on the far western side of the camp, in an area of flat, unshaded rock. Away from the hustle and bustle of most other orcs, it was unclear whether she settled here out of personal taste... or because the fumes from her animal pelts, stretched and tanning in the sun, were so strong. Even to an orc's nose, they were unpleasantly pungent. The finished product of her pelts could be seen in her home's construction, stitched together in a multitude of colors with fur still attached.

Wooden sawhorses were draped with fresh hides for scraping. Numerous drying racks encircled the fire, which also had a large spit for roasting chunks of meat. Another rack on the other side of the yurt held the strung up carcasses of recent kills as they bled out into bowls made from wood and stone lying underneath them."

Warchief's Home

Agronak dwells in a more ornate home than any other orc, one that's been properly constructed to take advantage of the mountainous terrain. His personal room is within the cabin-like structure near the top, while the chamber beneath is a communal area of sorts where the tribes elders and those directly under the Warchief's command will occasionally meet. Agronak's bodyguards can often be seen standing at the bottom of the first set of stairs, preventing public access to the commune unless they're accompanying the warchief himself.

Brood Pit

"Most Orc infants and Runts still too young to hunt stuck to the Brood Pit, a large, circular dugout beneath an overhang of rock. The Brood Pit’s name came from the fact that this was where baby orcs were left while the broodmothers went about their other activities. Hidden from the sight of flying raptors by the rocks, and kept from escaping by the walls of the pit and several guards who were always on duty, the infants would be quite safe here until they matured into proper Runts. The wetnurses, a couple of pudgy, older Orc females, were responsible for gathering the babies up and hushing them with food—such as fat, squirming grubworms and some kind of pasty gray gruel. A protective wooden fence atop the raised earth on the sides of the pit offers extra protection, but it's mostly to keep the little ones inside."

Lookouts and Defenses

"A handful of rickety towers were scattered throughout the camp, with the larger ones incorporated into the wooden palisades towards the front of the valley. Made from rough-cut timber stacked somewhat like a game of Jenga, these wobbly structures had ladders made from rope, sticks, and occasionally a long bone by which Orc Grunts scrambled up to serve as lookouts. The lighter demonkin had an easier time climbing the towers without bringing the whole thing down on top of them, though more than one of the tribe had cracked their thick skulls on the ground after a collapse or a tumble. Older than Runts but still not full-grown, these adolescents had often poked fun at the younger Orcs by taunting them, stealing food, and occasionally throwing things at them in the brood pit."

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NORTH CAVE

Roughly an hour’s walk from the camp, in a northerly direction along the scrubby, gravel-covered slopes between the trees and the mountainside proper, a valley opened up where a fast-moving stream came down a long slope and meandered off into the woods. Within this valley, there were several cracks and clefts in the rock walls to either side, and one of these was larger and darker than the others. It looked to be a talus cave of some sort, where the collapse of rocks who knew how many eons ago created a roof that was piled high with detritus and topsoil over the years. A short climb would allow one to see over the lip of the ground and down into a slanted, slippery passage...but this open chamber of the cave was still somewhat cramped, and a much narrower passageway further into the depths sat at its back, where the shadows hid what else might lie down that path. Yet, one could feel a cool draft coming out of the rock, which meant there had to be more to this cave than met the eyes...

A part of the cave wall looked dark and smooth and slightly wet, yet within it were faint sprinkles of lighter material, like individual grains of sand. It was clearly a different kind of stone from the rest of the material around it…

And deeper into the cleft in the rock, the narrow passage, along the right-hand side of the wall there was another difference in the stony layers. Standing out from the crags around it was a jagged part of the wall with a yellowish color and a metallic luster. It bore what looked to be scratch marks in several places. A distinctive black streak with green flecks crossed the uneven surface, as if drawn there with paint.

The narrow passage widened again after only a few feet, into a chamber that had a lower ceiling. That chamber slowly began to slope upwards and turn on itself, like a spiral ramp deeper into the mountain.

The smooth floor rose around the bend like a spiral staircase designed by a drunkard with no measuring tools, then opened up into a long tunnel, almost a natural hallway. Its upward slope continued, though at a lesser grade, and here and there stalactites and stalagmites formed a sort of stony forest. They were all smooth and...almost milky, to the touch. Some of them had points that came to sharper tips, or at least thin enough that they might pass for sharp if they weren't wet. However, past this point, the sunlight from the outside could no longer reach.

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SOUTH CAVE

The southern edge of the mountain range beyond the Orc Camp started to fall in elevation instead. The ground was covered in gravel, save where a few scrubby bushes popped up here and there, and the rocky slopes were more shallow. They weren't exactly smooth, but didn't have the sharp edges and crags like the cliffsides in the northern valley near the other cave. A Runt could probably climb them by hand without slipping and falling off, since there were ridges flat enough to rest on. But, every so often, a cave or dip in the trails could be seen--no doubt there were still creatures lurking about up there.

Eventually a couple of scraggly trees and a patch of stubbly grass appeared in sight. The entrance of the cave here was much wider and taller than the one up north, a washout or sinkhole that had filled with silt and stabilized over who knew how long. It went down into the earth like caves should, a distance that would be like taking two or three steps at once. Due to its breadth, however, the entrance let in lots of sunlight, so one could see what was probably a little over twenty feet into the tunnel.

The tunnel was relatively wide, making it easy for at least two runts to creep alongside one another but with plenty of space between them, and the walls. There wasn't much for the first thirty feet or so, just rocks and dirt. However, a couple of rocks looked sizeable enough to serve as tools, both of the sharp edged variety and the simple blunt kind. In one area of shadow near the wall, in what looked like a little mound of soft earth left by a burrowing animal long ago, the distinctive Red Cream mushrooms were growing ripe.

Past this point, however, the tunnel forked. The right hand side remained fairly open and clear. In the left hand fork, the tunnel took a sharp and narrow turn between the rocks...but, creeping out of that path like clusters of ivy, was something white and thick...almost like a stretched out piece of cotton candy.

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DEEP FOREST

After about an hour of traveling, heading first east towards a high cliff in the Forest outside the Orc Camp and then turning northward, one would come to a small clearing just before the woods seemed to transition to older, darker, and more crowded growth. Even during the broad daylight, the trees were dense enough here, and the canopy dark enough, that a gently rolling mist creeped low to the ground. The area was rich with valuable mushrooms, wood, and animal life...but also many hidden and unexplored dangers...