The Orcs of Thar (Gazetteer) (GAZ10)
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Orcs?
A Gazetteer about Orcs?
Absolutely. And hobgoblins¸ kobolds¸ bugbears¸ gnolls¸ trolls¸ goblins¸ and more! If you think the only good orc is a dead orc¸ youre in for a surprise. Orcs (and the other humanoids) are more than just anonymous hordes to be slaughtered for easy experience points - they are creatures with personality¸ culture¸ likes and dislikes¸ and a point of view. Find out all about them in The Orcs of Thar.
The Orcs of Thar is the tenth in a series of Gazetteers for the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS game system. It gives you a comprehensive¸ in-depth look at the orcs and their world¸ including:
Orcs and other humanoids as player characters
A large full-color map of Thar¸ home of the orcs
Complete rules for humanoid spell-casters
The King of the Orcs¸ and why you dont want to run into him
Seperate DM and Players Booklets
Orc Wars¸ a complete boardgame¸ also included!
rcs? A Gazetteer about Orcs?
Absolutely. And hobgoblins¸ kobolds¸ bugbears¸ gnolls¸ trolls¸ goblins¸ and more! If you think the only good orc is a dead orc¸ you're in for a surprise. Orcs (and the other humanoids) are more than just anonymous hordes to be slaughtered for easy experience points - they are creatures with personality¸ culture¸ likes and dislikes¸ and a point of view. Find out all about them in The Orcs of Thar.
The Orcs of Thar is the tenth in a series of Gazetteers for the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS game system. It gives you a comprehensive¸ in-depth look at the orcs and their world¸ including:
- Orcs and other humanoids as player characters
- A large full-color map of Thar¸ home of the orcs
- Complete rules for humanoid spell-casters
- The King of the Orcs¸ and why you don't want to run into him
- Seperate DM and Player's Booklets
- ORCWARS! ¸ a complete boardgame¸ also included!
Product History
GAZ10: "The Orcs of Thar" (1988)¸ by Bruce Heard¸ is the tenth book in the "GAZ" series of Gazetteers for the Known World. It was published in January 1989.
Origins. Because of the popularity of the "GAZ" supplements¸ all of the core realms of the Known World were being written about¸ so a book on the humanoid-infested Broken Lands had been on the schedule for some time. It was to be one of the most unique books in the series¸ as it would cover humanoids in-depth¸ something that was mostly unknown in the FRPG world. Since Acquisitions Coordinator Bruce Heard had plans for letting players take on the roles of these humanoids¸ he ultimately decided to write the book himself (and soon got approval to do so from his division head).
Continuing the "GAZ" Sourcebooks. Like the recent books in the "GAZ" series¸ "The Orcs of Thar" was a folio of two books¸ one for players and one for GMs. They were each the same size¸ at 48 pages¸ which was new; previously the series had included lopsided books at 64 and 32 pages.
"The Orcs of Thar" is one of several racial-kingdom splatbooks for the Known World; there had previously been three others: GAZ5: "The Elves of Alfheim" (1988)¸ GAZ6: "The Dwarves of Rockhome" (1988)¸ and GAZ8: "The Five Shires" (1988). "The Orcs of Thar" also one of the more light-hearted "GAZ" books¸ a characteristic shared by some but not all books in the series.
The Board Game Connection. Heard had previously designed a related board game called "Orcwars!"¸ which appeared in Dragon #132 (April 1988). It's reprinted within this supplement.
A History of Humanoids: Sometimes the Monsters Play You. Fantasy roleplayers first got the chance to play the monsters in Ken St. Andre's Monsters! Monsters! RPG (1976). A few smaller scale monster-playing products appeared in the small press in the late '70s and early '80s¸ while Mayfair Games put out an early book giving more details on humanoid cultures: Dark Folk (1983). However for the most part FRPGs neglected the idea of taking on the role of monsters.
As a result¸ "The Orcs of Thar" - which allowed players to take on the roles of kobolds¸ goblins¸ orcs¸ hobgoblins¸ gnolls¸ bugbears¸ ogres¸ and trolls - was a groundbreaking supplement. It provided a unique monstrous character sheet¸ and even gave guidelines for running a monstrous campaign¸ which might center on tribal warfare.
In the years that followed¸ D&D would follow-up on the idea of playing monstrous PCs in the "Creature Crucible" series (1989-1992)¸ PHBR10: The Complete Book of Humanoids (1993)¸ and elsewhere.
Expanding Basic D&D. As was the case for many later Known World supplements