Publication:The Orcs of Thar

[  The Orcs of Thar]

System: Dungeons and Dragons 1e Levels: –   Author: Bruce Heard  Publisher: TSR  Publication Date: 1988  Format: Paperback  Page Count: 96

Product Blurb 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, 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! This text is quoted from promotion material. Text and images are copyrighted by the original publisher.

Plot Summary

The Orcs of Thar covers the fictional Broken Lands that are inhabited by humanoids such as orcs, goblins, and bugbears. The "Player's Guide" is written for those who want to play orc player characters, and includes a description of the orcish view of the world, an overview of the Broken Lands, character creation rules, and "Thar's Manual of Good Conduct". The "Players' Guide" provides the history of the various humanoid races as seen through their own eyes, and describes the situation in the Broken Lands with an account of the ten tribes, their beliefs, and the areas they inhabit. It includes rules for generating humanoid player characters such as kobolds, goblins, orcs, hobgoblins, gnolls, bugbears, ogres, and trolls. Tables and suggestions for generating height, physical appearance, outlook, and various skills are available to add depth to the characters. "Thar's Manual of Good Conduct", a guide to portraying characters' obnoxious behavior and battle-lust, comes as part of the "Players' Guide" but is intended to be pulled out of the booklet, cut up, and stapled into a smaller booklet.

The booklet covers orcish shamans, important humanoid leaders, campaigning in the Broken Lands, and an adventure scenario. The gazetteer includes rules for adaptation to AD&D, and rules for a simple orc-conquest boardgame. The "Dungeon Master’s Booklet" gives the “real” history of the humanoids and details on the major NPCs in the Broken Lands. It includes new rules for playing shamans and wiccas as character classes, as well as nonhuman spell-casters described in the D&D Master Set, clerics and magic-users of the humanoid races. The "Dungeon Master’s Booklet" provides information about the best way to stage and present humanoid adventures, along with adventure outlines. It presents details of the orcish city Oenkmar, allowing humanoids and humans to explore, and lists the rules for tlachtli, a ball game played in Oenkmar.

The board game included is called Orc Wars, and is set in and around the Broken Lands and features a power struggle to become the top humanoid.

Publication History

The Orcs of Thar (GAZ10) was written by Bruce Heard, with cover art by Clyde Caldwell, and interior illustrations by Jim Holloway. It was published by TSR in 1988 and included two 48-page books, a large color map, cardstock counters, and an outer folder. Editing was by Gary L. Thomas, and cartography by Dave Sutherland. The Orcs of Thar was the tenth in TSR's series of D&D Gazetteers; each Gazetteer detailed part of D&D's known world, providing information on culture, society, history, geography, economics, and prominent NPCs of a given nation. The "Orc Wars" board game first appeared in Dragon Issue 132, although the game's counters in The Orcs of Thar are printed on heavier stock than was used in the magazine.

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