Gârgún

are a of malevolent, small, intelligent, also known as , s, or s. The ancestral gârgún originated beyond  and first appeared on  in  around 110. It has been speculated that brought them to Hârn by means of great enchantment to serve as warriors for his burgeoning empire. In any event, they outlived their “creator” and by 250 had spread throughout the island. Their bodies are covered with coarse and, for numerous reasons, gârgún are vastly different from Hârn’s other culture-forming races.

Overview
The gârgún have a resembling that of some. In each tribe there will be, at most, one fertile female (the queen) and generally only one fertile male (the king). Both sexes become fertile only through continued social exposure to the opposite sex. All such contact leads to, but most male gârgún have no sexual contact with females. This is not to say that gârgún males are impotent; they are fully capable of rape, an ability which they happily demonstrate from time to time on females (and sometimes males) of and other.



Approximately one month after fertilization, the queen will lay up to 80 gelatinous s, depending on her age and health. Queens are most fertile between the ages of eight and 12. If the eggs are stored in a dark, humid environment and given a good supply of decomposing organic material, they hatch in three to six months. Newborn gârgún have an extensive, permitting almost immediate social interaction with others in the tribe. This racial memory also has the effect of preserving the customs of the gârgún from one generation to the next. Hence, gârgún society is almost totally unchanging.

Only one percent of the eggs will hatch as females. If exposed to males for about six consecutive hours, these “princesses” will become fertile queens. Since only one queen is generally tolerated, the princesses are segregated on hatching to form a Queen’s Guard; they are reckoned among the most vicious fighters of the tribe. Occasionally, a princess will escape with, or be abducted by, a group of males from the same tribe with the intention of starting a new colony. Tribes that are queenless will strive to kidnap a princess or else face certain extinction. Since the queens become bloated and somewhat immobile, few princesses actually desire the role.

There are few, if any, social injunctions restricting the competition among the tribe’s strongest and most intelligent males to become king, thereby gaining access to the queen. Methods chosen by the candidates range from mortal combat with the community watching to a knife in the back while sleeping. The only requirement from the point of view of the would-be king is that, once the kingship is achieved, he must survive long enough to enjoy it. Few survive more than a few months.

Gârgún have short life spans. Fully grown within a year of hatching, they rarely live past the age of 25, although most die violently long before that. They constantly squabble and maim and kill each other. Only when there is an exceptionally strong king, or an external power manages to enslave them, is there any hope of (relative) tranquility within a gârgún tribe or settlement.

All gârgún have an abiding hatred for the and will, if there is any chance of victory, attack any dwarves they happen upon. The two races have a long history of mutual animosity dating from the gârgún’s appearance on Hârn and the subsequent.

By choice, gârgún eat only and sometimes keep food animals. They will not hesitate at and very much enjoy eating human or  flesh; sometimes they kill their food before dining. As a rule, gârgún are, hunting and raiding only at night; sunlight seems to demoralize them.

When the population pressure in any gârgún settlement grows beyond the ability of the community to support, there will occur either a bloody civil war or a swarming. Civil wars can kill up to 80% of the male population in an uncontrollable orgy of bloodletting, perhaps lasting a mere hour. A swarm occurs when a significant number of males, perhaps 40%, seizes the queen or a princess and fight their way out to freedom. Having escaped, the swarm will attempt to establish a new community. A swarm can be extremely unpleasant for any settlements or wandering parties in its path.

The gârgún are divided into five distinct sub-species: Gârgú-araki, Gârgú-hyeka, Gârgú-khanu, Gârgú-kyani, and Gârgú-viasal. Contrary to widely held belief, the gârgún cannot interbreed among their own sub-species, at least not without the intervention of or. Each sub-species has unique social and racial traits detailed below.

Gârgú-araki (Small or Streaked Orc)
The Gârgú-araki are smaller and lighter than other gârgún, averaging about 3 ft in height, with streaky brown and. Less repelled by the outdoors than the others, they may often be found dwelling as in woodland or forest in tribes of 40–240. Despite their diminutive stature, they are among the most feared of nocturnal predators. They possess an acute sense of smell. Their dwellings are often little more than crude huts or shelters, and sometimes they sling “nests” in trees. About one in six tribes will have a queen to protect and will inhabit a large cave or construct a lodge. A gârgún lodge will be constructed by first excavating a large pit and then building a shored earthen roof over the whole. The lodge will have several interlocking chambers and acquires additional side tunnels as time passes. Tribes that have been established longer are likely to have manufacturing capacity; they make their own s, s, and, and possibly also s (short, broad, blunt-ended s). The Gârgú-araki tend to avoid other gârgún whenever possible.

Gârgú-hyeka (Common or Brown Orc)
The common orc represents about 50 percent of Hârn’s gârgún population. Their ranges in color from black to auburn and they average just under 4 ft in height. Small bands may be found dwelling in a manner similar to the Gârgú-araki, but they are more noted for their large cave complexes. Most Gârgú-hyeka communities are located on the edge of mountainous regions and consist of one queen, several dozen princesses, and between 1,000 and 2,000 males. There will likely be large food animal stocks but these will rarely meet the needs of the complex; bands of 20 to 80 gârgún will be out constantly, in a range extending 10 s (two hexes) around. The complex will be tunneled out of rock or earth; although natural caverns may be included, chambers and passages tend to run in straight lines. There will be numerous redoubts and blind ways, pits, and other traps, all designed to foil invaders. The complex may have s at one level or another and some have armouries that produce fairly good weapons, notably s, a unique type of bladed, and s. The Gârgú-hyeka also produce passable and  but most of the adults wear  or none at all.

Gârgú-khanu (Great or Black Orc)
At an average height of 4 ft, the Gârgú-khanu are the largest, strongest, and most murderous gârgún. Their is black or dark brown. They justifiably regard themselves as the “warrior elite” of the gârgún. Fortunately for the rest of Hârn, they breed far more slowly, and kill each other more readily, than any other sub-species. Gârgú-khanu may dwell in smaller versions of the Gârgú-hyeka cave complex but they are more often found as the ruling elite in a hybrid culture with Gârgú-araki and/or Gârgú-hyeka as s.

Gârgú-kyani (White Orc)
At an average height of 3 ft, the Gârgú-kyani are the second smallest of the subspecies. Their ranges in color from light brown to off-white. Although they sometimes roam in woodland bands like the Gârgú-araki, they usually build cave complexes in regions. Tribes range from 200 to 1,200 in size. Of the various sub-species of gârgún, the kyani are the least prone to violence and have the least unpleasant personalities. They often keep s or as pets, which they do not maltreat too much. They also produce finer artifacts and possess an identifiable, if alien, sense of tribal and personal honor. Despite this, they still have an evil reputation among non-gârgún. They tend to avoid outsiders assiduously.

Gârgú-viasal (Red Orc)
The Gârgú-viasal, averaging 4 ft in height, are the second largest of the gârgún subspecies. Their is auburn to red in color. Except for their slower birthrate, smaller communities of 700–1,200, and less frequent swarming, the culture and habits of the Gârgú-viasal are similar to the Gârgú-hyeka.

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