Fluff time. My character, Goram the Exile. Half orc Barbarian.
Goram the Exile was originally born to the Iron-Tusk tribe,
son of a prominent orc warrior Dagoth IronTusk. His mother was a captured human
woman named Marion, who was made into a slave. Ever since birth, Goram was
treated and raised like the other orcs, taught to fight and use weapons, and to
slaughter and pillage in Gruumsh's name. He grew to be quite strong, despite
his dual heritage, and became a skilled warrior. He could draw on his orc
heritage to fly into a powerful, deadly rage, and often did so on the
battlefield. He gained several kills, and began accumulating trophies to
sacrifice to Gruumsh.
Yet his other side of his heritage spoke to him as well. Marion
cared for her son, and loved him, despite his bestial appearance. On the sly,
she taught him other things, such as how to read and write, and how to speak the
human language. To her delight, Goram took to these studies as well, quicker
than most orcs would be able to. The lessons were brief and done in the dark of
night, but Goram still attended them faithfully. The half orc lad, while not
the smartest, had a healthy dose of common sense and curiosity, and learned
well.
For a time, this dual upbringing continued unnoticed. Yet
the two halves of his heritage began to conflict. He started to doubt his faith
in Gruumsh, particularly the more wanton acts of destruction they did in his
worship. Battle began to lose it's taste, and he began bringing fewer trophies
for sacrifice. He developed an un-orc like sense of mercy, and was often
spotted letting people go rather than killing or enslaving them. As he was
about to come of age, he brought his doubts before his father, hoping to get
some guidance.
Rather than guidance, Dagoth became angry. He blamed Goram's
mother for polluting his head with such useless things as learning, or writing, or
mercy. He declared that she would be the next sacrifice to Gruumsh, and set off
to carry the bloody deed. Goram tried to stop him, and the two came to blows.
The battle was brief yet brutal, and Goram's rage carried the day. As he calmed
from his anger, he saw Dagoth on the floor and bleeding.
Knowing he would be killed for such an act, whether or not Dagoth survived his wounds, Goram knew he
had to escape and quickly. Stealing a horse, he broke into the save quarters
and released his mother. The two of them fled the orc settlement, making for
human lands. There, Marion was able to reunite with the family she had been
taken from long ago.
Goram, meanwhile, decided that it was time to fully explore
the human side of his heritage. He had experienced all the orc side he desired,
and he found it lacking. After bidding farewell to his mother, leaving her in
the care of her relatives and promising to write, Goram set out to forge his
own path in life. He sought to discover what being human meant, and to find a
god more worthy of his worship than Gruumsh.