Khazk Horde
Overview
The Khazk Horde is a fractured yet fierce orcish confederation that roams the southern fringes of the Shifting Sands Desert, in the desolate land known as the Orcish Reaches. Once spread across vast swaths of the desert, the Khazk have long been driven southward by the human tribes, losing oasis after oasis until only the most barren lands remain to them. Their identity is forged in bitterness and survival: they are a people exiled to hardship, but unbroken.
Origins & Exile
Long ago, the orcs of the Khazk lived across the Redsands Plains and even into the Golden Sand Sea, ruling through strength and fear. But as the Desertborne Human tribes grew in number and strength, alliances formed to push them back. The Ashken and Qarroshy, among others, fought century-long wars that eventually confined the orcs to the southern reaches, a land of cracked salt, poisoned wells, and scarce game.
To the Khazk, this was no defeat—it was a theft. They believe the more resourceful lands of the north are rightfully theirs, stolen by deceit and overwhelming numbers. This grievance burns like the desert sun in their songs, their stories, and their raids
Culture & Values
The Khazk value strength, endurance, and defiance above all. Weakness is despised; those who cannot contribute are left behind. Their society revolves around survival—every child is taught to hunt, fight, and scavenge. Despite this, they are not without honor. The Khazk hold to ancient warrior codes, teaching loyalty to one’s warband, reverence to the ancestors, and vengeance against the humans who wronged them.
The Khazk do not build cities. Instead, they live in migrating war-camps, moving with scarce water and game. The sound of war-drums and iron-forged chants echoes across the dunes wherever they travel, a warning to those who might cross them.
Military & Warfare
The Horde is not a single unified army but a collection of warbands, each led by a Warchief. When united under a Great Warlord, the Khazk can muster thousands of hardened fighters, but their usual strength lies in endless skirmishes—lightning raids, ambushes at watering holes, and brutal assaults on caravans.
They favor massive two-handed axes and spears, alongside scavenged shields and armor stripped from fallen foes. Their beasts of burden are often giant desert hyenas, which they use for swift raids.
Their greatest rivalry lies with the Qarroshy Tribe, who guard the Redsands Plains. Battles between the two are so frequent that the sands there are said to be stained permanently red.
Relations with Others
Desertborne Human Tribes – Bitter enemies. The Khazk view all human tribes as thieves of their rightful lands. But they specially hate the Qarroshy Tribe. Wars between them are constant, shaping both factions into hardened militaries.
Khenan Raiders – The Khazk sometimes deal with the Raiders, exchanging stolen goods and information, though trust between them is nearly nonexistent.
Scorvians, Lizardfolk and others– Kashk Horde do not have relations with them because of the distance.
Appearance & Identity
The Khazk Horde are Sun-Scorched Orcs, hardened by generations in the desert’s most merciless lands. Their tawny skin is weathered and scarred by sand and sun, while their amber eyes gleam like burning coals in the twilight. They move with a predator’s swiftness across dunes and broken stone, their bodies lean yet powerful, adapted to endure heat, thirst, and the sting of endless sandstorms.
They wear armor pieced together from scavenged metal and bone, often adorned with ochre war-paint or ritual scars marking their clan and victories. Many carry desert charms made from bones, teeth, and sunstones, said to guard against death in the shifting sands.
Though their appearance is fearsome, the Khazk are bound by a fierce tribal honor code: loyalty to one’s warband, vengeance against betrayal, and reverence for ancestors who endured exile. To outsiders, they are brutal raiders. To themselves, they are the rightful heirs of the desert, wearing the hardship of the Orcish Reaches like a crown of fire and sand.
Reputation
Among the desertfolk, the Khazk Horde is feared as a relentless, unstoppable tide. To some, they are nothing more than beasts driven by hatred. But to others, they are a reminder of the tribes’ own cruelty—proof that even in exile, the orcs endure. The Khazk themselves believe it is only a matter of time before they reclaim their lost lands, for the desert forgets nothing, and neither do they.