User:Minionman/Orc military

The orc military has gone through many changes from the orc's original society on Draenor, to the invasion of Azeroth, to the current day Durotar fighters.

History
On Draenor, the orcs did not have an organized military as such, instead, most orcs in general learned to use weapons, and would join together if a particular threat to their clan, or to the orcs in general, needed to be dealt with. Hunters and shamans used abilities they had already learned outside of battle, other orcs picked up easily available weapons (Usually axes, sometimes hammers or spears), and became the "grunts", fighting in close combat.

When the burning legion arrived on Draenor, the orcs began to focus more and more on combat, until only a small number were focused on growing food, keeping records, or any other element of society. During the orc invasion of Azeroth, almost the entire orc population that could fight, or directly support fighters, was in Azeroth. Orcish clans that were not captured and sent to camps are still quite focused on fighting compared to those who were.

Those orcs who were freed from the interment camps organized their military in a similar way to the human nations. While the orcs in Durotar still prize fighting ability and learn to use weapons, they rely on full time soldiers to fight in most major battles.

General Description
The orc's greatest advantage in battle is their size and strength. While some assume that the muscular orcs must be less agile or intelligent, a few fights or other meetings convince them otherwise. Orcs are also known to go into a battle rage in combat, far more so than other races. Though axes are preferred out of tradition, the orcs in general have learned to use just about any weapon in azeroth effectively.

In the past, the orcs relied heavily on large numbers and strength to overwhelm enemies, a fighting style that worked well against the draenei and humans in azeroth. Orc magic was mainly used to support this style of fighting. Against the larger human alliance, however, the orcs had to use more complex fighting methods. The modern day orcs do not have the numbers their ancestors did, and their own battle rage pales in comparison as well, so must rely on newer weapons, fighting methods, and support from allies to effectively fight their enemies.

Grunts
Most melee orc warriors are known as "grunts", a name that remains from their days on Draenor. Modren day grunts generally train with 2-3 weapons, either specialized for a particular area, or to cover as many different fighting conditions as possible. The most common weapons are axes and spears, though swords, hammers, and most other kinds of melee weapons are learned as well. Orcs in the past viewed wearing armor as cowardly, but fighting against the human alliance showed the value of armor, and most modern day orcs wear some form of strong metal or leather armor depending on fighting conditions. The most skilled grunts generally use Zeppelin equipment

In battle, grunts generally fight in front of other orc forces and shout warcries to scare enemies, though they will participate in ambushes, side attacks, and other such fighting styles as necessary. In most fights, grunts can overwhelm whoever they are fighting with their weapon skills and physical strength, with their warcries scaring many enemies away, or scaring them to ineffectiveness. Unlike in the past, orc fighters are taught to control their battle rage, unleashing their rage in the thick of a fight, but still maintaining enough control to accept surrenders and follow tactics as necessary.

Archers
Archery is new to orcs, similar to armor, it was viewed in the past as cowardly. Orc weaponsmiths, however, have takin quickly to bowmaking, and many orc fighters have quickly taken to archery as well. Orc bows generally focus on power, like most weapons, to take advantage of the orc's physical strength. Orc bowmen are mainly used to fight human invaders, where the power of the bows easily penetrates just about any type of armor that humans can bring to a fight. They are also used heavily in watch towers, the bow's power gives them a long shooting range. Orc bowmen are sometimes used for ambushes or for fighting centaurs, though other types of fighters are more useful in these areas.

Orc bows have been further improved by trade with the Blood elves. Blood elves train orc archers, teach what they have learned in their long years of bowmaking, and enchant the weapons produced for the orcs.

Blademasters
There are few blademasters in the durotar orc armies, but they are highly prized and skilled fighters. Blademasters are orcs who have trained for long periods of time in using long swords, and are extremely agile and difficult to catch fighters. They do not use warcries, instead focusing their energy on moving quickly, reacting to enemy movements, and other el;ements of their fast moving fighting style. Single blademasters can defeat groups of up to dozens of enemies, depending on the relative skills of the fighters.

Most blademasters fight in forested areas, where their abilities to move quickly and surprise enemies are most useful. Blademasters in the Plaguelands have proved very useful at assasinating undead leaders.

Wolf Riders
Known as "raiders", wolf riders are the orc's cavalry. The giant wolves these raiders ride originally come from Draenor, though some have been interbread with azeroth wolves and dogs. Most current day wolves have so called "frost wolves" as ancestors, as the frost wolf clan was the only group of orcs in azeroth maintaining a large croup of wolves on azeroth, though the frostwolf clan maintained a few as well.

Raiders mainly fight with large swords, as well as carrying a large, weighted net, that can be thrown to trap enemies and immobilize them. In the open plains of the barrens, and especially against centaurs, the raiders have proved extremely useful both for being able to quickly catch enemies in the first place, as well as immobilizing enemies for other horde soldiers to attack. Some orcs have attempted to use bows while riding, but the wolves gait is too bouncy for the riders to aim well.

Shamans
Shamans play a similar role to magical fighters in other armies. Shamans can use their powers with lightining, wind, and other elements to directly attack enemies, support their own fighters by drawing on elemental power, heal their soldiers, and assist in slowing, obstructing, spying on, and weakening enemies in a myriad of other ways. Shamans can also, when working together change the weather over small areas, this ability is used to damage enemy ships or flyers using fast winds or storms, or used simply to demoralize an enemy.

Wyverns
In the open terrain of the barrens, Wyvern riders are quite powerful and fast, and orcs use them heavily against centaurs, forscouting, or other enemies who make the mistake of appearing in the open. Wyvern riders mainly fight with throwing spears, and rely on their speed and height in the air to defend themselves.

Unfortunately for the orcs, wyverns do not domesticate easily, and are also difficult to tame. The wyverns that are tamed are often needed for transportation and cannot be used for fighting. spears are also difficult to aim properly from a fast moving wyvern, and enormous amounts of practice are needed for riders to effectively hit enemies.

Allies
User:Minionman/Troll Military

User:Minionman/Tauren Military

The durotar orcs work closely with their troll and Tauren allies in warfare, as with other areas of society. Tauren melee fighters mainly fight alongside grunts, where they can daze and immobilize enemies to assist the grunts, in addition to being powerful fighters themselves. Tauren shamans serve the same roles as orc shamans; druids often share a similar roles, in addition to scouting using their animal forms.

The darspear trolls bring a unique set of skills that complements the orcs in battle. Darkspear trolls spear throwers make useful ranged fighters to complement the orc's melee skills, their skills at hunting are useful in more wooded or mountainous areas, and troll Witch doctors and priests bring a number of unique concoctions and ward based magic that adds unique abilities to the orc fighters. Troll shamans perform many of the same functions as orc shamans.

The Orcs are far less integrated with the Lordaeran section of the horde militarily, but the forsaken and blood elves have still made their mark on orc fighting by producing Zeppeling equipment, and selling potions of various types to soldiers in the horde. Blood elves and forsaken have proven ineffective against centaurs, but against other types of enemies, the unique abilities of Eastern Kingdoms mages, spellbreakers, and alchemists are valued.

Fighting styles for particular enemies
The orcs must fight a wide variety of enemies in the barrens and in other horde lands, and the fighting styles are often quite different from area to area.

Humans
While overall, fighting is rare between durotar orcs and the human nations, groups from Theramore and Kul'tiras have established bases in orc lands, and horde outposts near theramore, Stromgarde, and in the swamp of sorrows are in position to be attacked should a full scale war break out. Human and orcs also fight each other in skirmishes all along alliance/horde borders.

1 on 1, an orc melee fighter will almost always beat a human melee fighter, but more humans are on azeroth than orcs. Humans are the race most likely to wear armor, so orcs fighters tend ot use bows, axes, hammers, and other weapons that pierce or damage armor. Against horsemen, some orcs will bring spears, or use shamans to slow the riders down and allow other fighters to kill them more easily. When dwarves or mages join the fight, the orcs will attempt to kill them quickly, or will attempt to get into the thick of battle as quickly as possible to prevent mages and gunmen from aiming effectively.

It is against humans where the orc fighting style of charging, screaming, at their enemy is most effective. This type of attack often frightens inexperienced militias,

Centaurs
In the barrens, the centaurs have proven to be the most dangerous enemy the horde faces. Centaurs are difficult to catch, often running circles around horde foot soldiers. Centaur archers can fire on the run, hitting horde fighters while avoiding shots or thrown weapons from the orc fighters, while centaur shamans remove any advantages that horde shamans might bring to a fight. In addition, centaurs are nomads, and are able to easily raid horde caravans or small outposts while avoiding the horde discovering their own camps.

To fight the centaurs, orcs rely heavily on their wolf and wyvern riders. The riders move fast enough to catch the centaurs in a battle, and wolf riders can immobilize centaur fighters with their nets for other horde fighters to kill. Wolf and wyvern riders are also useful for finding centaur camps. Foot soldiers in areas with many centaurs wear heavy armor (to protect from arrows), and use spears or other long weapons to catch centaur warriors. Most shamans in the barrens have learned to ride wolves. Shamans fighting centaurs usually create earthquakes, avalanches, or use other abilities to slow down centaurs.

Ashenvale
When the warsong clan went to war in ashenvale, the thick forests and night Elve's hit and run attacks presented a major challenge to the orcs. The Night Elves had perfected a hit and run style of fighting that was highly effective in the forests, while the orcs' array of fighting styles were adapted for more open terrain, and worked poorly in the forests. While Grom Hellscream's movements into ashenvale had been successful, he had been able to attack unprepared elves, who had nearby bases that could easily be attacked and destroyed. The Night Elves quickly learned to fight these new invaders, and once again gained a fighting advantage in their own forest.

The warsong clan quickly learned that, in addition to supplying the horde with building material, cutting down trees would remove hiding places from the Night Elves. The orc blademasters also had a fighting style well adapted to the forests. Over time, the orc grunts themselves learned to move more quietly in the forest, and detect Night Elves amongst the trees. Trolls also joined the warsong, their skills at jungle hunting transferred somewhat well to fighting in ashenvale. Shamans in the forest tend to be used as scouts, for detecting if shadowmelded or other hiding night elves are nearby. Still, fighting among the trees is difficult, as the Night elf hunters can shadowmeld, any wild animal could be a shapeshifted druid, and if detected, horde fighters are just a few arrow shots away from being killed.

The warsong clan has often sent ambassadors to the Eastern Kingdoms to recruit forsaken and blood elf fighters to join in the Ashenvale fighting. While the skills of the forsaken and blood elves would be expected to mesh well with conditions in ashenvale, the involvement of these two races has proved problematic. Blood Elf rangers, the most wanted group for ashenvale fighting, are unwilling to further involve themselves in Night Elf affairs after events involving night elf spies in Quel'thalas. Many forsaken have come to ashenvale, but they almost immediately began poisoning sleeping druids, corrupting wild animals, and doing other such dishonorable activities, and the warsong soon asked the forsaken to leave. A few blood elf advisors are found in horde outposts in ashenvale, and some forsaken act independently against the Night Elves, but the eastern Kingdoms horde overall has a very small presence here.

Plaguelands
For orcs travel to the plaguelands to join the blood Elves anf forsaken, but those that do are highly valued. Orcs equipped with long spears have proven the horde's best weapon against abominations, blademasters make wonderful assasins, and armored orc grunts can substitute for spellbreakers or deathguards on front lines (Though grunts cannot protect themselves well from area effect spells like spellbreakers can.)

Orc shamans are useful in combat for their spells, and are often asked to help heal lands damaged by the scourge invasion. Shamans have also been kept in northern Titirsfal, should the undead attempt to send fighters from Northrend, the shaman are prepared to unleash storms, tidal waves, and winds on any ships or sky barges that attempt to reach Lordaeran.