For such a short-lived capital, Gurtzgegaart has a complex history. Once an orc outpost, then a dwarven mining camp, then the capital of a fledgling nation. Though some view them with disdain and fear, this new nation provided me the unique opportunity to document the culture and history of the orcs, from their perspective. And it must be said - orcs are much more than the simple barbaric caricature they are too often made out to be.
-Excerpt from The Complete Anthropology of Terrania in the Age of Arcana
Gurtzgegaart is the capital of the Gurtzgegaart Confederacy, and is the center of power for the rapidly-growing orc nation.
Society
Aliases:
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Infrastructure
Castle:
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Characters
Vovu: Half-white dragon, half-frost giant. Plying her trade as a blacksmith, taking advantage of her considerable strength.
History
Gurtzgegaart was originally founded by enterprising half-orcs who wanted to create a trade outpost with the denizens of the Jagged Crown. This original outpost was raided and overtaken by dwarves, who wanted access to the precious metals nearby. Once overtaken, they wasted no time setting up mining infrastructure and extensive smithing and forging tools. After several years, the half-orc founders, having united several tribes to their cause, out-maneuvered the dwarves and re-conquered their outpost.
With Gurtzgegaart back under orcish control, the orcs quickly took to task bolstering the defenses, rapidly transforming into a sprawling stronghold, the largest of its kind. The temporary occupation by the dwarves did happen to leave behind a precious gem: the mining and forging equipment. After some practice, the orcs learned to use the abandoned smithing tools and developed a new process called cold-forging. This unique smithing process involves compressing ingots at extremely high forces; the types of forces only achievable with the strength of an orc (or sometimes an ogre or ogrillon). With the forge up and running, Gurtzgegaart began mass-producing cold-forged weapons and armor to outfit their newly-formed standing army.