PF2 SRD:Half-Orc

This material is published under the OGL 1.0a.

Half-Orc

Orc

Human

Humanoid

A half-orc is the offspring of a human and an orc, or of two half-orcs. Because some intolerant people see orcs as more akin to monsters than people, they sometimes hate and fear half-orcs simply due to their lineage. This commonly pushes half-orcs to the margins of society, where some find work in manual labor or as mercenaries, and others fall into crime or cruelty. Many who can’t stand the indignities heaped on them in human society find a home among their orc kin or trek into the wilderness to live in peace, apart from society’s judgment.

Humans often assume half-orcs are unintelligent or uncivilized, and half-orcs rarely find acceptance among societies with many such folk. To an orc tribe, a half-orc is considered smart enough to make a good war leader but weaker physically than other orcs. Many half-orcs thus end up having low status among orc tribes unless they can prove their strength.

A half-orc has a shorter lifespan than other humans, living to be roughly 70 years old.

You might...

• Ignore, embrace, or actively counter the common stereotypes about half-orcs.
• Make the most of your size and strength, either physically or socially.
• Keep your distance from people of most other ancestries, in case they unfairly reject you due to your orc ancestors.

Others probably...

• Assume you enjoy and excel at fighting but aren’t inclined toward magical or intellectual pursuits.
• Pity you for the tragic circumstances they assume were involved in your birth.
• Get out of your way and back down rather than face your anger.

Other Halves: By default, half-elves and half-orcs descend from humans, but your GM might allow you to be the offspring of an elf, orc, or different ancestry. In these cases, the GM will let you select the half-elf or half-orc heritage as the heritage for this other ancestry. The most likely other parent of a half-elf are gnomes and halflings, and the most likely parents of a half-orc are goblins, halflings, and dwarves.

Statistics

You can create a half-orc character by choosing the human ancestry with the half-orc heritage. These statistics are reproduced here for convenience.

Hit Points: 8
Size: Medium
Speed: 25 feet
Ability Boosts: Two free ability boosts
Languages: Common; additional languages equal to 1 + your Intelligence modifier (minimum of 0). Choose from the list of common languages, and any other languages to which you have access (such as the languages prevalent in your region).
Traits: Half-Orc, Orc, Human, Humanoid
Low-Light Vision: You can see in dim light as though it were bright light, so you ignore the concealed condition due to dim light.

Ancestry Feats

At 1st level, you gain one ancestry feat, and you gain an additional ancestry feat every 4 levels thereafter (at 5th, 9th, 13th, and 17th levels). As a half-orc, you select from among the following ancestry feats, or any ancestry feats available to humans. Some of these feats are common to people with orc blood and have the orc trait, while others are specific to half-orcs and have the half-orc trait.

Name	Source	Summary	Level	Prerequisites
Monstrous Peacemaker	Core Rulebook	Your dual human and orc nature has given you a unique perspective.	1
Orc Ferocity	Core Rulebook	Fierceness in battle runs through your blood, and you refuse to fall from your injuries.	1
Orc Sight	Core Rulebook	Your orc blood is strong enough to grant you the keen vision of your orc forebears.	1	low-light vision
Orc Superstition	Core Rulebook	You defend yourself against magic by relying on techniques derived from orc cultural superstitions.	1
Orc Weapon Familiarity	Core Rulebook	In combat, you favor the brutal weapons that are traditional for your orc ancestors.	1
Orc Weapon Carnage	Core Rulebook	You are brutally efficient with the weapons of your orc ancestors.	5	Orc Weapon Familiarity
Victorious Vigor	Core Rulebook	Your victories in battle fill you with pride and imbue you with the energy to fight a bit longer despite your wounds.	5
Pervasive Superstition	Core Rulebook	You steep yourself in superstition and practice ancient orc mental exercises for shrugging off the effects of magic.	9	Orc Superstition
Incredible Ferocity	Core Rulebook	Given time to collect yourself after a near-death scrape, you can rebuild your ferocity and withstand additional finishing blows.	13	Orc Ferocity
Orc Weapon Expertise	Core Rulebook	Your orc affinity blends with your class training, granting you great skill with orc weapons.	13	Orc Weapon Familiarity

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