At the dawn of the New Era, the Orc tribes found themselves scattered and leaderless. Unlike the other races, they had no Great Mages of their own to anchor their lands against the consuming force of the Astral. As a result, many orcs perished, and those who survived did so only by taking refuge on allods controlled by Great Mages of other races—most of whom viewed the orcs with hostility. The once-mighty Great Horde had been reduced to a shadow of its former self.
It was in these desperate times that Rodogor was born—a descendant of the legendary orc hero Skull of Steppes, raised on Grokh, a small elven allod. Rodogor soon realized that the orcs' downfall was not due to weakness, but to their lack of Great Mages. Determined to change this, he sought out Claude di Vevre, the Great Mage of his allod, hoping to learn the secrets of the Astral.
Claude was intrigued, curious to see if orcs had the potential for higher magic. However, when it became clear that an orc could never attain the rank of Great Mage, the elf lost interest and cast Rodogor out. The failed apprentice, now convinced that the new world had no place for orcs, sought aid elsewhere.
The Hadagan Empire became his only hope. The Kanians would never forgive the orcs for the Great Feast, when the Horde had waged war against Kania. So instead, Rodogor turned to Nezeb, the ruler of Hadagan.
Before seeking an audience, however, he traveled to Izun—the last surviving orc allod—where he united the scattered orc tribes under his banner and became the High Shaman of the Orcs.
On Igsh, Rodogor met with Nezeb, and the two forged a grim military alliance:
Nezeb would provide a Great Mage to anchor an orc allod, ensuring their survival.
In return, the orcs would have to seize the allod themselves.
The price for this aid? The orcs' unwavering military service to the Hadagan Empire.
The harshest clause of the agreement was Rodogor's own fate—he would remain on Igsh as a hostage, ensuring the loyalty of his people. Despite his distaste for this condition, he accepted. And thus, the Orcs became part of the Hadagan Empire.
