Nishrek
Nishrek is the home plane of the orc pantheon. On this great battlefield, orc warriors clash nightly in devastating conflict, only to rise again the next night to fight again. Different tribes of orc petitioners wage endless war upon each other, foregoing alliances and diplomacy in favor of eternal carnage. By proving themselves in battle, the orcs hope to win the favor of Gruumsh, who they believe will one day identify a single tribe as his true children and declare its members superior to all other orcs.
Nishrek Traits
Nishrek has the following traits.
- Alterable morphic: Each divine realm is divinely morphic.
- Mildly evil-aligned.
- Strong faith. Followers of the dwarf and elf pantheons take greater penalties here.
- Minor positive-dominant. Nishrek is not a place where many things can live, but those who battle on its killing fields are suffused with positive energy. Every creature on the plane gains fast healing 2 and can even regrow lost limbs in time. Additionally, those slain in the never-ending conflicts on Nishrek's battlefields rise each sunset fully healed and ready to fight anew, as if they had received the benefit of a true resurrection spell. Even petitioners, who as outsiders cannot normally be resurrected, awaken fully healed. Only those who suffer mortal wounds on Nishrek's battlefields get the true resurrection effect; dead characters brought to this plane don't spontaneously revive.
Nishrek Links
The River of Blood flows through Nishrek, linking it with most of the other fiendish planes. In addition, Blood Rift often comes into contact with Nishrek, allowing one endless war to spill out into the midst of another.
Nishrek Inhabitants
Hellwasps are said to be native to Nishrek, though they are common on other fiendish planes as well. Swarms of the creatures are among the few distractions that can gain the temporary attention of Nishrek's armies.
Nishrek Petitioners: Most petitioners of Nishrek are orcs and half-orcs, which retain their earthly appearances. They have the following special qualities.
Additional Immunities: Cold, electricity.
Resistances: Acid 10, fire 10.
Other Special Qualities: None.
Features Of Nishrek
Nishrek is an endless plain dotted with fortresses and crisscrossed with trenches in which whole communities of orc petitioners have sprung up. The soldiers inhabiting these wretched settlements spend their time awaiting the next assault from an enemy tribe.
Gruumsh/Bahgtru/Ilneval: Gruumsh watches over the endless battles on this plane from his Iron Fortress. Within its walls, any orc or orc petitioner gains damage reduction 25 and spell resistance 30. Gruumsh often wanders the battlefields, aiding one side or another apparently at his whim. The orcs are happy to return the favor by occasionally seeking shelter within his fortress because of its supreme defensive benefits. Sometimes the god allows an army to take cover in his fortress; sometimes he does not. Bahgtru and Ilneval live in Gruumsh's Iron Fortress as well. These two deities fight beside Gruumsh or at his bidding.
Luthic: The Cave Mother dwells in a great cavern below the Iron Fortress, along with the female petitioners of the plane. The females do not participate in the endless warfare above ground, but they do sometimes tend to the wounded in the short time that it takes them to recover.
Shargaas: In a gigantic cavern system elsewhere in Nishrek lives Shargaas. Called the Night Below, this cavern realm is so dark that no creature can see within its blackness. Since Shargaas and all his petitioners have blindsight, however, they can function normally within its depths.
Yurtrus: Fleshslough, a mighty hill standing above the great battlefields, is the realm of Yurtrus. The petitioners of Nishrek whisper that orcs who fight poorly in the nightly battles are sent by Gruumsh to Fleshslough, where Yurtrus frees their spirits from their flesh. This process represents the only meaningful death on Nishrek, and thus it is the one that all orcs fear more than anything.