Editing Gorthor (section)

==The (Beast)Man, the Legend==
In 5e, Gorthor's lore was very minimalistic - a mere four paragraphs. They've fleshed it out a fair bit since then.

No-one really knows where he came from - not that you'd need to, as if you know anything about where baby Beastmen come from, you can make a pretty good guess. Plus there's no evidence he was actually affected by it. He was probably just born with the attention of the Dark Gods and that's as good an explanation as any.

Gorthor rose to power the Beastman way, by challenging every warrior higher ranked than him until he led his own Bray-Herd.  The only difference is he'd sometimes be surrounded by a corona of dark magic and instinctively lashed out with spells in battle.  Then he set about building up his Herd's strength by assimilating other Herds, even fighting and killing Bray-Shamans who spoke against him, which was and still is unthinkable for most Beastmen.  Despite this, he kept the favor of the Gods, and the Beastmen continued to follow him, until eventually he raised all the Beastmen between the River Lynsk and the Middle Mountains and suddenly attacked the Empire's northern provinces. He burned a tail of destruction through Ostland and Hochland.

At one time, his Bray-Herd ran into an [[Orcs and Goblins|Orc WAAAGH!]] including a massive number of Black Orcs. They naturally took great offense to each other's existence, and two tides of fury and muscle crashed into each other in a flurry of CQC and loud shouting. Gorthor treated his fight with the Black Orc Warboss leading the other army as no big deal until the Dark Gods warned him that this particular green lunatic was a rival for his role as world-ender and he needed to step up his game.  So he did, with the Warboss becoming a trophy for Gorthor's chariot and armor.  He found the Skull of Murgar, a minotaur lord, at a shrine guarded by Murgar's kin.  Gorthor slew them and attached it to his chariot, where its protective powers shielded him while on his chariot.

Gorthor then attacked Hochland's capital city of Hergig with a huge army.  Hergig's leader, Count Mikael, was a ruthlessly pragmatic man, which made him unpopular but suited for taking on Gorthor.  Gorthor's beastherd decimated the nation, in part because Mikael chose not to protect the towns, but to instead fortify Hergig itself, clearing trees around the city, laying hidden traps, creating trenches, the works.  

When Gorthor's army arrived, the defenses were finished.  The defenses were so numerous and fierce, the Beastmen hadn't even reached the city's walls after three weeks of violence and extensive losses.  Gorthor, more frustrated than ever and aware of the rising tension in his warherds, promised his Beastmen all the spoils of the city when they breached the defenses, wanting nothing for himself but Mikael's head.  Gorthor's promise galvanized the Beastmen, and the finally breached the defenses and entered the city the next day.

But Mikael wouldn't give an inch on anyone in the city, including himself, and neither side gave any quarter.  He had the soldiers' families deliver supplies to the front lines to ensure they didn't even think of retreating.  He had everything that could be used as a barricade used as a barricade.  As the defenders losses mounted, Mikael ordered the archers to use flaming arrows, setting every building that the Beastmen hadn't burnt on fire (except the palace).  Many Beastmen died, along with the civilians hiding in the buildings (not that Mikael seemed to care).

Things got so bad, Mikael's councilor - and cousin - suggested surrender and negotiating to save their lives.  Though ruthless, Mikael was not selfish, and he flew into a rage.  He had the man sent to Gorthor, saying that he was more a Beastman than a true son of Hochland.  Gorthor shrewdly offered the man freedom if he betrayed his lord and let the Beastmen into the palace.  But the councilor, loyal to his liege lord to the last, refused and was slain when Gorthor ate him alive in response.

After three days of brutal fighting, the battle took on a new and dramatic turn.  Crusading knights returning from Araby arrived to assist the defenders.  The knights rode into the rear of the seething Beastman horde, hundreds upon hundreds of heavily-armored warriors.  Realizing the battle was turning against him as the Dark Gods had warned, Gorthor rallied his Bestigor guards and fought his way towards Mikael.  

He found Count Mikael and challenged him, which the Count accepted and the two engaged in a duel.  After an hour of vicious fighting where both took several wounds, Gorthor and Mikael both lay dead.  Here's where the lore was slightly retconned over time.  In the original version, Mikael slew Gorthor then died of his wounds shortly after.  In the second version, Gorthor impaled Mikael on his spear and Gorthor died when Mikael [[Herp|dropped the Runefang, which landed point down into Gorthor's chest]].  The third version came from a novel, and played out same as the second except Mikael deliberately stabbed Gorthor in the chest with his dying strength.