Gundarakk

Belathran The Wise
Jan 29
2 min read

Updated: Feb 1

The War Engine of the Plains

Sprawling across the open breadth of the Gundarr Plains, Gundarakk is the largest settlement in Shadowstar—a city forged for conquest and dominion. Founded in 137 AC during The Age of Trade, it began as an ambitious unification project: a single seat to unite rival orc clans where Gruumsh would be honored by marching warbands.

Gundarakk, the vast orc war city — under a storm-dark sky, with horned fortresses and burning towers rising over massed warbands, banners, and marching orc warriors, embodying Shadowstar’s brutal war engine.

🛖 Life on the Plains: Herds, and Warbands

Unlike the fortified mountain passes and coastal strongholds of the Confederation, Gundarakk’s strength is derived from its massive scale. With a population of 9,000, it is the largest settlement in Shadowstar. This population is sustained by two primary pillars:

Agriculture and Herding: The city relies on surrounding villages to keep its warbands provisioned with food and labor.
Volume of Force: While other powers focus on castles or fleets, Gundarakk projects power through sheer volume—beasts, people, and recruits.

The settlement functions as both a homeland and a perpetual staging ground for war.

👑 Leadership and the Law of Strength

Orc warrior from Gundarakk gripping a heavy double-bladed axe, clad in spiked armor and furs, embodying the brutal strength and war culture of Shadowstar’s largest orc settlement.

Gundarakk is ruled by Yyrkoon, an orc war leader and chief of the Evil Souls. His rule is upheld through fear and strength, reinforced by a network of advisors, assassins, and enforcers.

In Gundarakk, leadership is never a secure title; it is a position that must be constantly defended through mortal challenges held in public view.

⚔️ The Three Great Warbands

Gundarakk’s military and political landscape is dominated by three major factions:

Battle-worn leather banner of the Evil Souls warband from Gundarakk, marked with three red claw slashes inside a black circle, symbolizing bloodshed, conquest, and devotion to war.

Evil Souls: The personal army of Yyrkoon. They are the most disciplined force in the settlement, consisting of orcs, ogres, orogs, and half-orcs chosen for raw battle prowess.

Rraapers: Fanatical devotees of Gruumsh. They view violence and conquest as sacred acts, often engaging in ritual sacrifices and holy wars.

Bloody Axes: The most feared frontline warriors. Composed of elite berserkers, they are trained to overwhelm enemy lines through sheer, reckless brutality.

The rivalry between these groups creates a volatile balance that leadership exploits to keep the city's strength honed.

🏯 The Meeting Palace

At the heart of the city stands the Meeting Palace, the largest orcish structure on the island. It is both a Temple to Gruumsh and a War Council Hall, the spiritual heart of the city where campaigns are planned and internal disputes are settled.

🍖 Gor’Throka Maug

For the citizens of Gundarakk, social life is inseparable from violence. The most infamous gathering spot is Gor’Throka Maug, a brutal hall run by Dukrash.

"In Gundarakk, status is earned in front of a crowd."

This venue serves as both a tavern and a proving ground, hosting pit fights and death matches where warriors and rivals gather to be witnessed and build their reputations.

🔥 A Legacy of Conflict

Gundarakk’s history is inseparable from the great conflicts that have shaped Shadowstar. Time and again, the settlement has served as a rallying point and retreat for orc forces, absorbing defeat only to reemerge, hardened and reorganized.

Geographically, Gundarakk sits between Capefang and Cyrest, forming a "corridor of hostile power". Together, they form an uneasy but dangerous axis of three powers that complement one another: