Lore:Ogre

Ogres
An Ogre (Blades)
Type		Race (Goblin-ken)
Range		Tamriel Apocrypha (invasive), Hunting Grounds
Appears in		Redguard, Oblivion, ESO, Legends, Blades, Castles

"Many will tell of the loveliness of Elves
And still more will sing of the fine human form
but where is song or sign that augurs
all that is beautiful about Ogres?"
—An excerpt from On the Beauty of Ogres

Ogres are a race of large humanoid goblin-ken, that are found throughout Tamriel. Best known for their great strength and foul smell, they are commonly perceived as dim-witted brutes. Ogres have steely blue or greenish skin, pronounced teeth, and tapered ears. Their large physique often garners comparisons to Giants. It has been hypothesized that their grey-blue coloration is a method of camouflage against the sky, although this speculation is considered to have been debunked. They often have shaggy white or black hair, which can cover the entire body of those found in colder regions. The Ogres in Wrothgar are sometimes called Snow Ogres, and are differentiated from common Ogres by their thick white fur. Some of these ogres use powerful frost magic.

History

Early History

An Ogre Elder of Wrothgar (ESO)

The exact origins of Ogres remain uncertain. The Winterborn tribe of Reachfolk believe that the Daedric Prince Malacath created Ogres, along with Orcs and trolls, as a means to test his chosen followers and impose hardships.

One tale about the Merethic Era Khajiit hero Khunzar-ri speaks about him outwitting a dozen Ogres who had overtaken an adeptorium, whom Khunzar-ri directed toward a nearby Nedic fort for even better spoils, making the Ogres someone else's problem.

First Era

At some point during the early First Era, Vivec is said to have had a battle with the Flute-and-Pipe Ogres of the West Gash. Relatedly, an Orcish tale about the origin of Baar Dau alleges Vivec went on to say something about Ogres that angered Malacath, and the Daedric Prince defecated on the city of the Living God for the disrespect to his beloved "little brothers".

During the Camoran Dynasty of the First Era, the rulers of the Summerset Isles released hundreds of Ogres, Orcs, Gremlins, Goblins, and other beastfolk, allowing them to settle north of Valenwood. These creatures chose an uninhabited mountain region near Old Hroldan in High Rock, as the Orcish tribes were dependent on rare, shaggy, giant centipede herd-beasts that can only survive at high altitudes. Here, they would found the first city of Orsinium. The exact founding date of Orsinium is unclear, but various pieces of evidence place it in the ninth or tenth century of the First Era.

Second Era

Ogre concept art (Redguard)

At some point in the Second Era, Ogres were brought to the Padomaic Crest, as part of an attempt by the Telvanni to create a menagerie of beasts to rival the famous Sil-Var-Woad of Summerset. Said attempt failed, and the small Ogre tribes that escaped would continuously be hunted by mercenaries trying cover up the failure.

Circa 2E 582, Orcs and Ogres had little care for each other. The Ironhand Ogres of Stormhaven were a significant military threat to the region, and impeded the Orcs' efforts to rebuild Orsinium, so they were besieged and slain by the Daggerfall Covenant.

Later that year, a powerful and intelligent Ogre shaman known as Mad Urkazbur disrupted a shipment of books written by the High Elf scholar Cirantille that was being delivered to Orsinium by the commission of King Kurog. The shipment contained several dozen copies of the scholar's book "The Ogres of Wrothgar: A Continuing Treatise", a bigoted text on Ogres, dismissing their intelligence and magical capabilities and claiming they deserve to be killed. Urkazbur had his Ogres destroy these books, leading to a contract being put out for him to be killed and the pages recovered. The Vestige fulfilled this contract, recovering the book pages and killing Mad Urkazbur.

Despite past conflicts, as of 2E 864, Ogres were once again known to inhabit Orsinium. That same year, the hero Cyrus fought a particularly fierce Ogre in the Goblin Caverns of Stros M'Kai; said Ogre was guarding the final resting place of the Archmage Voa.

Third Era

In the late Third Era, a tribe of Ogres from Redguard Valley Cave attacked a homestead in Weatherleah, and stole the (already stolen) Honorblade of Chorrol, an ancient heirloom of the ruling Valga family in Chorrol. Years later, circa 3E 433, the Hero of Kvatch reclaimed the blade from the Ogres' chieftain. That same year, a tribe of savage Ogres that made their home the ruins of Sedor attacked a band of thieves who had stolen the Stone of St. Alessia from the Great Chapel of Talos in Bruma. The stone was said to have been blessed by Alessia herself, and protected the chapel from harm. The Ogres, attracted to the pretty gem, took the stone and killed most of the thieves, leaving a single survivor. The Fighters Guild were called in to recover the stone from the thieves, and a guild member successfully tracked the Ogres back to Sedor, wiped them out and retrieved the stone.

Again that same year, Malacath commanded the Hero of Kvatch to free a group of Ogres from enslavement in the mines of a Dunmer noble, Lord Drad, on the Gold Coast of Cyrodiil. Once the Prince's "little brothers" were released from their bonds, the Ogres turned the tables on their former master, taking over the estate and forcing Drad to work.

Fourth Era

Odar the Brave fighting Ogres (Castles)

Circa 4E 180, the Warrior defeated a powerful Ogre who snuck into dwellings at night during the time of the New Life Festival with his diminutive Goblin helpers to "reward the faithful and punish the wicked". The Warrior also slew an ogre who was imprisoned within the "Golden Keep", a dungeon in a realm associated with Sheogorath, guarded by the Mad God's Aureal and Dremora servants.

An army of Ogres, led by an Ogre king, once menaced the land of a Nord known as Odar the Brave. Odar and his adventuring party would slay the king and defeat his army. For this act, Odar was made the ruler of a small kingdom by the current Emperor of Cyrodiil. Though Ogres would continue to be a minor nuisance for his dynasty.

Behavior and Culture

A piece of ogre artwork (ESO)

Mad Urkazbur's Ice-Effigy (ESO)

Especially common in Cyrodiil, Ogres are hunter-gatherers who live in small, primitive communities, often inhabiting backwoods and natural caves. Although possessing great strength, Ogres are generally considered nothing more than a nuisance to the other races, though they often steal objects from, and even attack or raid human settlements. Ogre tribes are often led by a chieftain or caveboss, and many tribes have multiple magic-practicing elders or shamans. Young Ogres are sometimes known as groundlings. Female Ogres, while much less commonly seen than the males, are known to exist.

Although usually perceived as dim-witted and violent brutes, with some bigoted individuals believing them to be no more than beasts, Ogres have been known to show considerable intelligence. Ogres helped in the founding of the first Orsinium alongside the Orcs and other goblin-ken after they were freed from slavery during the time of the Camoran Dynasty. Some Ogres, such as the Snow Ogres that live in Wrothgar, possess remarkable intelligence and have been known to perform powerful ice magic. There is one account of a group of Snow Ogre elders who healed an injured researcher. The Ogre shaman Mad Urkazbur was capable of creating animated ice effigies of himself. Ogres are seemingly not capable of speaking Tamrielic, but they do grunt and vocalize. Some even seem to be capable of reading Tamrielic, and take offense to works that insult Ogres.

Ogres occasionally use weaponry such as clubs and axes, but they typically only rely on their own brute strength and massive fists. Some Ogres also use magic in combat. Ogres are capable of crafting crude, but sturdy armor. While not typically known to wear jewelry, some Ogres wear large toe-rings. Ogres are also known create primitive art; they construct foul, decorative piles of bone where they lair. They also use human bones and skulls as primitive musical instruments. Ogres are known to domesticate animals such as cave bears; they even form bonds and play with their pets.

Cohabitation

While they usually form their own tribes, Ogres are commonly known to intermingle with Goblin tribes, often ranking high in them. The Snow Ogres of Wrothgar are known to work closely with the Riekr that also inhabit the region. The Riekr are said to provide their Ogre allies with weapons and armor they wouldn't normally have access to. Ogres have been called "giant-kin", but the exact relationship between them and Giants is unknown. It is possible that Ogres may be able to interbreed with humans.

Diet

Ogres are described as cannibals for the fact they sometimes eat members of other races. Though the Ogre diet is typically meat-based, some outcasts have been observed to practice vegetarianism, to the extent of stealing vegetables.

Religion

Ogres, like their fellow goblin-ken Orcs and Goblins, worship Malacath. Like Goblins, they know Malacath as "The Blue God". They are often disrespected or enslaved by other races, practices which anger Malacath, as he considers Ogres his "little brothers". Some Ogres serve Peryite, serving as disease-carriers, but it is unknown if this is ever by choice.

Uses

Ogre's teeth (Skyrim)

Stuffed Ogre (Oblivion)

Ogre's Teeth are considered very distinctive, and they are often used as in alchemy. The Coldsnap Tribe of goblin-ken wear Ogre fur for warmth. Ogre bones are sometimes used to make windchimes. Ogre sinew is used to make a mesh that some Bosmer swear provides unmatched protection from the giant wasps of Green's Marrow. Snow Ogre hide is used to make pillows, and their fingernails are used to make spoons. Ogres are an occasional subject of taxidermy; a stuffed Ogre was one of the trophies displayed in Battlehorn Castle after its restoration.

Ogres historically have been kept as slaves in the Summerset Isles. Despite slavery being outlawed by the Empire, using Ogres for slave labor was considered perfectly legal in Third Era Cyrodiil. They are also captured for use in gladiatorial arenas, such as in the famous Imperial City Arena.

While some consider eating Ogres to be cannibalism, priests of Malacath state Ogre innards were commonly found in ancient Orc dishes, and Namira does not accept Ogres as viable cannibalistic offerings.

Ogres are an occasional subject of tales and poetry. They were the namesake of various inns and taverns in the late Third Era, as well as regions such as the Ogres Tooth Mountains and Ogre's Bluff.

Gallery

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  An Ogre (Redguard)

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  Ogre render (Redguard)

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  An Ogre (Oblivion)

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  An Ogre (Oblivion Mobile)

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  An Ogre (ESO)

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  A blue Ogre (ESO)

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  Snow Ogre (ESO)

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  An armored Snow Ogre (ESO)

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  An Ogre infected with the Knahaten Flu (ESO)

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  An Ogre relaxing as another Ogre is foraging (ESO)

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  Savage Ogre (Legends)

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  Rocksmasher Ogre (Blades)

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  Female Ogre (Castles)

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  Ogre family tree sketch (Oblivion)

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  Ogres in Bonerock Caverns (ESO)

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  Severed Ogre head (ESO)

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  An Ogre camp (ESO)

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  Ogre concept art (Redguard)

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  Snow Ogre concept art (left)

Notes

• Ogres were first mentioned through the names of various inns in Arena and Daggerfall, but first appeared in Redguard.

See Also

• Ogre Names
• For game-specific information, see the Redguard, Oblivion, Oblivion Mobile, Elder Scrolls Online, Legends, Blades, and Castles articles.

Books

• Ogres: A Summary by Cirantille — A description of ogres
• The Ogres of Wrothgar: A Continuing Treatise by Cirantille — An addendum to a treatise on the ogres that inhabit Wrothgar
• Serpent Hollow Observations — A researcher's notes on the behavior of a clan of Ogres

References

Note: The following references are considered to be unofficial sources. They are included to round off this article and may not be authoritative or conclusive.