Editing Shardworld/Icons (section)

==The Great Khan==
''The doom from the south.''

'''Usual Location:''' The Khan's base is a black iron fortress deep in the Southern Scar, and he splits his time between there and the front lines.

'''Common Knowledge:''' The Great Khan marched out of the Southern Range at the beginning of the age, at the front of a horde of orcs- a monstrous race never seen before on the Continent. His initial assault was beaten back only by the hasty alliance of Athon and the Kraken Dominion, but the Khan had already managed to carve out a domain for himself in the arid and inhospitable Southern Scar. The rest of the world took note-who were these orcs, to force two nations to unite merely to stall their assault, and to be able to survive and prosper in such a desolate region? The Khan gave answer-they were the conquerors of the realm here to put an end to the fragile peace of civilization. The other nations assembled the Orcwatch in response, an army made up of soldiers from every Low King. The Khan launched three great offensives during the following decades, and all ended in defeat for the Khan. Furious at his lack of progress, the Khan changed tactics. While he continues to fight small battles with the Orcwatch, his main focus is on mustering forces and attempting to unite the monstrous races of the realm under his banner. At the moment, he has gathered many bugbear tribes and ogre warbands to his side, some twist clans, and an eclectic mix of other monsters, including at least one elder dragon. In addition, the Khan's shamans have found a way to dramatically extend the range at which they can create orcpits, the festering sinkholes orcs are spawned from. Orcpits have been observed as far north in Egrond and more continue to spawn, as the Khan prepares to war on the nations of the Continent from within and without.

'''Characters and The Great Khan:''' Many people have been hurt by the orc plague, from families to empires. Skilled adventurers who can fight back against orcish incursions are in high demand across the Continent. Given the growing frequency of orc-pit emergence, there is no shortage of jobs and prestige available for those willing to fight. Favor with the other icons is likely to be gained by those who strike especially notable blows against the monstrous hordes. Those who aid the Khan's endeavor to end non-monstrous life are either insane or don't know they're helping him.

'''Allies:''' Considering his stated goal to annihilate civilization and leave only orcs behind, none of the other icons proclaim allegiance with him. Some worrying rumors claim that orcs are appearing that exhibit the demonic influence of the Hellmote.

'''Enemies:''' The Wildspeaker burns with fury at the Great Khan's perversion of nature, and he has vowed to utterly annihilate him and his forces to the last orc. The Lord Artificer and the Kraken Tamer, being the closest Low Kings to the Scar, have lost the most during the Orc Wars.

'''History:''' The Great Khan and the orcs arose in the 7th Age, although some scholars claim there's evidence orcs have walked the Continent before.

'''The True Danger:''' If The Great Khan forges enough allegiances with the monstrous species and creates enough orcs, he will march forth with his horde and the earth itself will tremble.