CA Smith: The Rennaisance Man of Fantasy

I am always amazed at CA Smith's versatility in his art and the range of subjects that he learned (self-taught for the most part).  Poet, short-story writer, painter, sculptor, translator (of French and Spanish poetry).  Certainly not the ploymath like Da Vinci, but for a man with little more than a grade school education, more than just quite impressive. Link.

Castle El Raja Key Update 2

Andy Taylor finished the full page print that will be included in the release of this project.  IMO it is his best work to date.  Andy will also be drawing some interior illustrations for it.   Eric Bergeron has finished the HI-RES cover (included on the sample cover was a LOW-RES version).  I am now 5,000 words (plus or minus) into the MS.  I am laying it out inline as I proceed.  The map versions being used are scanned by GRODOG and are better than the original ones scanned during the auction (like 5x better).  I am including historical anecdotes when these occur, mostly relating to EGG's adventures upon the 1st-3rd levels when he was a wee Mordy.  All around this is looking more exciting than the Bottle City adventure.

Updates and an "Ancient Sample"

The progress on Castle El Raja Key is proceeding nicely and it's looking more and more like an end of January release.

I am also preparing for publication (most likely in PDF form because of its immensity) the release of "Lost City of the Ancients" (aka Lost City of the Elders).  From my auction scans I pieced together the map which was unfinished at the time of auction.  However, not all parts align perfectly (probably my inexperience with Photoshop).

There are over 100 jpeg and pdf files related to this as well as many other MS pieces I have added since then.  The product is way beyond PPP's means to publish in print format due to its size and content, which has a heavy weight on maps (with the combined 40 x30 color hex map there are at least 15-20 other maps from interior buildings, sewers, etc) and illustrations, and probably over 60,000 words of text.

Due to this I have apportioned my time thusly:  Castle El Raja Key levels, Old Castle Levels, Memoirs and have added this project as a PDF only, which will allow it to be released, otherwise, it's a no-go.  I have had hundreds of inquiries over the years about this project.  Its scope has always been too large for a print endeavor and would eat away at my time to a severe degree just ordering its parts for print, but in PDF it becomes viable in the not do distant future (mid to end 2010).

Though I generally dislike polls, I would like to poll at least the readership here to get an idea of the reception of such a PDF product which would otherwise leave a part of RPG history resting in the hands of those who bought the originals at auction several years ago.  I have no idea what I would charge for such a thing, as well, but  the content will be huge, including a short story of EGG's first adventure into it.  Here's an extracted part from the Intro:

"...Historically this is the first off-world (or planar) adventure from the Original Campaign.  The city as is historically recorded existed out of the current time stream and out of known space.  It was a place of unknown and unfathomable events.  So too was it an experiment and thus of great interest to those vested in discovering the arcana that derived from it.  Its legend is only whispered among the seekers of arcane knowledge and its mere mention summons images of dread demons and less savory kin called from the depths of cold space.  Its total history will never be known lest the god who created it foretells such a time when this might pass.  Its ancient magics and beings have defeated the greatest of wizards, driving many to an early death or into the oblivion of irretrievable insanity.

The inspiration for creating the city is manyfold:  rolled into its vast and ancient mysteries are the vagaries of a god’s experiment gone awry and the resultant chaos, of loss, rebirth and the horrors unleashed from tampering with the ultimate of forbidden magic. It hints at the mysteries of the Pyramids, of the dreaded wastelands and cities of ancient Hyperborea as richly described by Clark Ashton Smith, of the interstellar intrusions of primordial beings by Lovecraft, of the lost continents of Atlantis and the myths of Lemuria rolled into one, and in many parts it embodies the stricken City of Brass as related in Burton’s tale with all of its vainglorious emptiness and ancient opulence. It is the desert which whispers of curses yet to come, the lonely place on the hill, the twice forsaken edifice, a ruin of ruins.  In awe inspiring streets, beneath burnished towers casting their last and dreadful double shadows, and amidst boney hands still clenching their final triumphs of life, there lurks within and about it an ultimate power that only death will reveal...."

Mike Carr

Mike really needs a better bio than this.  Among many other accomplishments, he was the co-designer of Don't Give up the Ship (with EGG and Dave Arneson), the designer of Fight in the Skies (aka Dawn Patrol), one of TSR's earliest officers, editor, designer of In Search of the Unknown (Basic D&D adventure module) and was among Dave Arneson's earliest players in Blackmoor.  An elder IFW member as well, Mike has always upheld great game design theory and has a consummate love of games and the history surrounding them, especially his love of WWI air combat.

An Old Happy Holidays

Maybe some of the stalwarts can identify the elder TSR employees in this holiday painting for the Dragon Magazine which was rendered by Dave Trampier back in the day...

Favorite Kurt Vonnegut Quotes

Any reviewer who expresses rage and loathing for a novel is preposterous. He or she is like a person who has put on full armor and attacked a hot fudge sundae.

    Kurt Vonnegut

I want to stay as close to the edge as I can without going over. Out on the edge you see all kinds of things you can't see from the center.

    Kurt Vonnegut

If you can do a half-assed job of anything, you're a one-eyed man in a kingdom of the blind.

    Kurt Vonnegut

Laughter and tears are both responses to frustration and exhaustion. I myself prefer to laugh, since there is less cleaning up to do afterward.

    Kurt Vonnegut

Life happens too fast for you ever to think about it. If you could just persuade people of this, but they insist on amassing information.

    Kurt Vonnegut

Say what you will about the sweet miracle of unquestioning faith, I consider a capacity for it terrifying and absolutely vile!

    Kurt Vonnegut

Those who believe in telekinetics, raise my hand

    Kurt Vonnegut

Beware of the man who works hard to learn something, learns it, and finds himself no wiser than before... He is full of murderous resentment of people who are ignorant without having come by their ignorance the hard way.

    Kurt Vonnegut, "Cat's Cradle"

One of the few good things about modern times: If you die horribly on television, you will not have died in vain. You will have entertained us.

    Kurt Vonnegut, "Cold Turkey", In These Times, May 10, 2004

Thanks to TV and for the convenience of TV, you can only be one of two kinds of human beings, either a liberal or a conservative.

    Kurt Vonnegut, "Cold Turkey", In These Times, May 10, 2004

There is a tragic flaw in our precious Constitution, and I don't know what can be done to fix it. This is it: Only nut cases want to be president.

    Kurt Vonnegut, "Cold Turkey", In These Times, May 10, 2004

Here is a lesson in creative writing. First rule: Do not use semicolons. They are transvestite hermaphrodites representing absolutely nothing. All they do is show you've been to college.

    Kurt Vonnegut, A Man without a Country

Humor is an almost physiological response to fear.

    Kurt Vonnegut, A Man without a Country

I think that novels that leave out technology misrepresent life as badly as Victorians misrepresented life by leaving out sex.

    Kurt Vonnegut, A Man without a Country

1492. As children we were taught to memorize this year with pride and joy as the year people began living full and imaginative lives on the continent of North America. Actually, people had been living full and imaginative lives on the continent of North America for hundreds of years before that. 1492 was simply the year sea pirates began to rob, cheat, and kill them.

    Kurt Vonnegut, Breakfast of Champions

New knowledge is the most valuable commodity on earth. The more truth we have to work with, the richer we become.

    Kurt Vonnegut, Breakfast of Champions

The chief weapon of sea pirates, however, was their capacity to astonish. Nobody else could believe, until it was too late, how heartless and greedy they were.

    Kurt Vonnegut, Breakfast of Champions

Charm was a scheme for making strangers like and trust a person immediately, no matter what the charmer had in mind.

    Kurt Vonnegut, breakfast of champions (page 19)

I can have oodles of charm when I want to.

    Kurt Vonnegut, Breakfast of Champions (page 20)

Maturity is a bitter disappointment for which no remedy exists, unless laughter can be said to remedy anything.

    Kurt Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle

Here's what I think the truth is: We are all addicts of fossil fuels in a state of denial, about to face cold turkey.

    Kurt Vonnegut, Cold Turkey

Another flaw in the human character is that everybody wants to build and nobody wants to do maintenance.

    Kurt Vonnegut, Hocus Pocus

During my three years in Vietnam, I certainly heard plenty of last words by dying American footsoldiers. Not one of them, however, had illusions that he had somehow accomplished something worthwhile in the process of making the Supreme Sacrifice.

    Kurt Vonnegut, Hocus Pocus

Well, the telling of jokes is an art of its own, and it always rises from some emotional threat. The best jokes are dangerous, and dangerous because they are in some way truthful.

    Kurt Vonnegut, Interview, Mcsweeneys.net

We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful what we pretend to be.

    Kurt Vonnegut, Mother Night

Just because some of us can read and write and do a little math, that doesn't mean we deserve to conquer the Universe.

    Kurt Vonnegut, Novel 'Hocus Pocus' 1990

A purpose of human life, no matter who is controlling it, is to love whoever is around to be loved.

    Kurt Vonnegut, Sirens of Titan

Like so many Americans, she was trying to construct a life that made sense from things she found in gift shops.

    Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse Five

All time is all time. It does not change. It does not lend itself to warnings or explanations. It simply is. Take it moment by moment, and you will find that we are all, as I've said before, bugs in amber.

    Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse V

How nice--to feel nothing, and still get full credit for being alive.

    Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five

Noble Knight Games Page for PPP Products

This is the link to PPP's product page at Noble Knight Games.

Pressing on SHOP THE PIPER at our site also redirects you to the same page.

Follow-Up Commentary From Aaron Leeder: PPP & NKG

Aaron Leeder and I discussed the general ideas of what to post about this agreement, but in a follow-up inspired by our meeting, Aaron wished to add this as well:

From Aaron Leeder and Noble Knight Games: "Rob is a legend and further developing our business relationship is a no-brainer for us and hopefully for gamers in general. We're going to continue offering the limited editions and all the things that make PPP products special. Rob let me in on some of his future plans and they are exciting to say the least. Hopefully our involvement will enable more of these products to see the light of day. There is a growing movement that we call "old school renaissance" happening in the underground right now. It's important for us to not just sell these games but to shine a spotlight (torchlight?) on them and hopefully help the entire movement grow into something sustainable and creatively exciting. PPP is the flagship for this movement."


Heady, complimentary words which PPP will live up to with NKG's partnership.


And for those already inquiring:  Yes.  That is the original Deities and Demigods cover art rendered by Erol Otus.  Aaron has owned it for many years now and I suggested we use it as a backdrop for the photos we took.


(Photos snapped of our meeting compliments of Kathy Fletcher)

Noble Knight Games and Pied Piper Publishing Sign Exclusive Distribution Agreement

PPP NEWS:  12/20/09

Aaron Leeder President of Noble Knight Games and Rob Kuntz of PPP signed an exclusive distribution agreement today making Noble Knight Games, one of the largest online retailers of out of print, limited print and hard to find games, the exclusive online retailer of Pied Piper Publishing's product line.

All future sales of PPP product starting 12/22/09 will be handled exclusively by Noble Knight Games.   No PPP branded product will be available on PPP'S site.  This includes all future RPG and fiction, special non-fiction, and special art print releases, representing 100% of PPP's in print and upcoming products.

From PPP and Rob Kuntz:  "This move was a long time in coming for many excellent reasons.  I have been inundated with design work and the management of the company, art direction, accounting and product management as well as scouting for new design talent.  The additional day-to-day chores of shipping, receiving, inventory, order tracking, collating, and numerous other back-end processes related to the proper and timely shipping of product started to weigh heavily upon me and was forcing me to work 16 hour days.  A one-man show, this was taking its toll on my health as I was working an average of 6-7 days a week.  If there is one thing that Noble Knight Games has always done right is ship its products in a timely fashion.  If there is always something I have done right is to make exciting and challenging products for our fans.  With this arrangement PPP insures that everything is being done efficiently and it concentrates what both of us do best, with an end result of "better for all.""

In the meeting which lasted over 2 hours between the two, Rob and Aaron discussed the grouping of their resources for the betterment of PPP's design end and for the promotion of Noble Knight's strength in the market.  Noble Knight Games provides a proven track record of 12 years of expertise in product fulfillment. They have 6 employees which make it their business to quickly, efficiently and safely deliver printed matter, games, miniatures and a diverse inventory of game related mail order product to their consumer's doorstep without fail.  By alleviating the shipping/receiving process PPP's product release schedule will be expanded and many other processes streamlined due to this, making for a growing release schedule over the year 2010.

PPP has made available all mail database records for NKG's mailing of previous PPP customers and these customers will be receiving notices directly from NKG when new PPP product becomes available.  If they wish to be removed from that list, merely note that by return mail to NKG.

Exciting times are ahead for both PPP and NKG.  We will keep you posted on these as they develop!

The Original Living Room Product Update

The Original Living Room has sold out and is out of print.  We will be offering an expanded version of this in bound format next year.

Castle El Raja Key, small Partial of the Introductory, Historical Essay

Hereafter follows a small snippet from the accompanying essay which (in full) delineates the first Blackmoor adventure in LG, the initial reaction to this by Gary and myself in a meeting between us the day afterward, the formulation of the OD&D first draft, the crafting of Castle Greyhawk and El Raja Key, the composite Lake Geneva Campaign as it grew, and includes some slices of these adventures later written about and detailed in "Up on a SoapBox" in the Dragon Magazine and at various forums, and in unpublished form (both in EGG's mss and my own).  The whole in depth essay is a wealth of history regarding the advent of FRPG in Lake Geneva in 1972.

"...As I was ostensibly part of the Gygax extended family since 1968, I was at their house and with Gary almost every day.  After the initial Blackmoor adventure events proceeded at a furious pace.  Phone calls to Dave.  Letters exchanged between the two.  During this time EGG noted that he had begun crafting a “dungeon” setting similar to Dave’s Blackmoor. About two weeks after this adventure, Gary handed me a slim manuscript which had been mailed to him by David.  I sat down and read for the first time the rules that David had used during it.  They consisted of “16 pages of [typed] notes” (as EGG emphasized while I was perusing them).  He and I both noted that they were based off of EGG’s Fantasy Supplement to the rules Chainmail (Gygax & Perren, Guidon Games 1971) but with copious additions of formulas which I faintly (at least then) equated to those from the miniatures game Strategos N (David Wesley, 1967) that I had watched being played at GENCON 2.  Gary informed me that these notes were in need of streamlining and that he would be doing this over the coming weeks as well as continuing to craft a dungeon to play-test the refined rules.

The First Draft of OD&D -- Greyhawk Castle is Born -- El Raja Key Quickly Follows.

"Within 4-6 weeks of our first adventure into Blackmoor Gary had a rough first draft of the new rules and several levels of the new dungeon, Greyhawk, to play-test these.  His daughters and Ernie were the first adventurers; the second one consisted of myself (Robilar), my brother Terry (Terik), Ernie Gygax (Tenser) and Elise Gygax (Ahlissa).  Within 4 weeks of this second adventure and the ones that followed on a daily and nightly basis, I crafted the first levels of El Raja Key, at first with the intent of only judging Gary therein, as he had been pulling double duty with writing the D&D rules as well as designing the levels beneath Greyhawk Castle.  After starting his PCs Yrag and Mordenkainen within it, Gary took his first step at making me the co-DM of the Greyhawk “Campaign” as then understood.  As the play-tests had been fast and furious,  many of the earliest PCs had grown very quickly in level and were moving to the outdoor.  I was allowed to DM these outdoor adventures just prior to completing my journey as Robilar to “China” (which earned me the co-DM mantle permanently and on all levels). ..."

Front Cover Preview: Castle El Raja Key

This is in post production and final design and/or prices could change depending on actual printing end costs and options.  Enjoy the preview.

On The Horizon: Castle El Raja Key Collector's Edition

PPP is finishing, among other planned releases, the first three levels (in color) of Castle El Raja Key.  With notes, keyed encounters, opening essay about the original campaign in which this was shared and adventured in by Gary Gygax, Don Kaye (co-founder of TSR Rules), Terry Kuntz, and others. Historically many rules, iconic D&D magic items, spells, and monsters for the Greyhawk Supplement (and later finding their way into other editions of the D&D game) sprang from this castle and its adjunct campaign, Greyhawk.

We will also be including a special limited edition print of two personages that this product is being dedicated to (more on this later).  The illustration for the cover is by Eric Bergeron.  We are shooting for the end of January for releasing this.

Convention Updates

In March I will  be attending GaryCon 2 at the Cove in Lake Geneva.  During that time I will be DMing select people in my Castle El Raja Key.  For those who will be attending, see you there!

In June I am scheduled to appear at NTRPGCON2, courtesy of that fine group and Doug Rhea.  I will be using Ramsey's DUNGEON SET #1 as a design template for the dungeon delve I am planning then.  The usual mayhem; and I might DM other things as well as I am bringing along quite a lot of original material including my Castle El Raja Key which is now in production (that was our secret project I have not spilled the beans on as yet).

The adventure for NTRPGCON is very special in that it incorporates the NT Gamers' PCs in several ways.  It should be a hoot.

More to follow on all as these events come up on the calendar.

ERKAT PRODUCT UPDATE

I don't celebrate X-Mas, but for those that do we have a large stocking stuffer on sale through Jan. 2010.

I knocked off $3.00 for El Raja Key's Arcane Treasury for those wanting a really nice present of a great sourcebook.  96 pages of really imaginative material that will keep you engrossed for quite some time.  Here's a few pieces of the artwork that occurs therein.

WROB's WRUNDEROUS WORKSHOP #1

Villains in D&D Adventures

© 2009 Robert J. Kuntz

I have often exposed through examples believable and multifaceted villains in my adventures (and upcoming fiction).  While researching this topic recently, I came upon a simple entry on the net.  An extract  and url address follows:

http://character-development.suite101.com/article.cfm/creating_believable_villains_creative_writing

"In terms of a fantasy framework – an excellent example of an unconventional villain might be a coven of druids and other natural magicians whom are conjuring forces of nature to strike at any outpost of civilization, beginning with frontier towns at the beginning of the novel and culminating with a deathly entanglement of a nation's capitol with poisonous, power-leeching vines. The motivation of these politically radical spellcasters is to combat what they see as the destruction of the earth via pollution, urbanization, and disregard for the natural sphere of life. Not only does this allow for a socially relevant commentary to be held within hypotheticals in your own narrative, but it also gives far more emotional and intelligent gravity to your antagonist and allows for deeper reading."

The above bit about the "coven of druids" and their motivations seems almost to a tee extracted from  my adventure, Dark Druids, which is a politically motivated adventure.  The U.S. had gone to war in Afghanistan during the time I was sculpting it and Bin Laden was being sought out for his crimes. Do note certain correspondence to the evil cult of Druids and the Taliban, and their past leader's name, therein.

Note for comparative sake an extract from the adventure itself: 

"Through divination they have learned of a growing evil in Fang Forest, an evil which does not distinguish between humans, plant life, or animal life while committing its foul atrocities.  This group is called, for lack of a better term, the Dark Druids, and their members are inimical to all life.  Their philosophy is simply this:  The advance of civilization threatens the future of nature and all that reside within it.  In order to forestall and destroy the invaders, the Dark Druids have resorted to assassinating key political figures and to destroying any human or demi-human settlement which immediately encroaches upon the wilderness. Their plan is to make that noose tighter, eventually bringing the battle to major population centers.  To help with this plan, they have been changing nature, distorting it to their evil ways, with the hope that this will deter and eventually stop such migrations.  In doing these things, they threaten the fabric of existence.  Their terror must stop!"


Back to the meat of this: What is an unconventional villain?  And by extension, how does this inspire the adventure-crafting and thus your campaign or design?

I have recently written about the expansive qualities inherent to the D&D game and its horizontal and vertical inputs which are constants and variables depending on how the DMs, and sometimes, players, interject to its base thereafter.  See this link.

Here is another example of verticality to measure your villain thereby and gauge (with that Dial of Design) whether what you have is the standard foil or something of merit and thus unconventional when viewed side by side with others in the villainous line-up.

Applying the 5 Ws and the Honorary How?  Who, what, where, when, why and how.  Use this template whenever possible in design and writing.  Let's apply it to a villain you are crafting.

Who? (Well, the Villain, of course, his name and oftentimes in overlap HOW he came to be who he is?)

What?  What are his motivations, goals, desires, race, age, gender (or non-gender for certain aliens, etc), and sometimes in overlap what powers he has and HOW he uses these to define and attain his goals?

Where?  Where is this villain from, where is he/she going, where is he/she situarted and in overlap for the last, WHAT is the villain doing to extend his/her personal range of expression while doing so?

When?  When did he/she arrive in this area?  When will the villain complete his or her plans?  When will they move to strike?

Why?  Why are they doing what they are doing?  Why must they succeed or utterly fail?  Why must they be stopped at all costs?  Why must they have the power or territory they desire?

How?  How did they come into being (history). How will their plan(s) come to fruition?  How can they succeed withe the resources they have?  How can they be defeated or their plans brought to ruin?

Through this little question-answer session you as the creative DM can and more often, will, craft a memorable character worthy of the title Villain, one that will live on in the minds of your players and in the history of your campaign.

Memoirs Extract 2

As I have informed the blog-readers here, I am about crafting my memoirs.  I try to write 2 pages a day and look to publish these in about 1.5-2 years IF I AM STILL ALIVE BY THEN.  :)

In my 42 years of involvement in this industry, as IFW member, TSR employee, owner and operator of 2 companies, convention chairman for GENCON, friend and student of EGG, and generally as an inquisitive, curious and deep thinker, I feel that there is a lot of territory to be covered within these memories and a lot to be derived from them by those who eventually read these:  The history of this game industry, the advent of fantasy in games, my shared experiences with EGG, Dave Arneson and others of note from 1968 onward, as well as my insights into art and its processes on many levels, as well as inspirations and thoughts which continue to incite and extend the creative thinking process, the latter which I feel is sorely lacking in our industry today when compared with the past.

Here are some extracts which you might find strange, enjoyable, or utterly useless:

"It is not the creep of nihilsim that worries me, but the human condition which cannot recognize it."...

"Stating and restating problems is a negative illusion; solutions are positive realities."

"David Arneson always appeared to my inner sense as a fervent and excitable boy.  There was absolutely no way of escaping wanting to play with him."...

"Am I living in the future tense of a past present?"

The RJK LEVEL, By Yesmar

Ramsey has posted a dunegon level he conceptualized/drew while talking with me by phone some weeks ago.

The link is here.

The Lake Geneva Campaign: The Ongoing Aspect of PLAY

Here is a letter partial I recently sent to a fan who is transitioning from 3rd Edititon D&D to a more loose AD&D/OD&D play style.  This was recently touched upon at Gene Palmer's excellent blog as well, and my notes here appear as an afterthought.  The real idea as promulgated then was to keep "PLAY" open and moving and not tied to a constant mechanic.  By comparison, one may consider this style as the open mind set expressed and shared among a group of creative children who play together, changing and adapting as they continue interjecting into that endeavor.  Later, they will remember parts of that process and even reincorporate salient parts of those past, shared mechanics and principles, but they will always be seeking to expand upon these self-imposed limits as the search for creative expression continues.

"Hi Johnny,

Fast and loose was the typical game in LG.  The game rules were codified to cover as many circumstances that were common.  As this is a representation of a real world environment, everything cannot be so explained.  That would cover a list of rules which are endless or in turn would limit the same expression if creativity and a flowing probability range was not introduced.

It's all basically inputs which arrive at probabilities.  Plus/Minus until the final influence on the die/dice roll is arrived at.  This is accomplished through taking in what the circumstances are as opposed to what the players are attempting to do within these.  This is then introduced to a curve (Bell curve, for example of a 2 six-sided die roll), which is what EGG and I did in many circumstances where the rules could not define outcomes.  The game is open-ended and mutable.  Some things naturally were seen as doable.  Like hiding.  If you use the base as a thief, then just pare it down by 80% in unusual circumstances or apply other inputs.  Anyone can hide, it is just that thieves are more practiced in it and at instantly accomplishing it over a constant range of application.  In all cases it is specific to the circumstances and is not a general idea which is an abstract applied to a set rule of hiding. Each case will be judged for its variable nuances within the developing situation.

As far as weaponry and classes.  These were included to affect game balance, almost reverse engineered to strike balances between classes, as were the sliding HD system I created for classes in OD&D and thus can be used or ignored at will.  Explain them as you will.

The rules are guides.  The moment you realize this, the realms of possibilities expand as you as a creative implementor of them are outside of the box.  That is how they were designed to be, not set in stone and limited. Fantasy cannot exist within a box, it has no limits, thus it must continue to expand outward, up and away, reaching new levels of extrapolation.   The day this ceases to be so, you are no longer playing an open-ended game of fantasy, but a set-in-stone game with fantasy motifs and elements only, and that is not the game as we designed it back in 1973.

Best Regards.

Rob Kuntz"

Old school Orcus