Orcs: Forged for War

The Orcs Domain #Graphic Novel

by Stan Nicholls, Joe Flood (Illustrator)

Forged for War is the first graphic novel in Stan Nicholls' beloved Orcs universe. The fantasy landscape in this world is brutal and unforgiving, and populated by a race of unlikely the powerful and violent warriors, orcs. Forged for War is an original story―a new entry in this series, not an adaptation of old material. It follows a ruthless and deadly cohort of warrior orcs as they fight their way free of the dominion of an evil human enchantress. Sitting on an exhilarating peak with high fantasy on one side and the thrilling, gruesome battlefields of graphic novel classics like Frank Miller's 300 on the other, Orcs presents the world of its ogre-like protagonists with technicolor violence and moments of unexpected sympathy.

Genres: Fantasy, Graphic Novels, Comics, Adult, Graphic Novels Manga, Graphic Novels Comics, Action

208 pages, Paperback

First published October 11, 2011

About the author

Stan Nicholls (born 1949) is a British author and journalist, working full-time since 1981. He is the author of many novels and short stories but is best known for the internationally acclaimed Orcs: First Blood series.

Reviews

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

This follows a troop of Orcs sent on a mission to protect a group of goblin sorcerers. The orcs are written quite differently here, more as a honorable warrior culture similar to Klingons. Humans are the real evil in this universe. They are a bunch of human zealots out to kill off all other races.

[Zwart Raafje · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5

[Sonic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid skull-crushing fun. Fast-paced and well-rendered
this story offers an original take on Orcs.
Bloody good!

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this graphic novel, the artwork fit the story really well and was a great standard. Simple enough story but got the characters of the Orcs across quite well. I will check out the novels after this

[Dax · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a slightly horrifying graphic novel. Not because of the violence and bloodshed but more from the clearly despicable human sides. The preacher will give me nightmares for the rest of my life. He's a little too in touch with the Alt-Right for me not to be completely horrified. The orcs are lovely and I am now intrigued to go back and read about their lot.

[Chase Bruun · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very well made story about orcs doing orc stuff.
I enjoyed the world building and the story a lot, it really made me wish for more. My only “gripe”, if you want to call it that, is a lot of the orc characters look alike so I had a hard time telling who was speaking in the beginning. All in all, it’s a great book that I hope gets more issues in the future.

[Myke Edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun, quick read, with great artwork.

[Han · Rating 4 out of 5]

God orcs are so such gentle bad ass boys lol need more of this

[Cheryll Ruby · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderfully illustrated piece.
The recreation of the orcs is amazing and the story unfolded with subtle twists and turns.
I was left wanting more.

[Gigi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book had a good storyline and was very well drawn.

[Sharon Tyler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Orcs: Forged for War by Stan Nicholls and Joe Flood (illustrator) is a graphic novel based on what if's. What if orcs, like all living creatures, have members of the group that are good and honorable. Perhaps be even more honorable and humane than mankind. These are not the orcs that most people picture, mainly garnered from Tolkien's works. These are orcs based on older mythology, legends and what ifs. There is a book series that already maps out this universe, where humans are struggling to gain dominion over the Elder Races; like orcs, elves, goblins and so forth. I have not read the series, but I will now that I am aware of the series and have a taste of the world built by Nicholls I intend to read the books. Reading the prior books is not necessary for understanding and enjoying Orcs: Forged for War.

In Orcs: Forged for War it is orcs against the world. Humans in general fear and despise the elder races, including the orcs that they use to fight their battles. Other elder races look down on orcs as all muscle, no brain or magic. Orcs are considered useful in only one respect, their fighting skills, and the orcs rather like it that way. The band of orcs depicted in this graphic novel are in the service of a ruthless witch, that is half human. The story consists of one mission that the orcs must undergo by her orders. However, the entire mission seems less than desirable or clear to the orcs from day one. They need to guard a band of goblins as they transport and test a weapon, but the wording of the order has them questioning whether they are to be babysitters for a goblin team or spies to make sure they are following orders. While i found the major parts of the story a little predictable, I still enjoyed the book as a whole. The other major story within Orcs: Forged for War follows humans fighting for their own side, and the rather crazy holy man that accompanies them. Fire and brimstone is mild compared to the beliefs that the holy man spouts, forcing his young daughter to witness the death and destruction of entire villages to further what he deems the duty to his god. I think that the story is a good reminder that what might seem obviously bad, like orcs, could be better or more humane than those making judgements to punish, kill, or restrict their actions simply because of the race they were born into.

I found the art of Orcs: Forged for War to be very striking and well done.It begins as simple, but does a fantastic job of portraying the harsh, grim life of the orcs. The facial expressions and detail of the artwork added a special element to the story. I highly recommend the book to fans of earlier books by Nicholls, those that like gritty graphic novels, and those that like some blood and violence in their graphic novel. I do not recommend this book to anyone that is offended or bothered by blood and guts included through a good portion of a graphic novel. One look at the cover or red and black art gives a good indicator of what you will find inside the cover, and whether you will like the book.

[Nikki in Niagara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reason for Reading: I felt in the mood for some high fantasy and this sounded like it would fit the bill.

Stan Nicholls has written two trilogies set in the Orcs universe and this is the first graphic novel addition to this universe. It is not an adaptation of previous material, but a new story which is set before the "First Blood" trilogy making it a prequel of sorts. I have not read any of the other books in this series and it is not necessary. The author has written a six page introduction which, although he says you need not know any background information, he has taken the effort to place the story within context of his Orcs universe for the uninitiated. I read the Intro and thoroughly enjoyed the graphic novel without having even heard of these books before, though I would be interested in them, if I ever get my obsession for high fantasy back.

The story takes the point of view of the Orcs. Orcs are always the bad guys in fantasy stories and here we have them being the good guys, well, at least not as bad as the others involved. We are shown another side of Orcs. They have feelings, camaraderie, customs and traditions. The story involves a mission a group of warriors are sent on by the cruel Queen who rules their side of a larger war. This is just one battle within that war.

The story is typical high fantasy with lots of different creatures: elves, goblins, ogres, etc. but with the orcs as the good guys. I really enjoyed the story and read it in one sitting. The book is not for the weak of heart though. It is incredibly violent, heads seem to fly on every other page, blood oozes and squirts through each battle scene, limbs are severed and swords cut heads in half. The language is rated "R" and female top-half nudity is occasionally shown. Not a book for little ones or those sensitive to these types of things. I'm usually not partial to swearing but in the context here it would only be natural for these brutal, violent creature to speak thus. A good story from a unique angle.

[Kasey Turner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Orcs: Forged for War by Stan Nicholls & Joe Flood

Genre: fantasy graphic novel

Set in Nicholls' Orcs universe, this bloody, stark graphic novel conveys the harsh life of orc mercenaries. Nicholls world gives us something beyond the stereotypical fantasy orc. His orcs are intelligent and the "good" guys of the world, caught between warning human forces who have invaded their lands.

[Hilary]

Stan Nicholls has written two trilogies set in the Orcs universe (not to be confused with the orcs found in J.R.R. Tolkein’s “Lord of the RIngs”). This is the first graphic novel addition to this universe and features new material (i.e., it is not adapted from previously published stories). The graphic novel stands well on its own; it is a prequel, so familiarity with previously published volumes is not necessary to enjoy or follow this tale.

“Forged for War” is told from the perspective of the Orcs. This point of view permits readers to be exposed to the “good” side of the (traditionally) “bad” guys. A group of warriors are charged with a mission (to guard a secret weapon) by the harsh Queen who leads their side of a larger war. The tale focuses on a single battle within that war. The reader is given to believe that Orcs are not evil and malicious, but war-driven, and the Orcs’ feelings, traditions, and relationships are explored within this context. (Humans, by contrast, are the villains in this story; mankind is attempting to dominate the world and drain it of magic, eventually making it uninhabitable for most of the other races, such as elves, goblins, and ogres.)

This is a violent, adult book. From the cover art, the reader can conclude that this novel is graphic: severed body parts litter the pages, blood flows and spurts with each encounter. It’s gory and gritty (but well-drawn). The language is R-rated and there is occasional nudity. This is not surprising, considering that Orcs are the book’s protagonists.

Readers who find the graphic novel entertaining, may be prompted to read Nicholls’ previous novels.

[Diayll · Rating 5 out of 5]

Say hello to Thundercats meet’s 300. Orcs: Forged for War is an action packed thrill-ride that fantasy fans will love!


Full Review can be found at: Mother/Gamer/Writer




Favorite Quote: “So we got to babysit a bunch of f***ing goblins in charge of a f***ing weapon we don’t know about, under orders that ain’t f***ing clear.”





Magnificent! That pretty much sums up how I feel about this graphic novel. Its action packed, filled with tidbits of comic relief, and the characters resemble some of my favorites from television and other novels. It’s a refreshing journey through the day in the life of an Orc, a misunderstood member of the Elder Races that are a lot smarter than other creatures give them credit for. Once I started reading their story, I could not stop, consuming all 208 pages of death, blood, betrayal, and redemption. It was magical, fun, and just what I needed as a break from all my usual vampire/werewolf romance novels.

If you enjoy fantasy elements with a bit comedy thrown in, then this is the graphic novel for you. But I must warn you, please do not read the comic if you do NOT like harsh language, slight nudity, blood, and strong violent content. I would say that the Goodreads description is very accurate as the suggestive content is on par with the movie 300 and its graphic novel counterparts. So if you hated that then you will not like this. Get it, try it, and love it because in the end, not all Orcs are created equal.

[Matthew · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent fantasy comic with a small twist: the heroes in this one are the Orcs while the bad guys are the humans. While Orcs are represented as a race always looking for a fight, mankind is trying to take over everything and draining the world of all it's magic, eventually making it unlivable for most of the other races. Lots of great details in the backstory to this world, enough that I want to give one of the prose novels a try at some point. But the actual plot of this one is pretty thing and predictable. Good fight scenes, though, with some pretty nice middle ages-style tactics thrown in.

Art-wise very nice. Good details, well-handled action and colors that really pop on the page. My only complaint about the art is that there are A LOT Of orcs in this title and many of them look the same. Aside from a couple of main guys I found myself getting confused a lot as to who was who. I understand making their faces similar, but some other detail----tatoos, runes, weapons, something----is really needed to help make these guys distinguishable from each other.

Unfortunately, I read this after reading James Stokoe's fabulous title Orc Stain. While Stokoe's book plays with some of the same ideas, his version takes some more risks and really delves into the way Orcs think in a way that's deeper and richer than what I see here. I hate comparing, but I know I probably would have rated this higher if hadn't read Orc Stain first.

[Phil · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun read. For fans of fantasy books, it takes the evil orcs and makes them less evil. Instead, humans are the ones that are the bad guys. The book is based in the same world as a series of novels, so it draws strength from the rich background. But it feels like Nicholls tried to pack to much into this story.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

A view of war from the perspective of grunt soldiers, in this case a military band of Orcs drafted against their will into a fight between human factions. It reminded me in many ways of what Glen Cook did for mercenaries in The Black Company series, letting us dwell in the trenches in everyday lives away from the ideologies of the "important" people calling the shots. This book has the added element of "humanizing" the normally monstrous orcs, even with their particular talent for aggression and bloodshed.

From the author's introduction, I learned that this is a graphic novel spinoff of a series of prose novels he's written, set in the same world and starring the same characters. Unfortunately, reading that made this book seem a bit too light on character, plot, and world-building, as I learned more about all of those things from the introduction than from the story itself. It made me want to read the novels, but made this seem like a mere vignette and not a satisfying story by itself. Still, I enjoyed it and it left me wanting more.

The art is nothing glamorous, but is effective and enjoyable; it both communicated Nicholls's story and is nice to look at.

[Scott · Rating 2 out of 5]

Bland, grey, and predictable. I finished it to say that I had done so.

By humanizing the orcs the author succeeded in rendering them lifeless and dull. The traits that make them such great foils in other fantasy were completely absent.

The story itself was utterly predictable and rather than illustrating the horrors war inflicts on all people, there were hamfisted attempts to show how morally bleak everything in Nichol's world was. This usually works when there's a glimmer of hope or someone to identify with but such was absent for me in this work.

The art style also bothered me, as the orcs and their foes were 1. Vastly underarmored considering the combat style was clearly the standard fantasy blade-and-shield. 2. Wearing what looked like the castoffs from a late 19th century militia, or a prison (if that is the case then perhaps I owe the artist a grudging apology for making a subtle commentary on the nature of the orcish band, since the author was far less subtle, with the orcs and others constantly reminding the reader of their place).

I would only recommend this for those who read the novels and liked the world , or those who really love orcs and cannot get enough of them even when they behave extraordinarily un-orcish.

[Donald · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up on a whim at the library. I am not at all familiar with the author's previous work, although I did read the foreword and know that this ties into a series he writes.

This book is fun enough for a quick read, which it is. The action flows along smoothly, and it never felt confusing or overly chaotic. The visual design was nice, I thought, with the exception of the goblins, who I thought were some sort of undead at first. The dragons and harpies I liked in particular.

The story is nothing particularly new, there are no real surprises (at least to the reader). The setting seems interesting enough, if not very inspired. The pagan humans didn't get enough attention to form a picture of them, but the 'uni' humans are obvious stand-ins for corrupt, vicious medieval Christians.

None of the fantasy races seemed defined to any great degree. The orcs fight for fun, and we see them destroying humans in melee combat, but it never gave the impression to me that they were doing anything particularly well. Then again, they do survive fights with no casualties against actual soldiers, so that may be enough.

In all, I'd probably give one of the novels a read, if I didn't have anything else on my plate at the time, but I wouldn't go out of the way to read one.

[Quigui · Rating 3 out of 5]

Orcs: Forged for War gives a taste into the Orcs universe, one which I didn't know. But the prologue explained not only the reason for this graphic novel but some insight into the world – not that it would be much needed. Forged for War stands well on its own.

The universe of Orcs seems like a nice one to explore – unlike pretty much all fantasy, here this race is not evil, war-driven for sure, but their actions are not malicious. There was a lot that was backstory (that I got to know in the prologue and throughout the graphic novel) and that interested me. Well, to tell the truth, the backstory interested me more than the actual story.

Not that it was bad. It was rather straightforward, with a lot of fighting, and somewhat predictable. And more fighting. In the end, it was not really my cup of tea – I would have preferred something with more plot. The artwork was nice (after, the cover did catch my attention), but still not enough for this book to cause any kind of impact. I might give the novels a try, though.

Also at Spoilers and Nuts

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was the first foray into the ORCs universe, which Stan Nicholls started by imagineering a series where the orcs were the heroes. "Why shouldn't orcs have hopes and dreams, a history, a culture, spiritual beliefs, and a code of honor?" (p.2)

While the orcs are afforded personalities and distinct characters, there isn't any room left for anyone else to be more than a cardboard cut-out. Which is it's own genius in stripping bare the conventions of both fantasy good-versus-evil motifs and most military narratives.

The story follows the Wolverines unit through a series of military adventures -- attacking an enemy position, providing protection to a caravan, dealing with betrayal, and confronting what looks like certain death at the hands of the enemy.

There's a lot of fighting -- perhaps 200 to 300 humans and goblins are shown being killed in one brutal way or another in the war between the pagans and the Christi...uh...unis. Frank Miller's 300 is pitched on the back cover as the tie-in; if you liked that you'll like this.

[Michael Boyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this graphic novel but then I'm a huge fan of both fantasy and war stories and this is a great combination of both. A word of warning though, this book does contain harsh language and some nudity. Of course, this doesn't bother me in the least but should be taken into account if recommending to a pre-teen reader.

The artwork is fascinating and the story engaging as we follow a group of orcs as they carry out a secret mission for their overlords. Surprisingly, this is a very real representation of men in combat. The group is a basically a perfect representation of a modern platoon of soldiers. We can see the interaction between leadership and the common grunt perfectly. A unit must gel to be successful in combat and that lesson must be learned by the orcs for them to succeed. I think it's an amazing crossover between a true high fantasy tale, graphic novel and war story.

Highly recommended and I hope the series continues!! I'm a fan!

[Kat Goldin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a graphic novel and will be read by a lot of my student who enjoy the war, battles and illustrations of gross, gore and good times. The boys who read the traditional super hero graphics will be easily taken in with this. Orcs: Forged for War is the first graphic novel in Stan Nicholls’ and details the unusually and ‘different’ world of this unique Orcs universe. The lively or deadly landscape drawings are enriched with deep understanding and thought provoking text. I would not suggest this book to the girls or guys in our middle school who dream of sweet, fuzzy bunnies, but the other 90% will love it! This story is fantasy, adventure and action! Since this is a paperback, the wear and tear will be obvious and if I was purchasing this book, I would look for school/library reinforced binding.

[zxvasdf · Rating 3 out of 5]

Everyone knows orcs are bad. But Nicholls is trying to show that, as brutal as they are, even orcs have feelings. The real bad guys here are humans, who apparently fuck up the world's magic by their brute voraciousness for resources.

Not a bad read. The comic relief's an orc and dwarf who like to bicker like a couple of old biddies, only with axes and swords, when their tongues aren't enough. There are a couple of annoying goblins who can turn themselves into fire, which only makes them look like they're wearing blue fur. The really scary element here is this Queen who rips hearts from men and orc alike, in a very literal sense.

[Jessica Buike · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had never read a graphic novel before picking up this book, but I was surprised to find that I really enjoyed this! It had a lot of action and the illustrations were fantastic. The author really made the orcs sympathetic heroes which was refreshing. My only complaint was that the font used for the narration was difficult to read. I also wished there was more story text - but then again, I'm used to reading "regular" books and not graphic novels, so I'm not holding that against this book because I'm sure it had plenty of story text for this type of book. :)

[Lauren · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting. Admittedly, fantasy is not really my genre, so I went into this with lukewarm feelings about the setting and subject matter. But, I genuinely enjoyed this story in the graphic novel format, because this type of story lends itself well to visual representation. I really did get to see the Orcs in a different light than I've seen them before, so that was nice. They are still savage and brutal, yes, but you also see how other races could take advantage of their ferocity in battle.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun military graphic novel, with orcs as brutish but not evil (The invading hordes of humans are evil--led by a truly evil evangelist. The orcs' boss, a half human queen, is evil--she likes to rip out and eat the hearts of her victims.) Here the orcs are dispatched as guards for a secret weapon and nearly betrayed and exterminated by a traitor.
Gory, some (gasp) Language, well done art. Hope there are sequels.

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Set on a world full of fantastic races, there is a war going on between rival human tribes who are both essentially evil. Caught in between are Orcs who are magical slaves or something. Anyway it sort of reads like a dirty dozen meets Tolkien with swearing. I thought it was alright, and I kind of wanted to see what happened at he end... But I was kind f hoping it would make me interested in the fantasy series that comic was based off of. It didnt.

[Tasha · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read this while at work in one sitting. The artistry makes it hard to differentiate between each orc. The characters aren't very well defined making it hard to relate to them. The story line is short but the book is long, not a good combination.

I did enjoy the twist on the take or Orcs. That they are the good guys and humans are the bad guys. Perhaps his written books on Orcs might have grabbed me more.