Orcs are a fantasy species, influenced mainly by Tolkein's orcs, and have been incorporated into various fantasy settings throughout the years.

Their appearances vary depending on the work in question but in general, orcs resemble primitive humanoids with green skin, slightly stooped posture, a low-jutting forehead, human-like eyes, and big jaws. Orcs have well-developed canine teeth for eating meat and humanoid pointy ears, which may or may not have a slightly pink tinge inside them.

In the earlier versions of Dungeons & Dragons, orcs were considered a subspecies of goblins, much like the hobgoblin or red cap. They were subsequently promoted into their own distinct and separate species with their own unique culture, which has since been adopted by Western culture.

Male orcs typically range from 5 ½ to 6 feet tall. Females average 6 inches shorter than males. Orcs prefer to wear colors that most humans think are unpleasant: blood red, rust red, mustard yellow, yellow green, moss green, greenish purple, and blackish brown. Their armor is unattractive besides—dirty and often a bit rusty. Orcs speak orcish, a language derived from older human and elvish languages. There is no common standard of orcish, so the language has many dialects which vary from tribe to tribe. Orcs have also learned to speak local common tongues, but are not comfortable with them. Some orcs have a limited vocabulary in goblin, hobgoblin, and ogre dialects.

For the alternate interpretation often utilized by Japanese media, see pig_orc.

Orcs appearing from different franchises include...

• Dungeons & Dragons
• The Elder Scrolls
• Warcraft
• Warhammer Fantasy and Warhammer 40,000