Gronn

Gronn
Factions/Affiliations	Independent, Breakers Cult of the Twilight's Hammer Iron Horde
Average Height	20 feet
Racial capital	Gorgrond Blade's Edge Mountains
Racial leader(s)	Overlord Geya'rah Grom Hellscream (Alternate Timeline) Gruul the Dragonkiller †

The Gronn are a race of colossal humanoids native to the World of Draenor. Prior to the planet's destruction, most Gronn were originally part of the Breakers, a faction of related, rocky species who sought to turn Draenor into vast, treeless wastelands. They gave rise to the ogron, who would in turn give rise to the ogres.

History

The gronn are descended from the magnaron, who in turn descended from the earth giants. Whatever the giants were, the only signs of their passing are the Temples of the Damned built during the Second War, which were all destroyed, and the colossal skeletons that rest in Frostfire Ridge. Gronn, like their Ancestors, may have originated on a continent south of the primary landmass on Draenor, but in current days are native to the rocky badlands of Frostfire Ridge, Gorgrond, and later, the Blade's Edge mountains.

The Gronn existed in great numbers since Draenor's ancient times. Following Draenor's destruction, the surviving Gronn, lead by Gruul seized control over the fractured Ogre clans.

Prior to the orcish invasion of Azeroth, the ogres of the Breakers told the orcs that they were beaten and whipped by the gronn (many ogres bore whip scars on their backs). The ogres under Krol rebelled against the gronn with the assistance of Blackhand and the Orcish Horde. The gronn later came under attack by the black dragonflight when they attempted to settle Frostfire Ridge and Gorgrond. With some unexpected help from the heroes of the Alliance Expedition the Gronn and their ogre slaves sent the black dragons flying. Since then gronn seem to have become rather fond of dragon hunting — there are several fully grown adult black dragons found impaled on stone spikes within Frostfire Ridge, whilst some gronn take related titles such as "Gruul the Dragonkiller" and "Gorgrom the Dragon-Eater".

For years, Gruul the Dragonkiller was worshiped as a deity by the ogres of Blade's Edge Mountains. His powerful sons ravaged both the spires of their home and the plains of Nagrand. Gruul was slain in his lair, during the Alliance and Horde's crusade of Outland.

On an alternate Draenor, the gronn have largely been enslaved by the Iron Horde. Garrosh knew that the surest path to breaking the gronn lay in subjugating their great father, Gruul, who has been put to haul pallets of fuel to the furnace in Blackrock Foundry and has lost one of his hands. Subjugated gronn appear to be used as living siege weapons with immense cannons strapped to their backs in Tanaan Jungle.

A number of "wild" gronn still remain in the wastes of Gorgrond, where they fight alongside the rest of the Breakers in their eternal war with the Primals.

Biology

Gronn are bipedal, roughly humanoid in shape. Their legs are double jointed and their feet are flat and hoofed. Their muscle mass is nearly unparalleled, and most will walk or stand at rest with a noticeable hunch. Gronn vary greatly in height, but often grow to be several stories tall. They have a very predominant cyclopean eye set in the middle of their heads. They are not particularly known for their intelligence, but they are also known for a brutal sense of cunning, and should not be underestimated.

Rexxar, battling Gronnlings.

An interesting feature about Gronn is their apparent composition, which appears to be a direct halfway point between Flesh and Stone, the Earth Colossals being their ancestors and the Ogres being their descendants. Most notable about the Gronn is their natural makeup of flesh and stone. A stony rock hide covers most of their back and arms like a miniature mountain range. Some Gronn can develop unusual features, such as horns, tusks, crystal hides or even steam vents emerging from their backs. Gronn blood is black in color.

Interestingly, the Gronn appear to be the first stage in Colossal evolutionary stages to develop genders, beginning a cycle of natural procreation, instead of the Earth from which their ancestors are born. Adolescent Gronn are known as Gronnlings, which are barely above beasts in intelligence.

Culture

Unlike their descendants, Gronn do not appear to have any form of Society, other than a primitive one revolving around the largest Gronn or Magnaron asserting it's dominance over the lesser Gronn, becoming an 'Alpha' of sorts. Gronn life is based around the concept of destruction, using the Stones of the earth or their very bodies to destroy and reduce any standing structures or organic fertility to nothingness. Despite the brutality of their existence, Gronn seem to have an affinity for the Earth to which they are closely tied, and will often hollow out tremendous caves in which to make lairs and keep their spoils in, or even seek to create new mountains with brute strength alone or a mysterious, ancient runic magic inherited from their Colossal ancestors.

Gronn show little love for their Ogre children, ruling the clans with a brutal iron fist. Gronn wield fearsome power; however, they are not famed for their intelligence.