Female Half-Orc Cooks by FoxPesdassi on DeviantArt (original) (raw)

Even though I'm casting (all of?) my various Half-Orcs as having been raised by their Human parent & growing up in a predominantly Human/multicultural society, it's perfectly reasonable to assume that at least some of them would be curious about how their Orcish relatives do certain things, and even try exploring those methods. And while it's true that the most Orcish cooking method is to simply impale some meat on a spit & roast it over an open flame, depictions of that are a dime a dozen, and I'm here to do things that haven't been done. So, what mode of cooking isn't bogged down by pots & pans, and also feels foreign to medieval Europe, yet is also quite within period? I decided on an underground earth oven, such as that used to slow-cook the meats for a Hawaiian luau.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth_oven

Once again, Bing had difficulties--I think this was mainly just a case of me trying to cram too many elements into one image. A frequent "dropped" element was having both central figures be Half-Orcs. Here we can see that one looks like a full Orc, while the other--even after substantial editing--seems to be a _quarter_-Orc at most . . . but at least they average out to be approximately the same. I also learned that Bing really isn't good at keep track of multiple layers of things: The bottom of the pit was supposed to be 1) smoldering embers, then 2) a layer of hot stones, then 3) a layer of broad, edible leaves, then 4) the meat (& maybe some veggies), and the women are in the process of adding layer 5) more leaves, but what Bing kept giving me instead was "largely random arrangement of meat, leaves, fire, & smoke, plus some surprise wood & stones sometimes." So I learned to take what I could get.

Technically, the oven should be nearly flush with the surrounding dirt, not a raised mound--but maybe Grandma has a bad back & doesn't like bending over. And happily, we aren't bound to be historically accurate anyway.

Oh, and not ONCE did Bing draw any actual "pork chops". This image is just about as close as it got.

"Medieval village green, small dirt pit dug in ground, looking down into pit, pork chops laid atop layer of grape leaves in pit, smoke & steam rising from pit. Fantasy half-orc middle-aged woman and fantasy half-orc teenage girl, both with broad athletic build, middle-aged, dull tan skin, both with orcish faces, tiny tusks, both in medieval peasant garb, holding baskets of grape leaves, scattering leaves on pork chops in pit. Half-orc woman plump. Gritty, photorealistic."

My works are intended to help bring more diversity & realism to Dungeons & Dragons and related games. You have my permission to use these images and prompts as you wish, as long as you do so for FREE. I am committed to only the ethical use of AI, and I ask the same of you. So if you press Ctrl-C, please have the decency to not press Shift-4. Do not seek to profit off of what I am giving away.