Ordning (social structure)

The ordning was the social structure to which all giants adhered, dating back to the ancient empire of Ostoria. It was similar to a class-based society, but was much more specific, assigning a social rank to each individual. Therefore, each individual giant knew which other giants were inferior and superior to himself, and no giants were equal to other giants.

Each type of giant used a different combination of skills or qualities to determine the ordning. Giants believed excelling in these skills to be the purpose of their lives. Annam All-Father, creator of giants, was seen as the ultimate in each of these skills. In all cases, advancement was made by challenging a superior, but different types of giants used different systems and restrictions upon advancement. It was considered an evil (maug) act to show disrespect to a superior giant. This could be mocking, betrayal, disobedience, or a number of other behaviors.

The ordning applied to individual tribes, but it was an insult to treat a higher-ranked giant from another tribe as an inferior. Between different types of giant, there was a totally separate system, and even the lowest ranked giant of one type was superior to the highest ranked giant of an inferior type, but importantly, it was not considered evil to betray a giant of another type, merely rude. Titans were the highest in the ordning, followed by storm giants, cloud giants, fog giants, fire giants, frost giants, stone giants, mountain giants, hill giants, ettins, giant-kin, and finally ogres.

When it was the "small folk", not the giants, who defeated the draconic attempt to loose Tiamat upon the world, Annam saw this as complacency in his children. Annam broke the ordning, thereby allowing giants to create their own social structures and see who would come out on top.