The chronicle record
Each year, from late spring to early summer, the snow and ice piled up in the Tusk Mountains rapidly melts. Flash floods pour down the mountains and arroyos onto the Flood Road, briefly turning the dusty roadway into a rushing river. The orcs of Belkzen call this yearly deluge simply "the Deluge," and it draws migrating aurochs herds into the lush green land that springs up in its wake.
The aurochs are vital to Belkzen's holds, providing the bulk of their meat and hides. Without the Deluge, there wouldn't be enough food to sustain the region through the year. Out of this shared necessity, the orcs of Belkzen long ago struck an unusual bargain: for the length of the Flood Truce, all conflict between holds is set aside so that everyone can hunt the herds in peace.
Origins
No one agrees on how the tradition began — its true origin is lost to history — but a few myths persist. One credits an ancient orc hero named Belkzen, who is said to have driven the aurochs south during the first Deluge and declared a truce so his people could hunt without also fighting each other, a peace he then used to forge new alliances.
Another tale tells of an alliance between Dretha, the orc goddess of birth, death, and fertility, and Rull, the capricious god of storms. Dretha is said to have dragged a massive plow to carve out the Flood Road itself, while Rull conjured the spring storms that melt the mountain snow each year.
Whatever its true origin, the Flood Truce begins each year with the first heavy rains of spring, though different holds recognize its start at different times. Old rivalries are suspended and warfare pauses — though the truce isn't absolute. Individual disputes still flare up now and then, and each hold is left to police its own members, since there's no central authority to enforce the peace.
Alliances and Custom
The friendships, rivalries, and marriages formed during the Flood Truce matter as much as the hunting. Holds that don't share a border are especially likely to build lasting alliances during this season, since they aren't already locked in territorial disputes. Every hold watches these new relationships closely, wary of a rival gaining new allies elsewhere.
In place of the violence that normally settles disputes, the Flood Truce has given rise to friendly contests: archery, axe and javelin throwing, "neck cleaving" (hewing through an aurochs hide wrapped around a post, ideally in a single blow), and "word wrestling," a battle of creative insults judged by whoever keeps their composure longest.
Two or more holds often gather for a moot to share food, swap stories, and build relationships — some holds hold the same moot together every year. Rarer still are Grand Moots, where the leaders of three or more holds meet at once. Torrentmoot is the latest and largest such gathering, hosted by Ardax the White-Hair and open to dignitaries from well beyond Belkzen's borders.
Food and Craft
Feasting follows the first successful aurochs hunt of the season, when hunger runs highest after a lean winter. Every part of the animal is put to use: meat for feasting and later preservation, hides for clothing and bedding, horn and sinew for tools and instruments, even bones and hooves for decoration and further crafting. As the Truce wears on, holds turn to smoking, salting, and other preservation methods to store meat against the coming winter.
By the time the last of the floodwaters recede and the plants begin to brown, the Flood Truce draws to a close, and Belkzen's holds return to their usual, more contentious ways — until the mountains fill with snow again.