>Are orcs just misunderstood and oppressed?
Not in canon D&D lore. Or at least for most of the existence of D&D.

>>97393560
>TQ
I feel like that'll depend on the setting as opposed to DnD as a whole, but I haven't seen any Orc sympathy yet.
The misunderstood scary people would be Tieflings and Half-Orcs.

>5 (five) warp witch encounter at lvl3
fun times

>>97393560
No, they're brutal raiders who prefer hewing through the weak and helpless. It wasn't until Obould Many-Arrows, an orc who was divinely blessed to be less of an impulsive fucktard than most of his race, came along that they even considered the possibility of semi-peaceful relations with other races. Then they started the War of the Silver Marches and a dwarven coalition force had to step in and kick their asses.

>>97393560
Orcs are shit. Entirety derivative. Elves are people with long ears. Orcs are elves with green skin.
I almost always use Goblins instead because they're far more whimsical. Often I'll use them a misunderstood.
One of my favorite things that I tend to stick in is the Kingdom of Flowers. It is a Goblin settlement, usually in a forest, where all the Goblins like to adorn themselves with myriad colors and types of flowers. It's usually fae related and sometimes I'll place it in the Fae Wild. They are chaotic neutral and may provide the party with info or safe passage in exchange for a story or a joke.