Dire orc

Dire orcs, also known as berserkers, abominations, horrors and brutes, are heavily mutated orcs. Dire orcs are created through blood rituals, though the Twilight's Hammer seem to know how to create them as well; it is unclear if the Twilight's Hammer has their own methods or have adopted the Bleeding Hollow's.

The first dire orc was seen in the Black Temple — Gurtogg Bloodboil, a leader and presumed member of the local Bonechewer clan fel orcs. After the Cataclysm, Raz Skullcrusher was captured by the Twilight's Hammer and empowered into a dire orc by magic energies. Later, a group known as the Dark Shaman tried to recreate the Twilight ascension process, but the experiment failed and resulted in Lava Guard Gordoth becoming transformed into a dire orc or rather, mutated into a "hideous form".

In Mists of Pandaria, Garrosh Hellscream was in need of a subject to be infused with the powers of Y'Shaarj. Out of sheer loyalty, Malkorok volunteered and was twisted into a hulking, mutated orc.

In Warlords of Draenor, Grulkor investigates a fungal infestation in the Mistcreep Mire located on the east coast of Gorgrond. Throughout the quests he slowly becomes more and more obsessed with trying to harness the power of the mushrooms in the mire, eventually leading him to absorbing the power of a strange fungus. After consuming all the different mushrooms found in the mire as well as the strange fungus, all the spores eventually overtook his mind and mutated his body into a hulked orc monstrosity; causing him to attack the adventurer.

Additionally, in Tanaan Jungle and within the Stygana Cavern, the Bleeding Hollow Clan and their herbalists are experimenting with infusing orc brutes with mushrooms, affecting them similarly to Grulkor in Gorgrond. There are also several failed experiments laying dead on the ground nearby. An alternate version of Gurtogg Bloodboil is also encountered, and killed, in Hellfire Citadel.

There exist dire pale orcs as well. They are created through the Ritual of Destruction.

• The name "dire orc" is taken from the original model's name, "felorcdire," as no official name is known. The updated dire orc models added in Warlords of Draenor are instead named "hulkedorc" and "felorcbrute."
• Most, if not all, dire orcs added before Warlords of Draenor dire orcs use a model seemingly based on the original dire troll model, and have only three fingers on each hand despite orcs normally having five. Dire orcs added in or after Warlords of Draenor share a skeleton with the new dire troll model and have the correct number of fingers.
• During his encounter in the Nighthold, Gul'dan becomes empowered and temporarily takes on an appearance similar to a dire orc.

• The Bonechewer Behemoths of the Black Temple may be different forms of dire orcs.
• Some infested orcs are much larger and more heavily mutated than others, as such they may actually be some form of plant dire orcs as they have similar traits. Heavily mutated by flora (similar to mushrooms in Gorgrond and Tanaan Jungle) resulting in huge, hideous abominations.