Sell me on Orks

[Denzark]

In no particular order:

1. Cos they ain't Tau.

2. Cos they ain't Eldar.

3. Cos they ain't a Necron Decurion.

4. Cos its stupid to spend the money and do nothing with them.

5. Because Ork vehicles are awesome.

6. Cos they ain't Eldar.

Don't forget, orks are green, not grey plastic coloured.

[Mr Mystery]

And Orks never lose.

Well known, that.

[Mr.Pickelz]

The Ork faction is all about extremes, extremes taken to the extreme if you will. They are the "comic relief" in the ever so maddening universe that is Warhammer 40,000. Orks can do things because they believe in it, their make-shift guns and vehicles work because they believe it works. Their faith in the Material world creates miracles in the form of simple having the engine in a Trukk or Battlewagon turn on when there is no ignition switch or a steering wheel for that matter... Yet it works.

Model wise, every model in and outside of GW can be used (within reason) there are numerous planets in the universe that haven't been discovered where any range of technology can exist. Do you want a looted Imperial Guard themed force? You're good to go. Do you want a looted Tau force? You're good to go. Going back to the "extreme" I mentioned before, it isn't uncommon for Orks to combine the looted stuff to make bigger machinations. a Stompa (Ork Titan) could have Eldar arms, Imperial Knight Feet, and a Tau head peice, along with some unrecognizable chest/torso ( scratch-built). The only way to go wrong when building an Ork army, model wise, is using out of scale models. Some stuff is reasonable, but others not so much. Add on to this the different clans and their background, and you got a well diverse modeled and painted army. Pick a color you like and you can make your own clan around that, you can create a unique faction fighting force similar to making your own Space Marine Chapter. Orks offer a fun variation to the normal grimdark of other more serious factions such as Imperial Guard or Mechanicus or even the Eldar.

Rules wise, their not in the strongest place, the diversity of models aren't really supported as you'll be limited to what "kind" of guns that everything uses. Forgeworld support is there, however it is also aged and un-updated as of this posting. Forgeworld does have more wacky rules however such as a Biker Warboss that can declare a 24 inch Tank Shock in the shooting phase... or giving a Walker the Jink special rule and the ability to Tank Shock as well. Pre 7thed Codex the Ork faction had more odd ball rules that stood out within the whole game such as the Big Squiggoth, a Monsterous Creature with a Transport capacity. This along with the extra 1 inch of movement with the "Red Paint Job" often brought people into conflict over what the rule allowed, because it was that weird and unique. The current rendition of the codex (7th ed.) tames a lot of that and takes the Orks down a peg from the crazy unique rules and makes them more BRB friendly (Big Rule Book). This has generated a lot of negative feedback as the zaniness of the faction was toned down, while other codexes(codici?) like Eldar, Necrons, or Space Marines have gone off the deep-end with formations and such.

Even in this "dark time" there is still a lot to love about the faction, the fluff is there, albeit a bit hidden, Special Characters are all around, they are just lacking rules, like, Wazzdakka: the Ork Warboss that drove off a cliff to fly through a Warlord Titan's Void Shields so he could crash into the cockpit and murder the crew. Tuska da Demon Slayer: He flew his Waagh into the eye of terror hunting Demons, he found a flesh world, turned out to be Khorne's, and the ensuing demon onslaught destroyed the Orks, however in one last act of defiance, Tuska (this is heavily hinted at) castrated the Khorne Lord leading the demon forces. Khorne was pleased and resurrected the entire Ork army so they could continue to fight. A Orky grimdark Valhalla if you will.

Overall, the Ork Faction has tons to it, lack of depth and loads of it too. It is very much a custom faction in the sense that you can make it your own. While Space Marines are just another chapter, or Eldar are just another Craftworld, Orks however are truly something unique. Don't take my word for it, use the Internet and you will see. (Standard rules/warnings/caveats about the Internet do apply)

[Merellin]

So, I'v been looking a bit at Ork fluff, And they seem realy fun. And Kaptin Bluddflagg from Dawn of War 2: Retribution is the best character in video games.. xD

Now, I was curious, Can you build diferent types of lists or is it all Green Tide or Trukk Boyz? Dosent have to be super tough lists, I dont mind loosing aslong as I and my opponent have fun ^_^ Also, I was curiosu if anyone could tell me if I have any good things? Here is the models I own

1 Ork Flyer
6 Killa Kans
7 Kommandos
Snikrot
2 Warboss
1 Big Mek on Bike with SAG
1 Weirdboy
1 Painboy
10 Stormboyz
5 Flash Gitz
10 Burna Boyz
13 Lootas (Or, Orks with bigger guns atleast. Most of them are custom made using boyz and assault cannons and such)
13 Nobz
15 Gretchin/1 Runt Herder
29 Boyz
1 Gorkanaut

[Captain Bubonicus]

This.

Orks aren't an army. They're a vocation. A calling, if you will.

You don't actually choose the Orks. The Orks choose YOU.

[Andrew Thomas]

So, I'v been looking a bit at Ork fluff, And they seem realy fun. And Kaptin Bluddflagg from Dawn of War 2: Retribution is the best character in video games.. xD

Now, I was curious, Can you build diferent types of lists or is it all Green Tide or Trukk Boyz? Dosent have to be super tough lists, I dont mind loosing aslong as I and my opponent have fun ^_^ Also, I was curiosu if anyone could tell me if I have any good things? Here is the models I own

1 Ork Flyer
6 Killa Kans
7 Kommandos
Snikrot
2 Warboss
1 Big Mek on Bike with SAG
1 Weirdboy
1 Painboy
10 Stormboyz
5 Flash Gitz
10 Burna Boyz
13 Lootas (Or, Orks with bigger guns atleast. Most of them are custom made using boyz and assault cannons and such)
13 Nobz
15 Gretchin/1 Runt Herder
29 Boyz
1 Gorkanaut

I think you have a pretty solid force here. My only suggestions are Bikez, Deff Dreads, and Trukks. More of those would round out your army and give you more mobility.

- - - Updated - - -

Not really a fan myself. I've never really liked Orks. I enjoyed reading 'WAAAAARGH!' and 'Ere we go!' back in the day, but they're just too... I don't know. I just don't like 'em.

That said, I've got a small Dred Mob because I do like Walkers. And Ork Walkers tend to be very easy to convert and make, which is nice if you're into the hobby aspect. I'd never field the bloody things because rules-wise they're extremely lackluster. I'd want to build a pure Walker army without a single Ork boy (as I hate those models) and that build just isn't viable yet. Or probably ever.

Still, there's some nice conversions you can do.

Waagh Ghazkull does have a Dread Mob Formation. Trouble was that it can't really reach 1850 points.

[Path Walker]

Why Should you play Orks?

Orks are a constant, they live and breathe just to fight, fighting is why they do everything, they're violent and aggressive not because they're arseholes its just who they are. They love fighting so much that if there is no one else to beat up, they'll batter themselves, if an Ork was locked in a room alone, he'd fight with himself.

They can't conceive that other races don't fight for the same reason, so, as far as most Orks are concerned, the enemy they're attack is are enjoying the fight as much as they are.

They're a simple army in a complicated universe, the only truly "good" army as long as you use an Orks definition of good and bad.

This relates on the battlefield too, their guns, for the most part, are all for show, they like big loud guns that do very obvious damage, in fact, your average Ork isn't looking for power from a gun at all, they want the noise because the rattle of loud automatic weapons are part of the clamour of war. That's what "More Dakka" means, louder, faster firing guns, If the enemy are still standing after you've shot at them, that means there is more to clobber hand to hand.

Orks are also obsessive about war, most obsess over getting into a fight and having a good scrap but some obsess with being faster into that fight and join Da Cult of Speed, some are obsessed with getting all the scrap to build bigger, louder guns and become Lootas, almost every unit that isn't Boyz is an Ork that's become obsessed with an aspect of Ork Kultur and taken it to an extreme, an Ork never does things by half.

How should you play Orks?

Orks can win games, and I play with Orks more than anything and have always found them very strong but you have to play like an Ork.

You need huge mobs, any mob with less than 30 boyz means you're wasting points. The motto you need to have in mind is "More Boyz, less Toyz" depending on the points level obviously but generally, I like to have at least 3 mobs of 30 Boyz. This gives you a very strong core that will leg it up the battlefield and destroy anything you point them at. A charge from an Ork mob will kill almost anything in the game, with 4 attacks on the charge at Strength 4, you're racking up a hell of a lot of wounds so it doesn't matter what save they have, a lot of things are going to die.

The MOST important thing with the Orks is to play with a sense of humour because it can and often will all go wrong. The core mechanic for Orks as an army is that they can roll loads and loads of dice, so you can get massive swings in your luck that really effect your plans, you might charge with 30 boyz and have an unlucky load of rolls and wiff it completely and not make any wounds, your Mek might misfire with his Shokk Attack Gun and end up in cobat alone with the squad of terminators he was shooting at or you might get lucky with your Lootas and destroy a Storm Raven in a turn (these are all things that have happened to me in a single game). You have to be ready to laugh at what goes wrong and carry on with a grin as you move try again.

And remember:

Orkses is never defeated in battle. If we win, we win. If we die, we die fighting so it don't count. If we runs for it we don't die neither, cos we can come back for annuver go, see!

[Power Klawz]

1. They are tough and green.
Other 1. Green is the best.

[benn grimm]

Coz they look snazzy and never loses and basically evryfin what Picklez said.) For me it doesn't matter what you collect/buy/list/field, just do whatever takes your fancy.

I started Orks with the 2nd ed box so 40 mono-pose grotz, 20 goff's and a cardboard dread. I then swapped out the marines with a mate, so had a regular sea of grotz (soon to become super) and lots of goffz (soon to become skarboyz). From there I bought a dread, Thraka, lots of big gunz, shokk attack gun and accompanying snotz, cyboarz, kommandoz, meganobz; basically coz that was what gw was pushing at the time. Then I started seeing looted imp vehicles, Orky terrain boards, Gargant builds and all that good player created stuff and I was sold for life.

I've dabbled with other armies over the years, but theres nothing quite like Orks for freedom of expression and encouraging creativity. And er, being dead 'ard n all that...)

[Cactus]

I have an ork army, although I haven't played in a while, this thread has made me thing about going back to my greenskined friends.

Reasons I love the orks:

1. You can be cunningly brutal, or brutally cunning. If you decide to run forward and smash, that's what orks do. If you play smart, pick your battles, play for the objectives, and are tactically sound, that's what orks do.
2. It's a hobbyists dream to convert all the dakka. Building custom meganobs, converting some space marine tank into your own death wagon of death, making a bike out of three different armies vehicles is a lot of fun. You want to make a stompa out of a mister potato head? It was one of the most amazing conversions I've ever seen.
3. You can play various styles of play. Shooty, stabby, fast, hoard, elite, mech... The orks have lots of play styles that are all possible and viable. I personally like hoard and drowning my opponent with bodies and the volume of shots but your milage may vary.
4. I find that I don't get board painting orks either. I enjoy painting green (and I think I'm fairly good at it) but there are a lot of other colors and weathering choices I can use to tidy up my boyz.