If you like the idea of krumpin’ anything with a pulse (or even without a pulse, for that matter), chances are you’re a fan of the Orruk Warclans. Even if you’re yet to meet these bestial warriors on the battlefield, it’s good to know what you’re up against when you finally do. In any case, you’re definitely in the right place to learn more about what the new edition of Warhammer Age of Sigmar has in store for the Orruk Warclans.
Over the course of the coming days and weeks, we’ll be bringing you a series of articles designed to be an introduction to the faction for newer players, while offering new tactical insights for more experienced players, courtesy of one of our elite playtesters. Yesterday, we took a look at how the Stormcast Eternals are shaping up in the new edition, but today, we’re going green.
But before we hand you over to today’s guest, let’s have a little reminder about the faction itself.
Who Are the Orruk Warclans?
They’re mean, they’re green, and they love nothing more than a good ol’ fashioned scrap. Whether they’re heavily armoured Ironjawz, feral Bonesplitterz, or they hail from the myriad other greenskin clans of the Mortal Realms, Orruks are led into battle by the biggest and strongest among them. Once the Orruk leader has bullied enough warriors into following him (or has just gotten bored of waiting), he will launch a Waaagh! – a rampaging warpath that sweeps all before it in a tide of greenskins, and which in turn attracts others of their kind in a self-perpetuating cycle of war and death.
Orruks are renowned for their love of fighting (which they often affectionately refer to as “krumpin’” or “bashin’”), and as such are blessed with a large variety of melee-focused infantry units which use either brute force or weight of numbers to overwhelm their enemies. Yet the warclans are far from one-dimensional, and their most effective strategies are certainly more nuanced than simply charging full speed into combat.
What About the Kruleboyz?
The Kruleboyz are insidious greenskins known for their exceptional cunning. They have lived in the swamp marshlands of Thondia for longer than anyone can remember, raiding under the cover of choking swamp mists. But with the return of Kragnos, and the forces of Destruction on the warpath in Ghur, the Kruleboyz have emerged from the foetid lands they call home in huge numbers to join in on the fun.
The new Kruleboyz are very much a part of the Orruk Warclans, so if you want a mixed Orruk army – or already have one – you can easily add the greenskins from the new Dominion box into your Waaagh! There will also be plenty more miniatures on the way to allow you to field a full Kruleboyz army, if that's how you want to roll!
The Kruleboyz even have their own extra allegiance ability, Venom-encrusted Weapons, which is every bit as nasty as it sounds! What’s more, they gain this ability whether you field an army consisting exclusively of Kruleboyz or use them as part of a larger Orruk Warclans force.
But the other Orruks in the army have some new tricks too. To learn more about these tactics – and how the new edition affects them – we’ll hand you over to playtester Kieran Harper, who’s been krumpin’ ’eads with his Orruks since Warhammer Age of Sigmar was first launched.
Kieran: Orruk Warclans really benefit from the changes in the new edition – especially command abilities. In the hero phase, Rally is a brilliant way to bring more ladz back into the fray and can be a game-changer for a big unit that’s down to only a few models.
There are a few command abilities that give some really nice defensive options, but one great one for Savage Orruk Arrowboyz is Unleash Hell.
All-out Attack and All-out Defence also synergise well with all Orruk Warclans units. A bonus to hit in the shooting or combat phase, or to save rolls made for a key unit, can make all the difference.
On the flip side, you really need to think about Battleshock now, as only one unit can benefit from the Inspiring Presence command ability. Fortunately, the new Killaboss with Stab-grot has an ability that will help with this – All Part of Da Plan.
Monster-riding Heroes are going to be a very important part of Orruk Warclans armies. Not only can Gordrakk and Megabosses on Maw-krushas make use of all the command abilities mentioned above, their impact on the battlefield has been turned up to 11 in the new edition. They’re often vital in scoring objectives and battle tactics too. Is there a better Monster to have on your side than a Maw-krusha (or two)? Well maybe Kragnos, the End of Empires, who you can always bring in for even more might – and with your opponent likely to be taking advantage of the new rules for Monsters, he’ll be doubly useful as he’s an expert at crushing monstrous skulls.
Biggest Winners
There are a number of units available to the Orruk Warclans that will benefit greatly from the new edition’s updated rules. Here, Kieran picks his top three most improved units, and breaks down the reasons why.
Megaboss on Maw-krusha
Kieran: One way for opponents to deal with this beast is to shoot him down before he gets into their units and starts bashin’. The All-out Defence command ability lets you protect this key model by further boosting its already formidable survivability in your opponent’s shooting phase to tip the balance in your favour.
Savage Orruks
Kieran: More Monsters means more bonus points to be had for killing them. This is bread and butter for the Bonesplitterz, whose Monster Hunters allegiance ability will really come to the fore here. A couple of units of Savage Orruk Arrowboyz and Big Stabbas will likely become a staple of both Big Waaagh! and Bonesplitterz armies now.
Wurrgog Prophet
Kieran: A key unit in Bonesplitterz armies, the Wurrgog Prophet can be enhanced with extra spells to make him even more powerful. The newly updated Chromatic Cogs endless spell can give him and all other Wizards within 6” an extra casting chance too.*
Bonesplitterz spells boost your basic units, so more chances to cast them will open up some nice options for the army.
Thanks for your insights, Kieran. If you like the idea of beating your opponents into submission (by which we mean their armies) and drowning them (again, their armies) beneath a green tide, then the Orruk Warclans are right up your street. Pick up their battletome and Start Collecting! Ironjawz set to get yourself ready for the new edition, and join us again tomorrow, when we’ll be looking at how the Slaves to Darkness are shaping up.
* Lots of the endless spells have been updated for the new edition – clearly the winds of magic are swirling through the Mortal Realms.