With the Dominion launch box out in the wild, we’ve seen loads of stunning Kruleboyz armies emerging from the swamps of Ghur. These kunnin’ orruks join the Ironjawz and Bonesplitterz in the upcoming Orruk Warclans battletome – and this book is positively bursting with loads of outstanding (and smelly) reasons to play this faction in the Era of the Beast. Grab your nose plugs and read on.
Not only can you build a strong army with one of the three individual subfactions – the Kruleboyz, Bonesplitterz, or Ironjawz – each with their own powerful allegiance abilities, but you can combine them into an almighty Big Waaagh! which offer orruk generals a whole host of powerful rules.
Let’s start with the newcomers – the Kruleboyz are bringing sneaky tactical options to orruk hordes.
The Kruleboyz are unusual orruks in that they bring solid, dare we even say reliable, shooting weapons to the army. Okay, we remember the days of the almighty Bonesplitterz Kunnin’ Rukk, but that was about lotsa shootin’ rather than thinky shootin’.
You can improve Kruleboyz shooting even more if you choose to run one of the Kruleboyz’ warclans, like the Big Yellers warclan, notable for their bright yeller shields.
These loud-mouthed Kruleboyz are known to talk a big game, but they prefer to hang back and shoot rather than muck it across the battlefield. This rather lazy (in the eyes of other orruks) approach to warfare is quickly forgiven since they boast some of the finest weaponsmiths and dead-eye shots of all orruk-kind.
On top of that, Big Yellers can take Boltboyz as Battleline units – perfect for the orruk gunline army you’ve been dreaming up.
Alternatively, the Kruleboyz can field an army from the Skulbugz warclan. They may not be the best shots or the most vicious warriors, but they’re really, really gross – even other orruks think their obsession with creepy crawlies is strange.
Ever the opportunists, Kruleboyz also employ an impressive selection of underhanded tactics to get an edge, called Dirty Tricks. Noisy Racket caught our attention, and it shows how prolonged terror tactics can fatigue even the strongest enemy.
If you’re adding some Kruleboyz to an existing orruk collection or you fancy selecting units from all three subfactions, you’re going to love this battletome.
The orruks now have an even better selection of mounts to bring to the table, and the battletome adds some hilarious – and effective – traits for your ride. Our favourite has to be this one, for obvious reasons.
If you want to take orruks from the Kruleboyz, Ironjawz, and Bonsplitterz, the new battletome gives you the rules to gather a Big Waaagh!. When all of the subfactions are combined, your army is kunnin’, brutal, AND savage all at once.
You don’t have to give up all your subfaction’s battle traits, either – each of the three retains their best ability.
A Big Waaagh! has access to a totally different set of abilities to represent the effect of such a massive buildup of power. As various conditions are met, like the presence of a Warchanter or getting the boyz stuck in, you accumulate Waaagh! points with which you get access to a range of dizzying buffs.
You’ll start by gaining a little extra speed, before increasing your hitting power, and finally earning the ability to blow all your points in an onslaught of manic fury.
The Power of the Waaagh! is an incredibly fun and characterful ability that gives you lots of perks and bonuses for playing in the spirit of a true orruk boss.
All in all, Ironjawz, Bonesplitterz, and Kruleboyz are fantastic as dedicated armies on their own and incredibly rewarding to play as one gnarly force. Oh, and did we mention all forms of orruk pair nicely with a side of Kragnos?
The Orruk Warclans battletome is arriving soon, along with a bumper crop of new Kruleboyz units and the insidious, powerful shaman known as the Mouth of Mork. The orruks clearly sense that the Era of the Beast has begun in earnest, and they’re ready to take over. That makes it a better time than any to collect a green horde to conquer the Mortal Realms.
If you want to get ahead, grab the Dominion launch box or one of the three Starter Sets to begin a Waaagh! of your own. Stay tuned to Warhammer Community for more orruk news soon, as well as a sneaky look at the Stormcast Eternals battletome later in the week.