However, there is one race that stands as a shining example of just how much fun you can have when unleashing hellish slaughter upon your random enemies of interest. I speak of the Orks.

There are many kinds of Ork squads in existence. They range from shooty hordes to elite ramshackle mechanized units. The type of squad that can get the most done in terms of raw damage and maximum enemy annoyance, however, is a solid close combat squad.

The first thing you need to determine is your terrain. This will be important in deciding on what up close combat units you will deploy in proper strength.

For those of you with limited knowledge of the game this may lead you to think of the more powerful Nobz or other type of more expensive higher end characters. However, it is actually far better to heavily upgrade a few large mobs of slugga boys for up close fighting.

This is especially true early on, as you can use them to annoy and harass your opponents during their initial build up phases. The smart player will stick their slugga boys into any vehicle they can manage to get so that they can move them across the map faster. However, the more intelligent player, will recognize that a single mob of thirty hard boyz, slugga boys with heavy armor, will outlast trukkboyz and lesser armored slugga boy groups.

Later on after you've built up enough Waaagh! banners and have your boyz up to speed on the attack use some stormboyz to quickly harass your opponents while you footslog your large hoard of hard boys to the enemy position. This is a generally solid tactic for up close combat set ups.

No matter what units you decide to use, it is always suggested that you remember a hallmark of the ork race. More is better. Do not go in understrength on any assault. Orks are best when in large hordes or multiple mobs working in tandem.

Lose the advantage you have in number of attacks and you are going to lose altogether.

Attack From The Start

The main advantage of the orks is that they have the strongest units to start with, and these are the Slugga Boys mobs. They fight very well, have a large size and are much more strong than the Space Marine Scouts, the Chaos Cultists and the Eldar Guardians. You need to get the Slugga Boys for harassing the enemies at the time they still build their base.

You should also build plenty of Waagh Banners, because this is the basic way of reinforcing the troops or building fresh ones. The main benefit of these banners is that they will be defense towers as well. You can build them all over the place, because they are never too many!

The Best Strategy To Apply

You should always try to amass the troops, for the reason that the Orks work at their best with the bands of large mobs. You will be successful with the Shoota Boys and with the Slugga than with several Nobz. Apart from that, they will be less in numbers and you can pick them up on an individual basis.

One more good way of playing the Orks in War Hammer 40,000 is to reinforce the squads of Gretchin. They are fighters as well as builders and this way you can use them in all the possible ways. If you reinforce them, they will have more health points so they will die harder and, of course, they will have an increased building speed. The orks will work at their best in the close combats because this way they are able to use their power fists and use the nasty axes. If you bring them as closest as possible in combat, you will have a great playing experience with the orks in War Hammer 40,000.

You should never forget to upgrade the mobs. A growing army needs to be upgraded, not just grown up in figures. There will be a huge difference between a bunch of mobs and a whole army of upgraded ones.

Lore

Orks are the British trailer trash of space. They speak in pidgin cockney, and have a crude hierarchy of slaves (runts), ordinary Orks (the mob), ruling Orks (Nobs, Warbosses), and special Orks (Weirdboyz, Mad Dokz, etc.) Orks have a psychic connection to other Orks called the "Waagh!!" that allows them to know who-is-who in the Ork hierarchy. It also spurs them on to commit acts of violence, often snowballing into large scale fighting, which has been known to wipe out entire planets. When other life forms in the vicinity have been destroyed, Orks will either try to find more life forms, or just fight amongst themselves

Strategy

Good Ork strategy relies on melee and large numbers. Most Ork units get bonuses to their melee if they attack en masse. It's a good idea to equip your units with choppaz for the bonuses to their close-combat attack. They can use firepower (dakka dakka), as well as psychic units and mechanized units, the same as other races, though more "orky." Usually a good rule of thumb with Orks is quantity over quality -- Orks units are so cheap, its often better to have a lot of them to overwhelm the enemy than to spend all your points on a few powerful ones.

The Figures

Ork units are fun to paint. They're fun to put together as well. The lore behind Orks is that they assemble their equipment from a hodge-podge of other equipment, so you can go to town customizing your vehicles to make them look however want.

Needless to say, it only takes one look at a band of rouge Ork Meks, sporting rugged looking dueling scars, for the enemy to understand that the shift of battle has now been decided. Ork Big Meks have a penance for bloody engagements with their enemies; OOmans have learned this lesson the hard way.

Ork Meks grow much braver, stronger and meaner with each battle they undertake. They proudly wield their boss poles which are laden with blood soaked trophies and glyps, as if to sling an insult to their enemies. The impact of their deff koptas coupled with their battlewagons reeking of blood thirsting Ork Stumpas, more than meet the battlefield requirements of a Mek infused warzone. With their deft koptas air-borne, Big Meks hang from the truck transporters, raging into the air from behind the metal armored rovers.

Splaying their enemies, like the Necrons, they gain ground as burna boyz with their flame throwers. Their Gits, or enemies like, the no see ums, Ork Big Meks love to annihilate. With the initial call of battle, “Ere we go!” these metal warriors tear up a battlefield with their battalions of buggies, trakks, deth koptas, trucks, battlewagons and kans.

The first of Ork Stompa’s strengths lie in the fact that they have an inherent lack of fear when it comes to death. This is seen in their uncanny ability to stay alive no matter the appendages they lose in a battle. With each victory celebrated, an Ork Stompa will continue to increase in size and strength, as if he was on a steady diet of human growth hormones. They do not hesitate when it comes to charging into battle. The strength of their massive gargantuan guns commences the carnage of their enemies, who will ultimately be torn asunder with the use of their huge claws that sport spinning blades. Sitting like the formidable enemies they are upon their battlewagons, an Ork Stompa battle always plays to the bloody end.

Enemies, like the Astarte and the warrior of Marshal Amalrich Sword Brethren, were methodically slain without regard, as seen in the battle of the Temple of The Emperor Ascendant. Ork Stompas have ways of succeeding against their enemies, when seemingly being defeated. A line of gathered Behemoth Crusher Brood had taken that knowledge to their deaths. It has been said that when a howda assails the walls and front lines of an enemy, engaged with the treacherous intentions of death and destruction, there is little defense in holding back the arrival of destiny.

Versatile
The 113-piece Ork Battlewagon kit can be assembled in a number of ways to fill whatever role is needed to counter an opponent's strategy. Its customizable platform supports an open top or an enclosed hull, and it can be outfitted with the weapons that come in the kit or by adding extra capabilities from other models. The battlewagon can serve as heavy weaponry, artillery, or a heavily shielded troop transport.

Powerful
The Ork Battlewagon is a heavy support vehicle that can be fitted with plows or spiked rollers to mutilate infantry. It also supports ranged weapons like rokkit launchas, killkannons, and zzap guns or artillery pieces like a supa kannon or some lobbas. While battlewagons end up attracting enemy fire, they have the armor needed to withstand a lot of punishment and can be used as cover for other troops on the battlefield.

Mobile
With a transport capacity of 20 models, the Ork Battlewagon is useful as a troop transport, speeding Orks to key points on the battlefield in relative safety. The battlewagon's mobility also allows it to be adapted for more creative uses, like a mobile big mek repair shop or personal transport for an Ork Warboss.

Battlewagons fill a variety of roles on the battlefield with the brutal determination that is characteristic of the Ork warbands, but they all have two traits in common. They are big, and they are tough.