Warhammer 40,000: Kill Team (HoR)/Tactics/Orks(7E)

Orks are fun in Kill Team, and a suprisingly effective force. Where the main game has and aboundance of S Fuck Off, AP Screw You weaponry and so many guns your 30 Boyz doesn't stand a chance, Kill Team has more cover, less guns and less powerful guns, which means that Orks are fuckin' boss. Boyz have always been a very hardy, if slightly sporadic troop choice, now you have some of the most hardy Squaded infantry in the whole entire game, especially if you take 'Ard Armour too. On top of that, you have SO many different troops it isn't even fun, though many are limited to a small number of each, and some of the most tough Team Leaders out there (T 4 W 3 Sv 2+ Nob with Megaarmour? Cruel.) and the Boss Mek, who can take some outright goofy wargear and is fairly good at shooting to.

All is not good, however - With a smaller model-count, the fact that Orks mostly have 2 Initiative suddenly hurts. Guardsmen squads, Necron Warriors, even fucking Tau Fire Warriors might kill you if you are on the charge. This also means that climbing isn't fun - Most of the time your Orks will just be standing there instead of moving up. If you must move about, grab Nobs, as they have more Initiative and the wounds to take the beating when they somehow jump down head first. Also, stay away from flamers. You'll become barbecued the moment they hit you and you get set on fire.

All in all, the Orks have kept their "quirky funny dudes" title in Kill Team - A lot of the new wargear is very entertaining when it works (Bouncy Shield - In Sovjet Russia, Plasma Cannon hits YOU!), but is generally just what you get in the main codex - Which isn't bad, really.

General Rules

• 'Ere We Go: Same as usual, but worth to mention as it allows Orks to charge through some foliage without too much trouble, as the charge range is halved.
• Mob Rule: Amended to work with the limited-characters game of Kill Team. When a model with Mob Rule must take any kind of Morale or Pinning Test and there are any Team Leaders, Nobs (Normal or Mega) or Flash Gits within 6", you roll a D6:
  • 1-3: Failed, the Mob fails and runs like usual.
  • 4-6: One of the above mentioned models notices how the Boyz are thinking about leaving before the fight gets fun and promptly give them a krumping: The model/squad takes an S4, AP- hit, and is then considered to have passed it.

FOC

• Team Leader: 1 model.
• Core: 1-30 models.
• Special: 0-5 Models.

Gubbinz

Alongside the wargear included in the Codex, every list has their own list of extra Wargear for your models. The Orks have an abundance of awesome gear for their Team Leaders, but not a lot for their Core... Which doesn't matter much, as they are just cannon fodder, after all.

• Waaagh! Banner: A 0-1 hardcapped item, you know what this does. Once per game orks within 12" gets +1WS and +1A, so bring it for your choppy boyz. Melee lists are not something everyone can do easily in Kill Team, but Orks are one of the few lists who are pretty decent at it, so if you feel like making an all melee-list, grab some Nobs of varying colours, some 'Ardboyz (Because regular Sluggas will be mauled before they can get a hit in most of the time) and this beauty on a Boss Nob in the thick of it and wreck face.
• Moar Powa!: Guns get +1S and Gets Hot. If it had Gets Hot before, they now can get it on a roll of 2 or 1. This isn't strictly necessary for any build, as Orks usually focus on more shots rather than higher strength shots, and as a lot of our weapons are fairly powerful already, the need for this one isn't too obvious. One ranged weapon in codex does benefit from it greatly - flashgit's snazzgun. STR6 means you get to deny FNP on T3 models and reliably wound tougher opponents like marines. Also a flashgit with juiced up snazzgun becomes a soft vehicle counter(and a fairly accurate one, for an ork). Statistically your snazzgun will vent in your arms every second shooting phase, resulting in quick death of it's owner since Flashgits are stuck at 6+ save. So get it on Kaptin with 4+ cape save, bring a mekboy with Moar Dakka to reroll 1's or at least get some ammo runts, you greedy git! And remember what Mekboss Unkla` Ben once said: "With Moar Powa comes moar responsibility... That, or enjoy your stupid gob melting inevitability!"
• Buzzer Squig Stikkbomb: ORKY BEES! A strange Haywire Grenade, except instead of Haywire, it forces targets to take a Pinning Test at -2I. It's a fun tool to mess with people at least, but unreliable, and if your enemy ends up ducking behind cover even more, it will be hard to kill the git. Have some charging Ork at hand when this happens.
• Thudbomb: It's a Krak Grenade. Go wild. Buy one, buy more, it's not barred by the rules governing grenades.

Leaders Only Items

• Sniffer Squig: If your enemies are trying to avoid fighting, this is the stuff. It makes infiltrators unable to be placed within 24" and negates hiding when within 12" of the model. Keep in mind, the Sniffer Squig is its own model and must be kept close to the Leader at all times - These ranges do NOT go from the Leader himself!
• Bosspole: Re-roll a 1-3 roll on the Mob Rule Table. Simple, effective, cheap. Keep in mind that you'll now squash a git more often, so bring more gits to even it out.
• Rok Solid: The model never suffers Concussive and Strikedown. Those USRs are so rare in the main game that it's not very useful, and in Kill Team they are even MORE useless. If you are facing an Astra Militarum Commander with the Vostroyan Shotgun it's useful, but it's otherwise waste of points. Has a fun name though.
• Trophy Rack: Gains Fear. Meeeeeh. If you can find something that gives a nerf to enemy Ld it might be fun, but the Dark Eldar use it better.

Boss Nob Only Items

• Metal Skull: +1 T and gains the ability to do a single attack in melee that forces the enemy to make a Toughness Test or take an unsaveable wound. T5 is really freaking tough to deal with in Kill Team, but it's still 20 points, so if you buy it you can't take that squad of Sluggas you might want... Which you do.
• 'Ard Case: Plain Feel No Pain. Good. It'll will make some enemies simple pushovers and is trolly as hell for enemies dedicated to a few big hits rather than many small ones. Never, ever combine with the Metal Skull and a Mega-armour - Just don't. (Reverse psychology HO!)
• Spikey Bitz: Hammer of Wrath. Really not necessary for any git other than Mega Armoured Nobs who might want to poke an eye out before everyone get to chop him. Also, way to steal the Chaos Marines' MO.
• Meaner an' Greener: Doubles your Inspiring Presence range. You might ask yourself - why? All Orks are stuck at Ld 7 (aside from Grots), so this is a washout. Well, leader's posspole allows to reroll 1-3 mob rule checks within Inspiring range. Combine it with Kaptin's hat and you get a very stubborn ork mob. As a bonus, it allows gretchins to roam further without getting mindlocked.

Kaptin Only Items

• Kaptin's Sword: Power Sword with the ability to let all friendly models in the same combat as the wearer re-roll all Morale tests in that phase. Sweet, but take it mainly for AP 3, though rerolling Morale is helpful to avoid getting your gitz krumped prematurely. Kaptins are also good with shooty lists rather than crumby lists, as he has a lot of synergy with Flash Gitz, so reaaally think hard if you need it.
• Kaptin's Hat: Hats make you a better leader, so it gives a straight-up 1+ Ld... Well, combined with the Sword it can allow you to really hold those gits in place so you won't need to hit them too often, and if you are keeping Flash Gitz around, keeping them from tasting dirt is a good thing, so they can keep the Snazzguns roaring.
• Kaptin's Cape: 4+/6++ Armour, for 10 pts. Rad. The Kapin can't actually buy 'eavy armor, so the Cape is the only way you can upgrade his otherwise pathetic 6+ save. And if he's your leader, you are going to want some extra armor.
• Kaptin's Booty: This wargear allows for one "booty" counter to be placed on one model or Squad on the enemy team - Your Kaptin and his Flash Gitz all gain Hatred against that sorry model, for when you really need to make sure they die on the first charge. I'm sorry if I sound like a broken record, but Kaptins are really not melee models, so Hatred is not the most fantastic thing, and especially not for Flash Gitz - Seriously, who would want to have Flash Gitz charge?

Mek Only Items

• Mega-Rumblah: Replaces his overwatch with a 3" radius of difficult terrain. Shame that it doesn't hurt, but it'll stall like hell and will allow you Mek to stay close to the front lines. Keep in mind that the Mek Boss has the stats of a Nob, and so isn't too tempting to charge, so regular Meks might be better off with this.
• Bouncy Shield: A 5++ invul that bounces any shots that aren't blasts or templates towards another unengaged unit. This is a neat bonus, but don't forget that blasts and templates WILL hurt you. Funny as hell if used right, it does need you to stay within firing range and often more than what's advisable. No matter what, its basically our Refractor Field and it isn't even too expensive for that.
• More Dakka!: Gives models within 6" re-rolls on 1 to-hit. Not shabby, but it's a good support. Though this sound really meager, it's one of the best things to put on your Mek or Mek Boss - put a Mek with this between some Shoota squads and watch as their volume of fire suddenly ups a little bit. Try to use it with Flash Gitz as well for maximum carnage.
• Boom Time!: If the Mek ever dies, he drops a small blast where he was that gives a S3 AP- hit to everyone inside. Pretty useless, as you won't want your Mek to be that close to anything. It could be a fun upgrade for a non-serious game: Mek Boss geared for melee with Boom Time to give that last FUCK YOU before departing.
• Kustom Tellyporta: Exchanges charging to get a 2d6" shunt in any direction. Nice escape plan and great for support Meks - That Trukk is too far away? ZZAP. Enemies closing in? WUOP. Need to climb a building without using I? SPROING.
• Pokkit Rokkit: A Pistol-ranged blast weapon that has only one use. Useful if you wanna surprise an unaware foe, but is it really worth that? Note that it has the Flamer special rule. Use it to punish clumped up infantry or set important enemy models on fire and slow them down to a crawl, so your own heavy hitters can finish him off with a charge.

Meganob Only Items

• Kustom Generata: Gives a 5++ Invul, but if he ever rolls a 1 on that save, kaboom! - Small Blast, S3 AP- hits all around. This doesn't remove the save though, and if you are in combat (which you should be with Meganobs) it's basically Boom Time! without the main requirement - death.

Leaders

• Boss Nob: He's pretty much straight from the codex with an extra wound. He's not great as a leader, but he's really here for versatility: Taking a bike gives you more bike slots, taking a rokkit pack gives you more stormboyz. He's pretty much a stand-in for the Warboss in terms of choices, so he's got variety, including Ammo Runtz, Attack Squigs, and a Gitfinda. Also, don't be fooled by him being a Nob, he's more than just-above-average in close combat. With T 4 and W 3, he can withstand a lot of punishment, and at S 4 with Furious Charge, he is likely to smash whatever he hits, too. Get upgrades like Big Choppa, 'Ard Armour and Metul Skull, and you'll have a raw beast: No, he doesn't have any trick he does or any enemy he kills best, he's just hard and hits hard.
  • Boss Kommando: For a cheap fee, he gains Stealth and Move Through Cover in exchange for mobility and Mega-Armour. Doing this gives you more Kommando slots, so use if you're going to be leading them. This author favours the Boss Kommando, simply for being easy to get into the front lines, and for easy of navigation in the cover-filled games of Kill Team. Never, ever place him in some ruin far away from the front lines with a Big Shoota, daring your enemy to try and dig him out. Ever. I dare you.
  • Boss Meganob: 22 Points gives you the options of a MegaNob Boss with the ability to take more MegaNobz. If you want to take a very assaulty build, you can replace his weapons with Killsaws, which is an insane and funny option for an already stupid-killy Team Leader choice. Bear in mind that this option makes him very, very expensive for an Ork, making it almost mandatory for him to carry success himself. Never take against Tau Crisis Suits, too much Plasma and Fusion.
• Boss Mek: A Big Mek with +1W/-1Ld, he's about as versatile as the Boss in terms of options barring the rokkit. Enjoy your special tools... For a price. Of fucking 30 pt. That not so bad, you say? Well, the Boss Nob gets everything the Boss Mek gets (combat-leader stat-line) for 18 freaking pts, while the Boss Mek gets a combat statline, access the weird, funny but usually kinda lousy Mek Armoury focussed on shooting, and Repair Tools, for 30 Motherfucking Points. Design oversight? Oh-ho-ho yeah. He even starts with Choppa and Slugga for Mork's sake! Do not take, unless you want to have some fun - Meks do their job better.
• Weirdboy: Same as the codex with a new wound, he's kinda strapped in terms of power (Only Frazzle, 'Eadbang, or Warpath) and can only take basic wargear. Not very motivating a take up front, though he's by no means bad, just kinda limited. Remember that you can use powers, and THEN charge, which is actually really good for a model with a combat statline and a special combat weapon. Then again, he's 45 pts...
• Kaptin: A boss taken right from the Flash Gitz, a free Bosspole and Gitfinda and armed with a Snazzgun, his upgrades are either one ammo runt (which is weak considering the Boss Nob gets up to 3) and his list of wargear, which gives him better support and, for some reason, better leadership abilities in combat... Kinda the Mek thing again, though this time he's actually not half bad, as ranged leadership-models aren't exactly bad for Orks. Might be the most competetive choice, simply because of the hilarity that is the Snazzgun, Gitfinda and Mek with More Dakka! combo.

Core

• Boyz Mob: A squad of 5 boyz allows with the option for shootaz for 5 points flat, get 'Eavy Armour for 20 or grant one boy in the mob a Big Shoota or Rokkit Launcha. Use them the same as you'd use a mob of boyz in any other game: as your horde. There's essentially two ways to go Boyz: Go 'Orde or go 'Ard. This goes for both Shoota and Slugga mobs, as in both cases, a few mobs will do jack squat other than die a horrible and messy death (Sluggas tending to be the worse of these options), so you'll need a lot to compensate. The other option is 'Ard Armour, which is a really, really good choice for especially Sluggas: I once had a single Squad run from one side of the table to another, and only lose two models, and ending up krumping what they hit. 'Ard Shootas are a menace to take out of cover, and can be really great for objective camping, or ferrying around in a Trukk, who they'll survive easier than a normal squad.
• Gretchin Mob: A mob of 5 Grots, they're the same except for one setback: Unless they're within 6" of a Leader or Runtherd, they have to test Leadership or get Mindlocked. Well, crap. But wait, what is that special rule? "Its a Grot's life" is what makes grots the cutest resource ever. Basically, they provide 4+ cover save to infantry behind them, however whenever cover save succeeds you remove 1 grot as a casuality. Bring them infront of your mob to soften up a blow from enemy shooting at you.
  • Runtherd: These are pretty much word-for-word from the Codex with the ability to let Grots within 6" use his fantastic Leadership of...7. Yeah. Also note, that you can skip fielding Runtherds at all, since Grot Mobs here do not have require Runtherds to be brought. Just remember about the possibility of a mindlock outside of leader's inspiring presense.
• Mek Gun: Get more Grots to shield the artillery. They can also grab an Ammo Runt if you want a re-roll. Otherwise they're identical to the 'dex. You can only pick two guns. While powerful, it can be hindered by cover and buildings, so it can be rather situational, based on the map. This is when lobbas come into play since they have barrage special rule and thus do not require line of sight.
• Loota: Hardcapped at 0-3, these gitz are only usable when joined by a Mek Boss who can suitably support them in any way - They are way too limited in range, damage and especially volume of fire otherwise. Though, if you take a few of these, some Flash Gitz and a Mek with a Gitfinda and More Dakka!, you can create a firebase like no other.

THE FOLLOWING CHOICES ARE HARDCAPPED AT 0-5 ASIDE FROM CERTAIN EXCEPTIONS. THEY ARE NOT MOBS. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED

• Burna Boy: They're Boyz. With Burnaz. Fukkin' A. With the amount of cover in HoR, it's very likely you'll want a Burna or two - The infamous Trukk with Burnas still holds up, and can be hilariously devastating. Try hiding your Burnas in cover, in places where your opponent rarely looks - With a bit of luck, you can end up with a hilarious "Oh fuck, you had a Burna there all the time?!" moment.
• Tankbusta: These are the same as codex, with two out of the five being able to purchase Tankhammers for mega-killy. Situational, depends on the amount of heavy armour you encounter. It's still best not to run a lot of these, as their tendency to flail around doing nothing is way too high to get more of them.
• Kommando: Same as the 'dex, with one being able to buy a Burna, a Rokkit Launcha, or a Big Shoota. If you get a Boss Kommando, they're able to get bigger numbers to aid the Leader. Is generally used as cover campers, and has the added defense of being able to go places other models (Necrons, Fire Warriors, most Humies) have problems getting to. Don't underestimate the power of Line of Sight - Your opponent might not want to go out of their way to spot a single, lone Ork. Generally great for hogging objectives.
• Stormboy: With the lack of heavy ordnance and other murderous things, these guys get to be more useful, especially alongside a Boss Nob with a rokkit pack of his own so they can get larger numbers. They function much the same as Kommandoes, in the sense that they are more than usually good at jumping through rubble. Keep the high and keep them coming, and then charge down with all the green fury you can muster. It's still just an Ork, though, so make sure he hasn't got to kill that Sergeant alone.
• Warbiker: Already a good use for messing with the enemy, getting a Boss Nob on a bike gives them options for more to form a fleet of bikes and doom. Very, very dangerous if used right - Very, very easy to deal with if not. This author likes to use them as flankers, having one on each opposite side of the map, closing in on the enemy and forcing them to bunker up, so your melee powerhouses can get into a massive fight. Don't overestimate them, though - T 5 4+ isn't alle that survivable, the mobility has to make up for that.

Special

• Nob: They run the same as before, though they do have some options for weapons, Ammo Runtz, bikes, and 'Eavy Armour. Sadly, there's no way to bring more of them.
• MegaNob: The big killy TEQ, these guys can either go with Kombi-shootaz or replace his hands with killsaws to make murderous noise. If your Nob Boss grabs Mega Armour, you can take them as Core Choices, which is definitely a good idea if you're running against stuff like Deathwing.
• Deff Kopta: These goofy little things run like they have in the big 'dex. Lots of shooty stuff, but still pretty flimsy.
• Flash Gitz: While generally similar to codex, they do have their bosspole replaced with a Gitpole: a banner that allows models within 3" to re-roll their Mob Rule on a 1-3. Not bad, since he can definitely reinforce some shoota boyz.
• Mek: A regular Mekboy, he's a stripped-down Mek Boss, though he can get a Killsaw for a hand, but it's hella expensive for it. Get him an Oiler instead, it'll help more.
• Killa Kan: While these guys do work the same as the Codex, they're probably worse off now, because they're hardcapped at 0-2, meaning that if one ever goes down, the other's going to have to test for morale, and there's nothing helping him from getting shaken.
• Dok: A Painboy with a strangely nerfed -1 S/W/I/A, he's a unique model that gives FNP to all Orks within 6", with the option to buy a Grot Orderly to give one git a re-roll on the FNP. Keep him nested in a mob, but keep him from the front. Strangely enough, he is not a character(which means no Look Out Sir to increase his survivability).

Building Your Mob

An Ork list in HoR is made in almost the same way as an Ork list in a regular 40k game, but with smaller sizes and scale. This means that you don't need to learn a whole lot to make a proper list, but it also means that you probably don't want to go hogwild and just buy whatever. In that sense, the random aspect of the Orks get overruled by the need to plan ahead and build a list around a sole aspect.

No matter what you do with your mob, Orks play to their strength: Sick nasty alpha strikes. Any Ork army wants to cut out the meaty chunk of the enemy force, so it can deal with the stragglers afterwards without fearing being hit in return. Orks cannot afford to use the entire game trying to defeat an entire army at once, because most other armies can deal with Orks over time better than we can them. To this end, a melee unit or two is almost mandatory, but if you have Flash Gitz or a Mek Gun, you can even do it from afar.

Above all other things, though, Orks do one thing very, very well: Numbers. Only Tyranids and maybe Imperial Guard can come up with the number of reasonably powerful models Orks can, and it makes us a dangerous prospect to try and strongarm with simple beatsticks. Marines in particular has a hard time keeping up, but other horde armies might have problems as well. As such, play to this strength more than anything else. If you pick, say, a Meganob, make completely sure you know EXACTLY what the fucker's supposed to do, or he's just going to be a load for your entire army. Numbers, raw strength and speed is the Ork way.

If you are aiming towards a close combat army, you are in luck - The Orks have the best melee Core choice in the entire game; the beauty that is the Boy Mob w/ 'Ard Armour. This drunken fifty point team of green mofos can beat pretty much anything in close combat, as long as they get the charge. Nothing can fight a swinging, green anvil of 20 S 4 WS 4 hits a turn. The kicker is that an unarmoured mob doesn't have the same kind of staying power as a regular Boy Mob has in the main game, and can't survive the same kinds of punishment the regular variant can through numbers. To make unarmoured Boys useful, you need to buy more than two mobs, which 1) will get expensive to keep alive in a campaign and 2) is way too much allowance used on a singular job. To help the Boys, the Boss Nob is almost mandatory - He can be made absolutely horrifyingly killy and tanky with nothing but a Big Choppa, 'Ard Armour and one of the two upgrades that gives extra defense. After using most of your points to your generally melee army, you can spend a little on more support (Painboy), more hitty gits (Nobz) or some board control (Warbikers), but no matter what you do, get a bunch of 'Ard Boyz and a Boss Nob. You won't be disapointed.

If you feel your mind being drawn towards shooty mobs instead, you'll have to work a bit. Shoota Boyz are pretty decent, but have a tendency to do all of jack and shit alone, and kind of need a few extra mobs to help out. This is where Big Shootas begin to be pretty cool as an upgrade, but the Rokkit is still sub-par, due to the low output. Warbikers can be your objective grabbers combined with a pretty damn scary gun (the Twin-linked Dakkagun), and Flash Gitz can often just delete a MEQ at a time and help anchor a gunline. The difficult choice in this kind of army is the Team Leader, since very few Ork Leaders actually have the chops to shoot properly. The Kaptin can be okay to this end, but there's really no true choice.

The usual way to describe the armies of the Imperium is that the Guard is the Hammer of the Imperium, the Marines are the Sword and the Inquisition is the Scalpel. The Orks are the big ass mallet that some idiot railway worker picked up and swung at the foreman once. As in, he got one swing before the guards took him down. This holds true with any Ork army: You get one try to pummel the fuckers, and if you know how to handle that thing, it can crush anything. But if you don't, you might break a bone or two trying to balance the thing.