Stompa
A Stompa is what happens when an Ork Mek decides that his biggest Deff Dred or Gorkanaut isn't stompy enough and that he needs sumfing bigga. Essentially, the Stompa is a smaller version of an Ork Gargant and is the Ork Codex's answer to Imperial Knights. Alternatively, maybe Knights are an answer to the Stompa, since the plastic Stompa kit was released first (all the way back in 2009) and helped pave the way for all the large plastic kits that followed. A Stompa is quite literally an effigy to the gods Gork and Mork, with each having a different layout and appearance that makes every Stompa unique. Like most Ork titans the Stompa is usually equipped with an extra-killy close combat weapon (such as an oversized chainsaw or a giant hammer to smash sum gitz!), an oversized main gun of some description, and various assortments of secondary gunz and rokkits situated everywhere else, for maximum Dakka.
In 8th/9th Edition 40k[edit | edit source]
In standard games of Warhammer 40,000 the Stompa is a severe threat, but considering what you have to sacrifice in order to field one its actual battlefield performance can be rather underwhelming. For starters, a Stompa lacks a built-in invulnerable save and is therefore only marginally more durable than an Imperial Knight, despite having 40 wounds. Its wound tracker isn't doing it any favors either, because it starts losing capability after only 10 points of damage and is basically incapacitated if it has 10 wounds remaining or less (this is now less true in early 9th since the Stompa's wound table was adjusted to not be as severe as it was). Of course, as a Lord of War the Stompa also requires you to burn 3 non-refundable CP on a super-heavy detachment just to field one in the first place.
This is not to say that a Stompa can't one-shot entire enemy units from clear across the map, or turn something like a Hive Tyrant into paste in one turn of melee. It totally can. However, it had serious problems.
For these reasons the consensus over the last couple of editions has been that the Stompa was greatly overpriced in points. In pre-9th meta a Stompa could be considered a wonderful centerpiece and an occasional participant in friendly games or campaigns, but little more. Unfortunately GW seemed content with that status quo for many years. As of early 9th Edition, however, the Stompa sits at 675 points, weapons included, which is about right if you ignore the CP cost. Therefore although it's debatable whether it is tournament-competitive it is certainly a unit worth considering again. Furthermore, it can be quite brutal if taken with other Ork Lords of war like Gorkanauts and Morkanauts, especially since most people won't expect an Ork army to consist primarily of Titanic units and therefore won't be prepared for it. Of course, be prepared to burn friendships if you do this in friendly games without informing your opponent in advance.
Variants[edit | edit source]
So far there are numerous variants of Stompa afoot in the Orkish Hordes across the galaxy. Only five confirmed sub-classes of the Stompa have been studied by the Imperium: the Digga Stompa, the -Orkanauts, the Goff Stompas, the Mek's Stompa, and the Supa Stompa.
Digga Stompa[edit | edit source]
An old Stompa variant that never saw the light of day in Warhammer 40,000 proper, the Digga Stompa is the tiniest Stompa. Often built by Grots during a huge Waaagh! under the nose of a busy Big Mek, or by a group of ambitious Boyz without a Mek in sight, the Digga Stompa is generally considered kind of crap. Armed with close combat weapons and a few man-portable heavy guns, maybe a real Big Gun if they are lucky, these pot-bellied walkers aren't even considered titans.
They stand taller than a Mega-Dread, and can most likely take more hits before going down, but they couldn't go toe-to-toe with one. Most of their combat effectiveness, if you could call it that, came from their sheer size, lesser vehicles would be smashed by their ham-fisted claws, and infantry would be crushed under their waddling feet.
These were led by the dozen into the teeth of the enemy, essentially fodder for infantry or tanks to shoot at while the real Stompas and Gargants closed in for the kill. The name comes from the Ork word for Human Ork-wannabes that join up with an Ork warband, paint themselves green, and fight beside the proper Boyz: Diggas.
Gorkanaut and Morkanaut[edit | edit source]
Despite what anyone will tell you, -Orkanaut walkers are Stompas. They fit perfectly in the size and power classification for a Stompa, as defined by the old Epic games. Go check them out.
Goff Rock-an-Rolla[edit | edit source]
Somewhere along the line, the Goff Klan got the bright idea to ROADA ROLLA their enemies. So, they strapped a giant spiked steam roller on their Stompa and thus the Goff Rock-an-Rolla was born.
This monster eats infantry and small vehicles alike, demolishing them into an icky paste of blood and mush, but can't kill other Titans very well. It cuts huge lines in enemy troops, and takes no prisoners with armies that rely on massive infantry numbers such as the 'Nids. The Rock-an-Rolla falls obviously short against Titans and other super heavies, but the Goffs don't really pay much mind do anything that isn't putting axes in meaty faces. (Seriously that roller is only going to tickle the feet of a Warlord Titan).
This is a true Stompa design. Not whatever Games Workshops is calling a Stompa these days, but a tried and true Epic-scale Stompa. A walker the size of a true Stompa would be much more mobile and better for mowing down infantry, the commander would be lower to the ground and thus better able to see the gore, and a Stompa would be less of an investment and therefore give the Goffs a better incentive to experiment and actually make this guy in the first place. Comparing this guy to the other Goff design only reinforces this notion.
Of all the Goff Stompa variants, the Goff Rock-an-Rolla is probably the rarest of the bunch. This is due in part with it not only being a faction exclusive vehicle, but one whose construction and build is facilitated exclusively by Meks that the Goff employ. And we know how well Goffs view Meks in general (Hint: it ain't good).
Combine this with the relatively 'advanced' materials needed to construct this Stompa and its very specific niche as a close-range anti-infantry Titan and you got yourselves a toy that could rival an Emperor Titan in exclusive ownership.
There are no rules for the Rock-an-Rolla on tabletop, although you can proxy a Kustom Stompa as one by giving it a Deffrolla and appointing the rules on top of giving it two close range weapons. However, a more detailed fan rule can be seen below.
Nothing to do with the OTHER kind of Goff rock-an-rolla.
- Height: 13m
- Crew: 24-32 crew; approx
- Weight: 300-400 tonnes; approx
Goff Klawstompa[edit | edit source]
The Goff Klawstompa is essentially what happens when the Orks really want to get in close and personal. The Goff Stompa was popularized by the Goffs (who would've thought!).
Similar to the Goff Rock-an-Rolla, the Goff Klawstompa trades in its gun arm for another close range weapon in order to shred enemy Titans up close and personal or grab and throw a tank like a toy car. A pure close combat Stompa, it has two giant Stompa Klaws (Or even more rarely, a Krusha Ball), and can punch out other Titans in one round of close combat. It's designed to take down other Titans and assorted super-heavy vehicles, and has more attacks in close combat than the Tyranid Bio-Titan.
Too bad other Titans can hit this enemy crab's weak point for massive damage (double meme?) before it closes the distance, as it has no ranged weaponry to defend itself with. Still, it can't be stopped by anything once it hits enemy lines... if they could even get there before being reduced to molten metal by a Volcano Cannon to the face.
They are also armed with the Flamebelcha, an extremely powerful Titan-grade flamethrower, although you don't really see that much of them due to GW having an Imperium fetish. Likewise, the Klawstompa like the Goff Rock-an-Rolla variation is rarely seen on the battlefield, due to the fact that it is a faction exclusive vehicle and the added fact that Goffs aren't really the type to go all-in on the whole 'giant walking death machines'. If it ain't giving the boyz the chance to go deep into enemy formations and crumping some punks face to face then what's the point? Hence they are only seen when there is a huge superheavy presence that demands the Goffs to roll these out and deal with them.
Still, when you want to punch an enemy Titan (or one of those pesky Forge World-produced Knights) in the face, accept no substitutes.
There are no rules for the Klawstompa on tabletop, although you can proxy a Kustom Stompa as one by giving it two Mega-Klaws. Although Mega-Klaws are weaker than a Mega-Choppa without the "Slash" rule, it gains an extra 4 attacks if you decide to equip two Klaws, and since they deal 4 damage each. This means that if the dice gods are on your side, you could deal around 16 wounds in one turn. Pretty nasty stuff. Additionally you can put in a twin-link Skorcha on the Stompa's face to proxy the Flamebelcha. However, a more detailed fan rule can be seen below.
- Height: 13m
- Crew: 24-32 crew; approx
- Weight: 300-400 tonnes; approx
Mek's Stompa[edit | edit source]
The superheavy artillery of the Stompa family.
The Mek's Stompa, as its name suggests, are built by an overly ambitious Big Mek (or even a group of them) and are often seen as a direct opposite to the Goff Stompa. Most Mek's Stompas are a kind of gift from a Warboss to a Big Mek, if the Mek made the Warboss a Supa-Stompa or a Gargant, he can look the other way whilst the Mek siphons off resources to make a walker of his own. That, or the Mek is drumming up his own Waaagh!, and his Stompa is the first best Titan he can throw together.
Of course, the creation of a Mek Stompa often outshines his Warboss' glory if he builds it first, with many Orks flocking towards its banner, bringing with them more Meks, more teef and in a circuitous way, more Stompas, thereby boosting the Mek's influence to even rival that of his Warboss.
The Mek's Stompa switches its close combat weaponry for even more Dakka, usually armed with massive cannons, rapid-firing Deth Kannons that spew out tank shells, an assortment of lesser guns, and sometimes a plethora of different rokkits, some piloted by Grots (willing or otherwise). For defense, a Mek's Stompa can be protected by a force field, a rarity for Ork walkers of this size, but knowing the Orks the chances of it protecting the Stompa against other Titans is slim.
Like most Stompas, Meks are a creative bunch and are known to customize their Stompas with colours, banners, skulls and spikes.
There are no rules for the Mek Stompa on tabletop, although you can proxy a Kustom Stompa as one by giving it a Deth Kannon on one arm and a Lifta-Droppa on the other. It is also essential to equip it with a Gaze of Mork and an assortment of rokkits and shootas. Of all the Stompa variants, this is possibly the easiest to make and improvise.
- Height: 13m
- Crew: 24-32 crew; approx
- Weight: 300-400 tonnes; approx
Supa Stompa[edit | edit source]
The red-headed stepchild of the Ork Titan family.
These are essentially souped-up Stompas which straddle the border between a regular Stompa and a Gargant. These machines rank somewhere between a Reaver Titan and a Warhound Scout Titan in terms of overall fighting strength, though every Ork walker is different in its own special ways (Dawww). As expected, these larger Stompas are big enough to carry an impressive array of truly super-heavy ordinance, often wielding looted Earthshakers or Volcano Cannons on one arm, and Titan-scale close combat weapons in the other.
If they have enough resources, than the Supa Stompa can be armed with some original Soopaguns, Macrocannons, and Mega-Choppas. Supa Stompas are often used by Big Meks who have spare parts and scrap following the construction of a Gargant for their Warboss. Like Reavers, Supa Stompas are probably there to provide firing support for the larger Gargants whilst the smaller and more expandable Stompas are used as giant DISTRACTION CARNIFEX to help soak up enemy ordnance and fire.
These Stompas exist as a go-between for Big Meks that can't scrape together the orkpower or resources for a true city-leveling Gargant, but want to mount yet-larger (or simply more) weapons on a Stompa, without risking it toppling over when all the guns fire at once. Larger Ork Empires use them to lead Stompa mobs for the big battles. Some in the Imperium have considered calling it the deadliest weapons in the Ork Horde, despite the fact that there are larger Gargants with even more powerful weapons lurking around.
- Height: 14.5m
- Crew: 30-40 crew; approx
- Weight: 700 tonnes; approx
Fanmade Rules[edit | edit source]
This is for the fanmade rules of the various Stompas that GeeDubs were too lazy to make.
Gallery[edit | edit source]
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STOMPA GUBBINS. -
Another Goff Klawstompa. More modified to look like a Killa Kan that has eaten one too many 'roids. -
Unfortunately not a legal weapons loadout, but you'd have to be That Guy to not let it on the table.
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