Kings Of War List Building: Orcs, Orcs, Orcs!
November 1, 2013 by brennon
Matt Gilbert, a proof reader for Mantic Games, has stepped up to the plate and delivers another army list to get you thinking about Kings of War and the mighty Orcs. See what you think of this one...
Orcs. The name has a special resonance within the realms of fantasy literature and gaming and, while different authors, artists and game developers may mould the archetype with their own subtle twists, the fundamental and pervasive premise is that orcs are bred for war. Those that inhabit the world of Mantica are no different in this regard. Tribal denizens of the plains and mountains of the north, their warbands are a constant menace to the races that consider themselves peaceful and civilised. The fractious and ill-disciplined nature of the orcs means that large co-ordinated armies are difficult to muster but all too often a mighty krudger will rise to the top, uniting the tribes under his banner and cutting a bloody swathe across the land.
Orcs are the product of evil, spiteful experimentation. They were created with a sole purpose and at that they certainly excel. Their short lifespans make them a bitter, twisted race, fuelled with a hatred for the other peoples of the world. They can be lazy, but are far from stupid; orcs are cunning and no more so when it comes to waging war.
The Kings of War army list for the orcs represents the brutal nature of this bellicose race superbly. The army will hit like a ton of bricks (or perhaps a cornucopia of axes) but any orc general worth his salt knows that controlling the horde can be extremely challenging and the lower-than-average Nerve values represent the lack of professionalism on show within the ranks. The tendency for inexperienced generals to simply adopt, what is ostensibly the sole orc tactic of CHAAAAARGE!, often reveals not only that they have torn bloody chunks out of the enemy lines but also that their army has vaporised itself by the end of turn 4.
Learning to deal with the “glass-hammer” nature of the army is one of the best things about the list but the game and the army list both give you the tools you need to accomplish it. In KoW, friendly units can move through each other which means it’s much easier to plan your attack in waves without the fear of blocking your own unit’s freedom of movement. The army list provides some options here but typically the Ax units will be sent in first as a screening first wave – their high De value perfect for the role. Behind them the orcs can then manoeuvre their more elite units and big hitters ready to move past or alongside the Ax as they engage the enemy. In my opinion the jewels in the orcs’ rusty crown are the Morax units. Elite warriors with double attacks, you need to think long and hard about not including at least one unit in your battlelines.
Outside the footslogging core, the gore riders lend the army some speedy shock troops which are equally at home in the centre of the army, fighting alongside the infantry or sweeping down the flanks, hunting down exposed enemy units and war engines or simply flanking the beleaguered enemy to pile on the misery. Gore chariots and fight-wagons are best utilised as supporting units in my experience. Don’t charge them in on their own, use them to deliver a bone-crunching accompaniment to the chopping of your axes.
Krudgers pack a brutal punch. Whether on a rumbling chariot or a snarling, monstrous slasher, a unit targeted by one of these tyrants is going to feel the pain. The winged slasher variant is a firm favourite because of its ability to fly, opening up the chance to get flank and rear charges. Pull one of these attacks off and the enemy unit taking the hit is likely to dissolve.
With so many offensive units in the army you have no choice but to take the fight to the enemy. Shooting options are minimal and war engines non-existent. That’s OK because you save time in tournaments when you are against a clock and you can focus solely on where you want your units to be for setting up a layered assault and the multiple charges you should be executing every turn. The orcs need to sustain a relentless charge and roll their opponents over, not giving them a chance to rally or counter and overkill is everything – you can’t afford to stall. The only realistic option you have for units holding back to keep objectives are Sniff units or swarms of Orclings but this is down to personal choice.
The Army List:
Ax Regiment 90
Ax Regiment 90
Ax Regiment 90
Ax Regiment 90
Ax Regiment 90
Greatax Regiment
Musician, Blade of slashing
120
Morax Regiment
Musician, Pipes of Terror
175
Morax Regiment Musician
160
Morax Regiment Musician
160
Gore Rider Troop 85
Gore Rider Troop 85
Gore Rider Troop 85
Gore Rider Troop 85
Krudger on Winged Slasher - The Fog 340
Flagger on Gore 35
Flagger on Gore 35
Flagger on Gore 35
1850pts
It’s easy to get the tactics of the orcs wrong and crash into the enemy lines only to wonder where your army went when the dust settles. This is the beauty of the army. You need to learn how to play to the strengths of the list: the pure offensiveness, the universal crushing strength, the large number of attacks; and minimise the weaknesses by co-ordinating everything together and playing like and orc: aggressively. Orcs units left on their own are very vulnerable and so the whole army needs its general to orchestrate its parts very carefully. Done right, the orcs will crush all before them spectacularly and will shrug off the odd mishap. Done wrong and the glass-hammer will shatter in equally spectacular fashion.
Get your own Kings of War Orcs!
If you'd like to have a go at submitting an army list for Kings of War or any other game for that matter with a discussion on its merits and flaws then please contact me at [email protected]!
Are Orcs for you?
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I don’t know…. How can you have an ork army without hordes? 🙂
🙂
Actually I think the orc army works better without hordes. You need the flexibility that smaller units can give you in piling into combats and reacting to threats. Even with the ability to move through your own units, too many orc hordes will cause you a movement headache and potential roadblock. If I was going to take a horde it would probably be just the one and park it right in the middle of the army, purely to look scary and soak up damage.
I can see the logic of smaller units, and the competitive advantage of them; I’m just commenting on theme.
I’m quite convinced that because wargames have so many numbers involved that it would be possible to create a mathematical combination to ensure the greatest possible outcome for winning – it happens a lot more in card game where people build perfect decks based on the mathematical effects the cards will have (after all the goals are always like a formula, make X variables reduce Y stat [life, power, etc.] to 0.)
That being said, I’ll still take an orc horde 🙂
I think there are some armies I would take hordes for – undead for example – hordes of zombies of skeletons with spears are great. I just feel that the orc battleline needs to be as flexible as possible and having hordes limits that.
I still have a horde of orcs (179 models in that list!), just not in blocks of hordes in game terms.
You can of course still move several units up in a big solid block (which for orcs is a good thing) 🙂
It seems Effective, but not in character… I prefer to play with the Spirit of an Army than just going for the Win.
I’d be interested to hear why you think this army is not in the spirit of the orcs.
I like the Sniffs at the moment I only have one Half-Regiment but plan on getting more eventually. The higher movement rate and Vanguard move allow them to move up rapidly and present an immediate threat. With one unit it can distract but with more one might get through for a charge on turn 1. The low defence is a drawback but if they aren’t in range to charge they can always move and fire. They are a relatively low cost unit as well.
I think the role that Sniffs work best at is taking and holding objectives. Sure they are not going to survive any determined effort to dislodge them (or probably even a half-hearted one!) but they are one of the few units you would be happy to be doing that role and not getting stuck in.
This is a horde list in reality. 155 orc foot troops not including characters and 20 Gore riders would look impressive on the table and gives lots of flexibility with 9 foot units. You could always double up two of the ax units for a horde saving a few points to spend on a goblin sneek. Personally I would have more variety of units, just because I like them, so trolls, a giant, chariots and the fight wagon would all be added in. I will probably be collecting an orc army next and can see it hitting 4,000pts easily!
Oh I missed out lots of juicy units but it’s getting the balance right that’s key to a winning army.
I think I probably have 6000 points of greenskins if you include all the models from various manufacturers I have collected down the years.
hmmmm a troll and fight-wagon themed army… now there’s a thought 😀
Amazing army.
I like at least one axe horde to go down the center. Than the rest of the army in regiments.
Ahhhhhh orcs
Jeez… Lots of orcs!
Looks Good.
pffft just build the whole army out of chariots and gore riders. maybe have a few ogres/trolls thrown in there.
Wonder if they have like megaforce boxes of each faction going to go check it then the next hurdle will be finding an American supplier or putting it to the store owner to get some more of this game. To avoid shipping costs…
I gotta go orc though regardless of out come
i am gonna have to dig out my GW orc army and add some mantic to it and paint it up ready for a good dust up.
That’s exactly what I did (and am still doing). In fact a lot of people get into KoW this way.
The good thing is that Mantic tournaments also allow the mix of models 🙂
Ooooh I need to play my Orc army in KoW finally a game tha tlets you play them savagely but with a bit of finesse!
These are good looking orc models don’t like it when Orcs are made to small and weedy
Orcs have always been one of my favourite races, although in KoW I have only ever been on the receiving end of them and boy was it nasty. Matt wrote “In my opinion the jewels in the orcs’ rusty crown are the Morax units”- too true, these guys are well worth taking (or pointing all your war machines at straight away, if you spy them across the table)
orcs do look good i may have to get some for my goblin army 🙂
I like the way round you have this old boy…….. Orcs for your Goblin army!!!! Go Goblins!!!