Choosing an army... of greenskins

The spores are ripe

First post in the new year is a good occasion to announce a plan or commitment something:
I have lots but the one I want to dedicate this year is finishing all the Orks I have at the moment. I've been attending them with no strict plan or necessity irregularly and at random. I didn't want to feel pressure doing hobby and enjoyed it following mood and inspiration. I ended up having lots of almost/mostly/half finished models in decent numbers. The time has come to tidy things up and let the boys see some action!

Reasons to read a klom of text:
- you wonder what 40K army to choose;
- you consider choosing Orks;
- you give a damn why I chose Orks.



One of my intentions is to organize my hobby thus as much as I want to start posting boyz right away I need to share some insights first. This #therapy session as the title goes is dedicated to choosing an army.

Mood soundtrack: du-dum! du-dum! du-dum!

If there was ever a choice...

As soon as I came across 40K (between 3rd and 4th edition) I felt an urge to get into it and that ment choosing a fraction. Having only general idea about what I got myself into I chose Orks and after about eight years I'm still having fun hanging out with me lads.

Following list covers Ork army from different hobby perspectives — such approach is not unique and will work for any army with some of the aspects more or less important for you personally.

Visual Style: Post-apocalypic

I've always loved post-apoc makeshift aesthetics (see: Mad Max, Fallout). Orks loot and scavenge practically anything. Their technology makes conversions almost mandatory providing endless opportunities for creativity. Orks seem to be forgiving in terms of conversion — nevertheless you'll need Mork's skills and vision to make your Orks unique and propa looking. You can make vehicles and guns from scratch, use toys or junk as a base or add Ork flavour to the kits from other armies. Also there are full ranges of alternative models and bits for Orks.

Motivation: Waaagh!

Orks were created for war fitting perfectly in the universe bathing in never-ending war. Yet they embody much more than mere blind bloodlust (like blood-for-the-blood-god-guys) — individualistic nature of Orks means they experience and enjoy being (or rather fighting) in all manner of ways which provides endless agendas and themes. 

Most races in 40K are dominated by the dystopian rule or doom and damnation; Orks on the other hand represent freedom and happiness. Ork society is anarchic yet very effective with strong spiritual bond between its members.

Painting: Green.

Any army can be as easy or hard to paint as you decide. With all the different klanz and cults you can paint them three-base-paints or make each model unique if you wish. What I found is that good looking human(oid) face and skin will demand certain painting skills whereas Orks are fictional alien race of spehs fungi that can look anyhow, as long as it's green of course. Again forgiving guys;)

Playstyle: Kunnin'

Ork army can be horde or elite, fast or slow, choppa-klaw or dakka-dakka. I'm a rare player and see the gaming aspect as a way to spend some fun time with friends. Still you would't have much fun from a strategy game without a challenge and desire to win. To play competitive in current meta you'll need to be especially kunnin'. Numbers help mitigate low accuracy, armor, initiative & morale and let you use formations with 'buy more' special rules. Don't remember exactly: 'if Orks are fighting they already win (even if they loose).'

Final Thoughts: Empathy

I liked everything and disliked nothing from the initial impression and bought a few boxes straight away. Yet like anything 40K Orks have enough depth in background and detail to provide a variety of themes and interpretations — so I had to choose or come up with one. This next step took me several years though. Collecting them I followed orkish approach of trial end error and finally found what I was looking for.

Next I'll try to verbalise my army's concept to let myself start posting minis.