Ork players are eating well right now.
However, the latest codex preview feels especially useful. Instead of only teasing rules, it shows full army-building ideas. Meanwhile, the lists highlight how flexible 11th Edition Orks may become.
Speed Freeks and Gretchin Mobs Show Two Very Different Ork Army Paths
With Codex: Orks going up for pre-order, Warhammer Community’s own aspiring Warbosses have started sketching out dream armies. The first list, from Andy, is pure Kult of Speed wish fulfillment. It uses Kult of Speed, Blitz Brigade, and Brute Bosses, which immediately tells you this army wants to hit the gas and solve problems loudly.
Two Warbosses lead big Nobz mobs inside red Gunwagons, because subtlety is for armies with better manners. The main Warboss also takes the Blitzboss enhancement, which gives his transport +2 inches of Movement and a 5+ invulnerable save.
That is a lovely callback to old Red Paint Job energy, while also making the first-turn rush more reliable. Meanwhile, six Warbuggies back up the wagons, with four using mek speshuls for buckets of shots and two using rivet kannons for anti-elite pressure.
Deffkoptas add anti-tank firepower and objective flexibility through Aerial Manoover, letting them jump into Strategic Reserve when needed. Wartrakks bring Bust ’em, which hands out Lethal Hits support to friendly Speed Freeks attacking targets they have tagged.
Finally, Warbikers handle actions and flank harassment, which is the boring work every flashy army still needs. Andy admits the list has plenty of duplication, but that makes sense for testing. Future tweaks could include Tankbustas in a Trukk, Stormboyz, or the almost inevitable Wazdakka Gutsmek.
Rob’s list goes in a completely different direction, and honestly, it is wonderfully stupid in the best Ork way. He builds around Gretchin, using Runt Swarm, Dread Mob, and Wreckas.
The army combines loads of grots for objective play with a brutal Killa Kan core for actual fighting. Two big units of 20 Gretchin overwhelm midfield objectives, while two units of 10 hide and do actions.
However, 12 Killa Kans make Dread Mob an obvious pick. Two Big Mek Dakkarigs and a Deff Dread add more stompy threat, while the Dreadherder enhancement gives the Warlord Lone Operative near Ork Walkers and lets one Walker unit reroll hit rolls of 1.
Finally, Tankbustas in a Trukk use the Wreckas detachment and Drive-By Bustin’ for +1 to hit with Firing Deck rokkits. That gives the army a much-needed rapid response piece.
Summary and Final Thoughts
Overall, this preview is a great look at Orks beyond raw datasheets. The Speed Freeks list is fast, loud, and aggressive. Meanwhile, the Grot-heavy army is weird, objective-focused, and sneakily practical. However, both show the same thing: this codex should reward personality.
