The Orkish race is savage and brutal, and relish in war. Orks themselves are a warrior elite, who lord it over their smaller cousins, Gretchins and Snotlings. Orks dominate their society because they are the biggest, toughest and meanest. Orks are muscular and robust, and a typical specimen stands about man height, but would be taller if he stood up straight. Gretchin are smaller and less developed, but they have alert and cunning minds. By nature they are cheerful, furtive, sneaky and fatalistic. Most Gretchins are owned by Ork masters as personal servants and the Orks depend on them for most of the day-to-day running of their society. The smallest Orkoids, Snotlings, are mischievous and willful but can be trained to do various tasks. Their main role in Ork society is harvesting Squiggly beasts and fungus for food.
ORK REALMS
As a result of the erratic progress of Ork space travel, and their urge to seek adventure wherever it may take them, Ork communities tend to be scattered throughout the universe. They travel in warfleets of hijacked space hulks, patched up and made airtight by simple power-field technology. Each community considers itself to be either a tribe or a confederation of tribes united temporarily under a great warlord. A tribe may be wandering in space, settled on a planet, isolated from other races or at war. Every tribe will include a motley collection of Ork clans and castes. Orks are a very successful race, and they seem to be able to survive, expand and prosper almost effortlessly compared to struggling humanity. On the whole, they have a more pragmatic attitude to life than many other races, and seem better able to cope with the realities of a harsh universe. The secret is that they just don't care. Orks simply follow the natural life they were intended for: wild adventure, warfare, raiding and early death. Their remarkable progress has been achieved mostly by trial and error, without pausing to count the cost or question the meaning of it all.
CONQUEST AND TRIBUTE
Orks need a regular supply of armaments and technology if they are to stand up to their enemies. The Meks do a good job, but its not enough on its own. The only solution is to conquer and enslave industrial communities, mount raids or exact tribute. Often this will be an arms-length transaction with Ork space hulks turning up periodically to demand goods. Sometimes a planet will be subjected to occupation, with the Orks ruling it as an uncouth warrior aristocracy and forcing the population to manufacture arms and equipment for them.
+++General Description+++
+++of the Ork Race+++
The Orks are a savage, and brutal race who love war. They are the dominant element of a race of Orkoids that includes Orks, Gretchin, and Snotlings. The Orks are in charge because they are the biggest, toughest, meanest, and most warlike of their kind. The Ork mind is specialised: it is devoted wholly to the pursuit of power and war. Orks are brave and tough, and their bodies have a natural resilience which allows them to survive traumatic injuries and the most primitive of surgery.
Gretchin
Gretching are much like Orks, though not as brutal, strong, or tough as their larger cousins. The smaller Gretchin are more clever and cunning.
Snotlings
Snotlings' main role in Ork society is the cultivation of fungus. They also look after the Squigs. Snotlings are bred and raised by a class of Orks known as Runtherds.
Nobz and Warlords
Nobz are Ork Nobles. They are wealthy, battle-hardened veterans who have gotten to where they are by being bigger, tougher, and meaner than anybody else. Nobz can be found in positions of command or organised into their own select bands. They prefer the company of other Orks of equal status, and Nobz units are usually very well armed and equipped. The most powerful and prestigious Nobz are given the title Warboss or Warlord. The finest trophy a Warlord can have is a Space Marine helmet. Orks judge the worth of a Warlond by the quantity and quality of the enemies he has defeated in battle. When a Warlord's authority is challenged, the Warlord simply takes on any rival contenders in gladiatorial combat in a pit fight.
Ork Freebooterz
The Freebooterz exist on the fringe of Ork Kultur. They are small roving bands of pirates, bandits and mercenaries belonging to no Waagh! or clan. They are eager for adventure, combat, and booty. These motly crews have long since abandoned any clan loyalties. The Freebooter band is now the only home they have. They roam the galaxy in small dilapidated spacecraft and hide out on isolated planets and large asteroids. The band is led by a hardened Boss or Kaptin. They use the sign of the Jolly Ork to set them apart.
Squigs
Orks use Squigs for everything from food to hair and beards to ammunition, and sometimes even pets! For some reason, anywhere Orks settle, Squigs will develop. No one knows exactly why.
Orky Know-Wotz
Oddboyz
There are many types of Oddboyz, the most important of which are Mekboyz, Painboyz, Runtherds, and Weirdboyz. Mekboyz make and maintain the Orks' wepons, wargear, and vehicles. They are essential to an Ork Waagh!. Painboyz are the Ork battle surgeons, and they work with the Mekboyz to install mechanical bitz on the Ork boyz. Runtherds train the Gretchin and Snotlings, and are responsible for the breeding of them. Weirdboyz are psykers with unpredictable powers. Most Weirdboyz are forced to live outside the Ork village, as they are considered too dangerous to live amongst the general Ork population.
Bikes, Buggies, and Da' Kult of Speed
The Orks' love of fast vehicles, known by the Orks as Da' Kult of Speed, accounts for the vast array or customized buggies, bikes, and ramshackle vehicles that can be musted by an Ork warband.
Ork Dreadnoughts
An Ork Dreadnought is piloted by an Ork who has been surgically implanted into the machine by the combined efforts of an Ork Painboy and an Ork Mekboy. Most Ork Dreadnoughts have four arms, although there is a small, two-armed version. However, the fact that the four-armed version is both bigger and capable of carrying twice as much weaponry makes it the most powerful.
Kustom Weapons
Ork Kustom weapons can be bizarre and weird in form, they can be both powerful and dangerous to their user at the same time, as no Mekaniak would ever admit to any shortcomings in their creations.
The Waaagh!
Orks are evolved primarily for fighting, and this leads to rivalry and even outright war between the different tribes. Although this gives the impression that Orks are disorganised and rebellious, they are actually capable of a high degree of cooperation. The Techno-Magi of the Adeptus Mechanicus have identified low levels of background psychic energy in the minds of all Orks and Gretchin. As a particular Warlord grows in power, other Orks are attracted to his armies, and clamour to assume subordinate positions under his command. This means that Ork armies can assemble very quickly, growing into massive hoards appearing out of nowhere and attacking unsuspecting planets. A Waagh! will last until the Orks are defeated, or until they run out of enemies.
+++Gargants+++
Like many products of Orkoid military engineering, the Gargant relies on comparatively simple technology and devastatingly heavy firepower, an attitude summed up by Boss-Mek Badlug One-Leg in his oft-quoted dictum "S'gonna be dead shooty, wiv loadza gunz all over." Orks do not rely on auto-systems to the same extent as other races, and Gargants carry a large crew of both Orks and Gretchins. The crew is led by a Kaptin, who relays orders through a body of officers. A speaking-tube is the preferred method of communication within a Gargant. Each officer is in charge of one section of the Gargant, be it a weapon, the magazine, the engine room, or whatever. Under the officer is a crew of Orks and Gretchins who carry out the orders passed down to them. Repair crews are composed of Gretchins, whose smaller build suits them to crawling through cramped spaces armed with wrenches and oily rags. Gargants are protected by up to eight banks of power fields. In practical terms, a power field is very similar to a void shield, but cannot be repaired - when a hit is absorbed, one field generator is permanently destroyed.
BUILDING GARGANTS
Ork raids are a constant hazard for all the intelligent races of the galaxy. Every two or three centuries the frequency of raiding increases, closely followed by Ork invasion and wars of conquest. This is known as the time of Waa-Ork. It is the root cause of Ork migrations and responsible for the rise of great empires. The focal point of the Waa-Ork is the construction of the mighty Ork Titans, known as Gargants. Waa-Ork is a spontaneous happening. It can begin in the mind of a single Mek, who forms the vision of a colossal war machine in his mind, shaped in the image of the Ork war gods. From that moment on he becomes obsessed by giving real mechanical form to this dream. He immediately begins work, assisted by his Gretchins and slaves, and Mekboyz drawn in from the surrounding area, inspired by the same idea. Soon the word spreads and the psychic call is heard by Orks all across the galaxy. More and more Meks with their entourages gather at the site, which now reverberates to the clanging of hammers on metal. Slowly the scaffolding is erected and within the cradle of steel the great metal hulk that will become a Gargant takes shape. Gradually the Waa-Ork gathers momentum, as the scene is repeated throughout Orkdom. Each tribe, realm or empire is engrossed with the construction of its own Mob of Gargants. In a process which can take up to three hundred years to reach its peak, the whole of the Ork race will become agitated, disturbed and dynamic. Waa-Ork is a time of tribes coming together, of great works, of migrations, wars and conquests. Orks throughout the universe take to the warpath. The gigantic Titans known as Gargants stride at the core of the Waa-Ork. Each Gargant is a huge towering war machine of awesome destructive power. It is also a mechanical, fighting, fire-belching idol in the image of the Ork war gods. The machines are served by a living crew of Orks and Gretch ins, stoking the boilers and loading the guns in the Gargant's turrets. The construction of a Gargant is in itself an act of god worship, and stands for all that is Orkish. Eventually the Waa-Ork reaches fever pitch. The Gargants are near completion, and the armies of the warlords have been mustered. When the Gargants are ready, the scaffolding is pulled away and the great boilers are stoked for the first time. A cheer rises as the great beasts belch smoke and move forward. Then the Ork armies go off in all directions, wherever fate and fortune may take them, and war comes to every corner of the galaxy.
+++Oddboyz+++
Oddboyz all possess an intuitive understanding of complex matters. It appears that bound up within an Ork's genetic structure are artificial DNA strands that carry knowledge. As an Ork matures any latent knowledge inherent in his genetic structure starts to make itself felt, and he assumes a role in society to which he is best suited. These are theMekboyz, Painboyz, Runtherdz, Weirdboyz, Brewboyz, Diggerz, Sumboyz, Yellerz, etc. Ork oddboyz are identical in physical make-up to their unspecialized mates. What denotes their difference, is that Oddboyz will always have their 'gear', which is specialized to their role in Orkish society. For example, a Painboy will be found with his toof pulla'z along with other large, bloodied Orkish medical equipment (a large hammer works well). Oddboyz can generally be found in Ork camps with their own special establishments. The only exception to this is the copper towers of the Weirdboyz and the roaming bands of deranged Madboyz. Oddboyz are a result of the long-term planning of the ancient Brain Boyz. Knowing that their time was limited, the Brain Boyz implanted knowledge directly into Ork DNA. This allows for the Ork race to call upon a vast range of abilities without ever having trained or studied. The end results can be interesting to say the least. Outside of the normal Ork lust for war, Oddboyz Develop the skills and abilities necessary to carry on their role in Ork society. Mekboyz are Mechanically-inclined, Painboyz 'fix-up' Orks, Runtherdz herd. Weirdboyz focus the Ork psionic potential, Brewboyz brew, Diggerz dig, Sumboyz sum, and Yellerz yell...
+++Freebooterz+++
Following the ravages of war or some other disastrous disruption of their lives, some Orks abandon what is left of their tribe and join a roving band of renegades, pirates or other outcasts. These Orks are called Freebooterz, Bad'unz & Villunz ........ These motley crews have long since abandoned anytribal or clan loyalties, and have adopted highly personalized insignia in place of their former clan symbols. Ork Freebooterz can be readily identified by the sign of the Jolly Ork, an Ork skull surmounting crossed bones. Freebooterz exist on the fringe of Ork Kultur. They are bandits and sell-swords roaming the universe in small, dilapidated spacecraft, and hiding out on isolated planets and large asteroids. Some of these Orks prefer to remain anonymous, some want to forget, some want to start a new life, but most have simply forgotten who they were. The pirate band is now their home. Outside of their former life, Freebooterz are eager for adventure, combat, and booty, and are quite happy to tag along with Ork tribes and armies as mercenaries.
+++Tinboyz+++
Tinboyz are designed and built by Ork Mekaniaks. Although the appearance of individual Tinboyz vary a great deal depending on the whim of their creator, their internal workings are simple and follow a common pattern. They are all worked by radio control rather than complex programming this is a simpler method of constructing a robot and the controls are easier to understand. A Mekaniak operates his Tinboyz from a distance by means of a hefty control box festooned with switches, levers and flashing lights. The limited number of controls means that Tinboyz can only be given a simple selection of commands, but these are quite enough to enable them to move about and attack.
