Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

I purchased the new Black Orc Regiment set from my FLGS Thursday night.  This is the splash-release box of 20 for $40 U.S., a pretty good deal considering the unit box of 10 will sell for $25.  I put them together, and thought I would share my impressions before I started painting. 

(I already own the unit box of 10 metal Blorcs with double choppas.  I'm going to add in a plastic unit champion and a couple with shields and a couple with great weapons.  When I'm finished, I'll have two units of 15 with full command- one mostly metal, the other all plastic.)

There are basically 3 sprues for the Blorcs: a weapon sprue, a head/body/legs sprue, and a command sprue.

The weapon sprue has three great weapons (with the right arm and left hand) and nine single-weapon arms.

The 'body' sprue has six different heads (all with helmets, only one is open-faced), two torsos with the shoulders down (for single-weapon arms), and two torsos with the shoulders up (these are the only bodies on which the great weapons fit).  Each torso has a hip plate on the left or the right. There are 4 pairs of legs, two have hip plates on the left, and two have hip plates on the right.  Assembly of the legs and torsos is very straightforward.

The command sprue has another torso & set of legs.  This torso is lacking hip plates, while both legs have hip plates; also the joins on the legs are different from the rank-and-file legs, so you are not likely to put them on the wrong torso.  There is a bare head which rather resembles Grimgor.  Left arm with drum, right arm with drumstick; left arm with mace, right arm holding great axe, right arm holding banner-pole.  Two different banner tops- one is the 'standard' black orc head with really big horns and the evil sun below, the other is a plastic banner topped by a beastman head.  Spare (but rather small-looking) great axe.  Oh, and the 3 left arms for your great weapons- so if you had any notions of ordering only the weapon sprue, put them out of your head.  Finally, there are two shields.  There are no shield arms, you just glue the shield to the back of a choppa hand and call it good.

Idiot that I am, I did not make a list of everything before I started, but based on the empty sprues in the trash can, you get 4 of each sprue.  Enough to make 16 rank-and-file, and 4 'command' torsos.  No matter how you slice it, you can only get 8 Blorcs with great weapons and 8 Blorcs with shields.  I don't know, at this point, whether you get enough left & right choppa arms that it is possible to construct the unit with no great weapons, that is, all double-choppa; however, since Blorcs are armed to da teef, it shouldn't matter.

Assembly was very straightforward.  Everything fit together as smoothly as computer-designed surfaces allow.  I made 7 Blorcs with great weapons, 6 with double choppas & shield, 3 with double choppas, standard bearer, musician, and two unit champions.  All in all, I am very pleased with them.  The pieces fit together very well, and there is enough variety that you can get a very animated unit without resorting to conversions (unlike the box of disappointment that was the dwarf warriors).  However, if you do feel the urge to convert, it should be possible without too much difficulty.

Today's challenge: getting them to rank up before gluing them to the bases. 

Thanks for the review Fellblade. One question, though: Are they convertible to 40k Orks or are they somewhat lacking in pose or scale?

Greets
Schepp himself

Mmmm... as I don't play 40K, I am not the best person to ask.
However, when I opened the box at the shop, several Ork players were excited. They mentioned something about Hardboyz? Replacing a choppa with a Slugga?
There weren't any 40K orks there for a scale comparison. I think these new Blorcs are a bit larger than the older (non-blorc) plastics, but they have a definite 'hunch' to their posture, and it makes thim seem beefier,rather than taller. There is room on at least one hip for the attachment of 40K-ish bitz, like stickbombz or pouches.

[Edit] I just tried a couple on the round bases. Some fit, others have a bit of overhang; and there may be some balance issues too.

If they don't use slotta bases, then gluing a nickel in the base should solve the round-base problem.  Or you could always use 40mm round bases...

Thanks for the write-up!

Update: they have proven to be just as frustrating to rank up as I expected.  Time for a beer.  Before I start tearing some of them apart and re-assembling them.

I'm certainly planning on converting them to 40K 'Ard Boyz. If anyone else is doing the same, I'd be interested to see your arm/hand conversions to make them hold guns - although I'd guess that a simple arm swap with Ork Boy 'naked' arms would work, using the Black Orc armoured arms would seem fluffiier

the manager at my local store has used them as 40k orks, and they look amazing.