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I inherited an Ork army from a friend. He had started playing with the old codex and had become jealous of my marines actually getting an armor save, so I have about 20 sluggas modeled as 'ard boyz. My question is heavy armor worth the extra +4 points per model. The current tactic I plan, if I take them, is to put them in front to try and soak up at least a bit of damage and give the rest of the boyz cover. My army is mainly a footslogging army with a couple of trukks with nobz and mega nobz and big mek with kustom force field.

Also what are your guys opinion about kitting out Nobz in nobz squads with heavy armor, they have a painboy with them.

'ard boyz negate some of the advantage orks have vs other armies: cheap troops. Making a S 3 T 4 I 2 model cost almost double for an armor save improvement that still isn't too hot isn't that worthwhile. If you want a unit to absorb fire and give cover, try Grots. They are only 3 points each.

As for Nobs, try putting them on bikes for the extra movement, extra toughness, better weapon, better save (same as heavy armor, but included with the bike) and free always on cover save, and turbo boosting units even get a really good save. (and they still can get feel no pain: you can put a painboy on a bike.) So a T5 4+ or 3+ (when boosting) feel no pain unit with multiple wounds and unique wargear that shoots 3 S5 twinlinked shots at 18" with some really good CC ability should be pretty good right? Sure it will cost like hell, but it is very hard to kill if you make sure they all have unique wargear. The nice thing about orks is their basic guy is good AND cheap, so you can often play a points sink type unit without hurting the armies strengths. Nob bikers can be taken as troops with a warboss, so its not that big a sacrifice to field a reasonable amount of them. They are very lethal as well, so most of the time they will get their points back. Sometime by just absorbing an entire enemies turn or two of shooting, but they often survive that as well!

Regular nobs shooting isn't as good, they are less mobile, less likely to get to assault what they want, aren't as tough, don't get cover saves as often, and yet still cost a ton.

I have grots to help screen. The heavy armor didn't seem as expensive in the last codex, but now that boys are 6 points, 4 points is a bit much. I could 30 boys instead of 20 for the same cost. I have just had them in my list mainly out of habbit. Since I added some more from the AoBR I can downgrade them to normal boyz.

I know Nobz on bikes are scary, just not really the style I want to go with. I have never been a fan of shooty nobz, they are normally more CC oriented. To get my nobz into combat I am going to go with trukks right now. When the plastic battlewagons comes out I will switch over to them.

My current strategy is to have the 2-3 trukks run up with nobz and boyz to try and tie up and scare the other guy while the foot slogging boyz get into it.

Stick Mad Dok Grotsnik in with your 'Ard Boys and you get two 4+ saves against most things, and even against AP4 or better guns you still get the FNP against heavy bolters and the like. Very survivable.

In my KoS ork list I have my Ard boyz ride around in a Trukk. They make a good "One" for my 'One-two' hit as my battle wagons bring their boys to the front.

I have to agree with zannal on this one--12 'Ard Boyz in a Trukk are about 15 points more than a 20-man squad of Boyz (the way I kit those squads out anyway--Nob with a Power Klaw in either one and pretty minimal upgrades on the Trukk), and they give a bit of speed and contribute a nice hammer for the 20-boy (or 3-meganob or 10-nob or whatever) anvils that you have working their way forward. Plus that 4+ save means that you're much less likely to lose Boyz (and thus much more likely to not get Pinned) when their Trukk inevitably gets fed a Lascannon.

I'd give the Nobz Evy Arma even with a Painboy as two 4+ saves are yep you've guessed it more than twice as good as a 6+ & a 4+ one. Remember FNP is another saving roll like a Ward in warhammer. For Ard Boyz I don't know I've never really used them much. However it does allow them to ignore that pesky bolter fire.