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.

Orks are some of the most brutal and vicious creatures in the galaxy. They literally exist to fight and kill.

My question is, do orks slaughter everything and everyone that moves?

Or, like the Predator, do they only kill "worthy prey"?

Say, for example, that an orkish Waaagh! is laying waste to a hive city, having a grand old time slaughtering Imperial Guardsmen. Then they come across an orphanage. Do they kill everyone inside ('cause that's what orks do)? Or leave it alone ('cause dey can't fightz anywayz)? Actually, in this case, there might be a third option: leave the kids alone, so they grow into adults, become guardsmen, then come back and kill them (everbody wins!)

Warlord Ghazghkull Thraka, Graffiti on Warlord Battle Titan wreckage, found
by Dark Angels at Westerisle, Piscina IV


I'm da hand of Gork and Mork, dey sent me to rouse up da boyz to crush and kill ‘cos da boyz forgot what dere ‘ere for. I woz one of da boyz till da godz smashed me in da ‘ead an’ I ‘membered dat Orks is meant to conquer and make slaves of everyfing they don’t kill.
I’m da profit of da Waaagh an’ whole worlds burn in my boot prints. On Armour-Geddem, I led da boyz through da fire deserts and smashed da humies’ metal cities to scrap. I fought Yarik, old one-eye at Tarturus, an’ he fought good but we smashed iz city too.
I’m death to anyfing dat walks or crawls, where I go nothin’ stands in my way. We crushed da stunties on Golgotha, an’ we caught old one-eye when da speed freeks blew da humies’ big tanks ta bits. I let ‘im go ‘cause good enemies iz ‘ard to find, an Orks need enemies ta fight like they need meat ta eat an’ grog ta drink.
I iz more cunnin’ than a grot an’ more killy than a dread, da boyz dat follow me can’t be beat. On Pissenah we jumped da marine-boyz an’ our bosspoles was covered in da helmets we took from da dead ‘uns. We burned dere port an’ killed dere bosses an’ left nothin’ but ruins behind. I’m Warlord Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka an’ I speak wiv da word of da gods. We iz gonna stomp da ‘ooniverse flat an’ kill anyfing that fights back. We iz gonna do this coz’ we’re Orks an’ we was made ta fight an’ win!

Orks kill whatever's fun to kill.

And it' not like they're mental clones. One might set the orphanage on fire for gaks and giggles, another might pass it by because killing kids is boring, a third might take the kids to be his servants.

Came in wondering if this was the subject for a new diorama :( disappoint.

Agree with Lord_Blackfang.

Moving to background which is a more appropriate forum

I think eventually everybody on an Ork-controlled world would get killed or enslaved. I mean, the Orks see a little umme and I sincerely doubt they'll just walk by and ignore it.

Definately kill and enslave everyone. So if you to small/weak to be a slave you get killed.

The orks do use quite a bit of slave labour within their empires, Basically you gotta hope that there is something around that needs doing that the ork is too lazy to do and that there isnt an interesting new weapon/modification he wants to test out. if thats the case you'd probably be relatively safe for a short while, It strikes me however that their must be a huge rate of attrition amongst ork slaves.

What I'm curious about with Orks, is what if there's some Human psyker/mutant/cyborg who is able to kill a large number of Orks, would the other Orks respect him as the boss or would they just gang up on him until he's dead?

Orks don't seem like the type that would be racist, and yet I've heard them talk about how they only respect others with green skin.

Harriticus wrote:What I'm curious about with Orks, is what if there's some Human psyker/mutant/cyborg who is able to kill a large number of Orks, would the other Orks respect him as the boss or would they just gang up on him until he's dead?

Orks don't seem like the type that would be racist, and yet I've heard them talk about how they only respect others with green skin.

Never only Orks are worthy of leading Orks. Now saying that Orks are known to sell there services, for weapons and such. But, even then after the enemy is dead there just as like to use there new toys on the ones that hired them. Only green can lead a Waaagh!!!

Yea yea its not up to date canon but imo it sorta makes sense

Odd. Does seem out-of date (especially the paint-squig part). I get the impression nowadays that Orks don't really leave a planet much better off than The Tyranid do.

@Kamikaze: That would be in the wake of a Waaagh, this is more about how stable (for Greenskins) Ork Empires operate. Very interesting.

But, seeing as orphans are doubtful to have any recognisable talent to a greenskin, their survival in the wake of an Ork invasion looks unlikely.

KamikazeCanuck wrote:Odd. Does seem out-of date (especially the paint-squig part). I get the impression nowadays that Orks don't really leave a planet much better off than The Tyranid do.

That's it, since their inception (basically as slightly more foul-mouthed london dockers with green skin, sorry if there are any London dockers reading this!) Orcs have become more and more bestial. Look at the two books they had released for them, which dealt largely with background and culture back in the RT days. Now, other than the characters, there's not much too it and it will show off your verbal diarrhoea if you can fill a page of the codex.

Nowadays they don't really have any culture, they grow out of a mushroom on the ground, turn around and find the nearest thing to kill. If there is an external enemy, they turn towards that and run full pelt until they/the enemy is dead. It's essentially the 40k equivalent of a World of Warcraft battleground, the orcs display a similar level of self-preservation and intelligence.

I kind of preferred the older fluff, it was a hell of a lot more characterful and I think it's only the fact that the computer games have come out that will stop the next Orc codex from removing their language altogether, other than to scream at their opponent. Can you tell which conception I prefer?

So if you just lay down on the floor and play dead, then they won't kill you?

Mr Nobody wrote:So if you just lay down on the floor and play dead, then they won't kill you?

They might simply eat you in that case.

Mr Nobody wrote:So if you just lay down on the floor and play dead, then they won't kill you?

From what I recall in the novel Gunheads, yes. If you are fully passive, compliant and cooperative the Orks may reward you with a fate of slavery that is far worse than death.

Pacific wrote:

KamikazeCanuck wrote:Odd. Does seem out-of date (especially the paint-squig part). I get the impression nowadays that Orks don't really leave a planet much better off than The Tyranid do.

That's it, since their inception (basically as slightly more foul-mouthed london dockers with green skin, sorry if there are any London dockers reading this!) Orcs have become more and more bestial. Look at the two books they had released for them, which dealt largely with background and culture back in the RT days. Now, other than the characters, there's not much too it and it will show off your verbal diarrhoea if you can fill a page of the codex.

Nowadays they don't really have any culture, they grow out of a mushroom on the ground, turn around and find the nearest thing to kill. If there is an external enemy, they turn towards that and run full pelt until they/the enemy is dead. It's essentially the 40k equivalent of a World of Warcraft battleground, the orcs display a similar level of self-preservation and intelligence.

I kind of preferred the older fluff, it was a hell of a lot more characterful and I think it's only the fact that the computer games have come out that will stop the next Orc codex from removing their language altogether, other than to scream at their opponent. Can you tell which conception I prefer?

I don't know if they've become more bestial. I think they've become smarter. Now they have plasma engines and energy shields and teleportation. What they've become is more dangerous. They are an infestation that cannot be eliminated and can go from a few spores to a WAAAGH! in just a few years.

Sure they may now have fancy in game mechanics about plasma-dis and energy-dat but the fluff us what has suffered. Or so I read that argument. From the fluff and corroborating media it is hard to imagine an ork doing anything other than charging something and trying to kill it.

There is no "Ork at rest" concept that people can think about and wonder.

What is an ork doing when not killing.....dying?

Harriticus wrote:
Orks don't seem like the type that would be racist, and yet I've heard them talk about how they only respect others with green skin.

Orks aren't racist, they hate all non-orks equally and indiscriminantly

ashrog wrote:Orks are some of the most brutal and vicious creatures in the galaxy. They literally exist to fight and kill.

My question is, do orks slaughter everything and everyone that moves?

They either kill it or enslave it, depending on whether they are bored or something menial needs to be done, I'm sure in the fluff somewhere along the lines (perhaps a WD article) there was a story about orks enslaving the entire planet just to produce ammo to feed a Waaagh! Basically if you resist you die, and if you submit you are enslaved and your life expectancy drops a substantial amount!

Wow, the idea that you could become an adviser to the Orks is fascinating to me. I hope that it's still canon!

The comments about human slaves, chained to the machines they are forced to operate, have given me a few ideas for modeling. take a catachan model, dangle it over the side of the truck by the wrekin ball, and have him welding a panel back into place!

Always as slaves or personal toys. Orks only kill those actively fighting right away, women and kids, into slaves.

The old fluff about advisors is probably not cannon anymore. Alot of the more interesting Ork traits went away circa-Gorkamorka when Orks became even more ferral and -comparatively- less civilized.

I recall the more recent early '00's fluff about armageddon saying something to the effect of millons dying as slaves to the orks because they weren't as strong as orks.

Probably to keep parents happy, 40k doesn't always talk about orks slaughtering women and children. However, fluff would indicate that they are capable of it, and that death might well be preferrable to Ork enslavement.

I'd say if orks came across an orphanage they'd probably eat 'em, but I'm sure they do take prisoners and then work them to death.

I could imagine orks taking slaves when they need them but making a sport out of killing their slaves when they get bored. Let them go, chase them down, kill them. I'm guessing that's why a lot of fluff says they enslave people but you never see any slaves and it explains why they still need grots.

I would say advisors can still be cannon. As recently as the armaggeddon 3 campaign they had humans and orks working side by side.

They would enslave anything they didn't kill. Wazdakka uses the world he solo-killed a titan on as a vehicle factory.

There are cases of Humans replicating orks from the Gorkamorka game called Diggas. Tere are two quotes below which may be pertinent th this thread:

"The massive physique, fast vehicles and devasting weapons of the Orks are an inspiration to the Diggas, who try to act as Orky as possible. The Diggas form mobs like Orks, they trade scrap with the Meks like Orks, and they race around the desert in buggies and trukks looking for a fight like Orks."

"Although Diggas go to Mektown like Orks, to trade in scrap and buy new guns and vehicles, they must battle hard against the Orks' disdain of all other creatures. Until they can prove their mettle in battle, Diggas are hard-pressed to make the Orks give them a fair price, do their kustomisin' jobs and so on. In addition, the Diggas have no teknikal know-wots of their own and no Spanner Boyz, so rely on the Meks for even the simplest of patch-ups and gubbins."

Obviously there are also cases of Orks working alongside the forces of the imperium, Blood Axes spring to mind, who have acted as mercs before and I belive is still cannon.

As a whole I would say that the stereotype of the Ork as a mean green killing machine applies to anywhere between 95% to 99.99% of Orks, but in a huge universe where Orks are possibly the dominant lifeform, there may be some subtle differences here and there.