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I've heard a lot of ork players recommend Bomb Squigs, and I can see why. As an Ork, hitting something on a 2+ doesn't happen very often. But is it really worth it? Let's consider it's effectiveness vs MEQs as a barometer vs the equal points in additional tankbustas. (3 bomb squigs vs 1 tankbusta)

3.00 Squigs = 2.50 Hits = 2.08 Wounds = 0.69 Unsaved Wounds (AP4)

1.00 Rokkit = 0.33 Hits = 0.28 Wounds = 0.28 Unsaved Wounds (AP3)

So initially it seems like your investment has paid off, but wait! Those squigs are one use only, the Tankbusta is going to be able to fire for multiple turns! Let's say a conservative three. After all, it might not be in range on the first turn, the game might end early, or there may be turns where there's nothing to shoot at. The squigs do get to pick their time after all.

Squigs = 0.69 Unsaved Wounds Per Game

Rokkit = 3(0.28) = 0.83 Unsaved Wounds Per Game

Well, now it seems the extra tankbusta is slightly better, but at a whole 0.14 wound difference it's really down to personal taste right? Well hold it right there. Remember, a model may make a shooting attack with a bomb squig, therefore forfeiting one of it's own regular shooting attacks. So really the number of wounds a squig causes is the difference between three rokkit shots and three squig attacks:

Squigs = 0.69 - 0.83 = -0.14 Total Unsaved Wounds Per Game

Rokkit= 0.83 Total Unsaved Wounds Per Game

So now the difference between the two is really 0.97 TUWPG. That's much more significant! But there's more! I won't go deeper into the math here, because it gets much more complicated, but the rokkit has more range (24" vs 18"), the rokkit can target flyers, FMCs, and Skimmers and the squig can't, (These would be the few times a Squig would actually be worthwhile vs a rokkit but you just straight up can't do it.) and the rokkit as better AP as mentioned earlier.

I'm pretty sure it was the great philosopher Ricky WAAAGHters who once said: "Hey! Mek boyz! Leave those squigs at home!"

When I bring tankbustas it's for their ap values, the marine killing rokkit and the vehicle popping melta bomb, the squig doesn't reAly add anything and uses up a boyz shooting. (I guess they're good against the wolfen, if squigs are st8 then they can intsakill those rageing furries, also good against the average necron warrior )
Some people only add them if they have 5pts available in their lists, but I'd rather purchase other things for 5pts.

They have served me well and they are my go to for filler points. A major bonus to squigs though is that its just funny when they manage to kill something. First time I used one ever it managed to immobilize an Ironclad dreadnought bearing down on my warboss.

Are Bomb Squigs worth it.

Tankbustas are accurately named. i wreck stuff with my tankbustas' rokkits AND assault. I'd say 5 tankbustas (shooting and assaulting) can wreck most non super heavy vehicles.

I don't see bomb squigs as a replacement for tankbustas. They're more of a 5 pt reroll when you alpha strike and need that darn hit... 5 out of 6 is way better then 1 in 3. Your trying to compare something with an ammo runt who gives a reroll. I hold the squigs till I need that hit then let em loose.

Bomb Squigs are another ork tool in the tool box. I don't think its an accurate comparison.

They are both entertaining and pretty effective. Stripping a reliable hull point or two, or wounds from a MC can be very good when you really need it. If you could give Tankbustas better armour saves, the better to keep up their rate of fire per turn, maybe not. They can definitely make the difference when you want that extra point for First Blood off a vehicle.

Having a nice reliable 2+ hit is never a bad thing to have up your sleeve, especially for orks and their notoriously unreliable shooting. Unless the squig then rolls a 1, of course...

I take at least 1 per squad... never know when that vehicle needs to go down and need to be hit.

I'd rather use squigs on vehicles where the AP4 doesn't matter. On meq squads, yeah, I'd hold the squigs and just go for the rokkits. That's how I plan to use them, anyway. I still have 6 more to paint- 3 kitbases and 3 resin.

Goddam finecast- pain to paint.

Then again, most MEQs I face are usually getting chewed up by slugga charges, so I'd probably shoot them at something scarier. Hell, wolfen with their 4+ save sound like the perfect target for bomb squigs.

I always bring 3 bombs squigs with my tankbustas. 2+ is just too tempting. Also they are super cheap anyway. And since my ork army is all low strength in the shooting phase, this gives me a little boost, especially when I hit on a 2+

I take them for getting a more reliable first blood on a vehicle for the two points. That's all they're for in my eyes.

 Vitali Advenil wrote:
I'd rather use squigs on vehicles where the AP4 doesn't matter. On meq squads, yeah, I'd hold the squigs and just go for the rokkits. That's how I plan to use them, anyway. I still have 6 more to paint- 3 kitbases and 3 resin.

Goddam finecast- pain to paint.

Then again, most MEQs I face are usually getting chewed up by slugga charges, so I'd probably shoot them at something scarier. Hell, wolfen with their 4+ save sound like the perfect target for bomb squigs.

Yes. This is the plan I was talking about. Tankbustas wreck vehicles. Even the hammers are like extra powerclaws in the unit. Fighting meq, ideally you want big cheap units of boyz not tankbustas cause of the initiative, and mahreens going first. A Big block soaks up hits and has enough left to swarm with attacks. Tankbustas don't fit that format theyre too expensive and small a unit.

Against meq I may shoot them with tankbustas but I'm really using other tools in the mek tool box to deal with mahreens. Thats why I questioned the tankbusta bomb/squig comparison vs meq. Bomb squigs are that important hit you need. You don't waste them on a unit of 10 mahreens.

 Vitali Advenil wrote:
...Goddam finecast- pain to paint...

I don't love the models - I'd be tempted to instead use grot/goblin models laden with explosives for a counts-as. "Dat's rite, wee grot, dis here's a majik jakkit for yoo, just run over to dat veekil over dere and press dis big red buttin, yoo'l be dedd faymiss!"

Them profitting from the bustas' Tankhunter skill makes them more then worth the points to me. I mostly take two of them for each unit which I only use against vehicles or 4+ models.

Personally, I say they are worth it. Who cares about their AP value, they are extra shot you get that hits on a 2+. Great for glancing vehicles. espcially Low/mid armor.

 Clang wrote:

 Vitali Advenil wrote:
...Goddam finecast- pain to paint...

I don't love the models - I'd be tempted to instead use grot/goblin models laden with explosives for a counts-as. "Dat's rite, wee grot, dis here's a majik jakkit for yoo, just run over to dat veekil over dere and press dis big red buttin, yoo'l be dedd faymiss!"

Funnily enough, I actually really like the models. They've got bits of imperial tanks slapped onto them, neat little flak jackets, stuff like that. I just hate the material. It just sucks that they come in a box of five with only two squigs when they can take up to three. Plus, one of them is wielding a tankhammer, which I don't think is worth it. Why bother with that when you've got tankbusta bombs? These guys aren't a squad you want to assault something unless that something can have tankbusta bombs strapped to it.

Bomb Squigs are great. For a very small cost in points, you have a pretty reliable way to get first blood off of any AV11 or less, 3 HP or less vehicles. Remember tankbustas have Tank Hunters, so those s8 hits are getting rerolls to pen vehicles. I find that with the glory hogs rule and a full allotment of bomb squigs, my tankbustas net me 2 VP in most games vs anyone with transport vehicles.

Me, I'd always take 'em.

Everyone mentioning reliability has it dead right. The rokkits can score bigger, so in theory they're a net loss - if everything rolls dead average. But that's not what they're for: they're there to give you one shot at busting the average, to give you the equivalent of a few near-guaranteed lucky shots. The cost is the AP.

You use them to guarantee you crack that Rhino now, or when you absolutely must take the last wound off that Carnifex before it can charge your Gorkanaut or the like.

jade_angel wrote:
You use them to guarantee you crack that Rhino now, or when you absolutely must take the last wound off that Carnifex before it can charge your Gorkanaut or the like.

That's pretty much how I see it as well. You're going to get a hit almost all the time, so you keep them for when you need that hit. Be it taking first blood for points, or ensuring something important dies before it can do it's important thing.

You are always trying to game the odds with orks, mob rule, hitting on BS2, footslogging across the board like a git and so on. This is one of those tools that really tip the numbers in your favour.

I think Bomb Squig are always worth it, even on a large unit of Tankbustas. BS2 is unreliable, sometimes you'll get way more hits than expected and just as often you'll get much less. The squigs are a great way to mitigate bad rolls. If possible I'll always try to get First Blood with my Tankbustas, the squigs are useful for getting some more hits on a transport or low AV vehicle on Turn 1 where it's likely that vehicle is in cover, potentially with a better cover save from Night Fighting or smoke launchers or similar. 15 points per unit of 'bustas is a steal for 3 shots that hit on a 2+, particularly as it doesn't replace any of their usual weapons.

 Clang wrote:

 Vitali Advenil wrote:
...Goddam finecast- pain to paint...

I don't love the models - I'd be tempted to instead use grot/goblin models laden with explosives for a counts-as. "Dat's rite, wee grot, dis here's a majik jakkit for yoo, just run over to dat veekil over dere and press dis big red buttin, yoo'l be dedd faymiss!"

I use my old metal Night Goblin Fanatics from when I used to play WFB.

Of course, most games I've played they end up shooting the 'bombgrots' before even disembarking from the gunwagons I like to tote 'em around in, so the marker models are sort of unnecessary.

they are worth it to ensure an easy first blood kill on a vehicle turn 1

One of my favourite tournament moments was teaming my tankbustas up with a weirdboy and deep-striking, using da jump, into my opponents backfield and nuking his vindicator turn 1 with 3 squigs. I survived a round of shooting and jumped back out again.
I also have fond memories of my bustas, mounted in gunwagons, taking down a FW Knight in one round of shooting, mostly thanks to the 3 squigs of each unit.

I will almost always take squigs if I can, I don't math hammer it, I just like the reliability and confidence I can place in the units to get the job done.

 Vitali Advenil wrote:

 Clang wrote:

 Vitali Advenil wrote:
...Goddam finecast- pain to paint...

I don't love the models - I'd be tempted to instead use grot/goblin models laden with explosives for a counts-as. "Dat's rite, wee grot, dis here's a majik jakkit for yoo, just run over to dat veekil over dere and press dis big red buttin, yoo'l be dedd faymiss!"

Funnily enough, I actually really like the models. They've got bits of imperial tanks slapped onto them, neat little flak jackets, stuff like that. I just hate the material. It just sucks that they come in a box of five with only two squigs when they can take up to three. Plus, one of them is wielding a tankhammer, which I don't think is worth it. Why bother with that when you've got tankbusta bombs? These guys aren't a squad you want to assault something unless that something can have tankbusta bombs strapped to it.

Sorry, I thought you were only talking about the squig models. I agree the Tankbusta ork models are great, especially the nob.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 SkrawnyNob wrote:

 Clang wrote:

 Vitali Advenil wrote:
...Goddam finecast- pain to paint...

I don't love the models - I'd be tempted to instead use grot/goblin models laden with explosives for a counts-as. "Dat's rite, wee grot, dis here's a majik jakkit for yoo, just run over to dat veekil over dere and press dis big red buttin, yoo'l be dedd faymiss!"

I use my old metal Night Goblin Fanatics from when I used to play WFB.

Great idea - you could even add fuses to the balls to make them look more like classic bombs