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.

yup, grots will be ordered around to make ammo. Any ammo the orks don't loot themselves that is.

 Samus_aran115 wrote:
How do orks make ammunition? Certainly they don't loot every bullet. They have plenty of metal at their disposal, but the mechanical precision required to make ammunition that doesn't blow up the gun or misfire seems like it would be hard for orks.

Grey area. Ork firearms work because they believe they will. I imagine that goes for ammunition as well as the firing mechanism (if there even is one). Or, as said above, the Grots are very busy casting & casing bullets.

I like to look at it this way;
Autogun: Simple, full-size assault/battle rifle. Varies from complex weapons (ala HK416 or L85A2) to simple, easy to bash together weapons that work (most of the time) and are easy to repair/scavenge new bits for - I like to think of the simplicity of the AK-47 in that respect.
Autopistol: Semi-automatic pistols, automatic pistols & very compact submachineguns - so your Colt 1911, Beretta 93R, Mac 10
Stub Revolver: Any revolver, essentially
Stubber: Large sized sub-machineguns - so your MP5s, UZI's, UMP etc
Heavy Stubber: A full-sized automatic machinegun firing large-calibre bullets that will punch through flesh with ease - obvious comparisons being the mighty M2 .50, MG42 & MG3, GPMG and so on.

Returning to the original poster...

Chaos like the Orks is not so big on manufacturing, they rely on looting, slave labor and whatever else can be acquired.

While in the long term a lasgun is easier to reload and maintain it requires a higher tech level to build. Modern guns can be made in a metal shop with locally available materials, lasguns would need something more advanced.

Plus chaos tends to warp and interfer with technology so lasguns might become unreliable pretty quickly while autoguns are simpler tech and might last longer. (of course that doesn't explain how chaos marines armor, bolters etc keeps working but that's another question, let's just say their devotion protects their equipment.)

Finally it differentiates them from the IG and that's something GW values.

The Dark mechanicus handles the manufacturing for Chaos. There are daemon forge worlds in the EoT that the Dark Mechanicus uses to produce material for the endless war. In exchange for slaves and materials that the various warbands come accross.

I swear I remember in 2nd edition (or was it 1st?) the rules for autoguns and lasguns were exactly the same? And I swear autoguns were as common as lasguns on models....My memory is hazy though.

But anyway, this has been answered above already: Autoguns are just easier to manufacture and were only replaced in something like the 32nd millenium.


Ah ha. Here they are in 1st and 2nd edition:

http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/File:Autogun1.jpg#.UGDyiY1lQls

http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/File:Autogun2.jpg#.UGDyi41lQls

"the Autogun was the standard-issue weapon for the troops of the Imperial Army and the Imperial Guard until the start of the 32nd Millennium." http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Auto_Weapons

Basically, they are still used, even by some Imperial Guard Regiments, and on low tech worlds or ones that have no access to the mineral required to construct lasgun ammo or components. Common in Necromunda gangs, Planetary Defence Forces and civil defence forces.

 FifteenHours wrote:
I swear I remember in 2nd edition (or was it 1st?) the rules for autoguns and lasguns were exactly the same? And I swear autoguns were as common as lasguns on models....My memory is hazy though.

IIRC there was a slight difference in the bonus at short range vs long or some other obsolete rule. Something minor at any rate. The RPGs or Inquisitor might draw a greater difference.

 Sovspot wrote:

Heavy Stubbers are actually not that much different than the german MG42.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MG_42

Yes, in terms of the look.

In terms of actual stats, etc...no. They would not be anything similar.

 Samus_aran115 wrote:
How do orks make ammunition? Certainly they don't loot every bullet. They have plenty of metal at their disposal, but the mechanical precision required to make ammunition that doesn't blow up the gun or misfire seems like it would be hard for orks.

Why?

A mekboy could easily make an automated/grot-run factory where they are made. IT's not like they would make each bullet personally anyway.

Sparks_Havelock wrote:Grey area. Ork firearms work because they believe they will. I imagine that goes for ammunition as well as the firing mechanism (if there even is one). Or, as said above, the Grots are very busy casting & casing bullets.

All ork firearms modelled so far have ammunition belts/cases and, barring exceptions such as the lifta-droppa or the SAG, look more functional than, say, a bolter. I know the 'orks kill stuff with their minds' thing is rather popular in this forum, yet I'm inclined to think they don't shoot dreams and good wishes.

Agent_Tremolo wrote:

Sparks_Havelock wrote:Grey area. Ork firearms work because they believe they will. I imagine that goes for ammunition as well as the firing mechanism (if there even is one). Or, as said above, the Grots are very busy casting & casing bullets.

All ork firearms modelled so far have ammunition belts/cases and, barring exceptions such as the lifta-droppa or the SAG, look more functional than, say, a bolter. I know the 'orks kill stuff with their minds' thing is rather popular in this forum, yet I'm inclined to think they don't shoot dreams and good wishes.

Well, there may be a difference between "shooting dreams and good wishes" and the Waaaghfield simply playing a supporting role. It doesn't actually take much to simply stuff an explosive solution into a hollow slug - it's just likely to explode in your face or not fly very well. Unless you're an Ork.

I seem to recall the renegades in the army lists from the Siege of Vraks mostly had autoguns. They were the same statlines as lasguns (S3, AP-, Rapid Fire).

As for why autoguns versus lasguns? Looks. It just looks more renegade to see them carrying bolt-action guns instead of lasguns, I think.

Also, these are the back-woods hillbillies that have been brain-washed to think that the Imperium is the Man, holding them down. So they'll rebel with what they have.

Cultists are not actually military. They are civilians who have joined a chaos cult.
Those members of the military that form chaos cults, while technically cultists, are usually called something else like traitor guard or renegades.
The cultists in the Dark Vengeance box are designed to look like factory workers and the like, they're not ex-military except for the ex-commissar leader.

Orks I recall have a genetic ability that allows them to understand machines. They act stupid but are actually pretty smart when it comes to technology. They're able to create aircraft and ground vehicles quickly from piles of scrap.
The older fluff orks were closer to the Imperium in technology, current fluff plays up on their barbaric side but they're more than capable of producing a few trillion odd bullets and other things that go bang.
Consider too who paints all those checkerboard designs on their gear, they're all neatly done.