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Human and Orkish technologies are vastly different, but several devices on both sides serve the same purpose. Most notably, of course, are weapons. My question here is whether a human could conceivably use ork technology, particularly killa kans and other vehicles. Also could they repair such orky weapons and vehicles should they get damaged? To my knowledge ork tech is just insane to a human mind because it has no business working, but does. Either way I'd like your input guys and gals

This is an interesting question however being specifically 40K it should be moved the the 40K General Discussion area, which I shall do now.

most ork weapons dont work in human hands because they were built by orks, orks literally can will things to work that shouldnt... if it was a scavenged human weapon looted by orks it could work but pure orky tech will fall apart in the hands of a human if i interpret fluff correctly

Theoretically, an orkish weapon would work properly if there are orks nearby, as their "belief-field" would make it work...provided they believe said weapon works in the hands of a human.

Knowing orks, they are probably convinced that humans aren't worthy of using their tech. With the exception of Yarrick, which is probably why that power klaw of his hasn't fallen apart yet.

Ork weapons can work in human hands, they just won't work as well as they would in ork hands. Some weapons won't work at all.

Darn it because I was thinking of a small group of humans left on a desolate world after an ork invasion using killa kans and other vehicles as cargo loaders and defense units for their small army to supplement the human weapons and vehicles they have been able to repair.

That and Orky units have this uncanny character to them I'd like to see what would happen when humans did use them.

It's perfectly possible that a human could find a killa can, and perform the maintanence needed to make it genuinely functional, rather than merely supported by the orkish willpower.

Ork weapons and vehicles in the hands of anyone else don't function or shoot, and would most likely break apart from rust.

All Orks have a psychic ability. It's just they don't realise it. If they all commonly believe something works, it will work through their psy-abilities of mass belief. Just in the way all Orks believe Red makes something go faster, as a result, all vehicles painted red gain inches in the rule book. If an Ork picks up a rusted broken weapon that would not work for a human, and they believe it works, it will work immediately. If Orks come across a broken and unfixable Rhino, they don't believe it will work until a mech comes along and stick Orky things all over it. Then because the mech stuck things and fiddled, they all believe it would work. So it works.

Ultimately, would Ork weapons work in human hands? No. Orks are scavengers and use weapons abandoned by humans, or create weapons that would otherwise never work for anyone. But because they believe, it is so. Never underestimate Orks and their underlying physic capabilities

(I learnt this from researching Orks as my first Army)

I'm sure i've heard one piece of fluff, where a human manages to convince the ork's that no ork could kill him, and because the ork's beleived it, none of them could

I actually wish that Ork tech went back to being normal tech, rather than what it is at the moment. Used to be that they simply made crude, brute-force technology that still used normal principles to work.

The "psychic field" version seems too much like hand-waving, where gun magazines are filled with loose nuts and bolts that magically turn into bullets when an Ork fires it.

 AegisGrimm wrote:
I actually wish that Ork tech went back to being normal tech, rather than what it is at the moment. Used to be that they simply made crude, brute-force technology that still used normal principles to work.

The "psychic field" version seems too much like hand-waving.

Ai, the power of positivity thinking is a bit silly.

It does, however, open up some hilarious options.

The whole "Ork tech doesn't work in human hands" is overplayed I think. A Slugga is not a psychically powered weapon. It's just a very crude gun built for Ork use (i.e. powerful but inaccurate and lets you have 1 extra hand for clobbering stuff). It's not well-fit for human use, and humans have the lasgun.

Really, I'd only extend the psychic thing to more advanced tech like Tellyportas, Force Fields, vehicle controls, and so on.

Humans don't use Ork tech mainly because their own is for the most part superior, all xenos technology is seen as heretical, and Ork tech is dangerous and only Orks are insane enough to use it.

 AegisGrimm wrote:
I actually wish that Ork tech went back to being normal tech, rather than what it is at the moment. Used to be that they simply made crude, brute-force technology that still used normal principles to work.

The "psychic field" version seems too much like hand-waving, where gun magazines are filled with loose nuts and bolts that magically turn into bullets when an Ork fires it.

While there is some of that, it isn't quite like that. Sluggas and Shootas still use normal bullets. Its things like the Kustum Mega Blasta, Zzapp gun, or Shokk Attack Gun that shouldn't work.

Using a Killa Kan or Deff Dredd would be a bit problematical.

Killakanz are designed to be controlled by Gretchin wired into the systems - Gretchin are smaller than humans,

Deff Dredds are the opposite problem- orks are bigger than humans.

Plus different physiologies- orks are more resilient to meatball surgery than humans.

 Banicks wrote:
Ork weapons and vehicles in the hands of anyone else don't function

Are you calling Commissar Yarrick an Ork. HERESY! BURN THE HERETIC!!

 GreySkull wrote:
Darn it because I was thinking of a small group of humans left on a desolate world after an ork invasion using killa kans and other vehicles as cargo loaders and defense units for their small army to supplement the human weapons and vehicles they have been able to repair.

That and Orky units have this uncanny character to them I'd like to see what would happen when humans did use them.

You know, the pilot of a kan is physically wired in right? Theres zero chance that the nerves and such for that would work on a human IRL, though since its 40k, I'm sure you could derp your way around it providing you can find some dupe stupid enough to let himself be built into a ramshackle pile of Ork machinery

Bring in the ogryn boys! finally, a reason to use them

Ork tech works in human hands, Diggas and Armageddon Ork Hunters are the proof of that.

Edit: Ragnar Blackmane has also driven an Ork trukk without it breaking down instantly

Meanwhile orks can use any gun of any tech... cuz deyz brain sayz so!

Just to throw in some actual Black library 40k answers, there are several books most notable Commissar Cain (in fact the whole of one of his books covers it in bits and pieces) that have humans using Orc tech.. Two probs- it is as likely to blow up in there face as it is to shoot an Orc (ps- Orc 'belief' field is more of a guideline than a rule, just cause they think it will work doesn't guarantee.. Just help) and when an Orc breaks it they bash it back together with a hammer, if a human breaks it.. Even a follower of the Omnissiah can only break it down to spare parts... Lore is littered with orks getting hold of, say, heavy bolters and human tech priests "reconsercrating" the poor physically abused machine spirit.. Remember gents, real imperialists won't touch pure ork tech (don't know if they CAN I just know they WON'T) because it doesn't have a machine spirit and never did.. If a vehicle or gun looks vaguely human then they'd belief and care of the machine spirit coax it back to usability... "My machine mojo counters your mojo" or some fluff junk like that?

 Spazamataz wrote:

Orc
Orc

WAAAAAAAAAAGH! SMASH SESSY FANTASY BOY!

There are two other factors to consider. One is the inherent risk that just about any piece of Orky "technology" is just as liable to blow up in the owner's face than have any kind of desired effect.
The other is that Orks are much bigger and musclier than your average human. A Marine probably wouldn't have much trouble using a shoota or slugga, but I expect your average Guardsman would either not be able to aim it properly or would have his arm wrenched out of its socket by the recoil.

WAAAAAAAAAAGH! SMASH SESSY FANTASY BOY!
By Phatonic

"It was auto correct.. AUTOCORRECT!! I swear to the golden throne!!! Please don't tell the inquisitors!!!"

Ork tech works in human hands, Diggas and Armageddon Ork Hunters are the proof of that.

Totally forgot those examples.

I think some interpretations of Ork tech tend to be a bit too literal.

As mentioned, there are specific precedents for non-Orks using Ork made items. Some things may actually work, just not well, or in the manner in which they do when Orks wield them. I think this is the case more often than not, though I'd think there are plenty of things that wouldn't work sans Orks. Vehicles and more complicated machinery or abstract weapons or items are probably less likely to work, or at least less likely to for long, or be easily repairable once it does go down as it would be for Orks.

In the Ciaphas Kane models they have to use an Ork Trukk and Ork weapons to escape.

Brilliant books by the way, Sandy Mitchell is great.

The orks can't make a hunk of iron work as a gun just because they wish it was one. What they do is make a shoddy, badly machined gun with crappy ammo work better than expected. In any other hands the thing would be prone to frequent jams and misfeeds and the sights are probably so crooked that you'll end up missing the guy to the left of the one you aimed at. Most ork guns are so obviously bad that any human veteran would leave them lying on the ground as long as he had anything else to shoot with, even if it's a single-shot stub gun.

If you're wanting justification for an army using ork rules and human models, I know I've seen some armies that did techno-barbarian nomads. Think Mad Max. It's probably best to leave the orks out of it and just set them up as tough humans with shoddy tech from a semi-feral world. Either that or you make them Diggaz: wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Gorkamorka_(game)

Edit: The board will not let me make that a link. Maybe it's the parentheses in the url?

A human would need to make it work, where as an ork can have it work. i see it fine that humans and orks could swap tech but both sides would need to take it apart a bit, humans off to the tech priest to fit things like firing pins and recoil rods (then tell them some nonsence about oils and seals), where as orks give it to da meks would hammer away fitting things like rattler bang gubbinsiz and ded killi spikky bitz.