Do you love Orruk warriors clad in heavy armor and slashing through enemies with brutal strength? Do you love orruks clad in very little clothing and using primitive weapons combined with shamanic power? Does the color green seem cool to you? If that is the case, you will absolutely love Orruk Warclans!

Faction Overview

One of the first books that Games Workshop released for AoS that sought to combine multiple armies into one book, Orruk Warclans combined the Ironjawz and Bonesplitterz armies into a single army. Ironjawz were a new army on the block from AoS 1.0 and they suffered a bit from limited unit selection. Meanwhile, Bonesplitterz were an army in AoS 1.0 that really did not really get much time on the table due to their lower tier rating in terms of competitive play. Combining these two armies allowed for a more diverse roster of option for Ironjawz and give Bonesplitterz access to some heavy hitting and tankier units to complement their own.

Strengths

• Great Melee
• Great Lore
• Mostly Great Models
• Easy to Paint

Weaknesses

• Lots of skin and metals to paint
• Low choices of models
• Very little range units

Competitive Rating

Top Tier

Orruk Warclans are a solid army in the current meta of shooting and magic-heavy armies. A lot of their special abilities are not magic-based and only require either for units to be in range of a single model, a Command Point, and a single dice roll similar to prayers. Plus, they have multitudes of movement shenanigans to get your army into melee, which is where Orruks shine.

Allegiance Abilities

Orruk Warclans are a combined army of the old Ironjawz and Bonesplitterz armies but they have the ability to choose which army alliance they want to play from three different options: Ironjawz, Bonesplitterz, and Big Waaagh. Each one has their own Allegiance Abilities depending on which one you pick.

Ironjawz Alliance Abilities

The Ironjawz Alliance allows you to take Ironjawz as your main army and then take allies from Bonesplitterz and Gloomsplite Gitz.

• Eager For battle – Adds +1 to charge rolls for friendly Ironjawz units. Since you love melee combat, this is a big boost to help get your slower force in.
• Mad as Hell – At the end of any phase, if any wounds or mortal wounds have been inflicted on an Ironjawz unit that is more than 9″ away from any enemy unit, that Ironjawz unit can move d6″. The big key to this is every phase, this can trigger. Enemy deal a few wounds with magic and then shooting to your unit of 15 Ardboys? That is 2d6″ of movement for free. Also you can use this defensively to pull your army back out of a tight spot where you might not normally get enough movement. The key to remember is that this happens at the end of the phase. So you can damage your own units with magic (Green Puke on the Shaman’s warscroll is what I commonly use), cast Da Great Big Green Hand of Gork to put that unit outside of 9″ from an enemy unit, and move d6″ at the end of the phase to be even closer and need to roll a lower number on your charge. This makes Ironjawz very scary and more mobile than our opponent expects.
• Smashing and Bashing – In the combat phase, if an Ironjawz unit has fought and destroyed an enemy unit, you can pick a friendly Ironjawz unit that has not fought already and within 3″ of an enemy. That unit immediately gets to attack and if they also destroy an enemy unit, you keep picking Ironjawz units that haven’t fought yet to fight. This ability is HUGE for helping Ironjawz win games. Just by destroying an enemy unit, you get to keep fighting with your units until you run out or don’t completely destroy an enemy unit. Notice it isn’t your combat phase either, it is any combat phase. You ideally always want to start with units in combat that are most likely to trigger this ability so you can keep getting to pick combats that are more towards your advantage.
• Mighty Destroyers – An Ironjawz command ability for all your heroes. You can spend a command point to pick a friendly Ironjawz unit wholly within 12″ of a Hero or wholly within 18″ of your general. That unit does one of three things: it moves if it is more than 12″ from an enemy unit, attempts to charge an enemy unit within 12″, or piles in and fights if it is within 3″ of an enemy unit. You cannot pick the same unit more than once per hero phase. Oh boy, this is huge. This and Smashing and Bashing are the two main reasons you play Ironjawz as your army alliance. The great thing about this is it also allows for you to still make a movement, charge, or attack in the following phases if needed. You can make some cool combos out of this command ability. Didn’t kill an enemy unit last turn and want to finish it off and reposition yourself? Use Mighty Destroyer to attack in the hero phase. Want to move super fast your first turn? 8yhgvMove your models once with Might Destroyers and then move again in the Movement phase. Be warned though. A smart opponent will place his models right at 12″ away to force you into the charge roll instead of the movement. While we do have some ways to get bonuses to charges, it still makes it hard to roll.
• Ironjawz Waagh! – The other Ironjawz command ability that can only be used by a Megaboss general once per game at the start of the combat phase. Basically you spend a CP and roll a d6 while adding the number of Friendly Ironjawz units wholly within 18″ of your general to the roll. If the roll is up to 11, add 1 to the Attack characteristic of melee weapons used by friendly Ironjawz units wholly within 18″ of your general. If the roll is 12 or more, add 2 to the Attack characteristic. Really powerful on a double turn when you have your general and other units most likely in battle. It can be hard to get the 12+ on the roll but even just one additional Attack is a lot for our Ironjawz.
• Warclans – Ironjawz have warclans that give them added bonuses. You can either be Bloodtoofs, Choppas, or Ironsunz if you want to be one of those specific warclans or you can stay as just Ironjawz.

Bonesplitterz Allegiance Abilities

The Bonesplitterz allegiance lets you take Bonesplitterz as your main army and ally in Ironjawz and Gloomspite Gitz.

• Tireless Trackers – After armies are set up, but before the first battle round beginds, half of the Bonesplitterz units in an army (rounded up) can move up to 5″. This is huge for Bonesplitterz since it allows them to either position themselves better after deployment happens or get up closer to have a better early game over their opponent.
• Warpaint – Every time you take a wound or mortal wound, roll a dice. A 6 negates the wound or mortal wound. Not bad since their saves aren’t as good as Ironjawz since they are mostly skin and not armored.
• Monster Hunters – Keeping to their lore of monster hunting, when a Bonesplitterz unit is within 3″ from an enemy Monster and chooses to fight, they get one of three abilities. Wild Abandon lets them pile in an extra 3″. Stab! Stab! Stab! adds +1 to hit for attacks that target a monster. Berserk Strength lets them deal a mortal wound on a 6 to wound on top of any normal damage. All three have their purpose depending on what you are attacking.
• Spirit of the Beast – If a Bonesplitterz unit slays any enemy monster, they don’t have to take Battleshock tests for that turn. Super situational but it can save you from losing a large unit.
• Bonesplitterz Waagh!: Similar to the Ironjawz Waaagh! listed above, you roll a d6 and add the number of Bonesplitterz units wholly within 18″ of your general at the start of the combat phase. If it is up to 11, +1 Attack for melee weapons. If 12 or more, +2 Attacks. This can be really helpful since Bonesplitterz have a lot of abilities that give you multiple hits when you roll a 6 to hit so more dice can lead to more wounds going through.
• Warclans – Bonesplitterz have warclans that give them added bonuses. You can either be Bonegrinz, Drakkfoot, or Icebone if you want to be one of those specific warclans or you can stay as just Bonesplitterz.

Big WAAAGH! Allegiance Abilities

The combined army of Bonesplitterz and Ironjawz. This army allows you to draw from both army pools and then you gain special benefits based on what are known as Waagh! points.

• The Big Waaagh! – This is the reason you play Big Waagh! really. Basically you have a list of abilities that unlock as you gain Waagh! points throughout the game. You gain points by meeting the following criteria:
  • D6 points at the start of the hero phase if your general is alive. Flat 6 if your general is Gordrakk.
  • 2 points at the start of the hero phase for every friendly Warchanter on the battlefield
  • 1 point at the start of the hero phase for every friendly Wurrgog Prophet and Wardokk on the battlefield
  • 1 point for every friendly Orruk unit with 10 or more models that made a charge move in the charge phase
  • 1 point for every friendly Orruk hero within 3″ of an enemy unit
  • 1 point for every friendly Orruk unit with 10 or more models within 3″ of an enemy unit

The maximum amount of Big Waagh! points you can gain is 30. Any over that get ignored.Then you have certain armywide buffs based on how many points you have. The buffs are:

• • 4 points: Zog ‘Em – At the end of any phase, if any wounds or mortal wounds have been inflicted on a Big Waagh! unit that is more than 9″ away from any enemy unit, that unit can move d6″.
  • 6 Points: Zap ‘Em – You can use the Waaagh! Magic battle trait.
  • 8 points: Get ‘Em – Add 1 to charge rolls for friendly Orruk units.
  • 12 points: Laugh at ‘Em – Every time you take a wound or mortal wound, roll a dice. A 6 negates the wound or mortal wound.
  • 16 points: Smash ‘Em – Add +1 to hit rolls for melee weapons used by friendly Orruk units.
  • 20 points: Bash ‘Em – Add +1 to wound rolls for melee weapons used by friendly Orruk units.
  • 24 points: WAAAGH! – Your general can use the DA BIG WAAAGH! command ability.
• WAAAGH! Magic – If you have 6 Waaagh! points, before making a casting, dispelling or unbinding roll, a friendly Wizard can reduce the Waaagh! points by d3 to get +1 to their roll or reduce the Waaagh! points by d6 to get +2 to their roll. You can only use it once for the same Wizard in the same phase. Super solid for some of the armies running around with easy bonuses to cast.
• Command Traits, Artefacts of Power, Mount Traits, Warchanter Warbeats, and Spell Lores – Basically, if you are an Ironjawz model, you pick your stuff from the Ironjawz lists and the Bonesplitterz pick their stuff from the Bonesplitterz from the Bonesplitterz lists. Makes it easy so you don’t have to learn a bunch of new stuff.

So there are the three you can pick from. In terms of competitive play, all three are solid options. I think Big Waaagh! has a lot of potential if you bring a mix of Ironjawz and Bonesplitterz but I have run pure Ironjawz and Bonesplitterz lists to much success as well. I think Ironjawz get the most benefit from the Big Waaagh! mostly due to gaining the wound and mortal wound negation that Bonesplitterz naturally have early on and both armies really want that +1 to hit and wound.

Warclans

If you take Ironjawz or Bonesplitterz alliance, you can pick one of three warclans to be from. Ironjawz can be Ironsunz, Bloodtoofs, or Choppas. Bonesplitterz can be Bonegrinz, Icebone, or Drakkfoot.

Ironjawz

IRONSUNZ

The first of the Ironjawz warclans. This one is probably my least favorite of the three Ironjawz ones. While the command ability and artefact are decent, the warclan ability and Command trait only trigger turn 1. Rating: C

• Abilities: Ironsunz Kunnin’ – Subtract 1 from hit rolls for attacks made by enemy units that target an Ironsunz unit in the first battle round. This can be really good into armies that rely on hordes with lots of attacks but bad hit rolls or armies that rely on very little attacks to do high damage. I think it works best on a first turn where you go second in the round. However, into some armies now, hitting on 3+ going to 4+ to hit does not really matter as much.
• Command Ability: Alright – Get ‘Em! – At the end of the enemy charge phase, pick a friendly Ironsunz unit within 12″ of an enemy unit, wholly within 18″ of a friendly Ironsunz hero, and more than 3″ from any enemy models. That unit can attempt to charge. This command ability is weird but it actually can help you get your guys into melee where they want to be and possibly into a unit not wanting that turn 1. Plus you can always Mighty Destroyer that unit possibly to fight in the combat phase.
• Command Trait: Right Fist of Dakkbad – You get an additional command point at the start of the first battle round. Not bad at all if you want to go full ham with Mighty Destroyer.
• Artefact of Power: Sunzblessed Armour: You worsen the Rend characteristic of attacks the bearer by 1. A great one to put on Megabosses since you have to take it.

BLOODTOOFS

The second of the Ironjawz warclans. This one is probably my personal favorite and it has a lot of potential movement tricks. The command trait is utter garbage and useless most games but the ability, command ability, and artifact make up for it. Rating: A

• Abilities: Hunt and Crush – Add 1 to run and charge rolls for Bloodtoof units. Best part is, IT STACKS WITH EAGER FOR BATTLE! That means you have +2 to charge rolls always. This turns Ardboys into a huge threat with Drummers. With a Drummer giving an Ardboys unit +2 to charge and Hunt and Crush with Eager for Battle giving you another +2 to charge, you get +4 to charge rolls with Ardboys. And with the Great Green Hand of Gork spell, you can put yourself right outside of 9″ from an enemy unit and need a 5 on 2d6 minimum to get in on a charge. This makes you so much of a threat with Mighty Destroyer and Great Green Hand of Gork that you really can go in hard first turn.
• Command Ability: Break Through Da Line: At the end of the combat phase, pick a friendly Bloodtoofs unit that fought in the combat phase and is wholly within 24″ of a friendly Bloodtoof hero. That unit can make a normal move but it can’t run or retreat. This seems strange but it actually has great potential and the range of 24″ is pretty wide. Really, what you want to do it use it after you kill a unit so you can either move forward to threat an enemy unit or pull back to claim objectives.
• Command Trait: Get Da Realmgate – If you have a Realmgate on the battlefield, your general gets +2 to the roll for the Ironjawz Waaagh! command ability. I have never played with a Realmgate on a board but it could happen. Just don’t expect it.
• Artefact of Power: Quickduff Amulet – The first Bloodtoof Megaboss has to take this. It allows him to cast the Great Green Hand of Gork once per game automatically and it cannot be unbound. WOW. In the meta of magic being so prominent, just getting as spell off without rolling is a great boon. And it is our teleport spell. Remember the Ardboy charge I talked about in Hunt and Crush? Well, they get teleported no matter what now.

DA CHOPPAS

The final warclan for the Ironjawz that centers more around the Shaman as your general. This is probably more middle of the pack from me since it has some good stuff in it but it kind of wants your army to build around Ardboys, Brutes, Warchanters, and a Shaman to get the most bang for your buck. Rating: B

• Abilities: Vandal Hordes – You can re-roll charge rolls for Choppas units within 12″ of a terrain feature that is fully or partially in enemy territory. Kind of depends on the battleplan for this one but hey I will take re-rolling charges since we want to be in melee.
• Command Ability: Rabble Rouser – When your Warchanter uses his Violent Fury ability, he can pick up to 3 units of friendly Choppas Brutes and/or Ardboys instead of 1. Absolutely worth it if you want to take one Warchanter and have him do more work across the army or get more buffs out across multiple Warchanters.
• Command Trait: Checked Out – +2 Bravery while wholly within 18″ of the general. Ironjawz have decent Bravery but not great Bravery. Helps keep models from running more often.
• Artefact of Power: Megaskull Staff: The Shaman general has the Megaboss keyword when using the Ironjawz Waaagh! command ability. Since you more than likely run more units to get more use out of Rabble Rouser, this isn’t a bad one.

Bonesplitterz

BONEGRINZ

The first of the Bonesplitterz warclans. The Bonegrinz is probably the one most people put to the side in favor of Icebone or Drakkfoot but I think Bonegrinz has some really cool movement control shenanigans. Rating: B

• Abilities: Bring It On! – Enemy units within 12″ of any friendly Bonegrinz units at the start of the combat phase have to attempt to charge and make a charge move if they are able to do so. Also, enemy units within 3″ of a Bonegrinz unit cannot retreat. This is huge for objective control. Run small units of Boarboys up and have them lock down enemy units by pulling them away from objectives can be super helpful. Also, forcing fights and being unable to retreat makes your opponent possibly waste turns in combat and not doing what they want.
• Command Ability: Feel Da Spirit – At the start of the combat phase, pick a friendly Bonegrinz unit wholly within 18″ of a friendly Bonegrinz Savage Hero. Until the end of the phase, unmodified 6s to hit score two hits instead of 1. With the buckets of dice you already throw out with Bonesplitterz if they get enough guys in combat, this can lead to your opponent getting a lot of bad save rolls.
• Command Trait: A Right Monster- Enemy units within 12″ of the general get -1 Bravery. Not terrible.
• Artefact of Power: Maw-Krusha Beast Totem – The first Bonegrinz Savage Big boss gets this artefact. Once per battle, in your shooting phase, you can shoot as if you had Innard-bursting Bellows from the Megaboss on Mawkrusha warscroll. It can be okay but it isn’t fantastic.

ICEBONE

Mostly taken for the Army Ability. It really is the warclan for those of you wanting to run Boarboys or Heroes on Boars. Rating: C

• Abilities: Freezing Strike – If an unmodified wound rolls for an attack by an Icebone unit is 6, improve the Rend characteristic by 1. Rend is scarce in Bonesplitterz so this is a great help with the amount of attacks you hope to get.
• Command Ability: Freeze and Run – At the end of the combat phase, pick a friendly Icebone Boarboys unit within 3″ of an enemy unit and wholly within 18″ of a friendly Icebone Hero. That Icebone Boarboy unit retreats and, until your next charge phase, subtract 2 from charge rolls for enemy units within 3″ of the Icebone Boarboy unit before it retreated. This can be really helpful for locking down an enemy unit or making them charge into more suboptimal combats. It can be helpful when it pops up and Boarboys are better on the turn they charge a unit.
• Command Trait: Pure-Bred War Boar – Your Icebone Maniak Weirbnob generals get +2 to their Move and +1 to hit and wound rolls made by their War Boar. Not bad to keep you mobile and hit harder in combat if needed.
• Artefact of Power: Kattanak Pelt: +1 Bravery to friendly Icebone units wholly within 18″ of the bearer. Helps a lot with the amount of loses you most likely take as a Bonesplitterz player.

DRAKKFOOT

The final warclan for Bonesplitterz and the one most seen in tournament play. A solid army ability and Command ability really make this warclan shine. Rating: B

• Abilities: Strength of Purpose –  The Ethereal ability has no effect on Drakkfoot units. Also any ability that negates wounds has no effect on wounds inflicted by a Drakkfoot unit. With a lot of Damage Prevention Rolls coming around with magic and army abilities, this is solid to have with helping you take down models. Not it does not say mortal wounds though so your opponent still gets their mortal wound save.
• Command Ability: Shout Down da Magic! – You use this command ability after an enemy Wizard cast a spell. Pick a friendly Drakkfoot unit wholly within 18″ of a friendly Drakkfoot Wurrgog Prophet or Warrdokk. That unit can attempt to unbind that spell and gets +1 to the unbind roll if that unit has 20 or more models. Extra unbinds for a command point? Yes please.
• Command Trait: All your Wizards know the Fireball spell instead of Arcane bolt. Not a bad trade off since it deals D3 wounds much easier than Arcane Bolt on units.
• Artefact of Power: Burnin’ Tattoos – The first Drakkfoot hero with an artefact gets this. When you negate a wound or mortal wound with your Warpaint battle trait, you inflict 1 mortal wound on 1 enemy unit within 1″ of the bearer. This seems good but the problem is most of the heroes for Bonesplitterz have very low health so you wont be getting the chance to trigger this a bunch.

Command Traits

Ironclad Warriors

These Command Traits can only be taken by a Megaboss general.

• Hulking Muscle-Bound Brute – After you charge, pick an enemy unit within 1″ of this general and deal D3 mortal wounds on a 2+ dice roll. Not bad if you get to charge into a unit and weaken it before trying to trigger Smashing and Bashing. Rating: B
• Live to Fight – You re-roll wound rolls for attacks made by this general and their mount if they made a charge move the same turn. This is great for a Megaboss on a Mawkrusha but it is still on the lower end of our options for Command Traits. Rating: C
• Brutish Cunning – Once per battle round, this general can use Mighty Destroyers without spending a Command Point. This is the one right here. Extra movement, charges, and combats for free every round? I always take this first. Rating: A+
• Ironclad – Add 1 to your save rolls. The second best one on this list in my opinion. Combine with the Ironsunz artifact and you have a save of a 3+ most likely for the Megaboss on Mawkrusha. Rating: A
• Bestial Charm – Once per battle round, you can use Inspiring Presence without spending a Command Point. If you run bigger units of Ardboys or Brutes, this might be considered. Rating: C
• Mighty Waaagh!: If you use the Ironjawz Waaagh! ability, count units within 24″ instead of 18″ and affect units within 24″ instead of 18″. It can be good if you spread out but you have so much better choices here. Rating: C

Heralds of the Great Green God

These command traits are for Wurrgog Prophets or Savage Big Bosses only.

• Killa Instinkt – If an unmodified wound roll with a melee weapon is a 6, deal a mortal wound in addition to normal damage. Not bad but we have better options. Rating: C
• Waaagh!-monger – If your general is on the battlefield, roll a dice and get a CP on a 4+. Not a bad little bonus. Rating: B
• Great Hunter – When you use your Tireless Tracker battle trait, you can move eligible units 8″ instead of 5″. This is the one I take as it lets me play aggressive on turn 1 or reposition better after deployments. Rating: A
• Power of the Beast – You get +2 Wounds. That is a big deal since Bonesplitterz have lower Wounds than Ironjawz in most cases. Rating: B
• Voice of Da Gods –  Friendly Bonesplitterz units get +2 Bravery while wholly within 18″ of the general. Solid choice to keep you from losing models on battleshock tests. Rating: B
• Monster Killa – In the combat pahse, after the general has fought, he can fight a second time if within 3″ of an enemy monster. Just no. Too situational. Rating: D

Champions of the Weird

These Command Traits can only be taken by a Weirdnob Shaman general

• Dead Kunnin’ – At the start of the first battle round, you receive D3 extra command points. Super helpful for getting off a few extra Mighty Destroyers or rerolling charge rolls. Rating: B
• Master of the Weird – Add +1 to casting, unbinding, and dispelling rolls. In a meta of +2 and +3 to cast magic now, this loses some power sadly but it is still a solid choice. Rating: B
• Bursting with Power – You get an extra spell from the Lord of the Weird and can attempt to cast an extra spell in your hero phase. Not bad but the other two are more solid choices. Rating: C

Shamanistic Quirks

These command traits are for Bonesplitterz Wizards only.

• Dead Kunnin’ – At the start of the first battle round, get D3 command points. Solid choice always. Rating: B
• Master of the Weird – Add 1 to casting, dispelling, and unbinding. Always good to have. Rating: B
• Fueled by the Spirits – You know 1 additional spell from Lore of the Savage Beast and can cast an additional spell. Bonesplitterz have a lot of Wizards so this is situational based on your build. Rating: C

Mount Traits

This is only for Heroes on a Maw-Krusha. You get one for free and one for every battalion you take.

• Big ‘Un – You gain +1 Wounds. Not bad but you have better options. Rating: C
• Fast ‘Un – You gain +2 Move. Makes you move up the board quicker but also not a super big buff. Rating: C
• Mean ‘Un – You gain +1 Damage to the Mighty Fists and Tail attacks. This is the one you take if you want to be dealing lots of damage with your Maw-Krusha. Rating: A
• Heavy ‘Un – You get +1 to Destructive Bulk rolls. You have better options again. Rating: C
• Loud ‘Un – Once per battle, you can use this ability at the start of the combat phase. Enemy models within 3″ of you are at -1 to hit you until the end of the phase. Really makes you more survivable that once turn into a large mob. Rating: B
• Weird ‘Un – Each time you are affected by a spell or endless spell, you can roll a dice and ignore it on a 4+. Magic heavy meta, here is the answer. Rating: A

Warbeats

Warchanters each get a Warbeat in your army. You cannot have the same one in your army multiple times.

• Get ‘Em Beat – In the charge phase, roll a dice. On a 4+, pick a unit wholly within 12″ of this model. That unit can attempt to charge from 18″ away and rolls 3d6 for the charge. Situational and risky. I take this one last usually. Rating: C
• Fixin’ Beat – In your hero phase, roll a dice. On a 4+, pick a unit within 12″ and heal D3 wounds. Not bad for Gore-Gruntas and Heroes on Maw-Krushas. Rating: B
• Killa Beat – At the start of the combat phase, roll a dice. On a 4+, add +1 to hit to a unit’s melee weapons within 12″ till the end of the phase. The best one out of the three since it is good on any unit. Rating: A

Artefacts

Da Boss’s Hoard

These Artefacts are for Megaboss heroes.

• Armour of Gork – If you roll an unmodified 6 on your save roll, the attacking unit suffers 1 mortal wound after all its attacks have been resolved. This can stack with the Rip-toof Fist to give out 2 mortal wounds on an unmodified 6 save roll. Not bad but we got better options. Rating: C
• Destroyer – Pick one of the bearer’s melee weapons. Once per battle, at the start of the combat phase, add 3 to the Damage characteristic of that weapon till the end of the phase. With the ability to gain more attacks as the Megaboss on Mawkrusha defeats models, this can lead to a massive damage turn. It also can help you get more damage per hit to help kill off a hero. Probably my second favorite. Rating: A
• Daubing of Mork – Roll a dice each time you take a wound or mortal wound. Negate it on a 6. You get this eventually if you play Big Waaagh! as your army allegiance so don’t take it in there really. Rating: C
• The Golden Toof – Do not take battleshock tests for friendly Ironjawz units while wholly within 12″ of the bearer. One of the better ones for sure but the wholly within can be a struggle. Rating: B
• Metalrippa’s Klaw – Pick one of the bearer’s melee weapons. Change the Rend characteristic of that weapon to -3 before applying any other modifiers. -3 Rend on a weapon is insane. Unless you have Ethereal, most heroes will be pushed to a 6+ save or even no save at all. This is probably my personal favorite. Rating: A
• The Boss Skewer – Add 1 to the Bravery characteristic of friendly Ironjawz wholly within 18″ and subtract 1 to the Bravery of enemy units within 12″. Bravery bombs fell less effective now so I don’t usually take these. Rating: C.

Weird Trinkets

These Artefacts are for Weirdnob Shaman heroes.

• Great Green Vision – At the start of the hero phase, roll a die and get a CP on a 4+. Always nice. Rating: B
• Amberbone Hoard – Add 1 Attack to your melee weapons, and add 1 to the save rolls for attacks that target the bearer. You don’t really want the Weirdnob in melee but helping your save is always nice. Rating: B
• Shamanic Skullcape – Add 1 to casting rolls and if you kill an enemy Wizard in melee, you can learn one of their spells for the rest of the battle. Again, you shouldn’t be melee if you can help it. A +1 to cast is nice and you can make it +2 with the Master of the Weird Command Ability. Rating: B

Boss Bones and Other Gubbinz

These artefacts are for any Bonesplitterz hero.

• Dokk Juice – Once per battle, in your hero phase, heal D6 wounds. I’m sorry, what? Yeah it is solid. This is great to have on a Wurrgog Prophet with Power of the Beast so he can stay around longer. Great artefact. Rating: A
• Savage Trophy –  Add 1 to Bravery to Bonesplitterz units wholly within 18″. Combine with Voice of the Gods to get +3 to your Bravery and keep less models from running from battleshock. Rating: B
• Lucky Bone – Once per phase, reroll 1 hit or wound roll, or 1 save roll. It is every phase, which is great to have, but it is just a reroll so you have to make it count. Rating: B
• Glowin’ Tattoos – Your Warpaint battle trait triggers on a 4+ instead of a 6+. Another solid option to keep your models alive longer. Rating: B
• Greatdrake Toof – Pick one of your melee weapons. If the wound roll is an unmodified 6, double the damage of that attack. Not bad but I prefer the other options here. Rating: C
• Weepwood Big Shiv – Pick one of your melee weapons. Add 1 to the Attack characteristic. Again, we have better options. Rating: C

Reservoirs of Waaagh! Energy

These artefacts can only be take by Bonesplitterz Wizard heroes.

• Big Wurrgog Mask – In your hero phase, pick an enemy unit within 12″ and visible to the user. Roll 3 dice. On a 2+, that unit suffers D3 mortal wounds and on a 1, the user suffers D3 mortal wounds. Yeah you could hurt yourself. But the chance to do a possible 3D3 mortal wounds to an enemy unit is just great value and it just happens. Rating: A
• Mork’s Boney Bitz – You get +1 to casting or +2 to casting if two enemy Monsters are within 24″. Not bad but the other two are just better. Rating: C
• Mystic Waaagh! Paint – At the start of the hero phase, roll on the Lore of the Savage Beast table. You can cast the spell you roll in addition to any spells you can normally and if it is one you know, you can cast it twice. It is a bit of luck but the spells are all mostly solid for Bonesplitterz and you get more casts out in a turn. Rating: B

Spell Lores

Lore of the Weird

Every Ironjawz Wizard can choose a spell from here. At the moment, that is only Weirdnob Shamans.

• Brain-busta – Cast on a 5. Pick an enemy unit within 16″ and visible to the caster and roll 2D6. If it is greater than that unit’s Bravery, D6 mortals. If not, D3 Mortals. A solid damage spell that is easy to cast and great into low Bravery armies. Rating: B
• Mighty ‘Eadbutt – Cast on a 5. Pick an enemy Hero within 16″ and visible to the caster. They suffer D3 mortals or D6 mortals if they are a Wizard. Not bad into magic heavy armies or sniping off low health Heroes. Rating: B
• Da Blazin’ Eyes – Cast on a 6. Pick a point within 4d6″ of the caster and draw a 1mm line from that point and the closest point of your base. Roll a dice for each enemy model passed across by the line and deal a mortal wound on a 4+. Depending on the setup of your enemy, it can be good but it has the potential to do little. Rating: C
• Da Great Big Green Hand of Gork – Cast on a 7. Pick a friendly Ironjawz unit wholly within 24″ and more than 3″ from enemies. Remove that unit and set it up more than 9″ away from enemy models. That unit cannot move in the subsequental movement phase. This is the spell you take. Moving your slow army quickly up the board and into charge range is what you want. Rating: A
• Bash ‘Em, Ladz! – Cast on a 8. Add 1 to wound rolls for attacks made by friendly Ironjawz units wholly within 16″ of the caster until your next hero phase. Solid but such a high cast value means it doesn’t see much play. Rating: C
• Wrath of Gork – Cast on a 8. Pick 1 enemy unit within 16″ of the caster and visible to them and roll 2 dice for each friendly Ironjawz unit with 2 or more models wholly within 16″ of the caster. For each 2+, that enemy unit suffers a mortal. High cast value and situational placement makes me not like it. Rating: D

Lore of the Savage Beast

Every Bonesplitterz wizard gets to pick one of these spells.

• Squiggly Curse – Cast on a 6. Pick an enemy hero within 3″ and deal D3 mortal wounds to it or D6 mortal wounds if your casting roll is a double. If you kill that enemy hero, you get +1 to casting for the rest of the battle. Not bad but limited range hurts you on this one. Rating: C
• Breath of Gorkamorka – Cast on a 6. Pick a Bonesplitterz unit wholly within 24″ and visible to the caster. Until your next hero phase, double their Move characteristic and they gain fly. If you rolled a double to cast, triple their Move and they gain fly. Watch as your opponent realizes you just sent an entire unit of flying orruks into their lines. Great spell choice. Rating: A
• Brutal Beast Spirits – Cast on a 6. Pick a Bonesplitterz unit wholly within 24″ and visible to the caster. Until your next hero phase, add 1 to run and charge rolls for that unit and add 1 to hit rolls for that unit. If you roll doubles, two units within 24″ get the benefits. Super solid spell and it makes your Bonesplitterz more likely to get their attacks off. Rating: A+
• Bone Krusha – Cast on a 6. Pick an enemy unit within 24″ and visible to the caster. If the enemy unit is within 6″, deal D6 mortal wounds. If the enemy unit is within 12″, deal D3 mortal wounds.  If they are more than 12″ away, deal 1 mortal wound. It is okay but I feel like the other spells are just better in almost all cases. Rating: D
• Kunnin’ Beast Spirits – Cast on a 6. Pick a Bonesplitterz unit wholly within 24″ and visible to the caster. Until your next hero phase, they get +1 to their save rolls. This is probably one I take almost every game just to be more survivable. Rating: A+
• Gorkamorka’s War Cry – Cast on a 7. Pick an enemy unit within 18″ and visible to the caster. The enemy unit suffers D3 mortal wounds and fights last at the end of the next combat phase. Solid to help get your Bonesplitterz in to attack first and take less attacks back. Rating: A

Battalions

• Brawl – The mega Ironjawz battalion with 1 Megaboss, 1 Warchanter, 1 Weirdnob Shaman, and 3-5 of the Ironjawz battalions. You won’t see it in competitive play. It lets you use the Ironjawz Waaagh! ability on another Ironjawz hero besides the Megaboss general. Sadly you can’t stack them the same turn. It could be better. Rating: C
•  Ardfist – The Ardboy battalion that consists of 1 Warchanter and 3-5 Ardboy units. When an Ardboy unit in this battalion dies, you can spend a CP with your Warchanter to roll a dice. On a 4+, a new unit of 10 Ardboys appears wholly within 6″ of the edge of the battlefield and more than 9″ from enemy units. Not a bad battalion to take if you like running lots of Ardboys and want a 50/50 shot of getting a new unit when yours dies. Rating: B
• Brutefist – The Brute battalion consists of 3-5 Brute units. Pick one of the Brute Bosses and they go to 5 Wounds instead of 3. Also, when you charge with a unit in this battalion, you deal a mortal wound to an enemy unit within 1″ of every model in the Brute unit. It is basically the ability that Gore-Gruntas have. With their big bases, you probably don’t get much from this. Rating: D
• Gorefist – The Gore-Grunta battalion consisting of 3-5 Gore-Grunta units. Pick on of the Gore-Grunta bosses and they got to 7 Wounds instead of 5. In your first hero phase, every unit in this battalion can make a normal move but cannot run if they wholly within 18″ of the Gore-Grunta boss you chose. It is basically a bunch of free Mighty Destroyer moves. Solid. Rating: B
• Ironfist – The mixed battalion consisting of 3-5 units of Brutes, Gore-Gruntas and Ardboy units. Pick a Gore-Grunta or Brute boss and give him +2 Wounds. Once per hero phase, that boss you chose can do Mighty Destroyers for free without spending a Command Point. This is the best out of the Ironjawz battalions. A free Mighty Destroyer is such a good ability and the battalion is going to have the units you normally run in an Ironjawz list. Rating: A+
• Weirdfist – The Shaman battalion consisting of 1 Weirdnob Shaman and 3-5 Brute or Ardboy units. If the Weirdnob is wholly within 18″ of two of these units and those units have 10 or more models, he can cast the Green Puke twice instead of once with his Brutal Power ability. No. Just no. This sucks. Rating: F
• Big Rukk – The mega Bonesplitterz battalion with 1 Wurrgog Prophet and 3-5 of the Bonesplitterz battalions. When you use your Warpaint battle trait, you can reroll the dice. Not bad at all. Rating: B
• Brutal Rukk – The Orruk and Boarboys battalion with 1 Savage Big Boss and 3-5 units of Savage Orruks or Savage Boarboys. Units wholly within 12″ of the Savage Big Boss can run and charge in the same turn. You won’t get a whole lot of units with this but it could really help you later on in the game once you moved up to get those few extra inches. Rating: B
• Kop Rukk – The Wardokk battalion with 2-5 Wardokks and 2-5 Savage Orruk Morboys. At the start of the hero phase, pick a Wardokk that is wholly within 18″ of 2 or more units from this battalion with 10 or more models. That Wardokk can cast the Fists Gork from the Wurrgog Prophet warscroll in addition to any other spells. Not bad to get out some extra damage on hordes but takes a weird combo of units. Rating: C
• Kunnin’ Rukk – The Arrowboys battalion with 1 Savage Big Boss and 2-5 units of Savage Orruks and Savage Orruks Arrowboys. In your hero phase, pick 1 unit wholly within 12″ of the Savage Big Boss and it can make a normal move or shoot. You cannot have more than 20 models in a unit in this battalion. This is a fantastic battalion. Extra movement or shooting for free? There is a reason people take this battalion in Bonesplitterz a lot. Rating: A
• Snaga Rukk – The Savage Boarboy Maniaks battalion with 1 Maniak Weirdnob and 2-5 Savage Boarboy Maniaks units. You can re-roll charge rolls for Savage Boarboy Maniaks wholly within 12″ of the Maniak Weirdnob. I think you have better options here in other battalions. Rating: C
• Teef Rukk – The Savage Big Stabbas battalion with 1 Savage Big Boss and 2-5 Savage Big Stabbas units. Add 1 to the Attack characteristic of units in this battalion wholly within 12″ of the Savage Big Boss. Those Stabbas hit hard and more damage is a solid choice if you take a couple of units. Rating: B

UNITS

Heroes

Ironjawz

• Gordrakk, the Fist of Gork – The big named hero on a Maw-Krusha, Gordrakk is no joke. He has two weapons, Kunnin’ and Smasha, which love to damage heroes. Kunnin’ deals D3 mortal wounds instead of normal damage to Wizard heroes on a 4+ to wound and Smasha deals D3 mortal wounds instead of normal damage to non-Wizard heroes on a 4+ to wound.He starts with 5 attacks with each but he has a way to get more with Strength to Victory. At the end of the combat phase, if he slayed any enemy models, he gets +1 Attack to Kunnin’ and Smasha and gain +1 Wound. So the more he fights, the more dangerous he gets. Also, his Maw-Krusha has Massively Destructive Bulk, which allows him to deal mortals on a charge on a 5+ and he can pick terrain features within 1″ of him and roll dice equal to his Massively Destructive Bulk value to get at least one 6 and make that terrain piece no longer give cover. Plus if he kills all the models within 3″ of him on a charge due to Massively Destructive Bulk, he can charge again and this keeps going if he keeps killing things. To top it all off, he has the Command Trait Voice of Gork. At the start of the combat phase, he picks 3 friendly Destruction units wholly within 24″ and gives them +1 to hit till the end of the phase. What makes this so great is the fact that it is Destruction units and not just Ironjawz, which makes him a great hero in Big Waaagh! armies. While I prefer to take the non-named version of Gordrakk, there is no denying his potential.
• Megaboss on Maw-Krusha – A slightly weaker version of Gordrakk. He loses the ability to destroy terrain’s cover ability with Destructive Bulk but keeps the rest of the abilities. He can be equipped with a Boss Choppa and then either a Rip-toof Fist or a Boss Gore-hacka. I personally love the Gore-hacka just for the two additional attacks but the Rip-toof does allow to deal that 1 mortal wound a save of an unmodified 6 if you want to try and be more tanky. You still have Strength from Victory to help gain more Attacks and Wounds and you have a slightly weaker version of Voice of Gork that only picks an Ironjawz unit wholly within 18″ and gives them +1 to hit with your Command Ability Go on Ladz, Get Stuck In!. Note you cannot put Voice of Gork and Go On Ladz, Get Stuck In! sadly. I usually run this version over Gordrakk just to save a bit on points.
• Orruk Megaboss – The Megaboss with no Maw-Krusha. He still has Strength from Victory, Go on Ladz, Get Stuck In!, and he comes with only a Boss Choppa and Rip-Toof Fist. For the points you save, it can be worthwhile especially in lower point games to consider this over one of the two Maw-Krusha variants.
• Orruk Warchanter – The buff piece for the Ironjawz army. Not only does he get one of the three Warchants listed above, he also has a great ability called Violent Fury. You pick an Ironjawz unit wholly within 15″ of him and they get +1 damage to their melee weapons till your next hero phase. This is so good since it lets you get even your Ardboys to 2 damage per swing. I usually take two in my lists to help give out the damage buffs.
• Orruk Weirdnob Shaman – The spellcaster for Ironjawz. He isn’t super great in terms of what he brings and you basically have him to just try and cast the Great Green Hand of Gork every turn. I take one every game with Ironjawz but in Big Waaagh lists!, he gets outshined by the way better Bonesplitterz Wizards.

Bonesplitterz

• Wurrgog Prophet – The big spell caster for Bonesplitterz and this guy is a great Wizard. He is -1 to hit in melee naturally and he can generate a command point in your hero phase every round a 4+. He casts 2 spells a turn and he can unbind 2 spells, making him a strong choice if you can only take one Wizard. His natural spell Fists of Gork also has high damage potential into horde units.
• Savage Big Boss – The melee hero for Bonesplitterz. He has some decent damage and he can make a Bonesplitterz unit wholly within 12″ of him and within 3″ of an enemy unit immediately fight after him. His Command Ability also allows a Bonesplitterz unit wholly within 12″ of him at the start of the combat phase to do 2 hits instead of 1 on unmodified hit rolls of 6. He also is a key piece in most of the Bonesplitterz battalions so you will see one or two in most lists.
• Maniak Weirdnob – Another spellcaster but on a boar. He is faster than the Wurrgog and he gets to reroll a casting, dispelling, or unbinding roll every turn. However, he is only a 1 cast and dispell wizard. His other big bonus is his warscroll spell, Bone Spirit, which allows a Bonesplitterz unit wholly within 12″ of him  to do 2 hits instead of 1 on unmodified hit rolls of 6. Note this isn’t just combat like the Savage Big Boss command ability.
• Wardokk – Basically orruk shamans. At the start of the hero phase, they can roll a dice and on a 3+, give a Bonesplitterz model D3 wounds back, give a unit +1 to save, or give a Wizard +1 to cast, dispell, or unbind. Great little buff hero for not many points.

Units

As almost everything is battleline, depending on allegiance, we’re just gonna clump all the units together

Ironjawz

• Orruk Brutes – The more elite Orruks on foot. Brutes can be heavy hitters sometimes but they suffer from being in this weird spot of either overperforming or underperforming every game. In small units of 5, you want the pair of Brute Choppas and in units of 10+, you want the Jagged Gore-hackas. Take as many Gore-Choppas as you can as well. I usually run one to two of them in my lists and they get even better in Big Waaagh with the +1 to hit and wound.
• Orruk Gore-Gruntas – Ironjawz on massive boars, whats not to love? Gore-Gruntas can hit hard and they come in at 5 wounds a piece with a 4+ save. I like to run a unit of 6 in my Ironjawz list as a heavy hitter turn 1 after getting to move with Mighty Destroyer and then move again before charging. I think the Pig Iron Choppas are just better in most cases to the Jagged Gore-Hackas just due to the extra Attack.
• Orruk Ardboys – I love Ardboys. They can be this really tough unit to chew through at 2 wounds a piece and a 4+ save. I run a big block of 15 in my list to be a damage dealer with the Warchanter giving them +1 Damage. I would definitely consider taking one or two units of at least 10 in most lists.

Bonesplitterz

• Savage Orruks – The main melee unit for Bonesplitterz. You usually want them to have Bone Shields to get +1 to their save and Stikkas work better with the 2″ melee in their large unit sizes. They also get an additional Attack when they have 15 or more models.
• Savage Boarboys – Savage Orruks on boars. They are pretty fast and one of your main ways to grab objectives. Take them in smaller units with Chompas and larger units with Savage Stikkas.
• Savage Big Stabbas – The giant spear using Orruks. These guys have massive damage potential. When they die, they get to do a potential D3 mortals on a 4+ or 2+ if it is a Monster. Also, their weapons become D6 instead of D3 when fighting monsters. However, their big bonus is they can run and charge in the same turn. This combined with the Breath of Gorkamorka spell means they get up in an enemy’s lines quickly.
• Savage Orruk Morboys – A slightly upgraded Savage Orruk that has only one melee profile. I don’t see the value of them over Savage Orruks in most matchups except monster-heavy ones since they get +1 to hit if a monster has been slain that game.
• Savage Boarboy Maniaks – An upgraded Savage Boarboy, this one gets more attacks as long as you have 5 or more models in the unit. They end up being a heavier hitting unit with less survivability so decide if you want a mobile unit with better saves or damage potential with Boarboys.
• Savage Orruk Arrowboys – The ranged version of Savage Orruks. These guys get an 18″ bow with two shots a piece that gots to three shots a piece if you have 15 or more models in the unit. Also, they get +1 rend against monsters. I would take at least two units of these guys just for the Kunnin’ Rukk battalion being so strong and the ability to shoot lots of arrows into the enemy lines so your melee units won’t take as much damage.

Wrapping Up

Get suited up, grab your boys it’s time to WAAAGH! Orruks are an army with a lot of flexibility and potential to build up over the course of the game. Woe be to anyone who underestimates you just because you might be the fastest or the smartest. Are you ready to lead the Warboss on their path to victory? Let us know about your own great WAAAGHs at contact@goonhammer.com or on social media!