It Ain't Easy Being Green- The Evolution of Orks in 40k

Welcome to the latest in my series of articles looking at the evolution of different aspects of 40k. This time I will be looking at the evolution of the Orks from the 2nd edition codex to the current state of the army as 7th edition comes to an end. I am not planning to cover every aspect of the codex and army, but will look at general trends in how the greenskins have evolved over the course of the 6 editions to become what they are today.

The Orks have come pretty far in the many years they have been in 40k, developing their own flavour and playstyle over the course of many editions. Orks are generally regarded as one of the most "fun" armies available to play. Much of this comes from the randomness inherent in their rules over the years as well as being one of 40k's best armies when it comes to kit-bashing and conversion work, especially on their vehicles. Unlike the standardised tanks of the Space Marines and Imperial Guard, no two Ork vehicles in an army need ever look the same.

I first started with the Orks with the release of GorkaMorka (more on this to come), building up my mob and fighting with my friend's mob for many glorious battles. This gave me my first taste of kit-bashing when I decided to convert one of my wartrakks with parts from a toy car in order to give the vehicle an increased transport capacity (in GorkaMorka, how many Orks could ride in a vehicle was determined by how many Ork models would actually physically fit on the model). My first forays into using Orks in 40k came midway through 3rd edition when the same friend decided to sell off his starting Ork army and I bought it. This gave me a warboss, two large mobs of unpainted boys and a few vehicles with which to start my warband. I have been playing Orks ever since then. They have remained one of my favourite armies, and though they have fallen on hard times in more recent editions, I still have a special place for them in my 40k collection.

While researching this article, I came across another nice article on the development of the Orks from Rogue Trader to 3rd edition. This is well worth a read for anyone looking for information on the earlier years of the Orks.

Pew Pew Pew- The Evolution of the Shooting Phase in 40k

Welcome to my ongoing series looking at the evolution of 40k. With 8th edition seemingly looming on the horizon, now looked like a good time to take a look at the evolution of the shooting phase. 

The shooting phase has always been a major component of 40k. It has seen some radical changes since the early days of second edition, with each new edition of the game seeming to increase the power of this particular phase. The most recent rumours released by Games Workshop seem to imply that some aspects of 2nd edition may be returning to the game, so it is interesting to me to look back and see where we have come from. 

Most players with agree that it is one of the most powerful phases in the game, with many games being decided in the shooting phase. 

2nd edition (1993-1998)- Modifying your Success 

The rules for the shooting phase in 2nd edition 40k are quite different to the current state of the game. All models were restricted to a front 90 degree firing arc, meaning that model placement and positioning was even more important in 2nd edition than in the current game. True Line of Sight was also used in this edition, with the effects of cover affecting the To Hit values for units. For example, soft cover (such as hedges, shrubs and most vegetation) incurred a -1 To Hit penalty, whereas hard cover (walls, buildings, craters, etc) incurred a -2 To Hit penalty. 

The actual system for determining whether a unit was hit has remained unchanged since this time. The ballistic skill value of a unit was used to determine the die roll required for the shot to be successful. For example, a Space Marine attempting to shoot an Ork behind soft cover would require a 4+ to hit (a ballistic skill of 4 requiring a 3+, with a -1 penalty for soft cover).

In 2nd edition, units had to shoot at the closest enemy unit. However, units could ignore enemy units in cover or units that were fleeing. In addition, units could choose to ignore or specifically target enemy vehicles. This meant that cheap screening units were of particular importance in 2nd edition, as these units could be used to shield more valuable units in your army from enemy fire power. Also, the target would have to be chosen without measuring the distance between the units. If the enemy unit was out of range, then the shorts were wasted. This meant that estimating the distance between your units was a very valuable skill to have in 2nd edition 40k, as poor guessing of distances resulted in more wasted shots in the shooting phase. 

Psyched Out!- The Evolution of the Psychic Phase in 40k

Welcome to my ongoing series looking at the evolution of various aspects of 40k over the years. This time round, I look at the evolution of the psychic phase. For the rest of the series of articles, check out the Evolution of 40k tab above.

The Warp, the parallel dimension that is a swirling maelstrom of energy, has been an integral part of the 40k lore for a long time now. It provides the basis of interstellar travel for many of the races of the 40k universe, and it is often said that without the Warp's ability to travel vast distances in (relative) safety, the Imperium of Mankind would crumble in no time. This chaotic dimension also provides energy to the psykers of the 40k universe, imbuing them with vast power to unleash their arts on the enemy.

Mondays, am I right?

The psychic phase has seen substantial changes over the various editions of 40k. Indeed, for several editions of the game, no such phase existed in the turn sequence. I don't tend to run psychic heavy armies, the reasons for which I will get to as the article proceeds, but there is no doubt that the addition of psykers to the 40k tabletop can have a dramatic effect on the course of the battle.

Second Edition (1993-1998)- Pick a Card, Any Card......

As with much of the game, the psychic phase was a very different beast in second edition.

The Main Book
A version of the rules for the psychic phase was included in the main rulebook for 2nd edition 40k- the Psionics section.

This section provided some simplified rules for using psykers in games of 40k. It gave the four different mastery levels for psykers and provided 6 psychic powers that they could choose from at the start of the game.
In order to cast a psychic power, the player had to roll above the casting value on the power and were able to add the mastery level of the psyker to the die roll. Rolls of a 1 always failed when casting, but with a highest casting level of 6, level 4 psykers has a 1 in 6 chance of successfully using a psychic power each turn. Each psyker could only use one power per turn, regardless of their mastery level.

One of the example psychic powers in the rulebook was psychic shield. Cast on a 3+, this power provided the psyker with the equivalent of a 3+ invulnerable save against shooting and close combat wounds. Against psychic attacks or powers, it provided a 4+ invulnerable save. The shield remained in effect until it was used to block a psychic attack.

Much like the close combat phase, both players took part in the psychic phase. The player whose turn it was could attempt to use a psychic power from one of their psykers, then their opponent could attempt to use a power from one of their psykers. This continued until no more psykers remained.

The psionics section also included the rules for Force weapons. In 2nd edition, the psyker got to add their mastery level to the strength of their attack in combat when using a force weapon. As armour saves were modified by the strength of the attacker, this meant that a powerful psyker could cut through power armoured models with ease.
Daemons were said to be especially vulnerable to Force weapons- any attack from a force weapon that hit a Daemon in combat automatically wounded and ignored their saving throw. This made psykers a very powerful unit for taking on daemonic units in combat.

All Aboard!- The Evolution of Transport Vehicles in 40k

Welcome to part 2 of my look at the evolution of the rules for vehicles in 40k. This section will take a look at how the rules for transport vehicles has evolved from 3rd edition through to the 7th edition that is now currently on the tabletop.

Most races in the 40k universe have access to some form of transport vehicle; from the ramshackle trukks of the Orks, to the iconic Rhino of the Space Marines and the sleek and much maligned Wave Serpent of the Eldar. Transport vehicles are an important part of many armies, providing a way to protect troops while enclosed in a quick delivery system to either fire on the enemy at short range or assault your opponent's gun-line.

These vehicles have seen many changes to their rules over the past 17 years. As the balance between the shooting phase and assault phase has evolved over the various editions, these changes frequently come about through modification of the rules for transport vehicles, sometimes leaving assault troops out in the cold with harsh rules regarding these special types of vehicles.

Third Edition (1998-2004)- Rhino Rush
In third edition, the assault phase was king! Assault troops would spill out of their transports, ploughing into the enemy lines and chaining combat after combat, thanks to sweeping advance assaults. Power weapons cut through the toughest of armour while the enemy infantry looked on in dismay, never getting to fire their shiny new lasguns at the foe.

The Basics
In third edition, passengers in a vehicle could embark or disembark within 2" of any part of the vehicle. If the vehicle had already moved, the unit could not move any further in the movement phase and could still disembark if the vehicle had not moved over 12". If the vehicle had not moved before disembarking, the unit could still take its normal 6" move in the movement phase.

Troops could not embark in a vehicle if it had moved over 12", but could embark into a vehicle on their consolidation move after assault if they could all get within 2" of the vehicle.

When embarked in a vehicle, half of the unit could fire from it in the shooting phase. If the vehicle was open-topped, then every member of the unit could fire in the shooting phase. The unit counted as moving and could not fire if the vehicle moved over 12".

If a transport vehicle was destroyed, each passenger would take a wound on a 4+, with armour saves being allowed. When firing Ordnance weapons, a roll of a 6 on the Ordnance penetration table meant that the vehicle was Annihilated; the entire unit of passengers was lost without any saving throws possible.

One of the biggest bonuses of transport vehicles in third edition was that units that had disembarked could assault on the same turn.

Armoured Fury- the Evolution of Vehicles in 40k

Not too long ago, I wrote an editorial on the evolution of formations in 40k. What started as a small opinion piece quickly ballooned into a longer article that garnered some interest and a lot of comments and differing opinions. I enjoyed the experience so much, that I decided to create some more articles on the evolution of various different parts of 40k.

 

Today, I want to look at the evolution of the rules for vehicles in the warhammer universe. Vehicles are an iconic part of the 40k setting; it would be hard to imagine the battlefield without the Leman Russ, trundling along to support the stalwart Imperial Guard or the sleek, deadly skimmers of the Eldar race. The rules for vehicles have seen a lot of changes since their first introduction in Rogue Trader many, many years ago.

Obviously, there is a ton of material to look at in the rules for vehicles and I am not going to look over the minutia of all the rules there have been. Instead, I want to look at general trends in the vehicle rules for each edition. These will focus on vehicles in the movement phase, shooting phase, the assault phase and how vehicles are damaged.

I will be focusing on tanks as one of the most common vehicle types. The rules for skimmers and other vehicles will be mentioned where appropriate, but I will not be looking at walkers as these are a very different entity. In the next article in the series, I will take an in depth look at the evolution of the rules for transport vehicles, as these have seen such big changes over the last 5 editions of the game.