orcs and 8th

[B-rock]

i am looking for Christmas to be time to get GW products. i want to do horde style orcs. and deciding between running 3 to 5 horded 40 man units. i want to just run green tide. do you think this is likely to work before i decide to spend up to 350 dollars on just core.

also can i get ideas of what to give orcs far as upgrades.

[Nikephoros]

It's probably not going to be effective. Horde night goblins work, horde orcs probably does not.

[mynameisgrax]

I hear that Orcs and Goblins may be getting a new army book early next year, so it might be worth waiting to see how they change before starting the army. It's up to you though.

I have to agree with Nikephoros that a night goblin horde would be more cost effective than an orc one, both in points and in real $$$. In order to keep a horde of spearmen effective, you really need at least 45 models, so they don't immediately lose attacks after taking casualties.

45 night goblins with spears will run you about 200 points and $20 (assuming you look on ebay, where they're dirt cheap). On the other hand, 45 orcs with spears will run you about 285 points, and closer to $40.

So what are you paying twice the money and about 40% more points for? +1 WS, +1 T, and 4 less attacks than the goblins (because of the differences in base sizes).

[Vaddok Sek]

Currently the problem with Orcs is that they have an Initiative of 2, because of the new combat rules this is a problem. Now it is advantagious to give your orc boyz an extra choppa, it may drive up the cost of the unit but a 40 man unit of orcs with 2 S4 attacks each is nothing to laugh at, definatly want to take some forest goblin spider riders armed with bows, Thier fast cav ability will allow you to harrass the enemy flanks or you can use thier wall climbing abilityto get on a piece of impassable terrain and protect yours. Night Goblins are an awesome choice because of the sheer volume you can take as well as the abilities they have, they hate dwarves, the nets are great for CC and you can put a few fanatics in their ranks as well, arm them with spears and take skarsnik as your leader and you can put together a pretty nasty defensive army. Also the bolt throwers are a good option because they are cheaper than they are in most other armies. Right now trolls are just not worth it because they have no armour save. Shamans are also pretty good and their magic is pretty nasty all around, but a couple of the spells can be a bit unpredictable. Also squigs are a must, take a night goblin squig herd and charge it into combat and always ensure somehow, usually by challenge) that the herder is killed, this will cause the squig herd to go crazy and do massive damage to any units nearby.
Now one thing to always remember about an O&G army is that due to the animosity rule you don't really control it, you just kind of point it and hope for the best. You may have games where you do great on the animosity table and get to grips with the enemy by turn 3, but on the other hand they can sit there the entire game and do nothing as they get charged and hacked to pieces.

[T-ORK-amada]

The best upgrade for Orcs is more Orcs. I know, it sounds stupid, but it is true. Hand weapon/shield combo is really good, particularly now with the parry save. Having many units benefits the O&G army because of the randomness of Animosity. Having more Orcs on the board keep options open encase some roll a 1.