"Who Manufactures The Tech For Space Orks? Human Slaves?" Topic

(This is a general question for those who game space Orcs/Orks in 6mm, 10mm, 15mm, 28mm or any other scale out there, or even spaceships)

Just curious.

I've noticed how crude their hand weapons and fortifications tend to look, and it made me wonder who makes all their firearms, artillery, ammo, vehicles, etc?

Their weapons don't look like they were acquired in the field of battle. And, to me at least, the Orks just don't like the type that could make even the most basic tech, without the devices breaking down constantly for not being built according to specs.

So, where are all those factories? Who manufactures all of that? And what about their spacecraft? How can they even get those things off the ground and navigate anywhere in space?

Could you fellas enlighten me? Thanks.

Dan
PS. In the Lost Regiment (Rally Cry) series by William Forstchen, the gorilla-like "Tugars" and their kin had massive labor camps and factories for humans to produce most of those things for them.

40K orks? Or generic ones?

In 40K, certain orks are genetically disposed to become mechanics and inventors.

Gorkamorka covered the technical 'expertise' of the orks quite well if you can safely download a copy of 'Da Uvver book', their tech works because they believe it will.

Yes, it seems all intel(GW's ever changing fluff !)points to that the Orks seem to have a "knack" for making stuff. As well as copying captured and looted stuff. Dey iz a Cunn'in lot !

I've got a neighbor who is a mechanical engineer and a hoarder. He's got half a dozen ork vehicles and a lot of guns. They seem to work fine judging from the noise they make.

Oh ye of little faith.
If you have to ask…

@Legion 4: "Orks seem to have a 'knack' for making stuff. As well as copying captured and looted stuff. Dey iz a Cunn'in lot !"

LOL. Can they even read captured plans that aren't written "phonetically"?

Dan

In 40K it's as Weasel said, Ork meks and LOTS of gretchin slaves.

Yeah ! Like Da Mekboyz(me !) did these …

Well not that pansy Eldar stuff ! [But I did those too !]

My Mekboy Big Nailz and 'is krew !

Dey did Dez tooo !

Can they even read captured plans that aren't written "phonetically"?

Oh yes ! They are not as dumb as Humies think !

Some even hire Humie Mercs to translate and assist in Strategy & Tactics.

(This is Classified – that Merc & his Tallarn Ogryn body guard are actually Imperial Spec Ops. Who infiltrated to "assists" this Ork Warband …)

They also get tech from others races. Like these Gorn working with some Ork Freebooterz …

And as mentioned, Mekboyz use lots of Gretchins/Grots !

What's a "Gretchin"? What about "Grots"? Are they like a sci-fi version of Goblins?

Dan

Mekboyz' ingenious contraptions come to them through dreams. Really.

Not just genetically predisposed… you are overlooking the psychic aspect of the Orks.

If it is close enough, and they think it should work, it works.

If "many" Orks think it should work spectacularly, it works spectacularly – which is why they go for bigger, nastier looking weapon systems, to gain the belief of "many."

Ork tech in the hands of other races does not work (canon) they cannot be reverse-engineered. The psychic element fills educational gaps they have in engineering and physics.

Orks are good at tech. It's genetic, they've got tech and plans built into their genes and some of them specialise in it. They're especially good at force-fields and teleportation, but any mek can make a decent gun.

Some of the more sensible interpretations have the psychic stuff more or less acting as lubricant to keep things running smoothly, rather than brute-forcing a stick with a trigger on it into functioning as a gun.

They do use slaves – gretchin, humans, whatever – but they're not required and the orkish tech-base doesn't depend on anything outside the orkoid ecosystem. They'll happily loot stuff though, and modify it to better suit their tastes. They'll occasionally even buy stuff, or do merc work in exchange for it.

What's a "Gretchin"? What about "Grots"? Are they like a sci-fi version of Goblins?

Pretty close.

Actually, as I dimly remember from when I almost cared, there were three levels of greenies: snotlings, goblins, and orcs. In the 40K, grots, gretchin, orks.

In that shifting fluff, ONCE upon a time, the smallest goblinoids were on top and smart, then things fell apart, and the big buff orks took over.

Now days, or at least when the fluff used to say so, the grots have ork-envy. ;->=

Or, did I dream all that?

No pizza just before bed!

Doug

Yeah, Gretchin is old 40K for "grot' which became the norm around 3rd edition.

Space goblins but generally portrayed as dumber and less capable. (whereas fantasy goblins are dumb but quite sneaky)

The Top Secret Planz are written in Bad Latin. The Orks were taught correct and proper Latin by the Nunz. So they are predisposed to ignore the Planz.

Brain Boyz

Snotlings are tiny and stupid and viciously childlike. Think… actually, think the miners from Galaxy Quest, but smaller and green and idiots. They're also the ammunition for a particularly weird ork weapon, where the mekboy in charge chucks them through a warp tunnel and they come out the other side in an insane frenzy, occasionally inside the enemy's armour, or inside the enemy. They may originally have been the brain boyz, hyper-intelligent rulers and creators of ork-kind who screwed up and ran out of the special mushrooms they needed and lost their intelligence.

Gretchin are small and viciously cunning, but can actually be competent. In a mek's workshop there may be grots doing the mass production of common weapons, with the particularly smart ones either as supervisors or direct assistants to the boss mek. Or slacking off. Or stealing parts and tools to build equipment for the glorious gretchin revolution. Or being welded into a killer kan.

Orks are big and lazy and give the orders because they're bigger and can hit harder. Mekz have a whole lot of science and technology stuffed in their heads, which makes them a bit weird, but they're not idiots who need to copy other species' designs.

While orks get bigger as they get older or win fights, snotlings aren't babies and gretchin aren't children – they're all different flavours of green stuff.

The entire ork… meta-species? is one big biological weapon system that's gone off the rails. It's not meant to need outside support – from the squigs up, it's a complete package.

Anyway, OP asked about spacecraft.

Orks are really good at teleporting things and force fields, and pretty good at giant engines and guns. They do build conventional ships, usually with ramming prows, but for serious interplanetary invasion work they use Roks – they teleport onto an asteroid, use force fields to keep some air in, and expand until they've got the whole rock full of orks, engines and guns. They then go off through the warp and ram into an enemy planet – they may teleport invasion forces down, but the rok's probably coming down itself at some point, and you can bet some idiot will want to ride it. Really, the key to this is force fields, disposable roks, and teleporters – all things they have in abundance.

They do something similar with space hulks, which are giant messes of wreckage and rocks, but they don't tend to crash those. They're big and fancy.

Navigation… if they're part of a big waaagh, then that may help guide them through the warp to their intended target, but frankly they'll happily fight whoever's around where they arrive, even if it's each other.

They build fighters, bombers, and fighter-bombers. Some of them are space-capable. If the world suits it and they start building up industry, which is their reaction to a good fight, they'll start building watercraft as well. Subs and battleships, both usually with ramming prows and a lot of guns.

But that's just 40K. Other orks and orcs may vary.

Yeah … Grots & Gretchins are about the same. More of GW Orwellain "New Speak" … they changes things … often …

These are the Gretchins that came with Epic SM1 … The other's I posted before were in later versions …

And IIRC the name changed in 40K so it trickled down to Epic …

As others have already explained, Space Orks, or as I like to call them Sporks, have a built-in genetic 'expertise' when it comes to cobbling together and using working technology.

Which I always kind of liked, since it's a call back to the original Tolkien Orcs/Goblins and how they were technically innovative when it came to destructive stuff despite not being all that 'smart' in an absolute sense.

-Will

Orks grow from spores.
If an Ork kills something greater than itself, and other Orks see it. The Ork will grow in size.

Most Ork systems run off belief not science.

In 40k, the spores from a single ork body can potentially grow into an entire ecosystem. It will begin with fungi, then squigs, then snotlings. Before long you will have orks with full blown orky technology, depending on what resources are available.

Therefore, you must burn all the orks with fire. Even so, once a world has defeated an ork invasion, it is all but impossible to totally eradicate the stragglers.

To answer the original question, the grots are who provide manpower for factories, as well as manual labor. I have read of orks taking slaves but I can't remember where. I believe, however, that humans are too fragile to last long in captivity and the working conditions imposed by the orks.

I like to call them Sporks

Like this?

Like this?

That's the joke.

-Will

ROFL. Just read Logain's post on 4/30. I am also a mechanical engineer. It seems to be a genetic disposition for ME's to be into all things that go boom, and making machines work even to the point of Orkiness. I guess I am really an ork at heart.

As a side note, civil, automotive and electrical engineers tend to be a little less practical, and seldom have a clue about reality.

I am also a mechanical engineer

Yeah … But you ain't no Ork Mekboy Humie !!!!

Space Ork technology is made in China, or at least Asia,

Nah … I think it is all made in the UK !

Ancient texts in long forgotten languages whisper of the truth. Long before the rise of life on Terra, there was a War in Heaven. Relics of that war remain dangerous and hostile to this day.

The Krorks were one such weapon. A warp sensitive warrior race, able to craft weaponry from whatever materials abound, guides by much more intelligent agents and embued at the genetic level with the knowledge of warcraft, used as common troops against the ancient Necrontyr.

The commin Ork today is both a degenerate decendant of a much nobler race and a diacarded, malfunctioning weapon system. With the loss of the "brain boyz", the Orks continue to follow their basic programing, waging war, but no longer are they an aimed weapon. Their spores bring new armies into existence, genetically programmed to build weapons and tried to the warp enough to power them.