With the upcomming release of the 5th Edition of 40K I thought I would once again dip my toes into the universe of round bases and test the waters of the Waaagh!
The plan is to buy the starter box set, swap the marines for Petes Orks and see where we go from there. In the mean time I have bought the Ork codex and plan on getting started on some of the choice models before the September release of the starter set.
Looking through the book I have already fallen for some of the character Orks. The weirdboy and Meks with Shock attack gun and Kustom Force field are outstanding models which I am going to get without doubt. Anyway after an initial look through the book with a mind on the types of troops I am likley to buy can someone answer me this.

Question 1: How come Meganobs cost 40 points and already come with twin linked shoota Power claw, Stikbombs and a 2+ armour whilst the equivalent Nobz would cost 56 points and only come with a 4+ armour?
What's their downside?

Question 2: Are 2 killer cans better, worse or the same as 1 Deff dread?

Question 3: If one elite choice was already taken with unit of Nobz (you get these in the starter set) what would you take as your other two selections? I like the look of all the elites, especially the burner boyz and Tank busters (those squigg bombs look like great fun ), but I'm thinking Shooterz and Commandos may be a better choice?

Gareth

Having just played my first games yesterday with my new Ork army, I shall try to explain how not to lose (unlike me, who lost three out of three).

1) They are slow and purposeful (always count as being in difficult terrain) and if you try to transport them they count as 2 models. You are also restricted to five per unit.

2) It really depends on what you prefer. Both have pros and cons.

3)Bearing in mibd, that if you take a Warboss, then that Nobs unit can be taken as a troops choice. But I would definitely take tankbustas, as I struggled against tanks. Or try Lootas for taking out light vehicles.

But good luck, they are a fun army, and well worth the effort converting and painting.

Now this is my kind of question!

No doubt I will be shouted down as a heartless cheese monster but if you want some good, no-nonsense advice then I will gladly help.

1. What Pip said about the Meganobz is true except that you can have 10 per unit. Their biggest downsides for me (when compared to normal Nobz) is that they don't get a Dok in the unit, or a Waaargh banner or Bikes. That means they are not as good at combat, don't get 'feel no pain' or invulnerable saves (unless you take Grotsnik) and are painfully slow respectively. They are an absolute bargain if you can deliver them in big enough numbers into the heart of the enemy but that is difficult.

2. In the new rules vehicle will die less often but will spend a lot of time not shooting. This is not a big deal for Orks as they have extra armour equivalent and are +++removed by the inquisition+++ shots. Killa kans will lose out more than Dreds in this way. Three vehicles are harder to kill than one so you can avoid giving up kill points better by taking the Kans. I personally favour Kans out of the two as they have much better fire power and in combination with a KFF will be a real git to shift. They have only got WS 2 though so don't expect them to work miracles in combat.

3. I don't know how you feel about named characters but Snikrot and his Kommandos are an excellent tactical choice. Brilliant for destroying Basilisks and other back line cowards and for pushing the enemy onto the bulk of your force. Tankbusters are a sound choice until you realise they can be taken out of the game by a well placed and expendible vehicle. This can be avoided by sticking them in a Battlewagon (an excellent transport if you keep it cheap).

I hope that helps. What I would say though is this, the best unit in the whole list is Boyz, normal infantry in large numbers will make the Orks one of the very best forces under the new rules.

Thanks for the info on the Mega nobs. Seeing as I will get 10 nobs from the starter set and Swap I shall go with those, and get them a truck to ride in.

As for the boyz will 2 mobs of 20 be enough? what sort of minimum size should you be looking at and what is likley to be the most efficient size?

I'll have 6 Deffkoptas from the 2 starter sets. Are they a suitable substitue for warbikes? Bigbomms seem like fun but at 15 points a time are they worth it?

As for the Dreads vs kans I think I'll go for both. If I have a Big Mek my dread becomes a core choice not a heavy which seems as good a reason as any to take a dread

As for pain boyz. What is the feel no pain rule?

Gareth

the feel no pain rule means that if you take a wound from something that allows an armour save and you then fail that save then you can roll a 4+ to see if you just ignore the wound because you dont feel the pain

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just when you thought it was safe for sensible conversation!

I find that mobs of 20 are a good size.

Is there not 5 Deffkoptas in the boxed set? Personally I would equip them with rokkit launchas and send them down a flank hunting the side armour of tanks.

They don't tend to last too long anywhere else.