So it’s been.. uh.. a couple of years, apparently, since I’ve finished any of my Orks – and yeah – it’s been way too bloody long! So today we have a band of five Ork Nobz from the AoBR boxed set – the starter for Warhammer 40k 5th edition. I’ve got at least a couple of these kicking around somewhere still in various states and like a lot of people I also picked up a number of cheap models off of the eBay back in the day – so here’s the first of mine. These five are actually the final bunch of the 25 Orks I pledged to paint alongside Wudugast back in …2019, only to burn out and stumble just before the finish line…
After painting quite a lot of far simpler models over the past several months – including a few from WHFB, a return to 40k models really blew me away (and not necessarily in a good way) with how detailed and in fact over-detailed they are. Kind of at odds with models designed for a horde army, really. So many individual rivets and bullets and straps and buckles and laces and.. all of which my mild OCD requires that I paint. And then to cap if off, my army’s theme being something I think of as Blood Axes crossed with Rogue Trader-era boyz – so camouflage clothing all ’round!
I mean, I did have a lot more fun painting these compared to most of the recent Drizzt models, it’s just that they also felt like they would never end given how busy they are. Even now as I’m writing this after having just put the final pre-varnish touches on these models, I spotted three extra things I need to touch on. While these Orkses weren’t the most fun I’ve had painting, and they’re pretty 2.5-D models from a starter set, I still think they’re going to be “fond of” models once I’ve had them finally out of my tray for a few days…
This set of models and getting them done was inspired in part by wanting to “clear my mental debt” to Wudugast after several long years, and recently looking over some Orks by that guy in our blog-circle who paints really fucking well. OK, too broad, I guess. I mean this guy.
Ans yes, there will be more Orks in 2023!
Azazel's Bitz Box. 
I like the camo on these Azazel. It grounds the green shaven space gorilla barbarian vibe a little… and yes, I am aware of at least many of the possible contradictions in a statement like that 🙂
The 2.5D nature of some plastic figures is an interesting one. Like, say, the Talisman 3rd ed plastics, that slightly flat, chunky design adds a certain toyetic element to figures that I often enjoy. Sometimes it gives wargaming figures a pleasing knockabout vibe, a bit like the green Army Men that most of us had a few of growing up.
It doesn’t always work out that way of course, particularly with boardgame figures that are made out of waxy plastic (“pthalates” I think) rather than HIPS, but the Black Reach orks and marines are on the right side of that for me.
I may be prepping some GorkaMorka figs soon. I feel that Black Reach orks will make up the bulk of the project, with GoMo probably being the GW game that feels most like playing games with toys on the floor hen I was a kid.
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Thanks! Orks in the GW style can indeed look pretty Saturday Morning Cartoon a lot of the time – particular in late-RT through 2nd edition schemes..
I’m actually fairly surprised that this 2.5D style lasted so long, even in starter kit models – when you consider the Original Orlock and Goliath Necromunda gangs had that style and it persisted as late as 40k 5th edition. The AoBR Orks would work well, those plastic GorkaMorka Orks didn’t age nearly as well as the metals from that range, the Diggas in particular.
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Lovely stuff mate. Your debt is paid! I got a real hit of nostalgia from seeing AoBR models too – my first big box of Warhammer! 🙂
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Cheers Wudu! Good to finally get that particular debt paid! 🙂
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Very nice indeed – I love the camouflage of course, but it’s all the chipping and the cool red stripe details that really do it for me mate 🤘
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Cheers Alex – weathered and battered and battleworn is the look I’m going for. The red stripe gives that little bit of sorta sci-fi militarism to them for me – kinda like the coloured bars on a Star Wars Clone trooper.
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Great work on these guys! I know a couple of people who started Ork armies based on that 5th edition box. As you say the models are deceptively complex, with lots of details that require individual attention. They came out very well here.
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Cheers Dave – yeah they’re pretty heavy on all of those little details! Much moreso than the standard multipart plastic boyz of the era…
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Awesome looking Orks mate, and the camo pattern is top notch, it may have taken a while, but was totally worth it for these fantastic renditions
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Keith has got the Monster May(hem) post up mate
http://angrypiper.com/?p=6234
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gracias!
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Cheers Dave. Now for some plastic Boyz and then something a lot more fun in the same line…
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Lovely little stroll down memory lane! Love the paint job, every bit of it. As I was reading your post and looking at the pictures, I was at odds, as I was thinking, how wonderfully under-complicated these old 5th ed miniature are, it’s what kept me in WH40K for so long. They just scream out for big blocks of color, shading and dry brushing – done, on the table, throw some dice!
A very stark contrast to today’s WH40K miniatures, which put me right off, even if the rules and game play keep me from GW in general.
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Thanks mate! It’s such an incredibly long time since I’ve painted any truly modern Warhammer models. I really need to do some of them and see how it goes compared to a lot of these older models (and boardgame models) I’ve been spending so much time on…
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Awesome work on these. Loving the whole vibe. Having painted some of these and a couple of the newer ones I would take these any day.
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I’m actually pretty interested in giving some of the newer ones a shot of paint. I need to finish 20 more prepped Orks first, though… 😮
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These are simply great! 🙂 Can’t pick a favourite!
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Thanks John! I appreciate that coming from you! 🙂
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Looking good and congrats on getting them done! Do you usually vary the skin tone on your Orks or do you have a standard color? In Blood Bowl I use one recipe for Black Orcs (now called *sigh* Big Ups) and another for the rest of the Orks. Just curious!
I also hear you on overly busy models. I’m not sure if the newer models are even worse, but either way they are exhausting. I would keep thinking “I’m almost done!”. Only to find out there are more odd bits to paint. Or something I forgot or on one mini of the BB team, they decided to give them a stein or some other random thing. And I don’t even paint armies…I’m not sure how you all manage to keep sane!
And yes, THAT GUY, does paint really f’in well! Always impressed with what he cranks out. 🙂
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Overall, I do Big’uns and Black Orks and Bozzes with darker skin, mid-tones for regular Orks/Orcs and then mighter and lighter for Gobboes through Snotlings.
As for exact colours and paints, I tend to go with a similar base and then vary the highlights and shades from what’s within reach – this gives me some natural variance between individuals or batches.
I do the same with things like Slayer hair, and increasingly, nondescript caucasian-ish human skin tones – ie – when I’m not specifically going for darker, or lighter, or fairer, or bronzed skin. Or painting trash PVC D&D models. 😮
I’m really looking forward to painting some more BB minis actually. Getting started on some Blood Bowl or Blitz Bowl could be fun…
And yeah, THAT GUY… 😉
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Well done – love especially the camouflage and the bases show fine work too.
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Cheers Mark – thanks! 🙂
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These are excellent! The color scheme is right up my alley, desert and various camo patterns, with nice contrast between the light armor/cloth and the darker skin. I’m glad to hear you enjoyed painting these (relatively speaking, at least:)), and I think it shows in the paintwork. I mean, you could’ve left them without the camo patterns, chipped armor, those red markings, power axe glows (funny, I don’t think I’ve considered that for Orks…) etc. to get them done sooner, but you went the extra mile and the models are beautiful for it.
Hah, and thanks for the shoutout, really made me smile!
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Thanks mate! I’m sure I would have enjoted the process a lot more if not for the “oh, there’s ANOTHER litle detail I have to catch” on these models – which would be fine for proper heroes, but given that they’re starter-box elites got a bit tedious. 😀
I do enjoy the painted details, and the Orks really shine with them I think. Next for this lot are some “rescue miniatures” boyz, which hopefully won’t take another three years, and then I can get onto more of my Rogue Trader metals!
Well deserved on the shoutout as well – it really was re-reading that post of yours that made me kick my arse back into gear on these!
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Great job on the Greenskinz, mate! I really like your color scheme and the desert camo is a cool idea I haven’t seen with Orks before. You could give them a Mad Max vibe, especially with all of the cool vehicles GW has made over the years. Since you’re Australian, I think it might be your patriotic duty to do so. I think that’s how that works anyway… 🙂
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Thanks mate! Orks are somewhat Mad Max as it is. I do have some specific plans for some models that will be quite chrome, but the vehicles will be a nice mix of the three influences of Mad Max, Rogue Trader and Blood Axe.
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Nothing much that I can add that hasn’t already been said, but these guys are absolutely fantastic.
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Thank you! Very happy to have finally gotten them finished! 😀
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So awesome mate. Glad to hear there will be more to come in 2023
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Cheers mate – I’ve been slowly doing bits on the next batch of them for the past few months so when I get to finishing them it’ll be much less work! (What with all that camo!)
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