The Newly Completed O.K. Tactica

[Demandred]

Well here it is, the moment you have all been waiting for . The Newly (mostly) Completed Ogre Kingdoms Tactica. Many thanks go to OgreTyrant for his contributions.


Tactica: Ogre Kingdoms

This Tactica is split up into 7 rough sections

Part I- The Strengths and Weaknesses of the O.K. list. (Written by Demandred)
Part II- A Rundown on the Ogre Kingdoms units (Written by Demandred)
Part III- Bignames (Written by OgreTyrant)
Part IV- Gutmagic (Written by OgreTyrant)
Part V- Tools of Destruction (Written by OgreTyrant)
Part VI- Ogres and BFU (Written by OgreTyrant)
Part VII- Ogres and MSU (Written by Demandred)

Part I- Strengths and Weaknesses

Strengths

-Fear
Fear is an extremely useful ability, and luckily nearly every OK unit causes it. There are several different armies that cause this ability which makes them immune to our fear, however on the other side of that same coin, we are also immune to their fear (many such fear causing armies, such as Vampire Counts, rely on this so being immune is a big strength for us).

-Movement
This is the biggest advantage of the army in my opinion. Movement 6 makes for a highly mobile army which means that for the most part you can dictate where and when you want to fight your enemies units. Along with some of the fastest infantry in the game, we also have Gorgers which come in from behind the enemy.

-Basic Troops
Even the average naked bull is a force to be reckoned with. A decent strength and toughness, multiple wounds, and multiple attacks makes an ogre more than a match for other armies basic troops. It only gets better as you move up in the Ogre Ranks

-Ogre Magic
Gut Magic is honestly one of my favorite lores. The reason I love the OK magic is because I consider it to be a "relentless" magic lore, namely, nearly every spell is useful while also being really cheap to cast so eventually some spells are going to start getting through, it also helps that each butcher/slaughtermaster has the potential to have several remains in play spells out at the same time. It gets even better when you find out that Ogre casters automatically know every spell in the Lore of Gastromancy.

Weaknesses

-Elite Low Armored List
Because OK have some of the best troops around, we also have some of the most expensive. The cost of each ogre unit means that we will always be outnumbered unless your army has a load of gnoblars. Low numbers combined with sub par armor (the best save you can get is a 4+ against shooting, and thats with our lord and hero's) make for an army that can be ravaged by a heavy shooting army. Luckily this can be somewhat helped with army builds and play styles.

-Low Leadership
Not much to say here, our army is cursed with low leadership. This means panic checks can be forced quite easily with some shooting. Frankly I think panic and break checks are the bane of our army. This weakness can be somewhat offset by BSB's with the Ragbanner, the Kineater Bigname, and some of the OK magic items, such as Fistful of Laurels

-Low skill
Ogres aren't the most skillful or agile of fighters, going more for the brute strength approach rather than finesse at arms. This means that against some enemies such as Dwarfs or Chaos warriors, don't be surprised if you don't hit with many of your attacks. Multiple attacks can help with this though.
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Part II- Ogre Kingdoms Units

Ogre Lords and Heroes

-Tyrant
An Ogre Kingdoms Tyrant is a powerhouse to be reckoned with. These guys are just great. They can take on nearly anything and survive to boast about it at the great feast later. You can kit the tyrant out to either support nearby units, or you can just set him up to destroy whatever he might run into.

These are the two builds I use most for my Tyrants

Tyrant #1(Wades into anything and takes names)
Mawseeker Big Name
Tenderiser
Heavy Armor
Wyrdstone Necklace
Fistful of Laurels
Luck Gnoblar

Tyrant
Longstrider
Tenderiser
Wyrdstone Necklace
Heavy Armor
Luck Gnoblar


-Bruiser
The Bruiser is the Tyrants second in command, and as such, is second only to the Tyrant in terms of combat potential. In under two thousand points, you have to include a bruiser since butchers cannot be generals. I use two different Bruisers (mainly because one of my main opponents is a Dwarf player). In 2k+ the only reason to take a Bruiser is for a BSB, and even then I think a butcher would be more valuable.

Bruiser #1 (I like to call him Dwarfsmasher)
Siegebreaker
Wyrdstone Necklace
Heavy Armor
Luck Gnoblar

Bruiser #2
Heavy Weapon
Brace of Handguns
Heavy Armor
Wyrdstone Necklace
Fistfull of Laurels
Luck Gnoblar


Slaughtermaster and Butcher
Slaughtermasters and Butchers are the casters in the OK army. Besides having a great lore and a scary miscast table, Ogre casters are beasts! Butchers and Slaughtermasters are the toughest wizards you will ever find (Barring Vampires of course).

When it comes to equipping Butchers, if they don't have a skullmantle or bangstick I just give them dispel scrolls. Many OK players like to give their butchers the siegebreaker along with skullmantle to make for a caster with str 7 attacks. I myself don't like this build since I think it makes people get cocky and gets butchers in situations they shouldn't be in. Many find it to work however.

Hunter
The hunter is the odd one out of OK characters, he cant be the general, and doesn't quite have as much utility as a butcher. He also can't ever join other units. This all makes for a less than useful character. If you do choose to use him, I recommend setting him up with the Longstrider Bigname and 2 Sabertusks to make for a fast flanker. I personally have used him a couple of times against Dwarfs. Releasing the sabertusks into warmachine crews or Thunderer units works pretty well.

*** A note on Gnoblar options for characters***
With the exception of luck gnoblars, the upgrade gnoblars are next to useless. Sword Gnoblars because you are paying points in an already expensive army for a strength 2 hit, and tooth gnoblars because the only reasonable time you would use them is when trying to cast gut magic with 1 dice, in which case its usless because any rolls of a 1 or 2 to cast a spell BEFORE modifiers fails no matter what.

Ogre Core Choices

Bulls
The Bull is the basic ogre unit. They have the option to be upgraded with Ironfists or Extra Handweapons, and Light Armor. Based on my personal experience, I recommend running them without any upgrades except for a bellower, and keeping them in units of 3. Then they can be used for anything from charge bait, to cheap flankers. It has just always been my thought that for the cost of a Bull with Light Armor and Ironfist, you can pay a couple points more for an Irongut. They make good screens for the more important Ironguts.

Ironguts
Ahh yes...the Irongut, in my opinion the MVP of the Ogre Kingdoms army list. Great Weapons combined with high speed and multiple attacks makes for an awesome unit. The Heavy Armor they automatically come with is just an added plus. When it comes to upgrades, bellowers and standard bearers are good choices, while Gutlords just arent worth the points in my opinion. These guys are great for slamming into the side of a unit held up by bulls and gnoblars and just tearing the unit apart. What more can be said? They are just awesome. Like Bulls I recommend taking these guys in units of 3, as playing MSU best negates some of our armies weaknesses

Gnoblar Fighters
The dimunitive greenskin of the Mountains of Mourn. Many Ogre Kingdoms players prefer to leave these guys at home. I however, love them for three reasons. The first being that they are soo cheap, and can make up for the rank and file issues that the larger, more expensive ogres have. The second reason is that while being so small and cheap, they can still for some reason block LoS to the massive ogres. The last reason being that they are insignificant, so even if you use them to screen and they panic, no one cares, not even other gnoblars. For these reasons I usually take two units of 20-25 and use them either to screen or sit them in my back two quarters to claim them.

Gnoblar Trappers
Gnoblar Trappers are my second favorite OK unit. Skirmishing scouts makes for a unit that has so many different jobs it can do. They make good skirmishing screens, or they can be used as scouts to marchblock and throw sharpstuff at enemy casters and/or warmachine crews. On top of this all they are cheap, because they are gnoblars. I think every OK list should contain a unit of these.

Ogre Special Choices

Leadbelchers
Leadbelchers are fun and probably one of the most accurate missile units in the game for the very reason that they fire a random mass of metal and weapons, basically anything sharp that the Leadbelcher could shove into the cannon. Leadbelchers don't suffer from moving while shooting or from firing over half their range. There are a couple downsides
to this unit though. The first and major disadvantage is that if one of the Leadbelchers misfires it can slaughter its own unit. The other disadvantage is that after firing you have spend a turn reloading before you can fire again. Almost every single OK player runs units of 2 Leadbelchers in order to decrease the chance if misfire. I recommend either units of 2, and don't bother with any command upgrades besides a bellower.

Yhetees
Yhetees are the frozen cousins of the Ogres. They have several special rules that make them worthwhile, though like every unit of ogre(esque) things I recommend them in units of 3. Yhetees make great flankers and warmachine hunters due to their above average speed in an already fast army, and their ability to ignore difficult terrain when moving. In combat their attacks count as magical as long as they haven't been hit by fire, and everything hits at a -1 that is in base to base with them. I really like yhetees and enjoy using them.

***Note on Yhettees***
When I say everything that is touching their base hits at a -1, I mean EVERYTHING! So if charging Yhettees into a combat that already contains some of your own units, make sure they don't touch any friendly bases.

The Scraplauncher
I never used to use scraplaunchers, but recently the idea of them has been growing on me. a chariot hauling around a low strength, large template, killing blow causing stone thrower sounds pretty nice if you ask me. You have to be kind of careful with it though, since because it is bad tempered, it can be baited easily and destroyed in difficult terrain.

Ogre Rare Choices

Gorgers
Gorgers are a very useful part of the Ogre Kingdoms army.They also have a number of fantastic special rules, which enhance their use immensely, and that greatly helps them in the role of being an annoyance. Being able to appear from any table edge you choose is a big help in defeating foes who would keep close to their own table edge. Gorgers are also able combatants and will prove their worth in the destruction of enemy artillery, which is an ability desperately needed to ensure the survival of your most likely heavily outnumbered Ogres. Gorgers begin to shine even more when taken in a Skrag list, where you can get many more of them and even enhance their abilities. For the most part, I suggest going with 2 gorgers or none at all. I run a single one sometimes just for the psychological effect it can have.

Maneaters
Maneaters are kind of iffy, being quite the expensive unit, while being relatively fragile in the size they are usually taken, and the armor that they have access too. When deciding whether or not to use these guys it is completely up to you. I myself have used them to success when taking them in units of 3 (again that magic number for OK) and giving them all heavy armor, I then give one a great weapon and the other two braces of handguns.

Slavegiants
Of all the Ogre Kingdoms units, I find slavegiants to be the most worthless. The loss of stubborn is what really ruins this guy for me, along with getting "Thump with club," replaced with "Throttle with chain." I never take a slavegiant as both Gorgers and Maneaters are better by leaps and bounds.

[Demandred]

Part III- Ogre Bignames

BIG NAMES:

Kineater: This item is limited to Tyrants only therefore limiting its effectiveness. One main thing you should do here is to evaluate your army build, and decide if panic is going to be a big issue for you. If you play MSU like Demandred, then Kineater is a decent option. If you play 9= man units of ironguts like I tend to do....then its not really a viable choice.

(Demandred's thoughts on Kineater: I would have to agree, when playing MSU style Ogres the Kineater bigname can be quite usefull)

Mountaineater: Hmm...Don't really care for this one personally. If you are playing against an opponent who uses many high-strength attacks then this MAY be useful, although the spangleshard would do much better leaving room for a different big name.

Longstrider: A very useful item if placed properly. Use it on a Hunter and he trots right along with his sabretusks asand the don't get itchy having to hold back. Place it on a tyrant and have him do a "surprise" charge from his command unit when the opponent thinks he is safe. Don't forget it also will give 3d6 pursuit which is always nice.

Giantbreaker: *WARNING* personal opinion forthcoming. Giants suck!! However, if you already like them and already play them then giantbreaker is a definite yes. Give this to a tyrant of bruiser coupled with a sword of striking...5 S6 I4 attacks that hit on 2+????? whats not to like there? Yeah yeah you have to accept challenges...but what tyrant does not like to eat a snack before dinner?

(Demandred's thoughts on Giantbreaker: Because you have to take a gimpy slavegiant, you basically are paying 200pts for +1 strength to a tyrant, completely useless in my opinion)

Deathcheater: Pointless, waste of points spent, One use only.......C'mon..you can only have one big name per character... Why would you waste it on this? I cant think of a single instance where I would waste the big name spot on this one. If anyone can offer a viable use for this I'm all ears.

Beastkiller: Another that I see not much use for. Rare is the tyrant that ventures out alone. If he is in a unit, as most are wont to be, then the immune to psych is worthless. yeah you get 2 wounds for the price of one against large targets.....but the tenderiser will give you up to 3.....

Wallcrusher: Exceedingly useful here...Love this name...Of course I play with units that actually have a decent bullcharge. If you play MUS pick a different name. If you have a tyrant in unit with 2 ogres behind him....this name is amazing. Coupled with a Bull Standard...this name = 2 dead enemies....

(Demandred's thoughts on Wallcrusher: It might be useful with huge units, but in MSU this bigname leaves me wanting)

Mawseeker: STUPIDITY......you want your tyrant holding up your beefy irongut unit at the wrong moment while he drools on his gutplate??? You can give him the jade lion and reduce the chance of droolage, but its a risky maneuver. You KNOW that Murphy's Law will catch up with you and bite you in the butt...

(Demandred's thoughts on Mawseeker: I LOVE this bigname, but ONLY on a tyrant. Yeah it gives you stupidity, but in my experience, the speed that ogres have means that my tyrant usually gets into close combat quickly enough where stupidity no longer bothers him. Also, being able to get toughness 7 on a character (mawseeker + toothcracker) is super fun.)


Part IV- The Lore of Gastromancy

Gut magic, when used properly, can be some of the most destructive in the game. 1 dice gut magic is tricky but when mastered can win you the game.

Bloodgruel: Gain a wound on a 2+. Good spell.. Cast it only when you absolutely need it and try to cast it first... Most opponents will let it go, and if they don't thats 1 dispel dice gone. ****Bear in mind that this spell will be essential to keep your butcher above half health so as to not give out free V-points***

Braingobbler: This Tyrants personal favorite. Combine this with the Skullmantle and watch the sparks fly. If you have dice left, toss it at elves or brets....Anyone can flub a roll now and then.

Bullgorger: Your ogres bullcharge goes from wounding on a 3+ to a 2+. Your ironguts hits harder....Whats not to like. If you cast it on the butchers unit first it becomes easier to cast.

Bonecrucher: Great spell here... I have personally seen a unit of 8 knights disappear to this spell. Yeah I know its only str 2 hits...but knights only have toughness 3... You get off 6-8 hits on them at least 3 should die....and 3 dead knights are better than none!

Toothcracker: Like the ogres needed to be tougher? Cast this on the command unit with your tyrant and you have a unit that just does not care if it gets beaten and is Stubborn to boot!. Take the str 6 hit...its ok...Just Gruel it up later.

Trollguts: You cant ask for a better spell than this. Your ogres are already tough as nails...they hit like a train.....how could they possibly get better?????? Oh I know....a 4+ ward save!!! Get this baby on your big unit of guts and they will live forever! The Magic resist (2) is just icing on the damn cake!!!


Part V- Ogre Tools of Destruction

Magic Weapons

Thundermace: The special attack....Not only are you degrading your strength, but you only get one chance to hit. against normal troops thats a 33.3% probability to miss....if you go against a better opponent....you miss half the time. Basically its an all or nothing scenario and I don't like that. Give me a GW that will,on average, hit 3 times.

Tenderiser: Whooo boy do I love this weapon. Give this to your tyrant and pretend it has the rule "Must always challenge". You get one of 2 things here.... A massive amount of overflow wounds for CR or you get an enemy character at the back of the bus. You are hitting at STR7.....You are gonna wound.....thats -4 to armor......You are gonna get through.....d3 wounds per unsaved wound.... you are GONNA kill something!

siegebreaker: The ultimate butcher weapon. suddenly your spellcaster is swinging with 3 STR7 attacks.....Yeah yeah, most better troops that are at ws 5-6 are at I5-6 as well..so you hit on 4's...which you were doing anyway....and at +3 str....Yeah...

skullplucker:Not worth it....If you use it on a tyrant he'll hit at the very best a third of his hits...which averages you about .50 killing blows each turn...No Str bonus, nothing. Blech.

Bloodcleaver: CAN be useful for a butcher...but he has to be in combat...and he is a weakling...so unsaved wounds are not forthcoming. 5 more points gets you the siegebreaker....So let it be written...so let it be done.
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Magic Armor

Mastadon Armor: If you really plan on running your Tyrant around by himself in front of cannonballs...then by all means spend 50 pts on this thing. If you, however, have your tyrant in a unit where he really needs to be..then this becomes a very, very expensive set of heavy armor.....

Greatskull: If you can fit it in never leave home without it. I personally run large groups with a tyrant, butcher and bsb in one. That unit gets targeted with EVERYTHING. Making your opponent think twice about a 4 casting dice spell is very handy.

Bullgut: Can potentially make for a good flank-tyrant..but there again you have to run him alone to make it work. In a group it would add a bit to the US and kill knights outright on the bull-charge....but there are other things the points are better spent on.

Gutmaw: Nice item. Combine it with the Tenderiser and you have a challenge-tyrant that tends to get bigger each challenge.

Greedy Fist: you have to make a "successful save".....Ogres are notoriously crappy at armor saves...spend points elsewhere.
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Talismans

Cathayan Jet: On a solo character..maybe...but if you run your guys in units....just not worth the points.

Spangleshard: Just not worth it at all... After doing the math...its no better than a 6+ ward save....sometimes worse....Spend points elsewhere.

Wydstone Necklace: A possible wound for a 5+ ward save? I'd do it...Why not?

Gnoblar Thiefstone: Yes yes....umm...YES?!? Take em....Take as many as you can get... They are neatocoolgroovywow. Ahem...sorry.. 15 points each and you can take up to 3....thats 3 dice that are NOT from your dispel pool. Put a few of these on your big center unit....you wont regret it. Unless you are playing against the little short guys... then its kinda silly.
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Arcane Items

Hellheart: Mid or late game against heavy magic opponents it can be useful. there are just other butcher only items that a re more useful.

Gruts sickle: Possible usefulness when trying get in a spell that you really need. If you run 3 butchers its a decent choice...

(Demandred's thoughts on Grut's Sickle: Not worth it IMO, Bangstick, Skull Mantle, Cookbook, and Scrolls are all a better choice.)

Halfling Cookbook: Utterly useful: Put in on your #2 butcher and let the buffs begin.

Bangstick: Draw out the dispel dice...You know you wanna! Really misplaced as an Arcane item I think.

(Demandred's thoughts on Bangstick: A must have! If you run an army with one or more butchers you HAVE to have this item.)

skullmantle: If you do not have this item on your tyrant support butcher...then you need to melt down your models and go play Brettonia.
-1 leadership for ALL LEADERSHIP TESTS CAUSED BY THE UNIT. Thats Braingobbler, fear tests, break tests. This ones a no-brainer... Play it or start painting your grail knights.
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Enchanted Items

Brahmir Statue: If you are one of those guys that like to build to fight a specific army this is for you. If you are building a tourney or just a well rounded army leave this one in the tool shed.

Daemon Killer Scars: Its aight...you already cause fear and unless you are, once again, building to fight a specific low leadership army, better spend the points somewhere else.

Greyback Pelt: No no no no no....Unless you don't play Yhetees....and that would just be silly now wouldn't it. However, if you don't play them...Go ahead...I guess...Silly, no yhetee playing, goofball. Seriously though... 1 character that can ignore terrain..or 3-6 nasties that ignore terrain.... The math kinda makes my point for me.

Jade Lion: Decent item here.....but if you run...so does it. I usually run a bsb in my army...so this is a waste of points on my end. Some players use it to counter-act the possible stupidity from mawseeker...but thats a player choice.

Rock-eye: If you have never played warhammer before...It COULD be helpful. However for most players..they know what could possibly be in a unit they are up against and can normally figure it out by the way their opponent is playing.

Fistful of Laurels: If for some reason you go against all sanity and run without a BSB then this item is definitely for you. Stick it on your tyrant to keep him put.

(Demandred's thoughts on Laurels: A good choice for its point cost, if I have the room I always take these.)

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Magic Standards

Dragonhide: Only a BSB can carry this one. Kinda pricey but can help insure that you get the wounds from your bullcharge. Useful only in big point games IMHO.

Ragbanner: MUS players would get use from this but it only affects one unit.... Players (like myself) that play large groups of ogres....Panic tests are few and far between....Jade lion is less expensive and covers ALL tests...not just panic.

Cannibal Totem: Unless you are certain you are fighting another ogre player...Leave it alone....just walk away.....

Bull Standard: Its useful...sometimes....In a MUS army it would help more but there again...only one unit....It a large unit game....My ogres impact hits start at str6 and go up from there...If you want to make CERTAIN you do the damage with your impact hits....This ones for you.

Rune Maw: Useful if you play gnoblars ( Oh god why ever for? ) If you have the points and just must buy a banner..I guess you can use this one.. if for some reason you have used all of the other 4.

(Demandred's thoughts on Rune Maw: I like gnoblars (for various reasons) so this is my second favorite banner, redirecting spells into the little blighters always makes for a laugh.)

[Demandred]

Part VI- Ogres and BFU

OgreTyrant's view on playing Ogre Kingdoms

Oi fellow Guts,

At the request of the Overtyrant Demandred the following will be my take on the BFU style of Ogre play. If you have to ask what BFU means then start painting your green knight.

Ogres have 2 main things going for them when they walk onto the battlefield. The first is the fact that they are huge. Each ogre has 3 wounds and is tough as nails. The second is they cause FEAR!!

I see alot of tactica's about ogres, talking about the fact that they are always outnumbered. While this may be true as a whole on the field it does not have to be so when it come to your units. A large unit of ogres will outnumber almost any unit your opponent throws at you.

The only way to get the maximum benefit of fear is to have the unit you are using outnumber the one that you charge. If you are a small unit fear does next to nothing for you. Yeah your opponent might hit on 6's occasionally but thats piddly compared to them running away from you at the drop of a hat.

FEAR BREAKDOWN.

1.) Charging with your fear causing unit. When you declare a charge with your fear causing unit and your opponent is not immune they have to take a fear check (leadership test). If they fail one of 2 things happens. A.) If their unit str is higher than yours they will hit on 6's only in the following combat. or B.) if your unit str is higher than that of the unit you are charging ....THEY RUN AWAY... thats a broken unit amigo.... WE LIKE broken units.

2.) Defeating a unit with your fear causing unit. When you win the combat that your ogres are in AND you outnumber your opponent.....THEY AUTOMATICALLY FAIL THE BREAK TEST. The only way for them to think about staying is to pass the "insane courage test...Which happens rarely. If they outnumber you.....they test as normal.... for them not to have a choice in the matter is always better... You...when you have smashed them to bits and they lost by 10 CR....its almost a given they will run. But when you eek out a minor 1CR victory...its nice to see them running anyway because they had no choice.

In my 2000pt tourny build... This is my command unit.

Tyrant: Tendersiser, Greatskull, Wallcrusher
BSB Bruiser: Battlestandard, Warbanner
Butcher: Siegebreaker, Skullmantle
9 Ironguts: standard,bellower, Bullstandard.

Thats a unit strength of 36. Rare is the unit that will outnumber this one. Even if they DO outnumber at he beginning of the combat (that would be a massive unit), The amount of damage this ogre unit is capable of will all but ensure that YOU will outnumber by the end of the combat.

Another point to look at is the fact that you will rarely take a panic test with this type of unit. Your opponent must render 9 wounds in a single phase to force a panic check. Thats 9 wounds against ogres.....But if you are insanely worried about the panic tests, take the greatskull from your tyant and give him the jade lion....That results in a stalwart, nigh unbreakable unit of ogres.

One big reason that people tout the MSU build is to give your opponent more targets than he can shoot at. My stance is, WHO CARES if they shoot at your big units? They may kill 2 or 3 before you get to their lines. No big deal. If they kill 2....you still have a US of 30 when you hit...Thats still more than enough to outnumber all but the most insane units of undead or skaven. Once your massive unit is in combat....thats all she wrote... Not much they can do about it then. The ONLY way I have seen a unit like this be beaten is against a dwarf player, and he was the biggest cheese player I had ever seen.

Tactica for BFU build? Walk em straight up the middle and smash into anything in the way... Easy and simple.

He is my 2000pt Tourny build in its entirety... Build it and give it a few test games.

Tyrant: Tendersiser, Greatskull, Wallcrusher
BSB Bruiser: Battlestandard, Warbanner
Butcher: Siegebreaker, Skullmantle
9 Ironguts: standard,bellower, Bullstandard.

5 ironguts: bellower, standard
Butcher: Bangstick

3 Bulls (because you have to)

3 Yhetees: Greyback

Gorger.

One main thing to remember when building for a tournament in your local area is to keep in mind who your opponents will be. If you know that there will be 5 Dwarf players then take out the butchers and add in more yhetee, or a unit of maneaters.



Part VII- Ogres and MSU

Tactica: Ogre MSU OR Tactica: Too Many Units to Shoot At!


The Theory Behind "MSU"

MSU is the belief in making so many small units, that your opponent will have difficulty garnering enough victory points due to the sacrificial nature of any of your units. In other words, you have so many small units, that even losing one or two a turn will amount to a small number of victory points for your opponent.

For MSU to work effectively, you have to keep one major word in mind "Bait." That is to say, if you get charged, you always FLEE! Then you either get away safely (usually a good bet) or your unit get caught and destroyed, either way, the enemy unit (which is probably bigger and worth more points than your sacrificial unit) is now out of place in the open, ripe for numerous flank charges to take it down fast. Baiting and Fleeing should be taken with a grain of salt though, because it also depends on the unit that is charging you. If its a small, weak, but fast unit, I would try to stand my ground. No one wants to sacrifice a unit of bulls for a unit worth even less points.

Gnoblars work really well in MSU also, but instead of fleeing with these guys, take the charge. After all, who cares if the little blighter's get wiped out (Not Ogres, thats for sure). If they die, the enemy unit is still sitting there waiting for a counter charge. If they (somehow) live then you just tied up an enemy unit with 40-50 points worth of a tarpit, again, making it a ripe target for a flank attack.

There is a problem with MSU though. Namely panic checks, If you play an opponent with the right list and know how (I.E. plenty of strong, ranged attacks) he can force one after another of your small units to panic and flee.

Why MSU Works for Ogres

MSU works for Ogres for a number of reasons. The first reason being our speed. An ogre army is more than capable of getting its units in place for some nice baiting, and then speed helps our flankers get in where they are needed.

The second reason is number of units. An Ogre is expensive, using large "Hammer" units means that at most you will have 2-3 units of Bulls/Ironguts (Assuming you use specials and rares to good effect) Using larger units also gives ranks, both a good and bad thing. On the upside you have stronger bull charges (against the new High Elves this is nice). On the downside however, you have extra Ogres that are going to get hit by bolt throwers and bouncing cannon balls. Which leads me to my next point.

The third reason is that MSU helps against shooting/artillery heavy armies. I play dwarves quite often (Read: A LOT!) and nothing annoys him more than shooting that big, sexy, runed up cannon and killing at most, one Ogre. The same thing goes for Bolt Throwers. Against a gun line, your forcing a whole enemy unit to shoot at.... three Ogres, which even if the Ogres die (hopefully not with Ogre toughness + Supporting Gut Magic) is a small fraction of your total units and points.

The fourth, and one of the most important reasons, is that it helps make up for having such an expensive (point wise) army. If you have a large unit that gets a cannon ball bounced through it, or a lucky penetrating bolt from a bolt thrower (not unlikely against dwarfs) and that unit panics, thats a large chunk of change running away. However multiple small units make numerous targets that aren't worth much in and of themselves. Now, to make this work effectively you need to run bare bones Ogres. This means, no upgrades except bellower, and you only take standards if its to get a lookout gnoblar to protect a character. This has the effect of making cheaper units, and also gives you points to get extra Ogres.

***A Note on Fear in MSU***
It is true that the an Ogre's fear can be most useful when using a large block of Ogres, but it can still be quite potent when used in an MSU style list. You will never autobreak an enemy unit just by charging them unfortunately, but it is still quite easy to get the fear break in combat by merely doing combined charges with your smaller (more maneuverable) units. Two units alone give a combined US of 18 which in most cases is more than enough to outnumber at the end of a fight after impact hits and attacks.

[Demandred]

Well there you have it, My take (and several others) on the magnificent army that is Ogre Kingdoms.

Hope you all enjoyed (and hopefully learned something from) reading this tactica. All the ideas put forth in this tactica are just that. So if anyone has any problems or information they think is missing feel free to let me know, either through PM or posting in this thread.

[Canuck]

This a really nice tactica. Its clear and its got advice on everything in an OK army. Congrats!

[Demandred]

Thanks Canuck! I appreciate the feedback

[ArchonFarseerGuy]

yeah you get 2 wounds for the price of one against large targets.....but the tenderiser will give you up to 3.....

Whooo boy do I love this weapon

Don't remind me...


Good article OT and Demandy8Y. Clearly a lot of time and effort went into this and the quality has shown (but it's not as good as the Wood Elves one ).

-AFG