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Because, it just looks so big and ugly. We're dealing with orks, who are not especially clever save a few.

The old wagon was simple. Orks found it, they put a machine gun, wrecking ball, and some other stuff on it. Done.

This new one looks poorly designed aesthetic wise, and too complex for it's own good.

I must say, the fact that the new vehicles don't look (entirely) randomly thrown together actually makes me think that the Meks have some real skill, and not just the knowledge that "right makes tight, left makes loose".

You people seem to think that orks are a bunch of complete retards. Most orks are about as smart as humans, but they care little for the pursuit of knowledge. Sure, any ork can be willingly taught to speak, tie his boots, load and fire a handgun, sharpen an axe, or drive a truck, but this is only to help them to acheive their goal: to become brutally and unstoppably killy.

Now meks (as well as all other oddboys), they are a different story.
Considering that Ork technology surpasses modern human technology, you need to cut them some slack. The ability to engineer, build, operate, and maintain such devices as repeating firearms, internal combustion engines, anti-tank rockets, flamethrowers, Airplanes, Spaceships, computers, cyborgs, Bionics, force-fields, tractor beams, tellaporters, and plasma weapons proves that an Ork Mekboy has a better understanding of technology and science than some tech-priests. Go ahead and argue, but it seems that even Tech priests have yet to do anything but reverse-engineer old STC schematics. At least orks are striving to improve their technology.

The new battlewagon respects that. Sure, it's no land raider. The battlewagon is still a rolling scrapheap. This is because most meks have plenty of knowledge but no outlet. A bunch of snakebites would probably have something akin to the older battlewagon, slow, ugly, and built with whatever they could find. I'll bet it's not uncommon that wooden planks, rocks, and rope would be holding the contraption together. Now considering more advanced tribes, like the Evil Sunz, Deffskulls, Bad Moons and Blood axes: their meks have much, much more to work with, and their creations are capable of rivaling the mightiest of imperial tanks.

These new battlewagons capture the terrible creative genius of the Mekboys, while the old one looks like a bad episode of junkyard wars.

I don't think the Orks would be as awesome if all their vehicles came driving out of pictures I drew when I was in kindergarten art class - as they are it's a bit closer to junior high doodles, which fits in that little niche in my mind known as "just right". Hark's right about how Orks aren't totally stupid unless it's being played for comedy.

My Boss, Gorzag Da Chompa, had this to say about the forgeworld bikerboss:

"Dat runt aint killy 'nuff. 'E needs a klaw and a 'ard 'elmut for 'is noggin. Yah, dat grot luvva may be zoggin fast, but without da 'ard stuf e's just a nuvver 'ead on me trofy rakk."

The Rhino and Landraiders were changed because GW was changing it's art direction. Either way, it would make sense for the Imperium to upgrade their old stuff to new items because of technological developments.

Orks don't research stuff so much as they just know how. They were made as biological weapons by the now extent forerunner race to battle the necrontyr and C'tan, and their specific roles in society have been embedded into their genetic code. Hence, the schematics for whatever they would make are pre-programmed. Sure, an ork mechanic (most likely a blood axes) can copy and manipulate technology - but for all Space Orks all over the galaxy to suddenly adopt a new design doesn't make much sense. Especially one that's off the wall. Even if GW decides what they can and cannot do, I can still comment on it - can't I?

I do have knowledge about Orks, and am drawing most of it from 'Ere we Go and the previous three Ork codices. Just because I don't unquestioningly accept the new battle wagon as "proof", you're assuming I don't know anything about Orks?

Also: hurr deal with it

@ Hark

That's because most Orks are what we today would call retards. The large majority of them are dumb, slow to understand a new situation, or react to anything other than violence. It's a minority of Orks that can do stuff as operate vehicles, construct things, or go into the medical field. You can't really teach an Ork how to tie a boot because you'll probably be dead before you can say "Hello". While some display cleverness, others just scream "Waaagh" and run at the closest target. While this is perfectly acceptable to Ork society, if you are saying that they are about as smart as humans then I believe you're incorrect.

Ork technology that surpasses modern human technology? I assume you're referring to teleporters or Shokk guns? I believe such technology was pirated from other races. Either way, it's not saying much that Orks can utilize a superior technology 39,000 years into the future.

Sure Meks can add to a looted tank or build one from scrap, or a bunch can make a Titan but they never make anything really significantly different. It's always something bit and armored with as many guns as they can fit on it. If the Imperium of Man would be bothered to stop using a**-backwards tactics and technology then maybe they would put up a better fight against the Space Orks.


As a sidenote, I was going to play Orks but decided not to upon meeting the type of people who play Orks online and at my local rouge trader.

Thunda Kannon

96" S10 AP2 Apocalypse Barrage (4)

That'd represent a battery shot from a battleship's deck gun.

@serebrate:
That was rather rude response on your part, but please allow me to retort:

It would not make sense for the imperium to update it's technology. It would be a good idea, but the beurocracy of the imperium keeps it from ever happening. Keep in mind that the preisthood of mars has practically halted all advances in technology based on superstition and tradition. Technology for them is like a galaxy-spanning acheological dig. There are no new advances, only re-discovered schematics on old STC files. There are bans on the creation of advanced tecnologies outside of the labs of the most high tech-magos and engineseers. The only such "advance" in recent memory was a simple weapon swap to make the crusader pattern land raider, and those plans still had to get authorized by the adeptus mechanicus before it was used outside of the Black Templars chapter. Now, only a priveleged few orks have the oddboy genes, the rest are grunts, true. But you seem quite confident that every last human in the fourty-first millenium is on par with a super-genius nuclear physicist. Oh wait, No? That's right. Only the Techpreists are that smart. All the other humans are mindless drones, endlessly slaving their lives to the imperial war machine, either serving in the guard or toiling in an ammo plant until death. Taught only to obey and not question. Ignorance is bliss, love is war, freedom is slavery, and all that. Much higher aspirations and intellect than an ork. Oh yah.

Meanwhile, the orks are ever vigilant in their pursuit of technology. I'm sure that nazdreg's massive "tellyporta" idea was right there in his head all along. Sure. That's why they've never used them before. Did you know, mister wiseguy, that the bad moon's new tellaporter is second only to the eldar webway gates in the ability to tellaport massive loads at once? They did it quite well recently. Nazdreg's new technology has been employed to devastating effect for the instantaneous deployment of shock troops on Piscina, Armageddon, and Medusa V. When's the last time an imperial force landed thousands of soldiers on a planet's surface at once with a single teleporter array?

And I'm sure that countless meks have already tried Wazdakka Gutsmek's warp portal Idea, You know, the interplanetary super 'eyeway? yah, all meks have that knowledge coded into their DNA. That's why it's been done before, And so often. Mm-hm.

Sure a mek knows how to replace spark plugs and field-strip a shoota based on primal genetic instinct, yes, you are correct. but they can't obtain every last scrap of information from genetic memory. They still need to have their own orky version of R and D. and unlike the heavily enforced techno-laws of the Imperium, the Orks live in an almost anarchaic society of thousands of tiny empires. They have the freedom to create and experiment, but they rarely commit to large projects like these, because they could use those same resources and manpower to launch a waaagh against some weakling oomans. If you removed the ork's need for constant violence and let them develop peacefully, They could probably create technology to rival that of the Tau.

PS: I have now made it my personal mission to teach orks everywhere how to tie their boots. biggrin