As my favorite faction in Diskwars, the Orcs get a great deal of play time around these parts, and they generally put up a good fight against all opposing factions. The main strengths of the Orcs as a faction are fear, surprise, and--oh, wait, that's not it. The Orcs have some incredibly useful support units, lots of good cheap units, and a core of good solid combat units. Their main weaknesses revolve around not having any fliers or Level 3 spell casters, but their strengths usually outweigh any problems that may arise due to this. As the basis of every army's tactics and strategy revolve around the units that compose that army, I figure it would be helpful to examine the units that make up the Orc forces.
Two factors come in to play when evaluating individual Orc units--do they pass the "Fireball Test", and is the unit in question worth more or less than its weight in Grugs. There are three ways for a given unit to pass the "Fireball Test":
1. Be able to survive a Fireball spell, which usually requires more than 6 total toughness.
2. Be cost inefficient to shoot with a Fireball spell, which usually means costing less than 5 points.
3. Be a unit that is rarely, if ever, going to be in the line of sight of a spell caster, which usually means being a back rank support unit like a spell caster or a missile unit.
To be worth more than its weight in Grugs, a given Orc unit needs to be generally more effective than the equivalent points in Grugs. This is sort of a judgment call, and there is no hard fast rule, but when looking at any Orc unit, you need to ask yourself "Do I want to spend 12 points on this one guy, or just get 4 more Grugs?" Things to consider here are total toughness, total attack factor, and general utility, but the total toughness is the most important factor--a given front line Orc unit should have, at minimum, 3 total toughness per 3 points spent, unless they have an exceptional special ability (such as Ulcan Skulkers).
To take closer look at all the Orc units at our disposal:
Unique Heroes:
Urgg, the Really Mean: Urgg is a very solid combat hero, and is comparable to most other original set hero units (except for the Dwarf heavy hitters, who generally have an extra wound). His 6/4/6 combat stats are strong, he has two wounds, and his cost of 11 makes him perfectly playable--for the same 11 points, you could only get 3 Grugs, which have a total of 9 toughness as opposed to Urgg's total of 12, and his 6 attack factor is useful enough to make him worth using. Grade: A
Zhoka the Mad: Zhoka is a pure powerhouse of destruction, having the same attack and total toughness as Urgg, but a point cheaper. Her 2 defense is a fine trade off for her move of 4 (making her the fastest of the effective Orc heroes), and her special ability, while highly conditional, could be useful (as any use of Ambush is very strong). She should be in *every* pure Orc army. Grade: A
Zobak the Despised: Zobak is a very solid, if a bit expensive, combatant. He is incredibly tough (5 T and 3 wounds) with a respectable attack and a moderately useful special ability. Yeah, he can't attack good guys, but against evil or neutral forces, Zobak is a good choice. Grade: B+
Khazzerek, Goblin Hero: A cheap, quick swashbuckler with respectable combat stats. His high defense score is useful, but he isn't likely to survive any situation where his Swashbuckling becomes an issue. Regardless, he is solid. Grade: B+
Gorzac Goblinflinger: While Gorzac is certainly funny, he just isn't that useful. The 6" range of his special attack is a huge liability (he is likely to be pinned or dead before he becomes useful), and for the points, you can get any number of more effective guys. At least he is hard to kill. Grade: C+
Ugg, The Mean: Ugg, as opposed to Urgg, really isn't that good. His combat stats of 5/5/6 are perfectly respectable, but his disadvantage combined with his movement of 2 make him close to unusable, even at a cost of 8. If he had a movement of 3, he would be excellent, but as it is, he is simply too slow. He might be useful in purely defensive scenarios. I really *want* to like him, though. Grade: C
Spell casters:
Werrel Moog: Moog is one of the main reasons to play the Orcs, and certainly one of the main incentives to play pure. Moog is a level 2 caster for 5 points, which is a great deal in any situation. With respectable stats (just keep him out of line of any Fireballs...), his disadvantage (you can't have any other casters in the army) is much less of an issue now that Zharta Khun is available to an Orc army. Grade: A
Zeegra Warrior Priestess: A perfectly viable level 1 caster with good combat stats and a reasonable cost. Her excellent picture (and funny name), if nothing else, make her worth using, but Moog tends to outclass her. Grade: B+
Turzak the Blinding: He has an interesting special ability, which could be useful against the Elves (or Uthuk, with their Viper Legions), and is very tough, but is kind of expensive for a level 1 caster. Purchase him primarily for his special ability. Grade: B
Ghash Zzurkan: Sadly, Ghash suffers from the early over costing of spell casters. He is tough, but if you are playing a pure army, you are *much* better off with Moog, and if you aren't playing pure, you can get Farrenghast for one more point, who is even tougher, and level 3 to boot. Grade: C
Support Units:
Orc Assassin: Orc Assassin is incredibly useful, with his 12" ambush and First Blow. He is kind of expensive, and now that Ulcan Skulkers exists you are unlikely to need more than one in a given army, but his ability to whack uniques is very potent. Notice that his special ability does not require that he ambush *enemy* disks, so he can jump around your ranks quickly. Grade: A
Ulcan Skulkers: These guys are a powerhouse of utility. Respectable combat stats, low cost, and the ability to ambush *or* burrow any unit within 12" is amazing. Pin anything that might be problematic. Cast Reflect on him and have him burrow any powerful opposing unit. Pick off any cheap unit from far away. Every Orc army should have a few of these. Grade: A
Goblin Crossbowz: These guys are the other main reason to play pure Orc armies, as they are incredibly cheap, and just as point effective as Grugs (2 points for 2 attack and 2 toughness). Their ability to fire a bolt is simply gravy, and not to be used lightly, as they can accidentally cause a great deal of damage. Buy a lot of these guys, and use them as basic scut troops. Grade: A
Zharta Khun: the "Zen Master" of the Orc army, Khun is a moderately priced, incredibly powerful addition to any Orc (or evil) army. Use him to allow Moog to cast 2 spells a turn! Move the Assassin in to range *and* ambush in the same turn! Move your archers *and* have them shoot! Every Orc army should be packing Zen Master Khun. Grade: A
Urkan Bowmen: Rather expensive for an archer unit at 6 points, but they have the best combat stats of all the basic archer units to make up for it. Having one of these guys hanging out with your spell caster (and Familiar) is a good idea, for late game Sure Aimed artillery, but their cost leaves the Orcs on the short end of the missile stick. Grade: B
Heavy Troops:
Darkwood Ogre: A very powerful combat unit with a strong special ability and a speedy move score, Darkwood Ogre is almost a no brainer in most Orc armies. He is kind of expensive at 13, and fairly easy to kill, but is one of the most potent units available to the Orcs as a whole. Grade: A-
Beastrider: A very powerful special ability, which allows you to kill off Fairy Swarms (and Wasps and Monkeys) right quick, but much like the Wasteland Ogre, Beastriders are a huge Fireball target. Keep them behind the Shieldgrogs and use their high speed for surgical strikes. Grade: B+
Wasteland Ogre: As opposed to his Darkwood cousin, the Wasteland Ogre is not as useful as one might think. He fails the "Fireball Test", so you can't really put him on the front lines, and he isn't fast enough to be useful as a follow up unit. Powerful stats, but fragile and has a huge target painted on his head, and his special ability is of limited effect. Grade: B
Scut Troops:
Shieldgrogs: Another one of the main reasons to play the Orcs, these guys are incredibly tough and very cheap. Use them as your front line Fireball wall, and then to pin enemy units that will find themselves hard pressed to kill them. Get as many of these as you can. Grade: A
Grugs: These are the basis of any good Orc army. A 3/3/3 for 3 points is the epitome of efficient use of points. Get lots of them for activation advantage (more units than your opponent = activation advantage = good) and team them up to kill larger units, losing little in return. Slightly less effective, point for point than Crossbowz, but much easier to get. Grade: A
Torch Throwers: I list these guys under Scut Troops, as their Fireball attack is rarely going to be all that effective, due to the 6" range. Regardless, these guys are fairly solid, but point for point, less effective than either Grugs or Crossbowz. Grade: B+
Goblin Raiders: Quick, fairly solid, and inexpensive, these guys exist solely for their special ability. Very good for taking down Dwarves. Grade: B+
Lowland Ravagers: Respectable combat stats and a good speed, but they are kind of expensive, even with their powerful special ability. I'd rather spend the points on more Shieldgrogs. Grade: B
Urtog Warrior: Pretty good stats, fairly tough, and inexpensive, but his special ability is rather difficult to get good use out of. Again, you are probably better off spending your points on something more generically useful. Grade: B
Garnahk Flailers: If teamed up with berserk units, these guys are fairly effective, but considering how I feel about the following units, these guys aren't all that useful. Grade: B-
Tribesmen from Ulc: While they should be good, in theory, these guys flat out are not worth their weight in Grugs. For 7 points you get a 7/3/6, *if* they are berserk, and barring Incite spells, they are unlikely to survive their first attack to become berserk. Their move of 4 is useful, but not considering how you could simply get 2 more Grugs (and an extra activation) for less. Grade: B-
Zocrab's Gurbangers: Ok attack, good movement, but easy to kill for their cost. Their special ability, like that of the Wasteland Ogre, rarely will come up. Unless you *really* need the speed, get more Grugs. Grade: B-
Goblin Bootlickers: They would be good if A) Gorzac was useful and B) Crossbowz weren't cheaper. Their disadvantage is fairly significant (as they can't really kill anything on their own),and you can just get a Grug for the same cost. Grade: C
Goblin Marauders: Too expensive, too conditional, and too many rules to be worth using. If you want units that can't be hurt, get the Goblin Raiders. Grade: C-
Zocrab's Warmongers: You are paying 5 points for a Grug with one extra point of attack and a disadvantage. How was this a good idea? Grade: D
Obarak Tribesman: They are less effective than Grugs, and can't benefit from the Zip spells you want to use. These guys just suck. Grade: D-