The Orruk Warclans love to fight – in fact, it’s no lie to say that their entire culture revolves around conflict. The swamp-dwelling Kruleboyz are an unusual breed of orruk, for they prize deviousness over brute strength. To the Kruleboyz, winning by underhanded means is worth more than claiming victory in a straight fight – and they're very underhanded indeed...
Ardboy Big Bosses are veteran Ironjawz with an eye for the battlefield and enough bellowing presence to browbeat their lads into line. Only the toughest of Ardboys survive long enough to become a Big Boss – these formidable warriors can turn a boisterous orruk horde into a disciplined killing machine that advances in a semblance of formation before crashing into the enemy like an armoured fist.
Zoggrok Anvilsmasha is a legend amongst the Ironjawz, for he has mastered the art of hammering the destructive force of the Waaagh! into iron, stone, and bone. Accompanied by Klonk, his rockbrow squig, Zoggrok uses his 'bashin' tools' to channel Gorkamorka's power into the weapons of orruks gathered around him. These green-hot blades thrum with wrath, eager to unleash their raging energy in combat.
To be a Tuskboss, an orruk must claim mastery over a particularly ferocious Maw-grunta – an utterly monstrous hog, with enough brute strength and dim-witted determination to batter through anything in its path. These mounted warlords lead the charge by steering their stampeding behemoths straight into the enemy lines, striking down foes left and right as the beast barrels forward with explosive impact.
Brute Ragerz hurl themselves at the biggest and meanest foes, swinging huge two-handed weapons with brutal force. They're driven by frenzied arrogance, desperate to overcome the humiliation of a previous defeat – few things are more dangerous than an orruk determined to prove just how ’ard they really are.
Regiments of Renown are storied mercenaries who wander the Mortal Realms, offering their services to whichever armies will help them achieve their own ambitions. Led by warriors famous and infamous alike, these dogs of war recruit like-minded soldiers to join them in their quests to fill their coffers and grow their reputation.
Considering the country’s location and involvement in major European conflicts for centuries, Polish officers came from a society that valued a proud military tradition. After the end of World War I, having freshly wrested its independence from neighboring powers, Poland was in a state of almost constant conflict. Most of the officers in Poland’s military were experienced and capable leaders.
Despite facing the double invasion of their homeland in 1939 by both Germany and the Soviet Union, the vastly outnumbered Polish military fought with bravery and tenacity. The Polish army in 1939 was large, well-officered and relatively well-equipped. It fought hard, but was entirely outmanoeuvred by fast-moving German armoured thrusts supported by all arms in a new dynamic style of war that a largely foot-slogging Polish army could not match. When the Soviets joined the fight and also invaded Poland, bisecting the country, it was too much for an already over-extended army short of armour and air support to hold out against – the end was inevitable.
The world’s first paratroopers to be used in large numbers, the German Fallschirmjager were at the tip of the spear when war broke out in 1939. They led daring assaults on strategic targets, such as the fortress at Eben Emael, enabling the following panzers to overrun Europe.
There are few fighting forces that can rival the fearsome reputation of the United States Marine Corps. Indeed they can trace their ancestry back to the Revolutionary War in the 18th Century, serving all over the globe up to the present day.
From their role in the ill-fated Operation Market Garden to the crossing of the River Rhine and the push into the German homeland these battle-hardened fighting men have been immortalised in film and television.
One of the best-equipped armies in the world at the time, the Americans took on, and beat, their German, Italian and Japanese adversaries.