Why I love Ogres in Kings of War: Third Edition

Today we're handing over the blog over Tyler Schulz, star of the DreadPathZone YouTube channel and dedicated ogre fan. He's going to explain why he loves ogres even more in Kings of War: Third Edition. Over to you Tyler...

Well folks, as I’m sure you know, Kings of War Third Edition is in full swing and it is incredible for several reasons. What first brought me into this marvellous world of ranks, flanks, flyers, cavalry, and other fantasy goodness? Was it the near airtight rule set? The balanced factions? The unlimited hobby potential with multi-bases and miniatures? Well… sort of, but the real answer here is obvious… OGRES.

As a longtime Deadzone player (well that and DreadBall, Warpath, Star Saga, etc.), I had never delved into the wonderful world of fantasy until 2016. As a fan of Mantic Games, I had been around the world of Kings of War, seen the releases and always kept my finger on the pulse for the game, but had not yet taken that step which would change my gaming life forever.

Then I did, Ogres captured my attention and never let it go so I finally caved and bought an army of them. I then discovered why everyone had been such massive fans of Kings of War. I was hooked. By the end of second edition, my Ogre army had amassed to nearly 5,000 points with tons of options, Vanguard cross compatibility, and enough Ogres to seize a castle!

Naively, I remember thinking to myself, “This must be it, a completed army project!” But oh, how wrong I was. Army projects are never complete.

Fast forward and we are smack dab in the middle of Third Edition! The moment I got my hands on the beautiful 400 pages of hardback goodness (link to rulebook), I immediately flipped through and found my precious Ogres to see what had changed and what my next steps were for my never-ending project. Compared to some other factions, Ogres didn’t change a great deal in terms of rules. However, the changes Ogres did see were significant and opened the door to lots of new play styles and list opportunities.

Speed

The first thing that caught my eye in the rule’s changes from second edition to third was Speed in the list. Ogres have always been a bit faster than their smaller, human-sized opponents, generally being speed 6 to the average base of 5. Third Edition added some more elements of Speed that really bring a lot to the table (see what I did there?). Let’s start with my personal favorite change from second to third: Hunters.

Ogre Hunters got a speed boost this edition that makes them speed 7 with Pathfinder! One of my favorite plays is to give them the Brew of Haste, essentially creating a speed 8 Ogre “cavalry” that don’t get hindered, don’t care about your opponent’s phalanx, and ensnare opponents in the front! Needless to say, I had to add another horde to most of my lists. Not to mention, the Hunter models are absolutely gorgeous and have loads of character. In fact, I am currently painting some right now to add to the collection. It is a fantastic reminder of just how much I love these metal models!

Speaking of metal models that are full of character and are some of my favorites in Mantic’s range: Ogre Berserker Braves! These awesome fanatics are even greater than their second edition profiles because they received a generous speed boost as well!

Berserker Braves have always been a nice addition to the Ogre list because of their flurry of attacks, fearless nerve, and overall threat projection, but now they are equipped with the Wild Charge (D3) rule. This ability makes them a real force to be reckoned with! That incremental bump in speed means that Braves can not only dictate the first charge against an opponent’s chaff, but also gain that extra bit of threat to keep things at a safe distance.

Another subtle but impactful speed change was to the Siege Breakers. This unit has been a mainstay on many Ogre lists because of their Defense 6+ in the front from ‘Big Shield’ and high crushing strength. Third edition really smiled upon them! Now, Siege Breakers are Speed 6 like all their brethren, and got the added benefit of Defense 5+ on the flanks and rear, a massive change from the previous edition. For years now, Ogre players have been kit-bashing and trying their best to represent this unit because of its utility in the army but haven’t had an official model… until now.

I would love to enlist another horde of these guys in my army. The upcoming upgrade kit will certainly be a must have purchase to hold down the center of many lists to come!

Characters

If you ask any veteran Ogre player their favorite part about playing Ogres, you’ll likely hear one of two answers. The first answer is about smashing things and how fun smashing stuff is. The second answer is likely about Ogre characters. Ogre characters are unique and amazing because of their mobility, damage output, and most importantly, ability to claim objectives (which is a really big deal in KoW).

Every Ogre player loves characters, but unfortunately there has always been a lack of character models in the Ogre range. Sure, we have the fantastic warlock miniature, but other than that, character models have been mostly kit bashed and converted. But the times they are a’ changin’. Ogres are finally getting some amazing character sculpts thanks to Vanguard, and I can’t wait to get some of these into my army!

Until the new models get official rules, these new models function well as current unit entries. The matriarch is a great model choice for the Ogre Warlord or Sergeant on foot while the new Paymaster (my personal favorite of the new releases) would make an incredibly characterful Army Standard. What could possibly be more ‘Ogre’ than barking out which target has the highest price on its head?! Sounds Inspiring for a wealth-driven Ogre warrior to me.

One of the coolest new additions to the Ogre list is the Berserker Bully. This epic hero is one of the punchiest characters in the game with eight attacks that hit on 3+ and Crushing Strength 2. For those keeping track at home, that’s the same attack profile as a (Red) Goblin Slasher!

This hero clocks in at only 130 points and has become a very popular choice in many Ogre lists. Now that we have a rockin’ model for it, if you play Ogres and haven’t tried this dude out yet, your excuses end here.

Finally, the last unit I want to talk about here today is the Boomer Sergeant. What the Berserker bully is to punching, the Boomer Sergeant is to shooting. This highly mobile shooting unit takes everything the Ogre Boomers are great at and puts it into a beautifully-condensed character. I can’t tell you the amount of times a pair of Boomer sergeants scared off a dragon, shot a unit to death, or won me the game by taking an objective. And c’mon, the model is popping a cartridge out of his pistol. How cool is that?!

This little article barely scratches the surface of what Ogres are all about, but one thing is clear: there has never been a better time to be or become an Ogre player. Ogres are finally receiving the love they deserve. With Third Edition armies popping up left and right, this is the perfect time for Ogres to make their stand! Ogre players need dynamic character models to really showcase the might of their rules, and we are finally about to get them!

Since we are all stuck at home, there is no better paint your armies and get them table-ready. If you want to hear more about Ogres in depth, I recommend listening to the Counter Charge Podcast’s Ogre army review while you paint! An esteemed band of Ogre enthusiasts go into a lot more detail about the whole army. If that doesn’t get you excited about Ogres, I don’t know what else will!

Keep painting and stay healthy my friends!