Games Workshop has come up with a lot of games in its time. Away from the big hitters of Warhammer 40k and Age of Sigmar (neé Fantasy Battles), we’ve been lucky enough to experience a host of brilliant, smaller games as well. Mordheim immediately comes to mind, and Space Hulk is a personal favourite of mine, but the wargames company has produced a host of fun experiences that have gone under the radar.
One such game is Gorkamorka. It’s basically a Fast & Furious game, but with Orks. So that’s chucking missiles at each other, balancing as many miniatures on one Trukk as physically possible, ramming other vehicles off the course, and generally causing as much havoc as you can within the confines of one racetrack. Okay, so it’s exactly like Fast & Furious then. Just imagine Vin Diesel is green.
It’s Gorkin’ Time
You know how it is. You turn up to your local game store to play a casual game of 40k, and there’s that one weird guy gorkin’ it in the corner. That’s me. I’m straight gorkin’ it, and by it I mean… haha… my miniature. Which is to say, I love playing the weirder, more esoteric games that most people ignore. I’m not going to lie to you and say that Gorkamorka is the greatest game ever created, or even one of my favourites. But it’s honest, chaotic, fun.
You can find various fan iterations of the original 1997 ruleset online, but all you need to know is that you drive cars fast and most of them go boom boom. It’s similar to Necromunda in that your gang grows as campaigns progress, and bears likeness to Mad Max with all the, you know, ramshackle cars and whatnot.
Games Workshop hasn’t officially supported Gorkamorka for decades, but the new Armageddon box includes an all-new Wartrakk sculpt, which means that Games Workshop now produces official models for every vehicle in the game. Where before you could unofficially play with your unofficial conversions, now you can unofficially play with official models.
The original box came with a Wartrakk and a Trukk, both of which are now served by modern, plastic kits. Bikes were also important (if your tank blew up), and they’re getting new kits, presumably in 11th edition, too. But I’m not sure that any of this is truly in the spirit of the game.
Gorkamorka Is Dead, Long Live Gorkamorka
A lack of official miniatures wasn’t stopping anyone from playing Grokamorka. H*ck, the official rules supported and even encouraged converting your models to better represent their rules. Gluing on random spikes or stikkbombs was just how the hobby was enjoyed in the ‘90s and early ‘00s, before Games Workshop realised it could monetise every ounce of fun instead of teaching you how to make your own terrain from cereal boxes.
There are thousands of alternative Ork or Ork-adjacent miniature kits out there, but there are also a bunch of Gorkamorka-adjacent games, too. If you want the chaotic physics gameplay without the vehicles, then I encourage you to check out Space Gits, which is the most fun I’ve had in ages. If converting wasteland vehicles was the main draw, Gaslands is for you. Both are from veteran designer Mike Hutchinson, who clearly had Gorkamorka on his mind when designing the two spiritual successors.
Despite the fact that official vehicles will grant an easier pathway to Gorkamorka, that’s not the route I’ll choose. It’s not the Ork way to pick the smooth tarmac, so I’ll opt for the bumpy ride, full of conversions and personality. But the next time you see me in the corner of the gaming store, why not join me for a gorkin’ sesh? I’ll even teach you how to git it and gas it if you like.
