Characteristic of Greenskins TW: Warhammer Guide
Last update: 08 September 2017
The Greenskins faction is in some ways similar to the Dwarves - they occupy the same settlements and capitals, they can move underground and they hate each other. What makes this faction unique is their Fightiness and the Waaagh! - both of those are discussed in a separate chapter.
General information
The army of the Greenskins can be characterized by two things - their size and upkeep costs. Aside from the high-tier units like the Black Orcs, a lot of their units have extremely large sizes - reaching as big as 90 soldiers in a single stack! Their upkeep costs are also very low, allowing them to keep multiple standing armies at the same time without much income. Finally, they have the largest variety of units in the game.
Their armies are composed of two races - Goblins and Orcs. Goblins are weaker, have less armor and lower leadership values, but they make up for that with cheap recruitment and large units sizes. Orcs on the other hand are closer to the typical Dwarf or Empire units - less soldiers in a single stack but higher armor and overall combat prowess. Unfortunately, they lack any flying units (aside from Lords and Heroes who can use flying mounts).
Their most unique trait is the Fightiness. This is a special bar visible on the army screen that rises when the army is fighting and raiding, and falls when inactive or after getting defeated. This leads to two different scenarios - Animosity and the appearance of a Waaagh!. The first one takes place when the Fightiness is low enough and results in army attrition. The second one, on the other hand, creates a new computer-controlled army that will follow the Lord it spawned from. More on the Fightiness can be found in a separate chapter.
Their biggest flaw comes from the inappropriate usage of the Fightiness. If your armies enter the Animosity state they will start losing soldiers due to attrition, weakening them with each turn. Additionally, without the aid of the Waaagh! your armies are at disadvantage against enemy ones, as Greenskins are, generally, a little weaker on their own and their strength comes from using Waaagh!.
When it comes to economy they are at a disadvantage when compared with other factions. They have a very limited technology tree (that you cannot access during the first turns) and they are incapable of trading. This means that the majority of their income comes from raiding and sacking other settlements. This enforces a lot more aggressive approach.
While playing the Greenskins faction you will be able to conquer the settlements belonging to both Dwarves and other Greenskins factions. You won't be, however, capable of seizing control over the terrains belonging to The Empire, Bretonnia, the Vampire Counts or Athel Loren controlled by Wood Elves - in case you attack their settlements (or when they attack you (except for Wood Elves attack))) you will only be able to pillage them to gain gold, or raze them to the ground.
Victory conditions
When it comes to Greenskins, apart from their main faction, one can also play as The Bloody Handz or Crooked Moon (in order to play the second subfaction, you need DLC The King and the Warlord). As all other factions in the game, these have their own victory conditions - achieve them and you will win the campaign. These conditions can be slightly different for specific factions.
In order to finish Greenskins campaign, complete the following objectives and defeat The Bloody Handz. When you play as the other faction, you will need to destroy Greenskins and complete the following objectives:
- Destroy the following factions: Black Venom, Bloody Spearz, Broken Nose, Crooked Moon, Necksnappers, Orcs of the Bloody Hand, Red Eye, Red Fangs, Scabby Eye, Skullsmasherz, Teef Snatchaz and Top Knotz.
- Occupy, loot or raze 50 settlements.
- Control all of the following Dwarfholds either by direct ownership or through vassals and military allies: Karak Ziflin, Karak Norn, Karak Izor, Karak Hirn, Karak Dromar, Oakenhammer, Zhulfbar, Karaz-a-Karak, The Pillars of Grungni, Karak Kadrin, Barak Varr, Varenka Hills, Dringorackaz, Kradtommen, Kraka Drak, Khazid Bordkarag, Sjoktraken and Karak Azul.
- Destroy the following factions: The Empire, Dwarves
- Earn the following gold from raiding: 20,000.
- Ensure that Archaon the Everchosen is in a wounded state.
If you select Crooked Moon:
- Reclaim: Karak Eight Peaks
- Destroy the following factions: Greenskins, Black Venon, Bloody Spearz, Broken Nose, Crooked Moon, Crooked Moon Mutinous Gits, The Bloody Handz, Red Eye, Red Fangs, Scabby Eye, Scullsmasherz, Teef Snatchaz and Top Knotz.
- Occupy, loot, raze or sack the following number of settlements: 50.
- Control all of the following Dwarfholds either by direct ownership or through vassals and military allies: Karak Ziflin, Karak Norn, Karak Izor, Karak Hirn, Karak Dromar, Oakenhammer, Zhufbar, Karaz-a-Karak, Filary Grungniego, Karak Kadrin, Barak Varr, Varenka Hills, Dringorackaz, Kradtommen, Kraka Drak, Khazid Bordkarag, Sjoktraken and Karak Azul.
- Destroy the following factions: The Empire, Dwarves, Clan Angrund.
- Earn gold from raiding: 15,000.
- Ensure that Archaon the Everchosen is in a wounded state.
Available faction leaders
In case of Greenskins, there are four lords divided into three factions.
Lords available for the main Greenskins faction are Grimgor Ironhide (who is also the leader of the entire faction), and Azhag The Slaughterer. Depending on your choice, the gameplay will differ for the first several dozen turns (due to troops you start with) and will become barely noticeable once you unlock all the available units.
In case of The Bloody Handz, the leader is Wurrzag, Da Great Green Prophet, and Crooked Moon is commanded by Skarsnik (he is available with DLC The King and the Warlord).
There are two starting Lords to choose from - Grimgor Ironhide (who is the leader of the faction as well) and Azhag the Slaughterer. As always, they differ in both playstyle and starting units, although those differences fade out later in the game when you gain access to all of the units.
Grimgor Ironhide starts with the following units: Black Orcs, Orc Boar Boyz and Doom Diver Catapult. Black Orcs are the best infantry units the Greenskins have - thick armor, good leadership, high damage, but low defense. Orc Boar Boyz is a decent anti-infantry shock cavalry. Doom Diver Catapult is on the other hand one of the most unique artillery units in the game because of the fact that its projectiles home in on its target - they are extremely accurate and can easily hit a fast moving target. The leader of the faction, Grimgor Ironhide, is probably the most powerful melee unit in the game. He deals immense damage and is extremely durable - there is no unit in the game that can fight one on one with him. By selecting him your faction will give a global boost to campaign movement range and the Black Orc units in his army will have a lower upkeep cost.
Azhag the Slaughterer starts with the following units: Forest Goblin Spider Riders, Orc Big 'Uns and Goblin Archers. Unfortunately, nothing spectacular here - all of the units are decent but nothing more. The Lord himself is a combination of a melee fighter and a spellcaster. He can fight decently in melee range (although not even close to how powerful Grimgor Ironhide is) and can cast spells from the Lore of Death (like the Spirit Leech, a spell extremely effective against enemy Lords). By selecting him you will be given a boost to diplomatic relations with the Undead (i.e. Vampire Counts) and increased income from sacking settlements.
Wurrzag, Da Great Green Prophet starts with the following units: Savage Orc Arrer Boyz, Giant, and Savage Orcs. Only the Giant is worth your attention - the creature is strong and can give you a major advantage during first couple battles. Still, you need to remember that it's pointless to send this creature into battle without any support. The remaining units are just basic units that are available from the very start. Savage Orcs in the lord's army will cost 50% less and will gain a major boost to their charge. Furthermore, when playing as The Bloody Handz, you can recruit savage orcs outside Badlands. Thus, it is a faction for players who want to control units with barely any armor and improved fighting skills and charge. Wurrzag is a mage, with a set of Da Great skills - these consist mainly of offensive spells, and two of the spells can be used to boost your troops. Apart from that he has various skills that can support him and his allies, or harm his enemies. Although this lord is useless in close combat, he will survive longer than other Orc Shamans would.
Skarsnik (DLC The King and the Warlord) starts with the following units: Night Goblins (fanatics), Arachnarok Spider, Night Goblin Squig Hoppers. The Arachnarok Spider is the best troop that Greenskins can offer - creature with solid armor that can deal massive damage. The remaining two units can be used to taunt your opponent. Skarsnik, just like Belegar from Dwarves faction is a lord for players who want more challenge. If you pick him, you will be able to recruit only goblins and monsters for the majority of the campaign - orcs can be recruited only in Karak Eight Peaks, after you build a special building. On the other hand, you can recruit new troops for 40% less gold. Skarsnik may be a goblin himself but he is still a fine warrior - he may not be as powerful as Grimgor but he has poison attacks and boost against large creatures, and armor penetration. Furthermore, by purchasing the right ability, all units in his army gain poisonous attacks.
One should keep in mind that Crooked Moon starts the scenario with a smaller settlement, and not the capital.