The very first thing I did upon deciding to jump back into the hobby was to purchase the new Ork Codex. Bear in mind that I'm still hazy on post-5th Edition rules, so correct me where I'm wrong, but let's jump into this particular rant.
I can get behind "Adapt and Overcome." I've always intentionally fielded underdog armies. Tau at the start of 5th before trading out for my Necrons, Orks because I wanted to get close and smashy. The new codex strikes me as....less "in your face" than what makes Orks...Orks!
Ghazghkull Thraka:
*sob* My beautiful, wonderful Ghazzypoo. At 225 points, people were forever chuckling at me for taking Ghazghkull. For me, his singular point was to help a tidal wave of Orks get up close and personal with enemies, in no small part from his Waaaugh! special auto-6" run. Now, he's not even an HQ anymore. HE IS NOT A TITAN. Seriously?!? GW removes our IC Warboss and relegates him into a Lords of War role?!? Holy batballs. I won't even get into the nerfs to his gear, the dismal Cybork nerf, or the static point cost - but my Ork army is themed around Ghazghkull, and even NAMED "Ghazghkull's Harem." Apparently many tournaments don't allow LoW unit selections to prevent influx of super heavies - which is fine - but Ghazghkull is not a super heavy tank.
This, more than anything else, hurts my Orky soul.
Nobz and FoC:
I always valued Nobz because with a Warboss, you could select them as a troop choice, nab a Battlewagon dedicated transport, and have a troop choice deathstar. And now? FoC requires 1 HQ and 3 troops instead of 1 HQ and 2 Troops...and no Nob Troops. Am I missing something? No Ghazghkull HQ, and no Nob troops?
Lootas:
Why...oh why....are these heavy support? I can't imagine Heavy Support slots going to something other than Battlewagons, because Battlewagons support gettin' in for da krumpin' faster. Boo hiss.
Battlewagons:
Nerfed Deff Rollas - they're basically expensive reinforced rams. No one risks a Death or Glory when you can just get out of the way. Boo hiss.
Nerfed Boarding Planks - my all-time favorite Battlewagon wargear. Ram your Battlewagon into something, and if the DeffRolla (or the ram if no Deffrolla) doesn't do something, a Nob with a Powerklaw runs across the boarding plank and cuts the enemy vehicle open. No more boarding plank assaults. I see this still being an important piece of wargear, for having lost Ghazzy's 6" army wide run.
Goodbye KFF, Hello....KFF?
There was justice in being able to bubble a 4+ cover save across a rickety collection of vehicles with a penchant to explode at the slightest scratch. Now it's 5+, and only applies to the vehicle you're in. First thought: KFF Mek on a bike, hiding behind a battlewagon? It got worse, and didn't get cheaper.
Burna Boyz:
I remember some hilarious games where I would drive my burna Battlewagon up to an enemy, stick a flamer template out of the side, count the number of models being hit, and multiply by 15. With the shooting rules changing to only allowing you to hit/kill the models you can reach, this is less effective, but the real disaster is that their Skorchas don't count as power weapons anymore.
Orks were never particularly good at reliable anti-tank. DeffRollas, Boarding Planks, and Ghazghkull's Powerklaw were the trusty answers (except when you're assaulting a Vulkan Land Raider, *feeble laugh*).
I see less anti-tank than before, no real answer to fliers for a themed assault army, and losing my favorite Prophet of the Waaaugh! to a LoW spot that is disallowed at most tournaments I read about is the kick to the balls while you're down.
Dash is sad. Is there any redemption for my assaulty Orks?