"Wot's faster than a Warbuggy, more killy than a Warbike, and flies through da air like a bird? I got no bleedin' idea, but I'm gonna find out."
- — Kog da Flymek, pioneer of the Deffkopta
An Ork Deffkopta mob.
A Deffkopta is a rotary-wing aircraft that is often employed by the Orks, particularly Orks who are part of an Ork tribe's Kult of Speed. These flying machines are the lunatic inventions of Meks that are obsessed with the power of flight, usually in the search for ever greater speed.
Deffkoptas commonly make a hell of a lot of noise, spit out a constant stream of bullets, and frequently kill their pilots within a single solar week of operation.
Nevertheless, they are without doubt the fastest and most dangerous way to get an Ork to the front line. Each Deffkopta is a one-Ork flying machine that is little more than a scavenged Warbike frame with its wheels removed and to which a set of whirring rotors has been attached, mounted above the pilot's head. Additionally, a jet engine has been added to the rear of the airframe.
The rotors hold the machine aloft as the jet engine propels it forwards, allowing the Deffkopta to scream across the battlefield in the general direction of the enemy, all the while firing its underslung weaponry in the vain hope of actually hitting a target.
These aircraft are extremely temperamental and are prone to falling apart mid-flight or crashing spectacularly without warning or notice, yet surprisingly there are always a number of Orks, known as Flyboyz, who volunteer to fly these ungainly machines into combat.
History[]
An illustration of an early Ork's attempt at flight.
There are countless instances of Ork Meks trying to master flight, but only a tiny fraction of them have achieved anything more than a spectacularly entertaining disaster.
Still, Orks have a cheerful try and try-again attitude towards technology, and there is never a shortage of willing test pilots amongst the ranks of the Speed Freeks.
The Deffkopta was the result of decades of experimentation, and truth be told, it is still the subject of rather a lot of experimentation to this day. It is believed by Imperial savants that the original Deffkopta was first pioneered by an Ork Mek known as Kog da Flymek.
Role[]
A mob of Ork Deffkoptas attacking an Imperial Guard defensive position.
The Deffkopta is used mainly as a reconnaissance vehicle, flying out ahead of the rest of the Ork warband and locating victims or targets for the rest of the main Ork horde. Once an enemy force has been discovered, the Flyboyz, with a supreme exercise of will, will turn their 'koptas around in the face of the enemy and head back to the greenskins' lines to bring in reinforcements.
The Deffkopta can also be commonly seen leading a Kult of Speed into battle, with the main Ork mobs following the aircraft's exhaust trails to the enemy's frontlines. The main advantage that the Deffkopta has over its ground-hugging cousin the Warbike is that it is capable of traversing absolutely any type of ground, and while Warbikes can attain great speeds over rolling terrain, the only limit to the Deffkopta's theoretical velocity is the nerve of the aircraft's pilot.
As the pilot must indeed have a few screws loose to even consider climbing into the seat of a Deffkopta in the first place, this means that squadrons of Deffkoptas often pass their comrades in a kind of oily blur, their pilots howling in glee as they carve a path through the skies before slamming into the ranks of the foe, or just as often, into the ground below.
Armament[]
A mob of Ork Deffkoptas on the attack.
The problem with Ork Meks is that they never build the same machine the same way twice. Ever since the very first Deffkopta was pioneered, the Mek fraternity has devised ever more and more cunning ways to turn it from a bizarre conveyance into a lethal weapon.
The first Deffkoptas, and most still built today, are armed with a set of twin-linked Big Shootas, usually scavenged from crashed Ork Warbikes, but as the Meks have had their way with the Deffkopta design it has become a common sight to see other weapons in use.
The Deffkopta can have its twin-linked Big Shootas replaced with a set of twin-linked Rokkit Launchas or a single Kustom Mega-Blasta. Some Ork Meks delight themselves in making even more extravagant designs, such as attaching high-yield explosives known as Bigbomms to their 'koptas so that they can drop them directly on top of their enemies, or fixing massive buzzsaw blades to the 'koptas that allow them to decapitate their foes in one fell swoop.
There are other, less common weapons and things found on Deffkoptas such as kannister bomb droppers, rippa-saws on long extendable arms, Squig-parachutes, and large wing-mounted mirrors (reasons unknown!).
Known Formations[]
- Sky-Slasha Attack Skwadron - The Sky-Slasha Attack Skwadron is a combat formation used by crazed Ork Deffkopta and Warkopta pilots, usually containing a mixture of each type of aircraft, that are used during battle to great effect. These formations are made up of pilots who have survived long enough to perfect a few tricks of the trade with their ramshackle and largely unstable flying machines. The formation usually involves up to three Warkoptas and up to two mobs of Deffkoptas. Sky-Slashas will often make perilous, yet highly amusing, dives where they angle their 'kopta's whirling rotor blades in close sweeps of the ground in an effort to chop enemy soldiers into gory spray. This is hardly safe, but to the screaming Flyboyz, the risk is well worth a chance to "Get the goggles red!" In order to maximise the destruction they can cause, Sky-Slasha sqwadrons also often festoon their 'koptas with extra bombs and heavy (often sharp) objects to unleash on an unsuspecting enemy in a hail of death. During combat the pilots generally show off by screaming high above the footslogging Boyz below to drop their bomms before plunging manically downwards with gunz blazing, some sweeping low enough even to use the spinning rotor blades of their machines as offensive weapons! Suffice it to say, there are very few old Ork Sky-Slasha Kaptains amongst the klanz.
- Deffkopta Choppa Skwadron - Sometimes, when a WAAAGH! reaches its height, Deffkopta pilots from several clans or tribes group together into a Deffkopta Choppa Skwadron, ready for the Big Race into battle. The first Deffkopta pilot to "get his blades wet" is held in high esteem by his peers, or at least sworn at and called a cheatin’ git. Being the first Ork to splatter blood all over the place carries much prestige with “the fast crows.” Though Deffkopta pilots would normally shy away from damaging their beloved aircraft unless absolutely necessary, when large groups gather they cannot but help show off by flying at an angle and driving the blades of their 'koptas into the enemy; usually causing limbs to fly in all directions. A variant of the Deffkopta Choppa Skwadron is the Big Choppa Skwadron, which often has its Deffkoptas equipped with extra Bommz that are dropped as hails of explosives upon enemy formations. The first Choppa Skwadron was pioneered during Ghazghkull Thraka's second invasion of Armageddon in 998.M41. The onset of that world's Season of Fire forced a temporary stalemate upon the Orks and the human defenders of Armageddon, for great rivers of lava flowed from the mountains and temperatures reached unbearable heights. After the intensity of battle faced during this Third War for Armageddon, many of the combatants were glad of this forced respite; but not the Orks. Every Warbiker in the Screechin’ Death Speed Freeks who could afford it paid a Mek to convert his bike into a Deffkopta. Before the week was out, battle had been rejoined with a massive Choppa Skwadron soaring over the rivers of lava to attack with Big Shootas, Rokkits and crudely-made bombs, and the brutal blades of the Deffkoptas themselves. Notable famous Deffkopta Choppa Skwadrons included Ruzgut’s Blitzers, Da Choppin' Menace, Defflord's Buzkoptas, Whirrgrub's Magnifica! Flyin' Machines, and Da Noise of Deff.
Variants and Derivatives[]
There are at least two noticeably different variants or derivatives of the Deffkopta that are used by the Orks:
A mob of Ork Gravkoptas in flight
- Gravkopta - Gravkoptas, also known as Anti-Grav Deffkoptas, are an extremely rare variant of the Deffkopta that makes use of anti-gravitic technology to keep the aircraft aloft instead of a rotor design. These variants of the Deffkopta more than likely make use of scavenged anti-gravitic technology taken from battlefields where the Orks fought against the Imperium or the Eldar.
An Ork "Chinork" Warkopta
- Warkopta - The Warkopta is a recent innovashun in Orkish air power that is beginning to appear in WAAAGH!s across the galaxy and is growing in popularity. The Warkopta is a larger variant of the Deffkopta, featuring two huge rotor blades fixed at either end of a long, open-framed fuselage, with a cluster of Rokkit-boosted jets at one end and a cunning yoke and pulley system used to steer. The Warkopta is used by the Orks as an aerial transport for moving Ork infantry across the battlefield.
Ordo Xenos Departmento Analyticus Technical Specifications[]
| Type | Low-Flying Assault Aircraft | Operational Ceiling | Unknown |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vehicle Name | Deffkopta | Max Speed | Unknown |
| Origin | Ork innovashun | Range | Unknown |
| Known Patterns | N/A | Main Armament | Nose-mounted twin-linked Big Shoota |
| Crew | 1 Ork Pilot | Secondary Armament | Ork wielded Choppa and or Shoota |
| Powerplant | Single Rokkit-boosted Jet Engine, two vertical-lift Rotor Blades | Main Ammunition | Unknown |
| Weight | Unknown (Varies) | Secondary Ammunition | Unknown |
| Length | Unknown (Varies) | Armour | |
| Wingspan | Unknown (Varies) | Superstructure | Unknown (Varies) |
| Height | Unknown (Varies) | Hull | Unknown (Varies) |
Also See[]
- Ork Vehicles
Sources[]
- Apocalypse Reload, pg. 25
- Waaargh: Orks (1st Edition), pg. 90
- Codex: Orks (4th Edition), pp. 48, 101
- Codex: Orks (8th Edition), pg. 47
- Imperial Armour Volume Eight - Raid on Kastorel-Novem, pp. 34, 134, 185-186, 213
- Warhammer 40,000 Collectible Card Game (Card Game)
- Orks Collectors' Guide, pg. 54
- Deffkopta - Games Workshop
- Assault On Black Reach - Games Workshop
Gallery[]
