Zodgrod Wortsnagga, the infamous Runtherd of the Ork Snakebites klan
Zodgrod Wartsnagga is an infamous Ork Runtherd who was perhaps the greatest Runtherd in Ork history before being expelled from the Warboss Ugulhard Duffgruntas' Chargerz, an extremely fundamentalist band of Snakebites who rabidly rejected the use of advanced technology.
After the expulsion, Zodgrod travelled the galaxy and learned several ancient Orkoid techniques to create enhanced Gretchin who were possessed of more aggression, intelligence and sheer ferocity than any of their counterparts, which he named "Supa-Runtz."
Zodgrod is now hired by those Ork warbosses and warlords who are particularly desperate to make use of his Supa-Runtz in battle.
History[]
Zodgrod started off as a member of the Warboss Ugulhard Duffgrunta's "Chargerz," a tribe of Orks wholly drawn from the Snakebites klan who were normally determined to cling to the Orks' old ways, yet had managed to develop a relatively high level of technology.
Zodgrod was made the tribe's Runtherd, the Ork in charge of breeding Snotlings who would eventually be fired from a Shokk Attack Gun as living ammunition. Zodgrod proved to be unusually effective in training his Gretchin to follow orders and act aggressively. His Gretchin, known as "Kommando Runtz" among the Chargerz, became quite well-known among the local Greenskin tribes.
Zodgrod Wortsnagga as a Freebooter mercenary leader.
However, also unusually for an Ork, Zodgrod became fanatically protective of his simple-minded trainees' well-being, a situation that turned bloody after Zodgrod fired a Mek through his own Shokk Attack Gun for mistreating the Gretchin who served as his ammunition.
For this action, Zodgrod was banished from the Chargerz by order of Ugulhard Duffgrunta himself, as his recklessness had nearly cost the Chargerz their victory in battle.
Zodgrod took to the spacelanes with his beloved Gretchin as an Ork Freebooter, selling his services as an unparalleled Runtherd to any Greenskin Warboss or Warlord who could pay his fees and existing on the margins of what passes for Ork society.
During the course of his wanderings, Zodgrod came across the writings of another Ork Runtherd named Narflung who had performed experiments upon his Gretchin until they displayed increased intelligence, aggressiveness and coolness under fire, becoming a formidable military force when they worked in concert.
Zodgrod Wortsnagga, the infamous Runtherd of the Ork Snakebites klan.
Narflung called these Gretchin "Super-Runtz" and the techniques he had used to produce these results were actually what Humans call "Pavlovian conditioning," involving a lot of bell-ringing and the reward of a fat, juicy Squig when the Gretchin did as required. With this information at hand, Zodgrod soon created his own breed of Super-Runtz and he began to hire them out as an effective combat force to many Ork tribes and WAAAGH!s.
Most traditionalist Orks believe that the idea of Gretchin who are fearless and competent warriors represents a horrible threat to the very fabric of Orkoid society. But many other Ork leaders who find themselves in desperate straits will not hesitate to hire Zodgrod and his elite Gretchin.
Surprisingly, they have proved to be a potent force multiplier on the battlefield for whatever Greenskin force is willing to employ them without first laughing uproariously at the idea.
Sources[]
- Codex: Orks (2nd Edition), pg. 68
- Warhammer Community - Believe It or Not, This Runtherd Was Exiled for Being 'Nice' to Grots