Adepticon 2026 Model Review Special! Contemptor Kevin's Combat Patrol Issue 45 Review

Welcome back Combat Patrolers! Contemptor Kevin here, at Adepticon when writing this but not when you're reading this. I'm here with the Issue 45 Combat Patrol Review, which features a second squad of the 2021 Ork Boyz. This comes two weeks after I looked at this squad. Now I know what you're thinking. “We have new Boyz incoming and you want to talk about the old ones?”

Yes. Because I have gotten my hands on the first new Ork Boy from 11th Edition and painted him up. So let's see how the 2026 Boy compares to the 2021 Boyz.

As always, thank you to Games Workshop, Hachette, and Goonhammer for the opportunity to review these models, magazines, and materials.

Narrative Materials

This issue is bereft of narrative materials, except a different background generator for this unit of Boyz’ personalities versus Issue 43’s.

Hobby Materials

This issue has a second unit of 10 Ork Boyz. This uses the same sprues as Issue 43’s, except the instructions included in this issue direct you to build the Warboss with a Power Claw instead of a Big Choppa, and a Boy with a Rokkit Launcha instead of a Big Shoota. The other 8 models in this Combat Patrol are otherwise identical to the models from Issue 43. We also get a painting guide to use all the paints that we have previously be given to paint our Boyz, this time with instructions on how to base the unit of Boyz.

Ork Boyz (2021). Credit: Contemptor Kevin Stillman

But.

In the intervening two weeks since we last discussed the sculpts, Adepticon happened (1). The Adepticon Preview Livestream announced a new Warboss, Wazzdakka Gutsmek, and Ol’ One Eye himself as part of the Return to Armageddon of 2026. In addition to enough Guard vehicles (the Hippogriff, Commissar Graves Doom Limo, the Centaur RSV, and an Inquisitor riding something that looks like a Hippogriff), the preview also announced the arrival of Warhammer 40K 11th Edition with a cool cinematic trailer featuring the launch box, Armageddon. This box features Space Marines versus Orks fighting on…Armageddon. An Intercessor and a Boy from the new box were shown off. The Intercessor is cool, and gives that venerable unit a much-needed visual lift. The Boyz now carry both Shootas and Choppas, and the new sculpts feature it.

For those of us at the show (2), GW handed out some freebies. Going into the show, everyone got an Armageddon T-Shirt. There were two varieties: Red for Imperium (There is Only War!), and Green for Orks (There is Only WAAAAGH!!!).

After the preview, as we were walking out, GW gave us another gift: a new Intercessor and a new Ork Boy. The Intercessor, as you can see from the sprue below, is a new sculpt but it's not super-interesting. I have plans for it, but they will need to wait until I get home and have access to my airbrush. The Ork Boy, however, is very interesting! Being the harbinger of the unit I knew I was going to write about for this week’s Combat Patrol review, I got this guy built and primed. While I did not finish him in time to throw him into the Golden Demon case (like I did the Space Wolves Blood Claw from last year), I did finish him.

Credit: Kevin Stillman

So how does the 2026 Ork Boy compare to the 2021 Ork Boy?

Credit: Kevin Stillman

In my opinion, he fits in quite well. The Boy stands maybe a smidge taller than a hunched over 2021 Shoota Boy, but is not taller than the Boss Nob. In terms up painting him, I was able to get this guy finished up in about two hours or so. Not quite as fast as I was hoping, but I also painted him at the Adepticon Hobby Hangout and had access to every single GW and ProAcryl Paint (amongst others). So I took some time to indulge.

Credit: Kevin Stillman

He’s not really more complicated than the 2021 Ork Boyz, and so far there are no new materials introduced on this sculpt. Instead there's just an additional Slugga or Choppa for the model. For a Choppa this isn't a huge deal; the way I paint Choppas is that it's a good place to indulge in some cheap and easy freehand. For the Shoota there's more leather and cloth to paint. It's not a huge time increase, but it probably adds about 10 minutes to my speedpaint jobs.

Credit: Kevin Stillman

If this Ork is representative of the models coming later in 2026, I think Ork Fanboyz are in for a real treat.

Gaming Materials

We get the Ork Boyz datasheet, and a page about Missions from the Core Rulebook. We also get Page 58 of the Core Rulebook, which discusses Objectives. This page is probably not one worth reading, given everything discussed above.

The issue also has Scenario 29: A Gooder Krumpin’. This features 2 units of 10 Boyz against 10 Termagants and 3 Von Ryan’s Leapers. In this Scenario, players do not use faction abilities, stratagems, enhancements, or secondary objectives. The player must embody Mork and win on datasheet and dice alone. A player gets 5 VP for wiping an enemy unit or for controlling 1 of 4 objective markers. There's also three “Once Per Game” abilities: Get ‘Em Ladz (a unit may charge in a turn in which it fell back), Got ‘Em Surrounded (When making a Pile-In or Consolidation move, the models in one unit can move 6 inches instead of 3), and Nobody Shoots at Me (Surge Move of up to D6 inches after being shot at in the direction of the enemy shooting at the unit).

The Final Verdict

At $15 for a unit of 10 Boyz with a painting guide and a mission, this issue is a pretty good. Unlike with Issue 43 where the loadout implied it was not a legal unit via WYSIWYG, the intervening two weeks have, ah, fixed that. Because Orks can now both 1) Shoot and 2) Chop, the exact loadout not being present on the Boyz is less relevant. So you have, effectively, 12 different sculpts that have slightly fewer gubbinz to paint than the upcoming Boyz from the Armageddon Box Set. This will help you flesh out your Green Tide, assuming we get 20 Boyz in that box.

Until next time Combat Patrolers and Ork fanboyz!

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