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🐂 Dragon Ogres | The best analysis in the (Old) World

Everything you need to know about
Old World Dragon Ogres

I usually make posts about army lists and analyses of various units.

In this one, we’ll analyze just a single unit in depth. The occasion demands it.

It’s such a good unit that it can be used in many different ways, not just in army lists playing different styles, but in two completely different armies, excelling in one or several roles in both: Warriors of Chaos and Beastmen.

Let’s get straight to the point.

Why Use a Single Dragon Ogre?

Warhammer Dragon Ogre… well, it’s important to mention that unlike previous editions, in Warhammer The Old World, the minimum size for this unit is not 3 but 1 Dragon Ogre. Gone are those days when you had to include three. In fact, I see players still including three out of pure habit, and when you ask them, they don’t know why. It’s inertia.

A single Dragon Ogre offers specific advantages:

  • Four wounds, Toughness 4, and a 3+ armor save (since we’ll always pay for heavy armor).
  • 5+ ward save against magical missiles.
  • It’s cheap (63 points).
  • If wounded but alive, it gives no points to the opponent.
  • It works well as a redirector, to hunt down support units, and to withstand charges from enemy light troops.
  • Immune to Panic (and psychology in general).

Some critics say it doesn’t deal enough damage because it only has three attacks hitting on 4+. But consider that part of its damage output includes its 2 Stomp attacks at Strength 5. This results in three attacks at Strength 7 (due to using a great weapon) and two automatic Strength 5 hits. By the way, all these have Armor Bane 1, which can occasionally bring some joy.

Additionally, it’s highly useful against ethereal units due to its Chaos Ensorcelled Weapon (magical attacks and Armor Piercing 1). With a Dragon Ogre Warhammer games are much better (if you are the chaotic guy, of course).

Equipping a Shartak with blackened Plate Armor: Is It Worth It?

Here’s another question: for 7 points, you can upgrade the Dragon Ogre to a unit champion or Shartak. I’m not a big fan, because it can be counterproductive. If challenged, you can’t refuse, potentially allowing the enemy to survive combats involving multiple units or even combats against a unit of Dragon Ogres that we’ll see below WITH a Shartak.

However, a Shartak can have a 2+ armor save, as you can equip him with the Blackened Plate armor for 25 points. This is full armor (4+) and additionally provides a 3+ ward save against flaming attacks. Is this worth an extra 32 points—half the cost of another Dragon Ogre? Most of the time, no. If you know what will you play against (something with lots of flaming attacks) it might be worth.

Warhammer Dragon Ogres in Competitive Lists

If analyzing a single Dragon Ogre felt like too little, let’s move on to the breakdown of four Dragon Ogres.

With the release of the Matched Play Guide in July 2025, things change: if you’re left with exactly 25% of the unit, you still score points. BUT on the other hand, units with a unit strength of 10 or more have certain mission advantages, so a unit of four Dragon Ogres (unit strength 12) really makes a difference.

Advantages of taking 4 Dragon Ogres:

  • Because of their 50mm base size, they fit perfectly against heavy units of four models, like Ironbreakers or the Phoenix Guard. That lets them get all their attacks in, including their Stomp attacks.
  • Their cost is relatively low (252 points).
  • Taking down four Dragon Ogres means removing 16 wounds at Toughness 4 with a 3+ save.
  • And they hit like a truck:
    • 12 attacks at Strength 7
    • Plus 8 automatic hits at Strength 5 (Stomp attacks).

It’s truly a unit to consider seriously, and fighting against them can be a nightmare. You usually avoid engaging large units such as monsters or mounted characters for fear they’ll be cut down by the Strength 7 hits.

How to Counter Dragon Ogres Old World

Weaknesses? How to deal with this unit? Their primary weakness is mobility. Even though they have Movement 7, which seems high, they lack Swiftstride and, despite being Beastmen, don’t have Warband, meaning they charge seven inches with just two dice. This often leaves them falling short. Additionally, since they cannot flee as a charge reaction, if they receive a flank charge from a strong enemy, they can easily collapse.

In 80% of matches, if Dragon Ogres advance through the center, it’s hard to redirect them and prevent combat. But many players tend to deploy them on the flank. Take advantage of this.

You wanted more ideas on how to counter them, right?

Yeah.

The thing is, it’s genuinely a very good unit with few weaknesses. Moreover, Chaos Dragon Ogres can be included by both Beastmen and Warriors of Chaos in Old World as Special Units, meaning they can spend up to 1000 points on Dragon Ogres (enough for 15 of them, and you’ll still have points left for a unit of Harpies). Only the Chaos Sea Raiders list has them as Rare Units, thus able to include fewer. They have significant limitations, but they’re interesting for tournaments with restrictions. If you’re interested in that analysis, you can read it in 4 minutes right here:

If you think there’s an error in the post, feel free to reach out at theoldwarrior@theoldwarrior.com, and I’ll review it. Hope you enjoy ToW!


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