Learning Necromunda

A while back, I managed to pick up a small painted Orlock gang for Necromunda, bundled with the Orlock gang cards which were otherwise out of stock. Coincidentally, shortly after that, the HATE Necromunda group started a new campaign, and I thought it would be rude not to.

Learning from their last campaign, where people playing tons quickly overtook those who only played a bit, there were two campaigns this time - one with the keeners, in the North map, and then a campaign for newer people or those with less time, where each cycle was limited to only a couple of games set in the South.

I enthusiastically challenged someone based on looking at the map and deciding which direction I wanted to go in, meaning I was attacking "The Techy People" Van Saar for their Stinger Mould Sprawl. It was our first game for both of us, so we probably made a ton of mistakes.

For example, my advancing "Toast" way too far forward on his own so he ended up getting shot up and spending most of the fight lying on his back trying to hold his insides in.

The close quarters of the Zone Mortalis board really favoured the Orlocks over the Van Saars with the weapons we'd brought on the day. While a tunnel fight was perhaps sensible for being easy to learn, it wasn't the greatest for a balanced game between a short ranged shooty gang and a long ranged shooty gang.

The paperwork seems pretty onerous for the campaign, but I suspect it will get easier over time. It certainly seems great fun, but best if you're not going for a single competitive game - one unlucky roll could lead to the gang bottling out super early on and feeling unsatisfied.

Rather, this suits well for a narrative campaign, where a short exchange of fire leading to one gang losing their nerve and pegging it isn't unreasonable. Rather, it's part of the ebb and flow of the action. I definitely enjoyed it and am looking forward to my next game.

In the end, we'd both had a ganger die and I'd captured one of their champions. I'm not selling them to the Guilders straight away - they'll get a chance to manage a Rescue first - so they'll get a chance to get my gang back soon enough!