Necromunda Underhive Gaming aids/Tools

In getting into Necromunda Underhive, I have found a number of great gaming aids which helped me massively, Yaktribe, Battlescribe, and Rollz.

Yaktribe - This is more than a website, first and foremost for Necromunda fans it’s a free list builder, but more importantly it’s a Campaign manager.

Starting a Chaos Cultist Gang Guide 3/3; Mission analysis

Last of the three part look into the Necromunda Cultists is the juicy one, here is an overview of each mission of 24 (thanks book 4) missions at time of going to press that will benefit you as the Chaos gang loving-sinisters the most....

Ultimately don't be afraid to give those I've noted as 'poor' choice a chance, as once the bullets get flying its all to play for! Based on how I run the gang (cheap horde) this is my interpretation of how each would go.

Invaluable Warhammer tools; Battlescribe Roster builder

One of the most useful tools that I would recommend to fellow players of Wargames is Battlescribe. This is a mobile and PC based list builder that I really would struggle to live without, and heartily recommend to all (not an Ad you’ll be surprised to learn! Just really like it).

So Battlescribe is a third party app that has been around for a couple of years, and is incredibly useful to keep your lists and rules in a nearby format.

Essentially, it uses data catalogues uploaded by the gaming community to allow regular joes to build viable gaming lists.

Magnetise your Knight Titan

I was so looking forwards to having a brand new toybox when I learned how easy magnets were. I imagined every tank having a host of swappable bits that would give my armies a new lease of life..

In truth; 

pfffffttttssplaaateeek....

Magnets. They are useful. They are also pain in the arse to use constantly. 

General observation? YOU WILL NOT USE THEM AS MUCH AS YOU THINK YOU WILL.
I realised that I barely used any of the magnetised troops that I went to the effort of creating. Most of the people I've given alternative loadouts I instead simply use their stock load out, or stick them with blu-tac.

Astra Militarum themes; Correct vs Fun

I really do need to adjust my tactics. I sit back, a lot. This is classically what Guard excel at. This is how their fluff reads. Sit behind fortifications and blow the enemy away with hammerblows of overwhelming fire-power. 

It’s a tactic that in game works well against a lot of armies such as Nids, Tau, Necrons, Chaos, Ork Kan and horde armies. The problem is everyone else.

I know the amount of Marine players I will be going up against. All with access to a lot of Deep Strike. This means this happens a lot.

I touched Infinity and I loved it! Part 3; Playing your first game.

Yes its done. I have played my first game, and it was good. Great even.

So 6 months and 30 days after purchasing, I finally had my co-purchaser over to try out Operation Icestorm. Using our figures, and the included pack which starts you like a tutorial mission you would find in any PC game; simple mechanics, basic premise with more and more layers each time you finish a mission. For the moment, lets discuss this using the rules learned thus far. No delayed ARO’s etc.

3 grunts vs 3 grunts, kill the opposing team. Rifle and knife for each guy. No leaders.

I'm a quibbler through and through; Rules

Sometimes, you just have to walk away, and cut your losses. Sometimes you just won't know every single rule, from every codex, through every connotation, and how you manage that un-knowledge can really define what kind of experience you get from the game.

We all have those moments of brow-furrowing when you think 'do I know that off by heart?' And that doubt can be a real pain in the ass, and I'll illustrate a few with my big dumb mug.

Cutting that grey tsunami however you like!

My scalpel has not made friends with my minis. I can 100% confirm that in my one and a half years of 40k there isn't a single model that I haven't taken my knife to in some way. 

And I don't mean just mould line shaving, I mean cut cut. (insert questionable prison metaphor here)

Budgets and budget aids! (The Gamers curse)

So very many temptations this week as my Company bonus looms. There's a Mechanicum tank of spindly death (finally a decent Chaos proxy for a Destroyer Tank hunter), the beautiful new Horus Heresy rulebook, some new Mechanicum thralls that seem to be everywhere, and various Chinese counterfeiters adverts that are trying to convince me of the benefits of using their services.

Painting; The Three Feet rule

One of the best things I've found in the last two years since rejoining the hobby are the little benefits that a gaming club brings, and the golden tips that they supply.

One definitely wins out however; The Three Feet Rule.

Closer to true 'grimdark' from Games Workshop

Things are getting darker, grittier, more violent, and more bloody. I was a '2nd editioner' back when I were only 10 or so. My parents bought me this strange box for Christmas with an entire universe inside (thanks for that by the way).

My reading habits and my entire outlook on Fiction itself changed when I read through the Codex Imperialis that came with that set. Beforehand, my reading choices had been fixed on a few Pratchetts, some Martin Jacques (freaking mice with swords!) and maybe some Tolkien, but not any more.

Lets play with proxies!

With the sheer volume of bodies needed for a proper guard army (the basic platoon for 130 points is 25 guys) you're gonna need to build up those spares and those extra bodies that can be added in as your list changes.

For the thrifty player in most of us, during the interim this means proxies;

Reclaimed mini's

I worked out recently that of my Sons of Omega Space Marine army 31/87 (or 35%) of the models (vehicles and troops) that I own are reclaimed mini's.

Thats a lot. The non-reclaimed troops were those from the Dark Vengeance set, sniper scouts, a Forgeworld Land Speeder Tempest, a Razorback, and an Ironclad.

All the rest? Imposters!

Reclaimed mini's come with one gigantic benefit; cost.

This is weighed against their pitfalls that come inherently with them;
- Time to strip them
- Paint finish
- Unknown quality.

Painting Traitor Guard tanks; Sons Of Sek, Part 2

Onto the next tank, and this was a happy conversion, but not as good as it could have been.

This is my dancing tank gif. It would amuse a 5 year old. Its a happy tank because he has his hat on, and then his hat off again.

Head hurt, head hurt.

IP for me?

Three shiny and new sample submissions sent in to Black Library since last I posted.

Warhammer submissions, fantasy. Not something I’ve written for about twelve years really, any dabbling has been 40k based, all of my mindset was geared towards one IP and not the other.

Shamelessly I’ll admit it was because I; as others had, labelled the Warhammer fantasy universe as having relatively restrictive borders compared to that of 40k. Whilst there are some very good arguments for both sides having the greater number of possibilities my opinion will always simply be biased towards Space Marines over Dwarves, which personally I think drills down to that ‘first contact’ moment.