Necromunda #5 - Ash Wastes

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    VEHICLE ROSTER SHEET

    Last issue we gave you full rules and vehicle costs for usingyour buggies, crawlers, bikes, etc. The costs of the vehicle youhave purchased and the information about it should berecorded on the Necromunda: Battles in the Ash Wastesvehicles roster opposite (permission is granted to photocopy itor a full version can be downloaded from the Fanatic website).Using this roster keeps costs of your vehicles separate fromyour gangers and allows you to use your Nomads to raid theUnderhive on foot by taking the cost of your vehicles awayfrom your total gang rating.

    This roster also has areas to include fixed weapons that areconsidered part of the vehicle the cost of which is added tothe total cost of the vehicle, not the gunner, and areas fornoting down the driver, gunner, etc. An example of acompleted roster is given on the right.

    VEHICLE PERMANENT DAMAGE Just as a ganger can be seriously injured in a fight, a gangsvehicles can take permanent damage from enemy fire. Gangstry to keep their transport in the best working order they can,salvaging parts from wrecked vehicles found in the ash wastes

    and buying replacement parts from the shanty towns.However, some damage cannot be glossed over using aplanishing hammer or a coat of paint and will therefore havemore detrimental effects.

    CRIPPLED VEHICLES Any vehicle that is crippled has to roll on the VehiclePermanent Damage table. Any vehicle that was immobilisedduring the game may become crippled and have to roll on thetable, especially if it is abandoned by a gang that bottles out. Avehicle that has no crew or driver at the end of the battle also

    counts as being immobilised.

    IMMOBILISED VEHICLESRoll a D6 for each immobilised vehicle at the end of the game.On a roll of a 1 the vehicle counts as crippled and you must rollon the Vehicle Permanent Damage table, on a roll of a 2 or

    Continuing the vehicle rules from last issue.This time we learn how vehicles behave in campaigns.

    2

    ASH WASTESEXPERIMENTAL VEHICLE

    CAMPAIGN RULES

    by Chris Ward and Stuart Witter

    VehicleType:

    ArmourT

    ype:

    VehicleName:

    Fix

    edWeapon:

    TransportCapacity:

    Cost:

    Drive

    r:

    Gu

    nner:

    1 2 3

    4 5 6

    Scores

    AreaName

    Scores

    Armour

    AreaName

    Sho

    rt

    Range

    Long

    Range

    Tohit

    short

    Tohit

    long

    StrSaveD

    amage

    Ammo

    Armo

    ur

    Equipment,PermanentDamageandNotes

    :

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    more your gang successfully rescues the vehicle before it iseither stripped by another gang or falls prey to the harsh ash waste conditions, meaning it will be repaired in time for thenext game. If the gang owning the vehicle bottled out, thechances are that the vehicle will be recovered less. So instead a

    D6 roll of 1-3 will mean the vehicle is crippled and takespermanent damage; a roll of 4-6 means that it is rescued andrepaired.

    VEHICLE PERMANENT DAMAGE CHART (D66)

    11-13 DestroyedThe vehicle is completely wrecked, the damage it has sustainedleaves it beyond repair. If one gang bottled out the other canleave a ganger to strip the vehicle of any parts that could besalvaged, gaining 2D6 x 10 creds (to be added to the gangsincome). This means, though, that the ganger cannot scavengeor work a territory this game.

    14-16 WreckedThe vehicle has not been completely destroyed, althoughrepairable it is badly mangled. Roll a further D6 times on thistable. Re-roll any Destroyed, While we were at it..., Fixed orfurther Wrecked results. Re-roll any duplicate Capturedresults.

    21-22 Armour Weakened

    The armour plates that protect the vehicles vital componentsand crew are twisted, buckled, have holes blown in them or arecompletely missing. The vehicles Armour values should bereduced by -1 on all locations.

    23-24 Twisted ChassisThe vehicles chassis or frame is bent, making it almostimpossible to control at high speeds. For each turn you wish tomake roll a D6. On a result of a 1 the turn cannot be made at all(i.e. a vehicle travelling at fast speed, that can only make one45 degree turn, fails its D6 roll and cannot make its turn this

    Movement phase).

    25-26 Engine ProblemsThe vehicles propulsion system has taken serious damageduring the last battle and now doesnt function perfectly. Thedriver must make a Leadership test each time he wishes to travelat a different speed (slow, combat or fast) from what wastravelled at in the previous Movement phase. A failed leadershiptest means the engine has malfunctioned and travels at the samespeed this turn. A Leadership test must also be made to bring avehicle to a halt (stationary for a turn) or to move a previously

    stationary vehicle.

    31-32 BoneshakerThe suspension systems are ditched and the vehicle bouncesaround wildly as it is driven across the uneven ash surface.While moving, all models on board suffer a -1 to hit modifier,when they shoot.

    3

    VehicleType:

    ArmourT

    ype:

    VehicleName:

    Fix

    edWeapon:

    TransportCapacity:

    Cost:

    Drive

    r:

    Gu

    nner:

    1 2 3

    4 5 6

    Scores

    AreaName

    Scores

    Armour

    AreaName

    Sho

    rt

    Range

    Long

    Range

    Tohit

    short

    Tohit

    long

    StrSaveD

    amage

    Ammo

    Armo

    ur

    Equipment,PermanentDamageandNotes

    :

    10

    Driver

    Fixed

    Weapon

    Crew

    Wheel

    Vehicle

    Body

    HeavyS

    tubber

    Hukk

    Touler

    Bertha

    Led

    Saato

    Heavy

    Armour

    300+0+120=

    420

    Wheeled 5

    Engine

    2

    Sustained

    Fire

    dice

    0-2

    0

    20-40

    4

    -1

    1

    4+

    10

    10

    10

    12

    12

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    4

    33-34 Annoying Squeak!Some minor problem such as a knocking sound every time the vehicle accelerates, a rattley gearbox or a squeaky seat hasdeveloped and sends the driver mad! The driver suffers -1Leadership whilst driving this vehicle due to the distraction.

    35-36 UnreliableThe vehicle develops a recurring fault which, despite efforts ofrepair, means it is sometimes out of action. Roll a D6 beforeeach battle. On a result of a 1 the problem is playing up and thevehicle cannot be used for this game. Two Unreliable resultsmean 2D6 have to be rolled before each game any roll of a 1 thevehicle is unavailable, three means 3D6, etc.

    41-56 FixedIt looks a lot worse than it is, a knock about with a mallet, a few

    rivets and a coat of paint means the vehicle sustains no longsuffering effects.

    61-63 CapturedThe vehicle is towed away by the opposing gang. Captured vehicles can be exchanged, ransomed or stripped for parts ifboth gangs hold captured vehicles then they must be exchangedon a one for one basis, starting with vehicles of the highestvalue. Any remaining vehicles can be bought back by their owngang if the player is willing to pay the captors asking price.There is no guideline for ransom prices, it is for the players to

    decide between themselves. Finally, vehicles that have not beenexchanged or bought back can be stripped for parts. Any fixed weapons can be added to the capturing mobs stash and the vehicles components are sold for 3D6 x 10 creds. The gangwho have lost their vehicle can opt to play a rescue mission toreclaim their valued transport before it is reduced to itscomponent parts.

    64-65 ReputationThe knocks, rake marks and bullet holes covering the vehiclemeans it is recognised as being owned by an experienced gang

    of merciless killers. The effect of this pride in their transportgives all gang members riding on the vehicle +1 Leadershipwhilst on board.

    66 While we were at itThe gangs efforts to patch up the vehicle after the last battleseem to have solved another long-standing fault. All permanentdamage suffered by the vehicle during its illustrious lifetime isfixed and has no further effect!

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    Outside the protection of the hive walls, life

    is sparse and survival hard. Even the

    hardiest shanty town dwellers or

    experienced nomad gangs can find

    themselves caught out by the rapidly

    changing conditions that are the result of

    Necromundas ruined ecosystem. Massive

    ash dunes are interspersed with areas of

    completely flat ash plain miles wide. Theseare but the least of a gangs worries. Even

    the air is toxic outside the hive, any man

    caught without a respirator will surely die.

    However, it is the land and climate of the

    planet itself that kills many unwary

    outhiver. Windstorms blow up great clouds

    of corrosive ash that can strip a man to the

    bone in minutes. The temperature

    fluctuates wildly, freezing one minute, only

    to be boiling hot the next. Toxic or acidrain can pour from the skies and floods of

    sludge or chemicals sweep across the land.Finally, it is the darkness of night that issingly the most terrifying thing to manygangers, for who knows what will havehappened when the skies become lightonce more!

    Should you wish, you may include atreacherous condition in your games ofNecromunda: Battles in the Ash Waste. Youmay agree with your opponent not to havea treacherous condition, but if one playerwants one you must roll for it. Treacherousconditions are rolled for after set-up, butbefore the game begins. Note that AshNomad gangs are not affected by anyconditions except for the Darkness (31-36)and Dead Calm (26) conditions. Todetermine the condition which affects your

    game roll D66 and consult the table overthe page.

    5

    TREACHEROUS CONDITIONSEXPERIMENTAL RULES

    by Chris Ward

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    6

    11-16 Ash ConditionThe ash surface that covers Necromunda is not always firm, level ground. The ash maybe sludgy, uneven or moving in huge drifts, not to mention the pockets of Quickash,that can catch out a careless ganger!

    11 Sludge. The ash is slightly sludgy and clings to the boots of gangers and tyresof vehicles. However, this does not cause any major effect. Continue as normal.

    12 Drifting Ash. The ash is dry, fine and drifting fast. Besides getting into clothing andequipment it has little effect. Continue as normal.

    13 Thick Ash Covering. The whole area is covered with a thick coating of fine ash likesand. This makes movement on foot very difficult; all movement by models on footon the surface is at half rate. In addition, roll a D6 at the start of each turn for everyvehicle. On a 1 the vehicle is stuck and may not move this turn. This does not affectskimmers and crawlers.

    14 Uneven Surface. The ash in this area is set hard into lumps, mounds and ridges,shaking and jolting models in vehicles. Any models shooting from a moving vehicleis at an additional -1 to hit. Skimmers, crawlers and walkers are unaffected.

    15 Quickash. Small pockets of quickash are dotted across the area, completelyHidden from view. Roll a D6 for any model on the surface that moves (vehicles andmodels on foot). On a 1 they are caught in a Quickash pocket and may not movethis turn as they struggle to free themselves.

    16 Heat-Baked Ash Pan. The surface is baked into a hard, even surface. Ideal!Continue as normal.

    21-26 Wind ConditionIt is always windy in the wastes of Necromunda, constantly blowing up ash andcorrosive chemicals. For the most part, the wind is just another inconvenience, butsometimes it gets really windy...

    21 Poison Wind. The wind is somewhat more toxic than normal, just be thankful thateveryone has a respirator. Continue as normal.

    22 Blustery. The wind is blustery and corrosive. Continue as normal.

    23 Strong Winds. Movement in the wind is becoming extremely difficult. Allmovement on foot is reduced by -1 (e.g. models with Move 4 are now Move 3)

    24 Ash. The wind is blowing up great clouds of ash and dust that makes it very hardto see. Long range shooting is at an additional -1 to hit.

    25 Heavy Ash. The wind is blowing especially thick clouds of ash and dust that getsinto everything mechanical. All shooting is at an additional -1 to hit. In addition, theash and dust is so thick it is clogging air intakes on vehicles. Vehicles must roll 4+on a D6 to move, or be immobilised for the turn.

    26 Dead Calm. There is no wind, a rare thing in the wastes. All Ash Nomad modelsare at -1 Ld as the conditions are so unnerving. This does not affect any other gangs.

    31-36 Light ConditionsOutside the hive, light is not rigorously controlled by glow-globes and halogen strips.It is a murky place as much of the light of Necromundas sun is kept out by the thickclouds of smog that drift across the sky. However, this is preferable to the light whichoccasionally breaks through the cloud layer, as any kind of protective ozone layer hasbeen destroyed millennia ago. The light that does get through to the planet is burning,blinding and mutating.

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    31 Gloomy. It is clouded and poorly lit. But then this is only to be expected. Continueas normal.

    32 Bright. The smog layer is relatively thin here. Continue as normal.

    33 Bad Light. Night is approaching. Vision is reduced to 16".

    34 Darkness. It is the dead of night. Vision is reduced to 8". All Ld is at -1 or use therules for night fighting if you have them.

    35 Radiation.A gap in the clouds allows deadly non-ionising UVC radiation through tothe planet surface. Roll a D6 for every model at the start of the game. On a 1 thatmodel takes a S3 hit. Any model that goes out of action due to this automatically getsthe Horrible Scars result on the Injury table.

    36 Changing. The cloud layer is rapidly drifting. Each turn roll a D6. On a 1 roll againon this table applying the result immediately.

    41-46 Temperature Condition Vast pressure differences exist on Necromunda the planet being alternatelysuperheated by the sun and frozen when it is in shadow. This not only results in the

    winds on Necromunda but also massive temperature changes that move across thesurface, freezing or cooking anything unable to protect itself.

    41 Cold. The temperature is cold, but nothing that hardened gangers cant deal with.Continue as normal.

    42 Hot. It is hot and clammy. Continue as normal.

    43 Chill Wind. The temperature has plummeted. Ice forms on vehicles and weapons.Continue as normal.

    44 Heat Wave. Boy is it hot! Continue as normal.

    45 Freezing. The temperature drops so low it freezes the ash surface solid. Vehiclesmoving must roll a D6 each turn. On a 1 they move out of control as the vehicle slips onthe ice. This does not apply to skimmers or crawlers.

    46 Baking Hot. Roll a D6 for each model at the start of a players turn. On a 1, modelson foot pass out with the heat, counting as pinned. Vehicles that roll a 1 overheat and maynot move this turn.

    7

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    51-56 Storm ConditionsThe ash storms of Necromunda are notorious across the galaxy. In full force a storm canpick up a man and drop him hundreds of miles away. Of course, by then he is little morethan scoured bones. Sometimes a skirmish will occur just before or after a great storm,

    when gangers must fight in the harshest of conditions.

    51 Storms Coming Ani! (I can feel it in my bones).A really nasty ash storm is headingthis way, blowing up ash and raining down toxins. Each player must roll a D6 at thestart of his turn. On a 1 the player may not move at all this turn as the storm forceseveryone into cover. Models may shoot or fight in close combat as normal.

    52 Cyclone.As two gangs approach each other, a huge cyclone whips up, forcing thegangs to retreat. Players should each roll a Ld test for their gang leader. The playerwho passes by the most wins, and may reposition his entire gang, with the normalset-up rules for the scenario being played.

    53 Acid Rain.Acid rain in the underhive is a mere trickle by comparison. Roll a D6 forall models at the start of the game. On a 1, models on foot must pass an I test (byrolling under their Initiative on a D6) or take a S3 hit. Models taken out by thisautomatically receive the Horrible Scars serious injury; there is no need to roll for it.Vehicles that roll a 1 must roll a further D6 after the game. On another 1 they takepermanent damage as though they had been crippled, as the acid eats through vitalcomponents.

    54 Chemical Rain.All rain on Necromunda is made up of nasty chemicals, all waterhaving long since been polluted. Continue as normal.

    55 Toxic Rain. This comes down in thick sheets which impairs vision and sting the eyes.Vision is reduced to 24".

    56 Lightning Storm. Roll 2D6 each turn. On the roll of 2 (snake eyes!), a vehicle isstruck by lightning and explodes with the same effect as rolling a 6 on the VehiclesFuel Damage table (or engine/powerplant depending on the type of vehicle. Justapply whichever is the most damaging.) If there are no vehicles then there is no effect.

    61-66 Miscellaneous ConditionsThere are some strange conditions that also occur in the wastes, some of which arenteven strictly weather...

    61 Ash Clams. The whole area is riddled with ash clams, hiding just underneath the ashsurface. Roll a D6 for each model that moves on foot. On a 2-5 nothing happens. Ona 1 the model is seized by an ash clam and may not move until rolling under hisStrength on a D6 at the start of subsequent turns.

    62 Radiation. The whole planet is swimming with it! Continue as normal.

    63 Parasites.A recent storm has stirred up a colony of microscopic parasites. Eachplayer must roll a D6 at the start of each turn. On a roll of a 1 a randomly determinedgang fighter loses one Strength point for the rest of the game, as the parasites feed.Models reduced to S=0 are taken immediately out of action.

    64 Effluent Flood.A massive effluent flood sweeps across the battlefield. Makingmovement a somewhat haphazard affair. Roll a D6 for every model at the start of thegame (on foot and vehicles). On a 1 that model may not move in its first turn.

    65 Rad Zone. The battlefield is dotted with highly concentrated radiation sources.Players must roll a D6 at the start of their turn. On a 1 a randomly determined modelis affected by the radiation. Models that go out of action due to this automaticallyreceive the Impressive Scars result on the Serious Injury table; there is no need toroll for this. Models equipped with rad counters are not affected.

    66 Multiple Conditions! Roll again for a further D6 treacherous conditions, re-rollingany more rolls of 66.

    8

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    The hives of Necromunda are scattered over

    the cloud-strewn surface of the planet,

    linked by a network of overground travel

    tubes and subterranean passages. From the

    top of a hive it might be possible to see the

    tips of distant hives projecting from the seas

    of poison mists like far-flung islands. Somecloser hives are connected by open roads

    across the wastes but most are connected

    together by transportation tubes supported

    on pylons and suspended on cables, said

    Stuart.

    Lets make one, said Rob.

    So we did!

    To start with we discussed whether we

    should attempt a suspension bridge-based

    travel tube hanging over the battlefield

    supported by girders and alike, or a tube

    that would be almost completely covered

    with ash. The latter not only sounded a biteasier to start with, but also allowed us to

    model a breach into the travel tube that we

    could use in a scenario we had devised. As

    such we headed to our local B&Q to see

    what kind of tubes they could offer us in

    order to aid our scenery building

    endeavours. An erratic and somewhat

    knuckle-whitening ride later we were

    browsing the extensive drainpipe range that

    the hardware store offered. The halfdrainpipe that we thought would be the

    most useful turned out to be four quid for

    two metres! Top value we thought and after

    picking up some interesting looking bracket

    things that held a hefty price tag of twelve

    pence, each we set about trying to find an

    unsuspecting staff member to cut up our

    pipe Now the folks at the shop usually

    help me out cutting up bits of wood to

    facilitate getting them into my car and alike,

    however this particular staff memberinformed us that they did not have the

    relevant equipment to do it for us. If the

    shop did not have an extensive range of saws

    I might have believed him, we responded to

    his comments with a half hearted shoulder

    shrug-come-sigh paid and left.

    The basic tube construction is really simpleand cheap, after cutting of one foot longpieces of drainpipe, we glued them ontosome hardboard bases. Cutting up thebrackets we made strengthening ribs thatwere glued in equally spaced intervals alongthe tube. As you can see from the pictures

    one rib is placed at the end of the pipe sojoins look a little tidier on the tabletop. Afteradding these we built up ash on one sidewhere it would be blown against the walls of

    the tube. I used polystyrene cut intoshape using one of GWs hot wire jobbies (it seems to be the quickestmethod and I only burnt myself a fewtimes!). I am sure there are loads of ways to build up ash type mounds,polyfilla, etc. that would be a lot betterlooking in the long run but we wantedto make this lot in a day and as suchneeded something that would bequick and mess free. Talking of messwe then applied a liberal coat of PVA tothe bases and dumped a bucket full ofsand on them to dry (later inspection

    9

    TAKE THE TUBE(or ten pounds... thats a bargain!)

    by Stuart Witter

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    revealed a few more coats would be inorder and I decided to apply them laced with paint later on). We made four plainsections so that on a six foot by four footboard we could have a completely plaintravel tube running the width of the tablethat could be blown up during the gameand replaced with a breach segment.

    The breach section required a little more

    planning. The walls needed to look

    substantial and I decided to include a

    transport train inside. I wanted a composite

    kind of feel to the wall rather than just a big

    thick concrete one, so after cutting a hole in

    the wall I cut a smaller hole about the same

    shape in the left over drainpipe. I then

    glued the off cut piece inside the section,but held it off the main wall using a couple

    of pieces of reinforcing bar (round sprue)

    and an energy conduit (wire). To make the

    rubbled wall look convincing I filed down

    the edges to look like they had been made

    of some kind of stone/plascrete. This

    looked a lot better than the original drilled

    and snapped plastic look it had previously

    sported. The rib that ran across the hole

    was then snapped and

    glued on a reinforcing

    bar (wire) was added in

    the ends of these to make

    them look functional. I

    saved the middle piecesof the blasted out section,

    cut them up and filed the

    edges down in a similar

    fashion to the tube so that

    I could add them to the

    base later. I couldnt decide what to make

    the train out of for age, then in a flash of

    inspiration (I was sat where I have most ofmy good ideas) I saw a redundant R2D2

    bubble bath bottle sat on the other side ofthe bathroom. I thought his midriff was an

    excellent sci-fi train type shape and after a

    little more deliberation took him to pieces

    for a better cause (dont worry I had two of

    these little babies so I didnt mind cutting

    one up). I removed a panel from Artoos

    side and added a little interior detail forthose who might peer inside of the train,

    and glued it into the tube. I then packed it

    away from the side so that the train didnt

    look like it filled the entire tube. I glued thebeast down and added polystyrene to

    represent the build up of ash and then used

    the afore prepared rubble and the

    obligatory corroding skeleton to finish the

    job before giving the base a thick layer offsand.

    Whilst I was cutting up R2D2, Rob busiedhimself creating an access point with the

    last section of drainpipe we had managed

    10

    The breached section of tube.

    A completed section of tube.

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    to squeeze into his Orion. Again the finely

    honed basic tube technique was used to

    superb effect, and the access point was to bebuilt on top of the tube. A rather sorry

    looking railway set footbridge formed the

    base of the cabin, its roof being used as thetread plates that the small building sits

    upon. The actual building itself was

    constructed using Necromunda bulkheads

    that had the ladders removed. They had

    been carefully cut to size and then plastic

    rod, girder shaped extrusion, was used to

    build a frame for the pieces to sit into. The

    end pieces of the cabin used one of the cut

    down ladders and a bulkhead with a doorhole. The door that sits in the frame was

    scratch built by Rob out of plasticard. He

    detailed it with a skull and scroll device, a

    door handle and hinges. The railway

    footbridge parts were arranged in such a

    way as the door is at the raised level, and on

    entering you would descend into the tube

    from above. The roof was just plain

    plasticard with a vent hatch and aerialsadded to give interest to the cabin. The

    hatch is a piece of unsuspecting railway kit

    and the aerial is part of a chimeras

    multilaser.

    The paint job is a very simple one and

    needed to match my ash waste board, I have

    chosen to play my games in an area of

    wastes rich in corroded iron deposits, apinky brown shade covers my bases and

    board, and the scenery matches this. The

    tubes themselves were to match theconventional Warhammer 40k feel, grey with

    industrial yellow and black stripes meant the

    wastes still gives the impression that the

    tube is part of the hive.

    All in all the six foot of transport tube we

    made only cost around ten pounds (OK, the

    railway bits should have cost about that to,but they were just lying about) so you can

    see that the simple gaming terrain we made

    whilst play testing the game was done

    quickly and cheaply. We were moreinterested in playing the game than what it

    looked like to start with, having no models

    or scenery seems daunting to start with but

    the ash waste is fairly sparsely populated

    with the stuff. Games can be played with

    only a handful of rocks and a burnt out

    wreck of a vehicle, whilst still providing an

    interesting battle. Winning at Battles in the

    Ash Wastes does not rely as heavily onhugging cover, tactical manoeuvre of your

    vehicles around the scenery is what counts

    and not crashing into it!

    11

    The Maintenance section of tube

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    12

    After playing with my Nomad gang for some

    time, gaining the odd skill and picking up asizeable stash of creds along the way, Idecided it was time to make some more vehicles. These would be for thefootslogging gangers and juves that taggedalong with the existing buggies my gangused. Having only light vehicles so far in mygang I did not want anything that wouldslow them down too much, and makingmore buggies didnt really appeal to me thatmuch either. Bikes then, I thought and had

    a look in my bits box to see what I might beable to make use of.

    The Space Marine bike sprue was the first

    that came to hand but I had my doubts aboutit. A huge armoured bike designed forlugging around half a tonne of geneticallyenhanced, super human was hardly the sortof thing knocked out in a shanty town. Withthis in mind I started to weaken the twomain halves of the bike and make the wholething look a lot lighter. Mainly I did this onthe armour that covered the wheels and tookthe forks off at the point where they meetthe headlight area. This left me with a bit of

    a predicament what to join the wheel onwith later but I decided to think about whenI came to do it later and carried on with theremoval of the rear wheels armour. Aftertaking off the rear armour I glued the twohalves together, and added the handlebars.The headlight (useful in the murky ashstorms and mists) was cut away from the

    protective windscreen armour plate and

    glued inbetween the fork mountings. It wasat this point I realised I had no way ofputting the wheels on either end nowDisheartened I made a cup of tea inpreparation for the next bits box search thatlay ahead.

    For the front forks I found two banner polesfrom Ork war buggies gutted making otherash waste vehicles. They had a big sun on thebanner top, that when turned round madequite good disc looking bits. I trimmed thesedown a bit and found that the original wheelwould now never fit between them, I sandeddown the two halves of the tyre beforegluing it all in place. I had no idea how theback wheel of a motor bike fits on, so I wentand had a look at one (reference materialsare best when completely stumped by amodelling project). I found they are held onone side on newer racing bikes. Armed withthis equipment and a further cup of tea I

    knocked up a plasticard arm to hold theback wheel on. I added a couple of hubcapsthat you get on the tyre sprues onto this armfor a little detail, and the hub cap for theoutside was made by cutting down one ofthe tank wheels you get spare when putting

    ON YER BIKE!by Stuart Witter

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    13

    together a Chimera. I covered an unsightlygap in the back of the bike caused byremoving all its armour with somemiscellaneous piece of sci-fi stuff, oh and Ishould probably point out that I triedputting the foot rest jobby on but decided itruined the smaller look I had given the bike. Without this bit and having removed theoriginal exhausts along with the rest of the

    armour, I had no pipe at all on the bike. Notwanting it to sound like a dodgy old Nova SRI gave it new pipes that went into the barrelfrom an Ork shoota, a nice looking silencer(I was quite chuffed with that bit!).

    The rider seemed a logical progression andhaving secured myself a set of the lovely newash nomad models I decided it was best tocut them up. I picked a model with an armheld out, this meant an almost natural riding

    position could be achieved. First I cut off hislegs at the waist. I had some Space MarineScout Biker parts that were meant tooriginally ride this bike. The legs from thescout made the nomad sit perfectly on thebike and the hand meant he would holdonto the handlebars fairly well. After addingan autopistol for its short range effects(bikes in the game can move again afterfiring when moving at fast speed, makingshort range weapons really useful) and a

    small backpack the nomad was set aside whilst another hunt was made for bikematerial.

    Chris decided that he would have a go at thismotorbike production. After all it looked adoddle and readily started to chop up anabandoned Ork warbike. He removed thefront forks and all the armour that

    previously housed the tracks, added newforks made from spear staffs and a cut downfront wheel. He then realised he didntknow how motorbike back wheels fitted oneither. The half made bike then lay dormant,awaiting inspiration for a couple of days Iasked Chris if he would mind if I finished it,as I was a bit short on bike bits. He was morethan happy to give up the front wheel thathe had created.

    I added handlebars and a headlamp tomatch my first bike and tried to find a way ofadding the engine and back wheel. ASentinel leg link turned up and was addedto one side to give a rather beefy looking

    motor. I quite liked the look this gave and wanted it to appear like it was driven byelectric as well as fuel, so I added a powerpack and wires from a lascannon that Ipinched off of Rob. I then needed a set ofexhausts for the beast, and having looked atloads of gun bits whilst trying to find wiring,had turned up an Ork skorcha from the backof a Warbuggy. Cut in two the barrels madefairly nifty looking exhausts.

    The rider was again made from the newmodels that Fanatic have produced. I left thelong cloak, removing the front of the legsand then gluing Space Marine Scout legs tohis waist. The cloak gives the model a realfeeling of speed and the chainsword seemedto set this off nicely I was partially inspiredby the picture of the nomad leader from theash nomad rules in Necro mag 3.

    The juves of my gang didnt deserve suchlarge impressive bikes; I took a trip to a local

    model shop to see if I could find anythingsmaller. The range of bikes was less thanstartling and I settled for the only ones theydid without sidecars. The bike I used for this juve had millions of parts to put togetherbut I only used the completely necessaryones! Well... most of the completelynecessary ones. The engine was replaced bythe body of a multi melta, a power packfrom a Van Saar heavy was added to feedextra power to the new motor and a back

    pack from a mutie raider was used to makethe bike look like it was a bit of a workhorse.

    I gave the juve on top mutie raider legs,these were used as the Scout legs lookedmassive on such a small frame. The armswere positioned into a riding and throwing

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    position, the hand not grasping on for dearlife was to throw a grenade. Grenades can bechucked off in any direction by a biker givingthem massive flexibility. I added a backpackto the juve to further the image of afunctional vehicle. The notion that the riderdidnt have a gun perplexed me a little so Ifinally added a holster taken from a spacemarine sprue to the side of the bike, ready to

    be drawn in case of emergency.This bike needed to look different from theother juves so I added armour. Shockingthough the idea was, I am usually found weakening my ash wastes vehicles to thepoint of no return. Half circles were addedto protect the wheels and the engine wasreplaced by the stock of a multilaser, with anarmour plate covering any workings. Ifashioned an exhaust out of a spear staff andthe exhausts cut off the Ork bike Chris had

    ravaged.

    The juve rider was made in the same way asthe first, although the lack of space marinescout hand (all scouts hold on with their left)meant I had to resort to an archers handthat happened to turn up.

    At this point I fancied making a quad andspent a couple of hours making one out of apair of Space Marine Bikes, adding newforks, mud guards, etc. before Chris and Robconvinced me it really did look just like aride-on lawn mower that the caretaker mighthave riden around on when we were atschool. Not being able to get the image of mynomad mowing verges out of my head I filedthe conversion in my bits box for anothermore suitable application.

    Painting the bikes was a matter of replicatingthe colour scheme already used on mybuggies, vermin brown over black, chips-scuffs and dirt. These are gaming miniaturesand as such I didnt dwell on the paint job, Ireserved more of my painting time to mynew Ash nomad gang (coming soon).

    I hope that I have shed a bit of light on howthese little bikers were put together andperhaps inspired you to have a go, I

    recommend you have a look at a realmotorbike first it really does help!

    Useful bits for makingyour bikes with!

    All the components shown belowcan be ordered from Mail Order.

    102791 Small Wheel sprue

    102807 Marne Bike sprue

    010300107 Dreadnought Exhaust

    00801 Ork Warbike sprue

    010505312 Multi-Melta

    010505302 Hatch Base

    010800509 Immolator Blast Shield

    030500504 Shadowsword Cannon

    030700107 Carapace Heavy Weapon030300316 Exhaust 1

    030300317 Exhaust 2

    FNCMO16 Ash Waste Hand Weapon sprue

    FNCM017 Ash Waste Basic Weapon sprue