The Ash Waste Nomads are available to pre-order from Saturday, as part of the biggest Necromunda release since the game was rebooted in 2017.
We’re heading out of the underhive to enjoy grimy new vistas of a planetary surface ravaged by millennia of deep-core mining, pollution, and industrial wreckage. And that’s without the locals, who would really rather you went back inside.
We spoke to the game designers to see what inspired this departure – and to get a clearer idea of what to expect from the ash wastes.
The mysterious Ash Wastes Nomads keep many more secrets than these – but our intrepid investigators have had their noses to the ground for a while now, and have come back with a few key questions about these denizens of the dunes.
Who Are They Really?
Tall tales and rumours abound concerning the nature of the Ash Waste Nomads, simply because no-one knows who they really are. Are they the descendants of the original settlers of Necromunda, gradually displaced and driven into the deserts over the millennia? Are they, as many suspect, not even human at all? While a little is known about the various tribes and the ranks within them, the Nomads have never been seen without their masks…
Where Do They Get All Those Long Rifles From?
As any underhiver knows, a Strength 4 weapon with an effective range of 48” is a thing to fear. Given that the Tarn’runi (the Ash Waste Nomad gangers) can access them as basic weapons rather than special weapons, many an innocent Necromundan is going to feel the pain of deadly sniper fire more or less as soon as they take their first faltering steps into the sunlight. So where are the Nomads getting their guns, and are they prepared to share the love?
Do They Know Any Other Giant Bugs?
A toxic, irradiated hellscape it may be, but the surface of Necromunda clearly manages to support at least two lifeforms – the Dustback Helamites and the Nomads themselves. Are there other monstrous insects waiting for unwary travellers out in the wastes?
Do They Ever Venture Inside?
They’re custodians of the planet, eternal survivors, and friends to Necromunda’s insectoid megafauna. In short, the Ash Waste Nomads much prefer the (not-so) great outdoors. But does this mean they never venture into the underhive? Sightings are rare – and always treated as apocryphal – but wouldn’t Dustback Helamites be mighty dangerous bounding up all those ramps?
You can pre-order Necromunda: The Ash Wastes on Saturday, alongside gang boxes for the Ash Waste Nomads, their Dustback Helamite riders, and Gang Tactics Cards. The Orlock quads and Vehicle Tactics cards will also go on sale. And why not sign up to the newsletter for more knowledge as it drops?