The time has come to tool up with the finest weapons credits can buy, make sure your lumens are fully charged, petition the most fearsome Spyre Hunter you can find, and descend into the terrifying depths of the Underhells.
Necromunda: Hive Secundus is available for pre-order on Saturday. It’s a campaign in a box: there’s a 176-softback rulebook that contains the full Necromunda rules (minus vehicles, which can’t navigate all the bottomless chasms), background on Hive Secundus, and a thrilling two-player campaign in which you plunder the tenebrous depths for precious data crystals and hunt the deadliest game of all.
In this unique campaign, the Arbitrator takes the role of the infinite hordes of the Malstrain Genestealers who lurk in the twisted realm of the Underhells. The opposing player commands a Secundan Incursion Gang there to explore the ruined depths, fill their boots with data crystals, and escape without dying. This gang is accompanied by a single member of the Imperial House ensconced in an Orrus hunting rig – they don’t care about data, they just want to test themselves against the blighted might of the Malstrain.
Each campaign takes place across six games separated by cycles, as the Secundan Incursion Gang makes their way down the levels of Hive Secundus. During the Underhells Entry Phase, the gang attempts to break into Hive Secundus while the Malstrain become dimly aware of their presence.
After a short Downtime phase in which fighters lick their wounds, juves and prospects hustle their way into promotions, and data crystals are traded with shady informants for rare archeo-loot, the interlopers enter the Exploration Phase, forging deeper into the hive ruins over the course of two more cycles.
After one more Downtime phase, the Confrontation Phase begins, and the Gang attempts one last gambit into the deepest, most dangerous region of the Underhells to snatch the most precious loot*, before a climactic battle in the heart of the Patriarch’s domain – and if any of the raiders survive, a rapid exfiltration follows.
It’s imperative, however, that players do their very best to ensure their fighters stay alive. Secundan Incursion Gangs have braved a long and dangerous journey across the Ash Wastes and the Secundun Exclusion Zone, so they cannot be reinforced if they take casualties.
Each game is played in a specific territory which has been issued as the stake for a challenge proposed by the winner of the previous game. Each territory confers a number of Malstrain Points that the Arbitrator can use to bolster their forces. A single Brood Scum fighter costs one Malstrain Point and can use 40 credits worth of equipment, while Malstrain Tyramites cost the same. The fearsome Malstrain Genestalers cost three points each, though they are limited in numbers by each descent. If an Incursion Gang wins the challenge they get to claim that territory and reap rewards in the process.
The double-sided paper playing mats – featuring a mostly intact hive floor on one side and a ruined shell on the other – plus the doors and barricades included in Hive Secundus give you everything you need to play, though you can improve your experience with some great new plastic terrain features.
Even more pervasive in the Underhells than collapsed floors and ruined bulkheads is the darkness. The failing dome lumens might provide a modicum of illumination in these harrowing depths, but visibility is low.
Fighters outside of visibility range are considered Hidden and cannot be targeted by ranged attacks unless they have activated a light or taken a shot. Those with their own photo-lumens or infra-sights can see better in the darkness, but regular fighters may only see barely more than a few feet in front of them.
This box is the perfect introduction to the rules wrapped up in a tense campaign that forces you to push your luck with limited resources. The box includes a Van Saar gang composed of eight Tek-Hunters, two Orrus Spyre Hunters, a Caryatid prime, who face off against Malstrain forces consisting of eight Brood Scum, six Malstrain Genestealers, and four Tyramites.
The upcoming Book of Desolation contains more advanced rules for Secundan Incursion Gangs, Spyrer Hunting Parties, Malstrain and Malstrain Corrupted Gangs, and a thrilling variant of the Underhells Campaign which supports multiple gangs.
* Spyrers have no interest in archeo-loot – they’re only there to increase their kill counts and earn powerful Suit Evolutions.
