Imperial Crackdown Log and Finals!!

Imperial Crackdown

2012 Necromunda Campaign

The Capital of Lucruzu Primus, Domagoshch.

Lucruzu Primus, Vae Salubrious Subsector

Though it is the seat of much unrest in the past few years, Lucruzu Primus remains one of the more productive worlds in the sector.  It's relatively idyllic vistas have recently been marred by rioting, pogroms and an almost full scale revolt.  The planet is recovering from a recent power struggle, and it is imperative that Lucruzu Primus continue to function as the trade hub for the sector that it has grown to be.

Recently havnig tithed a large amount of men and equipment, the Merchant Guilds have asked that nearby forces of the Mardannon Crusade contribute to maintaining the peace.  An attempt was made during the moving of men and equipment to undermine and usurp the rule of the Merchant House Semetov.  However, agents of the Emperor's Holy Inquisition were at work to maintain the status quo, and the government of the planet remains mostly intact.  However, there are much fewer soldiers to police the entirety of the populated zones.

In the rest of the subsector, wars encroach on many other worlds.  The Crusade is needed elsewhere, but control of Lucruzu Primus (and Domagoshch in particular) is critical.  Though Lucruzu avoided full-scale war, heretic uprisings on nearby Vae Salubrious itself have weakened the morale and sapped the vitality of the Imperial citizenry. Now, the Imperial Navy and other fighting elements have seen fit to use Lucruzu as a staging ground for the Crusade.

A heroic push of men and machines will roll out of Lucruzu soon.  The battlefleet in orbit grows to an impressive size, and more fighting forces arrive in system even now.  The Imperium sees this as an opportunity to show the people of Lucruzu Primus they are watched over by a benevolent Emperor, and plans are drawn up to send military units to the surface to aid in the suppression of non-conformist elements. The Imperium is cracking down on seditionists, heretics, and foul people of all kinds.

The Guild Authority has been fully mobilized.  The merchant houses of Lucruzu move to protect their domains, but a little confusion is always on hand.  As 'peacekeeping' forces from the crusade move onto the planet, there are bound to be some losses as various factions attempt to accomplish their own missions.  The Administratum has estimated that casualties from planetside operations will be within acceptable bounds, much less than if a full-scale rebellion broke out.

It's time to save some souls and uphold the laws of the Emperor!

---

The view of Domagoshch is...grey.

Campaign Rules

This year's Necromunda campaign will utilize the rules and scenarios from the basic rulebook.  The main difference this season with how we've been running our campaigns is that we are removing the 'set game' limit.  Therefore, you no longer have to appoint games against various club members, but rather it will be a more freeform, open-ended campaign.

Here's how it works.  Gangs will fight as normal, and you're not allowed to play the same player more than twice in a row as in the rulebook.  However, scoring is a little more complicated than just Gang Rating.

Wins, Losses and Draws will be compared to create an Influence Score.  The greatest number of battles among the players will be our Battle Magnitude, and represents the faction's committal to the campaign.  For each battle a player is behind, he suffers a cumulative -5% penalty to his influence score.  Your adjusted Campaign Score is equal to your adjusted Influence multiplied by your Gang Rating.

Highest adjusted Campaign Score at the end of the campaign wins!  The game will run from July 1st to October 1st, 2012!  Get as many games as you can, that's the only way to ensure a win!


Currently Active Units

1. Precinct 69 (Enforcers)
2. Lumisi Interdiction Team (House Orlock)
3. House Semetov (Unknown House)
4. Red Redemption (Redemptionists)
5. Band of Basterds (House Orlock)
6. Abu Dabis (Ash Wastes Nomads)
7. The Dingoes (Ratskin Renegades)

---

Campaign Updates

1. The campaign has begun!
2. 8.19.2012 - After a month of brewing hostilities, House Semetov moves against what it sees as insurgents in a military action.
3. 9.21.2012 - Three weeks on hard fighting sees House Semetov in near complete control of Domagoshch.
4. 10/1/2012 - The campaign is over!  House Semetov is victorious, but the wasteland nomads calling themselves the Abu Dabis are a close second...

---

It's only about five weeks late, but we have to put up the record!

We've had a short hiatus, but that doesn't mean we've been inactive.  In fact, my House Semetov gang won this year's Necromunda campaign, though competition was stiff and time constrained.  The club finally awarded me the prize...this campaign is the first one where we award a single title!

Captain Video awards Dave Bone the title of Boss Tough Guy.

Now,  our campaigns will actually have champions!  For 9 months between each game's time slots, the winner of the previous year's campaign will be known by a title, which they will have to defend in the next campaign from the ground up!  For Necromunda, the reigning champion will be called Boss Tough Guy.  This year...I am that tough guy!

Next July, I'll have to fight to retain that title...and no doubt the competition will be stiffer and the blood will be pumping hard in the hate-filled hearts of my enemies.  Just look at the expression on the good Captain's face as he hands me that title...

Many thanks to the awesome club!  Thanks for the title, and rest assured I'm going to keep it as long as I can!

---

Kobach Semetov surveyed the buildings where he believed the wasteland nomads to be hiding.  The crazed terror-mongers had been striking at the government supply lines, but Imperial control had returned to Domogoshch and was quickly spreading all over Lucruzu Prime.  Now, the Crusade's real push could begin, into the galactic south...

He thought about what it would be like to join the Guard on the crusade...briefly.  Honestly, the Lumisi soldiers that were supposed to be aiding with the interdiction didn't seem to be up to the job.  Kobach wondered briefly what sort of training passed the bar for the Guard, but he knew their hearts were in the right place.  Even if they had to kill a few of them to get the point across - Lucruzu belonged to House Semetov.

Right then and there he resolved to visit the stars on his own terms.  A few of the men who had been in his home defense units had been talking about taking a pilgrimage.  It wouldn't take much for him to arrange passage on one of the Ecclesiarchy vessels that accompanied the Crusade, and from there...they could go anywhere.  Perhaps they could visit Vae Salubrious, and pray at the very Shrine of Mardannon.

His comm crackled to life, and he heard a familiar voice in an unfamiliar way.

"Kobach?  Kobach Semetov?"

He winced.  He knew that voice...but what was it doing on the House Guard's sealed vox-network?

"Castella?"  he asked his cousin incredulously.

"Yes Kobach, it's me.  I'm at the field house."  Castella Balka's voice was quite welcome, and suddenly he knew something must be wrong.

"What's the problem?" he asked brusquely.  Even though he hadn't spoken to her directly since this all began, House Balka's guard were underequipped to handle the low tech nomads that poured into the city of the last few months.  He knew he was about to receive new orders.

"No problem at all.  You've done a fantastic job, but I wish to speak to you directly."  she spoke, evenly and commandingly as always.

"I'll be there in twenty microts.  What's this about?"  he barked into the field vox.  Highly irregular, he thought.

"It's about the crusade..." Castella began, "I have someone here I want you to meet."

"Kobach Semetov."  another voice came on the vox, this one was male, and obviously used to giving orders.  

"Affirmative, you speak with the commander of the House Guard.  Who is this?"  Kobach demanded, his patience wearing thin.  He had no time for Castella's flings with noblemen who thought playing at soldiers was fun.

"My name is Brown.  I represent the highest authority."  the voice intoned, slowly enunciating the last three words.  "You know what that means."

Kobach blanched.  He knew well what that phrase meant, though not everyone in the Imperium would have.  A meeting with a representative of the Inquisition?

"I'll be there in ten microts." Kobach stated to the vox, and turned to signal his driver to mount the rover.  The day just got a lot more interesting...

Gangs of New Waco Campaign Log

Gangs 

of 

New Waco

Necromunda Campaign 2011

Scourge and purge!

In the Gregoriam system of Pandaemus, the settled world of New Waco has developed well since it was first settled in the Old Crusade to reclaim the Mardannon Sector nearly five thousand years ago.  The world has a thriving industry, but the environment itself has been unforgiving.  In the midst of a famine that has rocked the world to its core, wars of heresy threaten to engulf the (basically) productive world in fire and madness.

Several street gangs have formed where once there were peaceful worshippers of the Emperor.  The Anointed Terran Force has been working to bring food to the masses, but recently the cult of the Redemption has made it's way to this frontier world.  Now, the divergent philosophies of these two Imperial cults have polarized the population even further, and violence seems to be the only conclusion either side has been driven to.

Behold the forbidding and arid landscape of New Waco.

Imperial forces are thin in this sector.  The Adeptus Arbites precinct here is undermanned, but has been performing riot control around the capital to keep out the worst of the looters and zealots.  To this end, mercenaries from off-world have been hired to help keep the peace amongst the population until this period of rebellion passes.

The real fear is how far the religious fanaticism will continue to change the surface of the planet's political worlds.  Between mercy and purgation, the souls of those on New Waco hang in the balance as a few well placed bands of warriors take up the battle in the name of freedom, or penance, or just plain credits.

Fighting Groups on New Waco

1. Adeptus Arbites - The beleaguered defenders of Imperial law on New Waco need a lot of support if they are to hold out.  Unfortunately, the situation has deteriorated to the point that firefights with supposedly allied Imperial forces are occurring with alarming regularity.  If the Arbites cannot forge order out of the anarchy, full scale rebellion may well break out.
2. House Semetov Pilgrims - The trading guild House Semetov regularly sends its warriors on pilgrimages to nearby worlds of religious importance, such as Vestesia or Vae Salubrious.  A group of these militant pilgrims have pledged their arms to restore order on an Imperial world they are visiting on the way to their holy destination - New Waco.
3. Band of Basterds - A team of mercenaries hired by the New Waco government to help quell the uprisings.  Not is all as it seems, as this group of rogues have their own agenda on this planet and a shadowy connection to the Inquisition itself.
4. Lumisi Interdiction Team - Responding to a plea from the planetary governor of New Waco, the Lumisi Imperial Guard raised a small regiment to help garrison the planet.  These teams have spread out among the cities of New Waco to add strength to the Arbites, but misunderstandings and strange occurrences have made the Lumisi less eager to help the inhabitants of the planet, and more eager to preserve themselves until help arrives.
5. Anointed Terran Fraternity - A remnant of the Frateris Militia of olden times, these religious zealots have a specific interpretation of the Imperial Creed that teaches that mercy for fellow humans is the best way to improve the spiritual state of man.  This puts them directly at odds with the Redemptionists, and the clashes between the two sects spur the populace at large to acts of extreme violence and terrorism.
6. The Red Redemption - The Redemption is alive and well on New Waco.  The cultists here are on a specific mission - convert the populace to their militant and unforgiving doctrine.  The sect leader on New Waco has already attained a large following, and his influence with the masses grows as the acts of violence continue.
7. New Waco Ratskins - Natives to the deserts around the cities, the Ratskin tribes have always been relegated to subhuman status by the civilized inhabitants of the planet.  However, as the focus of the cities turn inward and they weaken with infighting, more and more Ratskin tribes grow bold enough to sack smaller settlements.  Now, the tribes intend to carve out their own city from the carcass of the Imperials who shun and oppress them.
8. The Abu Dabis - There are more than Ratskin tribes in the vast deserts and canyons of New Waco.  Several tribes of Nomads live in the deep desert where the sand chokes all living things.  These nomads may have once been Imperial citizens, but long ago left the cities for a more natural existence among the wilds.  Like the Ratskins, they have long been oppressed by the general population of the planet in the cities, and sensing weakness, have brought their people out of the deserts to reclaim the world for their people.

---

The campaign will be our standard round robin matchup.  Each player will play each other player once in each of two rounds.  Once the two rounds are completed, the highest Gang Ratings among the players will be declared the winners!

The campaign is over!

The Adeptus Arbites are victorious!
Band of Basterds takes 2nd Place!
Red Redemption takes 3rd Place!

---

The burned out ruin of the manufactorum was still smoking in the dusk of New Waco's twin suns.  Bodies were littered everywhere amidst the rubble.  Smoke still rose from the charred ground, the ash disturbed only by the heavy boots of enforcers.


Judge Fred prodded a corpse of a nomadic wastelander.  Not quite stiff...whoever put an end to this particular nomad was probably still nearby.  A few hours at the very most.  From the damage to the corpse, he'd put his money on Redemptionists.  There were few others who would leave everything a smoking, burned out ruin.  


A column of Rhino APCs marked with the seals of the Imperium and the Adeptus Arbites flashed by on the road towards the outlands.  They were full of arbitrators, and they were headed into the heart of nomad and lowtek territory.  Very soon, the long arm of Imperial law would fall on the dark reaches of New Waco.  No longer would this be a haven for heretics and malcontents. 


'Well, at least the ones we can find,' Judge Fred thought to himself.  There were still mercenaries popping up and causing trouble, and the number of system ships in orbit didn't help.


A dust storm brewed on the horizon, but it didn't matter.  Arbitrator Steinn called back on the vox, breaking the tense silence.


"All clear."


Judge Fred was now annoyed.  He'd wasted enough time here.  "Back on the rig!" he called out, ordering his squad to embark their own Rhino, which was further back from the building waiting for a status update. 


"Which way, Your Honor?" Arbitrator Morales asked from the control harness.  The squad was embarked and the ramp closed with lightning efficiency born of experience.


"Back with the column.  We follow the mercenaries."  The Judge opened the auspex panel, and brought forth a topographic image of the area of the wasteland where they were headed.  


"That's where we saw the energy signature," croaked Arbitrator Valance from under his Enforcer mask. "but it's gone for a while now, Your Honor.  Why are we going out there, if I may so inquire?"


Judge Fred looked around at his squad.  It was time to tell them about the real mission they were on, and that they wouldn't be joining the rest of the column in driving Ratskins and Nomads from the wastes around the cities.  He had another lead, on another case altogether.  A crime spree that perhaps spanned the sector.


"I still think there's a ship hiding out there.  We're going to find it."

Gangs of New Waco Finals!

The results are in!  The Wargate's 2011 Necromunda campaign comes to a close with some interesting news - there's been an Imperial resurgence and the civil strife on New Waco is nearly eradicated!

Those of you who have seen the campaign log know what the gang ratings look like, but this campaign we've introduced a new mechanic to help determine victory on New Waco.  All players had Battlefield Influence calculated, a simple win percentage we use in a lot of our campaigns.  By popular demand, Influence is being used to help tally the score here, and now the results are in!

Joe Kool pilots the Adeptus Arbites (Enforcers) on a flawless trek to the top!

Although the Band of Basterds had a higher gang total, their Influence on New Waco waned, as did that of the Red Redemption.  Joe obviously did the best overall (losing a single Enforcer during the entire course of the campaign) and so is awarded 1st Place and the narrative belongs to the arbitrators!

No doubt there will be plenty of reform on New Waco.  Now that the Imperials are cracking down, things might get even more desperate for some of the wild types who call that dusty place home.  The Abu Dabis and the Ratskins might be the only ones relatively safe, due to their remote location from the settlements.  However, given the resources the arbitrators will soon bring to bear it is unlikely that they won't feel the squeeze of the mailed fist of the Emperor.

Necromunda season for 2012 will start October 1st!  Prepare your forces for an even more dangerous jaunt through the wilder parts of the Imperium!  We'll be adding more and more Necromunda material as we go, using a lot of official material as well as homebrew crunch.  There's plenty more to come, so don't be afraid to collect a small force this year.  

See you on Game Day!

New Waco by Morning (or Don't Go Back to New Waco)

"Catchphrase."

Welcome back to New Waco, partner.

It's been a while since we've put Necromunda miniatures on the board, and now that we have a better idea of what the club is doing these days I'm happy to say that our new campaign has officially begun.  We have more than twice as many players, and the narrative has developed quite nicely.  Check out the campaign page for more info on the campaign itself and current ratings.

We are using the basic campaign rules from the rulebook, but the setting is changed a little bit.  Instead of the desolate and unforgiving underhive, we have the desolate and unforgiving landscape of a planet called New Waco.  We've campaigned here before, but now we're back to really put the narrative on the record and begin the battle for this world!

There are a couple of major differences in Necromunda as far as the ruleset.  It might take a little bit to get used to the ideas, but I'm confident that our commanders will find this game has a lot to offer them as far as their tactical exercise needs.  Small unit combat with ranged weapons is the order of the day, and on New Waco there are plenty of zealots with guns running around to practice on.

This campaign will last (technically) from November 1st, 2011 to January 1st, 2012.  We'll have plenty of games to play, so get your games in on game day!  Also remember, this campaign will be the first you'll be required to have an army in the Battles Book for, so draw up those gangs to 1500 credits.  Yeah, you can only start with 1000, but plot out 1500 credits worth of warriors to put in print.

Good luck, commanders!

Gang Briefing: Band of Basterds

Band

Of

Basterds

By Chief Scrivener Hannan

Vae Salubrious Subsector, .M41

Deep in the darkest recesses of some of the seediest places in the Imperium, there are those who live permanently beyond the reach of the law.  For some, this is a welcome freedom, and for others it can be a death sentence with no hope of reprieve.  Unsurprisingly, in some of the most lawless reaches, folks take action into their own hands when the time comes for fighting.  Others hire mercenaries.

In the Vae Salubrious subsector, mercenaries roam all over the space lanes.  Recently there has been a surge in the number of available mercenary companies, but these are usually limited to a single world or system.  Alarmingly, at least one company of drifting mercenaries seems to have been spotted all over the subsector, appearing in documentation across no less than seven worlds.  These are the outlaws the Adeptus Arbites are keenly interested in – the Band of Basterds.

Mercenary Vendettas

            The Band consists of several ex-guardsmen who have banded together after their unit was granted settlement rights after it was almost wiped out.  Only a few dozen remained after the carnage of their old battles, which may have been the wars of heresy on Lucruzu Primus.  They possess several weapons, and the skill to use heavier, Munitorum issue arms and explosives.  The skills of the various fugitives combine to make a quite effective team that is entirely for hire, anywhere in the subsector.

            This is the most alarming problem.  It seems the Band of Basterds is able to move about the Vae Salubrious subsector.  They have been pursued by authorities on Abraxia, Attono Vittium, Praesaepes Caementum, Corgarth Contineo, Lucruzu Prime, Velan Thracia and even Vae Salubrious itself.  How this can be is uncertain, but what is certain is the fact that the Inquisition would be highly interested in their activities especially where warp travel is concerned.

            It isn’t entirely known where the Band’s loyalty truly lies.  They have committed crimes against Imperial Law and do not seem to be repentant.  Last known activity for the Band was around Velan Thracia, but it is suspected by the Judges pursuing them that they have made it offworld to parts unknown.  The full extent of this threat has yet to be determined, but in some places the stories of mercenaries being hired to attack Imperial authorities are becoming legend.

Gang Briefing: House Semetov

House Semetov

By Chief Scrivener Hannan

Lucruzu Primus, .M41

           

            In the annals of the Imperium, there are a great many noble houses that have risen to prominence in the Emperor’s service.  Some of those houses are traders, others have more specialized areas of influence.  Still others actually become the regents of their worlds, with their House Master presiding over their world as Imperial Governor.  Such is the case with the merchant House Semetov, rulers of Lucruzu Primus.

            Though there are many Guilder Houses on Lucruzu, only House Semetov enjoys the true power of the nobility.  With many contracts with the chartist vessels and even more than one of the ancient greatholds plying the stars, House Semetov has ruled the planet in an efficient manner for the last several generations.  Though their rule has been generally peaceful, the planetary defense force has had to move against heretic cults more than once.

The Merchant House

           

            From the city of Domagoshch on the main continent, House Semetov runs the day to day business of the planet.  Their agreements with the other nobles on Lucruzu and various contracts throughout the subsector put their world on the map, but that brings a lot of unwelcome attention as well.  Recently, heretic cults following proscribed versions of the Imperial Creed have been a huge issue.  Three times in the last decade alone, armies of these malcontents have had to be put down by the House Guard or by PDF forces.  The Adeptus Arbites have a fortress-bastion in Domagoshch, but it is undermanned and tends to police the Guilders themselves rather than the populace.

            From time to time, a unit of House Semetov Guard will make a pilgrimage to some sacred place or another.  Refugium, in the Urbanus Totalus system, is the most dangerous and long journey one could hope to make.  There, the soldiers will visit the Temple of the High Lords, and the shrine to Warmaster Mardannon.  If they should return, they will have an honored place amongst the House Guard and will most likely train the next generation of soldiers to protect the interests of the House.

The pilgrim that has returned to Lucruzu Primus is quite rare, but some actually manage to make it back.  Many simply visit the neighboring Velan Thracia, but those who are truly heroic will strive to reach Refugium…most die or are lost in the process...