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Setting Up The Campaign

Source: The Book of Desolation (2024)

Setting up an Underhells Campaign is a task that falls to the Arbitrator. To set up the campaign, the Arbitrator must make sure that all the players have founded their gang. This is best done in a single evening or session where everyone playing in the campaign meets and goes through all the steps of setting up the campaign together and generally gets excited about the fun ahead.

Set Start And End Dates​​

The Underhells Campaign is divided into a number of campaign cycles, broken up by two cycles of downtime after each time the explorers move on to a new region. The exact number of campaign cycles is dependent on how long it takes the gangs to explore each region, but will typically run for at least seven to nine cycles. For most groups each cycle is a week, as this is usually how often gaming groups or groups of friends get together to play, however, if players prefer then a cycle can represent a longer or shorter period of real time. The first step in setting up the campaign is for the Arbitrator to determine the start date and the end date. They then share this information with the players.

Gang Composition​​

When founding a gang for an Underhells Campaign, follow the rules presented in the Necromunda Core Rulebook:

  • Gangs have 1,000 credits available for their initial gang.
  • Depending on their Allegiance, gangs will either add a Ferryman team or have additional credits to spend on Crew, vehicles or fighters that come by default with Wargear that grants the Mounted condition (such as the Ash Waste Nomads Wy’tari Stormcaller), or on Wargear that grants the Mounted condition (see page 65).

Choosing Sides​​

When founding a gang in the Underhells Campaign, each player must decide if they are either working under the sway of the Malstrain Patriarch or raiding the ruins of Hive Secundus in search of archeotech. Each comes with its own benefits as detailed below.

Benefits Of The Archeo-Hunters ​​

It is impossible for a gang to cross the Dust Wall without employing a Ferryman team to guide them. The following rules apply to all Archeo-hunter Allegiance Gangs:

Benefits Of The Malstrain ​​

Maistrain Allegiance gangs have eked out an existence within the Dust Wall and have repurposed much of the machinery left from the fall of Hive Secundus into transports for themselves. The following rules apply to ait Maistrain Allegiance gangs:

  • Malstrain Allegiance gangs gain an additional 400 credits when being founded - this can only be spent on Crew, vehicles or fighters that come by defautt with Wargear that grants the Mounted condition (such as the Ash Waste Nomads Wy tari Stormcalier), or on Wargear that grants the Mounted condition. Any unspent credits from this allowance are lost after the gang is founded (note that credits may be spent from the gang's initial 1,000 credits on vehicles and Wargear that grants the Mounted condition as well).
  • At the start of each battle, before the first roll for Priority, Malstrain Allegiance gangs may apply either a +1 or -1 modifier to all rolls to generate Roaming Horrors for the duration of the battle.
  • This Allegiance changes how the gang is affected by the Madness and Desolation rules.
Balancing The Malstrain And Archeo-Hunters

The Underhetils Campaign has been designed to work with any mix of Matstrain and Archeo-hunter gangs: it is also'just as possible to find the agents of the Malstrain fighting amongst themselves to increase their personal power as it is for the teams of Archeo-hunters to squabble over the secrets they uncover. However, as a guideline, an Underhells Campaign should include at least one gang aligned with the Archeo-hunters. Other alternatives include all gangs but one being aligned with the Archeo-hunters - representing a lone gang trying to wrest the riches of Secundus from the Underhells.

Determine Territories​​

At the start of each campaign cycle, each gang discards all Territories they control (unless stated otherwise) and randomly determines the next Territory they move to by rolling on the relevant table as follows (multiple gangs may have the same Territory and a gang may randomly generate the same Territory as they just discarded).

Incursion Phase Territories​​

D6Territory
1Old Bunker Complex
2Abandoned Battlefield
3Hidden Holdfast
4Abandoned Promethium Station
5Crashed Stratoplane
6Fallen Crane

Delving Phase Territories​​

D6Territory
1Forlorn Waystation
2Gutted Rig
3Girder Forest
4Hunter's Enclave
5Hab Scrap
6Fortifiedcamp

Survival Phase Territories​​

D6Territory
1Collapsed Dome
2Haunted Hal
3Thermal Abyss
4Fortified Dome
5Cogitator Nexus
6Xenos Boneyard

Issuing And Accepting Challenges​​

During an Underhells Campaign, battles are fought on a challenge basis:

  • During each cycle, each player may issue one challenge to another gang:
    • In the first campaign cycle, challenges are made in a random order.
    • In later cycles, they are made in ascending order of Gang Rating, starting with the gang with the lowest Gang Rating. If two gangs have the same Gang Rating, the winner of a roll-off makes their challenge first.
  • If one of a gang's fighters has been Captured by another gang, that gang may issue a challenge to the captors to play the Defend the Camp scenario (see page 86).
  • When a gang is challenged, they may accept or decline. if the challenge is accepted, a battle is fought. If the challenge is declined, the gang that issued the challenge gains 2 Exploration points.
  • If a gang receives two or more challenges within a single campaign cycle, they may decline the second and any subsequent challenges without the opposing fang gaining Exploration points.
  • If a player has played all outstanding battles (including their issued challenge and any challenges accepted) and there is still time left in the campaign cycle, they may issue another challenge.

Scenario Selection Table​​

When a challenge is issued, roll 2D6 on the table that follows for the current phase to determine which scenario is used. If the scenario dictates there is an attacker and a defender, the player that issued the shallenge is the attacker.

Incursion Phase Scenario Selection Table​​

2D6Result
2-3The player with the greater number of Exploration points chooses which scenario to play. If both players have the same number of Exploration points, the winner of a roll-off chooses which scenario to play.
2-4Play the Defend the Camp scenario.
6-7Play the Zone Exploration scenario.
8-9Play the Escape the Zone scenario.
10-12The player with fewer Exploration points chooses which scenario to play. If both players have the same number of Exploration points, the winner of a roll-off chooses which scenario to play.

Delving Phase Scenario Selection Table​​

2D6Result
2-3The player with the greater number of Exploration points chooses which scenario to play. If both players have the same number of Exploration points, the winner of a roll-off chooses which scenario to play.
2-4Play the Escape the Zone scenario.
6-7Play the Lost in the Ruins scenario.
8-9Play the Trophy Hunt scenario.
10-12The player with fewer Exploration points chooses which scenario to play. If both players have the same number of Exploration points, the winner of a roll-off chooses which scenario to play.

Survival Phase Scenario Selection Table​​

2D6Result
2-3The player with the greater number of Exploration points chooses which scenario to play. If both players have the same number of Exploration points, the winner of a roll-off chooses which scenario to play.
2-4Play the Trophy Hunt scenario.
6-7Play the Underhe! Ns Encounter; scenario.
8-9Play the Defend the Camp scenario.
10-12The player with fewer Exploration points chooses which scenario to play. If both players have the same number of Exploration points, the winner of a roll-off chooses which scenario to play.