Hammer of the Hounds - Yet More Dogskins!

Part of the fun in building these Confrontation gangs is converting or adding in models that fit the look of the original sculpts. Today's pair of Dogskins includes a gang champion that hopefully fits that bill (as well as a standard Dogskin ganger to fill out the ranks!).

Flea-bitten & Feral - More Dogskins

I had hoped to finish my Dogskin gang over Christmas, but plans changed and they're still very much WIP. Nonetheless, I've finished another pair to bring my total up to six.

Typical gang behaviour - picking on the weak and vulnerable.

Beware the Pack - Confrontation Dogskins

Another group of 4 Confrontation models, which technically just leaves scavvies and the Elite gang to go. Of course, 4 figures isn't a gang, so before I get round to anything else, I need to paint up more figures for THIS gang. And which gang is it? The feral proto-ratskin gang that are generally referred to as Dogskins.

Technological Limits - The Final Tech

Hot on the heels of the pair of Marauder techs from a few weeks back is the very last tech ganger I needed to paint for a full set. 

Tech gangers sculpted by Mark Copplestone.

A Sign of Good Fortune - Caryatids

According to Confrontation and Necromunda lore, the small blue, winged creatures known as caryatids are are considered a sign of good fortune - they attach themselves to successful and charismatic individuals. They're one of those cool little sidenotes that add colour and interest to a setting (as well as now having an in-game function if you're playing modern Necromunda).

Caryatid by Stephen Tappin, published in White Dwarf #132

Cold Trader Void Troopers

I've been steadily working away at a project that I've wanted to do for some time - creating a crew to accompany my Necromunda Cold Trader. I always wanted to create more than a 4-strong group. Not only is this now possible in the Necromunda rules, but they're the perfect premise for a Stargrave crew. Happily, I have a weekend of Stargrave gaming coming up next month, so that was the perfect motivation to work on some new figures to accompany my Cold Trader.

I wanted the additional figures for the crew to give the feel of professional no-nonsense criminals. These aren't gutter scum or lawless pirates. This is an efficient and meticulously-planned smuggling operation that requires a skilled workforce. The first group of figures are exactly that - disciplined and well-trained, if perhaps a little morally suspect!

A Cold Stare & A Steady Aim - Necromunda Bounty Hunter

The best thing about joining in with online hobby initiatives is that they prompt you to do something you hadn't really planned to do, and in some instances they result in something you couldn't have even conceived of. The #JusticeForGary painting challenge over at the Oldhammer Facebook group is a simple concept - paint up a figure that was sculpted by Gary Morley and he will pick his favourite (still time to enter as the closing date is 30 June).

I knew I wanted to paint something for Necromunda, and was leaning towards one of Gary's bounty hunters, but then I decided to see if I could convert some unique figures using 100% Gary Morley parts. I ended up with a bounty hunter and his lucky caryatid companion - created completed from parts sourced from Gary's figures plus a little bit of greenstuff to hide the joins!

There are many thousands of bounty hunters operating on Necromunda. Some specialise in tracking down criminals, others hunt down up-hivers fleeing social embarrassment. Still others delve into stranger places, seeking out vampiric psykers with life-leeching powers, shape-shifting mutants and hideous eyeless ghouls. Abrym Shasta specialises in the tracking of the strange and unexplained, accompanied by the blue-skinned caryatid Sound-of-Memories. Shasta says little and is seen infrequently, only visiting major trading posts or settlements to collect bounties in return for the heads of his quarry.

Stargrave Bestiary: Mindgrippers / Necromunda Ripper Jacks

Continuing with entries from the Stargrave Creature List, I decided to paint up a small group of Mindgrippers. These are Necromunda ripper jacks that my good friend Asslessman sent me the other week - they are perfect for represending the "parasitic monstrosities [that] are only slightly bigger than a rat and resemble a manta ray with little spider legs."

The unwary travel the lost ways of the Underhive at their peril!

Mech + Tech Services - An Underhive Workshop

Back in May and June 2020, I went through a flurry of building some fun buildings out of old Necromunda bulkheads. In July 2020, I build a little workshop, then did nothing with it!

I discovered it in a box during a bit of a tidy up over the weekend, so decided to do a quick paintjob and get it ready for use.

The Shop on the Corner - A Necromundan Trading Post

Hopefully you're not bored of seeing buildings constructed from old Necromunda bulkheads, as I've finished a couple more!

This time I've delved into the world of commerce with a general store topped by another hab unit (a mixed commercial and residential unit if you like!).

A Larger Hab for a Person of Means

After enjoying the construction and painting of the previous two habs, I've been on a non-stop urban expansion drive! I've finished a third slightly larger hab, and have another five at various WIP stages.

My third hab is a two-storey (or possibly one-and-a-half storey) construction to add some height and variety to the settlement.

New Home Construction - Some Necromunda Habs

Bulldog Lopez posted a really cool building he'd built from classic Necromunda bulkheads on Facebook the other week. The design worked brilliantly because of its simplicity - the bulkheads were just glued together and a roof dropped on top. I'd been holding onto some bulkheads with some much more complicated plans in mind, but hadn't got round to attempting anything. Being shown a simpler and effective option got me motivated to make some buildings of my own.

The first two buildings of a new settlement.

Masters of the Hunt - Venator Leader & Champion

Much in the same way with my Brat gang at the end of last year, this post is something of a full stop to my Venator gang, a project that has spanned two years. I have rounded out the original 6-strong plastic group to include the 4 Marauder Venators and a bunch of other converted figures. I was however missing a dedicated leader and heavy weapon for the group, something I've now rectified.

The Hunter in the Shadows - Venator Sniper

With a new Necromunda campaign due to start in about 2 weeks, I've had to acknowledge that I won't have time to get the Helmawr gang finished in time. They'll just have to sit on ice for a while, and instead I can add a handful of new figures to the Venators. I've worked out that with the Venator ogryn, I only really need another 3 figures to have a viable gang with plenty of options.

One of my favourite specialists in any gang is the long ranged shooter - that guy armed with the high powered rifle and a selection of scopes who can pick of opposing fighters at range.

The Biggest Axe - Venator Ogryn Brute

Most Necromunda gangs have access to one or more brutes - big muscular fighters that can be added to their crew. Venators don't have a gang-specific brute, but can field either of two universal brutes: an ambot or a servitor ogryn.

I quite fancied giving my Venators the option of having a big guy for the fun element (and the extra muscle of course). Given that I'm pretty far down the road of masked and hooded Venators, it seemed only fitting to follow the theme for their ogryn.

A strong hunting party of Venators enters the settlement, accompanied by a hulking ogryn.

The Gun (and Chainsword) Fighter - Ash Waste Nomad

The marshals finally corner the ash waste bandit after years on the run.

Buoyed by the success of painting up the last two Marauder Venators, I decided to finish off another long overdue project - my Ash Waste Nomads. Painted between the end of 2014 and the start of 2015, my gaudily coloured nomads were the first gang I used in the first game of Necromunda I played after several decades away from the game. They've got a lot to answer for I guess!

Venators are Coming To Town

They're making a list.
They're checking it twice.
Gonna find out who's naughty or nice.

Nothing could be more seasonal than painting up a bearded man in a pointy hood, right? What about if the beard is sculpted onto a rather scary mask, and the hood is tied up with a noose? That will probably scare the children! And I guess that's the point of Venator gangs in Necromunda - they are sinister vigilantes hunting down the most dangerous of criminals.

A gaming opportunity arose to play some Necromunda with my good friend cheetor. After looking at my variety of Necromunda gangs, I decided that the best option would be to use the meet-up as motivation to paint up the remaining pair of Confrontation Venators from Marauder that had sat undercoated since I painted up the other figures back in January.

Like the previous two figures, these are Aly Morrison sculpts. They might have chunky details, but they really are a pleasure to paint.

The Baron and the Imp - Helmawr Leader and Attendant

I've made some more progress with my Helmawr gang, finishing off another three fighters. This time they include my planned leader and an attendant.

The Spire's Pride - Helmawr Gangers for Necromunda

In anticipation of a new Necromunda campaign in 2020, I've made a start with a new gang - Helmawr's own bodyguard. The White Dwarf Confrontation articles variously state that:

• Helmawr has his own personal guard (from which tithes to the Imperial Guard are made).
• Helmawr's troops control regulation of power to the spires
• Helmawr's clan is "effectively the largest gang on Necromunda".

Happily the Confrontation range of figures includes a lovely sculpt by Jes Goodwin with 'Helmawr Clan' on it's tab, a limited edition hive ganger who shares many of the design features, and a group of four unreleased figures collectively referred to as Helmawr gangers. By bringing together these six figures, and adding in a couple of additional figures, I could make a nice new themed gang. Here are the first four figures:

L-R: LE Hive Ganger, Champion conversion, Ganger conversion, unreleased Ganger.

The Luxaranean Guard form part of the massive forces of Lord Helmawr's personal bodyguard. Based in the Palatine Spire and drawn exclusively from uphivers, predominantly the House of Helmawr itself. The Luxarean Guard inhabit palatial quarters with vast glazed windows providing breath-taking views of the Necromundan skies and the heavy Necromundan sun. Their sun-worshipping martial cult and use of Helmawr's personal arachnid badge means they are nicknamed 'The Solar Spiders'.

The Final Brat? A Xenos Fusilier

Little did I imagine in 2014, when I started assembling a Confrontation Brat gang, that I would revisit the project sporadically over the next five years. But that it what has happened - I've assembled and painted an 18-strong brat pack, as well as a biker brat and the Bratmobile. The pack includes all five unreleased brats, both limited edition brats, a bunch of conversions, and, as of this week, all three of the standard release brats.

To all intents and purposes, I pretty much consider this project now complete as I have enough figures and a nice variety of weaponry for most Necromunda campaigns. I also don't have any more brats that I can chop up for the cause!