A LOT happened in the last edition of Necromunda. With the Necromunda Core Set going on pre-order on Saturday to launch the new edition, we caught up with Leila from the Warhammer Studio to learn about what’s been going on in the underhive and beyond.
Leila: With the new edition of Necromunda being its first in almost a decade, it also serves as a reintroduction to a lot of the world’s lore. If players know nothing about this ash-blasted planet and its myriad hives, the new core book will tell them everything they need to get started, from information about the Clan Houses – masters of industry and the progenitors of many of Necromunda’s original gangs – to the hives themselves and wastes that surround them.
However, history has been in the making over the previous edition, and the new one picks up where it left off.
The House of Helmawr is back and better than ever on Necromunda following the events of the Aranthian Succession. Lord Gerontius Helmawr is keen to project strength after his brush with death, to dissuade any potential heirs and nobles from jumping the gun again.
++ VOX LOG: Voice recording from LORD GERONTIUS HELMAWR to HIGH JUSTICAR VERDAINE ++
++ ID: IMPERIAL HOUSE: encryption code gold-alpha-01 ++
++ Wyndspyr 008.2 ++
++ It appears the latest attempt on my life has had a lasting effect on my heirs. Namely that many of them are now dead. My youngest daughter became rather overzealous when the prospect of succession arose and slaughtered a number of her siblings over dinner. Of course, Haera must be commended for besting multiple contenders at once. The girl knows her way around a blade better than most hardened groundlings of the underhive. She reminds me so much of myself back in my Spyrer days — all glory, bloodlust and ruthless energy.
++ I survived, of course. Usually this kind of scuffle would be reserved for after my body had cooled in the grave. Timing has never been Haera’s strong suit. At this rate, succession will simply be too easy for her, for my remaining heirs have shown an appallingly unfilial cowardice in their reticence to take the throne. Thus I would like it on record that I have elevated the most promising of my illegitimate offspring, Kal Gerontius Helmawr. I am sure that, when the time comes, he will prove a new and exciting challenge for little Haera.
++ Though of course, they will have to outlive me first...
After his bloodthirsty daughter, Lady Haera, destroyed many of her rival heirs under the assumption of her father’s death, Lord Helmawr has introduced fresh blood in the form of Kal Jericho – or as his father would prefer him to be dubbed, Kal Helmawr!
As sibling rivalry ignites afresh, the humbled Ozostium Aranthus has now set himself up within the Mynerva Cluster, though he has been careful to ensure the continuation of trade and tithes to avoid raising suspicion. The Core Book reveals a little more about what is going on at Hive Mynerva – though it may pose more questions than answers for now.
All this upper-hive drama is intriguing and all, but the interests of local gangs haven’t changed. Power and control is second only to credits in terms of desirability, and with the turmoil of the Aranthian Succession behind them, denizens of the underhive can get back to what they do best – slaughtering one another for the glory of their houses. However, this new era has brought with it some changes to the balance of power.
House Cawdor is on the up, with its head, Thane Mormaer Cawdor, assuming more control over the Ecclesiarchy on Necromunda. Whether this is a good idea is questionable, though the Imperial House has been keen to reward the good thane’s loyalty thus far.
House Escher has a new Matriarch Primus, though its influence following the Aranthian Succession is on the downturn – and their biggest rivals in House Goliath are keen to seize the moment, boasting a new Overtyrant of their own.
Houses Van Saar and Orlock enter the new edition with their power largely unchanged, though both within the Secundan Exclusion Zone and out in the Spider Points, they are struggling to fight off more masked duster-wearing gangs with some oddly ridged foreheads. And as for House Delaque, some of their long awaited plans are finally coming to fruition, including the return of something thought long lost to Necromunda...
Thanks, Leila! The new Necromunda Core Book is packed with lore and is available to pre-order from Saturday either as part of the new core set or separately.
