Setting Up The Campaign
RAW ✔️ The Aranthian Succession – Ruins of Jardlan, p52
Setting up the Fall of Helmawr 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 and been given their starting Waypoints. 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 Fall of Helmawr Campaign is divided into six campaign cycles, separated by a single cycle of Downtime after the first three cycles, meaning the campaign will last a total of seven cycles. For ease, we have set each cycle as a week, as this is usually how often gaming groups or groups of friends get together to play; however, if the players choose, 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, the end date and when the Downtime cycle will fall. They then share this information with the players.
Gang Composition
When founding a gang for a Fall of Helmawr Campaign, there are two options – each player in the campaign can use one of these methods; everyone does not have to use the same method.
Found A New Gang
If founding a new gang for a Fall of Helmawr Campaign, follow the rules presented in the Necromunda: Core Rulebook.
- Gangs have 1,000 credits available for their initial gang.
- Fall of Helmawr Campaign gangs gain an additional 400 credits when being founded – this can only be spent 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. 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).
Using A Gang From The Succession Campaign Part 2
If you have finished playing the Road to Temenos Campaign from Necromunda: The Aranthian Succession − The Vaults of Temenos then you may continue using the same gang. In order to get them ready to join in the hunt for Lady Haera, just follow the steps below:
- Discard all Relics controlled by the gang.
- Follow steps A, B and C from Downtime as described on page 58.
Underdog Battles
With gangs continuing their campaign from Necromunda: The Aranthian Succession − The Vaults of Temenos there is a chance that when they clash, two gangs will have a significant difference in their Gang Ratings.
As such the Fall of Helmawr Campaign is designed to be played using the House Favour rules from the Necromunda: Core Rulebook.
Choosing Sides
As the Aranthians close in on victory, it becomes harder for any faction to remain neutral. The conflict between the Imperial House and House Aranthus keeps escalating and no one can stay independent and without allies. In the Fall of Helmawr Campaign, two opposed forces are battling for the fate of Necromunda – the instruments of Lord Helmawr's authority representing the Imperial House, and those aligned with the rebellion representing House Aranthus.
When founding a gang in a Fall of Helmawr Campaign, each player must decide if they will side with either the Imperial House, House Aranthus or try to remain Unaligned. Each comes with its own benefits as detailed on page 54, though be warned, no gang can stand on the sidelines forever and eventually Unaligned players will need to choose between one side or the other.
Benefits of the Imperial House
Gangs aligned with the Imperial House gain the following benefits:
- Emissaries of House Helmawr: During the
pre-battle sequence, roll a D6. On a 4+ the
gang may recruit one of the following Dramatis
Personae for no credit cost – they will leave
at the end of the battle regardless of any
other rules:
- Orrin Grimjarl, Last Charter Lord of Jardlan (see page 72)
- Urson Grimjarl, Jardlan Nomad Hunter (see page 88)
- Silberlant Sevos the Infotek (see page 110)
- Deep Pockets: When generating income from Waypoints, the gang adds an additional D6x10 credits to their Stash.
Benefits of Unaligned
Gangs who have yet to choose their Allegiance gain the following benefits:
- Look Out For Our Own: During the pre-battle
sequence, roll a D6. On a 4+ the gang may recruit
one of the following Dramatis Personae for no
credit cost – they will leave at the end of the battle
regardless of any other rules.
- Asun'ghar, The Lady of Ash (see page 60)
- Kal Jericho (see page 18 of Necromunda: Book of Peril)
- Vespa 'Minx' Merdena (see page 76 of Necromunda: The Aranthian Succession – Cinderak Burning)
- We Stand for Ourselves: If the opposing gang's Leader is taken Out of Action by a friendly model, the model earns an additional D3 XP points in addition to any other Experience gains.
- Take a Side: During the post-battle sequence, the gang may choose to align themselves with either House Aranthus or the Imperial House. If the gang only controls a Clan Enclave Waypoint, then they must choose to align themselves with one of the other factions.
Benefits of House Aranthus
Gangs aligned with House Aranthus gain the following benefits:
- Emissaries of the Rebellion: During the
pre-battle sequence, roll a D6. On a 4+ the
gang may recruit one of the following Dramatis
Personae for no credit cost – they will leave
at the end of the battle regardless of any
other rules:
- Athera and Stix (see page 74 of Necromunda: The Aranthian Succession – Cinderak Burning)
- Lady Credo, Rebel Lord (see page 107 of Necromunda: Book of the Outcast)
- The Prophet (see page 48 of Necromunda: The Aranthian Succession – The Vaults of Temenos)
- Stars in the Ascendency: Each time the gang wins a battle, they gain 1 extra Reputation in addition to any granted by the scenario.
Balancing House Aranthus and The Imperial House
The Fall of Helmawr Campaign has been designed to work with any mix of House Aranthus, the Imperial House and Unaligned gangs; it is also just as possible to find the agents of the Imperial House fighting amongst themselves to increase their personal power as it is for the servants of House Aranthus to squabble over who should rule. However, as a guideline, a Fall of Helmawr Campaign should include at least one gang aligned with House Aranthus and one aligned with the Imperial House, with any number of Unaligned gangs. This allows for sides to form naturally over the course of the campaign, with gangs either choosing to fight for House Aranthus or maintain the power of the Imperial House.
Other alternatives include all gangs but one being aligned with either House Aranthus or the Imperial House – representing a lone campaigner for freedom from oppression, or the last bastion of the status quo, fighting to keep upstarts in their place.
Determine Waypoints
Territories in a Fall of Helmawr Campaign
In a Fall of Helmawr Campaign, players fight over a special kind of Territory called Waypoints. When playing a Fall of Helmawr Campaign, the two terms can be used interchangeably.
During the Fall of Helmawr Campaign, each gang begins play with a randomly-determined Waypoint and a Clan Enclave Waypoint (see page 64).
The number of Waypoints used in a Fall of Helmawr Campaign depends on the number of players committed to the campaign as shown on the following table:
| Players | Waypoints Generated |
|---|---|
| 3 | 9 |
| 4 | 12 |
| 5 | 15 |
| 6 | 18 |
| 7 | 21 |
| 8 | 24 |
A Campaign's Waypoints are generated by building a deck of Waypoints (as follows), shuffling them and drawing the correct number. All Waypoints are then revealed to all players.
Making a Deck of Waypoints
You can build a deck of Waypoints by using half a deck of playing cards to determine the Waypoints for a campaign. Remove all Hearts, Clubs and Jokers, leaving just Spades and Diamonds. Each card in these remaining suits corresponds to a Waypoint, as per the table shown below.
| Card | Waypoint |
|---|---|
| Ace of Diamonds | Skyblight |
| 2 of Diamonds | Refuelling Station Gold-Sigma |
| 3 of Diamonds | Gamma-light Bazaar |
| 4 of Diamonds | The Yoke of Purification |
| 5 of Diamonds | Radmoors Network |
| 6 of Diamonds | Six Crones Distillery |
| 7 of Diamonds | The Knife's Thrust |
| 8 of Diamonds | Spoiltown Outskirts |
| 9 of Diamonds | Twice-bit |
| 10 of Diamonds | Tubeway One |
| Jack of Diamonds | The Dust Road |
| Queen of Diamonds | Martyr's Blood |
| King of Diamonds | Slick Sump Foundries |
| Ace of Spades | Gamma's Shadow |
| 2 of Spades | Camp Karrva |
| 3 of Spades | Clanhold Westfort |
| 4 of Spades | Necromagnium Underway Entrance |
| 5 of Spades | Underway Junction Epsilon-9-Blue |
| 6 of Spades | Council Chamber of the Tapferkeit |
| 7 of Spades | Gates of Jardlan |
| 8 of Spades | Hall of the Ancestors |
| 9 of Spades | Deep Rift Gate |
| 10 of Spades | Rho-Gold Barracks |
| Jack of Spades | Promethium Refineries of Hive Nox |
| Queen of Spades | Armoury of Kygoth Holdfast |
| King of Spades | Scavenger's Row |
Issuing and Accepting Challenges
During a Fall of Helmawr Campaign, battles are fought on a challenge basis:
- During each cycle, each player may issue one
challenge to another gang, to do battle over control
of a Waypoint nominated by the challenger:
- 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.
- During the Overthrow phase, the challenger nominates one uncontrolled Waypoint to be the stake of the battle. This is then removed from the pool by the Arbitrator until the battle is concluded. If there are no uncontrolled Waypoints, the challenger instead nominates one Waypoint controlled by the gang they are challenging to be the stake of the battle.
- During the Breakthrough phase, the challenger nominates one Waypoint controlled by the gang they are challenging to be the stake of the battle.
- Rather than challenging for a Waypoint, a gang that has had one of its fighters captured by another gang may issue a challenge to that gang to play the Wasteland Rescue 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 Waypoint is automatically claimed by the challenger.
- If a gang receives two or more challenges within a single campaign cycle, they may decline the second and any subsequent challenges without penalty.
- 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.
The gang that wins the battle takes control of the Waypoint (or retains control of the Waypoint, as the case may be). If the battle results in a draw:
- During the Overthrow phase, neither gang takes control of the Waypoint if the Waypoint is unclaimed. If the Waypoint is claimed, the gang that controlled the Waypoint before the battle retains control of the Waypoint.
- During the Breakthrough phase, the gang that controlled the Waypoint before the battle retains control of the Waypoint.
Scenario Selection Table
When a challenge is issued, roll 2D6 on the table that follows to determine which scenario is used. If the scenario dictates there is an attacker and a defender, the player that issued the challenge is the attacker.
| 2D6 | Result |
|---|---|
| 2-3 | The player with the greater number of Waypoints chooses which scenario to play. If both players have the same number of Waypoints, the winner of a roll-off chooses which scenario to play. |
| 4-5 | Play the Asset Removal or the Wasteland Ambush scenario. |
| 6-7 | Play the Sweep and Clear or the Through the Vortex scenario. |
| 8-9 | Play the Breakout or the Pinned Down scenario. |
| 10-12 | The player with fewer Waypoints chooses which scenario to play. If both players have the same number of Waypoints, the winner of a roll-off chooses which scenario to play. |
Players should now agree whether they will fight an Underhive or Ash Wastes battle. If they cannot decide, the player who chooses the scenario decides. If neither player chooses the scenario (for example, because a 4-9 was rolled on the table), the players should roll off and the winner's choice applies.