N18 Newbee clanless outcast gang. Is this playable?

[Alexgood]

Hello! I'm very new to Necromunda and only played a skirmish of it. I've read a big part of the rules, and have fallen in love with the Outcast gang. Since I know how complex and vague it is (Fallen Houses delegation aka The Rebel Lord still has no official point cost lol) - I've decided to go clanless for my first run, just to keep it simple.

Our arbitrator is soon to launch a campaign, and I'm pretty confident that the combat maps will be pretty small and cramped. So I decided to try and make a gang around a grenade throwing fast leader. The idea is to pop up at the weak flank and swipe an easy Krak grenade kill with that BS 2+.... or to blind enemy front with photon Flash and swarm it with scum, as a group activation.. Grenade Bouquet tactic maybe?

I have no idea if this can work..

Here's the 1000 credit band spreadsheet
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1sNzk4NbQpc8-K4CeQI4fFjObImXZlMs2OkeNWbPDe0M/edit?usp=sharing

If you are reading this and you are a veteran player, I kindly ask you if this is even a little bit playable or viable. And if yes - what adjustments, without being too cheesy or competitive, would you make to this list?

 

[Beebopalulla]

You can check here on the Gyrinx app. For your hard discount fighter why mesh armor+ axe+ autopistol instead of mesh armor+ axe+ stub gun?

 

[Hobo86]

@Beebopalulla that makes it better for melee... but worser for pinning

your (champion) builds look very narratively fun but not really minmaxed

if you're going for grenades either:
-you can take a stimslug stash to 1x 'throw further'
-or pick a grenade launcher with smoke grenades to 'cheat-reload', this would allow you to replace munitioneer with another (shooting?) skill
-if you're planning to use the photon flash grenades, including a weapon with seismic can 'soften' your enemies, maybe a seismic cannon?

-if you have a small board a longlas may be a bit suboptimal, perhaps a bolter?
-I would include some smoke grenades somewhere if possible as you're vulnerable to pinning

check with your arbitrator what gang builder / campaign manager you use, but currently only mundamanager and gyrinx are actively updated / supported.

 

[Beebopalulla]

I know but I wanted the OP to tell us why he favor one over the other.

Edit: you may look later at an ogryn brute. It's excellent for throwing grenade. Also look at anything that improve strength.

 

[Alexgood]

I know but I wanted the OP to tell us why he favor one over the other.

Edit: you may look later at an ogryn brute. It's excellent for throwing grenade. Also look at anything that improve strength.

Just felt like it.. Since I can't use +2 stub S range accuracy in melee, I felt like I owe to use autopistol to give my hivers better punch. I plan to use them in melee, hence, the axe. Stub is good, though, I'm not totally against it. I just enjoy the rapid fire rolls that's all

 

[Beebopalulla]

Well, enjoying the game your way is more important than the rest .

 

[Alexgood]

@Beebopalulla @Hobo86 thank you for your insights! Grenadeogryn is just too fun to skipXD Bolter is a good idea for my shooter, yeah

​

 

[Lunarcruiser]

Thrown Grenades are Wargear not weapons so cannot be given sights, a common laater improvement to ranged weapons. They also require an ammo check every time you throw and if you fail you can't reload them. The Grenade launcher allows you to reload. and double your range or more. Plus a Frag and Krak grenade launcher is 10 credits cheaper than both thrown grenades. Additionally when reloading a out of ammo weapon you pick any ammo you have and if you relaod it the whole weapon is reloaded. Smoke or Stun grenades are both cheap and have 4+ ammo values. which means you can reload a Krak grenade (6+) on a 4 instead. Can't do any of that with thrown grenades.

In genreal you don't pick Tactic cards they are random so you may not get Grenade Bouquet. Don't plan your game around Tactics cards. Add Tactics cards to your Plan.

Your LongLas champion cant start with Iron Will and they both need Archetypes. (Leadership is secondary).
Your Ranged Scum Lasguns and Autoguns should be 15 credits not 10. While Lasguns especially with Hotshots and Infra sights, which the Rapid Fire Autoguns can't take, are absolutely servicable ganger longarms with clear upgrade paths that work just fine The Autogun has a Lot of Potential in Outcasts and when the Gang is used well (see below) far greater potential than many other gangs.

Regarding your workaday pistol choice personally I would go for the Stubgun over the Auto Pistol. Auto weapons have potential improvements that benefit a longer ranged weapon such as the autogun instead of the pistol over shorter ranged and while the stubgun lacks Rapid fire (with its potential boost in melee) it gains more with its potential upgrades short ranged than the auto pistol.

The 2" boost to short range is vital. A Goliath can expect to move 5-7 inches on a charge. If you are 6" away the beast may not reach you. Your Scum unless you massively tool them up with champion level weapons are not robust in melee. Once Esher, Goliaths, Corpse Grinders, Delaque and others get going they will smush your Scum. Your Leader may hold his own in melee but your Champions don't and your Scum are nothing special in that regard. disgance and range is your friend.
As Stubguns don't have Rapid fire they can take Infrasights. Which ignore smoke clouds, add 9" to visibility (which most offen totals 12" or more at max range for the pistol). and helps shoot into cover. Auto Pistols can't do that.
Or add a las projector and Telescopic sight and with the Aim action gain +4 Accuracy bonus at 12" range.

The Outcast gang has no special champions, no Clan rules like Acts of Faith or Genesmything no access to Clan Weapons (You did say Clanless) and less access to heavy and special weapons (no founding specialist) and no prospects (who can be hit or miss anyway).
They do have a major advantage that can be unlocked with one Hanger on and the humble Hive Scum.

The Bullet Merchant from the House of Iron book is avaliable to all gangs not just Orlocks for 75 Credits. They have the High Calibre Hook Up rule whic makes all Special Ammo types Common and all Limited ones become Scarce. Across the whole Gang. By making your Limited Ammos merely Scarce you only need to buy them once per fighter. Not every time they run out. and you can relaod them in game rear ammo caches

Hive scum have weapons access to all Basic Pistol and Melee weapons in the Trade Post and Black Market. Other Ganger types are restricted to their entires weapon lists. It is absolutely permissable to give every Hive Scum a Arc Rifle. Or for more realisticly costed folk Bolters and Shotguns with every form of ammunition you can get your hands on. Use special Ammo well and you not only don't need a specialist in your gun line for special weapon punch you don't need them as a credit sink for your champions either. Get the Book of Peril

For a 30 Credit Hive Scum get a Autogun with Rad Rounds (15+20). That is a 65 credit gunner with a 24" Rapid Fire gun That can dish out up to three Flesh wounds that ignore both Toughness and Armour (Rad Phage is contingent on a successful hit alone not any resultant wounds or armour save). A typical Clan ganger with just a autogun costs 65. with no special radiation rounds. A trio of such scum is a substantial threat to Leaders and brutes. for a fraction of thier cost.
And Rad Autoguns are the cheaper less lethal options avaliable.
For an extra 15 credits you can get a Scum with Shotgun Solid Scatter and Shatter shells. Which gives you S4 D2 Knockback (so potentially D3) 16" shot, 1 d6*S2 D1 Scattershot at 8" and a S3 AP-1 Blast 3" shot at 18". For 80 credits you get a Improved Frag grenade shot with its AP. You can get three of them for the price of a half well decently equiped champion withoiut Suspensors.
Give a Scum a Bolter (great on its own) and Gunk Bolts (30+55+15) and that a 100 credit investmet that can slow foes to a crawl, inhibit initiative (Did someone mention Flash Grenades...) and provide the perfect conditions to set people on fire. and you happen to have a Hand flamer lying around.

They may not be toting plasma guns around but your Scum can slug around a impressive amount of firepower for low cost. in very large numbers. A group of 5 Scum with the Rad Autoguns for 325 credits can regularly dump out 2-3 flech wounds a turn ignoreing Toughness and Saves. Or potentially 18. One mildly lucky salvo of Platoon rad fire can take out a couple champions a turn.

Remember thy Bullet Merchant. Praise be his Holy High Calibre Hookup.

 

[Beebopalulla]

This an an excellent analysis !

 

[Alexgood]

I can't thank you enough!

@[B]Lunarcruiser[/B]​

You are the hero the hive scum dont deserve, and don't get.. usually. Rad autoguns, huh

 

[Lunarcruiser]

@Alexgood I've ran a few Outcast gangs most of the time the champions are a waste of time (keep 'em around for post battle actions and the odd emergency plasma shot) and the "generic" leaders are lacking. Dramatic persona like the Ashwood Stranger and Lady Credo earn their keep (it might be a Gods of Dice thing).
The people really holding the gangs together are the Rad Auto gunning Scum and pseudo frag launching Shotgun Scum. Having a couple of them is better than the Grenade launcher firing frags despite the reduction in range. The AP on the blast helps more long term than a potential damage increase from knock back
The Scum only find fault with heavy vehicles and that's what a plasma pistol/gun dotted around is for.
You can Rad Flesh wound to death pretty much anything apart from Van Saar. Don't worry if your opponents start fielding Hasmat suits to negate the Rad rounds. Its only a 6+ armour save. Which your Shatter Shell shotguns happen to ignore.
Remember thy Bullet Merchant. Praise Be to his Holy High Calibre Hookup.

 

[Alexgood]

@Lunarcruiser generic leaders are lacking? What about the 2+ WS 4+ Wil profile Wyrd ? Looks powerful to me.. And the champs don't have to choose the same archetype from what I gather

 

[Lunarcruiser]

@Lunarcruiser generic leaders are lacking? What about the 2+ WS 4+ Wil profile Wyrd ? Looks powerful to me..

As I said it may just be a Gods of Dice thing but I have never had them do well. Also NEVER roll for OOA injuries while facing Ash Nomads while the music from The Book of Boba Fett is on. Near total Gang killed. Gods of Dice be mean.

And the champs don't have to choose the same archetype from what I gather

I take it this comes from my Wall of Text, Yep you can, and should chose different archetypes for your champions (same for other gangs as well) the different skills granted make them more individual.
They can go Wyrd but a starting Will of 8+ is pretty bad for a psyker, Masterminds can be overwatchy shooters but they have BS4+ which is average and the close up and personal sneaky skills suffer when you only have 1 attack so can't make a huge dent in melee (same for Brawler). And as for the Gunslinger archetype yet Fast shot etc are all decent skills and can work with the right build but you start with BS 4+.
The champions stat line fight against all the skills of your archetype. Decent WS but low= not great in melee. Ganger level BS= overpriced ganger shooter, Low A and/or Average BS and Cunning is far less useful (the skills are geared towards getting in to melee sneakily or shooting positions). As a Wyrd to gain enough XP to upgrade the poor Will to use the powers consistantly they need big guns/melee weapons to stike enough foes down to earn the XP to spend. Which long term wastes the credit investment or powers.
When compared to any other champion they are just lacking and actively work against themselves with the stats.
basically the give post battle actions (which is Good) and better access to Special and Heavy weapons but are not special at using them. (which with a Shater Shotgun and Rad Autogun firing line you don't really need until late campaign anyway.

Not that they will get an upgrade book anytime soon but Outcast champions need either an additional attack to fill in with their good WS for Melee builds or a switch of WS and BS to make shooting builds better. And a generally improved mental stats line so they have the Will to be a Wyrd or at least the Cool to make ferocity skills better.

 

[Vonvilkee]

Or take those meh champions as gunslinger arch type, with hipshooting and a combat shotgun. Templates need not BS and with flame storm ammo they are a cheap heavy flamer.