N18 Weird Dark Uprising "Play mat"

Rikokrates

Ganger
Jul 9, 2019
73
42
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So I bought Dark Uprising and got the weird double sided play mat thing. What the hell is it even for? In the rule book where you set up the game it talks about the tiles from the other game and then the 12"x12" tiles that you can buy (If you're lucky). It suggests making a 4X4 board out of the tiles and with now introduction scenarios, what exactly is the play mat you get with the game to be used for?
 
Step away from the ledge! We can talk this out...

DU is a stand alone box set. So, buy it, and you have EVERYTHING you need to play Necromunda. But, Necromunda is already an established game. So, the DU rulebook and instructions have rules or suggestions that apply to the main game. Typically (but, not officially) the game is played on a 4' x 4' batlefield with the multi-level 3D terrain (ex. Sector Mechnicus). Typically, (but not always) the 2D Zone Mortalis setting is 3 x 3 (12" square tiles). DU includes enough terrain to make a hybrid 2D/3D battlefield that is a smaller hybrid size. Hence the playmat thing, patterned with squares like the ZM tiles. The terrain would go on it.
 
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It is a minimum effort to have "everything" in the box to call it a "complete" (standalone) game. Truth is, you need 3 or 4 boxes to play the "real" game plus a proper mat or loads of the new plastic tiles.
 
Step away from the ledge! We can talk this out...

DU is a stand alone box set. So, buy it, and you have EVERYTHING you need to play Necromunda. But, Necromunda is already an established game. So, the DU rulebook and instructions have rules or suggestions that apply to the main game. Typically (but, not officially) the game is played on a 4' x 4' batlefield with the multi-level 3D terrain (ex. Sector Mechnicus). Typically, (but not always) the 2D Zone Mortalis setting is 3 x 3 (12" square tiles). DU includes enough terrain to make a hybrid 2D/3D battlefield that is a smaller hybrid size. Hence the playmat thing, patterned with squares like the ZM tiles. The terrain would go on it.

Yeah, I get that but it seems super small and there's no reference to using it in the rule book whatsoever so I'm assuming it's just a filler to give a bit more atmosphere than my mum's flowery table cloth! :LOL:

Would you ever use it for a game or is it just too small? I wanna get my friend into the game using the "gangs" in the box and was wondering it it would be an acceptable starting point?
 
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Your observation is correct: It is super small and it is just a filler. I never used it, in fact, I may have thrown it in the garbage. It is an acceptable starting point if "acceptable" means better than nothing. It is better than nothing, but worse than anything else.
 
The 2'x2' mat could always be used in small 6 model demo games, it fits comfortably on my table at home (3'x6') so they have space in front of them free to place their fighter cards/roster which provides a good quick overview necessary if you still learn the stats.
Yeah...and that's the only use I can think of. They should've put the cardboard tiles or a cardboard board in for that price.
 
I would never attempt to defend GW's pricing. But, it's hard to agree that with all those sprues, the DU box skimped on content. If anything, it overshot the mark, which accounts for the high price (again, GW decides what the individual contents are worth). There wasn't room for tiles or boards. The truth is, it takes two DU boxes worth of terrain to make a typical sized game. Think of the play mat as half a battlefield. It probably is a bit more immersive than mum's flowery tablecloth. But, that could be alien flora infested badzones!

Let us not forget the inside of the top of the original boxset is a printed battlefield, too. These GW folks don't stand on circumstance.

In any case, heck yes, get your friend into the game! If you must, play it on a coffee table, or car trunk, or a blanket on a romantic sandy beach with a gentle onshore breeze from the cobalt sea. You know, whatever works for you two.
 
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Thanks, maybe I'll try using it for a comfy easy "exhibition match" and go from there, especially if I'm gonna need a lot more terrain to actually fill a recommended board size!
 
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That "in-the-boxtop" scenario was a very few fighters and a few barricades. The idea to try out moving, shooting, and fighting. You can easily play a demo game on the one playmat. A few guys fighters on each side, and a smattering of scatter terrain. But, I find that sort of minimalists approach lacks tension. Which means it might not set the hook, so to speak. The White Dwarf "Gang Raids" supplement had some very small scenarios to be played on a few tiles. You don't need it. But, the idea was a goal was added in. Like an unarmed barroom fight that escalates. Or trying to get off the opposite board edge. Scaling down a DU scenario would work. Any objective makes the game more dynamic. Also, you don't have to demo all the darn rules in the first game. Like Nerve tests and Bottling, and ammo checks, etc. Newbs don't love things that thwart.