Revisiting Necromunda

The Piranha Gang

Whilst talking to a friend about the new Necromunda edition and the ability to play on Tabletop Simulator, I rummaged through some ancient files and discovered fragments of a website I put together for the Piranha Gang, my first Necromunda gang.

I think I had originally set this site up of Geocities or some archaic site when the internet was yet young and interesting and also exceedingly slow.

Apart from having terrible photos taken with an SLR camera, and a shockingly awful background, I did have a few snippets of backstory for each of the minis. Why not revisit and introduce them again?

STUBBS

   

Extract:

The booze did little to ease the pain. When the mononeedles pierced his skull it felt like a white hot power drill biting into the bone between his eyes. The nanos, once past the calcium barrier, quickly set about their task of wiring up the neuralchip implant to the frontal lobe, the hyperthalamus and finally the spinal cord.

Stubbs would have thrashed around violently had he not been securely lashed into the metallic med-chair. The dingy room that served as the ripperdoc surgery stank of mildew and cheap antiseptic, the low watt bulb doing little to reveal its contents.

The pain gradually subsided and the ripperdoc leaned back to admire his work. The installation had been very easy, as the nanos did most of the work. He picked up what looked like a pair of sunglasses and placed them over Stubbs' bald head. There was a faint click as the glasses fit into place over the neuralchip, now firmly embedded into the third eye region of Stubbs' skull.

The gang leader was released from the chair and took the black plastic mouthguard from between his teeth and replaced it with his half burnt cigar. He felt more than a little dizzy from the experience and took an epic swig from his large bottle of moonshine. Steadying himself with the chair he concerntrated on the bulb. After a second it zoomed into clear focus and when Stubbs looked away his vision returned to normal.

"Any recommendations, doc?" he asked as he re-lit the stoagie.

"Sure. Don't headbutt anyone for the next few years and try not to get shot."

The Model:

I chose the Citadel Games Workshop 40K Catachan Leiutenant as the model for my Necromunda gang leader. I saw him in the store and was sold on the cigar he was chomping on. There were only two bounty hunter models in the shop, but I was looking for a fairly diverse range of characters for the Piranha Gang anyway. I modified the model by removing the Imperial insignia from the shoulderpad, the chestpiece and the boltgun with a straight razor and polised down the surface with a small metal rod.

I gave the model a black spray undercoat and drybrushed the whole thing with three shades of grey. I base painted the skin areas with white and then built up from brown through tan to light tan to give the model definition. I then applied the highlights with mixes of mithril silver and black, shining gold mixed with bronze and shaded with black. I painted the dragon on the scabbard and the green half hidden Pirhana symbol on the jacket and the counting marks on the boltgun with a 000 finetip imitation sable brush. The base was glued on after everything else was dry, and is a mixture of black coal railroad flock and scrap metal from the bits I cut off.

VENDETTA

  

Extract:

The grimy bar at the outpost settlement of Waylayn had the usual reek of stale beer and cheap tobacco. The conversational bubble of a sizeable crowd of patrons provided a pleasing background that was doing its best to drown out the buzzing, flickering dirty pink neon.

Stubbs sat at a small round table, billowing out clouds of fetid cigar smoke. The pink glare of the neon reflected in his dark glasses. He reached over the table and slapped a handful of yellow triangular plastic chets embossed with the black stylised eagle of the Imperium down on its surface.

"Sixty credits." he said with a face that was either smiling or simply clenching the cigar between its teeth.

"I'll need fuel." the woman sitting opposite Stubbs said bluntly, not even casting a glance at the credits.

She was athletically built with an impossibly white peroxide bob haircut that followed her sleek jawline. She was dressed in heavy, reinforced leathers with visible zippers here and there, extended shoulderpads and a high collar that protected the back of her neck. The bodice was cut vertically in a style that supported, yet revealed half of each breast covered in transparent thermoplas.

"Fuel, food and water are all provided." Stubbs answered. Behind him a punk punched one of his fellows, who fell backwards into Stubbs. Stubbs wheeled angrilly and smashed a giant fist into the injured man's face.

A deft hand from a passer-by moved to swipe the pile of credits from the tabletop making good use of the distraction. The leatherclad woman rose to her feet kicking her chair backwards and bringing a large and well used flamer to bear on the thief in one smooth motion.

"Freeze or burn, asshole!" she yelled.

There was an instant silence throughout the bar as everyone froze, followed by a soft pop and hiss of the small blue pilot light igniting at the end of the very large perforated barrel of the flamer. The thief moved ever so slowly to replace the credits on the table. The woman's green eyes narrowed. The filcher, smiling weakly, placed his own pouch of credits next to the others. The woman gently lowered the weapon and the thief eased away and then ran out of the bar.

The barkeep grimmanced in relief as the bubble of conversation returned. The white-haired woman shut off the pilot light and scooped up the pile of credits.

"Name's Vendetta."

"Stubbs. Welcome to the team."

The Model:

I chose the Citadel Games Workshop 40K Battle Sister as the model for my first Necromunda gang heavy. I debated for quite a long time between three models, two with flamers and one with a heavy plasma weapon. They were all excellent models, but I finally decided on this one. I modified the model by removing the Imperial Insignia from the shoulderpad with a straight razor and polised down the surface with a small metal rod. I also filed down the pin for the backpack and discarded it in favour of the section that was already there, turning it into a re-breather rather than a jump pack.

I gave the model a black spray undercoat and drybrushed the whole thing with two shades of grey. I base painted the skin areas and the hair with bleached bone and then built up from tan to bone on the face and breasts. I then applied the highlights with mixes of mithril silver for the zippers, and shining gold mixed with bronze and shaded with black for the flamer. The hair I drybrushed with pure white. I glossed over some sections of the leathers with an clear enamel so that they would shine. I painted the rebreather and the flamer ammo flask with a 000 fine imitation sable brush but had to do the breasts about three times before it was what I had in mind. Initially I was going to paint the whole bodice black, but I thought I would giver her a kinky edge. The base was glued on after everything else was dry, and is a mixture of black coal railroad flock and scrap metal from the bits I cut off and a few metal filings. I'll keep the backpack for another conversion.

HARDWIRED

    

Extract:

"What the sump are you lookin at?"

" Want me to tell you who I am do ya? Go on, piss off back into the settlement kid, I dont have time."

"Why not? Coz I gotta fix this gun. I know you never seen a gun like this before."

" Where did it come from? Hmmmm alright I'll tell ya."

" I wuz going for my usual 8 mile run around Hallogen Mountain, yeah the one made all out of Halogen glass, keeps on getting bigger each time Hive City releases the ceiling trapdoor chutes. Gotta be coupla hundred metres by now... anyway, I wuz goin' through one of those new airlock vents and I got into a pile of blasted radioact-rats and had to make a break for it. I dropped the 37kg excercise weights that I was carrying and ran like hell down those corridoors. As luck would have it, I rounded this turn to see the Emperors' holy grail, kid."

"There she was, mounted up on toppa that anti-crowd turret just waiting. I quickly figured out how to load her with these 'ere bullets and blast them rad-rats back to the sump. I took 'er down and cleaned 'er up and built this 'ere strap to carry, e'r around."

"So there you go kid. Ya happy now?"

"The sword!"

"Now that's another story...."

The Model:

I chose the Citadel Games Workshop Goliath with Heavy Stubber as the model for my second Necromunda gang heavy. I got him together with the rest of the Necromunda models that I ordered (along with a GW survey which finally gave me the right stuff) from Games Workshop Mail Order.

I modified the model by removing the backpack (which I now use as a loot counter) because it obscured the cool screwdriver and spanner on his belt. To balance the model (and make him look cool) I used a leftover Greatsword from the Chaos Warriors Regiments set (which I loved) and stuck it in place of the backpack. I polished the scar over his eye to remove it. I also had to fill in one of his wrists with modelling putty to get the gun in place properly.

I gave the model a black spray undercoat and drybrushed the legs with three shades of grey. I base painted the skin areas with white and then built up from brown through tan to very light tan to give the model definition and to really show off his biceps. I then applied the highlights with mixes of mithril silver and black, shining gold mixed with bronze and shaded with black for the bullets. I painted the eyes with a 000 finetip imitation sable brush. I varnished parts of his clothing and boots and the strap to make them shine like polished leather. The base was glued on after everything else was dry, and is a mixture of black coal railroad flock and scrap metal from the bits I cut off.

HOTSHOT

     

Extract:

Hotshot looked the dealer in his left bionic eye and then spat on the ground.

"It's garbage. For that price you can shove it up yer sumphole."

The dealer shrugged slightly and pushed the automatic bolt pistol a fraction closer.

"It's all you are going to get around here. Beggars can't be choosers."

Hotshot leaned in close the the dealer, his face filling the dealer's vision, then in an instant grabbed the pallid man by his greasy jacket and slammed his face into the metal table rendering him bloody and unconcious.

Hotshot swiped the gun from the table and again spat, this time on the motionless body.

"I ain't no beggar."

The Model:

I chose the Citadel Games Workshop Necromunda Scum model for the character of Hotshot. For once I didnt I modify the model, and painted him just the way he was. I primarilly ordered him because of the jacket, to fit in with the rest of the Pihranas, and got the flamer Scum model in the same blister! A survey sent with your order really can get results.

I gave the model a black spray undercoat and drybrushed the whole thing with three shades of grey. I base painted the skin areas and the hair with elf grey and then built up from a snakebite leather to mixed bleached bone. I then painted the boltguns with boltgun metal and and drilled out the barrels with a power drill.

I detailed the ligtning strikes in his hair and the eyes with a 000 fine imitation sable brush. The base is a mixture of black coal railroad flock.

PHREAK

       

Extract:

" You've done it again, Phreak." the tech head ganger said quietly to himself as he held up his long jacket to the window. Through the panes the super halogens shone through the numerous bulletholes, creating tiny motes of light on the gungy metal and wood crates of Phreaks' hideout.

The place was covered in dust and a sump rat ocassionally begged the toxic green crested hacker for a crumb of food concentrate. Old machinery, computer systems and counter intrusion electronics littered the floor and walls, either works in progress, or simply just parts.

Phreak began repairing the holes in his lucky jacket. He had seen his share of gang fights, and had somehow miraculously always come away without any lasting injuries. A few scars would be there permanently, but, hey, didn't every ganger have em?

The Model:

I chose the Citadel Games Workshop Necromunda Delaque ganger for the character of Phreak. I modified the model by removing a mohawk from a Battlemasters chaos archer with a razor and gluing it onto the model. I filled the small gaps with modelling putty.

I gave the model a black spray undercoat and drybrushed the whole thing with two shades of grey. I base painted the skin areas and the hair with elf grey and then built up from a snakebite leather to bleached bone. I then painted the shotgun with boltgun metal and terracotta and drilled out the barrels with a power drill.

I detailed the Scope and target crosshair on the visors and the gold dragon on the pistol holster with a 000 fine imitation sable brush. The base is a mixture of black coal railroad flock.

RAZOR

   

Extract:

"She trains like a demon." said Stubbs to Vendetta. The two watched Razor in the Piranha Gang Training Circle, little more than a clear circumference in a junkpile of ancient rusting items. The woman was practising katas with her Ninja-to, the straight sword of the assassin. She lunged and twirled in a deadly dance of death, weaving the sword amongst invisible foes, piercing and cutting them down one by one.

"Does she ever tire?" asked Vendetta.

"Eventually." replied Stubbs. "Then she catches up on some target practice. She's getting good too. I saw her pick off a sump rat at 80 metres."

Vendettas' eybrow raised slightly.

"I guess she really is gonna hunt down Mad Morris. Don't blame her either. Should have known better than to get between Razor and her quarry."

"I heard he came back from that Hive quake. Fell into a dark crack in the Underhive and fought off a legion of mutant creatures." said Stubbs.

"No, shit." said Vendetta, surprised. "Then this girl really is in for the fight of her life."

The Model:

I chose the Citadel Games Workshop Necromunda Escher Ganger model for the character of Razor, the second female in the gang.. I didnt modify this model either, and painted her along with some of the others. I ordered her because of her mohawk, one of the trademarks of the Pihrana gang.

I gave the model a black spray undercoat and drybrushed the whole thing with two shades of grey. I base painted the skin areas and the hair with elf grey and then built up from a snakebite leather to bleached bone. I painted some areas of her clothing with a gloss enamel to make some of her clothes look like shining black leather and was fairly happy with the result.

I detailed the black lipstick and eyes with a 000 fine imitation sable brush. The base is a mixture of black coal railroad flock.

SAVAGE

     

Extract:

(Insert maniacal high pitched laugh here - the one from Joe Cox in Robocop)

The Model:

I chose the Citadel Games Workshop Necromunda Delaque ganger for the character of Savage. I modified the model by removing a mohawk from a Battlemasters Chaos archer with a razor and gluing it onto the model. To make the pony tail I grabbed a spare skeleton foot out of the Skeleton Regiments boxed set and cut it to the right shape and glued that on too. I filled the small gaps with modelling putty.

I gave the model a black spray undercoat and drybrushed the whole thing with two shades of grey. I base painted the skin areas and the hair with elf grey and then built up from a dark brown mix to a dark terracotta. I then painted the guns with boltgun metal and drilled out the barrels with a power drill.

I detailed the knifesheath in a zebra pattern with a 000 fine imitation sable brush. The base is a mixture of black coal railroad flock and scrap metal from the bits I cut off and a few metal filings.

RICK

      

Extract:

Rick sat inside a rusted old aerodyne unit, his home, and worked on making his home-made bullets. His equipment spread out on the dash, wax slowly melting in a squashed tin can over a gas cooker. Rick loved the smell of the wax, the gunpowder, loved the process of making the deadly ammunition.

It wasn't all 100% safe, though, and a couple of hastily made dum dums had cost the juve half his hearing when he shot them at a Ratskin raider.

He was a great deal more careful about making his home-mades now.

The Model:

I chose the Citadel Games Workshop Necromunda Delaque Juve model for the character of Rick. my first Juve. I modified this model by cutting off a mohawk from a Battlemasters Chaos archer and filled the gap with modelling putty.

I gave the model a black spray undercoat and drybrushed the whole thing with three shades of grey. I base painted the skin areas and the hair with elf grey and then built up from a snakebite leather to bleached bone. I painted his mirrorshades with a metallic purple and then a gloss enamel to make them shine. The base is a mixture of black coal railroad flock.

I had to name him Rick because he looked just like a friend of mine whose name was Rick.... even with the mohawk.

BOUNTY HUNTERS

      

The Models:

I chose the Citadel Games Workshop 40K Space Marine Commander and I finally bought the Necromunda bounty hunter in the store to represent the bounty hunters the Piranhas hire from time to time. I didn't modify these models, as I liked them how they are.

I gave the Toxinator model a black spray undercoat and drybrushed the whole thing with three shades of grey. I base painted the skin areas with white and then built up from brown through tan to light tan. I then applied the highlights and detailed stripes with a 000 finetip imitation sable brush. At first this model was wearing black to imitate a tech ninja or something, but it was simply too dark. After a couple of games I descided to paint his clothing toxic yellow to look more like a radiation or biochemical hazzard suit. The base is a mixture of black coal railroad flock.

I mulled over how to paint the Katalyst model for some time before I even undercoated it with black spray. I base painted the skin areas with elf grey and then built up from brown through tan to light tan. I wanted the lasgun to really stand out, so I chose white and hot orange to give it a ceramic, futuristic look. The details like the kills tattoo on the side of the skull and chainsword lines were done with a 000 finetip imitation sable brush. The snowfield style cammoflage was first painted white and inked with grey, then the grey and black detail painted on when it was dry. The base is a mixture of black coal railroad flock. I was very pleased with the result.

Many games were played with this gang, and over time it also grew, had some paint touch-ups and repairs, but the core still remains. Many years ago, I hosted a running tournament with several players all with different gangs. I made a Hive trophy for the winner.

The Ratskins nearly took it out, but in the end the victors were Van Saar.