Greetings one and all,
Welcome to the second part of our look at Necromunda Hangers-On. There are so many of these that I've had to split it into 2 parts, so today we continue with our list, starting with;
Prize Fighter 0-1
At 40 credits, the Prize Fighter is a House Orlock Hanger-On only. They gain access to the special rule Bare Knuckle Fighter, which means that during the income step of the post-battle sequence, a gang with a Prize Fighter can enter them into a fight. Roll 2D6, pick the highest and times the result by 10. If a single 1 is rolled, the Prize Fighter didn't win their fight and the gang gain no credits. If 2 1's are rolled, the Prize Fighter is killed and is removed from the gang roster completely.
The Prize Fighter also comes with the Skill Iron Jaw, which counts this fighter's Toughness as 2 higher when another fighter makes an unarmed attack. Honestly, I don’t mind this Hanger-On. It can easily make the cost of recruiting back in a single good roll and it should be really good at making credits. That said, there is always the chance you'll roll that double 1 and they die straight away, but considering the benefits, I think it’s worth the risk.
Propagandist 0-1
At 30 credits the Propagandist is an interesting, though risky, Hanger-On. It allows your gang to make boasts about your gang and, if they win the next battle, they will gain D3 additional reputation. But if they lose, the gang will lose 1 reputation instead. Furthermore, the Propagandist increases recruitment; whenever the gang adds a Juve (or similarly ranked member) roll a D6. On the roll of a 6, you gain an additional Juve for free.
The Propagandist also comes with the skill Inspirational, allowing them to make a Leadership test if a friendly fighter is within 6inches of them on the battlefield. If failed, check if the Leadership test has passed and if so, the cool check also counts as being passed. Considering the Propagandist fomes with a Leadership of +6, there's a greater then 50% chance of the roll succeeding.
Overall, if you're hoping to rush Rep and are confident your gonna win more often than not, then this is a good pick for your gang.
Proxy 0-1
At only 25 credits, this Outlaw only Hanger-On is, in my opinion, incredibly important to an Outlaw gang. Their special rule allows Outlaw gangs to use the Trading Post, but each time they do you have to roll a D6. On a roll of 5 or more, the action fails. They also allow Outlaw gangs to sell captives to the guild, which can be incredibly useful. Furthermore, the gang can also try to make an alliance with the Imperial House or Merchants Guild, but, before the alliance is made a D6 will need to be rolled; on the roll of a 6, the Proxy is removed and the alliance test fails. Following this, if the the gang is ever required to make an alliance test again it is failed automatically.
The Proxy also comes with the skill Evade, which means ranged attacks while the fighter is not in cover suffer a -1 to hit at short range, which is increased to a -2 at long range.
Overall, this is a really useful Hanger-On if you're running a campaign using the Outlaw system, as it allows an Outlaw gang access to various abilities which would be otherwise blocked for them, such as the use of the Trading Post and the ability to sell captured fighters.
Psychoteric Thrall 0-1
At 90 credits this is a Delaque only Hanger-On. Although expensive, it is well worth a look at.
The Psychoteric Thrall has a plethora of special rules, the first of which being Psychoteric Echo; this allows the Thrall to be used as a focal point for friendly Delaque Wyrd Powers. As long as the Delaque using the Wyrd Power is within 12inches of it, the fighter can make a Willpower check and if passed, they can then use the Thrall as the location of the source of that Wyrd Power, increasing the fighters range, line of sight and so on and so forth. This is a really powerful ability as a lot of the Delaque Wyrd Powers have a very short range, so this allows you to boost that range using a totally expendable member of your gang.
The next Special rule is Disturbingly Familiar; when the Psychoteric Thrall is added to the gang, pick which house the Thrall originated from (Escher, Cawdor, Van Saar, Goliath or Orlock). Enemy fighters of the chosen house suffer -2 to Leadership and Willpower for the battle, while those enemy fighters of other houses only suffer a -1 to Leadership and Willpower when within 6inches of this fighter. This can also be coupled with some Wyrd Powers to make enemy fighters more susceptible to these effects. Finally, the last special rule is part of the crew. This one is simple, as the Psychoteric Thrall counts as part of your gang and can be taken into battle like any other fighter. However, like any other Hanger-On they can not gain experience.
They do though also have the skill Evade, which means ranged attacks while the fighter is not in cover suffer -1 to hit at short range, and -2 at long range, which is quite handy.
There's a lot to unpack here, but to summarise; the Psychoteric Thrall acts as a focal point for friendly Delaque using Wryd Powers, while also lowering the Leadership and Willpower of nearby enemy fighters. This makes them very useful and very powerful, so it's a solid choice for a Hanger-On for anyone running a gang of Delaque.
Rogue Doc 0-2
At 50 credits, the Rogue Doc is a great pick up for any gang. Their special rule is Patch Up, which allows the gang to make an additional Medical Escort mission in the post-battle sequence. The visit doesn’t cost any credits, but on the result of a 6 on the table, the fighter is treated as stabilised rather than in full recovery.
The rouge Doc, unsurprisingly, has the Medicae skill; if helping in a recovery test, reroll any out-of-action results (remembering that you can’t reroll a re-roll).
This is a really useful Hanger-On as it frees up your Leader and Champions to undertake other post-battle actions, insead of using up their only available action between battles carrying your wounded gang members to the Doc. Plus, you can have up to 2 Rouge Docs in your gang, so you can treat multiple fighters at once. A very Good pick I feel.
Scabber 0-1
At 40 credits, the Scabber is an Outlaw only Hanger-On. Its special rule allows them to sell illegal equipment in the post-battle sequence at the item’s value minus D3x10 credits, to a minimum of 5 credits (hey, Scabbers got to eat). Also, providing the Scabber isn’t in recovery, they can also trade in the post-battle sequence, providing the gang is visiting the Black Market.
The Scabber also comes with the skill Savvy Trader, meaning you can add 1 to the result of a dice roll to determine the availability of a rare item on offer at the Trading Post. On top of this, the cost of 1 item can be reduced by 20 credits.
Visit the Trading Post even once and this Hanger-On has already paid for themself. Not a bad pick, but there are better.
Shivver 0-1
At 100 credits, this Escher-only Hang-On is very expensive. Their special rule is Pyniscience, which is an action taken in the post-battle sequence. During this action, roll 2D6 and consult the table:
2: Doom! - The fighter that carried out the Visit Shivver action is disheartened and goes into recovery.
3-4: The Fates are Unclear - Choose either Leadership, Willpower or Intelligence and the fighter that carried out the Visit Shivver action may reroll any fail checked made with the chosen characteristic.
5-7: Favourable Portents - During the next battle, the fighter performing the Visit Shivver action may reroll any hit roll of a natural 1. They also ignore the stray shots rule.
8-9: A Great Victory - The fighter that performed the Visit Shivver actions gain D6 extra experience if they win their next battle.
10-11: A Mysterious Stranger - The gang of the fighter that performed the Visit Shivver action can hire a bounty hunter for free in the pre-battle sequence of their next battle. The Bounty Hunter then leaves at the end of the battle.
12: Fortune and Glory - In the post-battle sequence of the next battle, the fighter performing the Visit Shivver action may double the amount of experience they earn as well as double the amount of credits and Reputation their gang earns.
These effects are rather powerful and over the course of a campaign, will be a really great boon (as long as you don't roll a 2 too often), however, the fact that it costs one of your post-battle actions to perform does somewhat limit its usefulness. With so many actions and so few people to perform them, your always having to choose between visiting the markets or visiting the doc and this just adds another thing for you to struggle to fit in to make the most of the Shivver.
The Shivver does also has the skill Fearsome though, meaning a fighter that wishes to charge them has to pass a Willpower check; if they fail, the fighter cannot move and their activation ends immediately.
Overall, this could be a very useful Hanger-On, but if you purchase a Shivver you are almost obligated to use one of your post-battle actions visiting it.
Slopper 0-1
At only 20 credits, the Slooper is nice and cheap. Their special rule is Grub’s Up, meaning that at the end of the spend experience step of the pre-battle sequence you roll a D6. For each of the gang's fighters that are in recovery, rolling a 6 clears their in-recovery box making them available for battle.
Unfortunately they have no other skills though, unlike many other Hangers-On. So I'd say the Slooper is a handy Hanger-On to have, but it's not essential.
Spyker 0-2
This Delaque only Hanger-On is 90 credits and for what it does, that's so cheap it’s unreal. Their special rules are as follows:
Flight - The Spyker ignores all terrain and can move freely between levels without restriction. They can also never fall. However, it cannot ignore impassable terrain and may not end its movement with it’s base overlapping an obstacle or another fighters base.
Part of the Crew - The Spyker counts as part of your gang and can be taken into battle like any other fighter, however, like any other Hanger-On they can not gain experience.
Non-Sanctioned Psyker - Should a fighter with this special rule be taken out of action, the enemy gang is rewarded D3X10 credits at the end of the game. Furthermore, should they be captured they can be sold to the guild for their full value.
With these rules in mind, it's good to remember the Spyker counts as a Non-Sanctioned Psyker, so it also has access to Wyrd Powers. These are:
Psychic Scream - Any enemy within 3iches must pass a nerve test, subtracting 1 from the result. If they fail, they immediately become broken and run for cover.
Psychic Assault - Pick an enemy fighter within 18inches of this Psyker to make a Willpower test. If the test is passed, they become pinned. If the test is failed, they lose 1 wound and become pinned. If the fighter is reduced to 0 wounds, roll one injury dice and apply the result.
Force Blast - Any fighter within 3 inches of the Psyker is immediately pushed D3+1 inches directly away. If this would push them off a platform or into a pitfall then they make an initiative test; if they pass, they are placed prone on the edge. If they fail though, they fall. If this movement would be interrupted by a wall or other impassable terrain, the fighter is pinned immediately and sufferers a hit equal to the number of inches they rolled for the push distance.
This Hanger-On is amazingly powerful and has a number of powers that would allow you a lot of control of the battlefield. None of these powers requires line of sight and can affect multiple enemy fighters at once. If you’re running a Delaque gang, the Spyker is a must-have.
Tech Merchant 0-1
At 80 credits (or 40 credits for the Van Saar), the Tech Merchant is a Hanger-On that will eventually pay for itself. They have the special rule Techno-Baubles which may reduce the rare/Illegal value of an item at the Trading Post or Black Market by 2. If this would bring it below 7+, the item then becomes common. Furthermore, the Tech Merchant has the additional special rule Friends in the Trade, which reduces the cost of 1 item found in the Trade Post or Black Market to a minimum of 20 credits.
The Tech Merchant also has the skill Munitineer, which gives this model and any ganger with 6inches a re-roll on failed ammo checks (though take note, you cannot re-roll a re-roll).
Personally, I’m not sure this skill really fits the Hanger-On. Fixer might have been better, but that might have made this Hanger-On somewhat over-powered. The Tech Merchant isn’t really a bad pick, but there are better choices.
Underhive Trader 0-3
At 50 credits, the Underhive Trader is, in effect, 4 different Hangers-On in 1. Each shares the special rule The Finest Merchandise, which allows the Underhive Trader to undertake the Trade action during the post-battle sequence. Each of the types of Underhive Traders are as follows:
Relicmonger:
These specialists seek out religious artifacts and sometimes even find one. Once per battle, when a fighter with a blessed token is seriously injured or taken out of action, roll a D6. On a roll of 6, the fighter can ignore the result. Not only this, the Relicmonger also comes the Fearsome skill meaning fighters that want to charge him have to pass a willpower check; if they fail the fighter cannot move and their activation ends immediately.
Beastwrangler:
A nice easy one. The Beastwrangler can train the gangs exotic pets. Once per campaign week, add 1xp to each exotic beast. Simple as that. Not only this, the Beastwrangler also has the skill Overseer, so if the fighter is standing and active, the fighter may undertake the Order Double Action rule. This allows the fighter to pick another fighter within 6inches to immediately take 2 actions as if it were their turn to activate. If the fighter still has their ready marker, this doesn’t remove it.
Gun-Smyth:
Once per post-battle sequence, the gang with a Gun-Smyth can purchase a ranged weapon at the Trading Post or Black Market with the master-crafted upgrade for free. They also have access to the Marksman skill, so they're not subject to the rules for target priority. Furthermore, any roll to hit that is a 6 is considered a critical hit and does double damage. (However, note this does not apply to weapons with the blast trait.)
Connected Trader:
For each Connected Trader the gang controls, they can sell items from the gang's stash for double their worth once per post-Battle sequence. Furthermore, they can trade credits and items from their stash with other gangs. Both gangs must agree to this trade however. The Connected Trader also has the Savvy Trader skill, which adds one to the result of the dice roll to determine the availability of rare items on offer at the Trading Post. They're also able to reduce the cost of 1 item by 20 credits.
Overall this is an interesting array of Hangers-On, but for me I think the Gun-Smyth is the best of these 4 options. However, your mileage may vary.
Whisper Merchant 0-1
At 60 credits (Or 30 for the Delaque), the Whisper Merchant is a very handy Hanger-On to have. Their special rule is Useful Lies, which enables a selection of choices for the gang during both the Pre-Battle and Post-Battle sequences. The gang can choose to have had rolled a 6 for the following; Determine Scenario, Choose Crews, Receive Rewards and Seek Rare/Illegal Equipment.
This ability can only be used once and each time it is used make a note of it, because when this ability has been used 6 times, the Whisper Merchant will call in their debt and the gang either have to pay their fee again, or they’ll leave.
The Whisper Merchant also comes with the skill Lie Low; if the fighter is prone, enemies can only shoot them if they are within the weapon's short range.
This is a really handy Hanger-On I feel, and it's not even too expensive for what will, in the end, become a somewhat "subscription investment" for your gang.
And there we go, that covers every Hanger in the Underhive, man there are a lot of them and some are really powerful and others are..less so of course what you'll want to bring for your gang will depend on which gang your running and how you're running them but it's safe to say there's most likely a hanger-on to complement your gang.
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