Introduction to HOUSE VAN SAAR- Getting started in NECROMUNDA! 

Thanks for the kind words! It's always a struggle not to start a new gang...they're all so cool!

Great to hear!

Great point, I didn't consider the value of splitting shots. I am very wary of bad dice so I usually go all in on a target for the overkill rather than splitting fire in a more efficient manner. Perhaps my fear of the Natural One is holding me back lol Thanks for the love!

Do you give them 2 plasma pistols or 1 plasma and 1 las so they have the backup from an ammo check?

@@matthewlaxon828 double plasma. later in campaign i buy this champ a shield cuz this champ is always on the frontline

Thanks for the comment! Much appreciated, even if it took me a while to reply. Agree about VS needing a good economy. For other gangs that have access to Fixer it's nice to have, but VS stuff is all so expensive you really need a good income to cushion you from a bad injury or whatever.

Thank you! I'm very happy you enjoy my stuff!

I hope there is appropriate cackling whenever the grenades get thrown!

Glad I could help! Hope your first game goes well!

Glad you liked it! Van Saar are one of my big favourite factions

Living the CC dream! Hope your shield guy got a promotion after that I'd rate the Rig a lot higher if it wasn't on a M4 fighter. Getting a Neotek promoted and having a flying rig, now that'd be a terror!

@@digitalwastrel Thats my plan for an upcoming campaign - Neotek to archeotek with some choice stat upgrades.

Is that put on a ganger or archeotek?

@@te9591 Only the Archeoteck gets the spider-rig

Glad you liked the vid! Let me know how Spider Rigs work out for you, when you get to use one. With Ash Wastes I suppose you could put the ArcheoTek on a bike...hmmm, now that might be something to consider!

Thanks for the kind words! Expensive, but at least the neoteks will be safe with those shields haha

They're coming up for sure!

Yeah, I can definitely see them working. They feel like a bonus support type gun to me; if you have enough regular guns to threaten the enemy they can be a nice extra threat especially for wearing down bigger boys but at gang creation I feel like I'd rather buy weapons that can (potentially) take the enemy out in 1 shot. Great to hear you're having success with the radbeamer though!

@@digitalwastrel the rad gun at least doubles your chances to get a flea wound (with some very rough math) or better. Rolling on the rapid fire profile isn't likely to do any damage until you start stacking those flesh wounds which you can start doing with each hit... potentially.

I like your thinking! However, Digi lasers are an actual close combat weapon, and only S1, so Torsonic Alpha wouldn't boost them, RAW. Taking the Rig and fast tracking your way to Torsonic Gamma would give your rig S6 hits, and spend your XP on extra Move and Attacks, would have the potential to turn into something nasty.

@digitalwastrel i feel this is confusing in the Van Saar book. if you look into the digi lasers profile, it says they are "E" in short range, which in the rulebook says that they are treated as the strength of the user. As it is not a ranged attack. They count as "melee, versatile," which will allow them to also benefit from the second torsonic upgrade when used. I believe the strength 1 is only used, when using them in range at 3" in shooting. Which will make you roll a firepower dice and may lead to their 6+ ammo check. So the first variation: laspistol, 3 digis, 2nd torsonic upgrade, would give you 5 attacks, +1 from dual CC, +1 on charge, at strength 5. The second basic variation, no digis used, also allows a player to instead make two unarmed attacks with the alpha torsonic upgrade, not getting the 3rd attack as it would count as having two weapons. So this variation gives you two dice to try and punch an enemy ganger with each wound doing D3. Then, the third variation, which may need arbitration. Would be torsonic alpha combined with two unarmed attacks rolled, then possibly your digi attacks (let's say you use 3) at strength of the user. So two unarmed Strength 3 attacks doing D3 and three "melee-versatile", Strength 3 attacks not using using a bonus attack, since they can't be combined with the unarmed rolls. There's more i want to write here, there's like 5 variations of the Archeoteks that I see. With their own strengths/disadvantages. I'll come back and explain more later.

@Digital Wastrel okay, here is my variantions of Archeotek: #1 "The Unarmed Tek Monk" Lasgun Mesh Torsonic Alpha (free) Fixer 150 credits Intent: uses the rifle at the start of the campaign to help suppress with its good BS. A laspistol won't benefit due to unarmed status. Then, use it to counter charge champions. Pros: D3 unarmed damage might severely injure a champion early campaign. This is Min/Max to make the Archdotek the most affordable. (Possibly fielding two) Cons: only two CC attacks due to unarmed descriptor, +1 on the charge, allowed. #2. "Affordable Unarmed/Digi Tek" Laspistol Mesh Torsonic alpha upgrade 1 Digi Fixer 170 credits Intent: min-max for low strength combat. Getting one pistol and one CC digi will grant +1 attack. Making for 4 attacks Strength 3 and +1 on the charge. Also note that if an arbitrator lets you use your two unarmed attacks, you might benefit from the D3 damage if you sacrifice the +1 from the pistol being holstered. Which would make it be 2 unarmed attacks @d3, 1 attack S3 digi. Pros: a more affordable low strength build that may focus on being good enough for enemy gangers. Not needing strength upgrades ASAP. Buys one Digi to get the second close combat bonus as well as an extra attack (2 attacks for 25 credits, yes, please) Cons: needs more strength for CC specialists like Goliath at T4, etc. #3 "Min Goliath Killer Tek" Laspistol Mesh Torsonic Gamma upgrade (15 credits) Power knife Fixer 185 credits +50 credits (2 Digis) variant. Intent: Most minimum high strength "melee-versatile" attacks at an affordable rate. Pros: 3 attacks, +1 on the charge, at Strength 6. Affordability beats out Spider Rig? Could add two more digis for 2 more attacks over Spider Rig, making 5 attacks @ S6, AP -2. Cons: Spider Rig would be a superior big picture. #4. "Strength Spider Rig" Laspistol Mesh Spider Rig Torsonic Gamma (15 credits) Fixer 240 credits +(25 credits for power knife) Intent: Min purchases to get the power of the spider rig. Pros: the spider rig makes WS +1, S +1, making the attacks be 6 attacks on the charge @ Strength 6 from "paired" descriptor. Consider an early stat buff to the attack profile if possible as it will double the attack profile from 4 to 6 with paired. Cons: need to get the charge from a 4" move unit Note: Could go from a high strength build, but the 15 credit upgrades are so cheap. Could also add the Power Knife instead of pistol for half of your CC attacks to get AP -2. Note: Could add a cyberarachnid for 75 credits for a "Fearsome" trait to help prevent charges, but mightbget costly early on. #5. "Tekno God" Laspistol Mesh Spider Rig Torsonic Gamma (15 credits) 10 Digis Fixer 465 credits +25 credits for power knife variant -80 credits for no spider rig min variant Intent: Max attacks, Max Strength. Pros: 16 attacks on the charge! @ Strength 6! (14 attacks, S5 if no rig on charge) so many potential wounds will kill gangers outright. Cons: expensive unit best for late campaign. Spider Rig may not be needed at max digis probability. Note: Consider choosing more cyber technika or field armor if even more disposable income is earned, making the unit even larger.

I'm standing by my reading of Digi Lasers being S1 both at 3" and in base to base. Other weapons with differing "melee" profiles and a "ranged" profiles separate the two modes clearly (I'm thinking of the Cawdor blunderpoles for example). Even if they did use their user's Strength they're still a melee weapon, so I don't think that would trigger Torsonic Alpha either. Of course how you play is between you and your group, but that's my take. I agree that the way digi lasers work is kind of unclear though! If you're going to get under the hood and tweak some rules, changing both Torsonic levels to work with both unarmed and melee weapons seems like the easiest change to open up some options. Getting the Rig up to D3 would make it a lot more viable!

@@digitalwastrel im lightly discussing it on YakTribes, i respect your opinion. And I wouldn't use digis with torsonic alpha's d3 benefit directly because they are melee/versatile and would be compatible with the torsonic gamma +2 strength.

Glad you enjoyed it! Yes, Genestealer Cults are definitely on the cards!

Ash Wastes adding in Grav Cutters for other gang members really opens things up!

Wouldn't the extra 30 credit for a full harness be worth it?

Also an ash wastes grav cutter is 65 Credits.

It would appear that the chain is not up for purchase on the trading post anymore, it's an ash waste nomads gang exclusive.

It would appear that the chain is not up for purchase on the trading post anymore, it's an ash waste nomads gang exclusive.

just a tiny nuclear explosion, as a treat

@Digital Wastrel I would expect in a real situation the air propelled by said nuclear explosion would be super compressed, any noise over 200 decibels is a wall of solidified air, I believe. Super hair dryer is what a melta is...

It'll dry your hair...and pretty much every cell in your body as well

There's definitely some fun things you can do with cybertecknica for sure!

Lasguns are probably a better bet in most cases but 2 pistols are super cool so I like it for style reasons. Keeps them cheap and you can get close for the bonus to hit. For my heavy weapon archeotek I'm probably going to try mounting the gun on the "non-tentacle" side but I've seen a few people cut down the tentacle or modify the rad gun and mount a different gun on that side.

The truth is there are not many left hands in the box. Also I like the idea archeotek with ocular cybertechnika, suspensor, plasma cannon and weaponsmith. Very expensive, but also very reliable.

If I'm reading it right, you pay the difference in credits between the level you're on and the level you're upgrading to. Archeotechs get the first level for free and a discount on any other pieces so iirc it comes out at slightly cheaper than straight up buying suspensors. A lot more surgery required though. Sprint is a good call! I hadn't thought of that

@@digitalwastrel Oh right! I was forgetting the major discount on the archeotech. You have to wait and pick up the heavy weapon later for them too. Seems like an interesting build up - start them without weapons, but with torsonic alpha and maybe munitioned or fixer... maybe some grenades. Then work their way up to a heavy weapon and omega torsonic.

Yup, all of those things you mentioned are great. The killer (for me anyway) is being stuck on a M4 fighter, and also being D1. Combined with the cost, it's just not enough to feel like a worthwhile threat, imo

@@digitalwastrel Torsonic rank 2? :D

Viable as in "you will consistently dominate your foes in close combat"? Probably not. Viable as in "when the dice go your way and you destroy someone in CC it'll be hilarious"? Yeah I believe so!