The Dark City Dogs: Week 1 – Playing to Win

Hey folks, welcome back!

Following two crushing defeats that left The Outsiders without a Leader, two dead Champions, and no Specialist, The Dark City Dogs have taken their place in the campaign. With just enough time for a game in Week 1, I was eager to catch up quickly and make my mark.

I took the lessons from my failed attempt to play an honest Delaque gang and looked back on what worked for my first run with The Outsiders.

I’ve never been convinced that Delaque are built to excel at any one thing on the table. If you’re looking for a gang with a strong, defined skew, Delaque might not be the right house for you. They have plenty of strong options, but they don’t specialize in a particular aspect. I’m at risk of this turning into a Delaque Gang Creation Guide, which isn’t my intent. I want to focus on my choices for this specific campaign, the pivot from the failed experiment that was The Outsiders, and how I intended to start playing to win.

Founding the Dark City Dogs

Looking at the gangs I’d be facing and knowing I was a game behind, I saw that Andrew had already made a name for himself at the top of the pack, thanks to his crushing victory that retired The Outsiders. But there were other serious contenders. Two other Cawdor Gangs were hot on his heels, two Corpse Grinder Cults were in play, two Spyrer Hunting Parties were around, and a mix of Squats, Chaos Cults, Orlocks with their Heavy Stubber, Escher Death Maidens, Genestealer Cult Mining Lasers, and Van Saar’s standard double-tapping Grav Guns were all things I would have to deal with.

To gain an edge, I needed to fight smart and stay unpredictable. Let’s dive into the choices that set the stage for The Dark City Dogs.

Anu, the Master of Shadows

Previously, I’d gone for a simple Overseer Leader, but with the changes to the Overseer Skill in the  new Necromunda Core Rulebook, I opted for a more reactive build: a Long Rifle, Overwatch, and an Auto Pistol backup. My hope was that the threat of him being able to reach out and hit someone would help control my opponents’ approaches. Overwatch would allow me to interrupt activations and force them to play defensively. Even without the Aim Action, Anu would hit on 2+ at long range, making him a low-investment control piece.

Anu was added to the gang roster at a reasonable 135 credits. While not a heavy hitter, his role is about controlling the flow of the game through tactical interruptions and well-placed shots.

Nanna, the Psychomancer

This Delaque Prospect doesn’t exactly excel at psychic powers to start with. A low Willpower stat of 8+ makes relying on them risky, but I had a plan. Starting with Spatial Psychosis, it’s a solid ability that’s a simple action that causes the target to go Prone on a successful Willpower check. I then spent 30 extra credits to gain a second psychic power, allowing me to access Precognition. This is my real motivation for fielding a Psychomancer, as it gave me the ability to select which scenario I play in every game, and I’d always get to be the attacker, and what’s more, there is no Willpower test required!

Now, this is an extremely powerful ability to have, especially at gang creation, but you have to be careful. If you overuse it by always picking scenarios skewed towards the attacker, like Smash and Grab, your opponents are going to catch on. I like to balance things by asking my opponent what type of game they’re looking for and offering up options, even making the occasional concession, like allowing them to grab a couple of boxes while I take three.

That said, Nanna doesn’t come cheap—60 credits for the Psy-Gheist, plus 30 for her second power. And at this point, she still has no weapons. Luckily, if she’s eligible to be fielded, she can still trigger Precognition regardless of if she takes part in the battle, so I gave her a Stub Pistol and called it a day.

Shamash, the Nacht-Ghul

Next up, I needed something with real impact on the battlefield. And there’s no better option than a Nacht-Ghul. With a Weapon Skill of 2+, Strength 4, and 2 Attacks, they’re a terrifying combat threat. At 200 credits with Serpent’s Fangs, you’ve got one of the most reliable close-combat pieces in the game. Paired Weapons double attacks on the charge, and the weapon’s +2 Strength and Rend make it a nightmare for any opponent. Even at that price, I consider him a great value addition to any Delaque roster!

Spring Up is my go-to starting skill, as it gives Shamash reliable ways to escape pinning. With this combination, he can reliably charge any isolated opponent, almost guarantee an out-of-action result, even without the need to Coup de Grace them, and start to rack up XP for those advancements.

Ea Marduk, Web Gun Specialist

Next, I needed more firepower. Enter Ea Marduk, my starting Ghost Specialist, complete with a Web Gun and Stub Gun. At 160 credits, Marduk might seem expensive, but he’s a powerhouse. As a template weapon, the Web Gun bypasses the unreliable Ballistic Skill of the Ghosts. With Delaque's access to the Mass Infiltration Gang Tactics Card, Marduk could deploy in places where enemies wouldn't expect him, disrupting their plans and forcing them to deal with the threat from unexpected angles. This makes for the perfect combination, especially in the early stages of a campaign.

This brings my total to 590 credits and four fighters. With only my Gang Leader, Champion, and Specialist designed to be on-table threats, I needed more bodies. So, I turned to budget-friendly options.

The Budget Fighters: Ghosts and Shadows

Ignore the Web Pistol on this Shadow, there is no foreshadowing here…

Two Ghosts with Lasguns for 55 credits each fit the bill, bringing my total to 700 for six fighters. Still, I wasn’t comfortable yet. I needed more flexibility and utility, so I added two Shadows, one with a Laspistol and Smoke Grenades and the other with a Stub Pistol and Smoke Grenades. The Shadows’ 6-inch movement makes them ideal for slipping into frustrating positions with their Smoke Grenades, shutting down enemy fire lanes if they’re not careful.

This brought me to eight fighters, the minimum I consider viable for Delaque gangs at the start. With cheap Ghosts and Shadows adding versatility and allowing me to control the battlefield and set up traps, my more powerful pieces would have to focus on doing the heavy lifting.

Also, because it’s on-brand for The Dark City Dogs, I gave my two Ghosts bland names: Mr. Blue and Mr. Green. The Shadows, though, don’t get the “Mr.” treatment—they’re just Alpha and Beta. They’ll have to earn their individuality.

The Equipment and Final Touches

With my fighters chosen, it was time to focus on their gear. I equipped Anu, Mr. Green, and Mr. Blue with Gun Shrouds and Photo Goggles, ensuring they had the ability to exploit the Smoke Grenades that Alpha and Beta would be throwing down. Nanna and Ea Marduk both got Gun Shrouds.

To round out the roster, I added another Ghost, Mr. Brightside, armed with two Stub Pistols and double Gun Shrouds, bringing me to 960 credits.

With the first two or three games in mind, I knew I’d need to focus on low-model count scenarios, ideally Custom 6, so I could play it safe early on. Smoke would be key for blocking ranged shots, and my goggles would allow me to shoot through it. Shamash’s role was to start forcing bottle checks with his lethal close-combat potential. Meanwhile, I needed to make fast money to catch up, as I was starting at the end of Week 1 when most other gangs had already played two games.  With that in mind, I spent 30 credits on a Whisper Merchant, Enki, and hoped to use him to cheat my pre- and post-battle dice rolls, which would help me make up some lost ground.

The First Game: The Spire Skinners

The Spire Skinners are one of the two Corpse Grinder Cults. It wasn’t the ideal match for my first game, as I didn’t have any armor yet, and their Cult Masks would make close combat a challenge. But I wasn’t going to back down. Using Nanna’s Precognitive Power, I chose Cauldron of Lies, one of the Delaque scenarios from House of Shadows.

The win conditions were secret: I could either focus on kills, crossing the board, or moving Loot Crates into my own deployment zone. My goal was to try to pull the Corps Grinders to me, then Web them and rush to their side of the table and infiltrate Shamash behind them to split their advance. (It was a bad plan, but I wanted to open boxes for more credits)

With the deployment being Custom [6], I set up defensively. Shamash would arrive From the Shadows at the start of a later turn. Anu would provide covering fire, while Mr. Blue and Mr. Green supported each other. Mr. Brightside would open boxes, and Ea Marduk would position centrally to react as the fight unfolded.

Turn 1:

Turn 1 started with the Spire Skinners winning priority. They charged in with an Infiltrating Initiate against Mr. Blue, but their attack only resulted in a Flesh Wound. Anu aimed and fired, using his Long Rifle to down an enemy with a Serious Injury. Meanwhile, Mr. Brightside, moving up to support, opened a Loot Cask—only to trigger a Frag Trap. Thankfully, no damage was taken, but lesson learned: no more loot boxes this game! It was a bold strategy, but perhaps a little too ambitious. Webbing the Corps Grinders and infiltrating Shamash behind them would have split their advance, but it was clear I was going to have to rethink things. Especially as the fight with the Initiate turned into a back-and-forth, with neither side gaining an upper hand. Flesh Wounds flew, but no one was able to land the decisive blow. In the End Phase, I used my Gang Tactic Whispered Threats to force a 2d6 Bottle Check. Needing a 5+ on 2d6, my opponent passed the roll and held on for the second round.

Turn 2 and Beyond:

In Turn 2, I gained priority and brought Shamash in From the Shadows, where he charged and swiftly dispatched the Initiate. I kept Anu in position, hoping to disrupt my opponent with Overwatch. Unfortunately, I missed, and my opponent used Click to force a failed ammo check, rendering Anu’s rifle useless for the time being. Mr. Green exposed himself by stepping out of cover to pin the Cutter, but this left him open to a charge from the Butcher, who dispatched him with terrifying speed.

Turn 3 was pivotal. I managed to keep priority and moved Ea Marduk into position to hit the Butcher with a Web Gun shot, which pinned him and bought me another round of safety. Meanwhile, one of the Corpse Grinder Initiates with a Harpoon Launcher managed to wound Shamash and drag him into a dangerous position. With him down to a single wound, he was in a vulnerable position, but I was still confident he could take down any of the enemy fighters on the charge. If he didn’t initiate the combat, he would be in for a bad time. So I used Spring Up to recover from pinning and did a double move away from the danger.

Turn 4 saw me win priority again, and I used Anu’s Autopistol to take a shot at the closing Cutter. He then retreated higher into the Smoke Stacks, buying another turn of safety. I finished the round by successfully landing the Web Gun shot on the Butcher, leaving him Seriously Injured.

In the End Phase, my opponent faced a tough choice. His Gang Leader was within range of Mr. Brightside, who could move up and Coup de Grace him. My opponent could try to continue the fight, but his forces were dwindling, and his Leader was at risk. Or, he could voluntarily flee to protect his Leader from potentially fatal injury rolls.

I informed him of Deceit, which could guarantee me priority even if he won the roll off, so he made the decision to withdraw. This move made sense—by fleeing, he protected his Leader and avoided crippling injuries that could have hampered his gang’s progression.

Conclusion:

The Dark City Dogs walked away with their first win of the campaign! The game wasn’t without its close calls, but I couldn’t help but feel the weight of the decisions I’d made off the table were just as important as those on it. Strategic Tactics Cards like Whispered Threats and Deceit helped me manipulate key moments to my advantage. This win is a crucial first step, but it’s just the beginning. There’s a long road ahead, and plenty of battles to win. Securing the Bone Shrine will help with some reliable income at 2d6x5, but I need to learn from my mistakes. I misjudged the scenario win condition and had a lucky escape with my opponent bottling out voluntarily.

Whisper Merchant Models didn’t exist when I made the miniature for Enki, he’s a little rough but he was never supposed to hit the table…

Post-Battle:

Now it was time for The Dark City Dogs to shine. Enki, my Whisper Merchant, paid for himself by boosting my Settlement Income from a dismal 2 to a solid 6, ensuring I made a profit. With a free Juve and some crucial armor from the trading post, my roster was starting to look stronger.

Charlie, my free Shadow, picked up Smoke Grenades and an Auto Pistol, while Anu and Shamash both grabbed Hazard Suits and Armored Undersuits to offer some much-needed protection moving forward.

That concluded Week 1 of the campaign, and my foray back into Necromunda. I had managed 3 games total—2 devastating losses and one nail-biting win with my new gang. But I was excited for the next 6 weeks!