Each player starts by choosing a gang. This defines your fighters, equipment, strengths, and weaknesses. Gangs are made up of individual fighters such as Leaders, Champions, Gangers, Juves, and specialists.

You recruit fighters, buy weapons and wargear, and manage your credits carefully. Every choice matters, because losses and injuries can carry over from game to game.

Before your first game, it is worth getting familiar with the core rules. Necromunda has more depth than many skirmish games, and understanding the basics will make your first battles far more enjoyable.

Focus first on:

• Core actions such as Move, Shoot, Fight, and Ready
• Alternating activations and how reactions like pinning work
• Weapon traits and how they change the flow of combat
• Injury dice and the difference between being Seriously Injured and Out of Action
• Bottle tests and when a gang is forced to check morale

Do not try to memorise everything at once. Necromunda rewards learning as you play, and it is normal to look things up during early games.

A good approach is to:

• Play a small introductory game with fewer fighters
• Ignore advanced rules like tactics cards or complex environments at first
• Add extra layers once everyone at the table is comfortable

The rules can feel heavy at the beginning, but once the fundamentals click, the game becomes fast, tense, and very character driven.

While one-off games are possible, Necromunda truly shines in campaigns.

In a campaign:

• Fighters gain experience and new skills
• Gangs earn credits, territories, and resources
• Injuries, grudges, and rivalries persist
• Stories emerge naturally over time

Winning is less important than what your gang becomes. The sooner you embrace the narrative nature of the game, the more comfortable you will be with how badly things can sometimes go.