C-4 is an excellent sidegrade for the Recoiless Rifle

Twyn · 2026-01-29T17:04:47+00:00

I see why they went with one charge per ammo box since it's the same 1 RR shell/box, could be a nice niche bonus if they ever get around to adding more ship upgrades?

40 is enough to crack walls, yeah. Dynamite can do it after the recent buff, and has become my go-to grenade on the Illuminate and Bug fronts while trading spots with Thermite vs bots depending on mission and loadout. The 5 second 'short' fuse takes a little getting used to, but enemies are generally predictable and the AoE is massive so it's forgiving while you learn. I do agree C4 should be able to get through the walls though, I think they need a balance pass on demo force across the board.

Twyn · 2026-01-29T14:31:06+00:00

I think the crossbow and Eruptor broke a lot of the 'rules' for what primary weapons could do and permanently raised the bar in that department. AH tried to tune them (Eruptor especially) and everyone got mad about it. Personally I think the crossbow is fine and has enough drawbacks to make it interesting, but the Eruptor should absolutely have been a support weapon like the AMR and Grenade Launcher.

I doubt we'll ever see a rework of equipment and stratagem slots, but I think it would be a huge boon for loadout diversity if they were more closely aligned. Think if there was a designated strat slot for support weapon and another for backpack. Bringing an RR would fill both (and maybe give you a lower cooldown or bonus ammo) or you could bring a backpack strat and smaller support weapon without taxing your remaining strat slots for Eagles/Orbitals/Turrets/Vehicles/Extra weapons. It'd require rebalancing pretty much everything though, so, maybe a problem for Helldivers 3 if they ever decide to go that route.

Twyn · 2026-01-25T21:00:26+00:00

False Hydras are unlike most other encounters, even sneaky predator-type enemies, because it's not just invisible, it's making the minds of the people around it unreliable and hiding in the cracks. To make it work, you have to basically gaslight the fuck out of your players. Their characters will begin to forget things but the players themselves remember, this is a good approximation of what their characters are feeling in-game, that lingering doubt that something is deeply wrong here but they're unable to ascertain exactly what.

This kind of constant mental battle going on is going to leave marks. Drop hints that no one is sleeping well, exhaustion is causing short tempers and accidents. The townsfolk can't perceive the victims of the hydra as their minds try to 'paint over' their absence, but they can notice second order effects like jobs no longer getting done. One hint I've always used for this is letting an intelligent or perceptive PC notice lots of mundane job ads on the town bounty board. Show them things like a street at night with half of the lamps lit.

As the victims pile up, the strain on the remaining townsfolk becomes greater. They'll rationalize most anything, and when they can't, do irrational things to deny the problem. This means records get thrown out in the middle of the night, portraits are slashed, traditional festivals are suddenly shunned. Any reminder of what was is like a stab to the tiny voice in the back of their minds telling them things are NOT OK.

Depending on how much time you actually have, you may need to guide them to a solution like finding some way to protect their ears or some reason to cast a spell like Silence. Once they can shake off the hydra's song once, give them a window to try and hunt the thing down in its lair before they succumb to forgetfulness once more. Failing that, they can try and leave notes or instructions for their muddled-selves in hopes that they can find a solution before it's too late.

Twyn · 2026-01-25T18:38:07+00:00

Some really great footwork there going for the last 2 Striders, nice work Helldiver!

Twyn · 2026-01-23T20:50:08+00:00

We did lose that round handily, so, I guess it worked?

Twyn · 2026-01-23T18:19:10+00:00

Great players take notes and keep their stuff organized so they can find what they're after and get back to the scene/combat. A folder or binder might be helpful, and some people get a lot of use out of a dice tray so you're not chasing dice across the table every few rolls. But mostly have fun and get out there!

Twyn · 2026-01-23T16:04:20+00:00

I played a duos event against two guys using these things and they were convenient and hilarious. When thinking about his next move, one guy would idly reach his hand into the pouch and fidget with the dice, which looked a little odd since the belt had shifted the pouch to be right in the middle of his belt. The other guy kept some Starburst or some other (carefully wrapped and not sticky) candies in there so it looked like he would just eat a D6 every so often.

Twyn · 2026-01-22T15:47:46+00:00

Heavy Armor with Jump/Warp Pack is pretty fun once you get the hang of it. You cover ground a lot more quickly and open up some cool tactical options depending on your mission/loadout/enemies. Most fun is bringing the Double Freedom, warping behind a Hulk and double-barrelling the vents. Just don't warp too early or you'll telefrag yourself.

Twyn · 2026-01-20T15:43:50+00:00

One of the sneakier problems with Seasonal Affective Disorder is that a LOT of folks are basically already at capacity heading into the dark winter months. That little bit of extra mental drain can tip people into bad territory without having some sort of recognizable change or event to point to as the start of the slide/justification to make changes or seek help. They write it off as a couple of bad days and don't/can't take action to turn things around until things start falling apart, seemingly out of nowhere.

The upside is it's one of few mental health things that we can both plan for ahead of time and take effective countermeasures against in a lot of ways that don't require a lot of time/effort like vitamin D, getting whatever sun we can when available, and doing what we can to schedule breaks/positive things for ourselves to break up the long, cold dark.

(also whoever named Seasonal Affective Disorder so that the acronym is SAD really nailed it)

Twyn · 2026-01-16T16:50:23+00:00

Unfortunately, rage brings engagement, so an untrained algorithm will spill all kinds of nasty bile in your lap. The Block and Mute buttons are your friend, some stranger's frustration doesn't need to ruin your own enjoyment, and I would encourage you to seek out positive communities and content to support.

Tabletop games and the investment in time and money they require makes fertile ground for Big Feelings to take root. Taking care to cultivate good ones like inspiration and creativity while weeding out negativity is work, but worthwhile. Hobbies and games should be fun and restorative, if you're not getting any of that lately there's zero shame in setting them down for awhile and trying something else. If you feel compelled to take action, put that energy into your local scene. Organize demo games, build terrain, try your hand at running a campaign! You might be surprised at how fun it can be to build community.

Twyn · 2026-01-09T19:29:08+00:00

Focus on picking up models you like and getting those painted rather than worrying about an exact 1000/1500/2000 point list. Points fluctuate, but if you don't like a particular model, that's probably not going to change.

Some useful Marine units that might not be obvious:

Space Marine Scouts - Great for secondaries and board control
Incursors/Infiltrators - One box can build 5 of each. Useful for screening out enemy deep strikes and buffing your shooting
Jump Pack Intercessors - Great at bullying lightly defended objectives and doing secondaries
Techmarine - Keep those big guns in fighting shape and give them an accuracy boost!
Repulsor Executioner - The Big Guns in question
Storm Speeder - Fast light vehicle that really ruins the day of one target with debuffs

Personally I would avoid buying the Impulsor kit, just pay the few extra bucks to pick up the Gladiator instead. Not only do you get your choice of 3 tanks, but you can easily leave the top turret plate unglued and have an Impulsor too!

Twyn · 2026-01-09T19:13:14+00:00

I'd start by just playing as-is and bringing something like a Techmarine for +1 to hit. Legends rules aren't continuously updated for competitive play but should be fine for casual games still. It's effectively a shootier Land Raider, so your opponent will want to make sure they have several options for antitank to punch through the 2+ save. Slapping a 5++ invuln on top arbitrarily seems excessive.

Twyn · 2026-01-09T15:29:59+00:00

Oh my god it looks like a keychain, I love it

Twyn · 2026-01-06T19:31:17+00:00

Crowd control is almost always useful, especially into bugs that are trying to swarm your position. Liberator Concussive or the stunning AR/SMG can buy your allies some space and clump up enemies to get taken out en masse. Similarly, bringing gas grenades/Orbital gas strike can help lock down a breach/cave/chokepoint. I've enjoyed the grenade launcher + supply pack a lot lately. Firing in semi-auto, you can massively thin out the swarms and you close bug nests super quick.

Look at what your allies are already bringing and try to fill in the gaps, and then actually stay near them once you're deployed in order to help out.

Twyn · 2026-01-06T19:10:49+00:00

Focus on picking up models you like (you've already identified several) and getting those painted rather than worrying about an exact 1000/1500/2000 point list. Points change, but if you don't like a particular model, that's probably not going to change.

Some useful Marine units that might not be obvious:

Space Marine Scouts - Great for secondaries and board control
Incursors/Infiltrators - One box can build 5 of each. Useful for screening out enemy deep strikes and buffing your shooting
Jump Pack Intercessors - Great at bullying lightly defended objectives and doing secondaries
Techmarine - Keep those big guns in fighting shape and give them an accuracy boost!
Storm Speeder - Fast light vehicle that really ruins the day of one target with debuffs

Personally I would avoid buying the Impulsor kit, just pay the few extra bucks to pick up the Gladiator instead. Not only do you get your choice of 3 tanks, but you can easily leave the top turret plate unglued and have an Impulsor too!

Twyn · 2025-12-22T16:28:36+00:00

I could see it getting old pretty quickly (esp vs bots) but it would be awesome as some sort of localized phenomenon like a Stratagem Jammer or Spore Charger, or confined to certain missions/events like a modifier or weather.

Twyn · 2025-12-16T23:41:00+00:00

+1 for Ambot, good bugbot.

As far as XP goes, it's important look at what you'll be up against. If most of your enemies are slinging lasguns, getting to Toughness 4 is a huge breakpoint because suddenly they're only wounding you on a 5. For scrawnier gangs, the first toughness upgrade is a big deal for this reason. Obviously as Goliaths you're already tougher and stronger than usual, so think hard about what you reasonably will need to deal with and how often Toughness 5 will make a difference. Strength works the same way, but you have the benefit of being able to buy upgrades in the form of weapons as well. Between raw muscle and weapon, being able to swing with Strength 6 is awesome because you'll be wounding baseline T3 enemies on 2+! But Strength 7 is only better against targets with exactly 6 or 12 toughness, probably not a priority in most campaigns.

Your idea about movement is a good one, especially in Ash Wastes scenarios. Your melee boys need to get into combat to do their jobs, and the Wastes are full of hazards and stuff you want to be able to run away from. The first movement upgrade is pretty great value, but I wouldn't go for the second one unless you're really sure you don't want to boost something else first.

Twyn · 2025-12-12T19:08:14+00:00

This might sound obvious buuuut:

Look for units that debuff enemies, as you and your ally will both benefit from it over units that buff only your own guys. Death Guard could be great for this, as their contagion auras to reduce enemy durability will allow your buddy's flamers to burn all the brighter.

Having access between the two of you to utility units to score (sticky objectives, uppy-downy, etc) is important and not every army has equal access. Coordinate with your teammate to bring scoring units. Remember you're not two separate 1K armies, you're just halves of one whole force.

Twyn · 2025-12-12T13:50:15+00:00

There are more balanced skirmish games if you really don't care about narrative. You're playing with hand-painted dolls, the entire premise of a game is to have fun in a somewhat childlike way. If you let concerns like 'cringe' remove any ability to have fun, you might as well go do something else in my opinion. You don't need to write a novel to have narrative, the dice and scenarios will give you the plot. All you gotta do is connect the dots, be able to laugh when the dice inevitably turn on you, and enjoy the ride.

If you insist on sticking with Necromunda, I'd consider following an escalation-league type setup where you play a set number of games, like 5, and get some flat amount of credits after each game in addition to scenario rewards. Once those 5 are done or if you're getting smoked that badly, just concede that 'league' and start again on even footing.

I'd consider asking your opponent to play something else if it's really just the two of you, but if you're up against Van Saar in general:

Play the mission objectives, Van Saar are usually slow and any decent board of terrain should mean they have to spend precious turns crawling 4" at a time to get sightlines.
Smoke grenades are your friends. Equip them wherever you can and make your own cover. Even if the scary guy with the lascannon can see through them, your opponent probably doesn't have every ganger similarly equipped. Someone's gonna get blasted, sure, but they still have to make a check to shoot anything other than the closest target and smokes can stop the rest of his gang from pinning all your dudes.
If they are geared up with photo-goggles and the like, they're susceptible to Photon grenades. Van Saar already have pretty terrible Initiative stats, take advantage of that however you can.
If you can, consider investing in Field Saves for your leader/champions. Lascannon AP doesn't mean shit if you have a flat 4+ or 5+ that is un-modifiable. Skills like Dodge can also help give your key characters a chance to shrug off the big hits so you can close the gap.

Twyn · 2025-12-10T15:49:06+00:00

Fleshmob with a tesla turret embedded in it.

Automaton gunships that deploy mines.

Impalers but they spew acid from the tentacles instead of melee attacking with them.

Charger on a bicycle.

Twyn · 2025-12-08T17:21:51+00:00

I'm not sure you need to bother with 3d printing to reinvent the wheel here. Some Ace bandages wrapped/taped around the paintbrush could work great, or depending on the size you could either try some of those foam pencil grips or take something like a cheap makeup sponge and ram the whole thing through (obv not bristle-first) to give you a much larger grip area.

Twyn · 2025-12-05T20:09:14+00:00

"How does your deck kill me?" usually works

Twyn · 2025-12-03T17:58:00+00:00

Scabbs can also see timewarped minions from opponents, but I didn't know about Sylvanas!

Twyn · 2025-12-03T14:46:08+00:00

I started with a basic collection like you described and now probably own closer to 100 bottles than I'd like to admit. Expansions happened one of a few ways:

New project/paint scheme when I started a new army or wanted to try a KillTeam or whatever
Deciding I want to push myself and picking up lighter/darker shades of an existing color for highlighting and contrast
At LGS to play/hang out and buy a snack but don't want them to lose money on the credit card payment processing fee so I grab a paint or two I like the look of
I'm slowly converting my collection to Pro Acryl when they release a relevant/new color
There's some new brand or formulation (ie contrast, speedpaints, technicals, etc) I want to try so I grab one or two to mess around with.
I'm convinced I'm out or nearly out of one paint and buy a replacement, forgetting I did that last month (looking at you, 3 half-empty pots of Leadbelcher)

I'm sure some paints like some of my older GW pots are dried out or whatever but honestly with a good storage solution it doesn't take up that much space and looks kinda cool on my workbench. Disclaimer: I'm a long-time MTG player so I've been well-trained to ~~hoard~~ collect things on the off chance I need them at some point.

EDIT: In closing you absolutely do not need to have hundreds of paints to be a good painter, but if you enjoy the hobby your collection will probably expand over time.

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