Terrain

Source: Necromunda Core Rulebook (2023)

Terrain plays a vitally important role in Necromunda. Not only does it provide a dense and challenging battlefield for gangs to fight over, but it also instils battles with the character of the world in which those gangs exist.

How terrain can impact the game and the rules governing specific terrain features will be presented elsewhere within this book. For example, the ways in which terrain can hamper movement is dealt with in the Movement section. There are, however, a few features that should be dealt with here as general principles.

Impassable Terrain: Any terrain can be designated impassable when setting up the battlefield, regardless of size. Impassable terrain may include solid sections of wall, vertiginous rock formations or towering vats of molten metal. Impassable terrain cannot, as the name suggests, be moved through or over.

Walls: Walls are almost always considered impassable terrain. On a battlefield of only one level, it is assumed that at the top of each wall sits a ceiling, preventing fighters from climbing over a wall. However, on a battlefield that covers multiple levels, featuring ladders, staircases and even lifts, it is possible for fighters to scale and even climb over walls.

Solid Terrain Features: Particularly solid terrain features are treated similarly to walls. Any terrain designated as solid when setting up the battlefield is considered impassable, as described above.

Doors: These come in various sizes, but their rules are the same regardless of size – they are set up as part of the pre-battle sequence. By default, all doors are closed at the start of a battle, unless a scenario specifies otherwise. Closed doors are considered impassable terrain. They cannot be moved through and block both line of sight and measurement in the same way as walls and solid terrain as described previously.

Any fighter may open a closed door or close an open door by performing an Operate Door (Simple) action during their activation. If a door opens or closes within 1" of a booby trap, it may be triggered.

Closed doors, locked or otherwise, can be targeted by attacks and are automatically hit. All doors have a Toughness of 5 and 4 Wounds; if a door is reduced to 0 Wounds, it is removed from the battlefield.

Locked Doors & Terminals: When a door is set up during the pre-battle sequence, two door terminals may be placed, one on either side of the door, touching the wall within 1" of it. The presence of a door terminal indicates that the door is locked and very secure indeed!

A fighter cannot perform an Operate Door (Simple) action against a locked door. Instead, they must perform an Access Terminal (Basic) action or a Force Door (Basic) action in order to unlock the door. Once a locked door has been opened in this way, it remains unlocked for the remainder of the battle.

In a scenario where one gang is the attacker and the other gang the defender, the defender is assumed to have the access codes for any locked doors, and can make an Operate Door (Simple) action on themas normal.

Obstacles & Structures: Obstacles are any free standing terrain features measuring no more than 2" high and no more than 2" across, although they may be far longer, such as barricades, barrels and pipelines.

Structures are any terrain features measuring more than 2" high or more than 2" across, be they free standing or connected to other terrain features in some way. Structures may feature many different levels, platforms and walkways on which fighters may be placed. Structures may be further classified as being ‘sturdy’ or ‘flimsy’. Sturdy structures cannot be knocked down by vehicles (see Vehicle Impacts: Colliding With Terrain).

Both obstacles and structures may interrupt line of sight and offer cover to models as described previously and in the shooting rules.

Fighters may climb over obstacles or up onto structures as described in the Movement rules, but players should be aware that movement may be reduced or not possible in some cases.