Infinity influenced Necromunda?

Awww yiss! Wanted to get a second gang anyway and I really like these pseudo Fremen. And since I don't like the cyberponytails on them, my YJ can nick those parts. Win-win!

 

Yep, while the style is clearly still "James Goodwin Games Workshop" as @chromedog underscored in the similar thread (opened a couple days ago by @Stormygeddon ) the colour palette and the specific Masks make a lot of similarities. . .

 

Sigh... Guys... Please, don't. I've seen it several times and every time I see someone make this comparison I faceplam hard. Necromunda and these designs predate Infinity by about 10 years, give or take.

It is a recursive thing, both pulled from the same sources, both are skirmish level sci-fi games. But that is it. The similarities in design are way less than one may think

 

Yeah, I really think it's more a case of GW's artists reading the same sources as CB (Appleseed manga) than a case of GW borrowing direct from CB.

 

I think it's an odd design direction for Necromunda. These minis certainly don't say "GW" to me when I look at them, anyways.
GW can churn out whatever they want (within legal reasons) but when folks look at them and immediately think of another game, is that necessarily a good thing?
I thought the 40k universe (of which Necromunda is a part) had a pretty strong design aesthetic which was easily recognisable, but if you sat these on a table without any labeling, i dare say folks would think Gates of Antares or something else.

I think another thing I don't like about them is these do not look like an underhive gang. Whoever they are, it looks like they have access to better facilities than the Adeptus Munitorum - maybe the personal strike force of some high-ranking inquisitor.

Aside from that I'm also not a fan of the short, shoulder-mounted weapon, whatever it is; I always preferred the hand-carried heavy weapons.

 

It's entirely possible, it's the visors that scream it at me rather than anything else. GW do 'draw inspiration' from every available source for example Tyranids: Blizzard bring out starcraft and GW sue them for copying Nids, then GW bring out 3rd ed nids and Blizzard sue them for copying Zerg

 

There's some behind the scenes weirdness to the whole GW/Starcraft thing that's been lost to history.

Also, @ShaeKonnit, House Van Saar aren't poor Underhivers, they're wealthy, but they aren't Spyrers.

 

I know they're not poor underhivers but these guys look like they could slap Kasrkin around.
They don't look like a gang - more like private military contractors.

 

They are private military contractors. They have access to gear in line with the Karskin, that's the whole point of the gang. However, if you look at their weapons you'll still see exposed power couplings, plasma vents, and all the other telltale signs of 40k weaponry being very advanced yet still looking like it's dangerous to even look at.

The visor is similar, yes, but it's probably because they both pulled from the same source than because GW looked at Infinity and thought they could have some of it too.

 

I don't know how much of the story has changed, but last I read they sold decent quality weapons and were occasionally conscripted into the 'Guard, but these guys look like they skipped 'Guard and went straight to Stormtrooper or Inquisition task forces.
Compared to everything else in Necromunda they still look really out of place, to me.

I thought the point of the gang was easier access to tech-based skills, or is the system now that they just get access to better everything compared to the other gangs?

 

Lokks like an advanced plasma canon, something they had access in the old rules.
And the shouldermount is something from second edition, when every heavy weapon was shouldermounted.

Image is from google and all rights go to the artist


But for the question i wouldnt wonder if some stuff from different miniature creators looks alike cause artist tend to cross pollinate each other.
Get inspired from each others works or from the same sources is not uncommon and rather normal in that field.

There are alot of movies, artists etc. which inspire alotof people with their style etc.
Some examples:
The orginal GitS anime is an inspiration for anime and sci fi movie makers for nearly 3 decades.
Frank Frazetta is one of the main fantasy artist inspirations.
H.R. Giger who did the design of the first Xenomorph in the alien movies.
Louis Rojo the same.
With the internet its pretty easy to look for images of inspiration

 

Yeah, and probably the best way to have them in Necromunda given that the IG variants are all crew-served weapons and the Space Marine versions are going to be A) rare and B) heavy. Even the Heavy Bolter might make more sense shouldered in Necro for most factions, because it takes a 'roid rager like a Catachan or Goliath to hip-fire those.

Personally got a soft spot for that style of heavy weapon, because of Chaos Gate :)

 

But not from Necromunda, which was released during 2nd Ed. The Sisters of Battle also broke that pattern, and the newer (at the time) Chaos heavies with their Smartgun-esque heavy bolter and Sniper-esque Lascannon, when they got their big codex.
May be personal preference but I always thought the heavy weapons, with the exception of the Missile Launcher, looked so much better when they came off the shoulders and went into the hands.

I'm not really sure if shouldering the automatic heavy weapons makes more sense, as the firer would be way off-balance when trying to shoot them. Better to have those braced near their centre of gravity for more control.

 

I qualified on the M60E3 (that's the SEAL/SpecOps version of the old M60 machine gun, shorter barrel and a pistol grip up front).

It's much easier to get hits on target firing from the shoulder than from the hip. An M60, even the E3, is a heavy pig, some 23lbs/10kg empty, and is easier to carry slung at hip level. But it's almost impossible to shoot accurately from the hip without something like the Smartgun rig from Aliens.

There's a trick to firing long bursts from the shoulder, you need to let your whole body shake with the weapon and keep your head in place on the sights. You control the recoil with your abs and lower back.

 

I concur totally with @Section9, the M-60 was called "Pig" in the Vietnam Conflict by veterans expressively as it was as heavy to carry, and brace, as a squirming full-grown sow. . .

While I have not fired the same exact Support Machinegun, in Italy we somehow train still with "Refurbished Vintage" MG42 from the WW2 Wermacht (with added features such as bettered gas-feed and ameliorated recoil springs) and these are the direct ancestors of the 7.62mm. M-60 and these were mean as hell beasts, for comparatively light frames as Machineguns go. . .

So that that Armouriers were instructed to take away the foregrip underbarrell handel, expressively to force shooters to use the Bipods and never ever consider "Going Rambo". . .!!

Never had the occasion to shoot with the 5.56mm. Fn-Minimi L.M.G. before exiting Military Police Service (the Italian "Carabinieri" are a Police Force with full-fledged Tanks and Military Wargear) but My brother, still in the service, said that is a breeze to shoot even from hip, for relatively accurate "Suppression Fire" (slow movement and firing at targets in the 10 - 15 m. range, aiming to bisect them at center mass, but in reality just to force down the head of targets, and to be EMPLOYED ONLY in Military Engagements) and that was almost as shooting a slighly heavier Nato Assault Rifle from the shoulder. . .

Obviously the skill and relative burlyness of the shooter means as much as the technical efficacy of the Gun in question; My brother was able to score Top Results with a .50 Browning H.M.G. (Pintle-Mounted, but on a moving boat) againts floating targets, so maybe it is really easy for Him to shoot either Short Bursts and Full-Auto. . .!!

What I have done in comparison is to shoot with an heavily modified Russian R.P.K. (technically a longer barreled Kalashnikov AK47 remade in an L.M.G.) with avery sturdy fore-grip and a stock that is purposely made to be firmly held under the arm (it was a customized model by an acquaintance that was French Foreign Legion and later a Mercenary Contractor in South Africa, all the wooden parts were substituted with Ballistic Plastic); I scored relatively good points (for a Civilian Engagement Target Practice) but found also very important the Magazine Encumbrance. . .

While the 45 shots "Long Banana Clip" was weighting almost nothing, it exhausted almost immediatly; the 100 shots Drum Clip was a little bulkier (not too much because was made in plastic too) but helped "Correct" the bursts' aim with some more shots compensation. . .

. . . . .

Returning to the weird "Shouldered Heavy Weapon" of the Warhammer 40.000 Universe, that started with the Missile Launchers, and was a sensate thing for that (as they were practically WW2 Anti-Tank Bazookas with extra shots in a Curved Clip) but for some other weapons ABSOLUTELY made NO sense. . .

On the other side put other Heavy Guns in a hip-firing "Colonial Marines Smartgun Brace" would be stupid as well, such as for the aforementioned Missile Launcher or a Laser Cannon (whose recoiless "Blast-Shots" and direct-line kind of aim would point to a shoulder version as sensate aiming). . .

 

I'd like to add that these fellas are all in power armor, which even in our universe (where all we have is prototypes in diverse stages of development) multiplies the strength of the wearer

 

It is true @jherazob that soon in our R.W. will have full functioning "Support Exo Frames" so that the "Action Stunts" from the movie "Edge of Tomorrow" and the Videogames "Stalker 2" (for the Hi-Tech "Spetsnatz Army" Faction) and "C.O.D. Advanced Warfare" will be a possibility. . .

Also the "Smartgun Brace-Arm" mentioned by @Section9 from the venerable "Aliens" are a similar concept to support the weight and ease the recoil, and maybe even easier to manifacture with our current technologies rather than a full "Bodysuit". . .

There are a couple of Sci-Fi B movies where there are "Corporate Enforcers" with a similar kind of bracing, and in one of them wield not fancy "Zap Guns" but rather some very efficient contemporary M-60 and a Cal.30 Browning H.M.G. (but with stupidly thin Ammo Boxes dangling from the underside, rather than a more wise Belt-Feed Backpack !!). . .

I daresay that "Predator" styled hand-carried Jesse Ventura's Mini-Vulcan (totally irrealistic, as the Gun of the "Nemesis" of the second "Resident Evil" movie) could be safely employed JUST with a similar "Strenght Enhancer", while the absurd "Metal Gear Solid" Vulcan Raven ensemble of employing BOTH a Phantom Fighter 20mm. Gatling AND the Ammo Drum shouldered like an hike-pack would be possible just for Myrmydon Heavy Lhosts like Diomedes, or the "Superheavy Infantry Suits" of Nomads and Haqqislam. . .

I would not see weird on Ariadnan Special Forces some kind of "Superheavy Kazak Veteran" or "Superheavy Mormaer" going with the strenght enhancing bracings strapped on the exterior armour plating to offset some kind of Antitank Rapid Fire Gun (obviously You can also have JUST a particularly coolheaded Dogwarrior to carry the same Heavy Gun without too much hassle). . .

Some early, blurry Concept Art of the Ariadnan Blackjack made Me think it seemed to be influenced by Edge Of Tomorrow / Call-Of-Duty "Exo Powerline Suits" but now that is finalized and have crisp, cleaner lines it seems to be just "Basic Myomar Fibermuscles" for the underside with Teseum Plates and Roll-Bars. . .

 

And, possibly some kind of targeting system wired into their helmets visors that could serve as a direct line of sight aim.

What??? Something in tabletop/scifi being derivative??? Next you'll be telling me Halo wasn't the original shooter game!

:p

 

I was actually thinking of the M60 while typing so I guess I should expand a bit.
By "off the shoulder" I meant those big guns that are perched on top of the shoulder; not braced into it. An M60 would definitely qualify as a heavy stubber, but most of them we see look like Browning variants that are supposed to be mounted on something, not carried in the hands.
The old Van Saar stubber had a slightly more modern design but was still comedy-sized; just scaled back a bit they could have had it held braced against the shoulder just fine.
The image that came to mind of trying to fire the cosplay-sized stubbers was that clip of the Russian soldier carrying a KORD 12.7mm

I couldn't imagine them successfully firing that thing from on top their shoulder.

Most of the trouble I'd say comes from the sculpts themselves. The original Heavy Bolter could be held in the hands and often was on the old Marine sculpts - it was basically a longer Bolter with more ammo, like an LSW version. Wasn't long until we had troopers armed with weapons as big as them, though.