Warhammer 40,000 is the poster boy of modern wargaming, so it's easy for casuals to assume all wargames are like Warhammer. Dozens of miniatures scattered on the battlefield, waging war in intense ranged and melee combat. Something about the grim dankness and war exclusivity? But that's not the only way to play with miniatures. Even Warhammer has dabbled with skirmish modes such as Kill Team for variety.
Legitimate Salvage is a corporate space horror miniatures game that utilizes the Forbidden Psalm system. Inspired by the likes of Mork Borg, Forbidden Psalm is a brutal skirmish game for up to five miniatures tasked by a mad wizard to do his bidding. It's one of the best strategy games in the skirmish genre, and is well loved. It was quite easy for Legitimate Salvage creator Will RD to change that mad wizard to corporate overlords in space.
Premise-wise, your crew of minis are unfortunate employees forced to deal with some cosmic horror. The scenarios range from classic dangers such as renegades stealing equipment to more unorthodox obstacles like vampire space squids. Mechanically, the Forbidden Psalms system is simple, fast and supports solo, co-op and versus play by default.
Will RD's main flourish to the system is the addition of new weapons, equipment, classes and a robust debt system. The debt is particularly dystopian, as you can buy anything you want from the get-go. Fail to pay that debt, however, and there will be severe consequences for your crew. Obviously, you won't have that many resources to begin with, so debt will always be a temptation. It's a good thing crippling debt for survival totally doesn't exist in real life.
As for how this can work with Warhammer, just look at Warhammer 40,000: Darktide. A handful of misfits forced into indentured servitude by the Empire and placed on dangerous planets and spaceships? That's a Legitimate Survival scenario already (give or take the copious amounts of dakka). Other potential reskins are Leagues of Votann explorers accidentally stumbling into a space hulk, or Mechanicum novices digging a bit to deep into a Necron tomb.
You can even go with any of the iconic rustbucket space horrors. Dead Space, Iron Lung, Lethal Company, and so many others fit right in. This is a system for the sci-fi horror fans out there who want to bring those experiences to the tabletop. Plus, at a standard 28mm miniature size, you can use your existing minis for the game.
You can support Legitimate Salvage on Kickstarter until March 30, 2026.
The Wargamer Discord has plenty of corporate climbers to recruit for your dystopian salvage crew. For more Warhammer updates, the Warhammer 40k codex release dates guide is the best way to stay updated.