Icelus Pattern Dreadnought

File:Icelusassault.jpg

An Icelus dreadnought suddenly leaps from cover to assault an enemy position.

Icelus pattern dreadnoughts are a specialised covert operations dreadnought designed and fielded by the community-developed Emperor's Nightmare chapter. They are mainly deployed with Battle Group Secundus, as they are well adapted to covert infiltration, sabotage and surveillance operations, but they are equally at home in any of the Nightmares' marine companies in Tactical and Assault variants.

As of 993.M41 there are 24 chassis fully constructed and deployed. Being technological works of art built within the marines' lifetimes the Icelus Marks are not regarded among the chapter's dreadnoughts and other ancient relics. Rather they are organized separately in the chapter armoury as an intermediate stage between the chapter's 45 suits of terminator armour and 58 dreadnoughts.

The Master of the Forge and senior techmarines do not have the time to create these highly intricate dreadnoughts for other chapters, despite requests to do so, but they do make the blueprints for master-crafting the STC freely available to both Mars and their fellow Astartes. As the master-crafting of a previous mark of dreadnought, it was quick to be sanctioned by the Adeptus Mechanicus though slow to be reproduced.

Fluffy bits

Stealthy and lightweight, the Icelus pattern dreadnoughts are based on the STCs for the smaller, more nimble and less heavily armoured pre-Heresy dreadnought marks. The Master of the Forge and the chapter's most senior techmarines personally master-craft the hydraulics, joints, limbs and so forth, allowing for very high precision locomotion and great flexibility. This allows the dreadnought to quickly contort into odd shapes to more closely hug terrain, and leap and bound as quickly as possible when no enemy eyes are upon it.

In order to provide the Icelus pattern's improved surveillance capabilities, many long sensor spines and optical mechadendrites protrude from the dreadnought's back like a layer of porcupine quills. These can be deployed upwards while the the dreadnought is in a hull-down position in order to gather observation data without revealing the dreadnought's characteristic silhouette.

The built in stummers project a small cone of deeply unnerving silence around the machine and multiple redundancies ensure at least one will always be running. In addition to this the armour itself is plated with active camoflauge. Deployed alongside all companies, Icelus Dreadnoughts excel at hiding from enemies' sight, using their incredible perception to work out where the opponent is not looking and simply stand there.

Icelus dreadnoughts have three hard points on which weaponry can be secured. Each arm may accommodate one of any of the weapons available to terminators: Lightning claws, powerfists, chainfists, thunder hammers, storm shields, combi-weapons and storm bolters. In addition to the two arm-mounted hardpoints, a Mind Impulse Unit controls a ranged weapon mounted on the shoulder. In tactical variants the Astartes sniper rifle is standard issue, but this may be replaced with a grenade launcher or plasma gun or with an Astartes shotgun, flamer or meltagun for close assault. Heavy weapons may be mounted but greatly impede the suit's locomotion.

Crunchy bits

Note that we are currently calling for playtesting of all rules pending the creation of a full scale codex and pdf. The exact points value of the tabletop version in particular needs to be refined. Focus on how they interact with the Blood Angels rules is preferred, but input from players of any codex is important. If you are looking for a tournament legal counts-as, techmarines and other characters on bikes make a surprisingly functional if somewhat imperfect stand in.

Tabletop

1-3 may be purchased as a single Fast Attack choice. They deploy as separate units.

WS5 BS5 S5 T 4(6) W4 I5 A4 Ld10 Sv3+

Unit Type: Monstrous Creature

Wargear

Pair of Lightning Claws, Astartes Sniper Rifle, Frag Grenades

Options

Can replace either Lightning Claw with:

Combi Melta/Plasma/flamer - Free

Storm Bolter - Free

Power Fist - 10 points

Chainfist - 15 points

Thunder Hammer - 15 points

Storm Shield (One) - 30 points

Can replace Astartes Sniper Rifle with:

Astartes Shotgun - Free

Astartes Grenade Launcher - 5 points

Meltagun - 10 points

Plasma Gun - 15 points

Heavy Bolter - 15 points

Multi-Melta or Missile Launcher - 20 points

Lascannon or Plasma Cannon - 35 points

Assault Cannon - 40 points

(Note that if a Heavy Bolter, Missile Launcher, Plasma Cannon, Multi-Melta, Lascannon or Assault Cannon is selected the Icelus loses the Nimble and Infiltrate special rules)

Special Rules

Acute Senses, Stealth, Move Through Cover, Infiltrate, And They Shall Know No Fear, Combat Tactics, Hit And Run, Quiet As The Grave, Nimble

Quiet as the Grave

All enemies suffer -1 Ld within 6" of the Icelus, or -2 if in base contact with the Icelus.

Nimble

Icelus pattern dreadnoughts are designed to have an almost freakish mobility. As such, they have the Furious Charge and Fleet of Foot Universal Special Rules and may roll two dice and pick the highest when running.

Deathwatch

22 AP all round 60 Strength 45 Agility

Three Hard points for weapons: Each arm may mount one of the following weapons: Lightning claw, thunder hammer, power fist, chain fist, storm shield, combi-bolter, storm bolter.

The third hard point is a MIU-linked shoulder mounted Astartes Sniper Rifle,

Additionally, the chassis incorporates utility and optical mechadendrites, Chameleoline Coating (Counts as Chameleoline Cloak, +20 to Concealment tests and shadowing. The wearer counts as one range bracket further if standing still), multiple redundant Stummers (+30 to Silent Move), Preysense Mask, Cooling Capillaries (covering joints and armor to keep them from coming up on IR sensors). Radar jamming equipment, a back full of sensor spines, a warp beacon and a concealed servo skull (incorporating a stummer and autosense links.)

Sprint, Sonar Sense, Fear (2)

The Shoulder-mounted Astartes sniper rifle may be replaced with a grenade launcher or plasma gun, or with a meltagun, flamer or Astartes combat shotgun for close assaults. Heavy weapons may be mounted to this hard point instead but the Icelus will no longer be able to Sprint and will count as Agility 20.

Writefaggotry

Several fa/tg/uys have written stories about Icelus dreadnoughts:

• Venerable Gavroche, the Stealthnought
• Icelus Dreadnought