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Battlefortress

2023-06-09T22:52:09Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

<s>BATTLE FORTRESS ON THE ALERT</s> ''Whoops, wrong [[Command and Conquer|giant tank-loving game series]].'' The '''Battlefortress''' is what you'd expect a [[Battlewagon]] to be on steroids. They are used by richer and more powerful [[Ork]] [[Warboss|Warbosses]] as super-heavy assault vehicles and mobile command centers. These enormous heavily-armed vehicles bristle with heavy cannons, energy weapons, and explosive launchers. As a rule, any Ork vehicle of sufficient size will be called a Battlefortress by the Orks themselves, and like most Ork vehicles there is very little standardization and they are highly customized, although several variants exist such as the "Deathrolla" and "Skullhamma". Nonetheless, these vehicles are a match for any enemy counterpart on the battlefield short of a Titan. Ork [[Mekboy|Mek Boyz]] consider the construction of a Battlefortress to be one of their greatest achievements.

*'''Length:''' 15.3m
*'''Weight:''' 200 tonnes; varies in design
*'''Crew:''' 10-15; varies
*'''Max Speed''' 55 kph
==Variants==
There are multiple variants of the Battlefortress and, like the [[Baneblade]], each one of them has a role in which they specialize.

===Deathrolla===
[[File:Battlefortress.jpg|220px|right|thumb|They see me rollin'... They hatin'...]]
The Deathrolla is a variant of the Battlefortress. Armed with a massive [[Miscellaneous_Weapons#Deffrolla|Deathrolla]], it is intended to plow through enemy infantry and crush them into paste.

They are by far one of the most common variants of the Battlefortress and the one you see in [[Dawn of War 2]] as the Ork's ultimate unit. If there is one thing to be considered as the 'standard' design for a Battlefortress, then the Deathrolla would be the Ork's equivelent of a [[Baneblade]]. Because of this, these vehicles are a match for any enemy counterpart on the battlefield short of a Titan.

The vanilla Deathrolla Battlefortress has 3 (!) [[Mek_Gunz#The_old_Big_Gunz|Big Gunz]], a crapton of bolt-on Rokkits and [[Big Shoota]]s, a large transport capacity (30), and an impressive (not just by Orky standards) 14/13/11 AV and 9 Hull Points. Load one up with [[Burna Boyz]], [[Nob]]z, or any such CC unit, charge this thing into the middle of the enemy's gun line and watch the [[Rape|rape]] commence.

In 9th Edition, with the revamp on how vehicle works, the Deathrolla is the bigger, badder, better brother of the Battlewagon. It has similar stats, but with 24W and built-in T8 with Open-Topped. Stock it has a pair of [[Zzap Gun]]s and one [[Kannon]] that can be exchanged in any combination for more [[Kannon]]s, [[Lobba]]s or more [[Zzap Gun]]s, a Deffrolla which's the same as on the Battlewagon, so it ALWAYS hits on 2+ as its worst WS is 5+, and the Deffrolla adds 3 to it so unless the enemy has some shenanigans you just do not care about damage as long as this thing's in CC. In terms of secondaries, it has two [[Twin-Linked Shoota|Twin Big Shootas]], [[Skorcha]]s or [[Rokkit Launcha]]s, and additionally up to five additional [[Big Shoota]]s too. Likewise, the in-house Grot Riggers is an option, but with the amount of Wounds this thing has, regaining one every Command Phase is nothing to write home about. Overall it seems to be designed to do exactly the same thing as a Battlewagon, ferrying 20 models (or 10 if they're Meganobz) down the field while protecting them and shooting a lot of guns until it can disembark its occupants and charging into something juicy with its 8 S10 AP-3 d3 damage hits. It just does it better than a Battlewagon (better resilience, better shooting, no limits on the number of models due to weapons, and more guns), but costs more.
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===Skullhamma===
[[Image:Skullhamma.jpg|Skullhamas.|220px|right|thumb|An Orkified Baneblade. Are you fucked? Yes, you are.]]

The "Skullhamma" is a popular Mekboy variant of the Battlefortress, made from the remains of a [[Looted|looted]] [[Baneblade]]. Typically twice as big as a Battlewagon, it is often used by [[Speed Freek]]s. It has a supercharged triple-over-pressure turbo engine that takes up a good deal of its hull, but allows it to move at a speed deceptive for a vehicle its size. Its primary weapon is the massive Skullhamma Kannon.

This Orky Baneblade has a transport of 30 and counts as dedicated transport only, like the assault ramp on the [[Land Raider]], despite appearances suggesting otherwise. Essentially, use it exactly like you would a regular Battlewagon, just on roids. Unlike conventional Battlefortresses, the Skullhamma is a ludicrously fast fucker and it has all the weapon loadouts of a Baneblade to boot! Don't let the [[Skulhamma Kannon|Skullhamma Kannon]] fool you.

Despite having a larger barrel, its performances and characteristics are similar. It also isn't open topped, so it does not have the same weakness to Artillery fire like the other cousins. This is one of the few Ork vehicles in which we can safely say it is actually ''superior'' to its [[Wat|Imperial counterparts.]]
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===Rokkitspitta===
[[File:Rokkitspitta2.PNG|220px|right|thumb|A fan model of a Rokkitspitta. For when you can't have enough Rokkits.]]
The "Rokkitspitta" (a platform that mounts an insane array of Rokkits [[China|Chinese]]-style), is a variant of the Battlefortress. It is little more than an oversized tractor platform armed with an obscenely huge array of Rokkit warheads crammed dangerously close together, like an orky fireworks display off of an orky parade float. The Rokkitspitta's role on the battlefield can be labeled as more inclined toward the 'anti-tank' artillery category, due to the amount of Rokkits it can spew out.

Because of the amount of differing Rokkits it carries, the Rokkitspitta sacrifice troop transport capability for balls-to-the-walls [[Rape|Macross Missile Spam.]] Seriously, the amount of Rokkits it can fire is fucking frightening, as it can just bombard and waste an entire battalion of tanks half a mile away.

Unfortunately, due to the close proximity of the Rokkits, there is a likelihood in the weapons malfunctioning, [[Fail|ranging from a useless dud, to a Rokkit flying all the way back to the Rokkitspitta, to a Rokkit suffering a premature explosion which not only takes out the Battlefortress, but turns it into a fireworks show in the process.]] Unfortunately, it does not have rules nor official models yet.
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===Flakk Battlefortress===
[[File:FlakkaBF.jpg|Flakk Battlefortress. The [[Flakkatrakks]] big brother.|220px|right|thumb]]

The "Flakk Battlefortress" is an Ork Battlefortress geared towards air defense and shooting down incoming enemy aircraft. As such, it is armed with an array of anti-aircraft weaponry, such as a Flakka-Kannon, [[Big Shoota]]s, and quad [[Flakka-Dakka Gun|Flakka-Dakka Gunz]]. Although it does not share the same Baneblade profile as the Skullhamma, its rules are overall similar to the rest of the 'Kustom Battlefortress' lineage, just with a different weapon loadout.

Like the Deathrolla, the Flakk Battlefortress has the potential to transport 30 [[Ork Boy|Ork Boyz]] on the battlefield, and it is open topped, meaning that it is vulnerable to Artillery fire like those [[Basilisk Artillery Gun|Basilisk Gun Batteries]] that are firing from over several kilometers away. Plus, you become a big target for every enemy to aim their guns at you, and unlike the Skullhamma and Deathrolla, you don't really have the luxury of having 3 big gunz or the unrivaled [[Rape|rape]] of a Baneblade's armament.

The only big gun you have is a [[Supa-Kannon]], which is not a bad thing. Its just that if you use a Flakk Battlefortress as a front line tank, then you're an idiot. Flakk Battlefortresses truly shine in their namesake, which is ripping apart enemy air support like pinatas. Seriously, that Flakkagun is not to be trifled with.
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===Gunfortress===
[[File:Gunfortress.jpg|220px|right|thumb|Dakka Dakka Dakka!]]
There is also another flavor of Battlefortress called the Gunfortress. Unlike a traditional Battlefortress and its ilk, a Gunfortress, as its name implies, relies on sheer [[Dakka]] to overcome any obstacle. Whilst regular Battlefortresses have a modest amount of close range weapons, these huge versions of Gunwagons sport massive artillery guns and heavier armored plating, meant for shooting people from a much further distance.

A [[Miscellaneous_Weapons#Deathrolla|Deathrolla]] is still equipped, because what kind of self-prideful Ork doesn't want a giant rolling pin to squash their enemies flat? Gunfortresses have been spotted in the wars for Armageddon, and during the assault on Hive Infernus, no fewer than thirty Gunfortresses were encountered by the Imperial defenders.

The only real drawback to stuffing a wagon so full of ammunition and power cells is that – should the foe manage to inflict sufficient damage – it will detonate with jaw-dropping violence. Not as if the Orks care anyway.

Still, despite their name, Gunfortresses aren't a souped-up [[Battlewagon]] and as previously mentioned, they are instead a souped-up version of the [[Gunwagon]]. So, they should not be conflated. Unfortunately, they have not been seen since the times of [[Epic]], making the Orks severely undergunned in terms of long-range [https://youtu.be/FFcogzl_RKY?t=2m44s heavy fire support]. Fortunately, they have been given a shout-out in 8th Edition.
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==Gallery==

<center>
<gallery>
Image:Rokkitspitta.jpg|Rokkitspitta in [[Epic]]...or what looks like it.
</gallery>
</center>

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Epic 40,000]]
[[Category:Xenos]]
[[Category:Orks]]
[[Category:Vehicles]]
[[Category:Ships]]

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{{40k-Ork-Ships}}

Battlefleet Gothic: Armada II

2023-06-09T22:51:24Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

{{Cleanup}}
[[File:Battlefleet-Gothic-2.jpg|600px|thumb|center|''An icon will fall. A God will awaken. A Primarch will rise. The galaxy will burn...'']]

'''Battlefleet Gothic: Armada II''' is the sequel to [[Battlefleet Gothic Armada]] and is the first 40k game to be set during the [[Gathering Storm]], an event in which Geedubs finally decided to advance the storyline of 40k in a mostly positive way (to the shock of everyone).

The game was again developed by Tindalos Studios and published by [[Focus Home Interactive]], and was released on January 24th, 2019. It is a decent game compared to [[Dawn of War III]].

Anyone who disagrees with the fact 40k wins against almost every single sci-fi universe, show them this game's cinematic trailer. That'll shut 'em up.

==Setting==
As mentioned above, the game is set during the Gathering Storm event. To summarize: The armless crybaby known as [[Abaddon]] the Despoiler launched his 13th Black Crusade which ended with him rage quitting and dropping a Blackstone Fortress upon the planet of Cadia, destroying the planet (though it broke before the guard did) and it's pylons resulting in a chain reaction of warp-storms that created the [[Great Rift]] and divided the galaxy in half. It was also on a Monday which makes it double Heresy.

During this time, Ynnead awakened (thanks to the machinations of a certain [[Eldrad|Dick]]) and chose the craftworlder-turned-corsair-turned-wych [[Yvraine]] as its emissary. Yvraine saved the survivors from Cadia's destruction and traveled to the Ultramarine's homeworld of Macragge where they woke up [[Roboute Guilliman]] from his ten millennia long coma.

With more factions likely being made available after release, existing factions are having their ship rosters expanded tremendously, including the addition of various super-ships like the Phalanx, Macragge's Honour, Vengeful Spirit, and the like. Which is nice since it's easy to see what all these damn vessels and weapons look like in motion instead of using our ''imaginations'' or viewing smudged over concept art.

==Plot==
Written by none other than [[Matt Ward|our SPIRITUAL LIEGE]], the game has three campaigns at launch: the Imperium, the Tyranids and the Necrons. The voice acting and plot actually look like more than five minutes were spent on them (<s>sorry</s> glares at Dawn of War III). Which is nice since Nids and Neckrons usually get the short end of the stick when it comes to being shown in space battles. Said battles also look really, really good, funnily enough the following lines have no anti-Ward comments, which may mean either he has truly improved to awesome levels after his hiatus or no one bothered watching the credits, which also got some Lelith Hesperax fanservice but who cares about her if there is no Dark Eldar campaign yet. Go ahead, we are checking the page history to see how you react to this tip of information.

===Prologue/Tutorial===
The [[Cadia#The_Fall_of_Cadia|Fall of Cadia]] serves as the game's Prologue/Tutorial. You get to command the Phalanx, so that's awesome. Also a Navy Captain gets {{BLAM|'''*BLAMMED*'''}} so Naval Commissars may not be as incompetent as we previously thought. You get to see [[Ursakar E. Creed|CREED]], which is [[Awesome|great.]]

For those who are too lazy to play / Don't have the monies to buy said game/ already seen stuff about the Campaign on the Youtube, please be aware that the rest contains spoilers, [[FAIL|including the rest of this thread so no problems there]].

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You learn the ins and outs of the game by first commanding a Battle Barge, belonging to Space Wolf Commander Sven Bloodhowl. After destroying a few fodder Chaos ships, the Battle Barge unexpectedly meets the Blackstone Fortress and a sizable Chaos fleet escorting it. Sven's ship is then expectantly and completely fucking annihilated In the ensuing battle, but not before Sven and some of his brothers board the Fortress and presumably become fur-rugs. Following this, the Battle of Cadia is underway, where [[Trazyn the Infinite]] shows us that he can outdick [[Tzeentch]] by helping the Imperials defend their world from a beam of doom. Continuing on, they give you control over a few fodder ships before they locate the Deaths-{{BLAM}} Blackstone Fortress pops in unexpectedly, again, and is ''very'' prepared to rip your fleet apart.

But then, The Phalanx arrives with reinforcements to blast the heretics to pieces. As you approach the Fortress, it turns out the [[Space Corgis|Spehss Corgis]] are still alive, and managed to destroy the shields of the fortress, leaving it open to be destroyed by the Phalanx. A cutscene plays after the Blackstone's defeat which involves said fortress getting rammed into Cadia and the prologue ending.

===Imperial Campaign===
Players will again take control of Admiral Spire from the first game. Spire returns from warp travel, but due to the timey-wimey effects of the Warp, he discovers he has been transported several centuries after the Gothic War. He's now tasked with retaking the ruins of Cadia and safeguarding Imperial worlds from the Forces of Chaos and marauding Xenos.

The Campaign will have you liberate the Cadian sector and its surrounding territories from xenos and chaos. Killing off the major races requires going against their Titan-ship or destroying a massive structure in a special quest battle. There are a few branching paths, like trying to form an alliance with Eldar or destroying them on the orders of Darkhammer, or... "drama" with the Dark Angels, but functionally you’ll get virtually identical outcomes, just make sure your fleet isn't next to whoever your new enemy is. The Eldar drag you into drama involving a craftworld and a powerful artefact called the Spirit Gate, and what you do with it next determines your future relations with the Eldar. Aside from that there's Chaos, Orks, Necrons and Tyranids you also have to deal with. Get ready to fight the Ancient One after killing enough Tyranids to track it down, a World Engine under construction capable of pre-sighted bombardments (and needs the contributions of the Blood Angels and Raven Guard!), Ork pirates obsessed with space whales and general pirate business (with TWO SPACE HULKS!), and Abaddon's forces who have floating chaotic structures ready to fuck your shit. At some point in time you will track a destroyed supply convoy and get ambushed by the Iron Warriors, bringing Failbaddon's old flagship the Planet Killer in tow. Surviving this ambush without retreating will be hard, but persevering allows the [[Awesome|MACRAGGE’S HONOUR]] to arrive and fuck the enemy to death until the end of the campaign, so winning the battle is highly advisable. Of course, the final stage in the game involves fighting the Vengeful Spirit. Bring the Macragge's Honour for maximum [[Awesome|AWESOME]].

For a more descriptive campaign, continue reading:

Following the battle of Cadia, the Hero of the Gothic War a.k.a: the 12 Black Crusade, Admiral Spire, finds himself lost in the warp for the guts of almost a thousand years. He returns to the Cadian Sector, learning of the planet's fate and receives a fuckload of distress signals across the sector. Moments later, he delves deeper into the conflict, and secures the Cadian sector after taking a Mechanicus fleet and an Imperial Fist fleet under his command. You go through the campaign tutorial during the reconquest. Spire meets Lord Admiral Drang, who is pretty much the guy who gives him missions, informing him of an upcoming attack on the Cadian system itself, then ordering him to reinforce the Agrippina Sector, which is under assault by the Aeldari, an alliance of multiple Eldar factions headed by Ynnead to get shit done.

After some time, the Lord Inquisitor Darkhammer graces you with his presence by revealing that Drang was a traitor, which was appropriately blammed. Darkhammer then gives Spire new missions involving xenos and heretics. These include: dealing with Lord Trazyn the Infinite, brawling with some of Abaddon's champions from the first game, deciding whether or not to kill of the Aeldari because of the Inquistion and killing off the latest Tyranid incursion that happened to spring up out of nowhere as always. All the while you try to hunt down and finish off the fight at Cadia by destroying the recuperating remants of the Black Crusade and the Warmaster himself.

<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="100%">
Imperial Characters:
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
*'''Admiral Venesca Catallia''': Leader of Battlegroup Silver Dawn. She is also one of the dumbest motherfuckers in any sci-fi, giving Admiral Holdo a run for her money. Her stupid acts include but are not limited to: [[FAIL|using her flagship (a Battlecruiser at best) and a bunch of escorts to take on the VENGEFUL FUCKING SPIRIT, insta-killing tens of thousands]], and attacking an Aeldari Craftworld for no reason in the middle of the 13th Black Crusade, while they and the Imperium were allies.

*'''[[Dick|Inquisitor Darkhammer]]''': <strike>[[Dick|A living caricature of the Imperial Inquisition]] (he's a retarded asshole), famous for his rivalry with Inquisitor Valeria.</strike> A PROUD AND LOYAL SERVANT OF THE IMPERIUM! You can choose between siding with the Eldar to help fight Chaos or siding with Darkhammer to purge the xenos and their Craftworld. You will have to destroy him if you wish to ally with the Eldar, and if you side with him he will valiantly lead a charge to cyclonic torpedo the entire craftworld, purging the sector of Eldar. <strike>Ties with the said Eldar in an arrogance contest.</strike>

*'''Lord High Admiral Drang''': Initially an ally and one of your commanders, until he gets Blammed by Darkhammer for heresy.

*'''Commodore Kage''': Your hypeman from the first game, and an all around bro.

*'''Magos Crawn''': Space Tech-support.

*'''Commodore-Captain Trevaux''': One of the head personnel on the Phalanx.

*'''Captain [[Tor Garadon]]''': Head commander of the Phalanx.
</div></div>
===Necron Campaign===
Players will take control of a [[Necron Overlord]] of the Nepheru Dynasty named "Amarkun the Gatherer", who awakens after several millennia of slumber and is ordered by his Phaeron, Kephrekh the Unbroken, to reawaken the nearby tomb worlds. Amarkun will come into conflict with several factions and eventually come across Trazyn the Infinite. You’ll have to kill the Tyranids and the Ancient One to get another dynasty on your side. At some point you will have to face the FUCKING PHALANX in order to get a Trionic Activator promised by Trazyn, and that will require your best gameplay. While it can’t be confirmed yet, multiple videos are showing an insta-fail if at least a third of your fleet is even turned to drifting hulks. If you know how to board and properly time the solar storms, [[Troll|Trazyn will become the ultimate troll and destroy the Phalanx from the inside via Tyranid swarms.]] Trazyn will also convince you to use the Dark Throne for a better purpose than what Kephrekh wants.

Kephrekh becomes suspicious of you for having knowledge of the Dark Throne, doubly so for questioning his plans, and demands you submit yourself to his judgement. Cryptek Zaa tells you that the only choice now is to usurp Kephrekh as Phaeron, which you do. To aid in defending the Dark Throne, a webway gate defended by Voidstinger must be destroyed or captured. Then you’ll need to use the power of the C’Tan to destroy Craftworld Os’tara. You’ll also have to kill the Ork pirates, just like every campaign. Unless you’re feeling ballsy and want to make things interesting, taking on the space hulks at full health is inadvisable. Wait until one of them dies and the remaining one is critically damaged (boring and time consuming, but easy).

Trollzyn will also leak the Dark Throne’s position to none other than Lord High Admiral Spire and his Astartes allies, and you must defend it with the help of Tremor Cannon bombardments. Protect the capture zones. Trazyn says this scheme was so easy since humans trust too easily (ironic given the Imperial Creed...). For those who hate the Ultrasmurfs, you’ll also have a chance to stick it to Big Smurf himself. Just be careful of the Maccragge’s Honour. Trazyn keeps a few things of value from the wreckage, and it’s suggested it could be Guilliman (although unconfirmed). In an effort to counter Thousand Sons meddling with the webway, you’ll also fight Abaddon and the Vengeful Spirit. Interestingly this isn’t the final boss, but instead is Huron fucking Blackheart of the Red Corsairs! Should you win and destroy the Blackstone Fortress, you will see the Dark Throne activate for its true purpose, which is forever closing the Eye of Terror.

<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="100%">
Necron Characters:
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
*'''Trazyn the Infinite''': The most famous collector in 40K and a lulzy figure who’s great at trolling. Easily the best Necron in existence.

*'''Amarkun the Gatherer''': A new character, and the one you play as that must unite the Necron dynasties. His character is that of a reluctant warrior, who doesn’t want unnecessary bloodshed. Even outright states he will accept surrenders and vassalage from other races. A rare quality in the 40K universe. Also a bit of a troll, goading his enemies to stupid moves. Overall, a bit of a bro.

*'''Cryptek Zaa of Tomorrow''': While he fills the obligatory ‘right hand man’ role, he and Trazyn also goad you into overthrowing Kephrekh. Pretty wise guy. Obligatory deadpan snarker, eventually prompting Amarkun to start responding the same.

*'''Phaeron Kephrekh the Unbroken''': The Head Necron who orders you around. Wants to shut off the rest of the galaxy from the dynasty using the Dark Throne. You will overthrow him later on, and use the Dark Throne for a much better purpose.

*'''Commander Vorekh''': Kephrekh’s lapdog, and another guy to kill.

*'''Lord Cleorekh''': A [[Necron Lord]] who aids you in the destruction of an Aeldari Craftworld. You will have to escort his ship to the Craftworld itself.

*'''Anakaleth the Wise''': Member of a rival dynasty, becomes loyal to Amarkun if the latter saves his metal butt from Tyranids.
</div></div>

===Tyranid Campaign===
Just eat the whole galaxy. By this point you should know the drill. You have access to the Ancient One at some point, a ship with Psychic Scream and boarding actions on SUPER STEROIDS. Since the Tyranids came a long way from the Dawn of War series and forgot how to talk, all narration comes from the perspective of your future lunch.

The Eldar and Iron Hands try to form an alliance with each other to stop the tyranids, but this goes about as badly as you could predict since the Tyranids are the ones kicking ass. Imperial forces try and fail to defend the Eldar craftworld (the hardest part of the mission) but are ultimately swept aside as Eldrathan and his allies run around in their frail ships and become Tyranid food. The Eldar craftworld cannons are pre-sighted and capable of friendly fire, so lure the Imperials into that for extra lulz. The Orks on the other hand want space titans and to eventually make a big WAAAGGHHH! to krump da Tyranidz, and this will predictably fail as well. It goes just like the other campaigns when you’re fighting the Orks. However, it appears these space hulks now have Orky nova kannons that [[What|FOLLOW YOU]], so be careful. Later on you’ll once again encounter Admiral Catallia as she tries to escort refugees from the Scarus Sector, but that effort will be in vain as she’s nommed and her fleet gets more panicked. Perhaps cruel karma for her actions against an Eldar Craftowrld and getting her fleet wiped against Abaddon (which is possible since one Fabricator Cambrius broke his promise for aid).

There comes a point where you must fight Abaddon. First, you must deal with his chaos-god aligned lackeys and their respective unique abilities. After that, face down the Vengeful Spirit and destroy the forces of Chaos once and for all.

The Necrons under Kephrekh will at first delegate their vassals and then their main forces to defend their holdings across the map. When they are unable to hold out, Amarkun and Zaa will fall back to the region of the Dark Throne, and they will try to defend it with a tremor cannon capable of pre-sighted bombardments and defense platforms. Similar to the Aeldari Craftworld, a skilled hive mind will try to trick the Necrons into moving into the radius of these attacks for max lulz. Then you’ll have to fight through more vassals as you capture random zones to destroy the tremor cannon, and send Tyranids to the surface. Not even Trollzyn’s aid can save the Necrons and their outraged leader as Amarkun lets Kephrekh know that their Dynasty has met its end.

In a rather lulzy sequence, you’ll then to take on the 2 biggest assholes in the Imperium: Fabricator Cambrius and Inquisitor Darkhammer. This is an escort mission where you must break through the enemy blockade while protecting drone Tyranids [[What|(that you can't control for some reason)]]. To speed this mission up, destroy Darkhammer and Cambrius’ flagships. The Imperials will mount a full retreat, and you get to hear Guilliman whine some more about how the Tyranids are kicking serious ass and more gene-stealer invasions. Lord Admiral Spire is tasked by Guilliman to hold the line, and the Blood Angels answer the call for aid. Of course, this only delays the inevitable as you destroy Captain Donatos’ fleet. His last words apparently are to bring him in closer. The navigator for Spire’s fleet is incapacitated, which means no Imperial Navy aid for the Astartes in another region. This leaves the Space Wolves, Dark Angels, and Raven Guard to converse amongst themselves when the Space Wolf makes the lulziest roast of the Dark Angels in 40K history. Of course, this coalition of Space Marines is no match for the Tyranid hivemind, and you get to hear Guilliman consoling a grieving Admiral Spire as he beats himself up over not being present to aid the Astartes.
Lord High Admiral Spire then pledges his forces to defend the entranceway to Cadia with the help of a space station. The mission tells you to board the station, but outright destroying it will deprive you of dialogue. The crew offers to cover a retreat for the outmatched Imperials, but that isn’t in Spire’s DNA (most of the time).From there, destroy Spire’s fleet and hear the man try desperately to escape as his reactors begin to fail. After that mission you hear Guilliman realize only he stands between Terra and absolute destruction. He’ll make a pretty nice speech to the Imperials who are present to defend Cadia. The speech did not help. After fighting your way to the Cadian Gate itself, you hear Guilliman and his forces try to make a strategy over the asteroid fields and lack of sensory capabilities. From there you fight through a bunch of lightly armored ships, then the Macragge’s Honour itself. Simply destroy that ship to win. Inflicting enough damage sees massive space marine reinforcements so work fast. However, you also gain access to The Ancient One. Guilliman stubbornly refuses to retreat despite the increasing levels of damage to his ship, and when he’s about to die he apologizes to the Emperor for failing him and his Imperium. After destroying the ship, everyone retreats as they state that Guilliman is lost. You’re greeted with a cutscene showing the Tyranids on the march towards Terra itself.

You strangely hear from Guilliman when the enemy races become Tyranid food. For the Orks, he laments that mankind is screwed if even a hardy and kunning race like them is killed. For the Eldar, he’s sad that <strike> NO BIG TIDDY ELDAR GF </strike> the Eldar died in such a horrible way and that the galaxy will be worse off without them despite their sneaky ways. He gets pissed off that the Tyranids cockblocked him from the glory of killing Abaddon, and fears humanity is next. When the Necrons die, he’s worried that not even the ancient superpower that were the Necrons could stop the Tyranids, but vows to learn from recent defeats to defend humanity and emerge stronger.

===Chaos Campaign===
You play as Word Bearer <strike> Thanos </strike> Malos Vrykan, a particular follower of the Dark Gods who is chosen by a Daemon through a Daemonhost to command the Word Bearers during the 13th Black Crusade. He becomes a Chaos Lord and begins a conquest of the stars to further the plans of the Warmaster.

Malos' first major engagement sees you fighting the Ultrasmurfs as you escort your transports through the sector of space you do battle in. After this and conducting sacrifices to Chaos to the suggestions of your subordinate, Malos hatches a plan to engage Imperial forces at Dorsia. The campaign also reveals that Drang really was a traitor, and is serving as a mole for Chaos. Malos highlights how the Imperials will try to hide amongst gas clouds and wreckage to form an ambush. After unfounded doubts by your underlings, you vow to lead the assault personally. You’ll locate and destroy some Imperial ships before the <strike>closeted heretics</strike> Dark Angels show up. They’re led by Korahael, master of the fleet. Their flagship is the Vengeful Justice, and upon IDing this ship an Alpha Legionnaire named Arban Talas offers to capture the ship for you. After your character tries to act as naysayer, he’s convinced to let the Sons of Alpharius Omegon show their magic. Reducing the enemy troop count will get the ship captured, but don’t wait too long to destroy it or damage the ship too much. With the enemy crew of the Strike Cruiser killed, the ship is yours (after compartments are vented into space and shit) and you go on to win the battle. Unfortunately, Talas finishes his purge of the enemy crew only to tell you many Imperial vessels escaped the battle and fled to Admiral Spire’s fleet. You’re fine with this since you want them to spread a message to the wider Imperium of your power. Talas offers his services to you, but [[Dark Apostle]] Arkrist Vane (your Lieutenant practically speaking) points out this is the Alpha Legion and are masters of deception. Fully trusting them is unwise, so keep eyes on them.

You’re then suggested to ‘Enlighten’ (read: kill) Admiral Spire at Agripinaa. A pleasant fellow named Threxos Hellbreed berates you for not totally wiping out the Imperials last engagement. You inform him that Lord Admiral Spire is rallying these highly determined defenders, while Inquisitor Darkhammer is getting gud at purging your heretical spies. Hellbreed gives no shits, and demands you to fight Spire ASAP. Vane tells you Hellbreed thinks you’re a potential rival/threat, but to play your cards carefully to overcome Hellbreed. Vane wants you to use Admiral Drang to lure the Inquisitor Darkhammer into a trap. Lord High Admiral Drang says this will be easy, as Darkhammer goes into a frenzy when he smells heresy (so every Inquisitor ever?). He offers to put some expendable spies into the Baleful Night fortress and help ensure word reaches Darkhammer of HERETICS in their midst. This will be in the Ulthor system, where gas clouds can lead to a proper ambush. The ambush goes swimmingly, as Fabricator Cambrius and Darkhammer take the bait as intended when you attack a space station nearby. Their fates are left unknown by the Imperium, and Darkhammer’s soul is ‘sweetmeat’ for Daemons. Serves that dickhead Inquisitor right...

Get to the Scarus Sector to have an audience with a Khornate Berserker named Jasul Barass. He’ll scream about how effective his men are as they fight an Ork Warboss named Blitzrippa, but still needs your help. He DEMANDS your assistance, and you reluctantly agree at the suggestion of Vane. This is to get Khorne’s favor and demonstrate your power against these barbaric creatures (pot calling the kettle black). Heretek Heregon is also an new figure. He wants you to complete secondary objectives for a strategic goal. Assassinations and killing troops earlier in the campaign satisfied said strategic goal by weakening the enemy, while destroying orbital platforms under the guise of a siege during a mission against the Eldar will help loosen the enemy grip in the quadrant you’re in.
Marines dedicated to a Chaos God will similarly want you to kill troops, spread plagues, or other vile deeds to satisfy the Gods and get rewards. This will occur throughout the campaign.

Later on, Vane expresses his concerns of a potential Ork WAAAGH! and the awakening of Ynnead (which could kill Slaanesh and increase the Eldar threat). He wants you to dispose of these threats immediately. The Gods will put your character in brief but brutal agony if you waste your time in stopping these threats. You reach Belis Corona at the request of Vane, who wants to create a dark ritual in near the Ancient One’s corpse for the nefarious purposes of Chaos. You’ll have to fight Captain Tellemark, leader of a Mechanicus fleet who also wants the Ancient One’s corpse. Once the sorcerers complete their ritual, the Ancient One wakes up with a roar. Unfortunately for you, your fleet is completely revealed to the enemy since your souls are like fires in the dark. You’ll have to engage the outskirts of the Tyranid fleet, but your character correctly points out time is running out for his fleet if the Imperials and Tyranids can surround him. Vane claims it’s a test that’ll reward you if you’re worthy. Wolf Lord Engir Krakendoom shows up and is delighted to see both you and the Tyranids are there, since it’ll be a fight worthy of song. Your character has a similar outlook, as such a fight can please the Gods. The plan looks to be working, but Vane’s sorcerers need you to protect the Ancient One so the Tyranid fleet will show up in full. Eventually the Tyranid fleet does arrive. You and Vane are impressed by the Tyranid fleet, but leave so the Imperials and Tyranids will kill each other. You briefly lament about the lives lost but claim those lives have bought you something far greater: potential victory and an edge in the Long War.

Shortly after, Drang requests an immediate audience. Vane briefly hypes you up as he threatens Drang before he can send his message. He says that Spire is setting up a refugee fleet in Phonosar response to the new chaos in Belis Corona. He wants to retreat to Nemesis Tessera. Your character is greatly annoyed at Spire’s presence, but Vane sees the chance to seize the refugee ships. Unfortunately, the explanation of his plan is interrupted by a hail for reinforcements from Huron Blackheart. Tyranids are attacking his Blackstone Fortress at the Pallatinos Fault, no thanks to your efforts in Belis Corona. Vane wants you to help Huron, as the Red Corsairs would be in your debt and be a powerful ally. Eventually you do reach him. After a brief exchange of ‘pleasantries’, you get to work fighting the ‘nids.

In the time it takes to kill the first wave of ‘nids, Huron successfully scares his warpsmiths into readying the Fortress’ cannon. Unfortunately, the massive beam is not as rape-tastic as advertised. It can’t even one-shot an escort! Luckily, it doesn’t take long to recharge so it’ll still do decently, especially at range. In the time it takes to kill the second wave, the Fortress’ motive power is restored. You’ll need to move it to a specified point with escort. Luckily, your fortress can fire on the move. The Fortress will make a warp jump once reaching this point, and Huron will tank you for helping him. Your character says Huron yet has a role to play in taking the Aegis Ocularis by word of the Dark Gods. Huron complains about Abaddon keeping him at arm’s length and how bad things would be if the Fortress was destroyed. He also pledges aid to your fleet, so long as his men get good loot.

After some time, you will reach the refugee fleet. Vane wants you to only kill some vessels while letting the rest escape, so that ‘you will convince the other crews of their fortunate escape, not knowing it was your design’. Weave through massive asteroids to reach the enemy. You’ll need to destroy 5 imperial transports, then infiltrate 3 of them and let them escape. This way, the survivors will think the attack was repelled thanks to the grace of the Emperor. The seeds of a heretical uprising have been planted. After the battle is over, Vane warns that many fleets have died near the Chinchare sector. It’s also mentioned by Vane that the Imperium has deployed the Phalanx. Hellbreed will also continue to berate you for not having killed Spire yet and demand you join him, while Vane whispers that it may be time for someone else besides Spire to get their skull cleaved (hint hint). Finally, a Champion of Nurgle named Maltrius warns you that the Nepheru Dynasty is a threat in the Sentinel Worlds. Aiding him in stopping them requires finding the artifact ‘Chalice of Entropy’, which will help kill the Necrons and get Grand daddy Nurgle’s favor. You’ll have to go to the Nefera system to steal it back from none other than Trollzyn the Infinite.

Oh yeah, it's a fucking '''''[[Rage|STEALTH MISSION in this large scale naval game]]. YES. A FUCKING STEALTH SECTION IN A SPACE NAVY GAME. [[FAIL|It is more horrific than you could possibly imagine.]]''

Eventually, you make your way to Nemesis Tessera, facing Spire himself. When you encounter him, your character thinks his crews are tired and still haven’t got reinforcements. Needless to say, you’re eager to take Spire’s corpse as a trophy. Unfortunately, adverse solar activity makes this mission more challenging. Spire realizes he’s outmatched and seeks to fall back to a rally point, but you’re determined to prevent his escape. To make matters even worse for you, Tor Garadon of the Imperial Fists will reinforce Spire with none other than the Phalanx. Hellbreed, who was overly eager to fight Spire, still hasn’t arrived and it’s wondered if he’s leaving you to die. Keep in mind the inherent nature of ships like the Phalanx means the solar flare will not set it on fire, only kill its shields. Aside from the fact you have to fight the Phalanx, you also have to be careful when the storm comes in. This is because the Phalanx could move near a gas cloud you’re hiding in, and you DO NOT want to be close to the Phalanx. Hellbreed finally gets his lazy ass into the battle. His excuse is teaching an Imperial whelp a lesson in slaughter and belittles you for your difficulty against a ‘gilded relic’ like the Phalanx. After calling him out on his bullshit, Hellbreed gets pissed and demands you help him to claim ‘his’ prize that you fought and bled to claim yourself. Vane asks if you’ll let this rather pussified servant of Khorne get away with such bullshit, but before you can act on such desire the Phalanx is saved by plot armor and warp jumps to safety. You tell your ‘allies’ to look upon what your character rightfully calls Hellbreed’s failure. Hellbreed becomes enraged and begins bitching about it's YOUR fault that the Phalanx escaped. Not wanting to hear this insolence, you decide to offer his skull to Khorne and destroy him, which you do. Any of Hellbreed's surviving ships will be subsumed into your own fleet after his death, so focus everything on Hellbreed's ship.

Vane mentions yet again how this was all a test by the Gods (that Spire is somehow unknowingly serving) while Hellbreed was found wanting. Your character laments at this defeat and wonders how your disarrayed forces will retake the initiative. Vane points out that great hopes lead to greater despairs, and wants you to wipe out this Imperial and Eldar alliance to show you’re still worthy of the Gods’ blessings. Your character agrees, saying that there is no hope or truth, only the will of Chaos. He also wants to answer the hails of High Visionary Antharek of the Thousand Sons, knowing that servants of Mr. Just as Planned never seek counsel unless there’s something in it for them. Lord High Admiral Drang meanwhile reports that the Eldar and Imperials are threatening your holdings in Scelus, and gathering their strength in Kholan of the Medusa sector. Drang and Vane recommend you strike while the Iron Hands aren’t yet at full strength. You eventually meet Sorcerer Antharek. He states that while Tzeentch is impressed by your manipulation of the Tyranid and Imperial threat in the Aegis Ocularis, the Ancient One’s resurrection could help lead the ‘nids to nom the whole sector. Vane wants another ritual, but Tzeentch has sent Antharek dire omens and says this will only draw more ‘nids. Instead, he wants you to make a big brain gamer move and lure the refugees from earlier to Belial IV where you can ambush the Ancient One and kill the Tyranids in the sector for good.

Meanwhile, Barass from earlier will be pleased that you killed the Orks at Harvest. However, the WAAAGH! Isn’t dead yet and killing it requires Barass’ aid, who thinks you should be grateful since he’s sharing ‘his’ victory with you (what is it with the Khornates taking undue credit???). He replies with ‘BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD!’ Which probably means yes. To help take down this WAAAGH!, Vane’s agents have convinced Goresputta, Blitzrippa’s second in command, to turn on him for the right price. Barass, with no knowledge or desire to negotiate, asks why he can’t just take their skulls instead. Knowing this approach didn’t work very well, your character agrees to get lots of Space Titan flesh. To the Nerevian Expanse you go...

Meanwhile at Kholan, you finally reach the area where the Imperium and Eldar are cooperating. To your surprise there’s a webway gate unmentioned by Drang, which makes Vane question his loyalty. It’s imperative that you take the control points quickly in this mission, or else you’ll be overwhelmed by the constant stream of Eldar ships coming via the webway gate. The Eldar counter attack will be weak, and simply kill the other ships to win. Cue the victory hype speeches. However, you quickly realize the Eldar must be completely destroyed at the Caliban sector, the very refuge for ‘inconstant and shiftless souls’.
At some point you speak to Slaaneshi Warlord Demaroz, dedicated to hunting for Eldar souls. Realizing Slaanesh’s favor is hard to get, you decide to rush to the Medusa sector to help Demaroz stop the alliance before it weakens Slaanesh. You go to Terraq and kill some Eldar, but Demaroz only wants more Eldar kills to save Slaanesh and please him. After this, you learn the Ynnari are going to the Sanctuary system. It’s a dangerous system since many ships have disappeared there, but the fear of the Eldar is too enticing. At Sanctuary, you are tasked with killing the Eldar and getting their souls to Slaanesh. Voidstinger and Irusith of the Dark Eldar still are distrustful, but Yvraine wants all quarrel to cease if they want to win. Spoiler: they won’t. The various Eldar grow increasingly frantic at their losses, while you revel in such slaughter. You’re now tasked with bringing your demon crucible over the Craftworld to let it do its magic (read: murderfucking the Eldar). A pink beam of death does just that, but the pleasure overwhelms your character briefly. Vane expresses concern that you haven't moved ever since the destruction of the craftworld, but you state that you tasted a portion of Slaanesh’s feast. Such memory is fading and you need that sensation again (addiction). You’re blessed by the Dark Prince, and Demaroz pledges his aid to you.

Elsewhere, Vane’s agents reveal the Necrons are trying to activate a long buried dolmen gate for reinforcements somewhere. After getting Space Titan flesh in the Neveran Expanse, Gorespitta wants to kill Blitzrippa himself to ensure the loyalty of his boyz. For obvious reasons, you and your subordinates will ensure Gorespitta’s time on top is very short. The battle will take place at Thracian Primaris. The battle starts, and has you fighting Blitzrippa’s various lieutenants as they realize in horror you’re too strong. After killing enough Orks, Blitzrippa summons a now traitorous Gorespitta to attack. The two space hulks start killing each other. You hear the Gorespitta’s reasons for betrayal and angry insults from Blitzrippa, which is mildly entertaining. Gorespitta’s hulk is temporarily allied until Blitzrippa is killed, then you betray an angry Gorespitta as well. Kill him and Khorne will be pleased; your character comments on how he feels Khorne's fury. Jarass also pledges his aid to you. Blood for the Blood God!

In the Elorde system, Antharek senses his scheme coming together and a shadow in the warp via genestealer infiltrating the refugees. This is actually good since said shadow will draw the Ancient One in. The Sorcerer also thinks he got a vision where you make a great triumph. Go prove him right in the Tempest of Sorrow. Upon arriving, you hear Admiral Malicor on Mankind’s Valor desperately request reinforcements. Vane relishes in the man’s fear, and you hope for either converts or bounty. You offer Malicor aid in exchange for his loyalty. He initially refuses, but relents after showing that he, not the Corpse-Emperor, can let him live another day. When tyranids come, you remind Malicor that only Chaos can protect him. He eventually starts fully questioning his faith in Big E when he sees your fleet’s power. Eventually Antharek comes to your aid to help face the Ancient One. He puts the pressure on you to win since Tzeentch is watching, and failure would end all his schemes. Be wary of the Psychic Scream, however. With the death of the Ancient One, the shadow in the warp will go away and the ‘nids will go feral. Malicor is swayed to Chaos after seeing your power. Vane senses that Tzeentch favors you. Indeed, you start seeing a glimpse of what Tzeentch sees. Even though Malicor swears loyalty to you (his portrait gets modified slightly to reflect that), your character is caught up in all sorts of alternate futures regarding Malicor. Vane says to trust Tzeentch, and you do just that by accepting Malicor’s service.

You finally reach Nefera and fight Trazyn’s forces. The station is heavily guarded which means you’ll need to use local gas clouds to hide. Stay stealthy. Cryptek Sekhnet detects heat signatures so Trazyn deploys probes. Play your cards right and solar interference will be the only thing detected. Next, you’ll need to distract the probes while Maltrius’ ships get the Chalice of Entropy, since only Nurgulite ships can endure the coming battle. The increasing distance of the clouds mean you’ll need a radiation wave to keep you stealthy. The diversion begins as you taunt the necrons while Maltrius’ blightlords get the artifact. Board the space station and then disengage your ships to end the mission. No collection or artifact for Trollzyn. Maltrius feels Nurgle’s blessings, while Vane denounces the soulless Necrons as blasphemous. This Chalice will help you destroy the Dark Throne and the Necron threat in the Lone Star system, and take Maltrius’ spot as Nurgle’s champion. When you get to the Dark Throne, your forces relish at the chances for Nurgle to contaminate many Necrons. However, you’ll need to destroy the defense platforms first. Amarkun the Gatherer spots your attack, and demands Cleorekh deal with you. You must prevent the Necrons from closing the Eye of Terror, a thing Vane deems highly heretical. The size of your fleet convinces Amarkun to break out the tremor cannon, so avoid its pre-sighted bombardments. Once the stations are destroyed, Maltrius begins his assault while his Lieutenant takes command in his absence, named Verinox. Plague Marines will destroy the Tremor Cannon if you can send reinforcements. It goes the same way as any mission against the Dark Throne. Capture zones and deploy reinforcement. Amarkun states that you won’t win since they’re eternal, but you’re here to show Chaos is truly eternal. Maltrius sacrifices his life to complete the ritual and destroy the Dark Throne. Vane remarks how he was true to the last, and that his soul will be reborn by Nurgle as a [[Daemon Prince]] (one could safely assume that dying in order for Nurgle’s Chalice of Entropy to corrupt a DARK THRONE would lead to Daemonhood. If that’s not enough to win Nurgle’s ultimate reward, then he’s not a god worth following!). Hopefully, because that guy was quite a lad. Your character predicts that such an award will happen too if you complete your conquest. Vane detects Nurgle’s blessings within you, and remarks how Nurgle’s plagues will go about killing the supposedly immortal Necrons. You feel Nurgle’s decay on your very breath, which actually sounds gross.

In Xersia, Drang has been uncovered by the Imperials and is being hunted. Vane wishes to extract him to uncover any intel he has. Drang is reluctant to leave his ship and he quickly realizes his life is forfeit. 'Rescue' Drang by boarding it until it is an empty hulk, then destroy the pursuing astartes. After the battle, An interrogator from the Emperor’s Children is placed in charge of getting Drang to talk through... certain methods.

Drang’s interrogation reveals the existence of a large Ultramarines fleet seeking to fight Abaddon at the Obsidian Depths. You and Vane soon figure out that Roboute Gulliman himself is leading the fleet, and seeks to deliver a decisive blow to Abaddon. You join Abaddon in the middle of battle in order to prove your worth to him. Abaddon wants to keep fighting after the first vanguard fleet is destroyed, but your character wants to deliver vengeance to the Ultrasmurfs on behalf of Lorgar. Abaddon accepts, and promises great rewards if he sees the sons of Lorgar aren't. Guilliman soon arrives and condemns Abaddon as he seeks to have his head. Abaddon in turn curses Guilliman as a relic of a feeble age and wants you to bring Guilliman to him in chains (before withdrawing). In order to win You need to turn the Macragge’s Honor into a drifting hulk. Use Khornate ships and his blessing to make emptying the Ultrasmurf crammed flagship easier. Guilliman is a prisoner and the Macragge’s Honour is a drifting hulk. Guilliman predictably vows vengeance on you once he breaks out, but it won’t change his situation. Abaddon vows to make Guilliman live in agony until pain offers only solace, where Roboute will then be killed. As a reward, Abaddon gives you the Vengeful Spirit, the title ‘Harbinger of the True Faith’, and master of the Aegis Ocularis system. You’re tasked with slaughtering the corpse god’s servants.

You’re also ordered by Abaddon to get to the Eidolon sector to fix Hellbreed’s embarrassing mistakes. Abaddon also highlights Astartes sieges in the Sortiarus system, Eldar fuckery in the Drakassi system, and Imperial retribution in the Sicarus system. Saving the Sortiarus system will bring out a grateful Sorcerer Sarnoth, relieved this system won’t suffer like Prospero did. They will make passage through the warp easier for your ships. When you save the Drakassi sector, Berzerker Ghulrak is pissed you stole his kills and potential tributes to Khorne. You claim responsibility, and promise him endless war in exchange for his loyalty. When you save Eidolon, Abaddon congratulates you but advises that Spire is leading a massive force in the Cadian sector, the likes of which has never been seen since the Great Crusade. (Honestly, Roboute should’ve been the final boss but whatever) Killing Spire will let you into Abaddon’s inner circle. You tell Vane to go to Hedax so that the warpsmiths can bring out their finest ships. Go to the Cadian sector to win one final glory for the Warmaster.

You remark that only the weak and worthless remain since all the competent Imperials died by your hand. Iron Hands Captain Sind Grolvoch replies that your humiliation will be even greater when you die, while Catallia proclaims the Imperials are the Emperor’s Fury and won’t be denied. Magos Numerian notes your victory chances are highly miscalculated and unlikely. After slaughtering a good portion of their fleet, Spire arrives. Malos wonders if Spire sees how futile his cause is, but Spire doubles down and renews his blood oaths. Captain Tor Garadon brings the Phalanx again, but you taunt the Son of Dorn as he fled last time they met. Conversely, Spire wants all the help he can get, as he only wants your character killed, never mind who does the deed. Grolvoch points out the death of Numerian and the thinning of their ranks. Catallia doesn’t care, and both Grolvoch and Catallia recite their respective war chants. Vrykan notes that the Phalanx is hurting, but Garadon will be ok if the Phalanx dies as a warrior while Vrykan dies a failed traitor. In quite possibly the biggest cucking moment in 40K video games history, he then reveals a massive surprise: a ship named Monarchia Redeemed, a chaotic debasement of the Macragge’s Honour. Even Garadon is filled with sheer horror and dismay, betraying the steely demeanor of the Imperial Fists. Vane leads the Monarchia Redeemed. Spire laments at the death of the Phalanx and Garadon, but stands defiant and wants his fleet to die fighting for the Emperor. Die they do, for when Spire is finally killed, your character claims the spoils of war and the Aegis Occularis. In your moment of triumph, Vane then reveals he always intended to usurp you, and turns the Monarchia Redeemed on your entire fleet.

This goes as well as you expect when facing a fleet that bested Admiral Spire and Gulliman. When things go south, Vane blames this sudden betrayal on the whispers of promises by Daemons. He wants forgiveness and vows to serve Malos, but he wisely calls bullshit and tells him he should’ve found another person to use as a catspaw. Before long, Vane and his vessel is wiped out.

In the end cutscene, while eating Gulliman, Vrykan notes that after all his arduous service to Abaddon he notes that the Warmaster is a relic of the past that became too prideful, a far cry from the champion of chaos he once was (just like Horus). At the very end, Vrykan challenges Abaddon himself for the title of the Warmaster.

==Gameplay==
Aside from some balance changes, gameplay will feel extremely similar (read: almost the exactly the same, but hey don't fix what ain't broke) to [[Battlefleet Gothic Armada|BFGA1]], so go read that page if you want a breakdown of the gameplay. The new factions will of course be a new experience, as with some new additions gameplay wise. Titan-class ships are playable in campaign and are available in battle mode if Massive Fleets are enabled.

In the Campaign, each faction starts with one sector and proceeds to go liberate/awaken/OMNOMNOM their way around the Cadian Gate along with other sectors.
Players can now create new fleets to defend or add to their armada since the Imperial Navy/Nepheru/Leviathan could not do it alone.

Each Sector contains a variety of worlds that benefit and/or harm you. Some of these worlds, or the bonuses they grant, are:

Agri-Worlds: These make upgrading planets cheaper.

Forge Worlds: These grant tons of resources and usually unlock items in your Tech Tree.

Mining Worlds: These add a multiplier to your income.

Hive Worlds: These increase resource generation and crew regeneration.

Civilized Worlds: These add money to your turns' income.

Industrial Worlds: These are the same as Civilized Worlds, but with Hive Worlds income.

Crone Worlds: These tend to be the haunts of daemons and other Warp Oddities.

Daemon Worlds: These worlds tend to require you to leave a fleet behind and keep an eye on them, or they spawn hostile fleets.

Penal Worlds: These allow you to increase troop regen with press-gangs.

Outposts: These worlds add tiny bonuses to your income.

Training Posts: These worlds increase the assault critical chance of your boarding parties.

Archaeological Sites: These grant one-off bonuses to your total income.

Pirate Worlds: These have a 15% chance to spawn NPC attack fleets that will try to conquer your system if you don't leave a peacekeeper fleet behind.

Unique Worlds: Each of these confers a bonus, like nullifying enemy spawn rates, allowing you to sortie fighters faster, or giving Nova Cannons wider AOEs.

Plasma Storms: These tend to decrease the cost of operating your ships.

Listening Posts: Give you bonus Battleplans, an in-game resource required to attack certain systems, lower the threat meter, and delay/cancel invasions.

This game has a threat meter that increases the chances of retaliation and attacks at random per enemy turn, as well making AI payback assaults against your territory more likely. This threat meter is reduced to 0 every time you complete a mission, so you can spend some time dealing with the AI or gathering resources. Try not to go too many turns without completing a mission, because the campaign is lost if the meter fills all the way.

Should you capture a world, you have the option on most worlds to build defenses such as mines, defensive platforms, or a space station. In combat, mines slow enemy arrivals by one turn, defensive platforms add 4 ships with cheap guns and sensors to aid in system defense, and space stations are large, stationary capital vessels, usually with huge fighter bays.

A new thing called 'battleplans' was added as well. These open up Warp Routes on the strategic map, delay enemy actions, cancel hostile invasion plans, clear away hostile minefields, and reset the Threat Meter. While playing as the Tyranids, each world per sector you take is being consumed over time to produce the resources needed to expand the Hive Fleet which is unique to those playing as said Space Locusts. So instead of a constant flow of resources in small amounts, you get ECKSBAWKS HEUG amount of them in a short time.

In a grand act of [[Awesome|Awesome]], the devs have made the space titans playable. The titans from campaign are playable in massive fleet battles against the AI, including space hulks.

The game is also noteworthy for having completely customized campaign modes. Except for the tutorial levels, all of the campaigns allow you to modify nearly every factor, from income rates to fleet sizes to AI aggressiveness, all the way up to the rate at which your fleet levels up and unlocks bigger hull sizes.

==Factions and Tactics==
So far, the developers have confirmed all the factions from the original are making a comeback, but also Tyranid hive fleets, Necron fleets, dark Eldar, Mechanicum forge fleets and others are coming too. The following subfactions are based on the most famous and powerful elements of the main factions. For example, the AdMech subfactions are based on forge worlds while the Space Marine subfactions are based on the 1st Founding Legions. Gameplay is still a mix of direct and indirect attacks and abilities from your various warships, with proper positioning, upgrading, resource management being key to victory.

===Imperial Navy===
The well rounded jack-of-all-trades fleet with a good number of ships on each weight class, capable of filling out most tactics and strategies. They have a nice selection of cruisers and battle cruisers which allow for tons different combos, although they are usually better in brawls, with the Overlord Battle Cruiser and the Tyrant Cruiser having the benefit of the plasma macro-cannon batteries. On the other hand, if you feel like you want a challenge or are finding Ork and SM and Tyranid ships hard to deal with you can go for Gothic and Dictator cruisers and Mars Battlecruisers, as their respective lances and ordinance bays allow you to stay relatively out of danger.
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Imperial Navy Fleets
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Gothic: Known from the first game for kicking Chaos ass in space and stopping the armless failure we all know and love.

Solar: A proud and storied fleet that is also Terra’s last line of defense.

Armageddon: A fleet in the Armageddon system that’s rather good at Ork killing.

Bakka: A fleet known for the first Tyrannic War and the Battle for Macragge. Admiral Rath of the Dominus Astra is a fine addition to this fleet’s badass history.

Bastion: The biggest permanently stationed fleet after Battlefleet Solar, thanks to their recruitment from multiple sectors. Will definitely need those numbers since they’re tasked with patrolling the newly expanded Eye of Terror.

Imperial Marauders: Just some schmucks who betrayed the Imperium but haven't joined chaos yet.

[[Rogue Trader (RPG)|Koronus]]: Busy keeping out the worst the Halo Stars have to offer. Operates between Port Wander and Drusus Marches.
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===Adeptus Mechanicus Fleets===

Nova Cannons, Nova Cannons everywhere! New fleet introduced for the sequel. Largely similar to the Imperial Navy except with fewer ship. [[Cheese|Use the slowly charging Nova Cannon and win at long range]]. Not advisable against the Eldar for obvious reasons. Some fleet admirals of these toaster bangers even get the ability for unlimited Nova Cannon rounds, so yeah that's a thing.

The AdMech plays as a sort of hybrid between Imperial and Chaos: They have the long range lances and cannons of Chaos but similar armour and speed to Imperial. The key difference is that all of their ships have the "exceptional accuracy" attribute which makes them more accurate at long range and better technical skills for repairing their ships. Also got a buff in the second patch where all of their Nova Cannons have access to one shot of a skill called "Eye of the Omnissiah" that slows any ships hit by a massive amount for a whole 30 seconds, which can be game changing if you use it right. Another thing is a RadTempest, which utilizes Spess radiation to do damage over time to anyone waltzing into it.
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AdMech Fleets
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Agripinaa: A world near the Cadian Gate that suffered many raids. Luckily for them, they give as good as they get. The eponymous sector and planet are present in the game.

Graia: A mobile forge world capable of warp travel. Its Battlefleet was made to escort this FUCKHUEG spaceship/forge world.

Lucius: Your run of the mill forge world known for supplying shit to many other battle groups. Has an artificial sun in its planetary core, which is why it’s so powerful.

Mars: The home of the AdMech and the forge world we all know and love. As such it’s the greatest and most advanced of all the forge worlds. Has a rich history and dark secrets under the surface.

Metalica: Not so subtly named after the famous metal band, this forge world has no life at all but a shitload of natural resources. Has been able to produce shit for many campaigns, including the one on Armageddon.

Ryza: Many Ork WAAAGHS! seem to have a fetish for this forge world. Is known for its great plasma weaponry and the genesis of the Stormblade tank. The dark days of the 41st Milennium will make this forge world and its stores and abilities especially valuable.

Stygies VIII: A forge world that would’ve fell to Horus if not for the Eldar. The High Lords are worried this new bond will lead to Xeno corruption and HERESY, even though this is a stupid line of logic since that would make the Tallarn Desert Raiders regiment questionable as well.
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===Space Marines===
Get up close and tear your enemy a new one with massed boarding actions and lightning strikes. SM ships have very strong armor, can take the punishment, and have decent guns for their weight classes. Their ships are also the fastest among the Imperial factions, having 40 more speed units than everyone else in each ship type. They are however, also the most expensive to deploy, usually costing around 20-25% more points than the Imperium's and AdMech's ships on each weight class, and their armament selection is much lower.

Use this technique against the biggest enemy ships first, making the enemy flagships into drifting hulks. Your battle barge and 3 strike cruisers (or fleet made up of strike cruisers only) should be able to deal with whatever is left of the enemy fleet. Beware of scuttling actions by the enemy, as this can fuck up your fleet. Also, make sure your enemy doesn't retake their ships. Your goal as a space marine fleet is to turn the enemy fleet into a bunch of drifting hulks, because that is what your fleet is best at. They also do not have morale penalties, so the crew will never mutiny against you, regardless of how bad the situation is getting.

Also, remember every single one of your ships has Honor the Chapter, which gives you a free short-ranged boarding action that ignores Shields and has a high critical rate. <s>That includes Escorts</s> Not as of the second patch. Use them. You also have torpedoes with zero spread, which means that at long range they'll do more damage than other torpedo-equipped ships. Their HP is low but their armor makes up for it.
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Chapters of the Space Marines
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Salamanders: Burner bois and absolute bros.

Ultramarines - you know them, you love to...Well, up to you. Either way, you get a Gloriana class Battleship ready to broadside the shit out of anything nearby. Have fun.

White Scars- Speedy bois

Iron Hands- The flesh is WEAK! Medusa appears in the game and is arguably the most useful planet.

Dark Angels- Definitely not traitors.

Imperial Fists - Good news, you get the Phalanx and by the Emperor does it wreck shit for Chaos. You can tank ramming a Blackstone Fortress to death and look cooler on the other side. Bad news, you don't get to use it after. Boo!

Blood Angels- Fabulous and furious.

Space Wolves- FURRIES!

Raven Guard- Sneaky bois
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===Fleets of Chaos===

Your typical spiky Space Marines. Ships aren't as tough as their Imperial counterparts but are faster, have longer range, and more powerful lances. Standard tactics basically involve playing keep-away with every single faction. Bombers/carrier spam in general are great for dealing extensive damage, and against dedicated close combat factions such as the Orks and the Eldar refractor fields are life-savers. Ideally you want to hit enemy ships from outside their sensor range, this can be tricky as you will need to get the enemy ships revealed, a work your escorts can do decently.

They also still have their marks from the first game. Nurgle is still a powerful one although not quite as amazing as BGA1's Nurgle mark. Khorne too gives some big buffs to your boarding defenses and a bonus action when using lightning strikes and assaults, also horns, like a lot of them, your ships become quite spiky, as a simple advice it may be a good idea to take some Carnage cruisers as they are the main brawlers of the chaos fleets and upgrade them with Khorne's mark. Slaanesh's mark is very useful now as it increases your speed (6x Slaanesh Slaughter cruisers = Eldar tears) and is powerful against slower fleets like Orks. Tzeentch mark is good for being sneaky with long ranged attacks and for getting spiffy castles on your ships.
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Factions of the Forces of Chaos
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Alpha Legion: Don’t exist

Lost and the Damned: Run of the mill heretics

World Eaters: KILL. EVERYTHING.

Emperor’s Children: Some of the sickest fucks in the galaxy.

Thousand Sons - [[Heresy|did nothing wrong.]]

Iron Warriors - Somehow got the Planet Killer from the Black Legion. Edgy Manchildren. (Don't say that to their faces.)

Death Guard: Never took a shower for 10 thousand years.

Red Corsairs: The deadliest pirates in the galaxy.

Night Lords: Spooky.

Word Bearers: The ones who [[Horus Heresy|started it all]]... Oh yeah, and the Chaos protagonist hails from these guys.

Black Legion - do you like killing whole squadrons with one broadside? Love cutscene power to the max? Well,you've got the Vengeful Spirit on your side and she's ready to strut.

Sons of Malice - Happy that they are canon again, but not their {{Blam|BLAM NOT THIS TIME, HERETIC}}

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===Aeldari===

In campaign, they will have a damaged Craftworld whose gimmick is pre-sighted bombardments that enemy ships DO NOT want to be in. Like the first game, they can be your friends or enemies. Despite being three separate factions in the multiplayer, in the campaign all three are treated as one faction. In fact most battles against them while compose of mixed fleets with ships from all the factions.

The factions are:

*'''Corsairs'''
** The Corsairs are the Aeldari from the first game lead by Eldrathan. They can be your friends or enemies too, although their aid is relatively minimal compared to the effort you as a player have to put in. Plays basically the same as they did in the first game for better or worse, with the major difference being that Shadowfields at max strength will block Lightning Strikes.

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Aeldari Corsair Fleets
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Sky Raiders: Notoriously vicious attackers mistaken for Dark Eldar. Are Bro-Tier enough to assist Eldar Craftworlds.

Eldritch Raiders: They follow Prince Yriel. Abandoned Craftworld Iyanden and harassed Imperial shipping for decades, but shrugged off this streak of dickishness to save their former Craftworld from being nommed by Tyranids.

Steeleye Reavers: Originated from Craftworld Ulthwe. Nothing else is known about them.

Sun Blitz: Believed to be aligned with Craftworld Alaitoc by the Ordo Xenos, but are also bitter rivals with other corsair fleets. The cause of such a rivalry is unknown.

Twilight Sword: Love being pirates, and are supposedly honorable in battle (if this doesn’t put them at a disadvantage).

Void Dragon: A big and aggressive pirate fleet that operates across the galaxy. Infamous for being unpredictable and having enough balls to engage significantly stronger foes (unlike their other knife-eared pansy brothers and sisters).

Ynnari: Worshippers of Ynnead because it will supposedly free them from the strict lifestyle the Eldar force themselves to follow after the Fall of the Eldar. Can’t blame them for it either, not many people want to be celibate and boring for the rest of their lives (and Eldar have VERY VERY long lifespans...)
They also play exactly like the first game minus a few minor changes, which can be said for the entire eldar races in the game. Really fast glass cannons that can only fire from the front.
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*'''Craftworlders'''
**Craftworld Eldar play a bit like Eldar-Light: Not quite as fast as the Dark Eldar or Corsairs and don't do quite as much damage but nowhere near as squishy. Still cant compete with any Imperial or even Chaos ships of the same weight class in a fair one-on-one fight so you still need to micro them to get the job done.

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Aeldari Craftworlds
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Ynnari: So good they got included twice. Lots of Eldar seem to love this guy. Can't imagine why... (hint: life is a lot more interesting under his lead) This movement however is currently underground thanks to distrust and fear by more traditional Eldar.

Alaitoc: Is always fighting the Necrons. They were the only ones among the Eldar who knew they'd come back (every faction's gotta have ignorance in some fashion it seems).

Biel-Tan: Militaristic and as Xenophobic and arrogant as the Imperium, despite being almost as badly fucked up as Iyanden due to recent events. Highly territorial of Maiden Worlds, willing to RIP AND TEAR any invaders of such worlds. One could wonder how they and the Imperium have so much in common. Still salty after losing their Craftworld to Skarbrand.

Iyanden: Used to be populous, but is now full of dead Eldar in Wraithbone constructs. The dead souls have extra huge balls (a trait unusual amongst the rest of their kin) by risking the damnation of their souls to defend their Craftworld.

Saim-Hann: Is willing to follow the Eldar path with "flexibility", and is considered the more wild and dangerous of their fellow Craftworlds. They're very forthright and borderline reckless in war.

Ulthwé: Famous for its Seers and endless war against whatever the Eye of Terror feels like shitting out. Formerly led by one of the biggest dicks of them all: Eldrad Ulthran. Currently looking for the best timeline to strive towards.

Os'Tara: <strike> Home! I'll go home. And I'll think of some way to get Ynnead back. After all, tomorrow is another day.</strike> Big worshippers of Ynnead. Has strong ties with the Ynnari and Yvraine.
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*'''Drukhari Pirate Fleets'''
**Everyone's favorite emo-elves are back as one of the new factions for BGA2. Essentially their fleet can be described as the most glass-cannoney of the glass cannons. They share the same speed and powerful weaponry as their Craftworld cousins, but they have WAAAY better boarding/crew abilities and complete stealth at the expense of even worse armour and defenses (they don't have holofields or shields). Overall the Elder from BGAI with a dose of even more micro.

**Also, dark matter cannons with no wind-up, huge AOE, slows 50%, and eats through shields. Use it whenever possible to kite. Be extremely cautious around Tau; they can easily ping you, have lots of fighters to deploy, and then spam guided torps on the fighter-marked target. Quite good at knocking out opponents troops and ships can actually replenish their own troop count if the turn a ship into a hulk. hilariously though they have poor moral. Also if your stealth gets knocked out you're fucked with a capital F as DElder ships melt under coordinated fire. Don't let yourself get caught or you are done, if one of your ships get tagged with a probe turn tail and get it out of range of the enemy.

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Drukhari Pirate Fleets
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Black Heart: Biggest and strongest Cabal in Commoragh. Encourages strife between the smaller Cabals.

Broken Sigil: Loves confusion and anarchy. Terrorizes countless worlds because they can. Seen as predictable by their peers, and hated for it.

Dying Sun: Hates anything non-traditional or steeped in it. Can destroy stars. Its leader is obsessed with the metaphor of despair that destroying light can bring.

Flayed Skull: Closest to rivaling the Black Heart. Its Archon Lord Vraesque attracts the most ambitious pilots and therefore makes their fleet quite skilled.

Iron Thorn: A force to be reckoned with even after Vect's rise to power. Pride themselves on being "True Blood".

Last Hatred: Want to transcend death itself. To do this, they need many experimental subjects, who they get from undefended areas.

The Severed: Completely space-bound after a failed coup. Collect severed hands to pledge allegiance to their Archon, who's also missing a hand.
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===Ork Clanz===
Basically like the orks from the first game. Ram everything, lots of dakka, no accuracy, and shit morale. In campaign, they are obsessed with space whales and you have 2 space hulks to fight against! </s> <span style='color:green;font-size:115%'>WE'S ALSO PROVING DAT DA ORKS KAN KRUZADE TOO!!! TRY AND STOP US NOW 'UMIES!! AND GIVES US A KAMPAIGN ALREADY!!!!</span>
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Da Ork Clanz
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Goffs - Do you like hitting things with a massive rubbish pile and walking away just fine? go for these guys. Also... RIP AND TEAR!

Evil Suns - RED MAKES IT GO FASTA!

Bad Moons - the 1% of ork kultur. Their teef grow da fastist, and thus have the most teef to spend. This means they have da best dakka and equipmint!

Freebootas (Ork Pirate) - YAR HAR FIDDLE DE DE Being a pirate is alright to be do what you want cause a pirate is free you are a pirate! It's a wonder why more orks don't join these guys.</s> <span style='color:green;font-size:115%'>DA REAL BOYZ GOTS NO TOME TO BE SPEISS THINGS, DA BEST LOOT ALWAYS ON DA PLANETS ANYWAYS</span>

Blood Axes - Seen as un-orky even by other orks for their long-running history with mankind. This history involves being mercenaries for humanity in exchange for human guns and equipment, which always ends up being turned against the blood axe employers anyway.

Deathskulls - if the ultramarine's were orks (and massive looters).
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===Necron Fleets===
In one of the most particularly hilarious/infuriating twists from Tindalos, the Necrons are NO LONGER SUPER OVERPOWERED NOW! [[Wat|Also, they're the slowest ships in the game by a huge margin and have some of the weakest, slow-firing weapons too.]] They also don't have shields, which leaves them really open to ordinance skills and critical hits more than any other fleet, with intense fighter management needed to prevent boarding spam. Overall one of the more underpowered factions, [[FAIL|unlike the fluff]].

THAT SAID... there are ways to make them work to a degree.

Most Necron abilities are better defensively. Starpulse can knock out fighters, torpedoes, bombers, assault boats, anything small. Stagger it out so that between your ships you always have at least one Starpulse available to wreck their fighters. The dispersed lightning arc has great utility. You need hit only three ships with it for it to be more effective than reload stance. But your ships default to 13500 range, not the 9000 needed to make use of it. Always set your engagement distance. When your lightning arcs are upgraded to drop armor by 25, set your engagement range to the required 4500. Also, the pull ability for lightning arcs can keep opposing ships in range for the armor pen effect. Don't forget Transdimensional Bolt. It has unlimited uses, it has an extremely fast Cooldown, you can aim it to hit the enemies whole fleet if lined up properly, and it does as much damage as a starpulse wave while ignoring armor and shields. Scarab Swarm nets you the largest overall benefit to any of the Necron abilities, with the catch being that it's pretty easy to see coming. The game hands you Mass Recall+Scarab Swarm at the beginning though, so that ones easy. You really want to put out hurt though, warp into the center of an enemy fleet, mass recall, and then scarab swarm. Let's just hope they get buffed in a later update, they're really need it.

Don't forget that Necrons actually do not suck at boarding. Even before upgrading it they have pretty decent troop efficiency. They also have two leader upgrades that make it stronger and cause fires, and four upgrades to make it stronger in your tech. Also, avoid asteroid fields like the plague unless you have a leader cutting out their damage.
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Necron Dynasties
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Charnovokh- A dynasty that had most of its planets either consumed by Tyranid Hive Fleet Behemoth or unknowingly destroyed by the Imperium in the crossfire of killing said Hive Fleet. As such, while they still have many systems, their Dynasty's region is filled with more holes than a block of Swiss Cheese after a full magazine from an assault rifle was shot at it by a lactose-intolerant extremist.

Mephrit- A dynasty that woke up to the galactic shitstorm we all know and love. Its Phaeron was lost during the great sleep. Because it has access to the best Necron equipment, unity of this dynasty would mean the galaxy has to bite the pillow.

Nepheru- Just like other dynasties, they found primitives living in what was once their turf. This has led to predictable rage and a desire to rip and tear the inhabitants. These guys get their own little plot with the Dark Throne.

Nephrekh- This dynasty has an expansive territory near the galactic core, centered around the ancient crownworld of Aryand. Their worlds are rich in resources and make this dynasty fleet especially dangerous.

Nihilakh- A bunch of isolationists who want to maintain their holdings rather than expand, and home to the lovable and loathable [[Troll]] Trayzn. This is good for the galaxy at large. Their military might isn't weakened by petty wars, but would-be invaders would be all the more unwise to face them.

Novokh- Aggressive and expansionist. Other Necrons think this dynasty's actions are unfocused and lack restraint, but this dynasty's blood-red ships don't give a fuck.

Sautekh- This dynasty survived the great sleep the most intact out of all its rivals. This dynasty took advantage of that and expanded its borders while taking over lesser dynasties.

Temeryn- This dynasty woke up to find its domains mostly destroyed by the eye of terror. With much rage, they now have to be the Nepheru's bitch.

Thokt- The vessels of this dynasty are very radioactive since their coreworlds are in the Hyrakii Deeps. This means that this dynasty is seen as the bringers of plagues and sicknesses (though these sicknesses are radioactive).
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===T'au Fleets===
The T'au are back, but this time split into two factions: The Protector Fleet and the T'au Merchant Fleet. {{Blam| They were never at Cadia, HOW DID THEY EVEN GET INTO THIS GAME!!!??? I SMELL HERETICS!!!!}} Went from being one of the strongest factions in the previous games to now low tier, ram and board them to your pleasure. This is hilariously more honest to the tabletop Battlefleet Gothic and lore (prior to the sudden surge of GW’s Tau wank boner). The nerf bat is well deserved for the metric ton of BS that was T'au balance in the previous game.

*The Protector Fleet are the returning fleet from the first game and play basicly the same: extremely long range and the deadly seeker missiles, but are fragile and weak in CQC engagements, like the rest of their race. They are also fucking slow.

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Protector Septs
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Sa’cea- A harsh world that produces a predictably determined people. They contributed more colonization fleets to the 2nd sphere expansion than any other Sept World, and became a big contributor in the eyes of the Tau.

Dal'yth- Heavily buttfucked in the Damocles Crusade, whose people have PTSD from the massive buttfucking despite the planet being rebuilt. To the Dal'yth citizens, serving in the protector fleets is a huge duty.

D'yanoi- Its isolation from the Tau Empire set this place back technologically, but its protector fleet was still technologically on par. Knowing their isolation, the Sept fleet spared no expense in their fleet.

Farsight Enclaves- Led by the most popular weeaboo space communist who realized the ethereals were evil. As such, they don't have as many resources as the rest of the Tau septs but still have a mighty fleet to protect against humans, orks, tyranids, and other shit.

T'au- The capital of the Tau empire made of harsh deserts and huge spire cities. As such it has the largest fleet for its defense. No human has ever set foot on the planet, and the fleet wants to keep it that way (though this will actually depend on whether Shadowsun and the 5th sphere expansion can do their job, given the Death Guard's current incursions).

T'aun- The Tau's first off-world colony that remains a haven for space-farers even today. This Sept never lacks enthusiastic recruits, and lends vessels to other Septs found lacking in protection.
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*The T'au Merchant Fleets are a sorta new addition (they were mentioned in the old Battlefleet Gothic rulebooks), this fleet is more carrier based than anything. Otherwise, it shares the same strengths and weaknesses as the rest of the Tau. Also, this fleet is the definition of spam.

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Merchant Septs
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Sa'cea- A merchant fleet less numerous than other Sept worlds but no less active. Their world apparently has hardships so deadly that traveling in the unknown reaches of the void matters little in comparison.

Dal'yth- Is one of the 19 wonders of the Tau Empire, and is a steady trade hub for the Empire (with an equally steady flow of ships to defend it). Is a beacon of Tau superiority since its has the largest amount of aliens trading in its starports than anywhere else.

D'yanoi- Upon renewing contact with the Tau Empire, numerous trade opportunities opened up which lead to this Sept's merchant fleets expanding greatly. Which of course, was for the Greater Good.

Farsight Enclaves- The value of trade for this breakaway Sept cannot be understated given its current circumstances, so its merchant fleets have fearsome weaponry and engage in many one-sided trade deals.

T'au- Is the Tau capital, and is at the heart of Tau trading and commerce. As always, that means its merchant fleets are the strongest.

T'aun- Another hub of trade with a powerful merchant fleet, whose fleet is said to travel further beyond the Tau reaches than any other. If you see a Tau merchant fleet trying to spread the Greater Good, there's a good chance it's them.
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===Tyranid Hive Fleets===
The Tyranid Hive Fleets are a bit unusual. Basically every other ship from ever other faction is basied off the models present in the tabletop game to a really faithful degree. These guys? Not so much. The old models for Tyranid Hive were, in a word, hideous so Tindalos went ahead and created entirely new ships from scratch. They ''still'' look hideous mind you, but they look like the type of hideous a Tyranid ship should be, so it all works out.

Gameplay-wise the Tyranids are, as you'd expect, a short-ranged and assault-oriented faction. Though their ranged capabilities are generally unimpressive, their lance-equivalents uniquely ignore shields, allowing them to reliably chip away at enemy hulls, while their own shields inflict damage-over-time to nearby enemy vessels so long as they're active; some of their escorts also hit extremely hard for cost. Finally, their prow weapons include a tentacle tongue which can latch on to enemy ships either to deliver an assault action or pull the two ships closer together, or a pair of colossal devouring jaws which not only [[Awesome|increase ramming damage while negating the damage suffered in return]], but then continue to inflict a respectable amount of damage over time to any vessel in contact.

Tyranids have a few more unique features. Firstly, ALL non-titan ships - from lowly tiny escorts to might battleships - begin the battle stealthed, and can regain that stealth just by entering a nebula or asteroid field. This stealth is only broken by active scans or wandering into the very close sight detection range, allowing you to easily get on top of enemy vessels. Next, though you lack engines for a sustained forward boost or high-energy turn, these are instead combined into a single 'rush' action, allowing you to reorient and move at terrifyingly high speed a moderate distance in ANY direction, on a surprisingly short cooldown. Finally, [[Tarpit|when escort-class ships are destroyed they leave behind a spore cloud which damages and slows non-Tyranid vessels moving through them, allowing them to form literal tarpits.]]

Of course, while the Tyranids are undeniably [[Ork|masters of ramming,]] their true value lies in their [[Space Marines|boarding actions]]. Tyranids are THE deadliest assault faction in the game, capable of quite literally chewing through the entirety of a ship's crew at ''terrifying'' speed. Though they lack lightning strikes their speed, stealth and ability to control enemy vessel positions via spore fields, ramming and tentacles mean they'll seldom have trouble getting into assault range, and they can launch them in front as well as to the sides of their vessels. The only faction that can even come close to matching them for the sheer, brutal violence of their assaults are the Space Marines, but even then their assault actions are notably more expensive per point.

As of the second patch they are able to eat some of their own troops to replenish the amount of times you can use skills, but they also have a skill that replenishes troops. Infinite boarding charges HOOOOOOOOOOOOO.

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Tyranid Hive Fleets
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Kraken: As typical of any Tyranid Fleet lucky enough to get away, they adapted and learned from their mistakes. This trait (along with many others) almost led them to omnom Craftworld Iyanden.

Leviathan: Out of all the fuckhueg Tyranid Fleets, this one is the most ECKSBAWKS HUEG of them all. Currently one of the galaxy’s biggest threats.

Ouroboris: Origins unknown, and Imperial records suggest sightings of this fleet alongside Chaos incursions (although unconfirmed). Is also rumored to have arrived at the Cadian Gate as early (or earlier) than M36.

Tiamet: One of the earliest “Forgotten Fleets” (fleets suppressed or misanalyzed thanks to the Imperial bureaucracy we all know and love). Is harder to kill than a roach infestation, and survived their original worlds being fusion-bombed.

Hydra: Awakened thanks to the pointy-eared emo faggots. More Om-Nom-Nommy than your average Tyranid Fleet, because they breed like rabbits (relatively speaking in Tyranid terms, anyway.) For some reason, they team-kill and om-nom older Tyranid fleets.

Gorgon: A Hive Fleet so adaptive it made the Tau and Imperium do a temporary alliance (which lasted a predictably short time, I might add).
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==Links==
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPbXOHZW8co Announcement Trailer]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVghX8opHJU Faction Trailer narrated by everyone's favorite collector of the strange]
* [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLyLLeKcxw24VOPJXyq5soWESsRKDa5V45 The game's excellent soundtrack]

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]] [[Category:Video Games]]
[[Category:Battlefleet Gothic]]

Battlefleet Gothic Armada

2023-06-09T22:48:40Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

{{/vg/}}

Developed by Tindalos Studios and published by [[Focus Home Interactive]] (the same guys behind [[Awesome|Blood Bowl, Mordheim, and Space Hulk Deathwing]]), this game recreates the good old specialist tabletop, pitting the different factions of Warhammer 40,000 in brutal space warfare.

==Plot==
[[File:Spire gets torture.png|thumb|This is you, Captain Spire, a rookie admiral who is about to go though unimaginable pain just to go fisticuffs with a demonic possessed super human......in a spaceship battle! Got promoted to an admiral after that though so... worth it?]]
Basically the retelling of the Gothic War AKA Failbaddon's 12th Black Crusade, just a rookie admiral fighting Failbaddon's attempts to get the Blackstone fortresses. When you discover the plot unfolding and run to tell the Imperial Navy about the looming Chaos tsunami, the Inquisition immediately shocks your balls to be certain you're Heresy-free before you're promoted to sector fleet command with more promises of continued balls-shocking if you feth up. Grimdark abounds. Essentially, you play as Admiral Spire, who is a stand-in for Admiral Cornelius von Ravensburg (Ravensburg is still there, but has been demoted to an advisory role). What Ravensburg did in fluff (or rather what he didn't, for certain scenarios), Spire did instead in the game.

[[File:The old crone or not.png|200px|thumb|right|not even the champion of chaos is safe....]]
Extra fluff was <strike>added apparently</strike> ported over from the [[Graham McNeill|Iron Warriors novella]] (actually this dates back at least to the original Battlefleet gothic tabletop rulebook, check page 87), like Abaddon got the information about the Blackstone fortresses from some old crone (according to the intro movie).

<s>Other sources suggest that the old crone was</s> This crone is Moriana, according to the subtitles in game. A psyker with a powerful clairvoyance ability, and one of the Emperor's original advisors before falling to Chaos. Because of her ability, she is consulted by Abbadon numerous times on how not to be an armless failure, but has yet to succeed. It is also possible that she got the information of the fortress from the Chaos Gods themselves.

Oh, and it seems they got the same voice filter they used in Retribution to make Abby sound like himself, as well as [[If the Emperor had a Text-to-Speech Device|Alfa Legion animation style]] combined with some beautiful 3D graphics which of course is gonna be highly exploitable for Youtube videos and whatnot. These campaign cutscenes provide bits of fanservice such as [[Daemonette|lesser]] and [[Keeper of Secrets|greater]] daemons of [[Slaanesh]] and [[Squig|colossal squigs]] making their first video game appearances.

Anyway. Rookie Spire quickly proves himself to be a highly capable Admiral running from flashpoint to flashpoint across the sub-sectors that make up the Gothic Sector in a giant game of whack-a-mole. Dealing with Heretics with extreme '''BLAM''', Ork boyz eager to get in on the fights -up to and including taking on their space hulk and warboss- and of course those pointy eared xenos assholes known as the Eldar who seem to help and hinder you at the same time. With rarely enough resources to tackle all the problems each turn - so Tuesday for the Imperial Navy.

The main campaign is divided into three sub-campaigns.

First is the Prologue, which doubles as the tutorial. Based around the historical raids of the Chaos fleets looking for the 'Eye of Night' and 'Hand of Darkness'. Artifacts which in canon Failbaddon seized and was able to use eventually to turn on the Blackstone Fortresses because the Eldar are giant dicks leaving this stuff around. I mean this isn't a remote control you lost behind the couch for the TV here, but the keys to the ancient Eldar's WMDs. Nice work fellas! Anyway, Spire CAN with some excellent work keep the artifacts safely out of the hands of Chaos and place them into the theoretically safer hands of the Inquisition, who get them out of the sector to safety. The game however defines them not as the remote controls, but as artifacts that would dramatically increase the power of warp storms and make warp travel harder. Which will have a very big multiplier effect when...

The second campaign is called, appropriately enough, the 12th <strike>Temper Tantrum</strike> Black Crusade. The Chaos attacks kick up in tempo and you're going to have to start making decisions on what missions to take and which ones to leave. Worlds can now be lost forever as Abby starts to nick those Blackstones and turn them against planets and eventually entire stars, something that isn't entirely clear to the Imperium at first, being distracted by his OTHER WMD; the aptly named Planet Killer. Which does give a sweet cutscene of it doing exactly what the name implies. Worlds that fall to the enemy strengthen them and weaken you in terms of keeping your fleet intact and supplied. Certain missions earn you 'favors' from factions within the Imperium consisting of the Navy, the Inquisition, the Space Marines ([[Imperial Fists]] chapter), or the Cult Mechanicus which can be redeemed for bling for your battleships. Priority missions are tied to the fluff of the crusade and ignoring them can quickly lead to Bad Ends. The Ork threat reaches its peak here where, if you play your cards right, things will end with a typically hilarious showdown with the Ork Boss on a mobile Space Hulk in an asteroid field. Once you damage it enough, the Boss shouts he's gonna show ya his hidden superweapon... which turns out to be an ancient Exterminatus level Cyclonic Torpedo. Maybe it expired, maybe the Orks have put it in the launcher backwards, but the Hulk is the only casualty, and without their Boss the Orks no longer represent a threat worthy of your attention.

[[File:Eldar-bfg-hieronymushoefer.jpg|250px|thumb|right|Don't expect too much tactical genius from your Eldar allies.]]The pointy eared annoyances can be turned to your side if you choose to do so and save them a few times which, at the least, free up resources and occasionally even bring them onto the field as an allied force (See image to know how [[Dawn of War 2|advanced and resourceful is the AI player]]). Even as Failbaddon raises the stakes by blowing up star systems. OR you can wipe out the Xenos scum, destroy their webway gate and make sure that they know now and forever that the stars belong to the Imperium alone.

The final campaign, 'The Imperium Resurgent' has the Warp Storms as in canon dissipate and Imperial reinforcements start to arrive, leading to a final showdown. If you have done well, the space lanes should have mostly been cleaned at this point, with a few lost worlds that had to die by canon but otherwise a glut of resources to hammer down on any nails that stick up. If you have done poorly, then between Abbadon blasting planets, capturing planets and the Inquisition cheerfully burning worlds that remained captured too long, lose more of the Blackstones; in short, the Gothic sector will start to look increasingly empty if you fuck up that badly.

Either way, finally you will face down the Blackstones and Planet Killer at the historical Battle of Schindelgheist (with Eldar help if you chose to spare them). Where Captain Abridal on board the ''Flame of Purity'' (who had tagged along with you in a few battles as a support ship) makes his historical sacrifice in a cool cutscene and rams his ship into the convergence point of the three Blackstone warp cannons, causing the energy to feedback and shut them down. While you deal with the Planet Killer and <strike>blow it to all hell</strike> cripple it to the point that it escapes to show up a thousand years later in the 13th temper tantrum, along with two of the Blackstones that retreat.

One Blackstone is boarded, <strike>Abbadon</strike> the Deceiver promptly hits the Self Destruct button causing it to shatter a short time later into a million pieces.

==Gameplay==
Battlefleet Gothic: Armada looks like a mix between Star Wars: Empire at War and Sins of a Solar Empire (Fitting, as there have been Battlefleet Gothic mods made for both). The game allows you to customize different ship classes with upgrades, which allows for limited personalization of fleets and specialization into different styles of naval warfare, being it long range carriers, close combat brawlers, etc. With the lead developer, AKA Admiral Ravensburg commenting the game resulted in quite a success things look bright for the community, and while after the first months the player base has dropped (as happens to most videogames anyway) it has remained with enough size to ensure you don't have to wait that much for a multiplayer match.

At this point a new matchmaking system is coming which will ensure new possibilities for multiplayer combat, while new patches have been fine-tuning the different factions, they may remain unbalanced in some scenarios but this being 40k and based in Battlefleet Gothic in vydiagaim isn't that much a nuisance unless [[Lawful Neutral|you are one of those guys who are absolutely obsessed with making everything perfectly balanced.]]

For those who prefer some compstomp, there is a new elite mode, unlocked at level 8, both for solo and coop which allows you to have cruiser clashes against the AI at maximum difficulty, what is more, with each new level you earn the AI earn 1% more points for ships, so,[[Dwarf Fortress| by level level 41 it will get 41 percent more ship points to call into the fight, oh, and every 10 levels starting with level 11 you will fight against the Planet Killer, the Ork Space Hulk, etc, lots of FUN*.]]

Tindalos has undertaken the process of launching up a sequel set in the current point of the timeline after the Gathering Storm; in addition to all the current factions in the first game, Necrons, Dark Eldar, and Tyranids will be added as playable factions (while not technically new, the Eldar will be split into Craftworlds and Corsairs, and the Tau will be split into the Merchant Fleet and Protector Fleet). Existing factions will be getting some new goodies as well.

==Terminology==
The tutorial for the game is… a bit sparse quite honestly. There are a few things that don’t get explained properly or at all, so here is a rundown on the way some of the crunch works:

'''Armour''': The flat percent chance that an attack that hits you will be negated. The numbers are front/sides/back. For example if a ship had 75/50/25 armour then this is a 75% chance that any attack fired at the ship from within its front arc will do no damage, 50% chance against attacks fired at a ship from within its side arcs and only a 25% against attacks taken from the rear hur hur hur. Armour provides no protection against ordinance (so bombers and torpedos). If a skill says “Treats armour as 25” or some variation of that it means regardless of the actual value the armour of this ship is treated as 25. Attacks with this value are very useful against Space Marine ships, as most of them have impressive 75 all around them but less impressive hull points pool. Armour also (to some extent) mitigates damage received from passing though asteroids fields. Lastly, the thickness of your metal hide plays a role in calculating ramming damage, both dealt and received.

'''Assault actions''': Comes in three flavours: Lightning strikes, boarding actions, and what I call “ordinance launched boarding actions” (because I am incapable of coming up with good names) which are boarding action launched through boarding torpedos, Thunderhawks etc. All three both do basically the same thing: deal a small amount of damage but have a high chance to deal critical damage (see below). In the patch that introduced the Space Marines the mechanics got tweaked somewhat: assault actions have a much higher chance of dealing critical damage to the sub-system you are targeting on an enemy ship (click the enemy ship in battle and you will see buttons to target specific places) rather than just rolling equally against all the critical hit options.

If you use this skill a lot you will notice that often you will see a message saying “(boarding action/lightning strike) failed”. A ships troop value is its flat percent chance to resist boarding actions. So a ship with a troop value of 60 has a 60% chance to not take any damage from an assault action. However, for every turret a ship has left this value is raised by 1 against boarding actions only. So a ship with a troop value of 60 and 9 remaining turrets has a 69% chance to repel boarding actions. Keep in mind though that a lot of ships will have upgrades that increase the number of assault actions that are launched per use of the skill (Orks for example have a skill called More Tellyportas which causes 2 assault actions to take place per use of the lightening strike skill), so you overcome this resistance by sheer number of boarding tests you will force a ship to make. Ordinance launched boarding actions have to actually hit the ship (so they can be shot down by turrets or just plain old miss) and then are rolled against the troop value. Teleporter assaults can only cause temporary critical damages, fires, or hull-breaches (which deals 25-100 damage to the hull), while boarding actions can cause permanent crits, fires, or breaches. In the event of, say, an enemy ship attempting to warp out, chances are best to use teleporter assaults, but really, this just depends on your ships and how you have them set up. No one-size-fits-all.

'''Critical hits''': Critical hits have an additional effect when an attack isn’t negated by armor (see above). Critical hits (usually) only occur when an attack hits the actual superstructure of the ship, not its shields. All weapons have a critical hit chance that generally hovers around the 1-5% mark. While this may seem low, remember most weapon batteries fire 5 to 10 shots per salvo, all of which have a chance to crit. There are also weapons that have a *much* better chance, with some going as high as 30+%, for example the SM bombardment cannon with a maxed out master gunner crewman (nothing will make IN gamers like me cry harder than a battle barge with Master Gunner, Master of Armory, four bombardment cannons, and a means of killing shields easily. Nothing. Sodium levels WILL intensify). There are two types of critical hits: Temporary, which are shown in yellow and go away when you use the emergency repairs skill, and Permanent, which are colored red, visually blow up a part of the ship, and are… well ya know. (If for whatever reason you have an unpatched version of the game, all crits are Permanent) A non-exhaustive list of critical hit effects are:

* Generator damaged: A ship can’t use any skills which have Affinity: Generator (there are too many to list but the biggie is lightning strikes, look at the skill description to see what affinity a skill has) and loses the ability to regenerate its shields/holofields. A destroyed generator also doubles time needed to make a warp jump/faction equivalent. A lost generator can be a death knell in certain cases; if you lose this against Space Marines or Tau...just get out, because if you don't, when your ship takes too much damage and needs to get the hell outta dodge, it's not going to warp out in time.
* Weapon Destroyed: Does pretty much what you expect. The most common to suffer, and perhaps the least crippling individually...but then, a ship with no guns ends up just being a glorified battering ram.
* Hull breach: Deals 25-100 hull damage; used to disable emergency repair skill, but now it's only if the ship is Heavily Damaged.
* Fire!: We didn’t start it, it was always bur- oh no wait we totally did start it. Deals a small amount of damage over time for its duration and multiple instances stack. 3+ fires at once are no joke, even on the largest ships.
* Bridge destroyed: Disables special orders. On smaller ships this isn't ''usually'' that big of a problem, but on major ships that are the centerpiece of your strategy, this can tip the balance at a crucial point and cost you the match.
* Engines damaged: This can be a catastrophe of the highest order...or it can just be "meh, whatever." "Fortress" fleets like some of what the IN or SM can field won't be too terribly affected if you know how to "circle the wagons", but if you're playing Orkz, a ship with broken engines is a completely useless ship, because your days of ramming anything other than the most tarded of reres are over. This is also a death sentence for Eldar. Tau couldn't really care less, and Chaos will find it problematic but not disastrous, as long as you know how to get good.

==Tactics==
Depending on the chosen faction, gameplay will encourage a certain tactical doctrine based on archetypal strengths and weaknesses, with the Imperial Navy being heavy tanks designed for medium to close combat brawls, Chaos having great long range attack capability, Orks being very assault oriented, Eldar favouring hit-and-run tactics and stealth and Space Marines excelling at boarding actions.

Since changing ships and upgrade/skill loadouts consume limited in-game resources, players will most likely have to commit to a certain 'fleet build' in all game modes, with the leveling of new admirals and different builds within the same faction a likely time sink, although a new coming mode will change this model into something more accessible.

In the TT game, ship collision required a Ramming special order and was not automatic. In BFG: Armada ship collision is automatic and there is a maneuver resource that allows '''everything''' (Imperial and Chaos get the full gauge with boost and turning, Orks get a stronger but more random forward boost, and the Eldar gas pedal is weaker but faster recharging.) from capital ships to escorts to quickly turn and accelerate, making ramming a highly effective (albeit limited use) damage-dealer.

Point defense turrets are the default defense mechanism against torpedoes, bombers, and boarding craft. As ships take damage, they lose defense turrets in proportion to their health. This limits the effectiveness of the aforementioned tactics, especially at extreme ranges or against massed, undamaged ships. Late-game, however, when formations have likely broken up and as ships sustain damage, these become powerful offensives. While underestimated escorts can deal extremely heavy damage, with particular upgrades becoming highly effective against Eldar and Chaos harassers.

Most ships have a damage threshold which, when crossed, may force your ship to warp-out (or in the Eldar's case jump to the web-way, Tindalos thinks on everything), you can execute your captain to avoid the ship fleeing, although you must be careful as sometimes running away is the best tactic and a ship heavily damaged or destroyed won't be available for 1 or 2 turns respectively, you can also install the "Rally" skill which allows you to cancel a mutiny so the ship stays fighting without suffering penalties. Ships can also be lost in the warp, you can deny this by upgrading your navigator/equivalent.

Tindalos has implemented a series of interface options which allow you to preset certain behaviors for your ships such as minimum range engagement, autocasting skills, frontal or side attack and aggressive stances, this allows you to save some time customizing ships and can help you set your weapons to react to specific scenarios without requiring too much micromanagement skill, also, there is a tactical cogitator (click space bar once) which slows the game for some time so you can think what to do next, the ability will be reloaded after some time so use it wisely and don't bother trying to troll someone with it.

===Imperial Navy===
Love Nova Cannons? Certain cruisers can be fit with these murder guns, allowing you to mass enough firepower from very far away to wreck minor ships with coordinated volleys, although being highly inaccurate you may need a few of them to land some decent damage (tip, set autocast when the enemy is well inside the attack range). That aside, Imperial weaponry is high-alpha but low-medium ranged and heavily favors broadsides. Heavy armor but no special resistance to being boarded (aside from limited Ratings crew and Space Marines favour upgrades) means that Imperial ships prefer close-ranged shootouts but may struggle against dedicated assault fleets. Favours (specializations) include Imperial Navy (immune to insubordination and you can summon a ''Cobra''), Inquisition (1 free bonus level for each crew member and you can reveal one enemy ship every 120 secs), Mechanicus (1 additional upgrade and skill slot, making it extremely popular), and Astartes(extra lighting action and boarding defense, okayish).

Your escorts can be effective in squadrons if you upgrade them properly. ''Sword-class Frigates'' benefit greatly from the armor-piercing macrocannon upgrade, while ''Firestorm''s can make good use of the lance range, anti-shield and crit upgrades. The turret upgrades also help in combating strike craft-based strategies. ''Cobras'' are fast and can be summoned as reinforcements with the Imperial Navy favour, making them pretty decent disposable firepower if you upgrade their macrocannons or engines, although their torpedoes may feel a bit lack-luster as they only shoot two, still, remember, each blow landed in an a summoned ''Cobra'' is less damage taken by your main ships.

Torpedoes should be fired right off the bat. Their spread makes them difficult to dodge at long range and can deal fairly significant damage/force the enemy to maneuver and thus be revealed. The skill reload lets you fire on average 3 full salvoes per ship before the engagement proper begins. Melta torpedoes are very good later in the game when emergency repairs are on cooldown, on the other hand, conventional torpedoes are great for finishing off ships attempting to warp out, just remember there is a minimum range for the torpedoes to deal damage.

Your light cruiser options are currently limited to ''Dauntless'' with Lances and ''Dauntless MkII'' with Torpedoes. Go for the lanceboat, although the case could be made for combining multiple volleys of torpedoes from 3-4 ''Dauntless MkII'' to finish off any ships attempting to disengage.

While [[Nova Cannon|Nova Cannons can be tempting]] they may be tricky to use, in previous versions they were quite broken, but Tindalos tuned them down, they are still fairly useful against incoming blobs of enemies but not that accurate as they may end up firing in empty areas and achieving pretty much nothing, they are still quite great for dealing with Eldar, though, as they are highly vulnerable to their area of effect.

The imperials have a nice selection of cruisers and battle cruisers which allow for different combos, whether you want jack-of-all-threads fleets or specialized fleets, although they are usually better in brawls, with the ''Overlord'' Battle Cruiser and the ''Tyrant'' Cruiser having the benefit of the plasma macro-cannon batteries. On the other hand, if you feel like you want a challenge or are finding Ork and SM ships hard to deal with you can go for ''Gothic'' and ''Dictator'' cruisers and ''Mars'' Battle Cruisers, as their respective lances and ordinance bays allow you to stay relatively out of danger.

For those of you who like battleships, you may go for the ''Retribution'' Class: while this ship is slow you could make an interesting build comboing maneuvering thrusters, fuel gauge, armour-piercing macro-cannons and a stasis bomb in order to get as close as possible to an enemy ship, keep it quiet, unleash a salvo of torpedoes and then finish them with your Plasma Macron-cannon broadsides at close range, as with nearly other tactic in this game is not an automatic win but it may work decently for games such as killing the transport ships or the Space Station where your victory conditions can't be sabotaged by a warp jump, you may also want to upgrade the Retribution with a power ram, while hard to pull this out, if you manage to get close enough for melee then you can throw a bunch of [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnbq7f2CcxE Consecutive Normal Punches] by quickly turning on and off your thrusters to destroy anything short of another battleship in short order.

The other battleship, the ''Emperor'' class, is actually more an aircraft carrier than a proper Battleship, although it can still unleash some heavy damage with its broadsides, can be great for dealing massive damage at long range, or defend your other ships with swarms of fighters from enemy ordinance. Its main drawback is its slow speed, an abysmal 112, though this can be fixed somehow by installing Mezoa Pattern Drives and fuel gauge as well as belt armour to reduce the chances of getting its engines blown off. Did we mention it has a great 10,000 sight range?

If you are feeling particularly manly today, get some Angry Marines favor on your light cruisers for extra effectiveness on boarding and lightning strikes as well as defense (they make your ships yellow as a free bonus), buy the light cruisers maneuvering thrusters, gauge, macro-cannon armor-piercing and then some hull upgrades, and send them in mass supported by yet another Angry Marine cruiser with the same configuration, be sure to write "FUUUUUUU---" when rushing as close as possible on the enemy for extra-lulz.

===Chaos===
What is this? Marks other than Khorne and Nurgle?! EXTRAHERESY! Ships aren't as tough as their Imperial counterparts but are faster, have longer range, and more powerful lances. In real life this would mean that Imperial ships wouldn't really have a chance to win against Chaos ships. When your enemy is fast enough to keep out of your range, has range to shoot you, and has powerful enough weapons to seriously harm or kill you...well, you're just fucked. Fortunately, the fluff doesn't care about that and neither does crunch or the universe would be literal Hell already. Standard tactics basically involve playing keep-away and throwing out Deathclaws every 90 seconds to take advantage of the game's critical hit system, which can cripple an Imperial player with bad RNG, bombers are great too for dealing extensive damage, and against dedicated close combat factions such as the Orks and the Eldar refractor fields are life-savers. Alternatively, you'll want to really improve your lances and hit enemy ships from outside their sensor range, this can be tricky as you will need to get the enemy ships revealed, a work your escorts can do decently.

Don't forget to buy the micro-jump upgrade, as you need to stay away and be ready to maneuver yourself out of close combat heavy ordinance.

When it comes to marks, Nurgle is considered the best one as its area of effect means anyone who closes in with you will receive continuously damage, giving you a much needed buff against the other close-range oriented factions as well as additional resistance against boarding actions, this is particularly great if you have to deal with orks, space marines, or the imperial navy, also, it makes easier for you to finish off enemy ships and quickly dispatch enemy escorts.

Khorne too gives some buffers to your boarding defenses and a bonus action when using lightning strikes and assaults, improving your chances of dealing critical damage to your opponents, also horns, like a lot of them, your ships become quite spiky, as a simple advice it may be a good idea to take some ''Carnage'' cruisers as they are the main brawlers of the chaos fleets and upgrade them with Khorne's mark, or go Nurglite.

Slaanesh mark may be nice when dealing with Orks as it breaks their morale, this being one of their weak points, it also has a power which blocks enemies from using special abilities, which may be helpful in order to shut some Eldar pulsar weaponry but that's it, one or two Slaanesh ships in your fleet may be enough for support or to hunt down one enemy ship at a time.

Tzeentch mark is good if you are depending in long range attacks as it generates a (very evident) cloud which hides your ship and any close allies, combine it with efficient thrusters for extra sneakiness, you can also throw a false-signature beacon and switch place with it if you so want, but don't expect that much as it disappears when in visual contact with the enemy, with that said, it turns your ship into a magical flying castle which may be a fancy compensation, try it with a ''Despoiler'' or a ''Desolator'' battleship!

===Orks===
Rest easy, because now your one stop shop for ramming and assault entertainment has arrived. All of your ships have a few "Kustom Points" that allow you to change out the basic build for something that is almost the same. Your options (at the time of this writing) are:

1) Lotz of Gunz, where you have, you know... a lot of small caliber gunz. This is the base option. Compared to macro-weapon of other races, gunz have very fast RoF, but orks being orks, battery is as likely to fire double the dakka, as no shots at all, making them quite unreliable.

2) 'Evy Kannons, which pack a punch....if you can stand low rate of fire and abysmal accuracy (50% at range of 3k units). If you take these, Macro-cannon range upgrade is absolute must.

3) Hangars. What does it say on the god damn tin? Grab the extra teleporta upgrade to drop 3 assault actions at once on some poor squishy fool. Adds 17 points to the cost of the ship.

Prow options:

1) Grot Prow Gunz. Not awful, but not world beating either. They're free if nothing else.

2) Mega Zzap gunz. They tend to do little damage, but have perfect accuracy, and orks even have upgrades the allow them to bypass shield and holofields, or slow down enemy ship upon hit. You can also slap one on any ship with the Weirdboy Tower upgrade.

Fore weapons:

1) Torps. Whats that bitching about torpedoes not being any good? Well, you're kinda right. BUT Orks get Boardin Torpz! Because cramming a bunch of Boyz into a tube and lobbing them at the enemy has never gone wrong in the history of ever, also, you can set them in auto with right-click, as the Boardin' torpedoz don't deal friendly damage.

2) Mega Kannonz. 90* forward arc lovin with good damage but...with Orky (in)accuracy. Probably better than torpedoes only if you having problems with maneuvering your ships front on to the enemy. Taking these actually cuts ten points off the cost of the ship.

Ork ships have the obligatory More Dakka upgrade available which causes all gunz to fire their maximum number of shots while the Lock On order is in effect. Combine this with Grot Message Runnerz to make orders last 50% longer and upgraded Grot crewmember to reduce order cooldowns and you may have difficulty seeing your ships through the hail of glorious lead spewing from every surface.

For favors, half of the upgrades are crappy or just basic utility (extra upgrade slot and Grot Shokk attack gun for long range teleporation for the Bad Moons, a highly inaccurate Nova Kannon which can explode and Kommando training for running silent for the Blood Axes). For the more suicidal among us, you can choose some Goff action. It provides you with a flat boost to Troops (for and against assault actions) and then straps a giant can opener to the front of your ship to provide +50% ramming damage ( stacking with orks racial bonus of another 50%). If you can time your Big Red Button right, you can ram escorts to death in one shot, The downside is that you lose your fancy rust-and-red paint in favor of Black on black. The Red Sunz favor is actually great when combined with the Big(er) Red Button as it not only gives your ship a longer boost of speed, but also a *traktor beam*, which is probably the orkiest weapon in the game, because nothing else screams Orks that something that allows tossing of kilometers long ships like toys. You can use it to throw enemies into mines, asteroid field, torpedoes fans, or right into the path of a bullrushing ship, extra-win if that ship has the Goff upgrade, accept no substitutes for catching scurry space elves. Make escort missions hilarious/infuriating by tossing a cruiser covering the transports directly into them and wiping out three in one go.

A further thing to note is that Ork ships are cheap as hell. If you ditch your torp launchers it's entirely possible to squeeze your entire fleet of cruisers and light cruisers into a single fight. Or, you can go for the opposite extreme and take two stripped-down light cruisers and 20(!) escort craft. A mob of Savages set to auto-use Lock On is capable of chewing through just about anything in short order and will spit out crits for days, but evaporates if a plasma bomb so much as looks at it funny. On lower difficulties this can win you games by itself. You can literally hit autodeploy, make a sandwich, and come back to the victory screen.

===Eldar===
Do you enjoy losing? Then this is the faction for you! (He's not joking, this game is NOT Dawn of Eldar, that much is for trufax)

While this may be a slight exaggeration (no it's not.) the Eldar are one of the hardest fleets to play properly due to two rather glaring handicaps:
* The first is that instead of shields Eldar ships get holofields. Holofields start off at zero strength and increase to 100% effectiveness over a few seconds as long as the ship is moving over half its top speed, and begin to wane in strength once a ship slows down. At 100% strength the holofield decreases the accuracy of enemy macro weapons by 80% and provides a flat damage reduction against lances. While this sounds good on paper the fact of the matter is that most ships put out so many shots that statistically a few are going to get through every time. Because Eldar ships lack the regenerating shields of the other races, and due to the fact that they have lower hull points and a racial ability that increase the chance for enemy ships to land a critical hit on them, their staying power is greatly reduced compared to the other races, as pretty much every salvo fired against them is going to cause lasting damage. It also means they are always vulnerable to boarding actions.
* The second is that Eldar ships mount all of their weapons on the front of their ship. This means you have to be facing the enemy to actually do damage, which greatly reduces your maneuvering options. There are upgrades that increase the firing arc of Starcannons to 270 degrees, but only for a limited time. Suddenly space Napoleonic navy doesn't seem so dumb anymore.

The other major problem is that Eldar, as in most of their vidya game incarnations, are a very ability/micro heavy fleet. Except that they don’t actually start with very many abilities, which means that until you can buy some Eldar ships are fairly underpowered. But because they are underpowered you can’t win fights, which means you don’t get renown, which means you can’t buy abilities. Its catch 22. IN SPACCCEEEE.

''Having said all that'', once you do get some upgrades the Eldar become downright scary. Eldar have the highest damage potential ''bar none'' in the game making them the definition of "glass cannon". They have the best fighters, the best ordinance and their basic weapons can decimate ships in a matter of seconds with the right upgrades. They are faster than any other faction by a fair amount which allows them to pick where the fight is gonna happen as well as zip around objectives like mosquitos.

There are a number of ways to build your fleet, but to start with it’s really recommended you go play against some bots on the lowest difficulty setting. Don’t take that as a comment on you or your skills, Eldar just play so differently it takes a while to adjust, and if you are losing every other battle more likely than not you will give up and go play Orks. The first thing you are going to want to grab are Stasis Bombs, probes and Augur Disruptors. Use the bombs to break up the enemy fleet so you only have to deal with one ship at a time, the probes so you can pick priority targets (that’s carriers and assault boats) and the disruptor so that whatever ship is left can’t detect anything. Try to fight near gas clouds so once you do hit something with the disruptor you can have your ships go stealthy without needing to use the running silent ability. Just keep moving, as the Aces High song says, run, live to fly, fly to live, do or die, fire your pulsars at convenient rates or get ships with launch bays so you don't have to maneuver your ships to target the enemy. Don't let yourself get caught or you are done. Remember to keep mashing the solar sails button, and that you don't have high energy turns or broadside weapons- so feel free to sail right past the enemy ships, and turn around in their rear arc before playing chicken over and over again. Don't get hit, and don’t forget the Eldar weaknesses: Bombers and Lightning Strikes ignore holofields, so having a bunch of fighters escorting your ships may be a good upgrade, Nova Cannons and plasma bombs/stasis bombs, etc will pulverize you so avoid getting in their path. Players will target your generators since without it's holofields an Eldar ship will crumple with a few shots from any weapon. Eldar ships have an upgrade to give them a free fighter squadron to make up for their painful vulnerability to bombers, be careful of torpedoes which may draw those fighters.

Don’t be afraid as well for your first couple of fights to take out one ship and then leg it. You need abilities more than anyone else, and until you get them you probably aren’t winning a fair fight, and a destroyed ship is a drain on your resources. Some of the better loadouts include Favor of Biel-tan (extra protection against boarding), Maxed out Spiritstones/Bonesingers/Eagle Pilots, and plenty of probes to reacquire target on any ship that attempts to hid from you by running silent.

Alternate take: Eldar have by far the best alpha strike in the game. When combined with their superior maneuverability, speed, and stealth, they are capable of isolating and instantly crippling, if not outright destroying, anything up to a cruiser. They can then disengage and repeat the maneuver. This applies to ranked and higher point games, where you have access to battlecruisers at minimum. The only counter to focused pulsar fire is the shield overcharge ability, and its cooldown is significantly longer than that of pulsars. Add to this the sustained harassment of eldar bombers, and the eldar are a fragile but dangerous faction, and if they catch a player off guard, they can destroy their ships frighteningly quickly. None of this applies to Eldar vs Eldar, which is a degenerate escort fight due to holofields.

In summary, DON'T PLAY FAIR! Your ships can't take it if anyone as much as looks at them funny, so do't let them. You have the fastest ships in the game and fastest turning speed and you can boost without being revealed to boot. Scout the enemy fleet, keep your distance, avoid torps and probes and zap anyone who comes uncomfortably close with an augur disruptor. And also bring nothing but carriers and upgrade your strike craft. At bigger battles, you can see cruisers melt under the weight of a concentrated bomber raid without as much as seeing you. Only get close if a ship gets separated from the pack, zap it's augurs, and pound the shit out of it with your glass canons.

===Space Marines===
Space marines and their space metal boxes are first DLC fleet added into game.

Compared to other fleets, SM are quite unique in a few aspects, most notably lacking any ship of battle cruiser class, but having access to two battleships (battle barge mark I and II) instead of just one in fights. Astartes ships are quite a sight, being moderately fast (somewhat faster than their navy counterparts but slower than most Chaos ships of the same weight class) and very well armoured. That however makes them expensive as well, and SM fleet will usually be ship or two behind in numbers (it’s actually not unusual to be out numbered 3 or 4 to one against Orks). Also, while SM ships have 75 armour all around they tend to have a lower HP total then other ships, which makes them very vulnerable to ordinance.

The thing you have to understand about the Space Marine fleet is that the same patch that introduced them to the game also tweaked the way assault actions worked to make them a bit more useful, and the SM fleet takes great advantage of this. All but a very few of their ships can launch Thunderhawks to provoke assault actions from a distance, and basically every ship has the option to upgrade their lightning strike action to roll three times for damage. They also have boarding torpedoes, which can lock on enemy ships, from unlimited range. You can take advantage of this by sending an escort ship while having the boarding torpedoes of the other ships in autocast and unleash salvo after salvo of attacks without risking any direct confrontation, good against fleets low on interceptors, not so much if your enemy has them. Finally, the SM racial ability lowers your opponent’s troop-value, making your assault actions more likely to succeed.

The major drawback of the fleet is that their guns tend to be a bit lacklustre, firing on average about half the number of shots of an equivalent Imperial Navy ship per salvo. A few of their ships do get access to a gun with a stupid high crit chance, but it fires very slowly. Also as mentioned above the SM fleet will often be outnumbered rather heavily, which combined with the low firing rate of their guns and cooldown time of their abilities, can often lead to them being swarmed over.

When it comes to favours, Astartes are again rather unique. Each specialization is incredibly powerful, but can only be mounted on a single vessel in the whole fleet. The favours are also actually the named character that fills that roll in the fluff, hence why they are unique. They also actually unlock that character as a crew member, and the special skills tied to them become more powerful the more points you put into them. The favours are:
* Chaplain: when active the ship becomes immune to assault actions for a short duration, which is excellent for trolling the Orks, but is otherwise the least useful of the four.
* Librarian: has a very large chance to trigger a mutiny on enemy ship, with the number of points put into the Librarian crew member decreasing their resistance to the effect. Again perfect against Orks, however can be countered with the Rally skill.
* Master of the Forge: Extra upgrade slots, one per level spent on the crew member, for the blingiest ship in entire segmentum.
* Chapter Master: Toggled ability. When off it passively buffs the special order for the entire fleet, when on it rises the troops value for the ship it is assigned to and decreases enemy ships troop value.

===Tau===
Do you like winning? Just pay to win!

Best guns in the game with the longest ranges. BET YOU DIDN’T SEE THAT ONE COMING.

Surprisingly, the Tau in fluff have an absolutely terrible navy. Their guns are more powerful for their size than Imperial weapons of the same size, but Imperial weapons fire shells the size of some Tau warships and come in dozens or hundreds of weapons batteries which each hold fifty or so of these weapons so...as you can imagine, in the fluff, the Tau die horribly in naval engagements which is the main reason the Damocles Gulf crusade was such a curbstomp.

In this game, though, the Tau actually are dangerous.

But seriously the sheer amount of firepower Tau can send downrange is frightening. Due to the way their ships are designed, with a more wavy, flatter, organic thing going on than the Imperium’s METAL BAWKSES, Tau ships can generally bring ALL of their guns to bear on a target in their front or side firing arcs. Combine this with minimum ranges of 9000 for railguns (micro-weapons) and 6000 for ion cannon (lances) that can be increased to 12000 and 9000 respectively and it’s possible to wipe out enemy ships in a single round of shooting from outside their detection range. On top of that their torpedoes lock-on and track their targets. Launch a probe across the table, or send some sacrificial escorts, to identify enemy ships, fire ze missiles, and watch as your opponent’s ships explode out of nowhere.

In terms of ships the Tau tend to be fairly offensively minded, with many ships combining lots-o-gunz, launch bays and torps on a single frame, but besides that aren’t really noticeably different from the other races, with two major exceptions: Firstly, two of their escorts, the Warden class and the Nicassar Dhows, can’t be bought at the load out screen. Certain ships equipped with “Gravatic Hooks” will automatically bring two Wardens with them (or two Dhows with an upgrade), allegedly for free but not really since any ship with Gravatic Hooks costs 75% more then another ship of the same weight class. The second is that Tau don’t have a Battlecruiser section on their ships lists. Instead they have an Auxiliary section, which includes two Demiurg ships and the Kroot Warsphere. The Warsphere is derpy as hell, as it can’t change direction like a normal ship and instead has to use its entire boost gage to come to a new heading. It is also quite short-ranged (compared to everything else), which paired with it's glacial slow movement meant it would never fire on anything Chaos or Eldar. That being said it is tough as fuck and cheap as dirt, and with a right upgrades it could be a perfect spotter for scenarios in which you can afford to play defensively (leave it at home for extraction and convoy missions). The two Demiurg ships are different weight classes but otherwise play the same: Big beefy bastards riddled with micro-weapons at the front and lances on the sides. They also have a front mounted mining beam which functions almost identically to Eldar pulsars with one twist: it gains charges when the ship is in an asteroid field or there are wrecked ships nearby and fires a number of times equal to the charges it has. Its short ranged but devastating, and is capable of crippling even a battleship with full shields and health if you hit it will all the shots.

Downsides? Tau ships are universally as slow as molasses flowing uphill. Seriously get out and walk. It will be faster. Normal Tau ships also can’t use lightning strikes (although Auxiliary ships can). These two factors make them horrible at anything that isn’t a stand-up fight. Data recovery missions or planetary strike missions as the attacker are basically a write off. Their ships also have generally about the same HP as Eldar ships, which makes them vulnerable to similar things (bombers, torps etc). This, combined with slow movement, also means they are particularly at risk of being rammed, to the delight of Ork players everywhere.

However there is something you can do to go sanic fast, the Air Caste favor increases your line ships speed by 50 points, to put that in in perspective that makes your 150 speed line ships (not counting auxiliaries that can't take favors anyway) and turns them into 200 speed. Chaos line ships have a speed of 188, so yeah, fuck your augur disruptor vision game.

===Countering===
Imperial: Easily out-ranged. Tau and Chaos are perfect against them. Easily out-maneuvered, which makes Eldar and Orkz good against them, though Eldar get shot up quickly, and the orks lack manoeuvrability. With any other faction, just make sure you have more dakka as Imperial ships have retarded amounts of life. Be wary of their Nova Cannons and fetish for torpedoes, an IN cruiser spewing 6 torpedoes into your broadside at minimum activation range does 45 dam. x 6 = 270 damage, those things pierce armor, and they can fire as fast as once every 30 seconds, which is not long. Best way to counter torps. is with spacecraft-carriers with fighter screens.

Chaos: They can only be out-shot by Tau. Get close quickly with every other faction, ram them to shit (unless you are Eldar). Orks may be the best rammers, but they get shot up fairly quickly. Don't let them get into nebulae, they will make your life hell. If they have augur disruptors, they're going to make you chip your teeth grinding them in frustration as they blank your sensors then run silent and start tearing into you at near-point-blank range with impunity while your ships stumble around uselessly.

Eldar: Very weak against ordnance and boarding. They can be rammed by other Eldar ships while trying to do their faggoty fairy dance zoom-arounds, which can make games hilariously short. Or you can just sit back and watch them get shot to hell by your cluster of stationary ships. Really, you don't have to do much to win. Just circle the wagons and watch them fail at life. If you're playing Space Marines it's even easier because you can drown them in boarding actions while they struggle to scratch you. Someone remind the space fairies to go home and let the adults handle the manly shit like void warfare.

Orks: DO NOT GET CLOSE. Or for God-Emperor's sake, don't get in front of them, at least. Shoot them up from afar, and from behind. That's it really. They can be out-manoeuvred by every faction, given their worst attack is in a straight line and all you have to do is move away slightly. If you have quick ships, fuck them up the ass.

Space Marines: dangerous up close, try to out-range them. Tau and Chaos are the best against them (or other Marines). Pretty much useless to board, don't bother. Slow as hell. Shields are mediocre, HP is very low, but they're armored like god-damned Land Raiders in spess. In other words, lances. Lances everywhere, all day, every day. Pew pew.

Tau: given that Tau ships are fairly weak, the best option is ramming (unless you are Eldar). This makes orks very effective against them, given that Tau ships are slow. You can not out-gun or out-range them (perhaps with Chaos, who can increase their lances to 15.000, but given your max range is 12.000 and the ships manouvre to this distance, it is pretty much worthless). They are fairly bad against boarding. DO NOT LET YOUR STRONGHOLDSHIP GET BELOW 30% LIFE. It will leave mid-battle and you are fucked (though if you have MWJ you just use that to prevent the mercenary train from triggerin). A fun tactic with the SMurfs is to use a fully beefed-up librarian to trigger a mutiny. Then watch their most powerful warship leave. Bring at least a couple carriers for fighters, because their homing torpedoes will plink away your ships' HP before even their main guns get into range. If you're Imperial, Nova Cannons, torpedoes, and/or ramming. Your prow is armored for a reason; let the armor take the brunt, go for the biggest ship face-first and let your broadsides and boarding assaults do some work on the smaller ships on the way in, try to circle the biggest ships as quickly as you can and tell your crews to aim for their shields. Orkz laugh at the Tau, if you're an Orky type and you're losing to Tau, just...turn your game off, go do something else. Space Marines with bombardment cannons, with their heavy armor, will make Tau cry the saltiest of johns. Eldar...well, as usual, if you're Eldar, you're fucked, dude.

==[[Battlefleet Gothic: Armada II]]==

'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPbXOHZW8co BATTLEFLEET GOTHIC ARMADA II ANNOUNCED! HOLY EMPEROR!]'''

UPDATE: Release pushed back to Jan 24th according to steam to allow for extra polish. Lame, but at least they aren't doing a rush job. Here is the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=22&v=XVghX8opHJU latest release trailer]] narrated by the [[Trazyn the Infinite|Metal Troll]] himself to tide you over :

Turns out it's a rush job anyway. Wubwub.

==Links==
*[http://www.bfgawiki.com/wiki/Battlefleet_Gothic:_Armada_Wiki The wiki, currently under construction, help is welcome!]
*[http://forum.battlefleetgothic-armada.com/ The official forums, feel free to fill it with complains about how your fav faction needs insane buffs.]
*[http://forum.cheatengine.org/viewtopic.php?t=589523 A most excellent profile editor which allows you to max out your singleplayer admirals so you don't have to grind through skirmish to get all the goodies.]
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOW-NCdKgj4 Imperial Navy trailer, killing heretics and xenos for the Emprah!]
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-f73xtf01Kc Chaos trailer, for the ruinous powers! Marks for all gods!]
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqFpEfpj_Ns Da orks trailur, we iz gona krump dem good! Featuring, ork pirate songs!]
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlArP1rX8t4 Eldar trailer, they don't seem to like ork songs!]
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3w3XeHpsis The launch trailer, featuring imperial manliness unleashed and Abaddon talking about people failing.]
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JOYKDryMwk Space Marines trailer, seems like Spire knows something about the Dark Angels THAT WE ARE TOTALLY SUPER-LOYAL IN ALL 40K ITERATIONS INCLUDING THIS ONE]
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StCXrBMl648 The Tau come to bring death from afar and space communism]
*[https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLyLLeKcxw24VhKXhT_8OcBwG6VWmKPkJ5 The game's soundtrack in all it's grimdark glory]

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Battlefleet Gothic]]

Battlefleet Gothic

2023-06-09T22:45:52Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:Impscale.jpg|500px|right|thumb|The Imperium of Man. Where's your [[Star Trek|Federation]] now?]]
'''Battlefleet Gothic''' is an out-of-production [[specialist game]] made by [[Games Workshop]], where players control fleets of spacecraft.

It is set in the Gothic Sector, bordering the [[Eye of Terror]], where [[Abaddon]] has launched his Twelfth [[Black Crusade]] in order to obtain the Imperium's [[Blackstone Fortress]]es. <strike>Don't ask how the Tau are there; Warp storm or some shit should be all the hand wave you need.</strike> The rules for ships that are aligned with the [[Imperium_of_Man|Imperium]], [[Chaos]], [[Ork]], or [[Eldar]] ''and'' were present in the Gothic War are in the main rulebook. Rules for ships other than that were released later in other publications with rules for playing games ''not'' necessarily set in the Gothic Sector - the largest and most relevant of which is ''Battlefleet Gothic - Armada'', which contains rules for ships belonging to other major factions in [[Warhammer_40,000|40k]]. (Note that in ''Armada'' it does not state that the factions, fleets and ships described were necessarily in the Gothic Sector, it is intended to expand the game to any void war in the whole 40k galaxy).

Some people still think that BFG is one of the best or at least most fun games that GW have ever made. Particularly assuming you just ignore the [[Necrons]], and everyone is playing competently, much fun can be had by all, doubly so when the optional limit on assault boats is used so that escorts are worth a fuck. Any game that encourages you to plow through the middle of the enemy so that you can shoot all your guns at once has got to be pretty good. Also, the flavor of the game is pretty fucking awesome actually, what with the various planet-demolishing shenanigans and just plain gorgeous rule book.

Also, in the land of 30cm range weapon batteries, it used to be that the man with an unerring ability to guesstimate his Nova Cannons on target was king. Putting the 1cm hole onto a 3cm ship base at 100cm range and straight fucking up a cruiser is just beautiful, though of course that takes a fair amount of skill. Alternatively, this can be achieved by building your own board and making apparently random stars bigger and brighter and knowing the distances between them. And then later rules revisions changed the Nova Cannon rules so that the template scattered instead of having to guess the distance to target (as part of the general change from "guess-range" weapons to scattering between 4th and 5th editions), rendering the whole thing moot.

In general it is outclassed by Battlefleet Neoclassical due to its purposeful use of rich ornamentation, elegant arcades, isolated decorative elements, superior shielding and medium range arsenal. When compared to the geometric designs, smooth lines, sparing use of ornamentation, forward acceleration and missile and lance arsenal of Battlefleet Art Deco it is clearly outmatched. Can go toe to toe with Battlefleet Ultra Modernist despite its use of vast fleets of cheaply mass produced fighters, and typically can best Battlefleet Romanesque in a straight up shooting fight unless severely outnumbered. Battlefleet Baroque was at one time rumored to be the next line of improved Gothic-class ships, until everyone determined that it was going to cost several quadrillions of credits just to rename the already existing ships without changing any hardware as not even the most ardent specialist transhuman mechanopriests were able to actually determine what was functionally different about the new ships compared to the old one. That said, whether or not a gunners' deck harpsichord would truly improve Imperial gunnery remains a point of heated debate to this day.

Battlefleet Brutalist was a rush-job aimed at producing sturdy, striking miniatures with simple, blocky, robust structures. Ork fleets looked great, everything else looked hideous.

==Factions==
===[[Imperial Navy|Imperial Navy]]===
Of course this wouldn't be a GW game without the [[Imperium]] being represented. [[Imperial Navy]] ships look like giant fucking Vaticans with warp drives and cannons. It is rumored that in the lower decks there's like...villages of lost workers, but nobody gives a shit. According to the rule book they have massive fucking crews and apparently zero actual technology to move shells weighing hundreds of tons into gun breeches and such. The book shows slaves running on massive treadmills to move them about. Wouldn't your navy work better if you used like... machines or something? If only we had a bunch of crazy ass priests who are fucking insane about technology on board to sort that shit out for us! This probably had something to do with with the fluff being from 3rd edition, in which Grimdark levels were at their highest to the point of being [[Grimderp|retarded]].

In general, the Imperials are good at torpedoes and nova cannons and other stuff. They also have 6+ front armor, which isn't that big of a deal, but it's nice y'know.

'''Alternate view'''

The above statement fails to point out that the Imperial Navy is the most diverse fleet in the game, comprising of no less than six fleet lists and sports more cruiser classes, in every subtype, than any other fleet in the game. You can take Space Marine or some Chaos ships as reserves and sport up to four re-rolls (more than any other fleet - except [[Abaddon]] who gives one re-roll every turn, so really Chaos have more than any other fleet since there's usually more than four turns in a game). Nova cannons are so powerful that it is considered poor gamesmanship to take more than three in a tournament list (1500 points) while many even advocate to using the one-per-750-points restriction and most of your basic cruisers can be upgraded to carry them. The six up prow is a huge help since most hurt comes from the front, and it lets you take [[Awesome|power rams]], a nice but situational point filler. Your average range is 30 cm, and only two basic cruisers can push to 45. Your 60 cm weapons are few and far between. Nothing fancy, you are the baseline that is used by other factions to set out their niche.

With all the options in the world, the biggest reason why the Navy fails to win many matches is that it is predictable by nature (hurr hurr, Imma fly at you while booming mah nova cannon, trying to fly between your lines to blast your arse off with both sides) and everyone and their pet otaku has a fleet. Easy to play, a real pain to master.

On the other hand, its toolbox fleet approach means you’ll always have what you need. It’s up to you to make sure everything is where it needs when it needs to be. Pick a method you want to use to make the other side die and then build your fleet around supporting that method. Like, if you want to focus on charging face-first with torpedoes and ramming, make sure you have some interceptors to help protect you from dangerous shit flying at said face. If you want to hang back and blast away from a distance, add elements to your fleet that protect you from countermeasures while complementing your approach in the offense.

In any case, the Imperial Navy is clearly intended to fight like angry Space Romans. So, get your power rams and assault boats ready!

===[[Fleets of Chaos|Chaos]]===
The [[Chaos]] fleet is pretty similar to the Imperial Navy, but emo'd up. They are a bit faster than their [[The God-Emperor of Mankind|corpse-god]] worshiping counterparts and have the largest selection of ships, making them superior to any other fleet (except sometimes Necrons) if correctly built. For various reasons, the Chaos ships look totally different from the Imperial ones, not just Imperial ones with tentacles and spikes and crap. They later made some ship that was supposed to be the 'old' Imperial ships that were bastard chimeras of both and they were ugly as all fuck and somewhat terrible, which raises the question of why the Chaos fleet is actually any good.

The reasoning behind the different looks of the Chaos and Imperial fleets is due to building techniques changing. Older vessels are mostly "keel built", meaning they were built upward from their keel and thus have a low, wide look to them. Meanwhile newer ships are mostly "spine built", meaning that the dorsal spine was made first and thus they have a tall, thin look. Additionally, the more recent Imperial ships have been built or retrofitted with an armored prow, while the Chaos ships lack one to allow for more speed. It stands to reason that older Imperial ships would look like the Chaos ones (which is why reserve fleets use Chaos classes and models) and any new ships turning traitor would look like Imperials.

Chaos is good at having MOAR DAKKA on their ships, and using their speed to rock balls.

'''Better view'''

Chaos sports the second most diverse fleet in the game with the second highest complexity and ship count. While they lack the strict durability and torpedo numbers of the Navy, they make up for it with absurd firepower, assault boats, better speed and overall better ships for fewer points. As a result they have some of the best ships, point per point, in the game. Your average range is 45 cm with lots of 60 cm options, and a few 30 cm options. They also have a pretty flexible set of upgrades, including putting [[Chaos Space Marines]] to improve leadership and boarding.

Where Chaos suffers is their lack of durability to incoming fire and ordnance. You quickly start missing that six-up armored prow after you watch your prized Repulsive grand cruiser get erased by a lucky round of fire. But that isn't much of a hindrance, because the only thing a 6+ prow is good for is ramming and eating torpedoes, and most of the time you're not plowing nose-first into the enemy lines anyway, and your side armour is precisely the same as corpse-god ships get.

Also, Chaos ships can have Marks of Chaos, and daemon-possessed ships, with some options being such a cheese even Elfdar feel their pants getting soggy, and as centrepiece models you have the [[Abaddon|planet killer]], and [[Exterminatus|activated blackstone fortresses]], which are [[Games Workshop|expensive]] in terms of points (750 apiece) but can shoop da whoop an enemy ship or two off the table. It also has four god-specific lists that add up upgrades and unique ships, sometimes cheesy, sometimes outright rapey. Nothing beats the priceless look on your enemy's face when your Conqueror starts counting how much boarding action power it has.

===[[Necron Fleets|Necrons]]===
[[Necrons]] have like 5 different kinds of ship and according to fluff are fucking nasty to fight. They are also the most powerful fleet, and have light cruisers that can blow apart battleships without a scratch, due to having the only armor saves of the entire game (no joke here) and a shitton of close-ranged weapons, and anyone who thinks they're outrunning you in a straight line had better prepare the lube, thus being unkillable and murder incarnate; if you want to reenact the [[Star Trek|Battle of Wolf 359]], this is your go-to choice. The drawback is that Necron ships are worth way more victory points dead then they cost to put on the table; losing even one can quickly turn into an unrecoverable points deficit. But there is no defeating a Necron fleet that outnumbers you, not in the fluff, not in the game. They remain OP, but then again, they are like millions of years old and are the most advanced ships in the game so that sounds about right.

===[[Eldar Space Fleet|Eldar]]===
[[Eldar]] ships (well, the corsair ones anyway) look suspiciously similar to the Minbari from [[Babylon 5]]. With only about six ships in the original rulebook, they were somewhat gimped from the get-go. They have shiny fields of awesome to protect them from lances and the like, but gun batteries fuck them up so hard it's retarded, particularly since they HAVE to dip into battery range to fire (the fields are basically naval-scale holofields which obscure the exact position of the Eldar ships, making them difficult to hit with pinpoint weapons, but doesn't help much against the "spam more dakka" approach to conventional battery gunnery). Also, the cruisers are so frail and lacking in firepower that they're worthless, so they're left with a fleet of escorts. While they're pretty fucking awesome for what they are, they melt when sneezed at, so the Eldar are pretty bad except in specific scenarios that let them abuse the fuck out of their movement rules. If the sunside edge is towards the enemy, you are fucked and there's just no reason to play.

'''Alternate View'''

Take the above, and add in that the Eldar sport the most powerful torpedoes in the game (with re-roll to hit, and only being hit by turrets on 6's, which is hands-down the best torpedo in the game. Even considering imperial Vortex torpedoes.) Also, their flyers are ridiculous, with re-rolls to hit, and 4+ SAVES for tiny fliers. Also, they have weapons batteries that always get the full shots (unlike all other factions, which only get a fraction of their shots for the final rolling). And also, lances that can hit multiple times with a single lance shot.

Then add in the super awesome Forge World Eldar cruisers, and the fact that the Eldar got a damn battleship in the second release, which has EVERYTHING the Eldar have for weapons. Ridiculous cannons. Powerful multi-hit lances. The nasty torpedoes. And the dangerous as fuck flyers.

To sum it up:
Eldar are, together with the Necrons, the best fleets in the game.
And this is said by a BFG veteran who does not even play Eldar.

The buggers are nasty. Not negotiable.

Between this and canonical stuff like an Eldar Ghost Ship surviving a direct hit from an ancient Ark Mechanicus' secret Archeotech "Chrono Cannon" (that is a very misleading way of describing what happened) that apparently fires black holes (Emperor only knows what that weapon was originally designed to destroy back in Dark Age of Technology), and leaving only damaged as described at the end of the book Priest of Mars by [[Graham McNeill]]. Although, it was crippled and the only reason it wasn’t destroyed is because the shot hit (or clipped) a fin instead of being a proper blow. Otherwise it’s existence would have explosively and literally deleted itself. Be prepared for some insane Eldar trickery when facing off against these skinny mother fuckers.

'''Alternate Alternate View'''

As strong as their torpedoes and planes are they suffer a huge problem when building a fleet, originally there were only 6 Eldar ships , this has since been improved but practically your only choice to play the amazing torpedoes is in a half dead spasticated escort and you have to bring an entire 250 point cruiser which will fuck you over as it dies within a turn of coming into range of seeing the enemy even with your fun ordnance moves.

In the end the Eldar are a fun race but suffer badly from a case of lack of diversity which makes it hard for them to build a competent list with anything but as many Eldar hellbores and aconites as possible.

===Tau===
The [[Tau]] have two choices of fleet. Their initial fleets were composed of refitted modular merchant ships and scout vessels. After getting their shit wrecked, they got together and finally built combat ships. Players have the option of the modular, adjustable, Merchant fleet (boxy) or the efficient, effective Combat fleet (sleek). None of the ships' names are pronounceable. "to pronounce it correctly, I would have to cut out your tongue."

The most effective Tau weapon is (surprise!) missiles. Meaning, torpedoes which can adjust speed and direction, which is unique for standard torpedoes in the game (there are guided torpedoes for the IN, but they can malfunction, and do not have the adjust speed gimmick). Other than that, They have starship-sized Ion cannons (lances) and massive railguns (macrobatteries). The other little gimmick they get is that their bomber flyer, the [[Manta]], gets a 4+ save, simply for being massive as fuck. Extra bonus is the ability to get an aura that lets you turret more effectively and ignore the column shift of battery at long range. Though you still don't get the 60range guns and your firepower is below the waterline.

Without using allies Tau fleets suffer horribly at the hands of Elfdar, Chaos and Necron foes. And if anyone gets to board you, you get your shit wrecked because your crew power is half of that of the basic enemy most of the time.

Your "combat" fleet sacrifices a lot for that tasty 90 sharp turn, being even less effective than your blocky cruisers of merchant fleet, getting even more assraped by Chaos, Elfdar and Necron, but they get the lances, so they are not as prone to one-sided ownage at the hands of 6-armour-all-around marines, though you go below the average in terms of air superiority and torpedo power when you start building combat-fleet instead of merchant-fleet, so try mixing them for best results, keeping your 6-hitpoint protectors squadroned behind beefier hero class to avoid sudden cripples.

===[[Ork Fleets|Orks]]===
The [[Orks]] look like the most fun to paint <span style="color:#33aa33;">DAT'S TROO, DA ORKSES HAVE DA BEST SHIPS COZ DEYZ A PROPA COLOUR, NOT LIKE DEM UMIES....'EY BOSS, WHYZ DEM 'UMIE SHIPS DAT COLOUR? DEM 'UMIES AIN'T SURPOSED TER BE LIKE DAT, DEY MENT TER BE ALL PINK AN SOFT, NOT GREEN LIKE US ORKSES...WAAAGH!!!...</span> , their ships are ramshackle at best and if you used gum instead of super glue to make them it would probably be more thematically accurate... and gross. In theory their random strength heavy batteries are pretty cool, it turns out that random translates alternately into 'pathetically ineffective whenever it's important' and 'did exactly what any other weapon system would have done' inside the game. However, fleets of ram ships are pretty awesome, because nothing is funnier than ramming the shit out of people.

===Dark Eldar===
The [[Dark Eldar]] are like the [[Eldar]] up to eleven, except you have no battleships. You are pretty much the epitome of glass cannon in this game, you hit hard and move ridiculously fast but if the enemy gets so much as a mean look your way you spontaneously combust. You have exactly two ship choices (a cruiser and an escort), rarely a good sign, although their ships have fully customisable weapon loadouts (unlike most other factions, where each ship has fixed armaments with maybe a couple of options). Funny enough, your maneuverability is HORRIBLY worse than that of elfdar. You don't get 180' turns and an extra move in ordnance phase, you can just come to new bearing super-effectively.

===Tyranids===
[[Tyranids]] are extremely deadly at close range, all ships besides the Hive Ship are expendable in the extreme, reasonably durable, and ridiculously deadly at boarding. But oh man are you fucked if your Hive Ship bites the dust. Also everyone who plays them just uses 'nid bits to scratch build their fleet. Unfortunately, the hive mind rules mean that a Tyranid player can only control one or 2 ships every turn. The other ships are forced to use an Instinctive Behavior algorithm that acts like basic programming for the ship (although in all likelihood this is what you were going to do anyway). This effectively means that a Tyranid player doesn't actually get to make decisions for his fleet most of the time.

'''Alternate View'''

Well the control of the ships is based on the number of consecutive successful Leadership tests. So have a lucky hand with Ld9 and nothing to worry. Even if you don't, the wonderful Instinctive Behavior will probably guide your ships towards your enemies... or the next planet...

But with that said, bear in mind that the hive has a huge fleet with an incredible amount of ships. Your amount of escorts alone exceeds other fleets by 3 or 4 usually. The bio-enhancements can make them pricey, but not all are needed, since only your super short-ranged battery gunnery (which is Tyranid space-puke basically) and your ability to EAT enemy ships will secure you victory. They come in numbers. Bodies over Bullets! In a huge scale...

===[[Space Marine Fleets|Space Marines]]===
The [[Space Marines]] are essentially the Imperium's mighty glaciers. Just like their ground pounders, except apparently the chapter serfs defend the ship and operate everything. They have armor like the Necrons do, on the two ships that aren't just Imperial escorts with a new paint job (you do know that SM have their own escorts?*). Those armored ships also have very powerful short-ranged bombardment cannons that are good, but thankfully aren't common enough to be broken. They excel at boarding and going toe-to-toe with the enemy, like everywhere else. They do this by regular boarding (where they get pretty big bonuses), hit-and-run raids by [[Thunderhawk]] (which serve as fighter and assault boat at the same time, while also having a 4+ save due to, you know, big armour and stuff. surprise!), or by simply shooting squads of Marines across space into the other ship (e.g., boarding torpedoes). They also can do [[Terminator]] teleport attacks when they are close enough. Much hurt to be had.

*After the initial release, which intended that you pay a bit extra to get regular Imperial escort ships with space marine crew, GW released models for actual specific SM escort-class ships. Those looked incredibly goofy, pretty much like beat-up bananas, and the crappy white-ish paintjob they had for the GW site were not really helping either. FW then decided to be awesome, and released better kits for them, which were absolutely beautiful.

===Adeptus Mechanicus===
The [[Adeptus Mechanicus]] are pretty much the Imperial ace custom squadron. They operate Imperial Navy vessels with a shiny paint job and upgrades (offset by higher prices and/or downgrades). Apparently, they use servitor slaves instead of human slaves, and occasionally use auto-loaders. Progress! Get an Explorator ship, which is like an Imperial Capital ship but shinier and goofier. Your crews are techpriests and servitors, so you get better repairs but your shit gets wrecked by boarding action quite heavily. Maybe they should Blood Ravens themselves some Secutarii.

To show off his abilities Archmagos Zibbit installs better turrets on every ship out there (extra lulzy considering you can roll for area support turret on some ship(s)) and your cruisers get a shiny lance dorsal turret to mess up the Chaos lovers day. You also get to ride the magnificent pimp ride known as Ark Mechanicus, basically a wet dream of every imperial out there, a souped-up Retribution battleship with nova cannon, best upgrades Mechanicus has to offer and a pricetag that feels awkwardly low for that amount of awesome in one place. The only downside? It is the only battleship that doesn't get the mandatory +1 turret that imperials would get if taken as AdMech ships, having a general 4-turret value that can be overcome with enough bombers. So a simple Retribution in AdMech list is pretty much immune to bombers and can hardly ever get torpedo damage, while the shiny pimp wagon can get hurt.

All in all the best way of playing imperials in a campaign is Adeptus Mechanicus, because you can refit that refit-cruiser after being refitted for rolling a high leadership.

==Homebrew rules==
As mentioned above one of the best ways to make the game more enjoyable is to limit the number of fighters, bombers, and assault boats allowed. This limits the maximum number of these craft to not exceed the number of hangar bays available on the capital ships, rather than the original treatment of the hangars like nonstop factories (which encouraged building up truly gigantic waves of fighters and bombers on your end of the table before sending them across all at once). This prevents the game from devolving into something resembling the sky over the Pacific circa 1945. Not that there's anything wrong with that mind, but it's not Battlefleet Gothic.

While it may be regarded as optional, the rule limiting attack craft numbers to not exceed number of launch bays in the fleet ''was'' included in the last set of rules for BFG, so it isn't really a homebrew thing any more. Still, feel free to allow the 'nonstop factories' variant in your games, since it's quite lulzy to play.

To make up for lance weapons being over-the-top better choice compared to weapon batteries, a homebrew rule can be introduced as well. Just make lance weaponry suffer -1 to hit rolls if the target still has shields up. After all, lore-wise lances do have issues with void shields, and it has more than one instance where it's explicitly stated to be the reason ordnance boats are to be paired with lance-boats and most ship designs having both weapon types.

Homebrew missions are also a thing, because GeeDubs fails at making missions that don't favor one side too much, and random generation of terrain takes up a shitton of times.

Some projects, like Battlefleet Gothic:Revised, or just BFG:R, tried to reduce the copious amounts of books required to play it, and even reduce the balance inconsistencies. BF:XR took up the undertaking, but sadly the desire to keep the original rulebook intact is a major hindrance to any attempts to balance the game, no matter how much pointcosts are tweaked. Still, if one seeks to play the game it's handy just because the rulebook incorporates all the fixes of 2010 FAQ had.

There's also [[Pirate lords of 40k]] that expand on the boarding battles via Kill Teams style.

==[[/v/|Vidyagaem]] [[Battlefleet Gothic: Armada]]==
[http://www.pcgamer.com/battlefleet-gothic-armada-announced/ Someone has decided that it is a good idea to make it a videogame (And it damn well is). IT'S HAPPENING.]
And it looks awesome, including Marks of Chaos from the FOUR gods, also pre-order will include the Space Marine and Tau fleets (which are also included with the game if you buy it in the first 2 months after release, so you can benefit from reviews of the finished product and not have to pay extra for them down the road) and a nice 10 percent discount, and we are working in the [[Battlefleet Gothic Armada]] article as it is in its opening beta, meanwhile watch the trailer:
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWteWul9cBE Gameplay trailer]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jl4hAD_xhn0 Narrative trailer, featuring, of course, FAILBADDON THE (H)ARMLESS!]
* [http://www.battlefleetgothic-armada.com/ The official website]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3w3XeHpsis The launch trailer.]

Fast forward 2 years, the announcement for a sequel are out with a whole lot more factions to it. The first trailer looks pretty awesome. The second trailer is even better.

==External Links==
* <strike>[http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/catalog/landingArmy.jsp?catId=cat480005a&rootCatGameStyle=specialist-games Battlefleet Gothic] on [[Games Workshop]]'s website -- look under "resources" for the rules.</strike> Dead because GeeDubs routinely purges their website.
* [https://docs.google.com/folder/d/0Bw_dULEfC3rbYzUyNjQzZTAtMDZiMS00ZjRlLWJjNzMtYTE5YmNjZjdjODQ1/edit Battlefleet Gothic 2010 Compendium], a set of updates made by a bunch of community members who worked with [[Specialist Games]] before GW axed it. It includes updates and FAQs to the main rules and all official fleets, plus new fleets for the Imperium (including the [[Adeptus Mechanicus]], the [[Inquisition]], and [[Rogue Trader]]s), the forces of [[Chaos]], the [[Eldar]], the [[Ork]]s, and the [[Tau]]. You can also get the whole compendium as a complete book [http://www.darkreign.org/sites/default/files/BFG%20FAQ%202010_0.pdf/ from DarkReign]. (dead link)
* [http://afterimagedan.blogspot.com/2012/10/battlefleet-gothicrevised.html Battlefleet Gothic: Revised], an effort to rebuild BFG from the ground up. The original coordinator retired from the project in July 2012 (which is a shame, since he had [http://www.battlefleetgothicrevised.com/ a slick dev blog]), but development is continuing actively at the [http://www.forum.specialist-arms.com/index.php?board=7.0 Specialist-Arms forum].
* [http://yenlowang.free.fr/warhammer-forum/BFG/BFG_-_Additional_Ships_Compendium_1.4.pdf Battlefleet Gothic Additional Ships Compendium]
* [https://rr30k.com/the-battlefleet-heresy-compendium/?fbclid=IwAR30z2AIjp1nrfoFgT_1ysl040FVEMj2dVj0GD5jmSjN_Kizc4zDUN3YL-o Battlefleet Heresy] A ridiculously thorough home-brew by the Remembrancers' Retreat podcast out of Richmond, VA for playing BFG set in the Heresy years. Rules for each of the Legions, as well as Imperial Army and Mechanicum. Currently in its fourth edition, compiled in a red-book-esq pdf.

{{Specialist-Games}}

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]][[Category:Battlefleet Gothic]]

Battle Sister Squad

2023-06-09T22:43:27Z

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[[File:Battle Sister.jpg|300px|right|thumb|Fig 1. Your typical Bolter Bitch. Nice body. Terrible attitude.]]

AKA your vanilla [[Sisters of Battle]], these are the ones you most likely envision whenever you hear the words, '''Nuns with Guns''' or '''Bolter Bitches'''. Akin to a [[Space Marine]] [[Tactical Squad]], the '''Battle Sister Squad''' are the primary troops used by the Adepta Sororitas.

==Deployment==
Battle Sister Squads are the main unit for the SoBs. Thus you must treat them almost the same way as you treat Tactical Marines; a flexible force that can hold their ground in both CQC and heavy fire support. Well, in theory. In practice they're normal humans with Strength 3, Toughness 3, and were originally Initiative 3 too, but still rock [[Sisters of Battle Armour]] with cheap access to special weapons, making them more ranged focused than their Astartes brothers.

Battle Sisters are orphans of the Imperial servants who have given their lives in the service of the Imperium. While being raised within the Schola Progenia they receive a strong Ecclesiarchal upbringing and education, coming to regard the Emperor as their spiritual father (boys get a similar education and become [[Commissar]]s). Progena recruited into the Sisterhood are indoctrinated even further into the Imperial Cult, becoming even more fiercely devoted to the Emperor and the Imperial cause. Their duty as part of the Sisterhood is to ensure and enforce the physical and spiritual purity of humanity and the departments of the Adeptus Terra. As they frequently share the same role as the [[Ordo Hereticus]], Battle Sisters often form a major part of [[Ordo Hereticus]] forces as well.

Being a flexible armed force, the Battle Sisters are typically armed with the [[Sororitas Boltgun|Godwyn-De'az Pattern Boltguns,]] though others frequently carry [[Bolt Pistol]]s and close combat weapons such as [[Chainsword]]s. For personal protection, Battle Sisters wear specialized [[Sisters of Battle Armour|Power Armour.]] Battle Sisters who carry heavy weaponry are called [[Retributor Squad|Retributors]]. Battle Sisters should not be confused with those within the [[Dominion Squad]] as although they may look similar, Dominions have a completely different purpose and usage than normal Battle Sisters.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Imperial]]
[[Category:Sisters of Battle]]

{{Template:Sisters-of-Battle}}

Bathamor

2023-06-09T22:42:48Z

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{{Heresy}}
[[File:Bathamore.JPG|300px|right|thumb|What was on the ''other side'' of Willy Wonka's Tunnel of Terror.]]
The Bathamor is a [[Daemon World]] found only in the [[Maelstrom]]. During [[Roboute Guilliman|Robot Gullytan's]] [[RIP AND TEAR|merry pilgrimage]] to [[Terra]] following his resurrection, his forces encountered the planet's [[Tzeentch|local wildlife.]]

==Overview==
The Imperium discovered the planet when the name of this cursed world leapt into the mind of every psyker in the fleet, repeating over and over until Big Blue finally got annoyed by the chanting. [[Just As Planned]]. As a planet of Tzeentch, auspex scans revealed an infernal world of kaleidoscopic crystal jungles, laced through by glimmering rivers of fire.

Vox signatures also showed a [[Kairos Fateweaver|certain two-headed bird.]] Wanting to go kick some ass and capture renegades which could help the loyalists to escape from the warped realm, the Imperials swooped down from on high, the Imperial armies slammed into the crystal jungles amidst explosions of jagged shards. Advancing upon the greatest concentration of energy signatures, the loyalist forces were quickly swamped by Tzeentchian Daemons attacking from all sides.

As the world rained down fire and the crystal trees detonated like huge fragmentation bombs, in a direct attempt to [[Troll|fuck with the giant Blue Wonder.]] Roboute finally met the overgrown mutant chicken, [[Troll|who than mocked Guilliman,]] before he made the birdboi GTFO from the planet.

Guilliman and friends promptly left another Maelstrom planet, ''again''.

{{40k-Planets}}
[[Category:Chaos]]

Bastion-class Commerce Vessel

2023-06-09T22:42:33Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:14437504_f1024.jpg|400px|right|thumb|A up and armored civilian mining vessel with guns.]]

The Bastion-class Commerce Vessel is a large vessel of cruiser status used by the [[Demiurg]] and the wider [[Squat]]-centric [[Leagues of Votann]]. It is often seen alone, with other Squat Prospector Fleets or fighting with [[Tau]] forces as mercenaries, although some Imperial commanders have been known to make use of their mercenary-like services too. They are most commonly seen on the eastern rim or branching out of the galactic cores, though this is still a very rare sight. The Bastion-class seems to be more outfitted for asteroid mining rather than processing, so it is likely that there is a trade of goods from one vessel to another though this has never been seen in action.

*'''Length:''' 5.3km
*'''Width:''' 4.8-5km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 30 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' 68,000 crew, including automated pilots and support personnel; approx
*'''Acceleration:''' 2.6 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx
==Overview==
Some [[Rogue Traders]] tell that a Bastion-class is home to a 'brotherhood' while a Stronghold is a home to two or three brotherhoods. What the relationship between groups is is unknown. Often however two or three Bastions will group together to protect a Stronghold.

They have an impressive lance and weapons batteries, especially when up close, and also have the ability to launch mining probes and attack craft at short range. It also uses a scoop to collect stellar gasses which it projects through the core of the ship for propulsion and for energy to power the [[Cutting Beam|cutting beam]] it uses to open asteroids or enemy ships.

It is armed with a [[Cutting Beam]], 4 [[Torpedo]] Launchers, 2 Launch Bays carrying [[Automated Fighting Drone]]s, [[Automated Barge Drone]]s and [[Automated Bombing Drone]]s, 4 [[Lance Weapon|Lance]] Artillery, 2 [[Macrocannon|Macro Battery]] Weapons and 2 Light [[Macrocannon|Macro Battery]] Weapons.

==In Battlefleet Gothic: Armada 1 & 2==
The Bastion is one of two [[Demiurg]] ships available to the two Tau fleets, being the Cruiser sized version of the two. As with the other Mercenary vessels, the Demiurg have their own special weapons, most of which are generic versions of Launch Bays, torpedo Launchers Lances and Macros. Of these standard weapons, the firing arcs are split more like the standard Imperial/Chaos factions. Because of this, you'll see a higher overall dps and cpm than the majority of Tau Protectors that can focus the entire armament in one direction.

The really notable weapon is the Cutting Beam, a weapon that charges when sitting next to wrecks or inside of asteroid fields. You can build up to a 7-second charge beam, which deals a total of 840 damage, before armor reductions, to all ships in its 4,500 unit long path. This is an excellent weapon against weaker armored, more numerous factions that need to stick together like Orks and Imperials are two good candidates. It might be harder to hit Aeldari vessels, but their weaker armor and hull points will make landed shots more devastating to them.

Unfortunately because of the special nature in the way it charges, you are really susceptible to the RNG of map generation as far as how useful you'll find the Demiurg Cutting Beams, so while it may be fun and useful to bring along to a fight, don't rely on the Cutting Beam to make or break the fight for you.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Battlefleet Gothic]]
[[Category:Xenos]]
[[Category:Tau]]
[[Category:Kor'Vattra]]
[[Category:Prospector Fleets]]
[[Category:Vehicles]]
[[Category:Ships]]
{{40k-Squat-Ships}}
{{40k-Tau-Ships}}

Basillius the Elder

2023-06-09T22:41:56Z

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{{Heresy}}
<s>Bastard</s> [[That Guy|'''Basillius the Elder''']] was a [[Chaos]] worshipper who masqueraded as a loyalist preacher of the [[Ecclesiarchy]], ascending to power over the Imperial Faith after the Ecclesiarchal Purges of 321.M37. In his guise as an Imperial Saint, he created an era in which the already minimal civil liberties granted to the Imperial citizenry were stripped away, resulting in huge slaughters as mandatory informing on suspected heretics and traitors was enforced throughout the galaxy. But this was only the first stage of his plan: when [[Warp Storm]] Dionys rippled into reality, hundreds of [[Space Marine Chapter|chapters]] of [[Space Marines]] whose homeworlds were within the path of the Warp Storm found themselves bedeviled by a wave of physical and psychological corruption, and "Saint" Basillius the Elder demanded they be rendered over to him for judgment. Such was his influence that within a year, they had been presented.

Several hundred were deemed to be free of Chaos' taint. Thirty instead failed his test. Deemed the [[Judged]], they were voluntold for a redemptive crusade into the [[Eye of Terror]] (lest they be simply all executed). To the Eye they traveled, and into its depths they vanished in the cursed [[Abyssal Crusade]].

Almost 800 years later, the last survivors of the [[Vorpal Swords]] Chapter fought their way free, angrily suffering tests of their purity before revealing what they had learned. Burning with righteous fury, they fought their way to Basillius' palace and publicly denounced him, revealing him as an agent of Chaos. The false saint and thousands of his followers perished, his shrines and remains were destroyed, and every relic and tome of his creed was burned, making him as much of an unperson as the [[Imperium]] can make someone.

And by "burned" we mean "[[Awesome|loaded onto a freighter and launched at a sun.]]"

Still, to this day, nobody knows just how far his corruption reached. Also, this is a good example of why you don't let a single guy tell a legion-sized force what to do, and before you point out, no, neither the [[First Founding]] [[Chapter Master|chapter masters]], not even [[Guilliman]] make the calls alone, even Bobby G works with a council who may point at him the obvious and has the [[Adeptus Custodes|Ten Thousand]] breathing down his neck in case he decides to take note from [[Horus]]' shenanigans.

[[Category:Chaos]][[Category:Space Marines]][[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]

Basilisk Artillery Gun

2023-06-09T22:41:31Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[Image:Basilisk.png|thumb|right|It's almost as fuckawesome as the [[Baneblade]].]]

:''This article is about the [[Imperial Guard]] artillery tank. For the creature, see [[Basilisk]].''

{{topquote|Artillery adds dignity to what would otherwise be a vulgar brawl.|Frederick II of Prussia}}

{{topquote|Though my guards may sleep and my ships may lay at anchor, our foes know full well that the big guns never tire.|[[Lugft Huron]]}}

{{topquote|SHATTER. THEIR. SKY!|Basilisk commander from Dawn of War 1, about to fire the [[rape|earth shaker round]].}}

The '''Basilisk Artillery Gun''' is the iconic [[Imperial Guard]] self-propelled artillery piece. It is based on the versatile [[Chimera Transport|Chimera]] chassis, and it carries a massive [[Earthshaker]] cannon. It dates at least as far back as the [[Great Crusade]], where it was used by the artillery batteries of the [[Space Marine]] Legions and Imperial Army; though they were too slow for the slimmer, faster post-[[Codex Astartes]] Space Marines, they could move at just the right pace to keep up with an [[Imperial Guard]] siege operation.

Of course, given its tremendous range, it doesn't need to move very fast to keep pounding the enemy, and it's not supposed to be at the front line -- rather, the Basilisk crews get told where to shoot, they launch great quantities of shells in that direction, and then they move away before they get hit by counter-battery fire.

==Variants==
; Standard Pattern: You know'em, you love'em. The OG Basilisk with the famous gun shield. It is by far one of the most iconic vehicles from the Imperium of Man, let alone the Imperial Guard and stands equal with the [[Leman Russ Battle Tank]], [[Baneblade]], [[Land Raider]] and [[Rhino]] as most famous tank.
; Armageddon Pattern : Because [[Armageddon]] is a <s>desert world</s> <s>irradiated, poisonous shithole</s> [[Ork|Ork]] playground, they developed a Basilisk pattern that fully enclosed the entire tank, sheltering the loading mechanism (and, coincidentally, the loader and gunner) from the <s>harsh environment</s> [[Dakka|retarded amounts of small-arms fire constantly filling the air]]. <span style='color:green;font-size:115%'>Kallin' Ork gunz small? I oughter give yer a stamp!</span>
; [[Basilisk Magnus]] : A variant of the Basilisk fielded by [[Vance Motherfucking Stubbs]], which seems to be dug into an immobile concrete position. It's like a regular Basilisk, except it can strike targets anywhere within the Imperial Dussala Precinct base, fires an absurdly powerful Earthshaker shell, and has styrofoam for armor. However along with the 100 [[Baneblade]]s, Stubbs lost the targeting matrix for the thing and so it requires a spotter every time it shoots. Its size compared to the turret and crew suggest it would also be as well proportioned for mounting on a Macharius tank chassis as a normal Earthshaker is on a chimera chassis. Dis gon b gud.
; Legion Basilisk : Before the [[Codex Astartes]] reforms, the [[Space Marine Legions]] operated some artillery of their own, including the Basilisk. The gun shield and crew compartment looks beefier, and the engine exhausts run out the sides of the tank. We don't know if they any Astartes Chapters have them stored as relics. Though a bit redundant when they have access to the [[Whirlwind]] and can just straight up pick up a [[Lascannon]] then start shooting.
; [[Solar Auxilia]] Basilisk : Like the Armageddon Pattern, the gun and its crew are entirely enclosed, but the chassis is built around a Leman Russ rather than a Chimera. The gun is placed to the left of driver's compartment while the engine is left exposed behind the driver's compartment like the Mars-Alpha Pattern Leman Russ. The result is a smaller profile, although ammunition is sacrificed as space suddenly becomes a premium due to its enclosed and cramped nature.
; Vanaheim Pattern : It's the same as the original Basilisk, with a less goofy-looking gun shield which offers additional protection for the gun crew from both the front and sides. Although its overall protection is not to the extent as that of the Armageddon Pattern or the Legion Basilisks.
; [[Fail|Basilisk Anti-Aircraft Emplacement]]: [https://www.warhammer-community.com/2020/10/20/flight-plan-youre-grounded/ It exists]...don't ask us how the fuck it works. While the first assumption might be 'AAA' (Anti-Air Artillery), there's a reason such guns were entirely different from the regular howitzers and field guns. If a Basilisk was modified to act as an AAA gun, it'd require so much change to its system and design that it'd no longer be a similar gun. The Imperium seemingly forgot how to make surface to air missiles viable on emplacements, even though [[Space Marine Hunter|there]] [[Whirlwind#Hyperios|are]] [[Manticore Launcher Tank|several]] [[Praetor Armoured Assault Launcher|artillery]] [[Exorcist|pieces]] that can make use of said surface to air missiles. Hell it makes more sense to use the [[Vanquisher Battle Cannon|Vanquisher Cannon]] as an anti air gun given how often in the real world the best anti-tank guns such as the famed German 88mm and Soviet 85mm guns.

<gallery>

File:OG_Basilisk.jpg|Standard Pattern Basilisk

File:armageddon-basilisk.jpg|Armageddon Pattern Basilisk

File:SoulstormBasiliskMagnus.png|Basilisk Magnus

File:Legion_basilisk.jpg|A Legion Basilisk of the [[Iron Warriors]].

File:SolarAuxiliaBasilisk.jpg|Solar Auxilia Basilisk

File:Vanaheim_Basilisk.jpg|Vanaheim Pattern Basilisk

File:AntiAirBasilisk.jpg|Anti-Air Basilisk Emplacement

</gallery>

==Tabletop==
The Basilisk's Earthshaker cannon has the longest range of any Imperial Guard weapon, beating out the Banesword's Quake Cannon by a good 100 inches(the Deathstrike lost its infinite range and the Manticore's was cut to 120"), able to drop a shell anywhere within 20 feet (which is pitifully small when scaled up to real-world dimensions...but so are all 40K weapon ranges). That is enough range to target an enemy on the next TABLE and is more than enough even for apocalypse. Prior to 8th it was possible for a single IG army to have up to nine of these monsters (three per Heavy Support slot, times three Heavy Support choices) for just under 1000 points, which would rapidly turn the entire battlefield into a moonscape.

In the couple of editions leading up to 8th, the Basilisk was something of an awkward middle child between the powerful Manticore and the Infantry shredding Wyvern. The Manticore launcher could provide more destruction pound for pound if you just wanted to plonk 1 ordnance template on the field, whilst the Wyvern (or even mortars) were far cheaper. In 8th, the Basilisk truly shines as it is meant to be played: in groups. An economy of scale with 3 of these boys will cost just over 300 points, but every turn you will likely destroy at the very least a Leman Russ, and at the very best a Baneblade. The Basilisk must take a support role, but when aided with a Master of Ordnance and a cup of hot cocoa, it will make your army suited to dealing with whatever your opponent may throw at you. MEQs, tanks and even Terminators can not afford to scoff at shots that deal 2D6 (pick highest) S9 AP-3 hits with D3 damage (just don't expect to quickly wipe out blobs with a single gun). The Emperor's Wrath Artillery Company specialist detachment makes them even stronger, giving the option for a unit to shoot twice and ''really'' lay down the hate, or else suppress a target of choice, at a fairly low CP cost.

In ''Second Edition'', where it first appeared, the Basilisk featured epic levels of [[RAGE|bullshit]] since it rolled a D3 for damage to vehicles even if it ''didn't'' penetrate armour, and since the template usually hit every location on the vehicle it was statistically likely that anything hit by a Basilisk would be crippled or destroyed even if all AP rolls failed. Thanks to the preliminary barrage rule, it also got to fire a battle cannon round (somehow) before the game had actually started.

==[[Dawn of War]]==
These babies were in Dawn of War 1 and BY THE EMPEROR they are awesome. They are one of the "must-get" units for the Imperial Guard faction because they make up for the Guards' shitty early game when they don't have more models and plasma gun upgrade, and they are one of the reasons people play IG (the others being THE BANEEEEEBLADE and the Commissar). They are best at blowing up infantry blobs and scattering them like frigging marbles for the Guardsmen to mop up. Most importantly, their Earthshaker round deals a fuck load of damage to ANYTHING.

==Notable Basilisks==

; Fluffy : The personal attack vehicle/pet of [[Commissar Dan]]. Being the retard that he is, he uses the thing as a front line assault tank instead of a full-time artillery piece.

==Why A Basilisk is The Best Place To Be In The Whole Goddamn Imperium==

* You're ten miles from the front lines and whatever [[Grimdark|fanged horrors]] or [[World Eaters|berserk]] supersoldiers are invading the [[Imperium]] this week.
* You get to fire a MASSIVE fucking gun and blow shit up. It's one of the best artillery weapons in the galaxy, able to mow down whole swathes of armies in minutes. Thus, the [[Tyranid]]s' numerical superiority is irrelevant.
* If your regiment is commanded by [[Creed]], you're one of a select few that knows how it is possible to deploy a dozen pieces of mobile artillery inside an impenetrable [[Ork]] stronghold.
* All the [[Commissar|commissars]] (save [[Ciaphas Cain|one]]) are also at the front lines, seeing as that is where the business of <s>executing cowa..</s> erm ''upholding morale'' is most wanted.
* You can probably even get away with complaining about the [[High Lords of Terra]] and their general not giving a shit, seeing as there are no senior officers, no [[Inquisitor]]s (since you're probably in a depopulated area far away from Inquisitorial interest), and no fucking [[Commissar|commiss]]{{BLAM}}
* You're not at risk of being blown up when your commander tells the artillery to shoot right in front of his own troops. Though you will probably hear their screams over your vox-unit, and any complaints about your orders will get you {{BLAM}}'med.
* Canon says you're going to go deaf, but whatever right? Hearing problems are the least [[grimdark]] thing in the entire setting. Or just stuff your ears with wads from your [[Imperial Infantryman's Uplifting Primer|Uplifting Primer-]]{{BLAM}}
* Not just anybody can drive one of these, therefore you are not as expendable as other Guardsmen, and Commissars are less likely to shoot you if you start fleeing (which is frankly what you '''SHOULD''' do if the enemy comes close to your art{{BLAM}}
* If not you’re not singing Bosanka Artiljerija when using the Basilisk, you’re doing it wrong.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Imperial]]
[[Category:Imperial Guard]]
[[Category:Chaos]]
[[Category:Lost and the Damned]]
[[Category:Vehicles]]

{{40k-Imperial-Vehicles}}
{{Template:Imperial-Guard}}
{{Solar Auxilia}}
{{Iron Warriors}}
{{Lost-and-Damned}}

Ork Light Kroozer

2023-06-09T22:39:16Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

Smaller than the normal [[Ork Kroozer]]. The Lite Kroozer is analogous to Imperial Light Cruisers in role, these ships were first seen in large numbers during the [[Third War of Armageddon]]. Like most Ork ships Lite Kroozers are ramshackle and heavily customized, with many being equipped for ramming enemy vessels while others may sport exotic weaponry. Many are constructed from captured [[Dauntless-class Light Cruiser|Dauntless]] and [[Endeavor-class Light Cruiser|Endeavor]] hulls.

==Class==

===Basic===

====Basha Ordzdaka====

[[File:14427813_f1024.jpg|250px|right|thumb|The most flexible of the lot.]]

The first type of Light Kroozer called the Basha.

The Ordzdaka-class is a well suited vessel for the Orks, with its quad rack of [[torpedo]] launchers, the Ork's heavy prow armor and boosted hull points and their favoured ramming strategies, the Basha Ordzdaka can release a salvo of torpedoes moments before making contact on a ram to provide fast crippling burst damage for a very affordable price.

Therefore, the Ordzdaka is quite adaptable and flexible for an Ork ship. Granted, it's still shit at long range, but the diversity in its weaponry allows the Ordzdaka to not be gimped by its own Orkish philosophy, allowing it to chase down and duke it out with other light cruisers of its calibre.

It is armed with 4 [[Torpedo]] Launchers and 2 [[Ship Gunz|Gunz Battery Weapons.]]

*'''Length:''' 4km
*'''Mass:''' 24 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' 66,000 crew; approx
*'''Acceleration:''' 2.7 gravities maximum sustainable acceleration

===Carrier===

====Basha Urd Unki====

[[File:14427825_f1024.jpg|250px|right|thumb|When the only thing going for ya are torpedoes and fighters, you might as well sit this one out.]]

The carrier-class of the Basha family.

The Basha Urd Unki is a pretty unique line ship due to the fact it carries absolutely [[Wat|no standard weaponry whatsoever.]] While not a very popular design in itself amongst the Orks, the Carrier variant of the Basha does benefit those who favour more boarding actions or Kaptins with a close affinity to the Fly Boyz, by taking both a quad rack of [[torpedo]] tubes and a dual launch bay for a relatively, pretty cheap price.

Of course, due to its lack of proper armament, the Urd Unki isn't suited for close range, unlike most Ork vessels. Putting the ship in more of a support role than a mainline warship. This, in turn, has made the Urd Unki be viewed as 'un-Orky' by most Greenskins and who can blame them? They probably let the Kaptins with these hang around the armies as a way to load off the Fly Boyz, who are arrogant pricks to an Ork.

It is armed with 4 [[Torpedo]] Launchers and 2 Launch Bays including [[Ork Assault Boat]]s, [[Fighta]]s, [[Bomma]]s, [[Landa]]s and [[Fighta-Bommer]]s.

*'''Length:''' 4km
*'''Mass:''' 22.4 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' 45,000 crew, 10,000 pilots and support staff; approx
*'''Acceleration:''' 2.7 gravities maximum sustainable acceleration

===Ordnance-Boat===

====Basha Ordzgargdaka====

[[File:14427819_f1024.jpg|250px|right|thumb|The quintessential close-ranged brawler.]]

The almost [[Derp|unpronounceable Basha Ordzgargdaka]] is the more [[Dakka]] version of the Ordzdaka.

Armed with the [[Mega-Kannon]], the weapon is sort of the Ork's other macro weapon, similar to the Adeptus Astartes [[Bombardment Cannon]], it simply trades rate of fire and range for a higher damaging, slower firing, incredibly short-ranged shot. Since the Ork ships are designed for ramming attacks anyways, you should generally be engaging with your Basha Ordzgargdakas at close range anyway.

Fast enemies like the Aeldari and Drukhari tend to give Ork ships a really hard time, to begin with, but thanks to the easily avoidable range of the Mega-Kannon, the Basha Ordzgargdaka may be less preferable than normal against these factions.

It is armed with 1 [[Mega-Kannon|Mega-Kannon Artillery]] and 2 [[Heavy Ship Gunz|Heavy Gunz Battery Weapons.]]

*'''Length:''' 4km
*'''Mass:''' 26 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' 70,000 crew; approx
*'''Acceleration:''' 2.7 gravities maximum sustainable acceleration

==In Battlefleet Gothic: Armada 1 & 2==
Light Kroozers form the support role of the Ork fleets. Not as well-armed as its larger brethren nor as fast and nimble as the escorts, Light Kroozers formed a niche in regards to harassing and providing covering fire against enemy warships, making them balanced and not too useless.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Battlefleet Gothic]]
[[Category:Xenos]]
[[Category:Orks]]
[[Category:Freebooterz]]
[[Category:Vehicles]]
[[Category:Ships]]

{{40k-Ork-Ships}}

Razorfiend

2023-06-09T22:38:19Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

Razorfiends are large [[Tyranid]] Cruisers that are aggressive in their attacks, storming out from the [[Hive Fleet]] in response to any threat to the massive [[Hive Ship|Hive Ships,]] often using claws and tentacles to make direct attacks on ships in an effort to physically smash them to pieces. Cruiser-sized Tyranid Bio-ships are seldom found far from the Hive Ship, however, and it has been theorized that they receive their nourishment from them in some manner. Which begs some in [[/tg/]] the question on what GW means by 'replenishing', with some [[/d/|/d/eviants]] [[Extra Heresy|suggesting that it is done like cows udders,]] which would mean that a Hive Ship has the [[Slaanesh|biggest confirmed tit in the Galaxy if true.]] Like the [[Void Prowler]], the Razorfiend has a metric shit-ton of sub-types to choose from.

==Breed==

===Basic===

====Bio-Corrosive====

[[File:14435154_f1024.jpg|300px|right|thumb|The run-of-the-mill of Razorfiends.]]

The most well-balanced of the Razorfiends. The Bio-Corrosive has one of each weapon save for torpedoes, making it a very flexible vessel to use and engage in. At close range it could fire its [[Pyro-Acid Battery|Pyro-Acids]] whilst at longer-ranges, it could utilize its [[Bio-Plasma Battery|Bio-Plasma.]]

It is, therefore, one of the multitudes of various standard weaponry mixes in the Cruiser class of Tyranid ships, the Bio-Corrosive Razorfiend swaps in a set of Bio-Plasma batteries to give a touch of lance based weaponry for those heavier armored/shielded targets.

With so many subtle variations to the ships in the Cruiser class, without much to separate them, it may be hard to find unique reasons to highlight one ship over the other. On the plus side, you will find plenty of options to tailor your fleet to do very specific types of damage or stacking certain special weapons, should you choose.

It is armed with 1 Heavy [[Pyro-Acid Battery]] Artillery, 2 [[Bio-Plasma Battery|Bio-Plasma Batteries]] and 2 [[Pyro-Acid Battery]] Weapons.

*'''Length:''' 6-6.5km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 15.5 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' Millions of organisms
*'''Acceleration:''' 2 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx
====Bio-Acid Projectile====

[[File:14435174_f1024.jpg|300px|right|thumb|The ''other'' stock-standard Razorfiend.]]

Different than the [[Bio-Acid Void Prowler|Void Prowler cousins]] and not to be confused with the [[Derp|Bio-Acid Razorfiends.]] The Bio-Acid Projectile Razorfiend is the torpedo-version of the Bio-Corrosive Razorfiend that is meant more for longer ranges due to its torpedo presence.

If you'd rather have some extra boarding action with your mixed battery option ship, the Bio-Acid Projectile Razorfiend brings a 6 rack of [[torpedo]] tubes in place of the Pyro-Acid artillery to supplement the Tyranids strong assault actions.

Remember that Tyranid line ships can replenish spent charges for the Torpedoes and Launch Bays, using the Reclamation Pools ability, consuming some troops as a cost. In addition, when the troops run low, you can use the Spawning Sacs ability to replenish troops fully up to the current casualty step.

It is armed with 6 [[Bio-Torpedo]] and [[Seed Spore]] Launchers, 2 [[Bio-Plasma Battery|Bio-Plasma Batteries]] and 2 [[Pyro-Acid Battery]] Weapons.

*'''Length:''' 6-6.5km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 14.9 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' Millions of organisms
*'''Acceleration:''' 2 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx
===Carrier===

====Corrosive Infestation====

[[File:14435199_f1024.jpg|300px|right|thumb|The assault carrier of the family.]]

The first Tyranid bio-ship that is also effectively a carrier. The Corrosive Infestation Razorfiend is a torpedo-heavy carrier with some decent close-range defences.

Even with the Tyranid's already overall close-range attack profiles, the Corrosive Infestation is deliberately a close-range assault Carrier. Thanks to the [[Bio-Torpedo|Bio-Torpedoes]], this might be the preferable option if you think you'll be wanting your carriers fighting up close with the enemy as opposed to far away.

The Corrosive Infestation Razorfiend is extra useful when you aren't stacking carriers, but want some amount of squadron deployment to supplement your fleet. This is due to the fact that since it can launch torpedoes unlike the other Cruiser Carrier, it can use them to distract defence turrets for the assault boats to make it to their targets. In the opposite fashion, the Corrosive Infestation Razorfiend can send out interceptors to cover for their torpedo launches to prevent them from being shot down.

If you are forgoing on having multiple carriers to deploy complimenting squadrons of interceptors/assaults in large numbers, consider this vessel for your needs.

It is armed with 6 [[Bio-Torpedo]] Launchers, 2 Launch Bays carrying [[Tyranid_Harpy|Harpies]] and [[Ether-Swimming Brood]]s and 2 [[Pyro-Acid Battery]] Weapons.

*'''Length:''' 6-6.5km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 15.2 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' Millions of organisms, thousands of spaceborne creatures
*'''Acceleration:''' 2 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx
====Bio-Infestation====

[[File:14435212_f1024.jpg|right|300px|thumb|When stealthed, this can be a bitch to find.]]

The Bio-Infestation is the more longer-ranged version of the Corrosive Infestation (Relatively speaking for Tyranid standards).

As mentioned above, the Bio-Infestation Razorfiend is one of the two Cruiser sized carrier vessels, this one more suited for longer range engagements. If you aren't too focused on making use of the [[Bio-Plasma Battery|Bio-Plasma]] as a primary weapon, you can focus on keeping the Bio Infestation Razorfiend in frontal orders, firing it's [[Pyro-Acid Battery|Pyro-Acid]] from a range where it can stay stealthed, while it also routinely launches squadrons from its hidden position of safety.

It is armed with 1 Heavy [[Pyro-Acid Battery]] Artillery, 2 Launch Bays carrying [[Tyranid_Harpy|Harpies]] and [[Ether-Swimming Brood]]s and 2 [[Bio-Plasma Battery]] Weapons.

*'''Length:''' 6-6.5km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 15.5 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' Millions of organisms, thousands of spaceborne creatures
*'''Acceleration:''' 2 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx
===Ordnance-Boat===

====Base====

[[File:14435143_f1024.jpg|300px|right|thumb|When you wanna cover the whole field in acid.]]

The Base Razorfiend is actually counted as an ordnance-boat due to the sheer amount of [[Pyro-Acid Battery|Pyro-Acids]] it wields. Making it quite a dangerous vessel to face at close-range due to all that [[Dakka|Dakka.]]

As is typical of any "all macros" load-out of vessels in any faction, the Razorfiend base variant takes the highest DPS numbers in its class. Normally it would have higher crit chances too but there seems to be (I could be wrong here) some underlying penalty to the Pyro-Acid weapons when compared to other macros, it is assumed due to the fire causing a special effect. In exchange for these high numbers, the Razorfiend takes the second-highest spot in points cost, losing first place by just one point to the Bio-Infestation Razorfiend.

It is armed with 1 Heavy [[Pyro-Acid Battery]] Artillery and 4 [[Pyro-Acid Battery]] Weapons.

*'''Length:''' 6-6.5km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 15.7 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' Millions of organisms
*'''Acceleration:''' 2 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx
====Corrosive Projectile====

[[File:14435196_f1024.jpg|300px|right|thumb|Fuck your morale saves.]]

The torpedo-heavy version of the Base Razorfiend. The Corrosive Projectile is a very powerful close-range asset due to the presence of six torpedo launchers mixed in with its [[Pyro-Acid Battery|Pyro-Acid Batteries.]]

Because of this, the Corrosive Projectile Razorfiend is probably the most morale crippling vessel loadout in the Cruiser section for the Tyranids. As assault actions can really hurt morale of enemy vessels and so can fire aboard effects, things of which the Corrosive Projectile has in spades.

Even though the Razorfiend can cause more fires overall, single-target wise it can't fire its prow at the same target as it's broadside due to lack of overlapping arcs. Continuing on, the fact that the torpedo tube can lay down 6 assaults all at once (18 total potential troop damage) with another 4 assaults from it's boarding action (another 12 troop damage) within seconds. Afterwards, you can turn to point those broadsides at the enemy to drain the morale faster with the Corrosive Projectile Razorfiend.

It is armed with 6 [[Bio-Torpedo]] and [[Seed Spore]] Launchers and 4 [[Pyro-Acid Battery]] Weapons.

*'''Length:''' 6-6.5km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 15.4 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' Millions of organisms
*'''Acceleration:''' 2 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx
===Lance-Boat===

====Bio-Projectile====

[[File:14435168_f1024.jpg|300px|right|thumb|The Void Prowler Bio-Projectile's bigger brother.]]

A lance-boat that just so happens to also be a torpedo-boat. This is basically the bigger brother of the [[Bio-Projectile Void Prowler]]. Having all the same armaments but more.

For most factions, having some powerful short-range lances on a torpedo equipped craft meant for short-range combat, would be highly complementary considering basic charge torpedoes usually deal high damage with an armor negating the effect. Unfortunately, the Tyranids have no standard explosive charge, instead of having a single type of boarding charge. This kind of hampers the idea of stacking AP weapons by grabbing a torpedo rack, since there is no prow lance for the Tyranids to utilize and there are no claws in the Cruiser class to mix with these Bio batteries.

This is not to say that having only boarding torpedoes is bad, it certainly isn't especially considering the short range of Bio-Plasma means you'll be spending a lot of time up close. Of course, there really aren't any Tyranid ships you want to use at range typically speaking anyways.

It is armed with 6 [[Bio-Torpedo]] and [[Seed Spore]] Launchers and 4 [[Bio-Plasma Battery]] Weapons.

*'''Length:''' 6-6.5km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 15.2 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' Millions of organisms
*'''Acceleration:''' 2 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx
====Bio-Acid====

[[File:14435188_f1024.jpg|300px|right|thumb|The Void Prowler Bio-Acid's bigger brother.]]

Like the Bio-Projectile Razorfiend, the Bio-Acid Razorfiend is an upscaled version of the [[Bio-Acid Void Prowler]]. It is a lance-heavy Cruiser with a nasty close-ranged punch.

The Bio-Acid Razorfiend is the standard weapon, lance boating vessel in the Cruiser class. You can find another quad set of Bio-Plasma batteries mixed with a torpedo rack with the Bio-Projectile Razorfiend, but there is no prow mountable Bio-Plasma Artillery for the line ships, like there is for the escorts, to go full lance boating for complete weapon penetration.

It is armed with 1 Heavy [[Pyro-Acid Battery]] Artillery and 4 [[Bio-Plasma Battery]] Weapons.

*'''Length:''' 6-6.5km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 15.6 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' Millions of organisms
*'''Acceleration:''' 2 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx
==In Battlefleet Gothic: Armada 2==
The Tyranids Cruiser vessels are similar to their Light Cruisers in that they are given a handful of weapon varieties to create a "weapon pool" then every possible mix and match of that weapon pool is turned into one of the available Razorfiend variant Cruisers.

There are some notable differences found in the tier up in weight class. For starters, you get the typical extra weapon bays but you also get a different mix of weapons. In the Cruiser-class, you won't find any Claws or Feeder Tentacles, instead, the ships focusing mostly on more typical weaponry like their special macro and lance guns, along with torpedo tubes and the first appearance of Launch Bays within their fleet.

The Cruisers get their usual uptick in hull points and shields. What's important here stats-wise, besides the high assault damage and defending troops, is the increase in shields that carries over to an increased maximum number of "defence turrets" along with the special damaging ability granted by Spores.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Battlefleet Gothic]]
[[Category:Xenos]]
[[Category:Tyranid]]
[[Category:Hive Fleets]]
[[Category:Megafauna]]
[[Category:Ships]]

{{40k-Tyranid-Bioships}}

Tyranid Devourer

2023-06-09T22:36:45Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

''Not to be confused with the [[Devourer (Tyranid)|small handheld Tyranid bio-weapon.]]''

The Devourer-class Cruiser is a class of Bio-Ship roughly comparable to a Battlecruiser or Heavy Cruiser. They are substantially larger than their [[Razorfiend]] cousins and stop just shy of being classified as a [[Hive Ship]].

==Breed==

===Basic===

====Corrosive Tentacles====

[[File:14436459_f1024.jpg|300px|right|thumb|There are ''far'' better alternatives that this breed.]]

The lame-duck of the family.

As is often the case with Tyranid ships thanks to their large numbers of slightly different craft, there isn't much special to highlight about the Corrosive Tentacles Devourer, being one of the two full standard/mixed battery Battle Cruisers, besides it trading the melee damaging claws for the assault causing/ship pulling tentacles.

The Bio-Plasma does not complement the extended range of the tentacles as nicely as it does the melee ranged Claws and the Feeder Tentacles can also be found mounted on one of the larger Hive Ships, so the Corrosive Tentacles Devourer loses out a bit on uniqueness too. Overall though, still a decent vessel, just not as special.

It is armed with [[Tyranid_Bio-Weapons#Feeder Tentacles|Feeder Tentacles]], 2 [[Pyro-Acid Battery]] Weapons and 2 [[Bio-Plasma Battery]] Weapons.

*'''Length:''' 8km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 23 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' Millions of organisms
*'''Acceleration:''' 1.7 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx
====Base====

[[File:14436425_f1024.jpg|300px|right|thumb|The heavy hitter.]]

The standard 'Base' Devourer is a flexible and adaptable bio-ship that could handle itself quite well against other naval vessels at close-medium range.

Of the two claw-equipped Battle Cruisers, the Base Devourer is the more direct fire focused of the two, bringing [[Bio-Plasma Battery|Bio-Plasma batteries]] on a vessel that's going to see a lot of close up action. These are also the largest [[Tyranid_Bio-Weapons#Great Claws|Claw weapons]] you can find in the Tyranid fleet, along with the Corrosive Clutch, dealing 50 armor negating damage every 2 seconds.

Thanks to the Devourer's massive size, it is liable to do high damage to any target it rams, and with the Claws and batteries to follow up with, the Devourer is more than capable of OMNOMNOMING Light Cruisers within moments.

It is armed with [[Tyranid_Bio-Weapons#Great Claws|Devourer Claws]], 2 [[Pyro-Acid Battery]] Weapons and 2 [[Bio-Plasma Battery]] Weapons.

*'''Length:''' 8.5km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 27 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' Millions of organisms
*'''Acceleration:''' 1.7 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx
===Carrier===

====Corrosive Clutch====

[[File:14436437_f1024.jpg|300px|right|thumb|Imagine an aircraft carrier with teeth.]]

The carrier of Devourers.

The Corrosive Clutch Devourer trades the Bio-Plasma for a pair of Launch Bays that actually fit the Claw equipped Battle Cruiser rather nicely. At its affordable cost, it can be a nice compliment to a Carrier fleet or just a support close-range ship without additional significant carrier support, since its melee range ram attacks will put it close enough to launch assault squadrons point-blank to bypass the majority of turret defenses.

It is armed with [[Tyranid_Bio-Weapons#Great Claws|Devourer Claws]], 2 Launch Bays carrying [[Tyranid_Harpy|Harpies]] and [[Ether-Swimming Brood]]s and 2 [[Pyro-Acid Battery]] Weapons.

*'''Length:''' 8.5km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 26.2 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' Millions of organisms, thousands of spaceborne creatures
*'''Acceleration:''' 1.7 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx
====Bio-Tentacles====

[[File:14436448_f1024.jpg|300px|right|thumb|''GET OVER HERE!'']]

The ''other'' carrier of Devourers.

If you want a little standard weaponry fallback with your Battle Cruiser/Feeder Tentacle option, you have the Bio-Tentacles Devourer available to you as an option. While it doesn't have the efficiency of the full Launch Bay boating Infestation Devourer, it does at least have the potential to cause real hull damage when it needs to.

One fun fact, having [[Tyranid_Bio-Weapons#Feeder Tentacles|Feeder Tentacles]] on a carrier this heavy can be really useful in terms of hooking enemy line ships and pulling them away from their fellow defending vessels, thus eliminating their ability to cover each other with defensive turret fire. This allows you to pick apart and isolate enemy ships before overwhelming them one by one with assault squadrons, a useful tactic if facing grouped defenders or not having enough carriers yourself to punch through defenses.

It is armed with [[Tyranid_Bio-Weapons#Feeder Tentacles|Feeder Tentacles]], 2 Launch Bays carrying [[Tyranid_Harpy|Harpies]] and [[Ether-Swimming Brood]]s and 2 [[Bio-Plasma Battery]] Weapons.

*'''Length:''' 8km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 22.5 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' Millions of organisms, thousands of spaceborne creatures
*'''Acceleration:''' 1.7 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx
====Infestation====

[[File:14436454_f1024.jpg|300px|right|thumb|The supercarrier of the family.]]

The <u>ULTIMATE</u> carrier of Devourers.

The Infestation Devourer is by far the most cost-effective Launch Bay boating craft of the Tyranid fleet, coming in at 55 points per bay, significantly cheaper than any other carrier option. The downside to this efficient carrier craft is its utter lack of standard weaponry to fall back on.

Now, while the Infestation Devourer can't fire on enemy targets regularly, something nice it can do is stay at long range, occasionally causing heavy assaults with its [[Tyranid_Bio-Weapons#Feeder Tentacles|feeder tentacles]] while launching squadrons outside of stealth detection range. Your enemy will probably notice where you are launching squadrons from eventually, but the Feeder Tentacles are harder to notice, and the lack of continually firing batteries highlighting its position every few seconds will make the vessel much harder to pinpoint.

It is armed with [[Tyranid_Bio-Weapons#Feeder Tentacles|Feeder Tentacles]] and 4 Launch Bays carrying [[Tyranid_Harpy|Harpies]] and [[Ether-Swimming Brood]]s.

*'''Length:''' 8km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 24 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' Millions of organisms, thousands of spaceborne creatures
*'''Acceleration:''' 1.7 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx
==In Battlefleet Gothic: Armada 2==
The Tyranids Devourers gives you some nice weapon combinations you couldn't get with the Cruiser-classed vessels, mixing various standard weapon and Launch Bay broadside mounts with the Feeder Tentacles and Claws special prow weapons, not available from the Razorfiend vessels. Having these weapons installed on the large vessels in this class gives significant boosts to their base capabilities, ensuring higher destructive potential than those found on the Light Cruisers.

Unfortunately, the Devourer-class ships of the Tyranids do not get a direct offensive firepower increase like most other factions get with the tier up in weight class. Instead, they do get an increase to shields and hull points that other factions do not. This gives them a better defensive bonus relatively speaking.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Battlefleet Gothic]]
[[Category:Xenos]]
[[Category:Tyranid]]
[[Category:Hive Fleets]]
[[Category:Megafauna]]
[[Category:Ships]]

{{40k-Tyranid-Bioships}}

Barracuda

2023-06-09T22:35:40Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:NewBarracuda.jpg|300px|thumb|right|The newer model.]]

The '''Barracuda''' is the [[Tau]] Empire's air superiority fighter, roughly equivalent to the [[Imperial Navy]]'s [[Lightning Fighter]]. In the [[lore]], the Barracuda is supposed to be slower than the Lightning and [[Thunderbolt Fighter|Thunderbolt]], while being more maneuverable (than the latter, at least). However, in the rules, all three are exactly as fast as each other and the Lightning and the Barracuda are equally agile and armored. The Imperial and Tau vehicles do differ in one major respect: Imperial flyers have armored cockpits, while Tau cockpits also function as escape pods. Truly, the <s>cowardice</s> <s>basic rationality and actual fucking concern for soldiers' lives</s> cowardice AND weakness of the [[xenos|alien]] knows no bounds.

* The Barracuda is getting a new model, as of May '16. Look into the new model before you purchase china-forge or older painted models. A face-lift, in addition to increased customization, makes for a very exciting next few months for the interceptor. [http://www.belloflostsouls.net/2016/05/forge-world-new-tau-barracua-spotted.html| Here is a link.]
*As of July 23, the new Barracuda (now labeled the AX-5-2) has been released. On top of the aforementioned facelift and increased customization options, Forge World has realized that people that fork over a unicorn's soul for their models also generally want to get the most out of the kit, and the new Barracuda model is [[awesome|designed specifically with magnetization in mind, complete with detailed instructions]].

==7th edition==
The Barracuda's primary air-to-air weapon is a heavy [[ion cannon]] as long as the fuselage. This is supported by a pair of auto-targeting [[burst cannon]]s in the wingtips, and supplemented with [[missile pod]]s in the wings for ground attack. It can also take up to four [[seeker missile]]s to lend additional anti-armor support to [[markerlight]]-equipped ground forces. Kinda like a Lightning’s long autocannon, missiles, and lascannons, even their arrangement. Once it eliminates all flying targets, Barracuda can start bombarding ground-pounders with overcharged ion cannon blasts and hails of missile and pulse fire, vaporizing everything that isn't AV13-14 or Sv2+. Tau usually avoid using it as a dedicated strafing runner though because of it's limited survivability compared to their regular bombers like Tiger Shark or Sun Shark.
[[Image:Taubarracuda.jpg|300px|thumb|left|The old barracuda model.]]
The new [https://www.forgeworld.co.uk/resources/PDF/fw_warscrolls//Tau%20Barracuda%20AX%205%202%20Exp%20Rules.pdf| Barracuda AX-5-2] update also adds the ability to replace the ion cannon with either a short range [[Heavy Burst Cannon|heavy burst cannon]], or a short range [[railgun]]. All of these weapons lack the alternate fire and range of their traditional counterparts, Riptide and Hammerheads respectively, but are otherwise identical. The Barracuda may also replace its auto-targeting long-barreled burst cannon with auto-targeting [[Cyclic Ion Blaster|cyclic ion blasters]]. On top of the new firepower, the AX-5-2 also gets an invulnerable save against glancing and a weaker save against penetrating hits, as well as being able to boost its Jink save by +1.

Barracudas also serve as interceptors of the Tau space fleet, and have been proven quite capable of going toe-to-hoof with the likes of Fury. The fact that Mantas rarely need interceptor escort to fight off enemy interceptors means Tau may focus their Barracuda wings on defense against enemy ordinance, and if you know anything about Battlefleet Gothic, the one who wins the ordinance game while fleets are closing usually wins a battle.

==8e==
See the shiny text wall up there? Its trash, we're not gonna listen to it. (Unless you want to keep playing the 7th edition rules.)

Barracudas are back, and sexy as ever. Not solid choices mind you, but still not horrible if you find you wanna zip around the sky instead of sit in a static gunline. They have good movement, with a 3+ BS and save at T7, meaning that they're hardier than your Citadel flyers like the Sunshark. They also get the bog standard hard to hit -1 for being a plane, and has an invuln save of 5+.

The biggest downside is these things are massive point sinks if you want them to be dedicated to anything besides Infantry Hunting. Due to how -1 to hit rules work this edition, this basically rules out using the Ion Weapons. While this saves you points, it also means that your main weapon is a less dakka Railgun, and if you are in a T'au army that means its sacrificing volume of fire, which is also a direct downside. Don't forget the built in Missile pods which can plink wounds off tanks, vehicles, and heavy infantry, but I digress.

You won't see them often for the above reasons, but they are still viable. They can take four seeker missiles if you really need them and have the points. Couple that with heavy markerlight support, they skyrocket in their usefulness, being able to quite possibly dish out concerning levels of firepower when shooting at something with 5 markerlights.

Are they good for tournaments? No. Take Sunsharks. Are they strong for more "casual" games? Yes.

==Battlefleet Gothic Armada 1 & 2==
Barracudas in Battlefleet Gothic Armada 1 & 2 shares with the [[Ork]]'s [[Fighta-Bommer]]s as being one of the slowest fighters in the game. However, unlike the Orks, Barracudas lack the special ship damage capabilities, making Barracudas ironically, one of the worst fighters in the game, which is hilarious when given the high reputation of Barracudas in the fluff. Might as well just use the [[Demiurg]]'s [[Automated Fighting Drone]]s which are just ''better''.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Battlefleet Gothic]]
[[Category:Xenos]]
[[Category:Tau]]
[[Category:Kor'Vattra]]
[[Category:Vehicles]]
[[Category:Flyers]]

{{Tau}}

Barbarus

2023-06-09T22:34:11Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:Barbarus.jpg|300px|right|thumb|With an ugly-ass planet like that. No wonder Mortarion grew up so damned fatalistic.]]

Barbarus was a death world where the pod of [[Mortarion]] landed and was the homeworld of the [[Death Guard]] legion. Living on Barbarus is pretty shitty. It's constantly dark as the toxic fog blocks out the light of the dim sun that the planet orbits. [[Grimdark|Humans can only live in the low altitude plains as everything higher than that is a deadly fog where the planet's overlords live, enslaving and treating the peasants in the plains like shit]]. The fog was so bad even Mortarion couldn't live high up on the mountains! There's not much on Barbarus to see, really, aside from the Wall of Memory that holds a nail with the name of every fallen Death Guard during the Great Crusade.

==History==
Before Mortarion arrived on Barbarus, the humans there were enslaved and dicked with by the planet's overlords, who poked the humans with their pointy sticks then hid in the super toxic fog until they decided to poke them again. After Mortarion crashed on Barbarus, he was found crying up on the mountains where the planet's Overlord spared and adopted the crying baby Primarch. The Overlord then trained the Primarch in the art of war and built a mighty wall at the highest elevation that Mortarion could withstand without being poisoned to death. Mortarion then buggered off to the plains and decided to live with the most similar things to him. Though it is quite a stretch calling a Primarch similar to a human, they were closer to him than he was to his adoptive father - Gathering Storm confirmed that foster daddy was an alien. Mortarion just showed up and helped with the harvest until the undead armies of the overlords showed up. He killed them all except for the ones on the one peak where he couldn't survive. Mortarion then led a crusade against his father but had to be saved by the [[God-Emperor_of_Mankind|Emprah]] who stole Mortarion's kill after Emps double-dared Mortarion to kill Morty's foster father. Typical Emperor douchebaggery. He then gave Mortarion the Death Guard (then Dusk Raiders) and told him to fuck off and claim the galaxy in Emp's gold-plated name.

It was the first primarch homeworld to be destroyed by the Dark Angels when they went on their rampage behind the traitor lines during the Siege of Terra, but ''not'' the first to be destroyed; that honor goes to Nostramo, which got blown to bits by the Night Lords prior to the Heresy.

{{40k-Planets}}

[[Category:Imperial]][[Category:Space Marines]][[Category:Death Guard]]

Barabas Dantioch

2023-06-09T22:33:57Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:Barabas_Dantioch.png|300px|thumb|right|The man himself. Looks as badass as he is. Not to be confused with [[Fist of the North Star|Jagi]].]]
{{Topquote|I live to tell the tale, however, of the Iron Warriors' final victory: The last loyal triumph of the IVth Legion.|Barabas Dantioch}}

'''Warsmith Barabas Dantioch''' more commonly referred to as '''Dantioch''' was a legionnaire of the [[Iron Warriors]] who [[Traitor Legion Loyalists|stayed loyal to the Emperor]] during the [[Horus Heresy|Galactic Chaos Dumpster-Fire 30,000]]. The classic cantankerous old general, he linked up with other loyalists at [[Ultramar]] and joined forces with the [[Imperium Secundus]]. He was attached to the [[Ultramarines]] 199th Aegida Company, who would later become the [[Scythes of the Emperor]] in the Third Founding; their [[Chapter Master]] wears his helmet as a symbol of authority. Oh, also he worshiped the Emperor [[Ecclesiarchy|before it was cool]] and openly allowed the worship of Big E at his citadel. He is significant to the 40k era in two ways, one for effectively founding a chapter of Iron Warrior successors within Ultramar, and for accidentally calling ''[[Tyranids|something]]'' to the Milky Way Galaxy 10,000 years after his glorious death. He is also significant for being [[Gay|BFFs]] with "Crimson Fist" [[Alexis Polux]] of the Imperial Fists legion, showing that for all their Primarchs' animousity towards one another, the warriors of the IVth and VIIth legions really could be sincere brothers-in-arms with each other after all.

==Biography==
===Great Crusade===
Back in the heyday of the Great Crusade, He was [[Perturabo|Daddy's]] favourite, being promoted to Warsmith at some point. Things were going pretty good, until Dantioch was put in charge of a grand company to take on a migratory Xenos race known as the [[Hrud]]. Apparently the Hrud had an "entropy field" that caused things to age at an incredible pace, causing equipment to rust to unusable levels, and bunkers to collapse under their own weight, and even nearby non-Hrud living beings to rapidly age and even die from old age. This proved to be a great hindrance for an equipment-heavy Legion like the Iron Warriors (or any Legion for that matter) and the Hrud took half a Grand Company and a subsector with them before most of their species met the business end of the Iron Warriors' bolters, plasma cannons, and missile launchers, and leaving Dantioch extremely aged (despite his "only" being 200 years old, which is still in the prime of life for an uninjured Astartes) and with a borderline-decrepit body due to the rapidity of his cell decay. This either indicates Astartes can die of old age (or at least be so weakened by it they might as well be) or that the Hrud's entropic field worked too quickly for Astartes biology to keep up with. After that single poor mark on an otherwise stellar career record (and also because he dared suggest that simply throwing more men at a given problem until it budged wasn't the smartest thing to do), Perturabo pulled a [[Lion El'Johnson]] and [[Luther]]ed his ass to garrison duty. Banished to an outpost that was far enough into the Imperium to ''definitely not'' get any action, Dantioch spent his time on his magnum opus, a citadel that would make even his own Primarch squeal with delight and jealousy both. This culminated in Schadenhold: [[Awesome|A subterranean fortress located on a Death World, suspended upside down over a lake of promethium.]]

===The Siege of the Schadenhold===
Eventually the whole Horus Heresy thing came along and that out-of-the-way outpost he was put in command of became essential to Horus' campaign to reach Terra, as the outpost could easily become a rallying point for the Imperial Navy if the Traitor Legions overextended themselves. Warsmith Krendl, Dantioch's replacement, showed up with a detachment of Iron Warriors with the backing of a Son of Horus detachment demanding that he cede Schandenhold to the Traitor Legions. Dantioch promptly told them to go fuck themselves with the backing of an Ultramarine champion before settling in for a long siege. His loyal garrison of Iron Warriors being informally known as the "Sons of Dantioch". Throughout said siege, which lasted a little over a year, Dantioch proved himself the greatest troll since, or rather before, [[Creed]]. Doing such things as [[Troll|painting Dreadnoughts black and hiding them in dark corners, breaking the dam that contained the lake of promethium, thus drowning hundreds of traitor guardsmen, then proceeding to light the lake on fire, thus incinerating hundreds more guardsmen and dozens of Basilisks]]. The siege culminated in Schadenhold being overrun by Krendl's men and an Imperator-class titan, before Dantioch committed the ultimate act of trolling: he detonated the ceiling of the cave system Schadenhold was in thus dropping the entire fortress into a massive lake of magma below it, wiping out the vast majority of the traitor forces (including their titans) and denying them any possible gain, in a defiant middle finger to Perturabo, before teleporting onto Krendl's ship, [[Minotaurs|stealing it]], and taking off to '''FORTIFY''' the Imperium against the traitors. At some point, he and the remainder of his garrison were separated, their location unknown....[[Silver Skulls|maybe]]...

===The Pharos===
Later, during the events of the Horus Heresy novels "Unremembered Empire" and "Pharos", Dantioch set up shop in the [[Imperium Secundus]]. He pledged his loyalty to [[Roboute Guilliman|Bobby McGuillicutty]]. He was assigned to get the ancient xenos (Necron) facility called the "Pharos" operational, to be used as the [[Astronomicon]] Mark 2, on the planet Sotha. Besides using it to help coordinate Secundas' communications and travel, he used it to great effect to rescue Lion El Jonson and Guilliman from a trap laid by Konrad Curze.

However, eventually the facility came under the Night Lords' attack. With the Night Lord's leader managing to reach the Pharos's control center and Dantioch. Taking Dantioch's bestie (Alexus Polux) hostage, the Night Lords claimed victory and ordered Dantioch to use the Pharos to their advantage. However, the Night Lords forgot one VERY important thing: Dantioch is an '''Iron Warrior'''. At first leading the Night Lords into a false sense of security by faking compliance, he decided to fall back on the Iron Warriors' tried-and-true method of "if we can't win, ''obliterate'' '''''everything'''''!". Before the Night Lords could react, Dantioch started pushing the interstellar beacon into maximum overdrive, in an attempt to kill the Night Lords, even if it meant his own death as well. Using the empathic powers of the facility to channel the cold, bitter, hatred and spite in his very blood, Dantioch ''WILLED'' it to kill them with every fiber of his being. This pulled the Night Lords into its gravity-well like portal, smashing most of them into a massive ball of meat and metal, then throwing said ball and the surviving few Night Lords back to their flagship. However, this also sent an ungodly amount of energy through the Pharos's control systems (which exploded) and Dantioch himself. After it was over Dantioch had just enough life left to enjoy his victory and to tell Polux his goodbyes before finally dying.

For his sacrifice, Dantioch was named a "'''''HERO OF THE IMPERIUM'''''" by Rowboat himself, who also gave Dantioch's remaining [[Silver Skulls|loyalist Iron Warriors]] sanctuary in Ultramar. A distraught Polux for his part did his late brother-in-arms one final honour, bearing Dantioch's funeral bier alone, as this was the second time he had lost a brother-figure dear to him (the first being the death of his biological brother Helias Polux). Dantioch's mask was placed near the top of the Pharos as a memorial to his service.

===A Heroic Legacy with Unforeseen Consequences===
Later when the Ultramarines 199th was formed into the Scythes of the Emperor, they retrieved Dantioch's mask and modified it into a helmet which they used as a symbol of office in his honour as the "Warden of the Pharos", dedicated to protecting Sotha (and the Imperium) from the dangers that still reside within the Pharos. However, by M41, Warsmith Barabas Dantioch's name has been lost to the fog of time. Even the Scythes of the Emperor no longer remembering him, only having vague myths of a "traitor redeemed" as one of many surrounding his funeral pyre.

Worst of all, Dantioch's final legacy would end up being a dire curse to plague the entire Milky Way Galaxy. No one at the time, not [[the Emperor]], not [[Eldrad]], perhaps no one in the galaxy except the Chaos God [[Tzeentch]] himself, could have foreseen the apocalyptic consequences of Dantioch's last living act 10,000 years later. It turns out that [[Games Workshop| The Powers That Be]] have pretty much confirmed that Dantioch's supercharging the Pharos device is what [[Not As Planned|initially caught the attention of the extragalactic Tyranids]], resulting in their making a beeline for Sotha, wiping the planet of all life in millenia later, and [[Hive Fleet Behemoth|almost dooming]] the realm that he had pledged to protect. The destruction of Sotha also eliminated the Scythes of the Emperor's need for a "Warden of the Pharos" and Dantioch's mask was left abandoned on the planet Miral after the chapter was nearly completely wiped out by the Tyranids, while the last Scythe of the Emperor to even remember his myths was killed in a final mission to the Pharos. For such is life (and death) in the 40k universe; even if you are lucky enough to die a true hero, [[Grimdark|no good deed goes unpunished after all.]]

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]][[Category:Imperial]][[Category:Space Marines]]

Baneling

2023-06-09T22:32:06Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

Banelings are blood-loving xenos have the ability to "unshroud" themselves before attacking, suggesting an ability to turn invisible before assaulting their prey.

[[Category:Minor Xenos Species]]
{{Template:Important Species in 40k}}

Baneblade

2023-06-09T22:31:23Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:4DdD2uO.jpg|right|500px|thumb|A cutaway view of the most fabled of oversized tractor cannons.]]

{{Topquote|IT IS THE '''BEEEEEINNNBLEEEEHHDDDEEEE'''!|[[Apollo_Diomedes|Captain Diomedes]] of the [[Blood Ravens]].}}
{{Topquote|RELEASING ELEVEN BARRELS OF HELL!
ALL GUARDSMEN, FOLLOW ME TO GLORY!!!|Baneblade tank commander in Dawn of War}}

The '''Baneblade''' is a big fucking [[Imperium of Man|Imperial]] tank in the Warhammer 40,000 universe, known generally for an impressive arsenal (OF GUNS), and [[Vance Motherfucking Stubbs|disappearing en masse]]. Besides ''looking'' totally kickass, it stomps a lot of ass too. It is supposedly one of the oldest and largest tank designs used by the Imperium, despite that it's actually medium-sized according to the old Epic fluff. Then again, the "big" tanks in Epic were closer to moving, gun-mounting cathedrals. This is an actual tank. A manly tank. ''The'' manly tank.

*'''Length:''' 13.5m
*'''Mass:''' 316-319 tonnes
*'''Crew:''' 10 crew
*'''Max Speed:''' 25kph

==Origins==
The Baneblade first appeared in the ''Space Marine'' edition of [[Epic]], where it was the Imperial Guard's standard super-heavy tank (it says a lot about the universe that there's such a thing as a "standard" one). This version was armed with a turret-mounted Battle Cannon (with the same stats as the one on the [[Leman Russ Battle Tank]], despite the turret being the ''size'' of a Leman Russ), two Lascannons, and a bunch of dice worth of "Bolters" to deal with swarms. Despite obviously having a big gun on the lower hull, there was no representation of it in the tank's rules. Fluff described the hull as the size of a city block.

Being a standard version, there were variants at that point, and only three:

* The '''Stormhammer''' was effectively a moving fortress, and the precise armament is hard to say given the odd way the game treated "Bolters;" anything from an officer's [[Bolt Pistol]]s to ''both'' a Leman Russ' [[Heavy Bolter]]s was one attack die with the same stats. This means this particular monster might have up to 24 Heavy Bolters (or alternately 12 bolt pistols) in addition to two turrets with two battle cannons each. Basically, you park it in a place and then forget about that place, since it is now Defended.
* The '''Shadowsword''' was one of two Titan-killing variants, armed with two [[Lascannons]] and some "Bolters" like the Baneblade, but with the rear hull built up to mount a fixed Volcano Cannon, a giant laser weapon normally mounted on Titans.
* The '''Stormblade''' was a second variant of the fixed-weapon hull, and proof of how incredibly fucking HUEG the old Epic fluff made the Baneblade chassis; no fruity Lascannons for this one, the sponson weapons were a rack of missiles and a fucking ''[[Battle Cannon]]''. Your main gun was a Titan-grade Plasma Blastgun with a Hellion anti-Titan missile slung on the top. Potential drivers had to produce written proof that they were [[meme|bad enough dudes]] [[/v/|to save the President]] before they'd even be considered. [[Forge World]] makes a Stormblade, but it just sits there (eating an entire sack of dicks) because it knows it will never be cool enough to have a sponson-mounted Battle Cannon.
The Chaos legions have their own version called the '''Decimator''', which is, in fact, an early pre-production model super-heavy tank that would later lead to the development of the Baneblade. It has replaced its bolters with lots and lots of Reaper Autocannons, resulting in it being far nastier against medium armor, though its main cannon is not turreted, meaning the entire tank has to turn to fire it. They also use the chassis for [[Tower of Skulls]].

The [[Macharius Heavy Tank]] is created as "second-generation Baneblades", as a supplement tank to Baneblades.

==Design==

[[File:Baneblade_Variants.jpg|400px|right|thumb|Just 13 more spaces to fill. 18 now.]]

Here are a few fun facts about the mighty Baneblade:

*At the time of the [[Great Crusade]], there used to be ''entire <s>companies</s> battalions'' of Baneblades (it was described as being the "mainstay" of the Imperial Army). Nowadays, regiments with [[Vance Motherfucking Stubbs|anywhere near a hundred Baneblades]] are virtually unheard of, and any Imperial Guard force can count itself lucky to have just one in their possession. The Mechanicus gets a special ability to commission (read - pressgang) crew from guard regiments, using a vague prognostic algorithm to select those that show promise). If a Baneblade gets lost in combat, chances are that the Mechanicus will throw a bitchfit and pull out all stops to recover the hulk. This was the case seven years before the Third Armageddon War, when an entire Imperial Guard Army Group of approximately 30,000 men were deployed to Golgotha to retrieve Yarrick's Fortress of Arrogance and a bit of STC teleporter tech (although guard didn't know about that last part). From two tank battalions, lead by a Shadowsword tank called Angel of the Apocalypse and supported with a full mechanized battalion of elite Kasrkin Storm Troopers, only a pair of tanks and couple of hundred men survived. Except not really; the Mechanicus were really after the STC and the purpose behind recovering Yarrick's Baneblade was mostly for morale and propaganda purposes rather than the fact that the tank had an inherent value. If not for the STC on Golgotha, Yarrick would probably have been supplied with another Baneblade and Imperial propagandists would have invented the rest.

If you need some kind of analogy to more fully appreciate the awe-inspiring/pants-browning nature of Baneblades and their variants, then consider that a vanilla Baneblade sits somewhere between 300-400 tons. Imagine, then, putting one of the smaller WWII-era destroyers on treads with a near impossibly good suspension and ground pressure distribution. Because it must resist any form of weaponry it might encounter, go ahead and thickly encase it in the best armor you've got; then, because armor is heavy, be sure to add a power plant that will gladly burn any fuel while providing an incredible power to weight ratio. Once you've done that, ''then'' toss in an electronics and fire control suite that is more advanced than almost anything else the Guard uses. And yet, even with all these advantages the Baneblade is still is more heart-stoppingly terrifying than the sum of its parts. The closest real-world equivalent would probably be a scaled-down [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landkreuzer_P._1000_Ratte Landkreuzer P.1000 Ratte] that actually works, and also has lasers. Any way you look at it, it is an awe-inspiring, terror-inducing weapon.

As an added bonus, this is one of the few Imperial Guard tanks that doesn't look like a WWI castoff.

==Warhammer 40,000==
Scratch-built Baneblade models with homebrew (read: unfair) rules have been kicking around since roughly ten minutes after it was introduced in Epic, but it wasn't until [[Forge World]] was founded that [[Games Workshop]] ever considered releasing an official model. The Baneblade then became available as a plastic kit from GW itself, along with a six-option kit for the fixed-hull variants. With the [[Warhammer 40,000 6th edition|sixth edition]] re-release of [[Apocalypse]], GW redid the kit again to make all eight of their official variants listed below.

There are currently ten official variants, with the names being a nightmarish jumble of "Bane," "Sword," "Storm," "Shadow," "Blade" and "Hammer" to the point it's difficult remembering which is which. Though the naming conventions may have an in-fluff excuse for their complexity, because apparently since Baneblade and Shadowsword tanks are in such high demand that unscrupulous Forgeworlds without the correct know-how to build them would bodge together a variant "counterfeit" tank and hand them off to unsuspecting Imperial Guard regiments, who are none the wiser when they get "Baneswords" or "Stormblades" instead of what they actually asked for.

===Core Eight===

====Baneblade====

[[File:Marsbaneblade.jpg|thumb|left|The OG tank itself, in its original Forgeworld resin form.]]

{{clear}}

The modern Baneblade mounts what's known as a "[[Baneblade Cannon]]" (representing belated recognition that the thing in the turret is really huge and so probably not a [[Battle Cannon]]) with a coaxial [[Autocannon]], the same two [[Lascannon]]s it always had, a Twin-linked [[Heavy Bolter]]s in each sponson and another two on the hull front, and a [[Demolisher Cannon]] where the Mysterious Not-A-Weapon was once mounted. This leads to the well-known [[Dawn of War|ELEVEN BARRELS OF HELL]], though the vehicle has options for two more sponsons to be mounted (each with another [[Lascannon]] and Twin-linked [[Heavy Bolter]]) plus a pintle mounted [[Heavy Stubber]] or [[Storm Bolter]], which raises the bar to eighteen. This option can only be taken on the GW plastic kit, as the old Forge World models were shorter, sillier-looking, and had no place for them. These were given their own pattern in the fluff, and thrust upon an unsuspecting Forge World (the ''other'' kind) to make and produce for all eternity. There are two patterns of the Baneblade, the Mars and Lucius pattern. According to the excellent books <i>Baneblade</i> and <i>Shadowsword</i> by Guy Haley, Honoured Lieutenant Bannick remarks that the Mars-pattern is more sophisticated and less cramped than the Lucius-pattern. In either case the Baneblade excels in its job of being adaptable to any tactical situation.

====Banehammer====

[[File:Banehammer.jpg|thumb|left|You ever wonder where that frequent tremble in the ground comes from? Now you know.]]

{{clear}}

The Banehammer fields the [[Tremor Cannon]] in a forward-set casemate, a weapon that can turn a huge segment of the battlefield into a maelstrom of flying debris, slowing down the enemy long enough for the rest of the army to destroy them. Like all of the variants of the Baneblade, the Banehammer came into being as the solution to a specific tactical need. Like its counterpart tank the Stormlord, it is a dedicated line-breaker, designed to deal with large waves of infantry. Where the Stormlord is exceptionally effective against Orks, the Banehammer is especially effective against the horrendously fast-moving Tyranid swarms and their notoriously resilient larger bio-forms. The Tremor Cannon that replaces the original [[Volcano Cannon]] is a potent weapon adapted from a [[Squat]] design: it fires large self-propelled rockets with an incredibly hard tip which are designed to burrow themselves a set distance into the ground before exploding. The underground detonation creates a powerful shockwave much larger than the shell's explosion, which will impede the progress of any unit caught within it. Infantry will be thrown down and shrouded in dirt, while tanks will become bogged down and trapped by the shifting soil. While the Tremor Cannon shell itself does quite a bit of damage on its own, it is the side effect of the underground explosion that is invaluable, pinning the opponent in place and making him vulnerable to sustained shooting from other Guard units (in 8th, a unit hit by this weapon halves its movement and cannot Advance in the next turn). Additionally, since the Tremor Cannon is much smaller than the original Volcano Cannon, the Banehammer possesses a large empty hold capable of carrying 25 soldiers, and has enough room in the rear deck to let ten of them stand up and shoot out of the vehicle. By carrying its own "short" platoon of Guardsmen the Banehammer ensures that it is never without infantry support. Alternatively, it can house a cramped but fully functional headquarters equipped with powerful Vox-casters and tactical arrays from which the officer in charge can lead his troops, making into an assault gun and IFV or Command Vehicle hybrid.

====Banesword====

[[File:Banesword.jpg|thumb|left|Your fortifications immediately pull a critical existence failure when this guy is around.]]

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The Banesword is a relatively recent variant of the (in)famous Shadowsword that performs as a siege tank to the Banehammer's assault gun: its [[Quake Cannon]] can destroy a target up to 140" away, which makes it one of the longest-ranged weapons in the game. The power of the Quake Cannon, combined with the armour of a super-heavy, has established the Banesword as the pinnacle of Imperial siegecraft. Many Imperial commanders would be willing to exchange an entire regiment for a single Banesword, such is the reputation of this tank. Indeed, Imperial combat doctrine holds an honoured place for the Banesword. It is unknown what the [[Iron Warriors]] would think of this, although they will most likely find this tank to be their spirit animal. Like the [[Basilisk Artillery Gun|Basilisk]], the Banesword's place on the battlefield is in the rear areas, obliterating enemy fortifications with long range fire. However, the Banesword can also be pressed into the frontlines. The Banesword's armoured mass and secondary armament of three sets of twin-linked [[Heavy Bolter]]s and two [[Lascannon]]s allow it to perform much more efficiently than a battery of Basilisks when fielded in this way. The Banesword dispenses with the most hampering disadvantage of the Shadowsword, namely having to disengage its engine before firing. However, like all super-heavy tanks based on the Baneblade chassis, it suffers from mediocre top speed and maneuverability, and the Quake Cannon's fixed setting requires the Banesword to be aimed directly at its intended target. Additionally, the Quake Cannon is inefficient against enemy [[Titan]]s, for unlike the Lance beam from a Volcano Cannon, or the massive plasma burst from a Plasma Blastgun, the massive shell will be stopped by Void Shields, requiring the target's shields to be taken down before the shot is taken with any hope of success.

====Doomhammer====

[[File:Doomhammer.jpg|thumb|left|Its like a Shadowsword, except totally not.]]

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The Doomhammer is a tank-killer that uses its [[Magma Cannon]] to reduce all but the largest of war-engines to scrap, especially when employed at short range. While the Shadowsword's volcano cannon is still preferable when facing actual Titans, especially at extreme distances, the Magma Cannon can deal a death blow to unwary players thinking they are hotshots for having smaller units with the Titanic keyword on the field. Since shells do not have to be carried and the main gun's mechanisms take up less space, it can also carry 25 soldiers, and has enough room in the rear deck to let ten of them shoot out of the vehicle. The Doomhammer was first designed as a field conversion of a Banehammer tank during the 1000 year-long siege of the Renegade Forge World of Odana. By replacing the Banehammer's Tremor Cannon with a Magma Cannon the tank gained the ability to severely damage or outright destroy vast swathes of enemy vehicles. During the siege, armoured vehicle attrition rates outstripped supply and thus Imperial commanders had to use replacements for their lost Shadowswords. In a way, you can think of the Doomhammer as the "shotgun" of the Titan-killing Baneblades: while the Magma Cannon lacks the extreme range and outright power of other weapons such as the Volcano Cannon, at close distances it can still turn almost any target into a sizzling puddle of slag. Compared to the Shadowsword it is arguably much better suited for fighting more conventional, non-Titanic units as a regular tank destroyer IFV hybrid.

====Hellhammer====

[[File:Hellhammer tank.jpg|thumb|left|It's like a Baneblade that just emerged from a cold shower.]]

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The '''Hellhammer''' has the same profile as the Baneblade in that it has an actual turret and not a casemate-mounted main gun. However it uses the comical [[Hellhammer Cannon]], which is shorter but strikes harder than a Baneblade's Baneblade Cannon, giving exactly zero fucks about the cover in between. Basically, compared to a Baneblade's battlecannon the Hellhammer Cannon has one more point of strength, one more point of AP, and it ignores cover, but it also has half the range. The Hellhammer was built to provide short-ranged fire support in difficult conditions (like city fights), hence why the Hellhammer Cannon is used and why it has such a comically short turret. You don't want your tank to get stuck while trying to cross a T-Junction due to "Overcompensation-Syndrome" now do you? The Hellhammer's primary powerplant is a Phaeton pattern 110 square kilo-cubits Adaptable Thermic Combuster, supported by a Gravis pattern Thaumic Resonance Crystal Generation Unit. (TLDR: Mechanicus techno-magic that sounds cool.) Like all Baneblade variants, it has Smoke Launchers and can be adapted to mount a [[Hunter-Killer Missile]] and/or a pintle-mounted [[Heavy Stubber]]/[[Storm Bolter]]. Because they tend to fight at such short ranges Hellhammers greatly benefit from having two sets of sponsons, especially if at least one pair is armed with twin-linked Heavy Flamers. The Hellhammer's advantage over the assault gun Baneblade variants is that it has a turret rather than a fixed casemate.

====Shadowsword====

[[File:Shadowsword2.jpg|thumb|left|Causing Titan crews to wake up in a cold sweat for 10,000 years.]]

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The Shadowsword is a titan-killer. No, that's not quite true; it is THE titan-killer, against which all other titan-killers are judged. It is considered to be the sister-tank to the Baneblade and ALL other variants outside of it and the Baneblade are considered knock-off wannabes to one extent or another. Some Forgeworlds simply can't make [[Volcano Cannon]]s or the complicated targeting computers intended to go with them, so they mount different weapons instead, which you can see in the sub-variants listed in this section; these are then sold off to Imperial Guard regiments in place of Shadowswords to fill requisitions. "Real" Shadowswords are registered on Mars as soon as they get manufactured, and the Adeptus Mechanicum keeps a paranoid level of attention regarding their wherabouts so they know where they are at all times. Regardless of which Forge World produced it, a genuine Shadowsword has a very good chance of crippling or even destroying a Titan in a single shot; smaller targets like Knights are at risk of being completely vaporized. This guy is your friend. It will be there for you when something absolutely ''must'' die and must die ''now''.

====Stormlord====

[[File:StormLord.jpg|thumb|left|[[A-10 Warthog|BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRT]]]]

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The '''Stormlord''' is designed with but one purpose: to waste [[MEQ]]s. With the most dakka seen in Imperial armies to date (you can still have more though) in the form of a [[Vulcan Mega-Bolter]], the ability to have up to 20 of its 40 passengers fire from its fighting platform (each heavy weapons team counts as 2 models, so tack on another ten heavy bolters) and the option to have up to ten Heavy Bolters (technically 5 twin heavy bolters, but yes), this tank WILL END enemy infantry! Unfortunately the main gun has the same casemate-mounted setup as the Shadowsword, making it impossible for the Stormlord to turn its Vulcan Mega-Bolter around without turning the entire tank around. [[Derp|In theory this would be a pain in the ass when fighting in close and narrow environments like urban areas, places where the Stormlord is meant to shine the best. Thankfully 8th Edition does not use weapon arcs, so this is not an issue.]] As of 8th Edition this is probably one of the best super-heavy, anti-infantry tanks in the game due to the amount of firepower that you get. The Mega-Bolter alone gives you 20 s6 ap-2 shots at 60" range. If you take four sponsons, throw in another 30 s5 ap-1 shots at 36" range, and 4 s9 ap-3 shots at 48" range from the lascannon mounted on each sponson. Just for shits and giggles it also has two side-mounted [[Heavy Stubber]]s, and let's face it, you're probably going to give it a third [[Heavy Stubber]] for the pintle mount too, because why wouldn't you? Then, on top of all of that, you get 20 models shooting out of the top, too. As an added bonus, the Mega-Bolter does 2 wounds per hit, meaning that this is an ideal weapon for dealing with smug Primaris players. In short, even if you roll very poorly you're virtually guaranteed to take out at least one MEQ squad a turn, while horde armies like Orks and Tyranids will just get mown down like chaff. The full IFV to the Banehammer and Doomhammer's assault gun/tank destroyer hybrids.

This is about as close to ENUF DAKKA as you can get.

====Stormsword====

[[File:Stormsword.jpg|thumb|left|The Guard miraculously avoided a war with the AdMech over this tank.]]

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Originally built from salvaged Shadowsword or Stormblade tanks, because [[Volcano Cannon]]s and [[Plasma Blastgun]]s are blisteringly difficult to manufacture, the Imperial Guard just put wide-bore Cannons on the hulls and gave them spare Hellhammer Shells to fire. Needless to say these [[Heresy|"unsanctioned" modifications]] got the Mechanicum's collective jimmies rustled up. But because the vehicles were still good at what they did, the Imperial Guard commanders kept the vehicles listed on the roster in spite of what anyone else was thinking. Yet, in an uncharacteristically grown-up move, the Mechanicum actually capitulated on the matter and started making Stormswords themselves, upgrading the "Hellhammer Cannons" with dedicated "[[Stormsword Cannon]]s" which have much the same range and effect, but a bigger blast radius. The '''Stormsword''' excels at city fighting. It is able to turn entire building blocks to dust with a single shot. The tank's main weakness is the short range on its [[Stormsword Cannon]] and lack of a hull-mounted Demolisher cannon. The Stormsword Cannon is almost identical to the Hellhammer's main weapon, but the Stormsword cannon also has the benefit of re-rolling 1's to wound. That being said, the Stormsword doesn't really have anything to recommend it except for cost; lacking both the flexibility and wizzbang firepower of some of the other variants, it is nevertheless the cheapest member of the Baneblade/Shadowsword family by a noticeable margin. It is essentially a cheaper alternative for the expensive models giving a turretless Hellhammer with a bit more power in its shells, making it a full assault gun to the Banehammer's IFV hybrid.

====On the Tabletop====

The Baneblade and its variants are all profiled in the 8th Edition ''Codex: Astra Militarum''. The premier superheavy tank of the Imperial Guard, the Baneblade tanks make for a formidable base to build an army around and a source of a lot of heavy weapons fire. All Baneblades have the same statline: at T8, W26 and a 3+ save they're more than able to soak up quite a lot of the fire they will inevitably attract. And while its BS4+ doesn't seem like a lot, thanks to its Steel Behemoth rule it can fire all of its Heavy Weapons (which is everything it has except its Storm Bolter, which as a Rapid Fire weapon isn't affected by this anyway), as well as fire and charge on the same turn it Fell Back. And thanks to 9 attacks at S9 AP-2 DD3 it can deal a surprising amount of damage in close combat, but don't send it into a fight against things like [[Terminator]]s (unless you use the "Crush Them!" Stratagem to boost it up to WS 2+ and let it advance and charge in the same turn- then it can take on a [[Bloodthirster]] in melee and still have a good chance of winning). The Baneblade starts to deteriorate at half wounds, losing three of its 10" movement, its BS goes down by one and it loses 3 attacks. But because it's so tough, it can take quite a beating before being diminished as long as your opponent doesn't have Lords of War on the battlefield as well.

At 370 points for most of the variants with a maximum of 410 for the Stormlord, Baneblades are at a base level pretty affordable. They all get different main weapons, and all of them have a pair of Heavy Bolters as well. The Baneblade and Hellhammer get an additional [[Autocannon]] and [[Demolisher Cannon]], and the Hellhammer also has a [[Lasgun]] for some reason. All of them can take either one or two pairs of sponsons, each equipped with a [[Lascannon]] and either two [[Heavy Bolter]]s or two [[Heavy Flamer]]s. Note that you can mix and match as you see fit: if you have only one pair you can pick one with a Heavy Bolter and the other with a Heavy Flamer. Sponsons cost 34 for the Heavy Bolter and 48 for the Heavy Flamer. The points really add up though: 68 for a pair and 136 for a full set of Heavy Bolters, and 96 and 192 for the Heavy Flamers. But when you look at the firepower you know you've got the good stuff. Four Heavy Flamers net you 8D6 S5 AP-1 D1 shots that auto-hit, while the four double Heavy Bolters, paired with the standard one, nets you 30 S5 AP-1 D1 shots at 36" range. And don't forget the 4 S9 AP-3 DD6 shots from the four Lascannons. Note that the Heavy Bolter option is 20 points cheaper than an equally-equipped [[Heavy Weapons Squad]]. The Heavy Flamers are expensive, but other tanks are bound to a maximum of 3 for a comparative higher price tag (aka the tank they're on). The Baneblade can also take a pintle-mounted [[Heavy Stubber]] or [[Storm Bolter]], and a [[Hunter-Killer Missile]] for good measure. The Heavy Stubber is the superior option (especially now that they are at the same price as a Storm Bolter as of Chapter Approved 2018) most of the time: only when decked out with Heavy Flamers or when facing enemies that charge the tank the Storm Bolter is superior. The Hunter-Killer Missile is neat, but with the massive arsenal the tank's lugging around it's not necessary. Because of its massive array of weapons charging one is a very bad idea: even when only hitting on sixes the sheer volume of fire will mean that you'll get hit.

{|border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=2 align=right style="margin: 1em;"
|-
! Tank || Name || Range || Type || S || AP || D || Abilities
|-
| Baneblade || Baneblade Cannon || 72" || Heavy 3D6 || 9 || -3 || 3 || N/A
|-
| Banehammer || Tremor Cannon || 60" || Heavy 3D6 || 8 || -2 || 3 || Anyone hit by the cannon must halve their movement and cannot advance.
|-
| Banesword || Quake Cannon || 140" || Heavy 2D6 || 14 || -4 || D6 || Damage rolls of 1-2 are 3 instead.
|-
| Doomhammer || Magma Cannon || 60" || Heavy 2D6 || 10 || -5 || D6 || If within half range, roll 2d6 and drop the lowest for damage.
|-
| Hellhammer || Hellhammer Cannon || 36" || Heavy 3D6 || 10 || -4 || 3 || Ignores cover.
|-
| Shadowsword || Volcano Cannon || 120" || Heavy 3D3 || 16 || -5 || 2D6 || Reroll failed wound rolls against {{W40kKeyword|TITANIC}} units.
|-
| Stormlord || Vulcan Mega-Bolter || 60" || Heavy 20 || 6 || -2 || 2 || N/A
|-
| Stormsword || Stomsword Siege Cannon || 36" || Heavy 2D6 || 10 || -4 || D6 || Ignores cover, and rerolls damage rolls of 1.
|}

The table contains the main guns of all eight tanks, but they're more than just statlines attached to a tank:

* The '''Baneblade''' is the standard against which all other tanks are held. The Baneblade Cannon drops potent damage at a reliable rate, allowing you to blow up all but the heaviest of tanks in a single shot of its main cannon. It is also one of the two variants that carries an Autocannon and a Demolisher Cannon for that extra bit damage. As is, the Baneblade is a great long-range support tank.
* The '''Banehammer''' is more of a tactical vehicle for the special rule that applies to its Banehammer Cannon: if a unit is hit by the gun (not wounded, no unsaved wounds: ''hit'') its movement is halved and it cannot advance next turn. This makes it an ideal gun to shut down enemy units that need to be places to be the most effective: this especially works well agains tanks or transports. While lacking the firepower of the Baneblade, the Banehammer grants a unique tactical option. While the Banehammer is a transport, its long range means that you'll have to consider if you want to get close to disgorge your cargo and risk being shot at even more.
* The '''Banesword''' hits less often than most other variants, but it hits ''hard'' with its Quake Cannon. S14 means that all T7 and lower targets are wounded on a 2+, and its hefty AP-4 means that even Terminators have to watch out lest they are vaporized. On top of that, its D6 damage comes with the catch that all rolls of 1 and 2 count as 3, so infantry that gets hit will be vaporized immediately and even monsters will think twice about walking into its range of fire. And with 140" it's a lot of range indeed.
* The '''Doomhammer''' has a gun that is more or less a Melta weapon in that it gets to roll twice for damage and take the best one. At S10 AP-5 it's more than capable of dealing with super-heavy vehicles like [[Land Raider]]s and [[Monolith]]s. The 30" range that this requires you to be in is very close, but this does make it a more viable transport than the Banehammer. Chapter Approved 2018 has seen its cost cut to 400 points.
* The '''Hellhammer''' is the second variant with a Demolisher Cannon. Its main gun ignores the bonuses granted by cover, but with only 36" range you'll have to get very close in order to get its shots in. Its range might be short, but its firepower makes it a souped-up version of the Baneblade Cannon. Costs 410 bare.
* The '''Shadowsword''' is what you field if you want to bring down enemy Titanic units. 3D3 is an odd roll, but puts out a reliable 6 shots that at S16 down even T8 targets on a 2+. And with 2D6 damage anything hit by it will feel it. On top of that, the Shadowsword gets to re-roll failed Wound rolls against Titanic units, and it gets +1 To Hit against them as well. That means that the Shadowsword has to take out any fitting targets it faces ASAP lest it gets put down before it can do so.
* The '''Stormlord''' is the odd duck out with its Vulcan Mega-Bolter. A flat Heavy 20 means that it is ideal for putting down large swathes of infantry and has a good chance of damaging tougher targets as well. Despite being a Bolter weapon it's got a massive 60" range, making it a powerful anti-vehicle weapon at range. But because of its massive transport capability (40!) it's used best as a close-range fire support vehicle, allowing you to haul a massive force towards the enemy to disgorge onto the objectives you cleared with your massive firepower. Because of this the array of Heavy Flamers work well to support the Stormlord, but do note that this nearly increases by 50% the hefty 410 point cost of the vehicle.
* The '''Stormsword''' is tank meant for short range attacks, carrying a Stormsword Siege Cannon to deal with tough targets. Not only does it ignore the bonuses granted by cover, it also has re-rolls on damage rolls of 1. While those two things only really overlap against tanks in cover, the Stormsword can deal a decent amount of damage against just about any target.

All in all, most Baneblade variants are really helped by the Heavy Bolter sponsons: not only are they cheaper they don't need you to be as close to your enemies. While the Heavy Flamers can deal more damage they are hampered by their range and damage output, and work best on those variants who already need to be close to the enemy to use effectively. The pintle-mounted weapons are good, but not required; the same goes for the Hunter-Killer Missile.

Not to invalidate all of the above, but if Baneblades are so damn shooty, why doesn't anyone take them? Well, they're just too damn expensive points-wise, and have suffered quite a bit from the lack of real Guard updates.

The heyday of the Baneblade and its variants was in early 8th, when the Guard was strongest. Cheap artillery and tanks but even cheaper bodies in the form of Conscripts made Unbreakable by Commissars [[Blam|instilling Discipline]] meant that Baneblades were often the least of someone's problems. Eventually, though, the introduction of the 8th edition Knights codex shifted a ton of lists to deal with superheavies in melee, which was one of the easiest ways to deal with a Baneblade: yes, it was the '''only''' vehicle in the Guard codex that could be in melee and shoot, but keeping it tarpitted would at least ensure it was tied up with the guys around, especially if you managed to encircle it entirely and not give it a way out (such as with assault squads). Also, so long as you wounded a Baneblade enough, its lackluster guard BS+ of 4+ meant that once it took enough damage, or by stacking enough to-hit penalties on it (such as if you had to fight certain [[Crimson Hunter|speedy eldar Exarchs]]) it would become absolutely impossible to hit anything.

9th edition didn't do it much better, because superheavy detachments, besides being expensive points-wise, now also cost CP; while they made superheavy auxiliaries free in 2022, the points cost of the damn things still mean that filling your detachment with more Leman Russes (which have the same damn Toughness and Armor now) would almost always be better. T8 26 W and a 2+ save is ''vicious'', but there are now [[Railgun|quite]] [[Imperial Knights|a]] [[Necrons|few]] [[Exocrine|units]] in the game that can at least wound it enough times to drastically lower its efficiency.

Two years into 9th and the guard codex ''still isn't out,'' so theyve benefited from several balance "updates," like Armor of Contempt to reduce incoming AP and the ability to autowound on 6s, but as mentioned above, these changes also made it much more worth it to take more tanks than just one big one. ( ironically mirroring IRL tank history). One can only hope that they buff the Baneblade and its variants with stats actually ''worth'' the superheavy title, like improved Toughness or resistance to degrading. Rumors that GW will release a new T9 superheavy named the [[Rogal Dorn Battle Tank|Rogal Dorn]] (very original) that sits between the Russ and Baneblade can at least give Guard players hope that the Baneblade will at least be updated, but those remain just rumors.

=====Power Ratings=====
The tanks find themselves in the 26-30 points range, which is rather hefty. This point cost does include all the goodies, so don't be afraid to splurge on two sets of sponsons, a pintle-mounted weapon and a Hunter-Killer Missile. You've paid for them already, so you might as well use them.

===Other Imperial Models===

====Fellblade====

{{Main|Fellblade}}

[[File:Fellblade.jpg|thumb|left|THIRTEEN BARRELS OF HELL.]]

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The Fellblade is the [[Space Marines]]' main super-heavy tank, not used very much since the [[Horus Heresy]]. It's not so much a variant of the Baneblade as a sibling tank, with a unique [[Forge World]] kit to make it and a couple of its own unique subtypes.

====Fortress of Arrogance====

[[File:Yarrick34b.jpg|thumb|left|Yarrick's fortress of WHERE ARE MY PRUNES.]]

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It is of no surprise that [[Yarrick]] has his own personal Emperor-mobile in the form of the '''Fortress of Arrogance'''. [[Awesome|The Fortress is a sweet-ass black and gold plated Baneblade with unique decals and armaments.]] The Fortress was refitted with an armored cupola, giving Yarrick a "pulpit" from which to command and inspire. While he's clearly in sight of everyone, the cupola is protected by a special force field. The turret also includes enhanced sensor and communications arrays making it far more accurate and have a longer range and penetrative shot than the regular Baneblade. This makes the Fortress of Arrogance an excellent HQ command choice as the ability to inspire nearby troops provides a good morale boost in the midst of battle. Unfortunately Yarrick was [[Herp|pretty bad at maintaining his mobile house of pimps.]] During the the Battle of Golgotha, the tank was crippled by a [[Stompa]], and Yarrick was forced to abandon it when the Imperial forces were routed from the planet. This is the scene of the above mentioned boggle of stupid. An Adeptus Mechanicus Reclamator expedition found the remnants of the venerable Baneblade, [[Fail|after losing like several hundred Guardsmen, 9 companies of battle tanks and ''The Angel Of Apocalypse'' (A Shadow Sword which is arguably rarer than the Bane Blade in question)]]. In a scene of a miracle, the Fortress was barely [[Looted|defiled]] by the [[Orks]] and was able to be fixed by the [[Mechanicus]] in prime condition. As soon as he could, Yarrick had his Baneblade transported to Armageddon, where he would most likely have proceeded to pile-drive it into [[Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka|Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka's]] [[Anal circumference|anus]] in [[Octarius War|Octarius.]]

====Stormblade====

[[File:Stormblade_Arkurion.jpg|thumb|left|When you need that horde of [[Tyranids]] to fuck off right now. Accept no substitutes.]]

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Rules.
[https://i.imgur.com/zqyhi2R.png]

The Stormblade is armed with a titan-scale [[Plasma Blastgun]]: a [[plasma]]-hurling death weapon that eats [[MEQ]]'s, hordes, hordes of MEQ's, and even light tanks for breakfast. With better range than the Stormlord and a blast radius so big that [[Grey Knights|Plasma Siphons]] feel even worse about existing, it excels at killing hordes of anything in [[Apocalypse]]. Even vehicle hordes. Its origin story starts on the Forge World of Ryza, where despite having the best reputation with regards to plasma technology, they couldn't build Volcano Cannons for Shadowsword tanks. So as an alternative to a giant D-Gun they slapped a giant plasma gun instead. Luckily, because the Shadowsword chassis was so massive, removing the laser generators meant there was plenty of space for a cooling system, so the tank never ''Gets Hot!'' from overuse. As mentioned above, Stormblades in Epic used to have Hellion Missile launchers to add to the amount they could [[Rape]] Titans, however in current 40k they no longer have them. The fluff reason is because the missiles had a tendency to self detonate when exposed to enemy fire, resulting in several tanks being destroyed by their own missiles. So it was figured that the tank and plasma blastgun were more precious than the limited-use ordnance that came as an aftermarket extra, so the missiles were withdrawn. There is also a Legion Astartes version because Forge World got tired of making additional versions of the [[Fellblade]].

====Stormhammer====

[[File:Stormhammer1.jpg|thumb|left|If it weren't so weirdly asymmetrical, it would have been a decently designed tank.]]

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The Stormhammer is a [[Solar Auxilia]] tank for 30K. It differs from the old epic version in that it only has three barrels of [[Battle Cannon]]s - a twin linked two shot hull mounted battlecannon and the (if we use naval terminology for the thing) Superfiring S9 AP2, 7" blast [[Stormhammer Cannon]] with shred and pinning. The standard secondary weapons are six [[multilaser]] sponsons which can be swapped out for [[Heavy Bolter]]s or [[Heavy Flamer]]s for free or [[Lascannon]]s for a cost, a coaxial [[Multilaser]] and a hull mounted [[Lascannon]]. Optional toys are a pintle mounted [[C.S. Goto|multilaser]] or [[Heavy Flamer]] and up to 4 (!) [[Hunter-Killer Missile]]s. All the firepower is rounded out by a 6+ invulnerable save against blast and template weapons, and the ability to reroll failed dangerous terrain tests. The sponson weapons can be traded out individually, letting you choose any combination of multilasers, heavy bolters, heavy flamers and lascannons you want. It fills the same role as the Baneblade as a general purpose superheavy, with a gun for every target. The Stormblade offers more flexibility in loadout, and having 6 sponsons that can be individually customized for any situation allows it to engage even more targets compared to the Baneblade. The original Stormhammer was outfitted with two twin-Battle Cannon turrets and four pairs of Heavy Bolters, along with options for pintle storm bolters and four more sponsons, meaning it could mount seventeen fucking bolters if you were willing to pay for it. The problem? Its turrets all pointed different directions. Parking this thing in the intersection of a city table and pointing its turrets down the streets, however, was as good as denying the area to the enemy completely, unless somebody brought a Deathstrike. Now that 8th has removed facing, when/if Horus Heresy gets updated this thing will be a mean piece of work.

In 9th edition, the Stormhammer remains much the same as in 30K, the main difference being it can't swap out those [[multilasers]] for free anymore- regardless of what you want to swap it for. This makes it the favored vehicle of...fine, I'll say its name. [[C.S. Goto]]. There, I said it. Happy?

====Stormsabre====

[[File:Stormsabre3.jpg|thumb|left|The BAWKSIEST of METAL BAWKSES.]]

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The [[Spartan Assault Tank|Spartan]] of Baneblades, the Stormsabre is a larger and more heavily armored variant of the Baneblade super-heavy vehicle used by the Imperial Guard. In fact, this thing is so heavily armoured ([[Heresy|And most likely illegally modified]]) that it no longer has any reasonable place to put in secondary hull weapons or sponsons. It is also the [[METAL BAWKSES|BAWKSIEST]] superheavy out of the family. Seriously, look at it; it will give [[Firaeveus Carron]] a god damned aneurysm.

Being a kitbashed vehicle that was canonised by Warhammer Community, the original creator, Pete Harrison, states that it is the equivalent to the ancient Terran battering rams; with the Stormsabre's single giant cannon - which is larger than a volcano cannon - being not out of place among the Imperium's space fleets. In battle, the Stormsabre will make short work of any fortifications unfortunate enough to find themselves in front of its hulking frame.

Whilst this means that the Stormsabre is directly competing with the Banesword when it comes to siegecraft, the main difference is one of specialisation. The Stormsabre being even ''more'' of a dedicated siege platform than the Banesword, removing all secondary weapons for a single, FUCKOFF cannon that has a longer range and higher penetrative power than the Banesword's quake cannon, being a full on self-propelled gun dispensing with all that siege tank/assault gun compromise in favor loading the fuckingest gun possible and leaving at that.

===Non-Imperial Variants===

{{Heresy}}

====Decimator====

[[File:Chaos_Decimator_Tank.PNG|thumb|left|Suck on this Corpse Worshipping Scum!]]

{{clear}}

The '''Decimator''' is a Super-Heavy Tank used by the [[Chaos Space Marines]]. Although most have been changed considerably by their time in the Eye of Terror, the Decimators were originally precursors to modern Imperial super-heavy vehicles like the Baneblade, Shadowsword and Stormsword, the last of which it most closely resembles in function. It is like the only super-heavy tank that the forces of Chaos have without being forced into [[Daemon Engine]] territory or exclusively sucking Papa [[Nurgle|Nurgle's]] dick. Decimators are armed primarily with a heavy, medium-ranged barrage weapon such as the unique Decimator Cannon which was a [[Rape|S10 AP2 weapon of rape,]] supported by several [[Reaper Autocannon]]s, and are used to bombard enemies in cover. It has a unique rule called the '''"Decimator Tank Shock"''' which forces enemy infantry to take a test which will always have –1 to their Leadership if they are tank shocked by a Decimator. It should not be confused with the [[Decimator]] [[Daemon Engine]], although they are both intertwined in being moving hunks of metal that can make you piss your pants.

====Plaguereaper====

{{Main|Plaguereaper}}

[[File:Plaguereaper.jpg|thumb|left|Probably the best thing to ever come out of Santa Nurgle's merry gifts and sharing.]]

{{clear}}

The '''Plaguereaper''' is a Baneblade variant exclusive to the forces of [[Nurgle]]. It's a corrupted baneblade chassis with its baneblade cannon replaced with a giant pus-cannon, which bathes a large area with a contagion that causes the body of whoever is afflicted by it, to erupt in boils and their flesh broken down before their very eyes in seconds. Hideous piece of Heresy, ain't it?

====Skullhamma====

{{Main|Skullhamma}}

[[Image:Skullhamma.jpg|thumb|left|An Orkified Baneblade. Are you fucked? Yes you are.]]

{{clear}}

What happens when orks get hold of the massive engine of armored destruction that is the Baneblade? They make it twice as big (by welding armor plates and guns where there's a gap) and fast (by <s>giving it a ridiculous super-charged engine so big it probably houses several lost gretchin communities</s> painting it red).

====Tormentor====

[[File:Pert's_Tormentor.PNG|thumb|left|[[Perturabo|"FUCK YOU DORN, FUCK YOUR FORTIFICATIONS AND FUCK YOUR]] [[Thunderhawk#Ætos Dios|FLYING FORTRESS!"]]]]

{{clear}}

The '''Tormentor''' AKA Pert's personal car is a modified Shadowsword of the [[Iron Warriors]] [[Primarch]], [[Perturabo]]. It is a really pimped out variant that boasts additional armour plating on all sides (in fluff, no effect on the tabletop), a 15-model transport capacity with added rear access point, an even more enhanced [[Volcano Cannon]] (again, nothing changes in crunch) and a Titan grade Void Shield. [[Get shit done|When Pert does it right, he gets it done.]] It only has one set of sponsons, but with it's special rule '''Torment''' you won't care, since if you fire all your weapons at the same target, you get Monster and Tank Hunter.

Unfortunately, it got wrecked during [[Perturabo#Horus_Heresy|Perty and Fulgrim's Bizzare Adventure]] into the [[Eye of Terror]]; it's still not known whether Pert had it rebuilt as his personal car so he can run over and crush any pedestrian vehicle that pissed him off lately, but it's pretty likely, knowing him. But what is known is that the Tormentor is a clear sign of Pert telling [[Rogal Dorn]] to go fuck himself as he destroys Dorn's fortifications. In terms of tabletop, the Tormentor can be spent with a +500 points in a 3000+ points or more game. The Tormentor uses the Dedicated Transport rule and can carry a scary number of Thallaxii and/or Iron Warrior troops ([[Fail|but they can't begin the game embarked]]). It also doesn't take up a Lord of War slot.

==Dawn of War series==

===DoW I===

In the Dawn of War PC game the Baneblade is the IG super-heavy unit, equivalent to the [[Chaos]] [[Bloodthirster]] [[Daemon]], or [[Eldar]]'s Avatar of [[Khaine]]. Only it's better because instead of a winged Daemon cow or a big flaming homosexual in a loincloth, it's a fucking giant tank. It is literally the best of these master units in the game, and it will go toe-to-toe with any other such unit and kill them before they kill it. Every time.

Its a well known fact that the crew members of Baneblades are chosen exclusively on the grounds of how big their balls are. This makes them able to shout "[[FAIL|Failure]] is the weakness of the enemy!" "Ready to unleash ELEVEN barrels of hell!", "All guardsmen, Follow ME to GLOOREEEEY!" and "WHATEVER YOU WANT, we are ready." and being the only badass non-Hero unit in the entire [[Imperial Guard]].

===DoW II===

The Baneblade was introduced in DoWII's second expansion: Retribution, as the Imperial Guard's super heavy unit and one of the superunits, a title it shares with the [[Swarmlord]], the [[Great Unclean One]], the Avatar of [[Khaine]] once more (notably, the Avatar along with the Baneblade are the only returning superunits from the first Dawn of War series), the [[Battlewagon]], and the [[Land Raider]] Redeemer (which is a different variant from the one in Dawn of War). It makes a centerpiece appearance in the second mission of the campaign where a renegade one chases your characters around while the crazy Scottish driver yells "IDDACARE WHOO YOU ARE! FELL DA MIGHTA'DA BANEBLADE!!" [[FAIL|It then gets sodomized by rudimentary anti-armour turrets]]. On the upside, if you're playing space marines, you get to watch the Emperor's Fury running around a jungle path being chased by a giant tank (Benny Hill music optional, but encouraged).

It's still a moving fortress of rape that can decimate multiple tanks at a time and blow hordes of enemy units to bits and the strongest and toughest vehicle in the game (since it can't transport infantry like the Battlewagon and Land Raider Redeemer, it compensates with more firepower). The main difference is that while its main weapons systems (the BEHNBLADE cannon and the Demolisher Cannon) do much more damage than before, they don't function like the rest of its guns, they're used for special abilities that require manual targeting to fire, and cannot be fired at targets within minimum range. On top of that, this Baneblade has only TEN BARRELS OF HELL: the co-axial autocannon is there but is non-functional, which very slightly reduces the overall firepower of this beast. Needless to say, the Baneblade requires a ton of support to use effectively, or otherwise it will be taken down in melee/at close range by just about anything (though all super units need support as well, so that's nothing new). Also, it's size means it can have difficulty maneuvering on certain maps (DoW II maps tend to not have as much open space as the original's).

The Baneblade has achieved a bit of a mini-meme status because of Captain [[Apollo Diomedes]] of the [[Blood Ravens]], who has this tendency to scream: ''"EET IS THE BEEEEHHHHNNNBLLADDDE"'', [[Indrick Boreale|in the most awesomely hilarious voice]] possible, whenever he sees one. Unfortunetly, this meme is already old and overused.

==The Novel==

The novel, titled Baneblade, is about Lt. Colaron Artem Lo Bannick and his quest to redeem himself from the grievous sin of killing his cousin in self-defense. He does this by signing on to the nearest imperial guard unit and starts the novel commanding a squadron of [[Leman Russ]]es and then after an Ork ambush he gets a spot as third gunner on the ''Mars Triumphant''.

In short it's written so you could fap to how [[awesome]] the Baneblade is. Ironically, the real star of the book is a dangerously intelligent Ork Weirdboy who's aware of the Emperor's presence in the warp.

The sequel novel is entitled "Shadowsword" and follow's Bannick's adventures as he grows disillusioned with the Imperium of Man and gets told to pilot a Shadowsword because its soul feels guilty over being used by Orks before the Imperium salvaged it back. When he destroys a warp gate to prevent a daemonic invasion, his commissar tries to execute him and his entire crew for seeing [[Chaos|what should not be known.]]

==External Links==

* [[Baneblade Homebrew]]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xpGr8MBE65k Russia made a scaled-up RC variant. Makes me wonder what the US did wrong not to get one too.]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpBngmCpUrU Captain Diomedes' hit single: IT IS THE BEEEIIINBLADE!]
* [https://www.blacklibrary.com/warhammer-40000/novels/baneblade-ebook.html A Black Library's novel: BEEEIIINBLADE!!!]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyHRQgDhHZ0 THE BANEBLADETERIUM!]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNxAd6O0LLU How to build all eight versions of the Baneblade with just one model]

==See also==

*[[Astraeus Super-Heavy Tank]], the Space Marine current superheavy.
*[[Battlefortress]], Ork counterpart.

==Gallery==

<gallery>

Image:Winterassault.jpg|[[General Sturnn]] likes it hot and heavy.

Image:Baneblade.jpg|ALL GUARDSMEN!

Image:Baneblade2.jpg|FOLLOW ME TO GLORY <s>AND SHODDY PERSPECTIVE</s>!

Image:Shadowsword.jpg|Make a compensation joke at your own expense.

Image:LOLBaneblade.jpg|The track is broken and the sponson turret has a beef with the driver. [[FAIL|This is an official image, by the way.]]

Image:Baneblade full cover.jpg|''<s>Multiple'' Baneblades. Start panicking.</s> Neh, that must be Vance Stubbs missing Baneblades. And that is <i>not</i> a reason to panic?

Image:Stormhammer.jpg|The ''original'' variant of the Stormhammer. This time, Quad-Cannons for quadruple the fun!

Image:Baneblade Motivator.jpg|Pew pew, bitches.

Image:NotActuallyABaneblade.png|[citation needed]

</gallery>

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Imperial]]
[[Category:Imperial Guard]]
[[Category:Chaos]]
[[Category:Lost and the Damned]]
[[Category:Vehicles]]

{{Imperial-Guard}}
{{Solar Auxilia}}
{{Iron Warriors}}
{{Lost-and-Damned}}
{{40k-Imperial-Vehicles}}
{{40k-Imperial-Ships}}
{{40k-Chaos-Ships}}

Ballistus Dreadnought

2023-06-09T22:27:07Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:Qkx8csHcMBGRzT1G.jpg|240px|right|thumb|The Primaris-fied version of the Mortis.]]
[[Warhammer 40,000 8th Edition]] gave us the flexible and versatile [[Redemptor Dreadnought]]. Then came [[Warhammer 40,000 9th Edition]] with the close-assault and choppy [[Brutalis Dreadnought]]. So as tradition dictates, [[Warhammer 40,000 10th Edition]] has arrived and we got a new and shiny Primaris Dreadnought. This Dreadnought is called the Ballistus Dreadnought, and it is the [[Dakka|polar opposite]] of the Brutalis.

==Overview==
Functioning similar to the older [[Dreadnought#Castraferrum Pattern|Hellfire variant of the Castraferrum]] or the more rare [[Deredeo Dreadnought]], which is a gun battery on legs. The Ballistus Dreadnought goes all into applying the biggest [[Dakka]] possible for a Primaris Chapter. Speaking of legs, they're slightly longer than its siblings.

The Ballistus Dreadnought like its sister-variants is built from the powerful Redemptor chassis, but it shares a loadout with Dreadnoughts from an earlier era. The combination of a twin-linked [[Lascannon]]s and a unique pattern of missile launcher called the [[Ballistus Missile Launcher]] allows for a devastating weapons platform that deals with both armoured and horde units; its tertiary dual twin-linked [[Storm Bolter]]s further provides additional covering fire for opponents trying to get in close. The Ballistus is a Space Marine classic, brought into the modern age just in time to blow holes in the larger [[Tyranid]] monsters.

==Crunch==
{{Skub}}

{{Primaris Marine-Forces}}
{{40k-Imperial-Vehicles}}
[[Category:Walkers]]

Dark Eldar Light Cruiser

2023-06-09T22:26:53Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

Dark Eldar Light Cruisers are the kid brother of [[Dark Eldar Cruiser|Dark Eldar Cruisers]]. Everything they do, the Cruisers do it better. The one big advantage they have is the obvious cost affordability and, if the fleet is especially Battleship-heavy, they may be the only vessel capable of both keeping up and defending their big cousins with relative cheapness.

==Class==

===Basic===

====Bladed Lotus====

[[File:14423477_f1024.jpg|300px|right|thumb|The best wingman you're gonna get.]]

Your conventional missile boat. The Bladed Lotus-class is a highly adaptable Dark Eldar vessel that does not cost too much, yet, is capable of easily defending itself from ships several classes in weight. Of the three special weapons Light Cruisers, the Bladed Lotus is probably the most all-around useful thanks to the standard sized quad [[torpedo]] tubes it carries. Working on its own at close range or with other torpedo-carrying vessels the Bladed Lotus can dole out decent damage at a relatively good cost while having the benefit of being able to shut down engines with the optional Splinter Torpedo upgrade.

Even working solo, thanks to the speed of the Bladed Lotus and its inherent stealth, it is more than capable of flanking otherwise preoccupied capital ships and swooping in for a torpedo run from a blind spot in the enemy ships firing arcs, then using its Aeldari engine skills to dart away and re-stealth before the capital ship can fully turn to respond.

These Light Cruisers are armed with 4 [[Torpedo]] Tubes and 3 [[Scythe Missile Launcher|Scythe Missile Artillery Batteries.]]

*'''Length:''' 4km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 15.6 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' 20,100 crew; approx
*'''Acceleration:''' 9 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx

===Carrier===

====Burning Scale====

[[File:BurningScaleLightCruiser.jpg|300px|right|thumb|If you're that desperate to plug in the price points, might as well use it.]]

The [[Fiend Ascendant-class Cruiser|Fiend Ascendant's]] [[Shota|little kid brother.]] The Burning Scale-class Light Cruiser is a general-purpose light aircraft carrier. Nevertheless, of the Launch Bay fielding Drukhari vessels such as [[Razorwing Jetfighter|Razorwing Bombers]], [[Raptor Fighter]]s and [[Slavebringer Assault Boat]]s, the Burning Scale is the least efficient points use for fielding squadrons. The Burning Scale costs 193 points for a single launch bay, while the [[Fiend Ascendant-class Cruiser]] takes 2 for 293 points (146.5 points per) and the [[Iron Thorn-class Battleship]] costs 448 points for 3 bays (just a fraction above 149 points per). Because of this, the expensive cost of Drukhari ships and the general need to go "all in" with carrier fleets, bringing as many launch bays as possible for best effectiveness, the Burning Scale is going to be limited in its usefulness in your typical 1,200 point fleet.

If you really need just the bare minimum carrier force to supplement your fleet's main strategy, a pair of Burning Scales gives you the option of deploying two different squadrons in pairs, though you are doing so at the cost of a third of your fleet point pool.

These Light Cruisers are armed with 1 Launch Bay carrying [[Razorwing Jetfighter|Razorwing Bombers]], [[Raptor Fighter]]s and [[Slavebringer Assault Boat]]s, and 3 [[Scythe Missile Launcher|Scythe Missile Artillery Batteries.]]

*'''Length:''' 4.4km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 16.2 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' 15,800 crew, including 4,000 pilots and support staff; approx
*'''Acceleration:''' 9 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx

====Baleful Gaze====

[[File:14423468_f1024.jpg|300px|right|thumb|The first of what would soon become, a family of ''very'' painful [[Anal circumference]].]]

The boarding-troop carrier of the family. The Baleful Gaze-class is your first foray of the [[Impaler Assault Module|Impaler Assault Modules]]. The [[Impaler Assault Module|Impaler squadrons]] are an interesting feature of the Drukhari as they are essentially super-sized, single craft wings of assault boats that deal more troop damage than normal, seem to travel faster and have a better chance of getting through defence turrets. Basically, it's like having a guaranteed, [[Awesome|supercharged assault boat launch.]]

Considering the sacrifice of a weapon mount to get them, it is really worth taking into consideration how you are going to make good use of them. Coupled with the powerful Dark Eldar assault actions and the cheap cost of Impaler equipped ships, one could stack these weapons in their fleet and use them to quickly gain an upper hand through devastating assaults on the enemies capital ships, right at the opening of the fight. This strategy has a lot of inherent risks and would take practice and timing to pull off, but could be very effective against factions that rely on fewer stronger ships.

If you are trying this strategy versus [[Necron]]s, make sure to bring something to bait their Starpulse Waves or stagger the Impalers to avoid a devastating loss of multiple squadrons. Honestly, they have a pretty hard counter to this tactic so a smart Necron player will really mess with your plans here.

These Light Cruisers are armed with 1 Impaler Bay carrying an [[Impaler Assault Module]] and 3 [[Scythe Missile Launcher|Scythe Missile Artillery Batteries.]]

*'''Length:''' 4.4km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 16.8 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' 16,100 crew, including 6,500 pilots and support staff; approx
*'''Acceleration:''' 9 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx

===Lance-Boat===

====Dark Mirror====

[[File:DarkMirrorLightCruiser.jpg|300px|right|thumb|''PEW PEW PEW!'']]

A lance-boat. The Dark Mirror-class Light Cruiser is both the only ship in the Light Cruiser category with an armour-piercing lance weapon and a second main offensive weapon besides a trio of [[Scythe Missile Launcher|Scythe Missiles,]] making it the overall best on paper damage dealer without relying on special weaponry. Dps and crit number wise, the rest of the ships are all tied thanks to their cookie-cutter loadouts.

Points wise the Light Cruisers all hover around 150-160 points with the exception of the Burning Scale light carrier, which makes the Dark Mirror a very reliable choice for filling up line ships.

These Light Cruisers are armed with 1 [[Phantom Lance]] Artillery and 3 [[Scythe Missile Launcher|Scythe Missile Artillery Batteries.]]

*'''Length:''' 4.6km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 16 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' 19,400 crew; approx
*'''Acceleration:''' 9 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx

==In Battlefleet Gothic: Armada 2==
The Drukhari Light Cruiser class of vessels offers one base underlying flavor with 4 variations of "toppings" so to speak. No matter what option, you start with 3 Scythe Missile turrets that are all on equal footing damage, range and firing arc wise, then add in either a lance, torpedo rack, launch bay or Impaler squadron on top and you have one of each of the four light cruisers available. The Drukhari Light Cruisers is where it begins to demonstrate the Dark Eldar's very strong boarding actions through their abilities. Now compared to a faction like the [[Space Marines]], the Dark Eldar do not do as much actual troop damage, though their numbers are decent, their strength lies in their top tier critical chances when assaulting, making them the fastest to knock out subsystems with assaults. Unfortunately, as it currently stands, Slavetaking isn't really useful at all as that one troop is unlikely to make much of a difference.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Battlefleet Gothic]]
[[Category:Xenos]]
[[Category:Eldar]]
[[Category:Dark Eldar]]
[[Category:Fleets of Commorragh]]
[[Category:Vehicles]]
[[Category:Ships]]

{{40k-Dark-Eldar-Ships}}

Bale Childer

2023-06-09T22:25:46Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

The Bale Childer were a xenos race or entity defeated in the Angevin Crusade along with the Yu'vath, after both their homeworlds were destroyed by Exterminatus. They were the last resistance to Imperial rule in the Calyx Expanse, which signaled the end of the Angevin Crusade and the birth of the Calixis Sector.

[[Category:Minor Xenos Species]]
{{Template:Important Species in 40k}}

Badab Primaris

2023-06-09T22:25:21Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:Badap_Primaris.PNG|300px|right|thumb|[[Lugft Huron]]'s old home, before the [[Administratum|IRS kicked him out.]]]]
'''Badab Primaris''', also known as [[Wat|'''Badab II''']] (presumable it's the second planet out from it's star), is a Dead World located near the Maelstrom Warp rift in the southwestern portion of Segmentum Ultima. It was the homeworld of the [[Astral Claws]] Chapter and a thriving, productive Hive World, until shit went sideways, [[Lugft Huron]] decided to take matters into his own hands, and the [[Carcharodons|sharky bois]] decided that there was no kill like overkill.

==Overview==
Badab Primaris was first settled in the late 38th Millennium and quickly became a trade hub and industrial powerhouse in the region. Everything was fine until some idiots decided to throw a civil war in 718.M41 and the [[Astral Claws]] stepped in to shut their shit down. In the aftermath, Lugft Huron decided that the Badab government couldn't be trusted and took personal control of the planet. Styling himself the "Tyrant of Badab", he purged the planet's nobility and government, then did the same to the rest of the system, proclaiming it to be the Claws' personal fiefdom. He went on to clean out the surrounding star systems' governments and install his own cronies as rulers on these worlds, turning the entire region into a kind of pocket empire along the lines of [[Ultramar]]. This actually went pretty well at first; the sector's defenses had never been stronger and its planets had never been more productive, and Huron was a fairly effective ruler. Things started to go sour when Huron asked the Administratum to exempt Badab from its Imperial tithe so that he could use those resources to strengthen the defenses around the Maelstrom. When the Administratum presented him with a counter-offer of "fuck you, give us more", Huron promptly turned off the taps and transformed the sector into a heavily fortified no-go zone. After a century and a half of increasing tension, Huron seceded from the Imperium entirely, then set about making the lives of everyone on Badab a living hell. Every symbol of Imperial authority on the planet was torn down and destroyed, while Administratum and Ecclesiarchy personnel were ruthlessly executed. Any baseline human who dared look an Astral Claw in the eye would be blinded, and after an assassin nearly killed Huron in his palace, thousands of innocents were massacred by Astral Claws squads in retaliation.

By the end of the [[Badab War]], Badab Primaris was one of the few worlds still in rebel hands. The Space Marine chapters assigned to the conflict laid siege to the planet, with the [[Star Phantoms]] storming Huron's Palace of Thorns while the [[Exorcists]] and [[Sons of Medusa]] dealt with the orbital defenses and the [[Carcharodons]] went after the planet's infrastructure. Being who they were, the Carcharodons quickly got bored with trashing hives and breaking defenses and decided that what they were going to do instead was sabotage Badab's network of atomic and geothermal reactors. [[Exterminatus|Badab's power grid promptly went berserk, with entire hives shaking themselves to pieces or being swallowed by gigantic fissures as colossal earthquakes split tectonic plates and continents wide open, spraying millions of tons of ash and radioactive fallout into the atmosphere]]. As Badab Primaris tore itself apart, the loyalist Space Marines had to effect a hasty retreat, and the planet's civilian population was eradicated entirely within a few days, either consumed by the earthquakes and fissures or killed by ash storms and fallout. With Badab Primaris now a burnt, radioactive ball of glass and ash, the Carcharodons figured it was a job well done and were a bit confused when the Star Phantoms started yelling at them about all the Space Marines who'd been killed in the retreat. After that clusterfuck, the entire planet is now under the dominion of the Star Phantoms, along with the other worlds of the Badab Sector.

==Trivia==
Badab has its origins in the [[Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader|early days of 40K]], having first appeared in 1988. In White Dwarf 97, it was mentioned that Badab survived the end of the war and was taken over by an Imperial Mission. It was also the homeworld of [[Illiyan Nastase]] before he disappeared into the Retconnian and got spit back out 30-odd years later as Illiyanne Natasé.

{{40k-Planets}}

[[Category:Imperial]]

Badab

2023-06-09T22:25:02Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

The Badab system is an incredibly strategically vital system in the [[Maelstrom]] area of the [[Segmentum#Ultima_Segmentum|Ultima Segementum]] on the eastern Fringe of the galaxy. At least it was before [[Huron Blackheart|this jackass]] decided to rebel against the [[Imperium of Man|Imperium]] and cause one of the greatest civil wars since the [[Horus Heresy]].

==The Planets==
The Badab system is composed of seven planets of which only two are actually populated as of the [[Badab War]]. These have a combined population of just over 1.1 billion.
* Badab 1 (Pyrantis) is a molten [[Death World|death world]].
* Badab 2 was a thriving hive world with a population of 6 billion before the Badab War and was the homeworld of the [[Astral Claws]].
* Badab 3 is a death world due to its corrosive atmosphere.
* Badab 4 is a relatively nice world, albeit toxic due to being a mining world, and houses the system resource stockpile for the [[Imperial Tithe]].
* Badab 5 is a gas giant where helium-3 is mined.
* Badab 6 is a large far out planet, and a completely frozen a mass grave.
* Badab 7 is a small planet, comparable to Pluto and uninhabitable.

==Pre-Astral Claws==
Before the Astral Claws made it their homeworld, the system was already one of the most populated and defended of the Maelstrom area under Imperial control. Of the seven planets, Badab 2, 4 and 6 were industrialized with large populations. Unfortunately, disaster struck when Badab 6 suffered a massive orbital shift and was rendered completely uninhabitable. Babab 4 suffered a similar fate when a natural disaster caused its atmosphere to collapse causing what was left of its population to live in small [[hive]]s. Such [[grimdark]].

==Astral Claws==
After the most influential system of the Maelstrom ([[Cygnax]]) was annihilated by civil war with [[Chaos]] factions, the [[Adeptus Terra]] realised that they were very stretched in the Maelstrom now causing supply chains to collapse and communication lines to weaken. In a rare instance of the Imperium getting its shit together, they decided to bolster the Imperial hold on the Maelstrom by reinforcing existing systems and settling new ones in a massive operation involving the creation of several [[Space Marine Chapter]]s. Badab was the center of this as both a forward base and a focus. The Astral Claws were assigned it as there home world and huge ring of orbital stations was established to protect the system called the [[Ring of Steel]]. Once this was completed, the Badab sector was one of the most heavily defended in the segment. Boy did that come to bite them on the butt.

The Astral Claws originally didn't reside on the surface of Badab 2, instead living in the "High Guard" orbital station and recruiting from the sector. It wasn't until shortly before the war began that they took direct control after a failed takeover of the planet was launched by a different political party.

==In M41.999==
During the Badab War, the Ring of Steel was destroyed by the loyalist attack and in classic Imperium fashion. The invasion of Badab 2 (the homeworld of the Astral Claws) resulted in its complete devastation and it is now completely irradiated. The rest of the system is now quite desolate with very little manufacturing output, and the system relies entirely on mining and shipping. Its only strategic value left to the Imperium are the huge orbital dockyards orbiting Badab 3. The effective loss of Badab and other damages to the sector because of the Badab War have left the Imperial hold in the sector significantly weakened.

The ice moon Jhaga is now also home to the fortress-monastery of the [[Star Phantoms]]. Aside from the inherent defensive value of such an instillation, the ships and foundries of the Star Phantoms are capable of impressive quality and output of war materials, even for space marines.

The whole of the system is entirely too close to the Maelstrom, which has only grown with the Cicatrix Maledictum, although the extra influx of warp energy has had little effect on the day-to-day. The [[Black Templars]] have also shown up to crusade against the orks in the region.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]

Bad Moons

2023-06-09T22:24:15Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:Bad Moon Icon.png|right|300px]]
{{topquote|Yer rich! Yer flashy! Yer got a proppa Orky stoutness about yer belly and yer got more big, shooty, and ded 'ard gear 'dan any udder two Orks put togevvur. Now tell me 'dat ain't 'da life.|Blazarg Gilttoof, Bad Moons Flash Git}}
The '''Bad Moons''' are an Ork Clan that lives large and thinks larger. They're flashy, they're ostentatious, and they're better than any other ork clan at drowning their enemy in Dakka.

== Overview and Traditions ==
The Bad Moons are a unique clan amongst Orks for a simple reason; their [[Teef]] grow faster and fall out easier than any other group. Given that Teef is the ork currency, this particular adaptation or mutation (depending on which Runtherd you ask) has resulted in the Bad Moons being the single richest clan by a lightyear. So consistent and fast growing are Bad Moon teef that even the lowliest boy in a Bad Moon camp is on average probably richer than a [[Deathskulls|Deathskull]] or [[Goffs|Goff]] Nob. Of course, all that wealth means nothing if you can't flaunt it, and the Bad Moons are just crawling with [[Flash Gitz]] or Flash Gitz-curious Orks, full of arrogant, haughty merchant types who'll happily get a warband all the best scrap and shootas money can buy, so long as they have the teef for it — or even better, gold. The Bad Moons fucking LOVE gold, a metal otherwise completely useless to other Orks, who will happily trade it for teef or something else they need at the moment. Their obnoxious and ostentatious demeanor also ensures that they're usually targets for other Orks; in the best of cases to quickly get some the nicest stuff Orks can get their hands on, and in the worst cases, to go beat up, since other Orks believe that they're easy pickings due to their behavior or just because they want more Teef. Many a warboss has had a group of Bad Moons he can consult with and/or smack around for logistical advice, or at the very least some extra funds.

But assuming that they're the closest thing Orks have to useless prissy nobles is a decision you make at your own peril, as the Bad Moons do use all that wealth on the things Orks love best: Big armor, powerful Choppas, and most famously, the loudest, shootiest Shootas. Bad Moons are armed to their rapidly growing teef, usually punctuated in bright golds (if it isn't made of gold itself), and are famed for their ability to get as close as possible to [[Dakka|"Just Enuff Dakka", as their default tactic is usually to just perforate any hapless army they run into by putting more bullets, plasma bolts, and rocket shells into the air than individual nitrogen atoms in the atmosphere.]]

==On the Tabletop==
'''THE''' shooty Ork Clan, and arguably the closest Orks have to meta relevancy. In 8th Edition, the Clan Kultur lets you re-roll 1's in shooting, the relic is a Shoota for shooty support characters, and the Stratagem allows Infantry to shoot again. The rest is pretty fine, their psychic power is fairly situational and otherwise useless to the goal of shooting, and their warlord trait adds a 4++ invulnerable save to your warboss, turning them into a discount Ghazghkull, or your Big Mek into an absolute bastard. But in general, any prospective Bad Moons player should consider buying dice in bulk for use in the shooting phase exclusively.

In 9th Edition Bad Moons gain 6" range to all Dakka and Heavy weapons, and gain an additional -1 AP to all shooting hits when a 6 is rolled to wound. The Bad Moon stratagem allows them to score additional shooting hits when rolling a 6 to hit. The Warlord trait now gives a 4+ invuln ''and'' a +1 bonus to regular armor saves. Finally the Relic is a 12" range S5 AP -1 Heavy weapon that does 2d6 auto-hits (don't forget to stack the Bad Moons clan traits on top of this).

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Xenos]]
[[Category:Orks]]

{{Template:Ork-Clans}}

Baal

2023-06-09T22:23:45Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[Image:Baal.jpg|frame|Baal, home world of the [[Blood Angels|Fabulous Space Angel Vampires]]. Not actually the [[Bionicle]] symbol.]]

'''Baal''' is a radioactive wasteland of a [[Death World]], famous for being the home of the [[Blood Angels]], the most badass [[Vampire|vampire]]s in history.

The Blood Angels' [[Primarch]], [[Sanguinius]], fell upon Baal Secundus after he and his brother Primarchs were [[Just as planned|scattered]] across the galaxy by the [[Tzeentch|machinations]] of the [[Chaos Gods]].
==Overview==
Baal has two moons, called Baal Primus and Baal Secundus. Apparently, the moons were pretty damn close to some Paradise Worlds, with cultures comparable to High Roman Catholic nations but the [[Age of Strife]] [[Anal circumference|slightly altered]] that. With [[Exterminatus|nukes]]. By the time of the coming of Sanguinius, Baal and its moons were a Mad Max wonderland dominated by a tribe known as The Blood and foul Mutant hordes. Thanks to the effort of Papa Sang, the mutants were defeated and the people of The Blood came to ascendancy. Later during the [[Horus Heresy]], Baal became a central loyalist hub under the control of Warden Arkhad. Many members of the Shattered Legions took refuge on Baal.

The moons' populations now spend their time trying to evolve out of the Stone Age.

Or they did, until [[Devastation of Baal|the mother of all clusterfucks]] ensued. Baal Primus was scoured of life by both the Tyranids and the forces of Ka'Bandha, and Baal Secundus was barely any better, but with the arrival of the Indomitus Crusade and Guilliman naming Dante as the supreme commander of all Imperial forces in Imperium Nihilus, things are starting to look up.

==The Bulwark to Imperium Nihilus==
As promised by Guilliman, a contingent of the Adeptus Mechanicus stayed behind to both rebuild Baal's shattered defenses, and make good on turning Secundus back into a paradise. Baal itself is undergoing a major change, with the area around the Blood Angels fortress monastery slowly becoming a massive city to house the influx of Imperial bureaucracy and soldiery that were streaming into the system.

Even Skyfall, the orbital docks high above Baal, was being expanded to accommodate the vast array of warships that were rallying there, as well as fortified to become one of the most heavily-defended anchorages the Imperium has ever seen.

{{40k-Planets}}

[[Category:Imperial]][[Category:Space Marines]]
[[Category:Blood Angels]]

Azrael

2023-06-09T22:23:22Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:RealAzrael.jpg|thumb|Azrael is a rare example of a space marine with common sense and a Dark Angel with a sense of humor.]]
Azrael is the secretive [[Dark Angels Grand Master|Supreme Grand Master]] (Chapter Master) of the already secretive [[Dark Angels]] Chapter of [[Space Marines]], not to mention the [[Spiritual Liege|''de facto'' Chapter Master of every single chapter]] with Lion El'Jonson's gene seed (basically the Dark Angels would be guilty of [[Astral Claws|legion-building]] if they had ever actually split up in the first place). He, alongside his posse ([[Belial]] and [[Sammael]]) carry the infamous [[Power Weapon#Heavenfall Blade|Heavenfall Blade]]s.

==History==
Azrael was recruited from the brutes of [[Conan the Barbarian|Kimmeria]], but does not show their clumsy-ass thuggish behaviors.

As a [[Scout]] it was not his battle prowess that marked him out as different ''(in comparison to [[Belial]])'', but it was Azrael's conviction and dedication that would single him out for greatness. During the Daeynth Secundus campaign where the Dark Angels were being frustrated by Eldar forces, it was young Azrael's logic and quick thinking which convinced his commanders how to take the fight to the Eldar and complete the campaign. Earning his first laurel of victory and being one of only six in the ten thousand year history to achieve it '''before''' becoming a full battle brother.

As a member of the 3rd company during the scouring of '''Truan IX''', Azrael disobeyed orders to evacuate after his captain and command squad fell victim to a psychic assault. Charging through the psychic draining effects of a [[Daemon|Warp Beast]] at the center of the uprising, he showed mental fortitude above his battle-brothers and continued fighting even after all others were lost. Further realising that he could not harm the creature due to immense [[derp]], he brought the catacombs down on himself and the creature and its summoning wards. He remained buried for three days, awaiting death until he was dug out by his company, who petitioned his direct entry to the [[Deathwing Knights]] for his remarkable force of will. After that, he disappeared for a short spell like Robert Pattinson's balls after [[Twilight]].

He returned to the 3rd Company as [[Brother-Captain|Master]] after it lost its previous master when the men voted for Azrael's return, and since the Dark Angels were proven to be entirely reasonable and democratic this petition was also granted. As Master Azrael participated in the early battles of the [[Vraks|Siege of Vraks]] in the year '''821.M41.''' ''(though he is referred to as Supreme Grand Master, this is [[derp|obviously a mistake]] or revisionist propaganda)'' at Vraks, though he was wounded by [[Alpha Legion|Arkios the Faithless]] he was [[Awesome]] while doing it; fighting a challenge one-handed while holding the '''Standard of Devastation''' in the other hand. Azrael's stint as captain of the 3rd was also known for kicking the shit out of an [[Heresy|AI worshipping]] techno-revivalist cult on '''Faze V'''.

After over a hundred years of service he was briefly promoted to '''Grand-Master''' of the [[Deathwing]] in '''917.M41''' after the then-Grand Master Naberius's Thunderhawk was ambushed. Again not much is known about Azrael's time spent amongst them.

Azrael became the Chapter Master of the Dark Angels after the previous master's demise in '''939.M41''', becoming the head of the Inner Circle, the big boy table of the Dark Angels that keeps the secret of the <s>[[Fallen Angels]]</s> ABSOLUTE LOYALTY OF THE CHAPTER DURING THE HORUS HERESY. When he became Keeper of the Truth he received the traditional Lion's Helm (which, humorously, was called ridiculous by [[Kharn]] during the Pandorax Campaign, and which easily gave him away as Supreme Grand Master), the master-crafted Sword of Secrets, and a combi-plasma gun known as the Lion's Wrath.

His first act as [[Spiritual Liege|Supreme Grand Master]] was to summon a council of all the Unforgiven chapter masters ''(an impressive feat, considering that they perhaps number at around 150 chapters)'' and give them all an ass-kicking for being lazy fucks and <s>has started to unify them all in the hunt for [[Fallen Angels]] and to combine the Unforgiven into one unstoppable warmachine</s> GIVE THEM ALL WAR ADVICE SO TO BETTER DESTROY THE EMPEROR'S ENEMIES.

==Portrayal==
[[File:Azrael VS Kharn.jpg|300px|thumb|right|One of the most epic moments of Warhammer 40k.]]
[[File: Azrael_Draigo_double_team.jpg|300px|right|thumb|Nope. Azrael VS Kharn is still cooler.]]
[[File:Azrael-will_of_iron.jpg|100px|thumb|right|Azrael as depicted in the will of iron comics - gosh, those secrets really take their toll, don't they.]]
Recently, Azrael has been getting a lot more screen time from [[Black Library]], portraying him as a self-confident, witty and snarky bastard, almost completely at odds with the stoic and humourless reputation of the Dark Angels chapter or even the [[Gets shit done|down to business]] approach that [[Marneus Calgar|other Chapter]] [[Dante|Masters]] [[Kardan Stronos|might]] be like.

For example: when dealing with the [[Grey Knights]], other chapters deal with them warily, knowing that there is a strong possibility their own soldiers might be purged after the campaign. ''(Space Wolves and Blood Angels can attest to this)'' Instead Azrael deals with them so casually that he constantly pisses off [[Kaldor Draigo]] by cheekily misrepresenting his rank of '''Supreme Grand Master'''. He also quickly warms to the [[Gets shit done|personality]] of [[Catachan]] Colonel Strike when the human starts ordering Space Marines about, especially after [[Kaldor Draigo]] finds it irritating and so he takes the opportunity to just badger Draigo even further. Though at the end of the campaign, Draigo really does lose his cool and has a short brawl with Azrael in front of a squad of Deathwing Terminators, but is content to leave the matter to rest on the planet, partly because of Draigo's emotionally charged threats of running to the High Lords and destroying the Dark Angels, and mostly because Azrael had literally no idea [[Zahariel|why Draigo got so mad]].

Also, despite the Dark Angels sometimes coming off as emo dispassionate pricks, he is quite vocal about his support and admiration for humanity. He also proclaims his support for the common man of the Imperium, [[Salamanders|swearing to protect them]] where [[Grey Knights|another Chapter]] would [[Marines Malevolent|sacrifice them]] [[Khornate Knights|to gain victory]]. This is further exemplified in the Space Marine Legends: Azrael book, where as part of his trials to become Supreme Grand Master, he was faced with a recollection of his early history, where he as a tribal teenager got into a fight with another tribe; circumstances led him to stand over the knocked out body of a defeated enemy while he was still armed but the image paused for Azrael to explain himself. Azrael reacted quite strongly to the idea that he could be so honourless as to slay a defeated opponent, trying to argue that "mercy" was a virtue... a notion he would have to disabuse himself of if he wanted to take the Supreme Grand Master job.

Therefore, Azrael can still be a douchebag and can violently but efficiently turn on his allies whenever they are exposed to [[the Fallen]]. So in this regard, as least he's consistent with his chapter's priorities, although it's clear that he doesn't like it and feels the weight of guilt pressing down on him because of it.

Somewhere in the middle of the Pandorax campaign, Azrael got into a fight with Kharn, who mocked Azrael ''(and his stupid hat)'' the entire time. The audiobook "Trials of Azrael": where this fight takes place, has Azrael sounding suspiciously like Hugo Weaving, which exemplifies his personality - a bit of a dick, sardonic but ultimately well-meaning. As right near the end of the audiobook, where he retrieves a Mechanicus Adept, that had been guiding him onboard the ship he was lost on. Scared out of her wits and with Black Legionnaires at the door to come claim her, Azrael dispatches them and approaches the Adept, who still thinks the Chaos Marines are alive. Quietly muttering that she's not afraid of him, Azrael responds; ''"Really? Even in my wounded state, I thought I cut quite the imposing figure."'' At the end of the Pandorax campaign, he also snickers his way through the evil monologue of the end-boss Corpulax, robbing the moment of all of its intended gravity with his snorts and giggles, before getting all serious and explaining where the traitor space marine went wrong and then executing him.

==Exploits==
Azrael has in recent years began to accumulate some impressive feats in both body and mind:
*During the Siege of Vraks, Azrael refused to allow the Chapter Banner to fall into the dirt, when its bearer was slain. Catching the Chapter banner in one hand, he fought Arkos the Faithless, a chaos lord who had the blessing of all four ruinous powers backing him, with one hand behind his back.
*Upon field elevation to Supreme Grand Master, he led a mission to recover the old Grand Master Naberius, who had been taken prisoner by the Night Lords, being kept alive and wrapped in the Chapter Banner for use as bait. Upon discovering this, Azrael used his command codes to override Naberius' power armour, nuking him, the chapter banner, and the attendant heretek priests and Night Lords guarding him.
*In the Audio Drama “Trials of Azrael”, he was separated from his command during a teleportation incident and found himself alone with none other than [[Kharn|Khârn the Betrayer]]. Both quickly realised that they had been brought there for some reason in order for them to kill each other. Khârn of course didn’t give a single fuck and was intent upon taking Azrael’s head, whereas Azrael was more interested in discovering the identity of their would-be puppet master. Azrael manages to get first blood during the fight, but it quickly became clear that the fight was going against him, as Khârn seemed to only grow stronger the longer the fight dragged out. Azrael had a decision to make; he knew that he could kill Khârn, but it would not be a clean kill and he would most certainly be slain in return, leaving their tormentor to get away scot-free. Choosing the larger victory over the satisfaction of killing the traitor, Azrael destroys the floor below him, sending himself plummeting into the depths of the chaos warped vessel.
*Azrael discovered, that the perpetrator of his teleportation error was a [[Daemon Prince]] of Tzeentch. Without firing a single shot, or swinging the Sword of Secrets once, Azrael manages to defeat the Daemon Prince using nothing but deception and deceit (that’s right he outsmarted and out-thought a Daemon Prince of Tzeentch). With the daemon at his mercy, Azrael decided to leave the helpless creature as a present for Khârn the Betrayer, who was still hunting for him, as a way of an apology for having to end their fight early. He promptly leaves to re-join his forces, leaving the terrified daemon to beg for mercy.
*During the Campaign upon Pandorax, Azrael fought alongside Supreme Grand Master Draigo of the Grey Knights at the forefront of the fighting and matched him kill for kill.
*At the climax of the Pandorax campaign, it was Azrael that finally defeated the giant [[Greater Daemon]] of Nurgle, that the entire Grey Knight chapter had failed to banish and had only managed to imprison.
*At the end of the “Unforgiven”, Azrael fought Typhus the Herald of Nurgle aboard the Terminus Est. As the Deathwing stormed the bridge, Azrael faced the giant bloated form of Typhus - the Sword of Secrets easily cutting through the corrupted terminator armour. Upon realising that Typhus had been manipulated, Azrael is suddenly moved by [[Tuchulcha]] back to the Rock.
*Azrael may have ever so slightly caused a [https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Predestination_paradox causal paradox] and may have been the guy, who destroyed Caliban and banished the Fallen in the first place. TOTALLY BY ACCIDENT - HONEST!
**(To be fair, one of the current Fallen was going to make it back to the past and there were still Death Guard and Fallen, that could breach past the Dark Angels. The alternative was letting the Traitors win the Horus Heresy via time-travel and THAT IS NOT AN OPTION!)
*Azrael, while on the mend from the editorial-mandated Rubicon Primaris treatment given to [[Marneus Calgar|Every]] [[Helbrecht|other]] [[Kayvaan Shrike|significant]] [[Ragnar Blackmane|Space]] [[Tor Garadon|Marine]] [[Mephiston|character]], is currently fighting off the Arks of Omen. One of the fragments of the Key that [[Vashtorr]] is searching for is on the Rock, and the Arkifane is throwing everything he has at the Dark Angels to get it.

==Lion's Wrath==
[[File:AzraelCombiPlasma.jpg|thumb|left|A close-up of Azrael's mini. Notice the notch taken out of the gun's sculpt to let it fit under his [[Pauldrons|pauldron]].]]
[[File:Lion's Roar 2.0.png|thumb|right|Further proof the [[Commando Platoon|British]] cant design guns for shit: imagine how awkward it would be to reload. It wouldn't be so bad if Azrael didn't hold it in his off-hand and if he wasn't also carrying a sword.]]
An unfunny annoying forced meme on /tg/ is "how the hell does Azrael's gun work?" ''Lion's Wrath'', Azrael's [[Combi-Plasma|combi-plasma gun]] that has a theoretically awesome bullpup design, was originally sculpted with a notch taken out of its stock (see image). Some moron tasked with drawing an official "Warlords of the Dark Millennium: Masters of the Dark Angels" artbook thought the notch was part of the gun's official design; [http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Lion%27s_Wrath seriously, behold]. This has caused no shortage of photoshop parodies fixing the gun, some normally, some "tacticool".

Now that Azrael has crossed the [[Mary Sue|Rubicon Primaris]], Lion's Roar also got the Cawl-treatment and somehow still ended up looking fuck ugly: instead of just fixing the derpy bullpup, the full-auto and very front-heavy Lion's Roar was given a pistol-grip and its magazine was ported onto the side, a design choice that makes [[/k/|/k/ommandos]] seethe; not only are they taking design cues from WW2's least charismatic SMG, but the awkward magazine placement repeats the same problem the British Army encountered with left-handed bullpups: those hot spent casings would fly directly into his unhelmeted face (to be fair, you can model him with it on, but more on that below).

These days it's considered a dead horse that's been brought back as a zombie then beaten to death again. What isn’t spoken about so much is his helmet which is supposed to have once belonged to The Lion himself. How a regular astartes would comfortably wear what was made to fit a much larger being is beyond us (probably just a tech transplant rather than it being the actual helm).

If you see someone posting yet another "how do the Dark Angels expect to justify this tech-heresy" for the billionth time, just ignore it and go about your business. Your fellow fa/tg/uys will thank you for it.

==[[Warhammer 40,000/Tactics/Dark Angels(8E)|Tabletop]]==
[[File:Azrael_Model.JPG|200px|thumb|right|]]
{| class=wikitable
! || Pts || WS || BS || S || T || W || I || A || Ld || Sv
|-
| '''Azrael:''' || 215 || 6 || 5 || 4 || 4 || 4 || 5 || 4 || 10 || 2+/4++/5+++
|}

In-game Azrael is the closest thing the Dark Angel have to your ubiquitous "costs as much as a [[Land Raider]] HQ-turned-Lord of War", clocking in at 215 points. He isn't all that bad and he gives an invulnerable save to the unit he joins, but he cannot take [[Terminator]] armor to thug it up with Terminators (that is Belial's job) or a bike (much less Sammael's LAST IMPERIAL JETBIKE).

Overall, not a terrible unit, but his place in the army is limited. With the changes to 6>7th, he is FAR more survivable in combat due to his artificer armour ''the "Protector"'', which also gives him FnP 5+; his power sword is now only AP3, but said power sword also has S+2 (and not two-handed unlike Relic Blades, so he gets +1 attack from his bolt pistol too!). If you take him in the primary detachment as the warlord, you get to choose any trait from the DA's warlord table without rolling and get +1 to Seize the Initative, so it's still cool. Picking the +1/-1 Warlord trait gives you a great strategic edge, especially when using Ravenwing or Deathwing in a CAD. Lastly, he has a master-crafted combi-plasma, representing the Dark Angels' plasma fetish.

{| class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed wikitable"
! Just for Fun, the Azrael vs [[Khârn]] match-up depicted above (Expected wounds per turn) (7th edition versions)
|-
| Starting on "even footing" (i.e. they declare a challenge on the second round of combat). Same Initiative, so both strike at the same time.
|-
| Azzy's five attacks on Kharn hit 2.98 times (59.69%, including master-crafted) and wound 83% of the time for 2.49 wounds, those are unsaved 66% of the time = '''1.66 wounds on Kharn per turn'''.
|-
| Kharn's five attacks hit Azzy 4.17 times (83% chance with no Hatred on even footing) causing 3.47 wounds (also 83% chance) which are unsaved 50% of the time and ignored with FnP 33% = '''1.16 wounds on Azrael per turn'''.
|-
|'''Additional Notes:''' ''i.e. now we factor in the cool shit'' If Kharn were to get the charge or counter attack, after factoring in Hatred his expected wounds per turn become 1.85 (with Rage) or 1.59 (with Counter Attack), but only for the first turn. Though Furious Charge won't come into play for either of them since they already wound each other on 2+. Also Azrael now has Hatred (CSM) so he'd be hitting 3.75 times on the first turn for 2.05 unsaved wounds against Kharn.
|-
|'''Conclusion''': As of 7th edition Dark Angels codex, Azrael just kicks the shit out of Kharn, thanks largely to the boost to his FnP -- Kharn now needs four turns to kill Azrael, and would already be dead by turn two. Trading Preferred Enemy for Hatred is a mixed bag for Azrael, but since Kharn's major damage is on the first round it sort of evens out, kinda. If Kharn were to get the charge then it becomes much closer and there is a better chance of them mutually killing each other on the second turn.
|-
|'''End Note''' This is only mathhammer, and they both have the chance of wiping the floor with each other in a single turn or doing nothing to each other. Azrael has the advantage of defense and more wounds, whilst Kharn has a higher maximum output if he can get the charge. Of course Azrael still does poorly against anyone with a 2+ armour save or Strength 8 or higher so just don't even try it.
|}

===8th Edition===
{| class=wikitable
! || Pts/PL || M || WS || BS || S || T || W || A || Ld || Sv
|-
| '''Azrael:''' || 180/9 || 6"|| 2+ || 2+ || 4 || 4 || 6 || 5 || 9 || 2+/4++
|}

Very little has changed functionally. Having 2 extra wounds in an edition where multi-wound damage is a thing is certainly nice, and he's cheaper overall. Lion's Wrath is still a combi-plasma, and follows all the new rules for that. Sword of Secrets is now S+2 AP -3 Damage D3, ''and'' if the to-wound roll is a 6 the target instantly suffers a mortal wound ''in addition'' to the actual wound they now take a saving throw for. Since the Character and Independent Character rules are gone, Lion Helm is now a 6 inch bubble of 4++ for all friendly Dark Angels (no more guardsman blobs, sadly). Oh, and all Dark Angels ''units'' in that bubble re-roll failed to-hit. And if he's the warlord, your Battle-forged army gets +1 command point. Lastly he and the rest of Deathwing are one of the few sources of Fearless left in the game.

{| class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed wikitable"
! Just for Fun, the Azrael vs [[Khârn]] match-up depicted above (Expected wounds per turn) (now in 8th edition)
|-
| There's no more initiative in 8th edition, so let's have a look at how they do:
|-
| Khârn's six attacks hit Azzy 5.83 times and wounds 3.89 times. Gorechild has AP -4 and 1d3 Damage so Azzy uses his 4+ invul and eats 1.94 unsaved hits or '''3.89 wounds each times Khârn swings'''.

(Khârn has 6 attacks base, so we'll consider DttFE to trigger once a round, which is statistically the more probable result. His attack that misses is ignored.)
|-
| Azrael's five attacks on the swell guy hit 4.86 times (thanks to the re-roll) and wound 3.24 + 0.81 (mortal) times. The Sword of Secrets is AP -3 and 1d3 damage, so Khârn uses his 4+ invul and eats 1.62 unsaved hits for 3.24 + 0.81 (mortal) or '''4.05 wounds each time Azrael swings'''.
|-
|'''Conclusion''': Azrael has the upper hand in damage again in 8th edition, he statistically leaves Khârn on ~1 wound after his attacks while Khârn leaves Azrael on ~2... But then you remember Khârn has the '''BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD!''' rule that allows him to fight twice a turn, which means he'll statistically kill Azrael in one turn with his second round of attacks. If Khârn charges, he hits twice before Azrael and should kill him without Azrael being able to swing back unless interrupted. If Azrael charges, Khârn should still kill him with his second round of attacks though being barely alive with 1 wound left.
|-
|'''End Note''' Again, this is only mathhammer and they still both have a chance of wiping the floor with the other in a single lucky swing, with the 1d3 damage from their weapons, ''Death to the False Emperor'' and the Sword of Secrets extra mortal wounds (and that's without going into CP re-rolling, fight when you die stratagems and other shenanigans). Pure stats-wise, Khârn has an edge thanks to the quite insane ability of swinging twice each turn and sheer volume of attacks (quite fitting considering it's Khârn we're speaking about), but the fight is certainly not a forgone conclusion in either way.
|}

===9th Edition===
{| class=wikitable
! || Pts/PL || M || WS || BS || S || T || W || A || Ld || Sv
|-
| '''Azrael:''' || 170/9 || 6"|| 2+ || 2+ || 4 || 4 || 7 || 6 || 9 || 2+/4++
|}
Having crossed the Rubicon Primaris, Azrael gets an extra Wound and Attack. When combined with the Sword of Secrets being further boosted to S+3 AP-4, he's now an even better duelist than he used to be. The Lion's Wrath also got buffed with its plasma component being boosted to AP-4, so he can supplement shooting from Hellblasters and Desolators in lieu of getting stuck in with Bladeguard Veterans. Since he never had access to Terminator Armor or a bike in the first place, his changed unit type actually works in his favor. Everything else about him is unchanged from 8th edition.

==Trivia==
* Azrael's name is fitting, as he is named after the mythological Azrael, the Angel of Death (which is another name for the Space Marines).

* Azrael also is the name of Gargamel's cat in The Smurfs comic books. Maybe the dude wants to kill Ultramarines too (no he doesn't; he'd get along well with Titus seeing that they both actually have common sense).

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Azrael.jpg|Not [[Blood Angels|the most handsome of angels]]. (This isn't a picture of Azrael...)
File:Azrael-angels-of-death.jpg| ([[Mark Gibbons|MG]]
</gallery>

[[Category:Dark Angels]][[Category:Space Marines Chapter Masters]]
{{Marines-Characters}}

Azkaellon

2023-06-09T22:22:35Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

Azkaellon was the master of the [[Sanguinary Guard]] during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy. After the Heresy, he oversaw the division of the [[Blood Angels]] into chapters.

==Crusade and Heresy==
On Melchior, he tried to hide the Red Thirst from [[Raldoron]] and [[Sanguinius]], coming to a heated discussion with the First Captain. Shortly after [[Jaghatai Khan]]'s purge of the Nephilim, Sanguinius chased down his brother to speak with him. It was Azkaellon that welcomed the Khan aboard the Red Tear. At some unknown point, he duels Lucius. Though Lucius draws first blood, winning the duel, Azkaellon tackled him over the side humiliating him in front of his men. Before the events of Signus, he led a task force, including [[Meros]], to a world being raided by the [[Dark Eldar]]. The true purpose was in hopes of finding a cure for the Thirst, which they did not. Also he is the one who woke Meros up from his sarcophagus dream-talk with [[Rafen]]. At Signus, he was weary of the [[Space Wolves]] and [[Word Bearers]]. He got real protective of the Great Angel during things. He also covered up [[Nassir Amit]]'s Thirst induced murder of the Wolves, showing that he can be a bro at times. During the Imperial Secundus, he selected Sanguinius new Herald, who may have eventually became the [[Sanguinor]]. He lost an arm to during when Sanguinius tried to save him. To note, the explosives used were originally intended to protect Sanguinius. He later had to set fire to a library on the Red Tear after it was corrupted by Daemons. During the Titandeath at Beta-Garmon, he and Amit, along with there respective units, boarded a Starfort, named The Anvil. They briefly captured it, before realising it was a trap.

==Siege of Terra==
He grew worried about Sanguinius' attempts to inspire the conscripted Army forces. He along with his Primarch and an escort of Sanguinary Guard went to save the [[Jaghatai Khan|Khan]] from the [[Death Guard]]. In the end, Sanguinius would leave Azkaellon on Terra when he went to fight Horus.

==Legacy==
Azkaellon was the last member of the Sanguinary Guard, he later reorganised it and the Blood Angels into Successor Chapters. He later disappeared, leaving Raldoron as the Chapter Master of the Blood Angels. Also, the Blood Angels have a class of ships named after Azkaellon.

==Personality==
Azkaellon was incredibly loyal to Sanguinius, basically an over protective mother. He also told Raldoron that he would sacrifice any warrior to protect Sanguinius. He and the Guard were seen as being too rigid, a point of conflict between the fluidity of Raldoron and the First Company.

{{Marines-Characters}}
[[Category:Blood Angels]]

Azariah Kyras

2023-06-09T22:08:36Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

{{Heresy}}
[[Image:AzariahKyras.jpg|thumb|right|And it took his chapter ''how long'' to realize he was corrupt and evil? (And give this man some klonopin and a comfy bed, because he looks like he hasn't slept for a century.)]]
'''Azariah Kyras''', or simply '''Kyras''', was the [[Chapter Master]] of the [[Blood Ravens]]. He looks and sounds sorta like John Hurt.

Introduced in Chaos Rising as the long awaited Chapter Master of the Blood Ravens, and given his big break in Retribution, Kyras is also Chief Librarian of the Chapter, and also proclaimed 'Keeper of the Librarium'. He is also notable as a Worshiper of Chaos, embracing the creed of [[Khorne]] in particular. This is not the fluff-contradicting [[rage]] some have claimed it to be though. Khorne hates [[sorcerer]]s, which are NOT the same thing as [[librarian]]s. Librarians murder things with the power of the warp as harnessed by their minds, Sorcerers use arcane knowledge such as runes, words of power or some other magic douchebaggery to sort of steal the power of the warp to murder things. Which is what Space Wolf [[Rune Priest|Rune Priests]] do, despite it being against the Emperor's orders. While Khorne prefers his followers to murder things with their bare hands, he would not be opposed to someone murdering things with their mind. Remember, [[Khorne]] is not a particularly picky god as any blood shed in his name pleases him. Though Azariah Kyras does not worship him exclusively, as he also invokes [[Slaanesh]] when addressing the Eldar, which is kinda a slap in the face to Khorne again since he doesn't take kindly to anyone giving him tribute to be associating with that hermaphroditic freak. (Although he did offer a dead Craftworld to Khorne so I guess that makes up for it, also he was probably doing it to fuck with the Eldar anyway.)

As a librarian dedicated to Khorne, Kyras' formal title would be 'Bloodfather', which is pretty cool.
Recently reincarnated as a [https://s5.mkklcdnv6tempv3.com/mangakakalot/e2/eo923934/chapter_10_lisitsa_familias_demise/20.jpg spider Broodmother].

==History==
Little is known of Kyras' days before he became a Chapter Master, except that he was once the pupil of Moriah, the Chapter Master of the time. Nearly a millennium before Araghast the Pillager would slaughter the sub-sector for Khorne and the lulz, Kyras and Moriah faced Ulkair the Great Unclean One on the Blood Ravens' homeworld of Aurelia. Ulkair summoned forth Warp storms that swallowed the Hive World whole, but before it was overtaken completely, Moriah stabbed at the heart of the Unclean One before faltering. Though he died, he wounded Ulkair enough so that the Daemon could be bound by Kyras in the planet's heart. And thus, both were trapped in the Warp, along with the entire planet, which cracked like an egg and became a frozen, ruined shithole.

Somehow, he was deposited like loose change in a guy's couch in the Judgement of Carrion, therein, he was found by the 5th company and Apothecary Galan. Galan and the 5th company were viciously holding their own against multitudes of Daemons inside [[Space Hulk|a giant, daemonically infested, derelict space ship]] that's drifting in the warp. Finding their lost brother, Galan found him to be a massive emo, consistently telling morose stories about the Battle of Aurelia. Galan was up until this time haunted by Ulkair's voice, who hungered after their geneseed. Such an experience could likely be compared to sexual harassment, as far as such a thing could exist in the 41st Millennium. Acting on the old saying "If you can't beat them, join them", Kyras took this time to spread the taint of Chaos to his Brothers and offered up Galan to the fat-assed Daemon. Thus, one of Ulkair's minions set upon Galan, and the 5th Company left the Space Hulk.

Both Kyras and the [[Daemon#Warhammer|Thing]] wearing Galan's flesh escaped the Judgment of Carrion, with Kyras' return hailed as a blessing by elements of the Blood Ravens, but not the Captain of the 3rd Company, [[Gabriel Angelos]] who viewed the return of Kyras as an ill omen. Sometime thereafter, Kyras rose to the ranks of both Chief Librarian and Chapter Master (which had been synonymous for some time beforehand). Galan was stationed as a Apothecary within the Honor Guard. After this, and sometime after the events of the original Dawn of War but before Dark Crusade and Soulstorm, Kyras began to venerate Khorne under the instruction of the daemon Gabe freed from the Maledictum. He also promoted [[Blood Ravens Force Commander|Vanilla Ice to Force Commander]] shortly after the Hadrian Campaign. Truly his most nefarious deed, aside from allowing [[Indrick Boreale|Indrick Baldeale]] to lead 5 Companies into the Kaurava Conflict. Considering Force Commander Hair Gel's abundant [[Heresy|Hairesy]], maybe it was also a part of his plan to eliminate loyalist Blood Ravens.

==The Aurelian crusade==
The Black Legion's invasion into subsector Aurelia finally revealed Kyras' corruption. The Blood Ravens attached to the 4th Company boarded the Judgment of Carrion and discovered evidence left behind by Galan and Kyras, revealing chaotic influence and the pact with Ulkair.

Kyras himself was not present in the subsector during the invasion, instead having sent Captain Apollo Diomedes of the Honor Guard to represent his authority and order a withdrawal from any contact with the Black Legion. However, according to Galan's confession as he lay mortally wounded by the Force Commander, Diomedes himself was not corrupted; only some of the men under his command had been tainted.

Gabriel Angelos and Force Commander Hair Gel disobeyed the Chapter Master's order to withdraw and stayed to defeat the stirring Ulkair on the ruins of Aurelia. The ending of the game states that the "renegade" Blood Ravens plan to depose Kyras, creating a prologue for a Chapter-wide civil war.

==Kyras the Ascendant==
After Araghast's invasion, [[Eliphas]] took command of his warband and began slaughtering the Blood Raven's in Khorne's name, and started with murdering Davian Thule, evoking the shedding of manly tears. A Freebooter Kaptain called Bluddflag unleashed his lulzy voice acting upon Aurelia, leaving only joy and happiness in his wake. Diomedes continued to be oblivious about everything, some Eldar fags did shit nobody cares about and the Imperial Guard, led by Freddie Mercury, were poised to save the sub-sector while being manly. And the Tyranids tried and failed in their attempt to be relevant.

And the Ordo Malleus were poised to blow the shit outta the sector.

It turns out that Kyras, with some coaxing from the Daemon of the Maledictum that was released by Gabe back in Dawn of War I, had engineered the ENTIRE EVENTS OF THE DAWN OF WAR II SERIES in an attempt to slaughter the Sub-Sector in Khorne's Name. Yes, the Tyranids, Araghast's Black Crusade, all culminated in the arrival of the Ordo Malleus, who would exerminate all life in the sector. Which would in turn elevate Kyras to Daemonhood and open a Warp Rift to destroy the Sub-Sector, he would be a Daemon Prince so powerful that he could depose Abaddon and spread the gift of being turned into superheated space dust "to every last living soul in the galaxy". See that Tzeentch? Khorne can also plan ahead, you bird-faced furfag. And he actually gets shit done with these plans, unlike you.

Delivering an epic speech about the philosophy of Khorne shortly before merging with the Maledictum Daemon at the charred wastes of Cyrene, Kyras becomes a daemon of such magnitude that he makes Ulkair look like a weenie. Gabriel gets into a fight with him, but is unfortunately beaten, savagely mutilated and smashed into the ground, the first time in the series where Gabe loses to something. Kyras then proceeds to kill almost every single space marine Gabe brought with him except for [[Jonah Orion]] (who was just knocked out cold), including several squads of Terminators and at least one dreadnought And mind you, your typical Daemon Prince would go down like a two-cent hooker against the force Gabe brought with him.

Despite this, he is killed by Eliphas/Diomedes/Bluddflag/Kayleth/General Freddie Mercury Castor/the Not-Swarmlord, and gets his head blown off to boot. After his death, the myriad timelines warp together to all become canon at once as Gabe becomes the Blood Raven Chapter Master, Eliphas becomes a Daemon Prince, The Tyranids OMNOMNOM the sector, Bluddflag steals [[Adrastia|Adrastia's]] hat and a Space Hulk and goes off for more fightan', Kayleth is successful in making Slaanesh sad, and Castor adds Kyras' head to his trophy collection.

==Quotes==
This guy has the best voice acting Relic has ever produced, and perhaps has the best voice acting out of any game ever. Mere words cannot describe the sheer experience of listening to this guy. So here, [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbmDLVFAaec go with this].

And if you need some help, here you go.

<center>"Faithful... enlightened... ambitious... brethren.

In but a single decade, a few mere swipes of the pendulum, we have gathered a sacrifice to Khorne that will be made legend.

Though it was a simpler, weaker voice that illuminated me during my centuries upon the Judgement of Carrion...

...it was Khorne's messenger who showed me the true path of freedom from our pathetic corpse-Emperor.

And what is this path? This meaning, this purpose to which we gather the skulls of our foes?

It is nothing. There is no meaning, no purpose. We murder. We kill. It is mindless savagery, this UNIVERSE IS MINDLESS!

In mere hours, billions will die. Innocent! Guilty! Strong and weak! Honest and deceitful! ALL of them!

They will scream, they will burn, and for no purpose but that mighty Khorne may revel in their bloodshed!

And united in this void of purpose, fear, or duty... we shall at long last be free!

Blood for the Blood God! Skulls for the Skull Throne! LET! THE GALAXY! BURN!"</center>

...[[awesome]]...

Additionally, he also says this;

*Blood for the Blood God! Skulls for the Skull Throne! Once the galaxy burns.. WE! WILL DEFINE! '''RIGHTEOUSNESS'''!!!

And this:

*Oh, after my Blood Ravens conquered Kronus, I oversaw the interrogation and execution of Farseer [[Taldeer]]. She must have mentioned you. - to her brother Ronahn, who then promptly threw a massive bitchfit.

And don't forget this:

*Warriors of Khorne, to war for his favor! They think themselves righteous, and righteous indeed their skulls shall be! - Referring to the player characters who have come to kill him.

{{Template:Chaos-Marines}}
{{Template:Marines-Characters}}
[[Category:Dawn of War]]
[[Category:Space Marines Chapter Masters]]

Aza'Gorod

2023-06-09T22:07:58Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:Nightbringer and poor marines.jpg|right|550px|thumb|Those marines are so fucked.]]
<div style="text-align:left;font-size:1.10em;font-weight:italic;font-style:bold;font-family:Papyrus;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:1em"><span style='color:indigo;font-size:100%'>{{Topquote|You...Can't escape Death...Death....Awaits....All.....|The Nightbringer reminding you how terrifying he can be}}</span></div>

{{Topquote|Let's go, Dracula. Go insane. Bring me everything I need to thrive. Murder the world, just so I don't have to be hungry anymore.|Death, Castlevania}}

{{Topquote|Light thinks it travels faster than anything but it is wrong. No matter how fast light travels, it finds the darkness has always got there first, and is waiting for it.|Sir Terry Pratchett, Reaper Man}}

'''Aza'Gorod''', AKA '''The Nightbringer''', Warhammer's Grim Reaper, the Necrons' [[Mortarion|Mortarion]], Rapebringer, [[TTS|Has No Friends]] or [[Cheese|FUCKING CHEESE!]] is one of the main C'tan gods in Warhammer 40k alongside [[Mephet'ran|the Deceiver]] and [[Mag'ladroth|the Void Dragon]] that is still relevant enough to be talked about. The other C'tan gods have been [[Tyranids|eaten]], shelved in a GeeDubs corner, or are just hiding in a cupboard somewhere.

==Spooky Story Time==
The Nightbringer is the C'tan most directly responsible for unleashing the Necrons on the galaxy. His feeding on the star in the Necrontyr home system caused the solar radiation output that gave the Necrontyr such short, cancer-ridden lives. This in turn caused their obsession with death and spurred them to colonize other worlds. These interstellar voyages led to the necrontyr encountering the Old Ones, and the disparity in health and lifespans caused the necrontyr to resent the Old Ones and wage war against them. All this led to contact between the C'tan and the necrontyr, and in some accounts the Nightbringer was also the first C'tan discovered. Finally, their hatred of the Old Ones and wanting to escape their sickly biology are the two main reasons the necrontyr leaders accepted the C'tan's offer to be roboticized into the Necrons.

During the War in Heaven, it was the entity that single handedly enforced the concept of the fear of death or at least the Grim Reaper in the 40k Galaxy. The Nightbringer craved worshippers but its followers soon descended into murderous insanity since being in its presence induced horrifying, bloodthirsty visions. He, along with the Outsider, another C'tan, was infamous for being a team killing fucktard during the [[War in Heaven]] after he and the Outsider were tricked by both [[Troll|the Deceiver and Cegorach]] to eat their fellow C'tan brethren in order to gain more power. As you can imagine, things did not go too well for the Necrons and the C'tan during that incident, making the Deceiver one of the [[Fail|biggest walking fuck ups in 40k history]]. Only species that came into existence <s>after</s> before the Nightbringer broke its way into the psyche of all life were spared fear of death. Namely the Orks. Which is why it's awfully interesting humans fear death and have a grim reaper mythos...

Consequently, the Nightbringer, alongside the rest of the C'tan (Save for <s>maybe the Void Dragon and</s> the Outsider), were stabbed in the back by their former slaves, the Necrons, subsequently being turned into fucking Pokemon after getting [[Khaine|blasted into a million pieces]]. You can say all you want, but at least Khaine was treated with dignity and respect by the Eldar after he was shattered by a bajillion pieces unlike the poor C'tan who have turned from one of Warhammer's most sinister forces into [[Pokemon|a fucking joke]]. To be fair though, there are no entities in the entire 40k universe as evil as the C'tan, so they 100% deserved it. Even the Chaos Gods are but reflections of the sapient species of the galaxy twisted into evil by, ironically, all the suffering the C'tan caused. Also despite the crap they can pull in the Materium, they actually give far less of a shit about it than they do about dicking each other over in the Warp. Whereas the C'tan essentially ruined the galaxy for everyone and everything forever because they thought star energy tasted a bit bland.

To give an idea of how low the Nightbringer has fallen, he got basically stared down by [[Uriel Ventris]] who told him to piss off while threatening to blow the both of them up, with the Nightbringer realizing Uriel wasn't afraid to die just to make him suffer (to be fair, the Nightbringer single-handedly slaughtered the story's main villains, most of Uriel's squad, cut off his lieutenant's arm and ruptured Uriel's primary heart). And that was ''prior'' to the sharding retcon; it's only gotten downhill from there.

==On the Tabletop==
Before the [[Matt Ward|Warddex]], the Nightbringer was the hardest thing to kill outside of Apocalypse with toughness 8, five wounds, and a 4+ invuln save ([[Wraithknight|Remember when that was impressive?]]). As a monstrous creature with S10 and loads of attacks that ignored invul saves, getting near him was a death sentence. The Warddex removed it entirely in favour of more customisable C'tan Shards. It was re-introduced in 7th edition, in a [[fail|weaker state]], in an edition with rampant [[Games Workshop|power creep]] and in a codex with the strongest Necron roster yet. The C'tan went from being one of the most cheesy units Necrons had, to one of the [[rage|weakest]]. Noticeably a Relic in the Shield of Baal makes the Nightbringer Toughness 8 instead of 7, making it no longer die to boltguns, which is sort of a big deal if your opponent isn't playing [[Dark Eldar]].

'''8th Edition'''

8th Edition is the return of the Nightbringer. While still at toughness 7 with 4+ save and 8 wounds, he is now a character and thus unable to be shot at if he is not the closest unit. This adds so much to his survivability and he can now actually make it to close combat. However, the biggest change is that now the Nightbringer can [[Rip and Tear]] virtually anything. His weapons are Gaze of Death (Assault D6, 12" range, -4 AP D3 damage) and Scythe of the Nightbringer (AP -4, D6 damage). Both of these weapons hit on 2+, thanks to the Nightbringer's Ballistic/Weapon Skill, and wound on 2+ thanks to their own special rules. On top of that, he gains 1 Power of the C'tan (now 2 powers with the Codex). The most useful one being Antimatter Meteor, which is basically a 24" range Smite. Time's Arrow can also be useful in certain situations where you want to snipe out an annoying character. Seismic Assault seems the weakest of the three powers, so it is not recommended to ever take it.

[[File:Nbringer-sm1.jpg|thumb|The Nightbringer pulling a surfin' bird.]]

''(Mathhammer time)''

Antimatter Meteor requires a 2+ to cast, and deal D3 mortal wounds to the closest unit, or D6 if the casting roll was a 6.
In short, a 1/6 chance to fail to cast (0 damage), a 4/6 chance to deal D3 (average 2 damage), and a 1/6 chance to deal D6 (average 3.5 damage).
<br>Average damage per use = 1.92 mortal wounds

Seismic Assault deals a mortal wound on a roll of 6 and rolls one die per model in the closest unit.
In short, a 1/6 chance to cause a mortal wound per model in the unit.
<br>Average damage per use against a single model = 0.17 mortal wounds
<br>Average damage per use against a unit containing 11 models = 1.83 mortal wounds
<br>Average damage per use against a unit containing 12 models = 2 mortal wounds

'''Antimatter Meteor is expected to perform better against units with less than 12 models, meaning that (in most cases) it should be preferred ahead of Seismic Assault.'''

Note: With its lower dice count, Antimatter Meteor additionally has the potential to benefit more than Seismic Assault from a stratagem re-roll.

===Rules (9th Ed)===
If you thought 8th Edition made the Nightbringer a must have, then prepare yourself cause 9th truly does make the Nightbringer deserving of his title as the embodiment of the reaper. Not only has he gotten a nice stat boost, giving him an extra point in strength and number of attacks compared to his other C'tan brethren; but the changes to his abilities has made him a league apart. His normal sweeping attack with his scythe will dish out 12 S7 AP-3 D1 attack like no tomorrow, but when you want something REALLY dead use the Entropic Blow profile. Hits with S14, AP -4 for D6 damage, ignores invulnerable saves, but most importantly ''bypasses any abilities that prevents wounds from being lost'' due to his Drain Life ability. Feel no Pain? You'll be feeling it now. Tough son of a bitch like Ghazghkull that doesn't lose more than 3 wounds at a time? They can fuck off and die like any other sod too. Other (lesser) C'tan shards doing the same because of their Necrodermis? They are just as dead as everyone else. The Nightbringer mathematically defeats basically every other character in the game one on one and in the vast majority of cases, it's not even a contest, just a very brutal, very quick slaughter.

Add in the fact that Gaze of Death has been changed from a shooting attack to a unique C'tan power exclusive to him (meaning he can use it even when in CC, and attack characters even if they aren't the closest model) with 3D6, doing D3 Mortal Wounds each on a 4+; and the Nightbringer is really feeling like the incarnation of death on the table like he was always meant to be.

{| class=wikitable
|- valign=top
! Name !! M !! WS !! BS !! S !! T !! W !! A !! Ld !! Sv !! Points
|-
| C'tan Shard of the Nightbringer || 8" || 2+ || 2+ || 7 || 7 || 9 || 6 || 10 || 4+ || 370
|}

'''Wargear:'''
*Scythe of the Nightbringer:
::{| class=wikitable
|- valign=top
! Weapon !! Range !! Type !! S !! AP !! D !! Abilities
|-
|'''Scythe of the Nightbringer (Reaping Sweep)''' || Melee || Melee || User || -3 || 1 || Each time an attack is made with this weapon profile, make 2 hit rolls instead of 1.

|- valign=top
! Weapon !! Range !! Type !! S !! AP !! D !! Abilities
|-
|'''Scythe of the Nightbringer (Entropic Blow)''' || Melee || Melee || x2 || -4 || D6 || Each time an attack made with this weapon profile, invulnerable saving throws cannot be made against that attack.
|}

'''Special Rules:'''
*'''Necrodermis''': The model has a 4++ invuln save. In addition, this model cannot lose more than 3 wounds per phase. Any wounds that would be lost after this point are not lost.
*'''Drain Life''': Each time this model makes a melee attack that is allocated to an enemy model, that enemy model cannot use any rules to ignore the wound it loses.
*'''Enslaved Star God''': This model can never have a Warlord trait, Relic, and it is not a Character for the purposes of Look Out, Sir.

'''Keywords''': Monster, Character, Fly, C'tan Shard, C'tan Shard of the Nightbringer

''(Mathhammer end)''

Bottom line, if you play Necrons you '''always take the Nightbringer.''' No questions asked, he is too good not to take and while he got a huge point cost increase, IT. DOESN'T. MATTER. The Nightbringer ignores invulns, FNP saves. It can slap EVERYTHING, sweep through tarpits and he'll do it while vomiting mortal wounds. Oh yeah, and he has a stratagem, Entropic Strike, where for 1 CP, his ''Reaping Sweep ignores invulns and FNPs. That's 12 attacks at AP-3 that, if your enemy saves at 4+ or worse, go straight through. Holy shit.''

Alternate take: The Nightbringer is great, but he isn't an auto-include. His main purpose is hunting down powerful melee beat/buff sticks that rely on powerful defenses (FnP, Invulns) which he excels at, but not every army is going to have one of those, and if you go up against an army without one of those, you're going to see a lot worse performance. Another thing to keep in mind is that unlike the other big melee beat sticks like the Primarchs or Ghazkhull, he doesn't provide any benefit to other units in your army. Consider: for the price you spend on him, you could include almost 30 additional Necron warriors, or 2 doomstalkers with ~100 points to spare. Do keep in mind however that there is basically no instance in which he's going to be a ''waste'' of points. His best use is for sweeping away durable centerpiece models like Mortarion, but he can clear out essentially anything else too. It's just that without a giant nut to crack, he's not doing much that other units can't do. He's the best there is at what he does, but what he does is a bit niche when compared to other Necron centerpieces like the Silent King.

==DoW Dark Crusade==
The Nightbringer also appeared in [[Dawn Of War: Dark Crusade]], sorta. The Necron Lord has the ability to turn into a manifestation of the Nightbringer, which skyrocketed his DPS (not as much as what Relic units had, but still high - enough so that when executed properly and against careless players to don't move their units out of range of his scythe, [[Rape|the Nightbringer ''will'' flat out kill any of the other race's Demon/Relic units before his timer runs out]]), but more importantly, he was [[Rage|INVINCIBLE]] while the ability was active, meaning the best any poor sap facing it could do was [[tarpit]] it to hell and back until it wore off and hope it didn't kill anything too valuable.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Dawn of War]]
[[Category:Xenos]]
[[Category:Necrons]]

{{Necrons-Characters}}

[[Category:40k and Fantasy Gods]]

Avitus

2023-06-09T22:07:01Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:Avitus_portrait.jpg|thumb|200px|right|The canonical Angry Marine.]]
{{Topquote|You are purging yourself of a weakness, Thaddeus, but there are more to come. You cling to hope, which just brings despair. We are weapons. There is the Emperor and there is war. Nothing more. ([[Tarkus]]: "There is the Chapter, Avitus.") And its secrets. And its lies. Who ever heard of [[Blood Ravens|a Chapter]] that has forgotten its [[Primarch]]? We would sooner forget our own name! There is [[Azariah Kyras|something dark and hidden there]]. And look at [[Davian Thule|Captain Thule]], [[Dreadnought|a shadow of his former self who can barely stay conscious for a single battle]]. [[Grimdark|That's what heroism gets you.]] War is all we are. Killing is all we are good for. The rest is delusion.|Avitus, [[Dawn of War II]]}}

Avitus was a Space Marine [[Devastator Squad|Devastator]] in the ranks of the Blood Magp- uuh I mean, [[Blood Ravens]] and was featured with the rest of the Blood Raven squad in [[Dawn of War II]]. Was, because while it isn't directly said, it's heavily implied that he was canonically the traitor during the events of Chaos Rising. (By process of elimination, Cyrus, Tarkus, Martellus, and Jonah are returning loyalists in the next game. Commander Hairgel is exempt by dint of being the Player Character, and Davian is exempted because ''Bitch, please.'' Thaddeus was taken off the list because he wasn't on Kronus; Tarkus mentions that the Traitor had been there, and Avitus was explicitly noted to have taken part of the final battle against the Guard there.) Avitus was well known for his extreme hatred of anything that wasn't a Space Marine (you tryin' to imply something Avitus?). Now, you may think Avitus is your classic SPESS MEHREEN MUST KILL DA HERESIES, but in reality he is a hulking mass of pure negative emotions - a mixture of rage, contempt, and generally being a [[Marines Malevolent|bitter, hateful person]] with a pessimistic outlook on life, implied to include self-hating. This tends to leave him at odds with [[Thaddeus]], who is idealistic, [[Cyrus|Spike Spiegel]], who is emo, and [[Tarkus]], who does not like smack talk about other servants of the Emperor.

One thing everyone ''can'' agree on is that Avitus should have been an [[Angry Marine]]. Or a [[Marines Malevolent]]

==History==
Avitus, like many of the other Blood Ravens, was a veteran of many battles, but more specifically, the Kronus campaign where the Blood Ravens fought against the Kronus Liberators in the Battle of Victory Bay. The Blood Ravens won, but Avitus was still pretty fucking angry at the guardsmen for killing some of his battle-brothers, calling them traitors and weaklings which seems to have been a foreshadowing of future events and the start of a long history of hilarious outbursts regarding the Imperial Guard. This also wasn't helped by his home on Typhon being terrorized on a regular basis by a corrupt Guard regiment, resulting in Avitus projecting his hatred on the entirety of the Imperial Guard, including regiments that were actually decent like [[Merrick|the 85th Vendoland]].

==Dawn of War II==
Avitus's squad is with you from the start of the game, appearing in the second mission. While tenderizing some Orks his squad fell, but Avitus survived (too stubborn to fall, as Cyrus put it). He's a good source of hilarious quips revolving around the reduction of enemies into meaty salsa, and quickly becomes [[Cyrus|Cyrus's]] ally in dispensing a tide of morbidity. Most notably, he foreshadows the fact that [[Azariah Kyras]] is a traitor by noting that the chapter has far too many secrets and lies to be fully legitimate.

His one moment of kindness is forming a kind of respect for the Imperial Guard during the final mission when it seems like the mission is going to end in a last stand and the local sergeant (implied to be Merrick) decides they should all stand strong and take down as many Tyranids as possible.

==Chaos Rising==
{{Topquote|I can almost hear your mewling now. "How could he betray us?!" "Why, Avitus, why?!" Look at this planet! Look at it! That is why! The entire galaxy is the same: Broken. Shattered. Rotten to the core! Honor, brotherhood, duty — they are no more than delusions and lies. We use them to justify the slaughter left in our wake. I cannot tolerate it any longer! I have seen the rot that runs through our chapter's honor — and it justifies nothing! My memories are full of the screams of those I have killed. Where others see life, I see only death. We all know how this will end. We have always known. It ends in blood.|Avitus' parting message after his treachery is exposed}}

In [[Chaos Rising]], Avitus remains more or less identical to his previous appearance. In the first mission, he gets to accompany [[Blood Ravens Force Commander|Commander Hairgel]] to kill some [[Lost and the Damned|traitor guard]], which is more or less his wet dream apart from him saying he was just starting to respect them. He generally advocates doing pragmatic things that will up your corruption meter, such as blowing up the gate to Angel Forge. If he turns traitor, Avitus becomes the only heretic to use Terminator armor against you, along with a cyclone missile launcher and assault cannon. This still leaves him nowhere near a certain [[Eliphas|Chaos Champion]] or a [[Martellus|Techmarine]] in annoying boss fights, but he will still wreck your shit if you ever give him the chance to fire any of his ranged weapons at you, especially with his cyclone missile barrage on Primarch difficulty.

During the fight the true extent of his grief spills out, with a greater loathing expressed than ever before. The nature of Kyras and the extent of his corruption demolish the pillars of sanity he had invested in the Imperium and the honor of the Chapter. Having held the rest of the galaxy in contempt prior, suddenly he did not even have the cause of the Space Marines to laud above that which he had loathed. The prior conviction he had toted in killing his foes was gone, and the dead returned to plague his conscience. Everything he had been taught was a lie; the galaxy was not the divine right of mankind and the God-Emperor - [[Grimdark|it is nothing but a nihilistic void that only demands endless killing]]. Which is entirely correct. In truth, Avitus did not fall to Chaos in the way his brothers might have understood it, instead he fell to the truth. He saw the galaxy for what it was once stripped of the comforting veneer of morality and higher purpose ingrained into him as a Space Marine; understood what it meant and could not stomach it.

This makes Avitus a notable example of a 40k character becoming "self-aware". It isn't his love of violence or any lust for power or the corruption of Kyras that turns him traitor, but a sudden awareness of the galaxy in the way we as spectators understand: [[Grimdark|it is a hopeless meat grinder, and nothing more; the setting exists for violence alone, for our pleasure]]. Avitus had been grappling with this doubt since the events of Victory Bay in Dark Crusade, and Kyras' cavorting with Eliphas pushes him over the edge. When he betrays the Imperium, it isn't because he suddenly hates it or his brothers or suddenly loves Khorne, but because of his new perspective. When Avitus betrays the Imperium, it is because he is a proud man with nothing left to ever take pride in again. Where he once held conviction he was only left with a death wish and he sought his demise in the only way he could ever respect it: amidst the heat of battle, in blood and fire, where the raging dead can be drowned out under the roar of bolter fire. In the end, Avitus died staging his last stand not against the alien, heretic, or loyalists, but against the whole cruel, uncaring universe.

==Retribution==
[[Tarkus|The Ancient]] implied that Avitus was the canonical traitor, saying that a friend of his from Kronus was corrupted by Kyras. This automatically discounts everyone but Avitus, since Davian Thule, Jonah, Martellus, and Cyrus are still loyalists and Thaddeus was recruited after the Kronus Campaign. Furthermore, no one but Avitus is known to be familiar with Tarkus from before the events of Dawn of War II.

However, it was probably meant to be kept open to interpretation since no one was specifically mentioned, and we can thank THQ for keeping the door open on Captain Hairgel, a known and dangerous hairetic. However, do note that it was unlikely that Hairgel was friends with Tarkus on Kronus. Perhaps Tarkus was jealous of his flowing locks.

==Gameplay==
In the game, he provides suppression with heavy bolters, high single-target anti-vehicle damage with missile launchers and high area-of-effect damage with plasma cannons, which is balanced by his squad's relative fragility, necessity of standing still to fire, and complete lack of capability in melee. If you are [[Indrick Boreale|tactically deficient]] you can equip him with a bolter, and you will deserve everything that happens to you. He becomes more useful for some playstyles in Chaos Rising, where he makes artillery strikes and cyclone missile barrages energy-costing abilities and gains access to lascannons for superior single-target anti-vehicle firepower (the missile launchers are compensated by access to frag missiles for mulching blobs of infantry).

This makes him a well-balanced unit in a force containing [[Tarkus]], [[Cyrus]], and [[Davian Thule]], meaning that he is hopelessly outclassed in damage potential by the latter two, and in health by the former. Overall solid, but not necessarily the optimal choice for a [[Powergamer]]'s squad. Unless you used him with a special heavy bolter which never ever needs to reload.... Throw this with him never having to set up AND causes mini-explosions with each shot in focus fire (also handy when he gains energy from every kill he makes) he will rape everything in his arc of fire. Of course, the moment he gains Terminator Armor and a good Assault Cannon, he will cause everything short of heavy vehicles to suffer critical existence failure the moment he uses focus fire. And with the Terminator power fists, be can just punch said vehicles until they stop moving if you don't want to give him the Cyclone Missile Launcher (which incidentally becomes energy-based with the right perks).

==Codex Avitus==
Now you too can play as everyone's favorite Angry Marine wannabe, either as a Devastator Sergeant, Terminator Sergeant, or a Chaos Terminator Champion (to represent him after he is exposed as a traitor).

{| class=wikitable
! || Pts || WS || BS || S || T || W || I || A || Ld || Sv
|-
| '''Sergeant Avitus''' || 80 || 4 || 5 || 4 || 4 || 2 || 4 || 3 || 10 || 3+
|-
| '''Avitus the Traitor''' ||100 || 5 || 5 || 4 || 4 || 3 || 4 || 4 || 10 || 2+/5++
|}

'''Unit Type''':
* '''Infantry (Character)'''

'''Unit Composition''':
* '''1 Unique'''

'''Wargear''':
* '''Neverending Hail of Devastation''': Only usable as Sergeant Avitus. Can be swapped for Lament of Mars for 15 pts, Daystar for 20 points, or Cleansing Light of Dawn for 25 pts. If Avitus chooses to take the Crusade Eternal, then he automatically swaps any weapons he has for the Neverending Hail of Obliteration and the Cestus of Terror, and may also take a Cyclone Missile Launcher for 25 points. Avitus the Traitor must replace these weapons with the Khorne's Whisper and the Persephone's Liberation, and may take a Cyclone Missile Launcher for 25 points.
* '''Power Armour''': Sergeant Avitus only. May be swapped for Cuirass of Prathios for 10 points or Crusade Eternal for 25 points. If the Crusade Eternal is taken, Avitus can only join Terminator Squads.
* '''Terminator Armor''': Avitus the Traitor only. May be replaced with Aegis of Obliteration for 30 points.
* '''Frag Grenades'''
* '''Krak Grenades'''

'''Special Rules''':
* '''And They Shall Know No Fear''' (Sergeant Avitus only)
* '''Chapter Tactics (Blood Ravens)''': Sergeant Avitus only. As per the rules for all Chapters who do not know their primogenitor Chapter, the Blood Ravens do not have a unique Chapter Tactic. Instead, the player can elect to use any existing Chapter Tactics from Codex: Space Marines and any Forge World supplements.
* '''Champions of Chaos''' (Avitus the Traitor only)
* '''Crusader''' (Crusade Eternal only)
* '''Preferred Enemy (Infantry)'''(Aegis of Obliteration only)
* '''Mark of Khorne''' (Avitus the Traitor only)
* '''Rage''' (Persephone's Liberation only)
* '''Fear''' (Cestus of Terror only)
* '''Stubborn''' (Cuirass of Prathios only)
* '''Tank Hunters''' (Cleansing Light of Dawn only)
* '''Hatred (Imperial Guard)'''
* '''Focus Fire''': Once per battle, for the duration of one turn, declare that Avitus and his squad will initiate Focus Fire. For the duration of Focus Fire, Avitus and his squad may not move in the Movement Phase, but gain a +1 to BS and may re-roll all failed to-hit and to-wound/armor penetration rolls in shooting.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name !! Range !! Strength !! AP !! Type
|-
| '''Neverending Hail of Devastation''' || 42 || 5 || 4 || Heavy 5, Pinning, Hail of Fire
|}
* '''Neverending Hail of Devastation''': Scores of xenos were cut down like chaff, but still they came. Bolts ripped through their lines as the Blood Ravens desperately held the line against their endless foe to protect their fallen sergeant. When the bulk of the second company arrived in response to the distress calls, the body of Sergeant Martinus remained untouched by alien claws, and the last remaining battle brother collapsed... still firing his heavy bolter. The Neverending Hail of Devastation is a heavy bolter.
**'''Hail of Fire''': During the Shooting Phase, Avitus can sacrifice the ability to Overwatch on the current turn and shooting on the next turn to make the Neverending Hail of Devastation Heavy 10.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name !! Range !! Strength !! AP !! Type
|-
| '''Lament of Mars (Frag)''' || 54 || 4 || 6 || Heavy 2, Master Crafted, Blast
|-
| '''Lament of Mars (Krak)''' || 54 || 8 || 3 || Heavy 2, Master Crafted, Armourbane
|-
| '''Lament of Mars (Flakk)''' || 54 || 7 || 4 || Heavy 2, Master Crafted, Skyfire
|}
*'''Lament of Mars''': After the Blood Ravens pacification of Victory Bay, the Techpriests are said to have looked upon the wreckage of the vehicles used by the treasonous Imperial Guard and wept. This missile launcher was responsible for much of their sorrow.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name !! Range !! Strength !! AP !! Type
|-
| '''Daystar''' || 48 || 7 || 2 || Heavy 1, Blind, Large Blast, Gets Hot!
|}
*'''Daystar''': Facing the incalculable horror of the Nightbringer, a veteran devastator of the Angels Sanguine leveled this mighty cannon at his foe and fired a burst of plasma that seemed brighter than the midday sun on a desert world. Daystar is a Plasma Cannon.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name !! Range !! Strength !! AP !! Type
|-
| '''Cleansing Light of Dawn''' || 60 || 10 || 1 || Heavy 1, Master Crafted, Lance, Precision Shots
|}
*'''Cleansing Light of Dawn''': "Those who stand in the shadows, plotting against the God Emperor, shall face the light of dawn and be cleansed." Cleansing Light of Dawn is a Lascannon. Avitus and his squad gain Tank Hunters when equipped with this weapon.
*'''Neverending Hail of Obliteration''': The withering hail of explosive bolts fired from this mighty assault cannon has broken entire armies and quelled enormous Ork uprisings throughout the galaxy.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name !! Range !! Strength !! AP !! Type
|-
| '''Unrelenting''' || 30 || 7 || 4 || Heavy 5, Master Crafted, Rending, Obliterate
|}

**'''Obliterate'''- When a model is killed by this weapon, roll a d6; on a 6, place a Blast marker on the model's unit that hits for S5 AP5.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name !! Range !! Strength !! AP !! Type
|-
| '''Khorne's Whisper''' || 30 || 7 || 4 || Heavy 5, Soulblaze, Rending, Whispers of the Blood God
|}
*'''Khorne's Whisper''': Each Space Marine to have wielded this weapon swears that it was the voice concealed in the roar of its fire which compelled them to turn it upon their comrades. Khorne's Whisper is an Assault Cannon.
**'''Whispers of the Blood God''': All allied units gain Furious Charge when charging a unit that has taken a wound from this weapon.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name !! Range !! Strength !! AP !! Type
|-
| '''Cestus of Terror''' || - || 2x || 2 || Melee, Specialist Weapon, Unwieldy
|}
*'''Cestus of Terror''': Brother Captain Leo Niveus used this power fist to crush the life out of a planetary Governor he considered treasonous. This act triggered a general uprising that ended with an inquisitorial Exterminatus. The Cestus of Terror is a Terminator Power Fist. Avitus and his squad cause Fear when equipped with this weapon.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name !! Range !! Strength !! AP !! Type
|-
| '''Persephone's Liberation''' || - || 2x || 2 || Melee, Specialist Weapon, Unwieldy, Concussive
|}
*'''Persephone's Liberation''': Bound by a Chaos Sorcerer of the Thousand Sons, Battle Sister Persephone sent psychic messages to an old ally, Librarian Uriah Kos, calling for help. Upon his arrival, Kos fell under the power of Chaos and slew Persephone in cold blood. Persephone's Liberation is a Terminator Power Fist. Avitus gains Rage when equipped with this weapon.

*'''Cuirass of Prathios''': "Brothers, though the secrets of our great chapter's past are still clouded and uncertain, we will forever be vigilant in our quest to both unearth hidden lore and to smite the foes of mankind in His name. Knowledge is power, Guard it well..." - Chaplain Prathios of the Blood Ravens. The Cuirass of Prathios is a set of Artificer Armor that gives Avitus the Stubborn USR.

*'''Crusade Eternal''': A piece of Captain Trythos' holy dreadnought was forged into this suit of Terminator armor. As a result, the captain's undying fury manifests in the wearer, allowing them to sustain the most ferocious of attacks. The Crusade Eternal is a set of Terminator Armor that gives Avitus the Feel No Pain USR on a 5+.

*'''Aegis of Obliteration''': Stripped from a mortally wounded Astral Claw renegade during the Badab War, Techmarine Domitus believed it was his duty to restore this relic for use against the enemies of Man. He did not succeed. The Aegis of Obliteration is a set of Terminator Armor with a 4++ invulnerable save and grants Avitus' entire squad Preferred Enemy (Infantry).

==See also==
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXIQAKq6VEE Avitus' betrayal, set to amazingly emotional music picked by the ever glorious BigDickCheney, a word of warning; this scene can cause manly tears as you see the despair of a man broken by the grimdark of the 41st/42nd millenium]

{{Marines-Characters}}
[[Category: Dawn of War]]

Avenging Angel

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2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:Avenging_Angel.jpg|280px|right|thumb|An army of undead angels...the Sisters thank the Necrons for their [[Blood Ravens|'gift']] of their re-animation protocols...prompting the Necron Overlord to shout, "'''THESE PRIMITIVES TOOK WHAT!'''" as the entire Necron armory is reported missing.]]

Avenging Angels (More commonly known as mini-[[Living Saint|Living Saints]], Discount Living Saints, Baby Saints, [[PROMOTIONS|Golden Flying Titties,]] Sororitas Necromancy, [[Wat|Literal Wat?,]] [[Bullshit|fucking bullshit]]) are the [[Sisters of Battle]] version of the [[Necron]] [[Wat|re-animation protocols]]...yeah it only appeared in [[Dawn of War|Dawn of War Soulstorm]] so the canonicity of this unit is a bit...iffy...

==Overview==
Avenging Angels are essentially the spirits of fallen Sisters of Battle, summoned to fight by their Sisters' side once again by the use of the Canoness's Act of Faith ability called the <s>re-animation protocols</s> Ascension.

In battle they seek vengeance against the faithful's enemies for a short time, before disappearing back to the ether.

They look like golden mini versions of the Living Saint (Hence one of their nicknames). While one Living Saint is already considered an eye sore in Dawn of War, the arrival of even ''more'' Living Saints (Albeit baby versions) is enough to prompt your enemy to start bombarding that area with artillery strikes.

Being only seen in a video game, they have no models as of yet. Although their rules would be similar to the [[Seraphim Squad]] but with more elite choices and more exclusive to CQC. If you want a model I guess you can swap the jetwings of the Seraphims with actual wings (Mainly from the [[Sanguinary Guard]]) and then painting the entire model in shining, glittering gold.

==Then 8th Edition==

The "new" codex describes a minor order called the Order of the Golden Light, who all died, twice. There are also no records of them recruiting more sisters. So they appear to be Legion of the Damned but properly Gilded.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Imperial]]
[[Category:Sisters of Battle]]

{{Template:Sisters-of-Battle}}

Imperial Navy Grand Cruiser

2023-06-09T22:05:06Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

The '''Grand Cruiser''' is a warship type used by both the [[Imperial Navy]] and the [[Fleets of Chaos]]. Smaller than a [[Imperial Navy Battleship|Battleship]], a Grand Cruiser was still heavily armored and shielded, could still mount Battleship-grade weaponry, and yet still be faster and more agile than those great behemoths. Lore-wise, a couple Grand Cruisers could duel a battleship and win. And given some of those Grand Cruisers are two-thirds the size of battleships with all the cost savings of that length and massive difference in volume would result in, you could probably build several for the cost of one Battleship. Or they should be, but somehow [[Derp|the Vengeance and its variants are almost the size of an Emperor-class battleship despite one ship missing one third of the other’s decks.]]

The designs of Grand Cruisers are ancient, with many of them predating the [[Great Crusade]]. With many of the complex systems that went into their construction now either lost or no longer easily replaced, the vast majority of Grand Cruisers have since been removed from active duty. Their place in Imperial fleets have instead been replaced by Battlecruisers, which are far easier to maintain.

Many however still serve in Reserve fleets, ready to return to front-line duty if the need is dire enough.

Like how the [[Endeavor-class Light Cruiser|Endeavor-class]] and [[Imperial Navy Light Cruiser|its variants]] are basically just one of the two weapon sections of a cruiser made into a ship, the Imperial grand cruiser classes are basically two of the three battleship weapon sections made into their own ship. Lego-tech is still proving its effectiveness.

Of course there are other Grand Cruiser classes out there, but those went over into the service of [[Chaos|the Great Enemy]]. Those described below are the ones still known to be used by the Imperial Navy current era.

==Grand Cruiser Classes==

===Basic===

====Vengeance====

[[File:BFGAVengeance.jpg|300px|thumb|right|The Old Veteran still has it in her...]]

The class that the other Imperial Grand Cruisers are based on, the ''Vengeance'' was configured to take out its targets at extreme range. Armed with long-ranged [[Plasma]] [[macrocannon]] and heavy [[Lance]] broadsides as standard, the class has more than enough firepower to fend off a Cruiser or an Escort squadron.

Due to its lack of any prow and dorsal weaponry, the class is very vulnerable once any opponent manages to close the distance. It's particularly vulnerable to Attack Craft, as it doesn't have enough guns to defend itself from successive waves of attacks even though it has better shields than most Cruisers.

The ship design is now 10,000 or more years old and is being slowly phased out. The remaining Vengeance class ships are currently in reserve fleets or used to protect shipping lanes from pirates. They are very rarely used in full-scale engagements any more, due to being outclassed by newer designs, but only a fellow grand cruiser or a full battleship can hope to face its broadside one on one. The opposite of outclassed, and there are no new designs of grand cruisers and the Imperium is no longer able to make battleships which means the grand cruisers are being removed while still being sorely needed considering the primary enemy of the Imperium relies heavily on large numbers of cruisers. But, the Imperial Navy can’t abide common sense.

*'''Length:''' 7.5km
*'''Mass:''' 39 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' 105,000 crew; approx
*'''Acceleration:''' 2.1 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx

====Furious====

[[File:FuriousCruiser.jpg|300px|right|thumb|The ship may have engine issues, but once in position, [[Anal circumference|prepare your anus.]]]]

The Furious-Class Grand Cruiser is an old type of Grand Cruiser used by the Imperial Navy and forces of Chaos.

The Furious Class vessels reached limited production at a time where the [[Repulsive-class Grand Cruiser]]s reached the point at which Tech Priests of the Imperium had increasing difficulties maintaining their complex systems. At the same time, an idea caught on at the shipyards of Cypra Mundi to utilize the newly developed armored prow of a Battleship combined with a Grand Cruiser. This created a flagship for combined Cruiser fleets, which had the massive firepower of the earlier Repulsive design but enhanced command capabilities.

These ships were used primarily as portable firepower, upping the power of Imperial squadrons to almost Battleship levels thanks to its two [[Macrocannon|Weapons Batteries]], [[Lance Weapon|Lance battery]], and [[Torpedo]] tubes. Tactically these ships were successful but suffered from the same engine issues as their Repulsive-class predecessors. As a result, a more thorough rebuild took place in M39 which reduced the weapon strength but added reliability. Following the Gothic War, a few remained in service, primarily with the fleets of Segmentum Obscurus and Segmentum Tempestus where their formidable firepower remains so valuable that the unreliable engines are overlooked.

Through unknown means, [[Heresy|several Furious Class Grand Cruisers have defected to Chaos and remain in service with heretic forces.]]

*'''Length:''' 7.5km
*'''Mass:''' 40 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' 112,400 crew; approx
*'''Acceleration:''' 2.1 gravities max sustainable acceleration; approx
===Carrier===

====Exorcist====

[[File:BFGAExorcist.jpg|300px|thumb|right|So say we all.]]

A modified ''Vengeance'' with launch bays replacing the usual [[lance]] batteries, the ''Exorcist'' is mainly deployed to remote areas such as the Eastern Fringe, or the Galactic Halo, due to its ability to act independently of a support fleet for long periods of time. [[Rogue Trader|Rogue Traders]] in particular like its self-sufficiency and versatility.

Exorcists are also popular as dual-purpose colony transports, with some flight bays refitted to carry colonists instead. Any civilian convoy lucky enough to be escorted by an Exorcist is thankful for the company, as it's more than a match for the raiders that would normally prey on such vulnerable vessels.

The Exorcist's strike craft complement can be easily customised depending on whether it's [[Star Trek|exploring brave new worlds]] or bombing enemy battlefleets into oblivion. For the former, a mixture of [[Aquila Lander]]s and [[Arvus Lighter]]s allow it to found and nurture a budding colony, while for the latter a massive force of [[Fury Interceptor]]s, [[Faustus Interceptor]]s, [[Starhawk Bomber]]s and [[Shark Assault Boat]]s allow it to deal with almost any enemy vessel.

Unfortunately, like the Vengeance, the Exorcist class is increasingly regarded as obsolete by the Imperium, likely due the difficulties involved with maintaining such massive and ancient vessels full of archaeotech which is incredibly poorly-understood even by Imperial standards. As a result, many admirals have switched to the more modern [[Mars-class Battlecruiser|Mars-Class Battlecruiser]] instead as, despite the [[Derp|inherent shortcoming]] of the newer class (to the point where the Mars ''itself'' is now only in very limited production), the cogboys at least know how to repair any damage it does suffer in battle.

*'''Length:''' 7.3km
*'''Mass:''' 37 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' 112,000 crew, 20,000 pilots and support personnel; approx
*'''Acceleration:''' 1.99 gravities max sustainable acceleration

===Ordinance-Boat===

====Avenger====

[[File:BFGAAvenger.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Old Reliable.]]

Armed entirely with short-ranged [[Macrocannon|Macro batteries]], the Avenger was designed as a linebreaker, pure and simple. The usual tactics involved rushing the ship full-speed into the heart of an enemy fleet, and cause as much damage and disruption as possible, wherein following ships would finish off the survivors.

Because of their role, the Avenger has [[Dakka|two decks of weapons batteries that are hugely powerful, but short-ranged.]] It is also equipped with four squadrons of Attack Craft to deal with targets at a greater distance.

As the tactical doctrines of the Imperial Navy changed from close range firepower to long-range duels, the Avenger lost its only role. This meant that the class was re-assigned to reserve fleets and patrol duties. Not many Avengers survive into the present-day Imperium, but those that do are looked upon fondly by both Navy personnel and the public-at-large as reliable and faithful warships.

Even though the 41st millennium’s Imperial Navy focuses mostly on charging in for close-range brawls and giving it a triple-armored prow wouldn’t be difficult.

*'''Length:''' 7.5km
*'''Mass:''' 40 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' 141,000 crew; approx
*'''Acceleration:''' 2.2 gravities max sustainable acceleration

==In Battlefleet Gothic==
Grand Cruisers are what one gets when a player needs the guns of a Battleship, but a bit tougher than a standard Battlecruiser, for just about the same point cost. Grand Cruisers are still just as fast and maneuverable as their smaller cousins, though with the lack of an Armored Prow they're much more vulnerable from attacks coming from the front, and obviously not as effective for Ramming.

The class does lack for a dedicated Lance-boat (in-universe, it's because said Lance-boat design went over to Chaos), so the Vengeance fills in for it somewhat, despite its macros having a longer range.

==In Battlefleet Gothic: Armada 1 & 2==
Grand Cruisers were built for a different time, and it shows, playing very differently from other Imperial Navy vessels. There are no armoured prows, torpedoes or Nova Cannons here - indeed, no actual prow weapons. Instead, what you have are vessels built purely for duelling, slugging it out with ferocious broadsides which can rival battleships' output. For some players, this is a deal-breaker, as the reduced prow armour make them twice as fragile when charging into enemy formations and the lack of weapons there reduces the ability to pull off skilled micro moves like smaller cruisers' torpedo/ram combo. However, other players appreciate the lack of micro involved, as once you've chosen a target and set engagement distance and side, there isn't really much else to consider, meaning you can focus elsewhere.

The '''Vengeance''' is your basic grand cruiser, sporting powerful long-range plasma macrobatteries and lances; in this regard it's basically an up-gunned Lunar, though lacking the armoured prow and torps. Unfortunately, your lances lack some of the range of battlecruisers' lance turrets. This means it's harder to withdraw to long range and poke at damaged enemies with accurate fire, and shares the generalist weakness of never being able to bring its batteries against a single target efficiently.

It's nonetheless a strong option, and can actually open up some interesting possibilities. When paired with the longer-ranged battlecruisers, its mobility and enhanced resilience can be used to screen them from return fire; when paired with shorter-ranged ships, it can operate efficiently from behind the lines. And though it strictly lacks prow weapons, it does still have the powered spur for extra ramming damage - with all the weight of a grand cruiser behind it.

The '''Avenger''' is your close-range brawler. The lack of an armoured prow really hurts here; with nothing but macro broadsides you have no option but to charge straight in, soaking fire all the way. When you get there, the lack of lances can be frustrating, and worse, your macrobatteries are actually the light versions, meaning that although it [[Dakka|pumps out a lot of shots,]] the damage output is somewhat lower than you might expect.

If you want a grand cruiser to do grand cruiser things, the Vengeance is usually better; however, as a line-breaker the Avenger still does its job admirably. With the weight of the class behind a powered spur, accelerating to ramming speed will break apart enemy formations and careless enemy ships very quickly, allowing your lances to get to work from afar while the enemy is forced to deal with a ship every bit as resilient as you'd expect from a grand cruiser in the middle of their formation.

The final advantage the Avenger has in this regard is that it's ''astonishingly'' cheap, and so surprisingly expendable in its suicide-charge role. It's so affordable, in fact, that even though it's stuck with light macrobatteries, the Avenger actually has the second-highest broadside DPS per point in the entire Imperial Navy roster, beaten only by the [[Endeavor-class Light Cruiser|Endeavour light cruiser]] (and even then, beaten ''very'' narrowly). Take the armour-piercing ammo upgrade to reduce enemy admirals to tears and ships to scrap.

The '''Exorcist''' is your carrier option, and shares the Tyrant's issue of short-ranged macrobatteries. This means it needs to engage at a far lower distance than it really wants to if it's to contribute to the fight after scrambling strike craft. Worse, the Emperor-class isn't really ''that'' much more expensive and has weapons which allow it to actually engage at carrier range. Plus, despite having two sets of launch bays, it groups all squadrons into a single blob, meaning [[FAIL|you can't scramble fighters for point defence AND bombers for offence at the same time.]]

So - if it's almost the price of an Emperor while lacking its improved hull integrity and weapons, and less flexible than a couple of Defiants, why bother with the Exorcist? The answer is simple; it absolutely ''shits out'' strike craft. Point for point, this is your most efficient source of squadrons, and those squadrons are so large that scrambling bombers can reduce even heavier enemy ships to scrap in shockingly short order. Plus, the way squadrons are handled means that if even a single model survives to return, the whole squadron is replenished, and since you can only carry a limited number this can drastically increase how many times you can launch in longer battles.

Versus the Emperor, you're losing out on the improved sensor suite and turrets, but gaining significantly improved mobility while being just as threatening as an actual carrier. Versus two Defiants, you're trading the flexibility of being in two places at once and having two types of squadrons at once for a much tougher hull and more resilient strike craft. Overall, there isn't a clear winner, as what will serve you best depends on your playstyle; but if you just want to fill the skies with the navy's finest pilots, want to wield a proud relic of [[Great Crusade|humanity's last golden age]], or just love Battlestar Galactica, the Exorcist is a venerable and noble addition to your fleet.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Battlefleet Gothic]]
[[Category:Imperial]]
[[Category:Imperial Navy]]
[[Category:Vehicles]]
[[Category:Ships]]

{{40k-Imperial-Ships}}

Automated Barge Drone

2023-06-09T22:03:17Z

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[[File:Automated_Carrier_Drone.JPG|250px|right|thumb|The <u>''ONLY''</u> assault boats of the Tau.]]
Automated Barge Drones or Automated Carrier Drones are large hexagonal drones.

These are used primarily by the [[Demiurg]] and the wider [[Squat]]-centric [[Leagues of Votann]], and are basically the assault boats of their fleets. Automated Barge Drones usually house a dozen or so of these stunted Space Dorfs to hammer their way inside an enemy vessel and cause some [[Lulz|shenanigans.]] They only appear in [[Battlefleet Gothic: Armada]].

==In Battlefleet Gothic: Armada 1 & 2==
In [[Battlefleet Gothic: Armada]], Automated Barge Drones are your typical Assault Boats for the Demiurg. In fact, they are one of the if not, the only assault boats [[Derp|in the entire Tau navy.]] These make Automated Barge Drones incredibly important assets, especially for the assaultless Tau who would just crumple under melee range. You would honestly expect the [[Kroot|Kroots]] to be the ones with assault boats, but nope! Their [[Warspheres]] is only armed with missile launchers [[FAIL|despite being 9km ''wide''.]]

==Gallery==
<gallery>
Demiurg_Assault_Drone.JPG
Automated_Barge_Drone_Squadron.JPG
</gallery>
{{Squats}}
{{Tau}}
[[Category:Vehicles]]

Autogun

2023-06-09T22:03:05Z

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[[File:Autogun4.jpg|350px|thumb|right|Note the [[C.S. Goto|heretical sorcery]] shrinking its capacity to below an [[Bolter#Astartes Boltguns|Astartes bolter]]]]

{{Topquote|Whoever said the pen is mightier than the sword obviously never encountered automatic weapons.|General Douglas MacArthur}}

The '''Autogun''' is a [[firearm|chemically-powered projectile throwing weapon]] (i.e. a slugthrower) which can be considered the direct descendant of 20th to early 21st century firearms. Autoguns are (probably) slightly more powerful than real-life firearms, which is why it avoids the title of [[Stubber]]. Alternatively, since [[Stubber#Stub_Gun|Stub Pistols]] are more powerful than Autopistols, it's possible the difference has more to do with calibre and/or tech level.

Simply put, autoguns use a propellant to accelerate a metal projectile to punch holes in things.

Oh, and if the Lasgun is a 'Flashlight' then the Autogun is a "Stapler:" similar power, more weight and less reliability.

==Autoguns versus Lasguns==
The Autogun is a significantly older weapon than the [[Lasgun]], and does not see nearly as much use due to the [[Administratum|Departmento Munitorium]] saying it's a bad idea. So if a young and curious Guardsmen tries to ask a superior, likely a Commissar (yes, reasonable Commissars do exist) on why a Lasgun is preferred over an Autogun by Imperial Standards, they will provide you a whole list of things, with the next five points being the most important:

*A lasgun's "ammunition" can be replenished indefinitely as long as the Guardsman has access to a source of power that his lasgun's power packs can accept (such as heat, light, or a direct power outlet). Autogun ammunition, meanwhile, is dependent on logistics.
*Lasgun power packs provide somewhere around 80-120 shots per pack, compared to 12-20 shots for an autogun magazine.
*Lasguns are significantly more accurate than Autoguns; a properly zeroed lasgun will *always* instantaneously hit ''exactly'' what the weapon was pointing at when it was fired, meaning that misses and near-misses are almost completely subject to the user's skill and reflexes.
*Lasguns have no recoil, so any conscript from an 8-year-old schola kid to a dusty 70-year-old clerk can fire it straight with minimal training.
*Lasguns have very few moving parts, which lends the weapon a supremely high level of reliability in all conditions.

The ''big'' reason that Lasguns are favored over Autoguns is the first one noted above- logistics. Despite this, the Autogun still has a place because there are two things the Autogun has that the Lasgun doesn't. The first is the wide variety of different ammunition types that Autoguns can utilize. These include but are not limited to Incendiary, Armor-Piercing, and Flechette rounds; even High-Explosive rounds. This means that while the Lasgun is preferred for fighting wars on a galactic scale, certain organizations and individual operators may prefer the Autogun as a flexible ''tactical'' weapon. The other thing an Autogun can do that a lasgun can't is punch through light cover. A laser will react with things like foliage or even smoke and fog between it and the target, which quickly reduces its effectiveness. A physical bullet, on the other hand, will just punch straight through.

Ultimately, the sheer logistical advantage of not needing to ship massive quantities of cartridges everywhere secured the Lasgun's place as the Imperium's primary infantry weapon. However, in spite of the ammunition problem the Autogun still sees use throughout the Imperium (particularly among PDF forces, who only have to worry about logistics on their own planet). Although the Autogun has been sidelined by the Lasgun in official service, it remains in development.

==Autoguns versus Stubbers==
There is [[Skub|significant debate]] over the actual power of Auto and Stub weapons, with the "higher power" team citing higher tech level and advanced materials, and "modern power" team citing no mention of any kind of recoil compensation (limiting power) and less innovative designs. Modernist evidence implies some or even most autoguns may actually be less advanced than modern firearms. After all, 21st century cannon rounds are definitely more advanced than the average autogun, and autoguns are meant to be built on all sorts of backwater worlds. Regardless, it is more than likely that both sides are right, since strictly speaking an Imperial autogun is generally any type of automatic rifle, firing solid slugs. As such, there are great many models and patterns in existence, different in both internal mechanics of their action and the ammunition they use. While some autoguns *are* just a backwater-colony's locally-designed crude weapons, using black-powder-filled cartridges and prone to jamming, *other* autoguns may be high-tech products of Toasterfucker factories, firing hypervelocity discarding-sabot needle-bullets, capable of easily punching through carapace armour. The debate rages on, with the question being what is considered average or typical for the weapon, with both sides for the most part aware that all types exist.

There is also a third possibility, which involves the Dark Age of Technology. It's conceivable that "Stubber" is a derogatory term for old gunpowder weaponry made before the Dark Age, and "autogun" was a Dark Age classification created to delineate the super-futuristic projectile weapons of the then-modern era from Stub Guns. The difference was only significant during the Dark Age of Technology, when "autogun" meant something more akin to a [[Eclipse Phase|Smart Assault Rifle]] and a Stub Gun meant an M1 Garand. But that's not a great theory since the original autoguns were made well before the Dark Age of Technology, sometime early in our current millennium. Bizarre high-calibre low-velocity weapons firing brass bullets.

Another theory is that the main difference would seem to be it's complexity. The heavy stubber, while automatic, relies on size for it's lethality and reliability and is simple for an automatic weapon. It's rate of fire is largely due to the fact that it can fire in long bursts. A high calibre autogun, while firing fairly powerful stubby rounds, is harder to design and build in a functional form. But the Mechanicus' "stub" weapons defy this trend.

The final theory has it come down to ammunition used as opposed to the gun itself, that being a futuristic rifle the weapon can take different sized ammunition, meaning it could be equipped with thirty regular gunpowder rounds no different than an AK-47 or [[What|twelve big ass canister rounds filled with jet propellant and in theory act just like a bolter but with a solid slug instead of a explosive round]]. It also answers the question why local PDF forces in some primitive backwater can field the weapon en mass while the guard (requiring more complex devastating rounds for what they fight) got rid of it for logistical reasons.

For further comparison between Stubbers and Autoguns, [[Stubber#Disambiguation|click here]].

==Imperium Variants==
===Autopistol===
[[File:Autopistol.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Autopistol]]
Most often a machine pistol or submachine gun, the <s>Uzi</s> Autopistol is a single-handed submachine gun which is frequently used by Chaos heretics (and on occasion, traitor guardsmen) and cultists who don't particularly care about accuracy or expenses and wish to be able to make noise and cause death at a close distance (the former is done better by an Autogun than a Lasgun) as they close in to use their swords. Quite fittingly, many of the autopistols manufactured by the Imperium are based off the MAC-10/MAC-11 weapon series.

Autopistols are still in massive use throughout the Imperium and can be found even on low-tech worlds. Like the larger Autogun it is very easy to construct and usually available in large numbers. The autopistol is a common weapon amongst renegades, gang members, and lowly criminals, being as easy to use as it is to construct. If you want something cheap, compact, light and can shoot a lot bullets where range and per-shot firepower are not prime concerns they are a solid option. They are not generally considered a military issue weapon, but are a favorite amongst many military veterans as a supplement for their standard lasgun or as a backup weapon, especially by the ones using unreliable melta or plasma weaponry. Some regiments, including the Cadian 8th, often equip all their troops with autopistols as sidearms, improving their combat firepower. Other commanders allow their troops to acquire spoils from the battlefield for their own use and autopistols are popular choices. It's not hard to imagine why, as while the laspistol wins out for utility, sometimes your life depends on how quickly you can down a charging ork. A weapon that's likely to save your life once or twice is probably better than one with a slim chance but can do it multiple times. Carrying one of each would be ideal.

Autopistols are also a more popular choice for covert operations and forward recon elements in the Guard, [[Wat|as they are far easier to silence than a Laspistol.]]

{{40k-Ranged-Weapon-Profile-7-8|name=Autopistol|r7=12|s7=3|ap7=-|type7=Pistol|r8=12|s8=3|ap8=0|d8=1|type8=Pistol 1}}
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===Ripper Pistol===
[[File:Ripper_Pistol.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Ripper Pistol]]
[[Pretend|Despite the name,]] they are in no way related to the [[Ogryn|Ogryn-toting]] [[Ripper Gun]]s.

The Ripper Pistol is a modified Autopistol that fires specially designed armour-piercing metal shards containing a vicious cocktail of venomous chemicals with deadly accuracy. The initial wounds caused by the shards allow the venom to enter the victim's bloodstream and cause death, and thus the weapon can bring down the largest opponents in a single shot.

It is designed so that if the vicious impact of the bullet doesn’t kill the target, the poisons flooding into its bloodstream will. Often, they are the final word in terminal close encounters. Ripper Pistol is favoured by those who venture into hostile jungle planets and Death Worlds like the [[Catachan Jungle Fighters]] for example.

It used to be only seen in the Rogue Trader: Into the Storm rule book. However, with the 9th Edition Astra Militarum revamp, Ripper Pistols finally got a model in the form as a sidearm for the [[Catachan Jungle Fighters]]. Here, they are a 12" range Pistol 3 weapon with S5, AP-2 and D2. Not too shabby against GEQ as it is an insta-kill. May not look too great against MEQs due to its low S, but it has a special ability that honours its fluff: Each time you select a target for this weapon, you can ignore the Look Out, Sir rule. Moreover, each time an attack is made with this weapon, an unmodified wound roll of 6 would inflict 1 additional mortal wound on the target in addition to any normal damage already inflicted.

===Autogun===
[[File:Autogun.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Autogun]]
There are likely tens of thousands of other Autogun models that have been created over the past eleven thousand years, including more-advanced versions that use caseless ammunition. One common variety is an assault-rifle sized version formerly used by Imperial Guard regiments, known as the Agripina Type-II pattern Autogun (the one specifically noted to achieve terminal ballistics on par with modern Imperial Guard-issue [[lasgun]]s). While pretty heavy at 6.2 kg / 13.6 lbs. (with loaded magazine), this gun fires powerful (but having somewhat heavy recoil) 8.25mm rounds, accelerated to muzzle velocities of 825 meters per second while traveling through the autogun's 540mm (21.25 inch) long barrel. That's more powerful than NATOs 7.62 round but less powerful than a dedicated sniper round. It sounds a lot like a slightly stronger version of the 7.92mm Mauser (actually 8.22mm), the rifle cartridge of most German rifles and Machine Guns of the first half of the 20th century, or an enhanced .30-06 Springfield (7.62x63mm), a similar cartridge used in U.S rifles and Machine Guns for roughly the same duration.<br>

Autoguns are commonly employed by pirates, rebel groups, [[Cultist|Chaos cultists]], [[Death_Korps_of_Krieg|Kriegers]], [[Planetary Defense Force]]s, [[Necromunda|Hive Gangers]], [[Adeptus Arbites]] and low-tech civilizations/Imperial planets that are too underdeveloped to create even a simple Lasgun, which puts into perspective just how poor these people are. (Hey, that includes us...) On the Tabletop, they're basically [[Rule 63]] versions of lasguns, with the same exact specs.

In [[Warhammer 40,000: Fire Warrior]], the Stormtroopers used by the Guard detachment on-planet uses Autoguns that have been given special armour-piercing rounds (also known as "Man Stopper" rounds, featuring a penetrator-tip of hardened adamantium alloy embedded in each bullet) to improve their damage output, essentially putting them [[wat|on-par with]] [[Hellgun]]s (which is ridiculous, since lasguns are already generally more powerful than Autoguns, but the Hellgun is now using a backpack mounted power source). Paired with the weapon's fast fire rate, they're probably the earliest weapon you can reliably take down a [[Space Marine]] or [[Chaos Space Marine]] with, though clearly better options are available.

{{40k-Ranged-Weapon-Profile-7-8|name=Autogun|r7=24|s7=3|ap7=-|type7=Rapid Fire|r8=24|s8=3|ap8=0|d8=1|type8=Rapid Fire 1}}
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===Rotor Cannon===
[[File:Rotor_Cannon.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Rotor Cannon]]

The ancestor of the Assault Cannon, firing smaller-caliber, less-capable ammunition and to date only seen in 30k and in the hands of Voidsmen at arms in the hands of a Rogue Trader. While it had much less armour-piercing ability and stopping power than its successor, the Rotor Cannon is man-portable by both Power-Armoured Astartes and unaugmented humans and can be fired on the move by both, whereas the Assault Cannon requires the user to wear Terminator armour, or for the Assault Cannon to be mounted on a vehicle. Its stats were notoriously awful in the Horus Heresy's first edition, but the second edition replaced Salvo with Assault and made it Pinning (with Shell Shock (1) thrown in for good measure), giving it a potent role in locking down enemies for another unit to engage in melee.

A few forces such as the Toastersniffing Greasemonkeys and the [[Thousand Sons|Dust-Egyptian Space Marine Legion]] have improved the Rotor Cannon's utility by loading it with more useful ammo, such as Biocorrosive ammunition for the Technomonkeys and the Thousand Son's own Asphyx shells that both allow for this (")humble(") weapon to be able to successfully wound its targets much more often. However, the Rotor Cannon's limitations against tougher opposition eventually led it to be phased out millennia before the 40k era, as Imperial Guard infantry forces eventually got access to crew-served versions of Astartes-grade Autocannons, Heavy Bolters, and Missile Launchers for their heavy weaponry, against which the Rotor Cannon could not compete even with its ability to be fired on the move by unaugmented humans.

In the 42nd Millennium, the Rotor Cannon appears to have been lifting, as it's now got an addition point of strength, a degree of AP and (bizarrely) 2 damage, turning it into (if the Assault Cannon is an automatic 20mm cannon) basically a .50 Cal minigun. Really though, that 2 damage makes for a strange statline, as many related and much more powerful weapons lack 2 damage. This includes weapons like assault cannons, reaper autocannons, and even the Avenger bolt cannon. Combined with its less-than-impressive rate of fire this also means it's a portable rotary gun that ''doesn't'' specialize at horde-munching, instead being able to punch bigger holes in an ork Nob than a heavy bolter does (used to, 9e buffed Heavy Bolters to D2 as well), while also having a harder time actually wounding said Nob. Simply halving it's damage and doubling its rate-of-fire to 8 would've made a weapon that would've been the natural rotary version of an ironhail heavy stubber. Possibly the only logical way to resolve this would be to reason that its aim can only be changed very slowly while firing, and so can't be swept across hordes but can be held on a single target for more damage, but even that makes no sense when you roll badly and fail to kill a single ork boy with a burst of fire. A case of GW taking something weird and bad, and making it less bad and more weird.

[[Imperial Navy]] [[Voidsmen-at-Arms]] prefer the rotor cannon to other heavy weaponry on the basic Armsmen squads, as the lack of armor piercing compared to a Heavy Bolter is actually helpful when shooting holes into the ship is a real concern.

{{40k-Ranged-Weapon-Profile-7-8|name=Rotor Cannon|r7=30|s7=3|ap7=6|type7=Salvo 3/4|r8=24|s8=4|ap8=-1|d8=2|type8=Heavy 4}}
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===Autocannon===
[[File:Imperial_Autocannon.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Autocannon]]
The Autocannon is the big-cheese of the Autogun family (and possibly related to the <s>Bofors 40-57mm</s> <s>20mm Hispano-Suiza</s> GW couldn't tell which is which anyway and they differ based on their world of production and pattern most likely), firing massive projectiles quickly enough that it can infatuate and butcher a group of Orks at the same time. Unlike personal autoguns, the Imperial Guard actually does use it despite the logistics because it splits the difference between the lascannon and the heavy bolter. Most commonly mounted on vehicles, but also seeing use in [[Imperial Guard]] heavy weapons teams, it possesses a frightening rate of fire and good armour penetration. Much like a heavy stubber, the autocannon proves that even older tech can work when scaled up in size. [[Great Crusade| Before]][[Horus Heresy| a certain temper tantrum]] and its aftermath, it used what were approximately [[Awesome|up-scaled Heavy Bolter shells]] to literally kill anything. Basically, ''these'' autocannon shells were to 40k's autocannon shells what Baneblade cannons are to battle cannons. Yeah. By the way most modern cannons actually use advanced shells like this.

The standard Autocannon makes a satisfying ''POM-POM-POM'' sound as it chews up targets up to four feet away. It hits at S7AP-1 and is a Heavy 2 weapon that deals D2, making it statistically better than the Heavy Bolter against everything except Toughness 4 and less models. The long-barreled Hydra variation is used on the [[Hydra Flak Tank]], and is designed to serve as anti-air support but used to chew up any cocky infantry that gets too close. Nowadays it gives warning shots that may clip an enemy if that enemy is standing right in front of it and jumps up and down screaming "SHOOT ME" (and even then might miss). Fortunately, it has an additional two feet of range, so while it only has one job, it tends to do it pretty well.

{{40k-Ranged-Weapon-Profile-7-8|name=Autocannon|r7=48|s7=7|ap7=4|type7=Heavy 2|r8=48|s8=7|ap8=-1|d8=2|type8=Heavy 2}}
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===Assault Cannon===
[[File:Assault_Cannon.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Assault Cannon]]
The Assault Cannon is a rotary ballistic cannon with an [[Dakka|outrageous rate of fire]], meaning it has to have rotating barrels to stop them from overheating. Although it falls rather short of its terrifying fluffy firepower (consistently going through several ranks of Astartes with each bullet) on the tabletop, the Assault Cannon was buffed up somewhat in 8th Edition. In-lore, this weapon fires unique, diamond-hard rounds at high velocity, resulting in far greater stopping power and armour penetration than might otherwise be expected (hence rending in early editions). Early prototype versions were exclusive to the Imperial Fists and Blood Angels Space Marine Legions, but did have a rare tendency to jam and become useless without some involved repair work. Upgraded jam-free versions were implemented post-Heresy, meaning that Chaos doesn't get these meat-grinders (although [[Obliterators]] do).

Assault Cannons are primarily used by [[Space Marine]]s as anti-infantry weaponry on [[Terminator|Terminators]], [[Dreadnought]]s, and various other vehicles and aircraft. The assault cannon might actually be a stub-weapon, as some art shows it ejecting spent casings. [[Only War]] and several other sources show that there is a difference. Auto-weapons are (usually) caseless and can be anything from merely caseless, chemically-propelled rounds, to railrifles and gravitic-accelerated projectiles. Of course, knowing the Mechanicus, there are probably examples of both auto-weapons and stub-weapons for all solid-projectile weapons of the Imperium.

Being Rotary Cannons, Assault Cannons should in theory be able to spin at different speeds to deliver higher or lower firing rates depending on whether the target is a squishy 'umie or even a vehicle, but this isn't possible in the game. It's possible that the Mechanicus, being the hidebound institution it is, hardwired a one-size-fits-all maximum firing rate in all models of Assault Cannon to make maintenance easier and to keep these weapons from wearing out and overheating too fast, with the ideal firing rate being what a Terminator-armoured Astartes could effectively aim, control, and still be able to carry enough ammunition for in one battle (since faster firing rates also deplete ammunition more quickly). This hypothesis is made more plausible given how the Blood Angels had to resort to mounting twin-linked Assault Cannons in the turrets of their [[Predator_Tank#Baal_Pattern_Predator|Baal Predator Tanks]] to get more of this weapon's firepower in one mount, instead of just spinning one Assault Cannon's barrels faster to achieve the same result as in real life. Though another possible reason might be to achieve the desired rate of fire without the commensurate rise in barrel temperature since making the same barrels fire twice as fast might lead to them distorting from the heat build-up.

{{40k-Ranged-Weapon-Profile-7-8|name=Assault Cannon|r7=24|s7=6|ap7=4|type7=Heavy 4, Rending|r8=24|s8=6|ap8=-1|d8=1|type8=Heavy 6}}
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===Ironhail Skytalon Array===
[[File:Ironhail_Skytalon_Array.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Ironhail Skytalon Array]]
An overglorified Flak Gun and the main weapon for the [[Impulsor]].

Get two [[Stubber#Heavy Stubber|Heavy Stubbers]], mount them on a turret, duct-tape them and then twin-link it. Congratulations, you now officially have the Ironhail Skytalon Array, the most generic turret weapon of the [[Primaris Space Marines]]. Yes, it is as underwhelming as it sounds. You would think that these upgraded SPESS MEHREENS would be given something awesome like a [[Awesome|twin-linked assault cannon]], but nope, [[Roboute Guilliman|Papa Smurf]] seems to be running on a tight budget.

The Ironhail Skytalon Array on tabletop, is as unimpressive as it is in the fluff. With a range of 36", the glorified flak gun won't be sniping birds off a tree anytime soon. At Heavy 6, Strength 4, AP-1, D1, the Array is relativley mediocre against ground troops, scoring the occasional kill off a GEQ and MEQ.

The one saving grace of this weapon is the fact that it is an overglorified Flak Gun. The Ironhail Skytalon Array has a rule that allows it to get +1 to hit and wound vs flyers. For most bog-standard flyers, it’s wounding on a 4, which actually makes the Skytalon not that bad in harassing and taking down those annoying ass flyers. Unfortunately, the Impulsor also gets the [[Bellicatus Missile Array|Bellicatus Missile Array]], which, despite its jack-of-all-traits, is far more versatile than the Skytalon ''AND'' is able to target and hit aircraft just as well, if not, even better than the Flak Gun. Suffice to say, if you have the points, change the Impulsor's gun to something better and if you can't squeeze the points in and have to take this just shoot at jetpack infantry.

[[Tl;dr]], it is basically the limp dicked and far more disappointing cousin of the Icarus Stormcannon Array.

===Hellion Pattern Heavy Cannon Array===
[[File:Hellion_Heavy_Cannon_Array.PNG|200px|right|thumb|Hellion Pattern Heavy Cannon Array]]
The primary weapon used by the rare [[Kharon Pattern Acquistor]]. The Hellion Pattern Heavy Cannon Array is a row of short-barrelled, cogitator-slaved autocannons that is meant to lay down a hail of suppressive fire as the Kharon arrives in the target area.

Despite outward appearance, the Hellion Pattern Heavy Cannon Array is not a minigun/gatling in anyway shape or form. The weapon does not 'rev-up' its multiple barrels to ensure a consistent high-rate of [[Dakka]]. Rather, each barrel fires its [[/d/|load]] in a sequential pattern. So from everyone's perspective, it may look like the rounds are going around in circles. Given the nature of the [[Sisters of Silence|Silent Sisterhood]], it is very likely that the rounds it fires are laced with anti-psychic properties like those of a Psyk-Out weapon.

On the tabletop, it counts as a super TL-autocannon with S7 AP4 Heavy 4 with Pinning. Great when dealing with those pesky MEQs as your Kharon transports your sisters into a safer position.

===Anvilus Snub Autocannon===
[[File:Anvilus Snub Autocannon.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Anvilus Snub Autocannon]]
The Anvilus Snub Autocannon is one of the three primary weapons of the newly revamped [[Sabre Strike Tank]].

The bigger cousin of the regular old Autocannon, the Anvilus Snub Autocannon is a twin-linked weapon mounted on the front hull of the Sabre. Of all the primary weapons that the Sabre could take, the Anvilus is the vanilla of the vanillas.

The twin-linked nature gives this Autocannon a sustained and consistent firing rate, in contrast to the semi-automatic nature of the smaller Autocannon. This gives the Anvilus a much higher rate of fire, which is great against fast moving light to medium armor. The Anvilus gets its snub name due to its relatively short barrel length for a weapon its size. It can be reasoned that the reduced length is there to balance the center of gravity for the Sabre so it could fire on the move.

===Taurox Gatling Cannon===
[[File:TGatling.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Taurox Gatling Cannon]]
The kid brother to the Punisher, in the same vein as the [[Taurox Battle Cannon]]'s role to the [[Battle Cannon]]. Although, unlike its big brother, this one ups it by having [[MOAR DAKKA|<u>''two''</u> gatling barrels.]] This nasty little bugger is a weapon mounted on the [[Taurox Prime]] in situations where the Taurox Battle Cannon is insufficient against large hordes.

Though smaller than the Punisher Cannon from which it was adopted, the Taurox Gatling Cannon is a still a fearsome weapon. These weapons lay down an impressive curtain of anti-infantry fire [[Dakka]] all for a relatively cheap price compared to the Leman Russ.

Crunchwise, the Taurox Gatling Cannon is a 24" ranged, Strength 4, Heavy ''10'' tarpit cleanser of goodness. In total, on a single round, you are outputting on average, [[Dakka|20 shots at Strength 4.]] Blob armies cry when they see this thing paired up with a Leman Russ Punisher.

===Castigator Gatling Cannon===
[[File:Castigator_Gatling_Cannon.PNG|170px|right|thumb|Castigator Gatling Cannon]]
Somewhere around the same size as the Punisher Gatling Cannon, the Castigator Gatling Cannon is one of the hull-mounted weapons of the Astra Militarum's [[Rogal Dorn Battle Tank]], with the other being the more siege-focus [[Pulveriser Cannon]]. As expected from its looks, it is used to scythe down enemy infantry.

Because of its anti-infantry purposes, Castigator Gatling Cannons is often paired with the [[Oppressor Cannon]] in order to cover the weapon's weakspots of horde enemies. Likewise, the inverse is true if the Dorn Tank has the twin-linked [[Battle Cannon]], as the MEQ mulcher that is, [[Rape|''a twin-linked Battle Cannon'']], would make the Castigator pointless. So replacing it with the Pulveriser Cannon would be a no-brainer if one wants to still exploit the tank's siege properties.

Of course, given that it is hull-mounted, the Castigator Gatling Cannon's true capabilities is gimped at only firing at the [[Derp|front of the tank.]] If you really want to maximize its anti-GEQ and MEQ firepower, you can swap the side sponsons with [[Heavy Stubber]]s instead.

In 9th Edition, the Castigator Gatling Cannon is a 24" ranged, Heavy 12, S5, AP-1, D1 weapon. This is going to be your overwatch buddy and tarpit remover. Can actually be [[awesome|fired in melee]] thanks to not having blast.
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===Punisher Gatling Cannon===
[[File:Punisher_Gatling_Cannon.PNG|200px|right|thumb|Punisher Gatling Cannon]]

The Punisher Gatling Cannon is the primary armament of the Leman Russ Punisher tank and one of the Vulture Gunship's variants, and is a recent addition to the Imperial Guard armory. Design-wise, the weapon looks like someone was impressed with the Assault Cannon's firepower, but became increasingly frustrated with the inability of Imperial Guard forces to procure it and its unique ammunition, and so decided to resurrect the concept of the long-discontinued Rotor Cannon (see above) and improved on it in most respects. The Punisher Gatling Cannon thus ends up as an intermediate step between the older Rotor Cannon and the much-vaunted Assault Cannon, possessing stopping power almost at the level of the latter weapon while not improving on the former's lackluster armour-penetration ability (likely a conscious design choice to keep manufacturing and ammunition costs down, below even what Heavy Bolter shells might require since Heavy Bolter shells have better armour-piercing ability compared to the Punisher's own ammunition).

Where the Punisher truly shines lies in the fact that it is vehicle-mounted only; since it's not bound by the need to limit its firing rate to allow a single Terminator-armoured Astartes to both effectively control and still carry sufficient ammunition for, the Punisher can instead achieve ''quintuple'' the firing rate of an Assault Cannon. This is a literal torrent of anti-infantry firepower, and puts the Punisher squarely among the fastest-firing weapons in the Imperial arsenal, <s>outstripping even</s> going toe-to-toe with the Vulcan Mega-Bolter (as of 8th edition, both the Punisher and the Vulcan have the same rate of fire) which is restricted to being mounted on superheavy tanks or Titan-scale walkers. In fact, the Punisher doesn't so much as go DAKKADAKKADAKKA, it instead goes BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRT. Able to churn out more shots than a squad of Tactical Marines at even greater strength, this baby will swiftly ventilate any block of infantry it comes across and can even threaten Monstrous Creatures by sheer weight of fire even with its unsophisticated non-armour-piercing ammunition. The Punisher Gatling Cannon also has a kid brother in the form of the Taurox Gatling Cannon, which has less strength and half the shots.

{{40k-Ranged-Weapon-Profile-7-8|name=Punisher Gatling Cannon|r7=24|s7=5|ap7=-|type7=Heavy 20|r8=24|s8=5|ap8=0|d8=1|type8=Heavy 20}}
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===Punisher Rotary Cannon===
[[File:Punisher_RotCannon.PNG|200px|right|thumb|Punisher Rotary Cannon]]
A souped up version of the above for the [[Space Marines|Emperor's finest]]. Like all things originating from the [[Great Crusade|good ol'days of the 31st Millennium]], the Punisher Rotary Cannon is far and above of higher quality than its 41st Millennium counterparts. Interestingly enough, the Punisher Rotary Cannon was the main armament of the once common [[Cerberus Heavy Tank Destroyer|Cerberus Pattern Main Battle Tank]], but the discovery of a Neutron Laser Projector and the [[Derp|general stupidity of placing a anti-infantry weapon on a fixed-hull mounted vehicle]] meant that it was eventually replaced as the Cerberus' go-to primary weapon. Loses out on two shots, but gains -1 AP and 50% more range to compensate. Later equipped on what else? The [[Sicaran Punisher|Sicaran Punisher]].

Due to its natural ability in [[Dakka|unleashing a torrent of unrelenting]] [[Steel Rain]], the Punisher Rotary Cannon quickly rose to fame among /tg/ of being an absolute [[Rape|rape machine]] against blob armies of infantry and ''even vehicles'' when it first came out. And that is just the weapon firing simple solid ferro-carbide slugs, imagine them with actual Bolt rounds....Seriously, nobody is going to go out okay when they face [[FATAL|18 Heavy Bolter shots in the face that can re-roll failed hits on a 1.]]

{{40k-Ranged-Weapon-Profile-8|name=Punisher Rotary Cannon|range=36|strength=5|ap=-1|type=Heavy 18|}}
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===Onslaught Gatling Cannon===
[[File:OnslaughtGatling.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Onslaught Gatling Cannon]]
The latest weapon for the Adeptus Astartes, and currently restricted to use as a secondary weapon on the [[Repulsor Tank|Repulsor Hover Tank]] and [[Redemptor Dreadnought|Redemptor Dreadnought.]] As such, it is ''another'' weapon exclusive to the [[Primaris Marines]]. Why in the Emperor's mummified nipples a gun such as this cannot be wielded by the more common Space Marines just begs the question. Why?

This weapon was found thanks to the reintroduction of [[Roboute Guilliman|Robot Gullytan the Third]] and Uncle [[Cawl]]. It has the strength and armour penetration of a heavy bolter at two thirds the range and twice the rate of fire.

On the Redemptor Dreadnought, due to its size, the Onslaught is wielded much like an oversized Powerfist lugging a hand-held autocannon. The sheer size of the Dreadnought's fist in contrast to the comically small Gatling Cannon is bound to spawn a few compensation jokes. Suffices to say, this eventually led to the creation of the Heavy Onslaught Gatling Cannon as shown below.

On the Repulsor, it is notorious for being one of the primary weapon choices on a vehicle ''infamous'' for its [[Dakka|weapon placements and the amount of guns it carries along on the battlefield.]]

Given it's a Heavy Bolter but better, don't be surprised if this weapon ends up being wielded by the Chad's Devastator equivalents.

===Heavy Onslaught Gatling Cannon===
[[File:HeavyOnslaughtGatlingCannon.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Heavy Onslaught Gatling Cannon]]
Maximum dakka for the Astartes, the Heavy Onslaught is the primary weapon of the Repulsor Hover Tank and Redemptor Dreadnought and one of the coaxial weapons of the Repulsor's Executioner variant. Basically the Dreadnought's equivalent of a penis extension or a [[Rape|metaphor for the foreboding erection the Dreadnought pilot is about to feel before being let loose.]]

Like its smaller brother, the Heavy Onslaught Gatling Cannon is a weapon exclusive to the Chadmarines and like its smaller brother, it came to fruition thanks to the management of Grandpa Smurf and Uncle Cawl.

It has the same strength and armour penetration as its smaller brother, but a 30" range and an incredible 12 shots. Interestingly inferior to the Punisher gatling cannon against everything that doesn't have heavy (2+) armour.

===Anvilus Autocannon Battery===
[[File:DEREDEO-PATTERN-DREADNOUGHT-Side.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Anvilus Autocannon Battery]]
You take a normal Autocannon, get three of its brothers and than duct taped them together. Congratulations! You now have the Anvilus Autocannon Battery.

Not to be confused with the abovementioned Anvilus Snub Autocannon, although it could be due to the fact that they are made by the same company/forgeworld. The Anvilus Autocannon Battery, also known as the Anvilus Pattern Autocannon Battery, was the main ballistic weapon system used by the ancient [[Deredeo Dreadnought|Deredeo Pattern Dreadnoughts]] of the Legiones Astartes during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy eras. The Anvilus Autocannon Battery was a set of two Anvilus Pattern Autocannons that shared a mount and firing system.

The Deredeo Dreadnoughts were armed with two such batteries that were then twin-linked together. The Anvilus Autocannon Battery was a fearsome development of the Autocannon that was able engage and destroy enemy armored targets with a punishing salvo of [[Dakka|BRRRRRRRRRRRRRTTTTTT.]] The Anvilus Autocannon Battery is still found in use by the various Space Marine Chapters and possibly the Traitor Legions that still maintain functioning Deredeo Dreadnoughts in the 41st Millennium.

===Leviathan Storm Cannon===
[[File:99550101483_LeviathanPatternStormCannon01.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Leviathan Storm Cannon]]
The [[Hurricane Bolter]]s of Autoguns. The Leviathan Storm Cannon is the Anvilus' somehow ''MORE'' [[Dakka]] cousin.

The weapon is a heavy ranged ballistic weapon usable only by Imperial [[Leviathan Dreadnought|Leviathan Pattern Siege Dreadnoughts.]] It is used when the Leviathan Dreadnought ''really'' want that horde army dead in its tracks.

Similar in design and function to the ubiquitous Autocannon, the Storm Cannon is a [[MOAR DAKKA|quad-linked rapid-firing weapon,]] purpose-built to scythe down infantry and clear out the defenders of tactical objectives.

On the [[Horus Heresy]] tabletop, this monster is a 24" range [[Awesome|S7 AP3, Heavy 6 horde cleaner with the Sunder rules.]] While the range is mediocre, its sheer rate of fire and high AP value makes sure that even TEQs stay the fuck away from this thing.
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===Hydra Autocannon===
[[File:Hydra_Autocannons.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Hydra Autocannon]]
In-between the Anvilus Autocannon Battery and the Icarus Stormcannon Array. The Hydra Autocannon is the primary weapon battery mounted on the [[Hydra Flak Tank]]. It is made up of four long-barrelled modified Autocannons with a modified reciever and beefed-up barrels to withstand a unholy amount of [[Dakka]].

Its [[Machine Spirit]]-assisted automated turret contains targeting and tracking equipment, including a predictive logic-engine, which allows it to lock onto and track enemy aircraft regardless of any evasive maneuvering. These control the four long-barreled Autocannons firing heavy calibre, high velocity explosive rounds capable of firing six hundred rounds a minute, shredding through enemy aircraft fuselages like papermache thanks to their high rate of fire. When used against infantry and light vehicles these rounds would change from papermache maker into [[Meatbread|mincemeat blender,]] allowing even a single Hydra to decimate entire formations in a heartbeat.

In 8th Edition, the Hydra Autocannon can hit ground troops on 5s and FLY units on 3s, and with its 6 feet of [[MOAR DAKKA|8 S7 AP-1 D2 shots]], it's a potentially good investment even if you didn't expect FLY from your opponent.

In 9th Edition, Games Workshop finally changed the stats to reflect the increased penetration, given the higher muzzle velocity, relative to that of the standard [[Autocannon]]. Now is S7 AP-2 D2, same 72" range and shots number (8) as before.

===Icarus Stormcannon Array===
[[File:StormcannonArray.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Icarus Stormcannon Array]]
The big brother of the Anvilus Autocannon Battery for the sole basis of having a bigger bore-size.

The Icarus Stormcannon Array is a Space Marine anti-aircraft platform mounted on [[Space Marine Stalker|Stalker vehicles.]] Made up of two independently traversing turrets of triple-barreled cannons and a large radar dish, the Icarus Stormcannon Array can track and fire at two separate aerial targets simultaneously.

The Stalker mounts an array of two Icarus Stormcannons granted a capacity for independent targeting by the servo-mind conclave (Cogitator array) to which they are shackled. The cannons have a high rate of fire and can launch hundreds of solid rounds into the sky.

Each servo-mind can direct the Stormcannons to track separate targets with a lesser degree of accuracy, or when faced by more potent foes the array can concentrate fire in a single, withering salvo that will tear even the mightiest winged beast or enemy aircraft from the skies.

===Siegebreaker Cannon===
[[File:Siegebreaker_Cannon_2.PNG|200px|right|thumb|Siegebreaker Cannon]]
The main secondary weapon of the new Imperial Knight Dominus. The Siegebreaker Cannons can come in a configuration of either one or two depending on your preferences. They are mounted on the back or the shoulders in order to resemble the Warlord Titan.

The Siegebreaker Cannon is an automated turret that is aimed at demolishing light vehicles and MEQs and even TEQs if the going gets tough. Nevertheless, its nature as a secondary weapon is meant to pick off stragglers when the primary weapons are busy dueling out with some big ass units.

Crunchwise, the Siegebreaker Cannon is basically a more random version of the Autocannon. Each one is a Heavy D3 gun with a range of 48", s 7, ap -1, damage D3 and is capable of doing a maximum of 9 damage if you rolled perfectly, but on average will be [[Fail|exactly the same as the Autocannon]]. Do note that being d3 instead of a flat 2 damage like the standard Autocannon actually makes it worse against 2 wound models, however.

Ironically, while GW tries to claim that "If siegebreaker cannons were mounted on mainline battle tanks, you’d take them in every game", the Siegebreaker Cannons are [[Derp|shittier version of a Battle Cannon, aka the main gun of the most spammed tank in the galaxy.]]

===Ferrumite Cannon===
[[File:Ferrumite_Cannon.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Ferrumite Cannon]]
The Ferrumite Cannon is one of the two primary weapons for the giant rubber duck known as the [[Skorpius Disintegrator|Skorpius Disintegrator]]. Essentially looking like a normal tank gun with a disproportionately enlarged muzzle break, the Ferrumite Cannon is the 'vanilla' weapon of the Skorpius Disintegrator as much as the Battle Cannon is the 'vanilla' of the Leman Russ Battle Tank.

Judging from its name ("Ferrum" being latin for iron, and "ite" meaning rock or stone. ), the Ferrumite Cannon probably shoots out a solid slug of pure iron at its targets which, if true, is strange given that depleted uranium is a thing both in real-life and in 40k and is a denser and much better penetrator than conventional iron. Another option might be GW half assing the latin and splicing "Ferrum" and "thermite", perhaps implying it's suppose to be shooting Red Hot or even molten Iron/Steel at the target, making this more like a lava cannon in practice. Or it fires ceramite projectiles, being a hybrid of metal and stone and “ferrumite” basically meaning metal-stone.

On tabletop, the Ferrumite Cannon is your heavy hitter and is a threat to enemy heavy armor. Considered an Autocannon on steroids, it’s got a fixed damage of 3 with a fixed rate of fire of 3 – [[Awesome|that’s a possible 9 damage.]] That, and it is Strength 8, AP-3, which means it is gonna be reliable in punching a straight hole towards a Leman Russ Tank.

===Battle Cannon===
[[File:Battle_Cannon_Leman_Russ.PNG|200px|right|thumb|Battle Cannon]]
The big cheese of the Autogun family without going full on Titan. The Battle cannon is a larger and heavier version of the autocannon, its size restricting its use to vehicles only. It is the primary weapon of the [[Leman Russ Battle Tank]], where its explosive shells can decimate both infantry and other armor. It is also common armament on [[Imperial Knight|Imperial Knights]], though for these mighty machines are used special Rapid Fire Battle Cannons with improved rate of fire. Fulff says it's a standard 120mm cannon, but just look at that thing, that 200mm easy. Perhaps it uses sabot and so has a 120mm shell but the barrel is around 240mm. It is likely that either it is not sabot (despite some sources saying it is) or the 120mm refers to the projectile itself and not the barrel, unlike the modern method, and so the covering for the projectile might not be included in the 120mm measurement thereby resulting in a much larger barrel than a 120mm shell should be used in. Due to it being of Autogun in function, it has a wide variation of different ammunition that it can use. such as:

'''High Explosive:''' The standard round fired by Leman Russ battle cannons, HE shells like the Leman Russ Mk4 G4 round contain a highly explosive material such as Fyceline which detonates upon impact with the target. Since a high velocity is not necessary for the shell to work, a small amount of propellant allows for a larger amount of explosive material than in other shells. The explosion causes a blastwave lethal to anyone close by and shatters the thin shell casing into deadly high-speed shrapnel, making them deadly when used against infantry and light vehicles. While the sheer size of the blast can cause minor damage to armored vehicles, even stun or kill the crew within, HE shells lack the penetrative power of true anti-tank shells.

'''Anti-Tank/Armour Piercing:''' Anti-tank or armor piercing shells like the standard Leman Russ Mk12 G4 round are used to destroy hardened targets such as enemy tanks or bunkers. They consist of a solid round topped with an adamantium tip covered by a soft metal cap. A large propellant charge launches the round at high velocities, where upon impact the metal cap melts and creates a "sticking" effect so that the adamantium tip does not slide off of sloped armor or break. Most AP shells cause damage through kinetic energy, the sheer violence (and mass) of a penetrating hit causing spalling within the enemy tank's interior to damage internal systems and kill crew. Others include a small high explosive charge which detonates upon impact, causing additional secondary damage.

'''Infernus:''' Inferno shells like the standard Leman Russ Mk7 G4 round, also known as incendiary, phosphorine or thermite shells, work in similar principle to HE shells. However instead of an explosive charge these shells are filled with a combustible substance which instantly is scattered upon impact. The substance burns instantly and is particularly deadly when used against infantry.

'''Smoke:''' Smoke shells are used to create an instant smoke screen, hiding the tank or other friendly forces from enemy observations.

'''Hunter:''' Hunter shells are very rare tank rounds which can be fired by a battle cannon or Conqueror cannon. They contain a small logic-engine similar to the one found on Hunter-Killer Missiles which locks onto a target and directs the path of the shell towards it. Just before impact the shell's Machine Spirit causes it to rise above and hit the enemy vehicle on it's thinner top armor. Only ever produced on the Forge World Tigrus, the knowledge to construct Hunter shells was lost when the world was overrun by the Orks. Most tank crews will therefore never even see a Hunter shell, much less have the honor of firing one.

===Skyreaper Battery===
[[File:Skyreaper_Battery.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Skyreaper Battery]]

The Ironhail Skytalon Array's and Icarus Stormcannon Array's bigger brother.

The Skyreaper Battery was a type of anti-aircraft system used by Space Marine [[Mastodon|Mastodons]] during the [[Great Crusade]] and [[Horus Heresy]]. Resembling two giant Assault Cannons that has been duct taped and twin-linked, these weapons allow the Mastodon to have an effective deterrent against would be enemy attack planes. With how large of a target the Mastodon is, having a dedicated anti-air platform was a pretty smart design all things considered.

On the Horus Heresy tabletop, the turret-mounted Skyreaper Battery is a 48" Interceptor autocannon-analogue with a Strength 7, AP 4, Heavy 5 stats with both the Skyfire and Twin-linked rules. This makes it more than enough to threaten almost any conceivable aircraft short of super-heavy transports like the [[Stormbird]].

===Avenger Gatling Cannon===
[[File:Avenger Gatling Cannon.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Avenger Gatling Cannon]]

The Avenger Gatling Cannon is a six-barrelled (Though it can also come in triple, quad and [[Dakka|eight-barrelled]] versions) Heavy Onslaught Gatling Cannon firing high velocity mass-reactive bullets bigger than Autoguns, not to mention being much larger as well overall. It is an available option for the [[Imperial Knight#Knight_Patterns|Imperial Knights Warden and Crusader]] in place of their standard-issue large-ass [[Chain_Weapon#Reaper_Chainsword|chainsaw]].

The highly feared avenger gatling cannon is like an oversized assault cannon, though its larger calibre shells are more destructive and its rate of fire is even more prodigious. A single blazing volley from the rotary weapon can stitch a pattern of death across the foe’s battle lines, causing charges to falter and fail or destroying entire attack columns of light vehicles. Well-placed shots from the weapon also has the capability to destroy heavily armoured infantry and put a heavy dent into battle tanks.

There has been some confusion between this weapon and the [[Avenger Bolt Cannon|Avenger Bolt Cannon]] due to the fact that both of them look like oversized miniguns as well as [[Derp|having the names 'Avenger' in them.]] However, it can be assumed that the Avenger Bolt Cannon's internal mechanics is more suited and specialized towards the gyrojet nature of the bolt rounds, whereas the Avenger Gatling Cannon is a more conventional rotary machine gun that just have a enlarged bore-size for it to fire massive bullets.

{{40k-Ranged-Weapon-Profile-7-8|name=Avenger Gatling Cannon|r7=36|s7=6|ap7=3|type7=Heavy 12, Rending|r8=36|s8=6|ap8=-2|d8=2|type8=Heavy 12}}

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===Thunderhawk Cannon===
[[File:Thunderhawk_Cannon.PNG|200px|right|thumb|Thunderhawk Cannon]]

A Battle Cannon given a [[/d/|penis enlarger]].

The Thunderhawk Cannon is a powerful, oversized, ballistic Battle cannon mounted on a Space Marine [[Thunderhawk|Thunderhawk Gunship]]. It is an over-sized version to allow it to be fired from the air at the most vulnerable parts of an enemy position or for clearing an area to land troops in.

However, despite the power coming from this weapon, most Space Marines would rather just replace the Cannon with the more destructive, accurate, ammo effecient, recoil friendly, longer ranged [[Turbo-Laser Destructor|Single-Barrelled Turbo-Laser Destructor]] instead.

How the hell the Thunderhawk manage to stay stable without the cannon's immense recoil tearing the plane apart is unknown.

===Accelerator Autocannon===
[[File:AcceleratorAuto.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Accelerator Autocannon]]
Back when the Emperor still walked, the Imperium was capable of developing new and improved weapons, and the Accelerator Autocannon was one of those. Basically a cross between the Autocannon and a Rail Gun, the Accelerator Autocannon coupled a high rate of fire with a powerful shell and high accuracy. It shares it name with the Accelerator Cannon used on the [[Fellblade]] and [[Astraeus Super-Heavy Tank]]. Which would imply that this is a downsized version.

Currently the Accelerator Autocannon is primarily mounted on the main variant of the [[Sicaran Battle Tank]]. Each Sicaran has two of them. Why Tech Marines didn't bother mounting them on the [[Contemptor Dreadnought|larger]] [[Leviathan Dreadnought|more advanced]] [[Deredeo Dreadnought|Dreadnaughts]] is because they don't know how, [[Games Workshop|lazyness,]] or they have so much recoil it's impracticable. However individual [[Space Marines|Space Marines,]] [[Suppressor|with JETPACKS,]] [[Rape|can carry them now.]] Though only Suppressors so far. Looks like [[Cawl|somebody actually remembered]] these things still exists during M42.

===Quake Cannon===
[[File:Quake_Cannon.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Quake Cannon]]
The Quake Cannon is a gigantic artillery piece mounted on Imperial Titans and Super-Heavy Tanks. The Quake Cannon is used to engage targets at extreme range. Each Quake Cannon shot contains a [[Wat|fragment of a planet that has been subjected to]] [[Exterminatus]], which is to say the '''energy''' of the Exterminatus is harnessed and then weaponized....which is....unnecessarily complex to say the least....anyways, the weapon draws the contained earth-shattering power out and containing the blastwave within a Quake Shell.

On Titans, the Quake Cannon is commonly found on Warlord Battle Titans. The Imperator class titan can also carry one or more Quake Cannon on its carapace hard-points.

On Superheavies, the Imperial Guard Banesword Super-Heavy tank is also equipped with a Quake Cannon.

{{40k-Ranged-Weapon-Profile|name=Quake Cannon|range=180|strength=9|ap=3|type=Ordnance, 10" Blast|}}
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===Cruciator Gatling Array===
[[File:Cruciator_Gatling_Array.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Cruciator Gatling Array]]
Imagine the Skyreaper Battery grown a tad bit too large.

The Cruciator Gatling Array is basically the Gatling Blaster's little brother that has been twin-linked. As its name suggests, the Cruciator Gatling Array seems to be aimed towards an anti-aircraft role, as it is placed too high for it to be considered as an anti-infantry weapon.

This weapon system is the main secondary weapon of the [[Warmaster Iconoclast Heavy Battle Titan]]s. They are hull-mounted and fixed on the top of the lumbering giant, which is an odd design choice given that it is meant to target aircraft, so a full rotary turret should suffice. Therefore, the [[Revelator Missile Launcher|Revelator Missile Battery]] would actually be a much better choice than the Cruciator. The shells might be guided, or it is a specialist weapon against aircraft swarms.

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===Gatling Blaster===
[[File:Gatblaster.jpg|200px|right|thumb|The child of an [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GAU-8_Avenger Avenger] and a battle cannon]]

Strapped to the mighty [[Reaver Battle Titan]] and above, this is the weapon you field when you need the biggest dakka the Imperium of Man has to offer, it's basically an Assault Cannon, [[Awesome|except that it fires Battle Cannon shells rather than bullets]], yeah... this is what you get if you thought about the Schwerer Gustav using Gatling Technology. Now if only they had some kind of Macro Gatling, ridiculous as that would be (Good news! Forgeworld has decided that Warlord titans do, or at least did during the Horus Heresy).

By function, each of the Gatling Blaster's six barrels fires once in turn during each revolution of the barrel cluster. The multiple barrels provide both a very high rate of fire and contribute to long weapon life by minimizing barrel erosion and heat generation. The Gatling Blaster is pneumatically-driven and electrically-primed. The gun rotor, barrel assembly and ammunition feed system are rotated by a hydraulic drive motor through a system of flexible drive shafts. The round is fired by an electric priming system where an electrical current from a firing lead passes through the firing pin to the primer as each round is rotated into the firing position. One of the drawbacks of the initial design was that the ejection of spent links created considerable (and ultimately insufferable) problems. The Adeptus Mechanicus compensated for this issue by creating a linkless feed system.

This is actually a pretty [[Reasonable Marines|reasonable and practical]] solution; a rarity in the AdMech. As what kind of sane Guardsmen would like to die from [[FATAL|giant empty bullet casings?]]

Galting Blasters can be mounted on the weapon limbs of Reaver and Warlord Battle Titans and the carapace mounts on Imperator Titans. It is too large to be fitted to Warhound Scout Titans however.

===Nemesis Quake Cannon===
[[File:99560108206_WarbringerTitanQuakeCannon01.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Nemesis Quake Cannon]]
The Quake Cannon on steroids, or the holy lovechild between a Quake Cannon and a Gatling Blaster, [[Skub|whichever you ask.]]

The Mars-Alpha Pattern Nemesis Quake Cannon or the Nemesis Quake Cannon for short, is a [[/d/|larger, thicker and longer version of the standard Quake Cannon with more ''girth''.]] [[Tl;dr]][[Slaanesh|, its a literal ''penis extension''.]] We in /tg/ like to joke that the [[Basilisk Artillery Gun]] and the [[Goliath Mega-Cannon]] are nothing more than a [[Dick|compensation weapon,]] but it seems that GW had forgotten the memo and took this shit [[Derp|''seriously''.]]

Mounted on the new and shiny [[Warbringer Nemesis Titan]]. This giant six-shooter of doom is designed to kill enemy Titans on sight, thus in any sensible usage, this weapon is regulated at the back lines as a giant sniper, unfortunately the Imperium [[Herp|lacks any sensibility]] and uses these as front line weapons instead. Nevertheless, having a fast firing Quake Cannon '''''is''''' a boon to any forces as now you have a very quick way to whither down the [[Void shields|Void Shields]] of enemy Titans in a quick and efficient manner rather than risking the time reloading. And seeing how this Titan gained prominence during the [[Horus Heresy]] when [[Emperor Battle Titan|Emperor Battle Titans]] were common enough to be thrown left and right like normal battle tanks, the nature of this weapon makes a whole load of sense. This cannon also works wonders against heavily fortified encampments and any forms of fortifications in general due to the monumental concussive force unleashed as its shell impacts the ground setting off powerful localized earthquakes.

Even if it doesn't directly hit its target, the concussive force from that cannon could still indirectly halt the advance of nearly anything on the battlefield up to and including battalions of Superheavy Tanks and enemy Knights.

===Deathstrike Cannon===
[[File:Deathstrike_Cannon.JPG|250px|right|thumb|Deathstrike Cannon]]
[[Derp|Not to be confused with the similarly named]] [[Deathstrike missile]].

The Deathstrike Cannon is a starship-grade Macrocannon that is fitted on a [[Warlord Battle Titan|Warlord-class Titan.]] A rarely-fielded and obscure conversion, [[Wat|it requires the whole head of the Warlord to be removed,]] [[Herp|and the cockpit to be installed on the top of the Titan's carapace instead]] ([[Lolwut|Usually exposed]]), [[Fail|it is as stupid as it sounds.]] One of the Titan's carapace hard points is then fitted with an advanced fire control system tower. This configuration opens two additional hard points that can be used to mount additional Titan-grade weapons.

The cannon's recoil is so powerful that it needs to be mounted along the centre line of the Warlord Titan. Despite the severe limitations, this imposes on the Warlord, the Deathstrike Cannon's colossal range and power make it a useful artillery weapon, able to obliterate fortifications or harass an enemy's rear lines and staging areas at extreme long range.

It is assumed that the Nemesis Quake Cannon is a more modern iteration of the Deathstrike Cannon. (An iteration is like a different model or version, while an alliteration is a literature term.)

===Macro Cannon===
[[File:Macrocannon.jpg|280px|thumb|right|A voidcraft Macrocannon, why the Mechanicus decided it was a good idea to use slaves to manually reload a EXBOXHUGE Cannon, despite already having auto-loaders is beyond our moral understandings.]]

The [[Dakka|Biggest of the Big]]. 'Macrocannon' seems to be a catch-all for any auto-type weapon larger than a Gatling-Blaster, ranging from [[Aquila Strongpoint|fortress-mounted field artillery]] to the literally apocalyptic, cathedral-sized weapons found on [[Imperial Navy|voidcraft]]. As is clearly evident, it causes a quantity of [[Rape]] proportional to its size, but even the smallest land-based Macrocannons are capable of laying waste to mostly everything, including [[Awesome|flyers]]. It is at its basest an autocannon that fires bullets ranging in size from that of a man all the way up to the size of a [[Baneblade]], depending on the weapon's calibre (no, seriously), and since this is the Imperium, instead of an automatic reloader, they need [[Grimderp|dozens of slaves to move each bullet]] for the ship-mounted Macrocannons (heretical theories suggest this is either because it is actually cheaper for the Imperium, which is overloaded with humans and not resources, or because they are stockpiling resources, or they are cutting down on chances of daemonic incursions through humans by putting more of them in the killzone, or they are testing to see just how far people will comply with slave labor in a totalitarian state, or - most heretical of all - some suggest it is a bureaucratic screw-up with paperwork or that the AdMech doesn't know how to repair the loading cranes).

Provided yields for these weapons can go from 42 exajoules (about 5.297 times more powerful than [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1960_Valdivia_earthquake the most powerful earthquake ever recorded]; a 42 exajoule earthquake would be approximately magnitude 9.98) right down to the measly [[What|15 tetrajoules]]...[[Derp|*sigh* Games Workshop never fails to surprise us]]. Seriously believe us, we know that tetrajoules isn't an official unit of measurement, but since tetra is Latin for four this essentially gives us....<s>[[Fail|4 joules]]</s> 60 joules of power....[[Herp|which is almost twice the force of a child's punch]].... Don't believe us? We got that from [[Rogue Trader (RPG)|Rogue Trader rpg: BattleFleet Koronus pg. 31 & 20]] which is quote on quote:
:''"Look at her, son. Isn’t she a beauty? Over two hundred Vulcan mega-bolter defence turrets, '''[[Wat|fifteen tetrajoule Sunsear las-broadsides]]''', prow plating ten metres thick, the finest auspex masts in the battlefleet… And the lines on her! Fluted prow, elegant statuary… those xenos scum won’t know what hit them!” – Bosun Phineas Jhule tempts fate at the embarkation of the Fire of Heaven''
:''"The Avenger dates from an earlier period of fleet tactics, when, squadrons of grand cruisers were employed as “line-breakers.” Traditionally, they were thrown into the midst of massive fleet engagements, soaking up enemy fire while racing into the middle of enemy formations, '''[[Bullshit|then crushing their opponents at short range with tetrajoules of energy from their oversized broadsides.]]'''"
''
Yeah...we in [[/tg/]] aren't sure whether this was [[Troll|intentional]] or a [[FAIL|gross example of a severe typo.]] So...um....[[Lulz|FEAR THE 60 JOULE BROADSIDE BATTERIES!]]. The fifteen broadsides. The fuck shape is that ship? Sounds heretical. A possible explanation for this stupidity is that GW forgot that the term "quadrillion" is a thing and is using "tetrajoule" to mean 1 000 000 000 000 000 joules (as the word "billion" comes from the latin word for two, "trillion" for the latin word for three and so on.). This gives a result of 15 quadrillion joules in a broadside, which is 15 trillion times as powerful as the world's largest laser and '''over three and a half megatons''' of energy. Much better.

Jokes aside, if we use the picture to the right as a reference for size, and estimate the shell as a solid slug of density equivalent to lead, launched at a planet from geosynchronous orbit above an Earth-like planet (36,000km), you're looking at somewhere in the region of 50 Tera-Joules of energy when it strikes the ground, or slightly less than the Little Boy dropped on Hiroshima (and that's just from gravity, not including launch energy). About fifty or so of the land-based Macrocannons would equate to one ship-mounted Macrocannon, or one point of firepower in [[Battlefleet Gothic]]. Oh yes.
{{Clear}}

{{Template:40k-Imperial-Weapons}}
{{40k-GenestealerCults-Weapons}}

==Squat Variants==
===Ironhead Autopistol===
[[File:Ironhead_Autopistol.PNG|200px|right|thumb|Ironhead Autopistol]]
A cousin of the [[Ironhead Stub Gun]]. The Ironhead Autopistol trade firepower for more [[dakka]]. Used only by the young [[Digger]]s of the [[Ironhead Squat Prospectors]] from [[Necromunda]], this Autopistol variant is one of the first weapons a Ironhead Squat would receive upon his induction into the Prospector clans.

Like the rest of the weapons made from the Ironheads, the Ironhead Autopistol sport the same double-barrel, drum-fed magazine design. However, given how teeny-tiny that drum magazine is, this Autopistol is gonna chew through ammunition with two seconds. Seriously, we can't believe we are saying this, but GeeDubs should have given the gun a ''bigger drum magazine''.

Another thing that is unique to this weapon is that it seems to automatically come with a scope. Now, why there is a need for a scope on a weapon that literally fits the definition of "Spray and Pray", we have no idea. You would ''expect'' that the more accurate, slower firing and harder hitting Stub Gun variant would be given the scope right?

===Ironhead Autogun===
[[File:Ironhead_Autogun.PNG|200px|right|thumb|Ironhead Autogun]]
The Ironhead Autogun shares the same structural profile as the [[Ironhead Heavy Stubber]] and the [[Ironhead Boltgun]]. It is a two-handed heavy machine gun that is designed to be a heavy weapon because of how big and bulky. It is used by the [[Drill Master]]s and [[Drill-Kyn]]s of the [[Ironhead Squat Prospectors]] from [[Necromunda]].

As a natural twin-linked weapon, the Autogun unlike conventional Autoguns, is very unwieldy to carry. But this is alright when you come in packing with lots of [[dakka]]. As it is twin-linked, conventional wisdom goes that this should be put in the [[combi-weapon]] category, however, the reality is that this Autogun is somewhat similar to the [[Storm bolter]], as it is not two weapons duct taped together, but a single weapon system that just so happens to have two barrels.

What this means is that rather than firing each barrel separately in tandem via a hotwired single trigger mechanism, the gun fires two rounds at the same time, due to the fact that the entire firing mechanism being fused together. To compensate for the sudden increase in firepower, the Ironhead variant sports a huge drum-fed cylindrical magazine; holding a shit ton of ammunition at the expanse of weight. Fortunately for the Squats, they just so happen to be strong enough that such cumbersome weight is a non-issue. This design stays consistent with the rest of the Ironhead's weapons, even their ''pistols'' sport the same double-barrel, drum-fed magazine design.

Compared to the Heavy Stubber or Boltgun cousins, the Autogun does not fire as fast as the former nor hit as hard as the latter. The only thing going for it is that it is very cheap to manufacture and does not cost as much, allowing your Squats to launch a hail of cheap yet potent [[dakka]]. Yes, it is a bit underwhelming as it sounds, but this is still a SAW you are looking at.

===MATR Autocannon===
[[File:MATR.jpg|200px|thumb|right|MATR Autocannon]]
One of the few known [[Squat]] Autoweapons in the [[Leagues of Votann]].

The MATR Autocannon is a three-barreled Autocannon Gatling weapon system used by the Leagues of Votann. It is known to be mounted on vehicles such as the [[Sagitaur ATV]] and [[Hekaton Land Fortress]] as one of its primary weapons. It is by far one of the more normal-looking weapons in the world of [[Bullshit|bullshit crazy]] that is the Leagues, so there is nothing much to speak about other than having better weapon performance and handling. Unfortunately, it also looks [[Pretend|suspiciously similar]] to the [[HYLas Rotary Cannon]] and vice versa, so don't be too surprised if folks get confused with one another.

In terms of rules, these are 24" Heavy 6, S7 Ap-2 D2. Your typical autocannon, but with a couple of extra shots. An option for the Sagitaur, whilst being a standard on the Land Fortress.
{{Clear}}

{{40k-Squat-Weapons}}

==Chaos Variants==
===Reaper Autocannon===
[[File:ReaperAutocannon.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Reaper Autocannon]]
There is the regular Autocannon and then there is the Reaper variant, which only the [[Chaos Space Marine]] [[Havoc]]s get because Assault Cannons were discovered after the [[Horus Heresy]], and everybody Imperial promptly thought they were cooler than the Reaper Autocannon. The reaper is an infantry-portable twin-linked Autocannon that wants to put its shells in your face at 36" or less. The reaper is effective against light vehicles and monsters, but the Imperials switched to the other gun for its boons against infantry. The current Imperial gun is mostly popular due to its reliability and durability, capable of operation for years without much care even if [[Ogryn|someone]] used it as a club. By comparison, the reaper autocannon [[Fail|needs its barrels to be replaced after each battle or else it loses reliability or even explodes]] (maybe the admech were drunk that day).

Then at some point, the Traitor Legions and their Dark Mechanicus pals looked at the Reaper Autocannon and asked, "How can we make this even more rapey?" So they came up with the Helstorm Autocannon, which apparently can only be fitted to vehicles and aircraft such as the Hellblade due to its sheer rate of fire. It has the same profile as the Reaper except for firing an extra shot per attack and adding delicious Rending because fuck assault cannons. Now if only GW would let the forces of Chaos get their collective shit together and replace every vehicle mounted heavy bolter with S7 AP4 Heavy 3, Twin-linked, Rending.

===Soulreaper Cannon===
[[File:SoulreaperCannon.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Soulreaper Cannon]]
You remember how we said earlier that the [[Thousand Sons]] AKA The Prodigal Bookworms found a way to make the god awful Rotor Cannon somewhat viable? Yeah, here is the end result of it all.

The Soulreaper Cannon is a type of gatling Inferno Weapon used by the Thousand Sons. This heavy weapon bears a strong resemblance to the Space Marine Assault Cannon, but since it is basically a modified Rotor Cannon, the Sons of Magnus can basically lug around this gun with their normal [[Rubric Marines]]. This actually increases the effectiveness of these walking tin bins as it [[Dakka|boosts their firepower to a ungodly amount.]] [[Awesome]].

As the Soulreaper is an Inferno weapon, it uses literal magic to further boost and enhance the weapon's lethality. Who says that mixing science and sorcery is an absurd idea eh? [[Necron|Suck it Crons!]]

===Reaper Chaincannon===
[[File:Reaper_Chaincannon.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Reaper Chaincannon]]
''Not to be confused with the similarly named [[Derp|Reaper Autocannon.]]''

The Reaper Chaincannon is basically an upgraded Rotor Cannon that has been tinkered for 40,000 years by the [[Chaos Space Marines|Spiky Bois]] because the [[Fail|original was so shit in everything.]]

Sporting [[/d/|longer, thicker barrels]], beefier rotary cyclic mechanism and upscaled ammo that might as well be ''bolter shells''. The Reaper Chaincannon does what the Rotor Cannon failed to do, which is to [[Get shit done|get shit done.]] Compared to the Soulreaper Cannon, the Reaper Chaincannon is more ungainly, unwieldy and lacks the unique attributes of Inferno weapons, but it is also more utilitarian and can be used by non-Thousand Sons units. In contrast to the Reaper Autocannon, which fires heavier rounds but with a much slower rate of fire, the Reaper Chaincannon exceeds even an Assault Cannon in its [[Dakka|BRRRRRRRRRRRRRT-ness.]]

On the tabletop, this thing shreds through GEQs like their reinforced cardboard was only basic paper mache. It is able to fire 8 shots in one round, all at strength 5 and AP-1 but, [[Derp|''for some reason'']], despite having a longer barrel, it only has a underwhelming 24" range.

Fun fact, the Reaper Chaincannon apparently uses [[Wat|''two belts'']] of bullets in its ammo feed. How the fuck ''that'' is able to fit inside the gun, let alone properly fire without the two ammo belts interfering with the firing mechanism, [[Herp|we have no clue.]] While a button to switch between them would work, there is nothing on the weapon that indicates this. Most likely the belts take turns like how bullets in a magazine work. Don’t think of them as belts, think of them as one very long magazine.

===Avenger Chaincannon===
[[File:Avenger_Chaincannon.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Avenger Chaincannon]]
''Not to be confused with the similarly named [[Derp|Avenger Gatling Cannon]] nor the [[Herp|Avenger Bolt Cannon.]]''

The Avenger Chaincannon is one of the primary ranged weapons used by the [[Chaos Knight War Dog]]s, specifically, the [[War Dog Knight Stalker]] and the [[War Dog Knight Brigand]]. It is a six-barrelled weapon that vomits out a large amount of lead at the target with [[Meatbread|appropriate results.]]

It is considered as the more evil, spikier but smaller counterpart of the Avenger Gatling Cannon since it is only mounted on the Chaos-version of an Amiger. So its dakka is less powerful and has less range, but is possibly much easier to maintain and handle.

Crunchwise, from what we know, it is a pretty nasty anti-infantry weapon, spewing out its 12 infantry-shredding shots in a single turn.

{{Clear}}

===Hades Autocannon===
[[File:HadesAutocannon.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Hades Autocannon]]
The bigger version of the Reaper Autocannon.

Also because Chaos likes to add daemons to things, and daemons make things goofy, Chaos Space Marines have access to ''another'' vehicle-mounted variant, the Hades Autocannon, which bafflingly can only be mounted onto a dinobot (probably because it's propelled by warp-flame or something). Fielded onto a Heldrake for air support or in pairs on a Forgefiend for heavy support, the Hades Autocannon (R36", S8, AP4, Heavy 4, pinning) suffers the Reaper's slightly gimped range compared to the vanilla autocannon, but is slightly stronger and can pin units (but don't count on pinning too much); while it's not twin-linked like the reaper, having double the firepower more than compensates.

A Forgefiend can mulch most infantry short of [[Terminator]]s, pounding through power armour on sheer weight and power of fire, can make most Monstrous Creatures' lives flash before their eyes, and can hurt even a [[Land Raider]] or [[Monolith]] if the dice gods are in your favor. It's <s>almost</s> really/absolutely a real shame that the average Forgefiend isn't known for being a phenomenal shot.

===Skullshredder Cannon===
[[File:Skullshredder.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Skullshredder Cannon]]

The smallest of the weapons in the ridiculous [[Tower of Skulls]] Daemon Engine.

The two sponson-mounted twin-linked Skullshredder Cannons is used primarily for anti-infantry defense and it behaves similiar to a twin-linked Autocannon. Because it is mounted on the side, it can only target opponents in its field of view.

The Skullshredder is often seen as the least important weapon especially when there is the Doomfire Cannon situated just above the Skullshredder. Thus, it is often used to pick off any stragglers or provide additional wounds to would-be attackers.

Like all weapons from the Daemon Engine, it is powered by pure hatred.

===Skullreaper Cannon===
[[File:Skullreaper_Cannon.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Skullreaper Cannon]]

The Reaper Autocannon's father.

The Skullreaper Cannons is found only on the ridiculous [[Tower of Skulls]] Daemon Engine and is the primary hull-mounted weapon of the Tower itself. It is located further up the tower's height, and it is where the two hull-mounted Skullreaper Cannons is situated.

The Skullreaper Cannons resemble large hexa-barrelled weapons akin to a Hurricane Bolter, although it is not known whether the Skullreaper itself is a type of Bolter weapon, other than it fires large shells of pure hate. It is by far one of the most devastating anti-infantry weapons on a vehicle brimming with anti-infantry weapons, this is thanks in no part for simply having more barrels to load bullets in.

Due to its nature, it can be assumed that the Skullreaper is powered by the pure hatred of the Daemon Engine and uses the aforementioned shells of pure hate. It is unknown where the Daemon Engine supply the ammunition from, although it could be noted that the sheer size of the Tower of Skulls would mean that there should be ample room for stored ammunition, or we could just use the Warp simply whisking free ammunition like candy from a white van.

Nevertheless, because it is a six-barrelled weapon, the Skullreaper [[Count as]] a heavy weapon that can mulch most infantry trying to charge and attack the Tower of Skulls. Its unusual height advantage means that it can target enemies hiding behind cover with ease.

Unfortunately, the less can be said for its firing field of view, you could thank the stupid ass tower for being in the way.
{{clear}}

===Doomfire Cannon===
[[File:Doomfire_Cannon.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Doomfire Cannon]]

A giant fuck off gatling cannon that resembles a lot like the Space Marine's [[Thunderfire Cannon]] (Some may even accuse it of even being part of the Thunderfire kit, proving that GW can to, kitbash), heck it even behave like the Thunderfire Cannon, creating large explosions to shred infantry akin to a Bolter.

It is one of the secondary hull mounted weapons of the ridiculous Tower of Skulls Daemon Engine. Because it is mounted on a turret, the Doomfire Cannon is given a near 360 degree firing position. This makes it ''far'' more reasonable than the hokey Skullreaper Cannon whose very design seem to mimic the [[Warhammer Fantasy|Arrowslits found in medieval castles.]] [[Lolwut|Yes, you heard us right,]] [[Derp|GW]] and [[Herp|Khorne]] [[What|thought ''that'']] [[FAIL|was a 'good' design choice.]]

Of course, because it is lower to the ground, it has less range than the Skullreaper Cannon and is meant to rip apart closing infantry. Due to its explosive nature, it is unknown whether it is a Bolter, although Battle Cannons are known to have a blast template, so it could be assume that it just fire ''that'' big of a shell at such a rapid rate that it creates small blast templates in its wake.

Seriously, look at that ''bore size'' and tell me it doesn't fire fucking huge bullets?
{{clear}}

===Scorpion Cannon===
[[File:Scorpion_Cannon.PNG|200px|right|thumb|Scorpion Cannon]]
The Scorpion Cannon, also known as the Sting Cannon, is a large, multi-barrelled weapon that is wielded by [[Brass Scorpion]] and it is what happens when you have a Hades Autocannon mounted on a giant scorpion.

The weapon is mounted upon the Brass Scorpion's tail, giving the weapon a full 360 degree arc of fire, making it perfectly suited to unleash rapidly fired torrents of ballistic projectiles upon enemy infantry at close range. The cannon fires heavy caliber shells that are effective against most lightly armored infantry and vehicles.

The Scorpion Cannon features a set of blades allowing it to be used as a backup melee weapon against enemy aggressors. The weapon receives its ammunition from thick, semi-organic cabling that travels up the rear side of the creature's tail. It is basically Mortal Kombat's scorpion given more of a Khornate feel. Hence it receives the seal of [[Awesome]].

===Harvester Cannon===
[[File:Harvester_Cannon2.png|200px|right|thumb|Harvester Cannon]]
Take an [[Obliterator]]'s hand cannons and than multiply this by a hundred. You get the Harvester Cannon.

A Harvester Cannon is a large, multi-barrelled, rapid-firing weapon that is wielded by [[Soul Grinder]] Daemon Engines. The Soul Grinder is usually armed with a single Harvester Cannon on one arm, used in conjunction with an Iron Claw close combat weapon located on its other arm.

The weapon is attached to the daemon's wrist, on its right arm and can be used with an organic pincer version of the Iron Claw that it wields on its other arm or with a daemonic Warpsword. The Harvester Cannon is capable of firing large caliber solid shells that are effective against infantry and light vehicles and can also fire specialized flak shells to engage enemy aircraft. This thing is a very versatile form of [[Dakka]] and it can mow down both infantry, aircraft and vehicles alike.

===Butcher Cannon===
[[File:Butcher_Cannon.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Butcher Cannon]]
A Butcher Cannon is a heavy caliber, rapid-firing gun used by the Forces of Chaos. Think of it as the Reaper Autocannon on steroids.

The Butcher Cannon is commonly found on Chaos combat walkers and it is another primary weapon of the Decimator Daemon Engine as well as a weapon of choice for Chaos Contemptor Pattern Dreadnoughts. The shells fired by the Butcher Cannon are bound with sorcerous Chaos runes of anathema and bloodletting which causes severe blood loss. When used by Chaos walkers, the Butcher Cannon usually features a large blade that is attached beneath the weapon's twin barrels; this allows the walker to engage enemy forces in close combat if they get too close for it to effectively use the weapon at range.

It is not recorded in Imperial records if any other Chaos walkers such as Chaos Dreadnoughts or Helbrutes, Daemon Engines such as Defilers or Soul Grinders, or Chaos Space Marine tanks such as the Predator or Land Raider are able to be armed with a Butcher Cannon, although it is presumed to be possible.

<gallery>
File:Storm_Laser_2.JPG|Side view.
</gallery>
{{clear}}

{{40k-Chaos-Weapons}}

==Gallery==
<gallery>
Image:11 - Infiltrator.png|Autoguns - Better Than Your Crap Flashlights!
Image:Autogun01.jpg|A typical mass produced model.
Image:RenegadeArms.JPG|Traitor Guardsmen armed with Agripinaa-pattern Autoguns and Autopistols. You know you want 'em.
Image:LRPun.jpg|The Punisher Gatling Cannon and its tank. Sometimes you just need a little more gun.
Image:Gatling Blaster.jpg|The Gatling Blaster. For when you need big dakka.
</gallery>

Autek Mor

2023-06-09T21:59:05Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:Autekmor.png|250px|thumb|right|Autek Mor, the Moonman himself]]

'''Autek Mor''' aka '''The Maimed''' or '''Moonman''' was the Iron Lord and Iron Father to the infamous Clan Morragul of the Iron Hands legion during the [[Great Crusade]] and [[Horus Heresy]], later becoming the first [[Chapter Master]] of the [[Red Talons]]. One of the original members of the Legion prior to its reunion with Ferrus Manus, he served in the Unification Wars on [[Terra]] and the reconquest of the Sol system. When the X Legion was reunited with their primarch, Mor had developed a reputation for being an excellent weaponsmith and a huge asshole. He ruled his clan company with an iron fist, and was known to have killed other members of his legion in duels over slights to his honour. When Ferrus was rediscovered and the Legion claimed [[Medusa (Planet)|Medusa]] as its new homeworld, Mor took over an outlaw clan's leviathan crawler [[Rip and tear|in a single night of violence]] and made it his. As the years went by, Clan Morragul became a dumping ground for outcast, insubordinate, and unstable elements of the Iron Hands, who fought and died under Mor's command. He also didn't really get on well with Ferrus, having no love for each other. As such he and his clan had a shitty reputation and were generally regarded as outsiders in the Iron Tenth. Of course, Mor couldn't give a fuck about any of that.

When the [[Horus Heresy| biggest family drama]] began, Clan Morragul was part of the second wave of Iron Hands forces to arrive at Istvaan V. Unfortunately, his arrival was at the same time the Night Lords, Iron Warriors, Word Bearers and Alpha Legion pressed the "change team" button. Though they never really liked each other, Mor valiantly tried to break through the traitor fleet to rescue Ferrus and the rest of the Iron Hands on the ground, unwilling to accept his primarch's demise. Alas, he was forced to retreat and escape with a handful of survivors.

While Shadrak Meduson rallied many of the survivors from Istvaan V and fought guerrilla style, Autek Mor said "fuck that" and went about making war his own way. He gathered what forces would rally to his banner and launched a series of full-scale assaults upon worlds that the Traitor Legions had captured or turned, allowing them to expend their strength and then destroying what remained with overwhelming force. It was a brutal strategy in which entire populations were to be allowed to fall while the Iron Hands stayed their wrath, yet it was one that made full accounting of the relentless calculus of war. With their force blunted by their invasion operations, the traitors could be attacked at the moment of their supposed victory whilst at their weakest and obliterated without mercy.

[[File:Bodt-vox-relay-gamma-sonic-hedgehog-meme.png|200px|thumb|left|Autek Mor assaulting the [[World Eaters]] garrison world of Bodt, circa 008.M31 ([[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLBL4M55tJU original record fragment]])]]Mor especially punished worlds that simply surrendered to the traitors without fighting. One such planet was retaken from the traitor forces, only for Mor's troops to immediately take off. Right as the inhabitants were beginning to celebrate their liberation, the timed atomic devices that Mor had set under all their major cities detonated, turning the planet into a radioactive ball of rock. As far as Mor was concerned, anyone who surrendered without a fight was filthy traitor scum and deserved to be treated as such. By destroying such worlds, he was sending a clear and unequivocal message: you were either for the Imperium or against it. There was no middle ground, and if you were against it you could expect the same treatment. What a dick. This, however, would be nothing compared to what he did next...

Marshaling a force of [[Solar Auxilia]], as well as elements of the [[Imperial Fists]], Autek Mor attacked the planet of Bodt, the fief world of the [[World Eaters]] where [[Angron]] had first taken command of his legion. Now, Mor could've done his usual thing and attacked Bodt with maximum [[rip and tear]], but then he realized that just wasn't metal enough, and so decided to crash the [[Awesome|FUCKING MOON INTO THE PLANET]] instead. The entire population of Bodt--traitor Marines, Sarum Mechanicum and Legio Titanicus--was destroyed, which not only was a blow to the World Eaters' recruitment but to the overall traitor cause. Mor himself didn't participate in the main assault. Instead, he spent the battle retrieving a stasis casket with unknown contents from a hidden vault beneath Bodt's surface while the rest of the planet was mooned into oblivion.

After the Horus Heresy, Clan Morragul became the [[Red Talons]] Chapter and Mor became its first Chapter Master.

TLDR: Autek Mor was the angriest toaster marine in a legion of toaster marines and he got shit done.

==Former Thunder Warriors==
Mor's borderline (being generous with that) insane aggression has lead to even in-universe speculation that he isn't your run of the mill Iron Hand, and that something was different in his creation. His habits and mannerisms also mirror that of behaviors seen in known [[Thunder Warriors]] like Ghota and Arik Taranis. Combined with the fact that he was one of the very first legionaries created for the Iron Tenth, and with hints that there may have been other Thunder Warriors hidden among the Astartes, like Endryd Haar, some have come to suspect that Autek Mor may have also once been a Thunder Warrior.

It's been hinted, at least in Haar's case, that the augmentation process was still being retooled from Thunder Warriors to Astartes in Terra's geneworks, with Haar being one of only four in his presumably large induction group to survive geneseed implantation. This would explain why some of the earliest Astartes had Thunder Warrior-like attributes such as being unusually angry, unusually big-ass motherfuckers who solve arguments among their underlings using [[Rip_and_Tear|power fisting]] unusually often, before the process was turned down a bit. This is [[Skub|on somewhat unsteady ground to say the least]] though given that [[Kharn|not]] [[Ahriman|all]] of the first gen Astartes were like that and there are plenty of contradictory hints dropped by GW like such as "do you dream of thunder?" (Haar) or "the origins of his geneseed or perhaps his bloodline were not as they should be" (Mor). It's not like we'll ever know either way.

==On the Tabletop==

===Horus Heresy 1.0===
He's an Iron Father with Cataphractii Terminator armor, +1S, +1T (but -1In and -1 attack), a Servo-Arm, a Paragon Blade and a Volkite Charger for gear. With ''Fearless'', the Iron Father upgrade and ''Preferred Enemy (Infantry)'' Mor is a complete and utter goddamn beast with 3 base attacks (S6 w/ 6's to-wound causing ID) +1 Servo arm attack (S8 w/ Unwieldy). All of that at AP2. Oh, and with Inviolate Armour and T5 [[Awesome|he can't be ID'ed by double Toughness from shooting.]]

===Horus Heresy 2.0===
Autek's stats have effectively been reversed this edition. His S and T have both gone down by one, but he gets +1In and +1A and an extra wound to compensate, and his saves remain formidable (2+/4++, 5+ FNP), so he's still a burly motherfucker. He's also gained Relentless and a cyber-familiar in exchange for his cortex controller and Jealous Command. His servo-arm is replaced with a manipulator array that is S6 and has Shred, Armourbane, Precision Strikes (3) and Unwieldy, and his paragon blade has been swapped for a two-handed AP2 axe with Reaping Blow (2). He also has a new warlord trait, Tyrant's Wrath: whenever he joins an Iron Hands unit, that unit may add an extra wound when calculating the results of close combat, ''but'' if they do so they also take one wound, no saves allowed. They also get an extra Reaction during the opponent's shooting phase.

{{Marines-Characters}}

[[Category:Imperial]]
[[Category:Iron Hands]]
[[Category:Space Marines Chapter Masters]]

Autarch

2023-06-09T21:58:30Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:Eldar Autarch.jpg|300px|thumbnail|left|So then...Which Necron wants to be next? Course, them being asleep first helped a bit]]
[[File:Autarch.png|300px|right|thumb|Bitch will cut you up.]]
An '''Autarch''' is an [[Eldar]] of the [[Craftworld]]s who walks the [[Paths of the Eldar|Path of Command]], a specialized path which studies all the different tactics a warhost of the Eldar Craftworld uses and then brings their different skills and abilities together into a single force that maximizes all their strengths and covers their individual weaknesses.
==Overview==
The Path of Command is the path that studies tactics, make plans and guides the Eldar in their war efforts. Those who walk it are referred to as Autarchs. Before becoming Autarchs, these Eldar would have studied in many of the different war temples of [[Khaine]], mastering each path before choosing another. What this means is that Autarchs will have a range of varied skillsets and will be powerful warriors and great leaders.

On the board this allowed you to select all manner of wargear to kit out your Autarch and [[Your dudes|create your own unique leader]] for your host. No two Autarchs needed look alike and the modeling possibilities were endless. Then GW realized that they don't like conversions (or Eldar) and removed all those options. Thanks. For nothing. You can still sort of do this with the rules from legends, but they probably won't ever update those. You can't really expect people to accept those rules in every match you play.

They also make [http://wasted-knights.blogspot.co.uk/2010/06/joys-of-melta.html terrible decisions.]

It should be noted that Autarchs are the favorite 'prey' of the [[Dark Eldar|Delfdar]] [[Succubi]]. Seeing as how the majority of Autarchs are drawn and portrayed as female and that Dark Eldar have a knack for torturing and [[Rape|raping]] their captives in intense BDSM sessions. [[FATAL|One can only imagine....by the Emperor....]]

[[Prince Yriel]] of [[Craftworld Iyanden]] is perhaps the most famous of the Eldar Autarchs and is a swashbuckling Eldar pirate....in sphess! He beat up a bunch of nids though so he has some more balls than most Eldar. Interestingly, Yriel has never walked the Path of Command, but achieved his post of Autarch due to walking the Path of the Mariner, implying that naval command also qualifies for promotion. Oh yeah, he's also apparently gay.

==Equipment==
Autarchs have gone from one of the most flexible HQ's in the game, being able to pick and choose from an equipment list covering pretty much the entire Aspect Wargear list, to one of the [[Fail | least]].

Since [[GW]] decided that equipment options could only include what was on the model and having retired most of the Autarch models, you can now pretty much only select from 3 preset options to go along with a 4++ forcefield and [[Plasma#Plasma Grenade|Plasma Grenades.]]

* Autarch with Swooping hawk wings, [[Mandiblaster]], [[Power sword|power sword]] and [[Fusion Pistol]] (Alright in a smaller game), but don't expect him to get much done in combat.
* Autarch Skyrunner on jetbike, the only one with even a semblance of choice, being able to switch out it's power sword for a [[Fusion Gun]], or the [[Laser Lance]] that everyone actually chooses. The laser lance can be great when taken in a Siam Hann list with the relic to upgrade it to the Novalance.
* Autarch with [[Power weapon#Star Glaive|Star Glaive]]... No shooting other than the 6" grenades. Doesn't even have an official model. Best guess is someone at GW forgot that [[Prince Yriel]] was a thing and assumed his model was an Autarch and gave it a datasheet, and then someone else also added in Yriel. Doesn't really matter though as there's no reason to take this version.

You can get some of the old flexibility back if you are able to use the [https://www.warhammer-community.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/84d4072d.pdf Warhammmer Legends PDF] which just expands the wargear options so you don't lose keywords or synergy, but it's usage is dependant on your opponent agreeing to it and won't be available for tournaments, per GW's suggestion.

==8th Edition==
You Autarch's primary role is to allow <craftworld> units to re-roll hits of 1 within 6 inches and secondly using their Path of Command they can regain command points on a roll of 6. Also hilariously, he can take a reaper cannon and and mark of the Incomparable Hunter and become an efficient character sniper if you do want to use legends stuff.

==9th Edition==

==Dawn of War 2==
An Autarch appears in Dawn of War 2 called Kayleth from [[Alaitoc]]. She is known to be a complete bitch and an absolute whiner. She is [[That Guy]] if he had a vagayjay. Kayleth is also known for her ''dynamic entry'' which involves dropping several plasma grenades to soften up the enemy position before striking down the remains of whoever was dumb enough to get the hell out of ground zero. She is also a glass cannon, dishing out plenty of pain but cannot take the equivalent amount of damage in turn. She might be tsundere with [[Ronahn]], but Ronahn's big/twin/younger sister [[Taldeer]] might contend with the relationship. She can also kill or, more likely, be killed by, [[Kaptin Bluddflagg]].

==Gallery==

<gallery>
99070104003 ELDARAUTARCH01.webp|A Saim-Hann Autarch wearing fabulous Swooping Hawk wings.
EldarAutarchBanshee.jpg.jpg|An Alaitoc Autarch with a Banshee Mask & Swooping Hawk Wings, ready for a night out on the town.
GreenAutarch.jpg.jpg|A Biel-Tan Autarch Miniature with a Fusion Gun, Jump Generator & Mandiblasters.
AutarchJetbike.jpg|A helmetless Saim-Hann Autarch mounted on an Eldar Jetbike with a Laser Lance.
New Autarch.jpg|A new Autarch revealed by GW in December, 2021. At last the prayers were answered.
</gallery>

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Xenos]]
[[Category:Eldar]]
[[Category:Craftworld Eldar]]

{{Eldar-Forces}}

Aurox Armoured Transport

2023-06-09T21:57:23Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:Argoran-Feb03-Content1hqw.jpg|400px|right|thumb|Ahoy! It's an Imperial Guard [[Rhino]]!]]

The '''Aurox''' is a transport vehicle used during the [[Great Crusade]] and the [[Horus Heresy]] by the [[Solar Auxilia]] and the <s>Imperial Guard</s> IMPERIAL ARMY. Both it and its tank variant (see below) are blatant nods to the bygone days of 40k's past when, prior to getting their own vehicle lines, the Imperial Army just used Rhinos and Predators, that probably makes the Dracosan their equivalent of a Land Raider... Actually, the Imperial Army had tons of Land Raiders. It was even better in Rogue Trader, though, as the Army and later Guard spammed Predators and used squadrons of Land Raider Proteus instead of Leman Russ tanks. In any case, the army changing from cheap Rhinos and Predators to clearly more complex and therefore probably more expensive equivalents is too dumb to stomach BUT they look cool so let us just enjoy.

==Overview==
Basically a [[Rhino]] stripped of all the advanced tech and fancy bits, the Aurox served the Imperial Army as the Chimera's shittier brother, boasting only a [[Heavy Stubber]] for weaponry, yet with a [[Wat|smaller]] transport capacity than the Chimera. Essentially, the Aurox is meant to be an actual APC whereas the Chimera is more of an IFV, yet GW has forgotten to give it the benefits of an APC.

The Aurox's job description as a light APC is probably a much needed grace for the Imperial Army in the 31st Millennium as the only APCs available comes in ECKS BAWKS HUEG [[METAL BAWKSES]] such as the [[Gorgon Armored Assault Transport]] and the [[CRASSUS ARMORED ASSAULT TRANSPORT]]. Sure there is the [[Hades Breaching Drill]], but that is for a very specific niche. The all-rounder of the Aurox is essential for those who want to transport a large amount of [[Infantry Squad|redshirts]] safely without wasting a lot of points.

==Carnodon==

[[File:Carnodon.jpg|400px|right|thumb|Ahoy! It's an Imperial Guard [[Predator]]!]]

The Predator Battle Tank of the [[Imperial Army]]. The Carnodon was an extremely versatile tank that could mount a wide variety of weapons. You want it to be a dedicated tank destroyer? You can have two [[Lascannon]] sponsons and a twin-linked [[Lascannon]] turret for quadruple the fun. You want it to devastate [[MEQ]]s? Just swap the Lascannons with [[Autocannon|Autocannons]] and [[Volkite]]s and your opponent would roll for [[Anal circumference]] as his troops will be facing a barrage of bullets and martian death rays. The only downside is that it doesn't have a hull mounted weapon like the Leman Russ, or a [[Battle Cannon]].

Tl;dr: It's the Malcador to the Aurox's Dracosan or Baby's First Malcador.

===Overview===
The Carnodon is a versatile medium battle tank (or perhaps light, going by armament) which acted as the linchpin for many of the storied successes of the Imperial Army during the [[Great Crusade]]. As a premier mobile fire platform, it was regularly adapted to combat a wide variety of foes and respond to any number of battlefield conditions. During the early years of the Great Crusade, it rapidly became a byword for conquest amongst the Expeditionary fleets, a legacy which led to the production of the dedicated Imperial battle tanks of latter-days.

As the Crusade moved ever outwards and supply of the Aurox chassis peaked, it is thought that many Carnodon tanks entered a strategic reserve and were distributed to Crusade muster worlds behind the front lines; with over two hundred thousand examples thought to have been stored pending secondary mobilization in the warrens under the world of [[Tallarn]] alone.

==So where did they go?==
Given how prevalent the Aurox and Carnodon tanks were during the Great Crusade, their apparent complete absence in 40k is particularly noteworthy, as well as without explanation.

The most obvious answer to assume would be that the Adeptus Mechanicus just forgot or lost the STCs for these tanks at some point. However, the problem with that is that there are plenty of ''far'' rarer vehicles from the Crusade era that still see use in the 41st Millennium, STC or no STC. In the case of what's supposed to be the ''standard APC and MBT'' of the Imperial Army, tanks that are likely mass-produced on ''dozens'' of Forge Worlds (and every other planet of Civilized World or greater status), if lost STCs was the only problem with them, it stands to reason that there would still be plenty of surviving Aurox and Carnodon tanks from those days still in service.

Another possible answer is that the Aurox and Carnodon tanks are still being used, just not in the current scope of most stories. Remember the Imperial army was for all intents and purposes a garrison force. IE, they kept the local population from rising up in rebellion until the upgrades brought by the Imperium made them wonder why they fought against the Imperium instead of jumping at the chance to join. Chances are that these vehicles are used by the PDF. By the time the Imperium sends forces to retake or fight for a planet, the stocks of Aurox and Carnodons have been depleted and replaced with Chimera's and Leman Russ tanks.

The other, more likely reason for the disappearance of the Aurox and Carnodon is that they were simply mothballed in favor of the more cost-effective [[Chimera Transport|Chimera]] and [[Leman Russ Battle Tank|Leman Russ]] respectively. This is confirmed by the Carnodon's 40k rules, with the opening of the [[Great Rift]] compelling Mars to recommission the Carnadon STC for mass production once again, although the Aurox was left in the mothball bin. Likely because the more modern Chimera serves the same role while having better armament, transport capacity, and built in vox casters, while the Carnodon can serve as a lighter tank than the standard Russ, which does support the theory that they've been mostly handed down to PDFs since their tanks are generally depicted as being less armed and armored than guard standard.

As to why the Carnodon would be deployed against Chaos, that is probably because Chaos generally lacks significant tank and artillery support but had tons of mooks and daemons. So, a horde of light tanks would be very useful against them.

In the case of the Carnadon, it should be noted that it's not a Battle Tank, it's a Medium Tank (like how the Malcador is a Heavy Tank) or perhaps a light tank by armament being used as a medium tank by role. Thus it was likely replaced due to the Leman Russ acting as a better version of both.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Imperial]]
[[Category:Imperial Guard]]
[[Category:Chaos]]
[[Category:Lost and the Damned]]
[[Category:Vehicles]]
{{Solar Auxilia}}
{{Imperial-Guard}}

{{40k-Imperial-Vehicles}}

Eldar Light Cruiser

2023-06-09T21:56:39Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

The Light Cruisers from the [[Eldar]] are fast glass cannons that rely on their Holofields for their enemies to miss their shots, like all Eldar vessels. Eldar Light Cruisers are usually operated by the [[Eldar Corsairs]] due to, in part, a lack of resources to maintain the esoteric [[Wraithbone]] structures of their [[Craftworld]] cousins. As such, these Light Cruisers are constructed from materials ''other'' than Wraithbone.

==Class==
===Ordnance-boat===
====Solaris====
[[File:14414407_f1024.jpg|300px|right|thumb|Now, if only those guns were [[Rape|turreted]]...]]
The 'close-range' brawler of Eldar Light Cruisers. The Solaris is a Broadside capable line ship of the Eldar Corsairs, since its [[Heavy Starcannon]]s are the main armament, which can be granted a wider arc with the Runic Targetting special orders and launch bays can deploy [[Darkstar Fighter]]s and [[Eagle Bomber]]s in any direction.

Unfortunately for many captains, it is easily mistaken for the Aurora class and this has led to many tactical mistakes. It has the typical large solar sail at the rear and was first identified by the Imperium during anti-pirate operations in the Yurol Nebula.

The high speed of the Solaris, coupled with its high strength Eldar Weapons Batteries (with limited traverse similar to the Aurora) allowed them to battle with Imperial escorts within the asteroid belt of the Arikar System. Finding themselves outgunned, the Imperial escorts retreated to the main fleet and the plan changed to a blockade of the Arikar system, but the speed of the Solaris vessels made this blockade impossible to maintain and after an ineffective year the blockade was lifted and the Soul Reavers are still at large in the Yurol Nebula.

It is armed with 1 Launch Bay carrying [[Darkstar Fighter]]s and [[Eagle Bomber]]s and 6 [[Heavy Starcannon|Starcannon Artillery.]]

*'''Length:''' 3.4km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 14 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' 9,100 crew, including 3,000 pilots and support staff; approx
*'''Acceleration:''' 8.5 gravities maximum sustainable acceleration

===Lance-boat===
====Aurora====
[[File:14414396_f1024.jpg|300px|right|thumb|Sure our armor is made out of tissue-paper...''if you could hit us''...]]
The Aurora is the armour-piercing, [[bullshit|perfect accuracy]] beam vessel for the Aeldari Corsairs.

Little is known about the cruiser other than it has the normal characteristics of an Eldar vessel, light armour, Holofields, high speed and heavy weaponry. It is said to have the speed of an escort but the weapons of a cruiser. They are armed with Eldar [[Torpedo|Torpedoes]] and [[Pulsar Lance]]s but they are on a very limited traverse.

In one battle many Aurora class ships fought alongside Imperial forces, the alliance between the Imperium and Eldar pirate forces being formed after the Battle of Gethsemane. Within the Graildark Nebula, the combined Imperial and Eldar fleet encountered a fleeing Chaos fleet. The Eldar performed several flanking manoeuvres, leaving the Imperials unsure as to their allegiance, but once the first shots were fired the Eldar returned and slammed into the side and rear of the Chaos fleet. Several other Eldar ships maintained a perimeter to prevent any Chaos ships from escaping and the fleet was wiped out against the massed guns of the Imperial fleet and the high-speed strafing runs of the Eldar.

It is armed with 2 [[Pulsar Lance]] Beam and 4 [[Torpedo]] Launchers.

*'''Length:''' 3.5km; approx
*'''Mass:''' 13.7 megatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' 8,500 crew; approx
*'''Acceleration:''' 8.5 gravities maximum sustainable acceleration

==In Battlefleet Gothic: Armada 1 & 2==

The Light Cruisers of the Eldar Corsairs begin to show some of the significant hull point penalties they take in return for their Holofields and impressive engines, having only 2/3rds of the hit points of an Imperial or Chaos Light Cruiser, though travelling significantly faster.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Battlefleet Gothic]]
[[Category:Xenos]]
[[Category:Eldar]]
[[Category:Craftworld Eldar]]
[[Category:Eldar Space Fleet]]
[[Category:Vehicles]]
[[Category:Ships]]

{{40k-Eldar-Ships}}

Aurora Chapter

2023-06-09T21:56:00Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

{{Infobox Spess Mahreen Chapter
|Name = Aurora Chapter
|Heraldry = [[File:Aurora Livery.jpg]]
|Battle Cry = "I Shall Defend!"
|Number =
|Founding = [[Second Founding]]
|Successors of = [[Ultramarines]]
|Successor Chapters = Unknown
|Chapter Master = Unknown
|Primarch = [[Roboute Guilliman]]
|Homeworld = Firestorm
|Specialty = Massive Armored Assaults, Having more tanks than you
|Strength = Unknown, Assumed full strength, Pissing off other chapters
|Allegiance = [[Imperium]]
|Colours = Green
}}
[[File:Aurora_Marine.png|left|thumb|Not pictured: their tanks.]]
The Aurora Chapter is one of the many successor Chapters of the [[Ultramarines]] produced during the Second Founding; they specialize in massed armored assaults, and are reputed to have more Land Raiders and Predators than any other Chapter in the Imperium. They have been involved in a number of campaigns, in recent note the '''Zeist Campaign''' against the Tau. Having more tanks than God requires having a sufficient source of parts and ammunition, and so the Aurora Chapter has their home world of Firestorm, which is a Forgeworld so capable it can rival the output of several high profile Mechanicus worlds combined. In effect, the planet can be considered the Chapter's forge, with a large percentage of its output diverted to supplying the Chapter. Since they are technically only supposed to have a thousand marines...who is using the shiny shit? Either they have waaaaay more marines than they should, or they are using serfs to man their cool stuff. Both of which are reasonable. Or their armored crews are considered part of the armory and so their numbers are not limited by the Codex Astartes. Or maybe they have a shit ton of Tech-Marines given their recruiting world is a freaking Forge World (also not limited by the Codex).

According to [[Forge World|Forge World's]] [[Horus Heresy]] books, they are likely to be descended from the Ultramarines' 4th Chapter, the "Aurorans". It's noted that even during the Great Crusade, they had five times as many armored vehicles as a typical Chapter in the Legiones Astartes (and keep in mind that this was when the Iron Hands were still at full strength and would also be skewing the numbers).

They are mentioned as having a feud with the [[Knights of the Raven]] chapter, after having taken unacceptable losses while fighting alongside them; this was further exacerbated when the Aurora Chapter accused the Knights of the Raven of cultivating superstitious heresy on their own homeworld of Coralax ''(though this seems absurd since there are so many [[Mortifactors|chapters]] [[White Scars|with]] [[Storm Wardens|feudal]]/[[Space Wolves|feral]] backgrounds, that it seems a bit petty that any other chapter would care)'', when the Knights took insult at the obviously inflammatory remarks, the two chapters came to blows. The issue was only resolved when [[Marneus Calgar]] stepped in and [[What|quietly mentioned]] that the Knights of the Raven should go on a penitent crusade, [[Butthurt|which they did]]. While this implies that the Aurora Chapter might have been right, one must consider that they also got into a similar fight with the the [[Emperor's Spears]]. So maybe the Aurora Chapter are just a bunch of whiny pricks.
[[File:Aurora Chapter Predator Destructor.jpg|200px|left|thumb|Imagine this, times about 40000]]

==Cool Shit==
Once upon a time, the tread heads lost a beloved Land Raider in the xenos/heretic infested [[Deathwatch (RPG)|Jericho Reach]]. The [[Deathwatch]] recovered the tank, but found it to be beyond repair; however, knowing the Aurora Chapter had a massive piercing hard-on for their tanks, they decided to do their battle-brothers a solid by taking its main axle and reforging it into a thunder hammer by the name of '''Remembrance'''. It was thought that doing this would allow the destroyed machine to avenge its destruction, and every marine that has wielded the weapon in battle swears it strikes with the force of a tank, which is [[Awesome]].

There is also some discrepancy about the chapter's numbers. In 3rd Edition, they were cited as having over a thousand predator tanks alongside the rest of their sizable tank force; however, in 4th edition and later this is scaled back to more Predators and Land Raiders than three chapters combined (the Heresy Era Aurorans had more than ''five'' times that of a normal chapter). So, if you take the current disposition of the Ultramarines as an approximation of a "normal chapter", that gives the Aurorans somewhere between 75 and 125 Predators and 30 and 50 Land Raiders.

Despite their predilection for massed tank combat alongside their typical battle contingents, they aren't hinted at being massively divergent from the Codex Astartes, which is normal - the Codex organisation doesn't have listed numbers of vehicle drivers in their armouries; many are assigned as required from the 6th or 7th Tactical Reserves and likely return to their company duties when their vehicle is not selected for a mission. Some individuals may exist permanently attached to the chapter's armoury and come to specialise in armoured operations and are commonly associated with larger or rarer vehicles. The Aurorans may indeed have more of these specialists than any other chapter commensurate to their greater number of vehicles. In the 5th Edition codex, Antaro Chronus was said to have command of fifty brother-marines, though this likely includes both the permanent armoury staff and transitory vehicle operators when they are called to ride to war. Using the three times rule, we can extrapolate that the Aurora Chapter have around 150 vehicle operators in various positions around the companies and from the armoury itself, meaning they may have more tanks than drivers.

Alternatively, ''(though there is no evidence to support this whatsoever since no other Codex Chapter does this)'' Their large vehicle pool could be maintained by either having their serfs man the tanks or perhaps using aspirants for it. The Aurorans would no doubt desire aspirants who are talented in armored warfare. If so, this may well be one of the most effective Chapters as they would be capable of leveling Great Crusade level armored support in addition with fielding all of their Space Marines without wasting any crewing vehicles (other than rare ones like Land Raiders). If not, then they are among the most moronic of Chapters as the whole reason Predators and such are used instead of Leman Russ tanks is that the Space Marines are practically walking vehicles anyway and something fast to provide support around the battlefield wherever needed is what the Space Marines most often require. Although given that Aspirants are children, this idea would mean their tanks are being driven by a bunch of boys not old enough to shave. Which is uh...weird even for 40k. Well, weird in that they're not lobotomized child robot-things wired into the machine as living CPUs. So, weird for not being horrific as fuck.

More realistically, since Astartes already generally rely on small elite surgical strikes rather than thundering vehicle formations, having flexible vehicles with small crews that can help fill in the Devastator (and to a lesser extent Tactical) role. In all likelihood, these guys keep many of their vehicles stored as spares and deploy different amounts of them depending on the need and use for them, which is how most chapters operate anyway. Orbital assets, scouts, and fast attack elements would make it a priority to target anti-armor forces (and so would the vehicles themselves), which they kind of already do since small arms tend not to bother Astartes too much, and they tend to have valuable goodies they can't really afford to replace. The problem with this idea (that they're just maintained and packaged out like normal Chapters) is that it ''nullifies their specialty'' and so is probably incorrect. Since they have a specialty in armored warfare and using huge numbers of tanks.

==Daily Routine==
'''04:00 - Wake up:''' The Aurora Chapter awaken, climbing out of their tanks and land raiders. The Chapter Master usually gets a Land Raider with the other leaders, with veterans and specialized marines climbing out of Predators. Standard battle brothers will climb from their Vindicators, while scouts and neophytes worm their way out of the Rhinos. Some women will be seen sneaking out of the fortress-monastery.

'''04:30 - Morning Prayer:''' The Aurora Chapter pray to the Emperor and the Omnissiah. The image they worship is a giant effigy of the Emperor with a tank cannon on his arm and a HECK ton of bionics.

'''05:00 - Tank Maintenance:''' The Techmarines and all other battle brothers polish and repair any damaged or slightly dirty tanks they possess. Any Marine who fails in this task must do chores for the Techmarines for a week.

'''06:00 - Morning Firing Rites:''' The Aurora Chapter fire tank rounds at cut-outs and remote control combat bikes. The chapter serfs wonder how in the Emperor's name they managed to fit a battle tank into a firing range designed for infantry only.

'''08:00 - Morning Battle Practice:''' Completing their marksmanship practice, the Aurora Chapter proceeds to use their tanks in combat, simulating battles against the orks, Tyranids, Tau, and Heretics. Yelling "'''DRIVE ME CLOSER! I WANT TO HIT THEM WITH MY SWORD!'''" whilst swinging a chainsword at battle servitors is required. Using any other weapon will result in cooking duty for a week.

'''09:30 - Morning Meal:''' The Aurora Chapter proceed to cook food on their now sizzling hot tank barrels. Special recognition is given to the marine who can eat the fastest and return to his respective tank.

'''10:00 - Tactical indoctrination:''' The Aurora Chapter return to the fortress monastery to study the subject of tanks. Kursk and Villers-Bretonneux are frequent topics of study, whilst ancient holosims such as "War Thunder", and "Steel Beasts" are used to demonstrate the effectiveness of tanks, and the miniature war-game "Team Yankee" is used by command staff.

'''12:00 - Afternoon Meal:''' The Aurora Chapter cease their studies to eat a light meal. The chapter serfs are required to cook all hot food with pans made from the melted down metal of enemy tanks.

'''13:00 - Afternoon Battle Practice:''' The Aurora chapter uses servitors to pilot enemy tanks they managed to purchase off the [[Blood Ravens|kleptomaniacs]], as they fire on and destroy them to simulate an armored conflict. Driving in neat lines en masse is the standard tactic. The Aurora Chapter always make sure to check their inventory before allowing the Blood Ravens to leave.

'''15:00 - Afternoon Firing Rites:''' The Aurora Chapter tearfully step out of their tanks in order to hone their skills with small arms. However, their tears prevent them from firing accurately, and almost always miss their targets.

'''18:00 - Evening Firing Rites:''' The Aurora Chapter get fed up, and open the special gates, allowing Land Raiders onto the firing range. They cheer and laugh as the pathetic cutout targets are destroyed by magnificent rays of lascannon fire. The serfs who aren't busy elsewhere get the answer to how the tanks get onto the firing range.

'''19:00 - Evening Feast:''' The Aurora Chapter Return to their great hall, where they feast on fine food and drink, happy for another productive day's work. Younger marines look up in awe at the recognition that some of the tank drivers receive in the chapter, inspiring them to do better.

'''20:00 - Evening Prayer:''' The Aurora Chapter pray and give thanks to the Emperor/Omnissiah for another productive day's work. During this time, the Techmarines will repair any damage to the tanks.

'''21:00 - Tank Construction:''' Techmarines instruct younger and less experienced marines in tank maintenance, showing them the finer details of the subject by helping them build small models. Many battle brothers take it up as a hobby, in order to better understand armored vehicles and have something to do.

'''23:00 - Free time:''' The Aurora Chapter pimps out their best Land Raiders and drive into the nearest Adeptas Sororitas convent. Special recognition is given to the marines that manage to get a Sister to accept a ride on their Land Raider.

'''01:00 - Bedtime:''' Some Sisters are returned from the tank to the convent, and the chapter park their tanks. the Chapter proceeds to go to sleep in their respective tanks.

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Aurora Miniature.webp
File:Aurora Primaris.jpg
</gallery>

{{Marines-Official}}

Aun'Va

2023-06-09T21:55:15Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

{{Topquote|Let none doubt that the [[Tau]] Empire will bring unity to all -- let none doubt that now is our time. Forward, for the Greater Good!|Aun'Va, Supreme [[Ethereal]] of the [[Tau]] Empire.}}
{{Topquote|Kill yourself.|Aun'Va after [[Phil Kelly|retcons]].}}

'''Aun'Va''' (full name Aun'o'T'au'Acaya'Va'Denta) is the Tau Ethereal Supreme and Master of the Undying Spirit, and occupies the position of maximum power within the Tau Empire. He's the face of the Tau for their people, and one of the most proactive individuals in the recent expansion of the Tau Empire, pushing for more and more Spheres of Expansion to continue the growth of their empire, despite the numerous problems that have appeared during his mandate. He's also notable for being retconned into a cartoonishly evil villain who hates humanity and outright demands for his underlings to kill themselves when they displease him (yes, seriously, just read ''Farsight: Crisis of Faith'' for the scene). He has recently died during the war for Mu'gulath Bay at the hands of an imperial assassin, and so the Ethereal High Council now uses an AI based on his personality alongside holograms and fake broadcasts to make the Tau think he's still around.

=Rise to power and service record=
Aun'Va rose to the position of Ethereal Supreme when his predecessor, Aun'Wei, decided he was too old to continue and resigned, nominating the promising Aun'Va to the job. Since then, the ethereal has become a beacon for the Tau race, almost as a religious figure. This, alongside his figurine and official art representations, has granted him the nickname of Tau Pope in the minds of [[neckbeards]]. Seriously, we've never seen him standing up, he's always sitting in his [[Hover Chair|floating chair,]] surrounded by his [[Ethereal Guard|personal guard.]] However, you should not make the mistake of thinking of him as a lazy grandpa. He's been constantly in charge of the policies of the empire for decades now (and considering Tau's short lifespan, that's a lot), both negotiating and organizing Tau society and at the head of many military campaigns. He was the one in charge of the war against the xeno species known as the [[Reek|Noisome Reek]], which would become one of the most successful campaigns of the Tau, though to be fair, the Reek are the punching bag of the area, so that's not difficult. Using his ability for speeches and Ethereal "coercion powers", Aun'Va sent the Tau [[Fire Caste]] into a bloody frenzy rage, catching their enemies completely off guard and guaranteeing victory.

One of the most interesting things happening during his regime was the discovery of the [[Farsight Enclaves]], with the legendary Commander [[Farsight]] at the head of this splinter of the Tau Empire. This discovery threatened to break the unity of the Fire Caste, the full military Tau army and the faith of the population in the reign of the Ethereals in general. Aun'Va was the one who had to deal with subverting this, twisting the previously untouchable memory of Farsight into a horrible traitor that doesn't deserve to be praised in any way. For this, he enacted ''damnatio memoriae'' against him, slowly erasing Farsight from Tau historical records through multiple means: destroying his monuments, downplaying his victories or straight up deleting them from Tau records, isolating the Farsight Enclaves from any contact with the Empire... He was even in charge of convincing Commander [[Shadowsun]] that her brother-in-arms had defected and now was the biggest traitor ever, and since then Shadowsun usually accompanies Aun'Va to every one of his campaigns. Though this effort wasn't fully able to delete him from the collective memory and respect of Tau society (and contacts with the Enclaves continue, though secretly and without the ethereals' permission or knowledge), he managed to effectively avoid a major fracture of the Tau Empire, possibly even a civil war.

=The Third Sphere of Expansion=
After fighting the Farsight Enclaves and the Great War of Confederation (a combined invasion of Tyranids and Orks that almost put an end to the Tau Empire), the Tau Military was in a surprisingly good position: their armies were replete with hardened veterans and quickly recovering. While their military technology had advanced quite a lot to counter the tyranids and the ork WAAAGH, they needed a morale boost after all of those efforts, as the orks and [[Hive Fleet Gorgon]] had weakened the defensive capabilities of many planets. Thus, Aun'Va decided to launch the Third Sphere of Expansion in 997.M41, with Commander Shadowsun and himself at the front. The idea was to advance throughout the Damocles Gulf taking advantage of the weakness of their enemies, with the Imperium having to deal with many other threats elsewhere. Shadowsun's strategy of attacking with hit and run tactics and then swiftly concentrating her troops to deal a heavy blow was quite successful, and it quickly seemed that a good chunk of the Damocles Gulf was now in Tau hands. Aun'Va was present during many of the sieges of the important planets in the area, to improve the morale of the Tau troops.

However, the [[Imperium]] quickly mounted a counteroffensive, way sooner than the Tau High Command thought it would come. However, Shadowsun had a contingency plan for this, and managed to concentrate the efforts of many of the Space marine Chapters sent to the war in a relatively unimportant area of space. Thanks to this ruse, the rest of the Tau forces managed to conquer hundreds of Imperial planets, doubling the size of their empire, while also managing to troll Cato Sicarius. To celebrate this, the Ethereals decided to broadcast their victories to everyone that could receive the message, both pissing off the Imperial forces to an absurd point of rage, and making some minor xenos species shit their pants, having heard of Humanity's [[RAGE]] when scorned. This was unnoticed by the Tau, though, so drunk they were at their current rate of victories.

[[File:Aun'Va_is_Fucked_Three_Ways_to_Sunday.png|400px|thumb|right|Aun'Va and the Culexus, right before [[RIP AND TEAR|all hell broke loose]] [[derp|(why does he look like he's half asleep, though?]])]]

During this, a massive Imperial counterattack was organized, alongside an order for the Officio Assassinorum to hunt down and kill the leaders of the Tau main force. Aun'Va was, at the time, coming back to the front after one of his speeches, and was stuck on the planet of Agrellan, now called Mu'gulath Bay. An Execution Force consisting of a [[Callidus]], [[Eversor]], [[Vindicare]] and [[Culexus]] assassin was dispatched to the planet. As a distraction, an Imperial task force was sent there as well to occupy the Tau forces on the planet. Lucky for them, they managed to isolate the Tau forces by trapping them under a bunker, and then the assassin Execution Force attacked. [[Bullshit|And whereas the Callidus, the Eversor and the Vindicare were all killed without completing their missions because...reasons]], the blank abilities of the Culexus assassin meant that he went undetected through the Tau lines, allowing them to kill the ethereal's guard and, in a moment of sweet revenge for Mankind, [[grimdark|butcher the ethereal in a horrifying way, while the Tau pope tried to run in terror from the monster that hunted him]]. This also means the first death of a named character in decades. After that was over, the Imperium decided to put the icing on the cake and throw an [[Exterminatus]] bomb on the planet, leaving no doubt on the Ethereal's death. [[derp|Then again, why bother with the assassins if you're just going to blow up the planet anyway?]] Pragmatism with the Imperium has always fallen short but also shows they do not fuck around. Finally, how many times a named character in fiction survives a planet blowing up is ridiculous so gotta make double sure that the dead stay dead. No bullshit medicine that can revive the dead no bullshit escape from Exterminatus.

The death of Aun'Va was devastating for the Tau's war efforts. The death of an Ethereal usually results in a massive drop in morale, so just imagine what the death of the main ethereal could do. The Third Sphere of Expansion ground to a halt, and many planets begun falling back into Imperial hands. Shadowsun could do little after the Ethereal's death, and she was busy preparing her troops against Farsight anyway, so the campaign was considered over. In theory it counts as a Tau victory because they have more planets now than when they started, but the Tau Empire is on shaky ground now.

=The Aftermath of Aun'Va's Death=
With the murder of the leader of all Tau, the Ethereal High Council decided to hide this from the population by creating multiple holograms and programmed transmissions to fake his survival to the public, aided by an AI based on a backed-up copy of Aun'Va's mind made before his death. To facilitate this facade, he is now permanently accompanied by his honour guard (though this is no different from any other point in the perspective of the wargame) and the citizens are now forbidden from even touching the floating pope chair lest they break something. There's an argument to be had whether that was a good decision or not (just imagine one hologram malfunctioning during a speech, imagine the chaos that could bring), but then again, just "retiring and replacing him" could bring suspicions on the coincidental timing of the whole affair, especially after the most successful military campaign the Tau have had in a while.

There's also the problem of the Ethereals' poor leadership choices and decisions after Aun'Va's death. Very soon after the end of the 3rd Sphere of Expansion they declared a 4th one... [[fail|and it was immediately stopped by the opening of the]] [[Great Rift]]. After receiving the news that a portion of it managed to survive its unscheduled trip through the Warp, the ethereals inmediately organized another sphere of expansion to link up with it... only to run straight into [[Mortarion]]'s [[Death Guard]], [[rape|with very predictable results]]. Considering the current dangers that the galaxy presents after the Cicatrix Maledictum's birth, the lack of knowledge of Chaos (more specifically, what it is and how to prevent it) could imperil the survival of taukind. Not to mention that the Death Guard's forces are still threatening the existence of the Tau after losing against [[Roboute Guilliman]] in the [[Plague Wars]], their plans to invade T'au itself through the warp rift made by the Fourth Sphere's exit from the Warp, and the possible corruption of the Fourth Sphere itself. And that's not counting the Tyranid threat still around, more and more necron tombs waking up around Tau territory, Ultramar ready to fight again after their [[Roboute Guilliman|Spiritual Liege]] came back to life and Farsight still around threatening to break Tau society.

Whether or not the Tau Empire can survive without Aun'Va's leadership is a matter of <s>plot armour</s> the strength and confidence of the Tau in the Greater Good. But really, the blueberries finally got the assraping they've been begging for since their introduction to the setting. Worse, the AI duplicate of Aun'Va lacks the uncanny charisma possessed by the real one, which has led to at least one major military official questioning "his" orders and later joining Farsight's forces. It may be only a matter of time before the truth of Aun'Va's death leaks out, which can only have catastrophic consequences.

For those of you paying attention; yes, this does mean the blue weeaboo space communists are, in fact, led by the bastard child of a vocaloid and Lenin (the dead one they keep on display).

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Xenos]]
[[Category:Tau]]

{{Tau-Characters}}

Aun'Shi

2023-06-09T21:54:34Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:Aunshi6.jpg|thumbnail|right|500px|Walk softly, and carry a big stick. Also, put two giant blades on either side of that stick and gut people with them.]]

'''Aun'Shi''' is a [[Tau]] [[Ethereal]], the philospher-warrior-monks who lead the Tau Empire down the [[Greater Good|path of enlightenment]] (or at least that's what ''they'' think of it as). His name literally means "victory". Alongside just being generally charismatic, Aun'Shi has mastered the art of duelling with the honour blade, that weird two-bladed staff that the Ethereals carry. He uses it to slaughter Orks by the WAAAGH!!! load. Even though Tau are physically inferior to humans (not making this up, weaker, more fragile, and greatly inferior reflexes). So, he achieves physical feats nearly impossible for a human despite lacking the physical ability to do so. Oh well, at least he manages to still be a pretty awesome guy.

==History==
Aun'Shi was on his last tour of 'duty' before retiring to a paradise world when he was sent to bolster/train the defenders of a relatively new colony named Kel'tyr, which was founded on a planet infested with [[Feral Orks]]. Usually not a good idea, but the Tau had been doing well enough negotiating with the Orks with their [[Burst cannon]]s and [[railgun]]s.

Unfortunately, as he was completing his tour of duty in the Fio'Vash, a horde of Orks surrounded the compound, besieging the Tau, and beheading their leader. As the Fire Caste began to run around like headless chickens with the death of the their leader, Aun'Shi proved himself to be stone-cold, leaping into action and splitting the Ork Nob (later retconned to be a Warboss) in half from scalp to groin, planting his honour blade between the two halves (later changed to stopping just above the ground as the Warboss fell to pieces because that's more weeb). This rallied the defenders and they began to throw the Orks back, however the Ork Hordes also rallied and began to send wave after wave of Boyz at the compound. Aun'shi took complete command of the defenders, dispatching stealth suits and a member of the Kor to tell everyone at the capital they were being overrun, while running from point to point to fight where he was most needed. Any part where the Tau line was faltering he was there, cutting Orks to pieces by the dozen and then he was gone again, his assault was so furious that eventually the Orks lost the benefit of mob rule and began to fear getting near him. Despite his defence however, the Orks were still steadily winning the fight and forcing the Tau back, eventually making them retreat to an inner perimeter, and then to the inner shrine. From here they took on the Ork's final assault as they charged through the hail of gunfire towards the last 50 fire warriors, before reaching the walls and literally tearing through them in order to reach their foes in a wave that would've annihilated the Tau.

Fortunately the Tau reinforcements arrived, showing up just in time to save Aun'Shi and his forces from death and quickly destroyed the Ork horde. Unfortunately the Ethereals were so impressed by Aun'Shi's performance that they cancelled his retirement and sent him to spend his remaining years leading fresh expeditions to expand the Tau empire. Assholes.

This awesome has been retconned to Aun'shi standing in a doorway protecting civilians with his pointy stick and forcing Orks to run through said doorway (ignoring the fact that said Orks could have just broken through the walls, which is something they explicitly did in the original version). In the retconned versions when a relief force finally arrived at the besieged compound, they found the Orkz scattered to the winds, piles of Greenskin corpses choking the entrance to the last standing building where Aun'Shi stood in the doorway, his blade soaked in ichor and gore as the last few surviving civilians huddled behind him, because if you're going to retcon the shit out of how the battle went you might as well make him a [[Mary Sue]] while you're at it. Additionally, the fact that he was protecting scared civilians was just a cheap trick from bad authors attempting to harvest [[Mary Sue|Good Guy Points]] and make him seem cooler. He still gets his retirement shitcanned though, this time specifically by [[Aun'Va]] since this was when writers really started shitting on him.

What's quite interesting to note, is that he is is the '''one''' Ethereal that [[Farsight]] actually likes. This is because while all the other Ethereals looked at his achievements and said "Nice work O'Shovah but uh... you really shouldn't be getting that close, that's not how we roll." he went "Say, I heard you like killing Orks. That's awesome! Let me teach you how to kill Orks better!". Seriously, it's mentioned in the Phil Kelly books...[[Phil Kelly|oh right]]. It's even stated in the 8th ed Codex that the warriors of the Enclaves are usually hostile to Ethereals, but show great respect for Aun'Shi.

In the short story 'Aun'Shi' we get perhaps the greatest bullshit to ever be pulled on Aun'shi. He's currently being held captive by the [[Dark Eldar]]. After being sent out to retake the Farsight Enclaves for the Tau Empire he made a short stop at Arthas Moloc to 'better understand Farsight' and ended up in captivity due to arriving at a webway gate the Tau were unknowingly thawing out. He would be captured and blackmailed to fight in [[Commorragh]], which is fucking retarded, as since when do the Deldar need a reason to commit brutal Cock-And-Ball torture to get what they want?

Apparently he was so awesome that on his own he elevated his captor from a nobody, to one who was walking side-by-side with the higher echelons of Dark Eldar society. Everyone who went to the arena came to see him and only him because they all loved him so much, because the writer forgot that the Deldar are even more space racist than their Eldar cousins and usually only Deldar gladiators like Lelith Heraspex get the benefit of not being seen as animals by Deldar society. It's outright stated if he were to ever die or leave his captor, she would lose so much face that it would be better off for her to leave the city for good. The story ends with him realizing it's impossible to leave or to be rescued, so he's gone for good unless other authors outright ignore it.

Given the quality of writing in the story that might end up being what happens, since Braden Campbell was too busy sucking off Aun'Shi to give what he was writing much thought. The inclusion of the schism in the T'au empire is an interesting inclusion, with many inside it wondering if Farsight should be followed instead of the Ethereals, but Braden [[FAIL|fails]] to do anything with it. [[Derp|It also features Tau who don't recognize Aun'Shi to be a fucking Ethereal, thinking he was a Water Caste member for some fucking reason.]] It's close to [[C.S. Goto]]'s works in terms of writing and with any luck it'll be ignored.

In what can only be surmised as delicious, Lexicanum does not currently recognize Mr. Campbell's utter lack of writing abilities and only mentions that he was sent to look into the Farsight Enclaves.

==Tabletop==
Aun'Shi is one of two Tau units that you actually want to be in an assault (the other being [[Farsight|Commander Farsight]]). He brings both his interesting melee style and a re-rollable 4++ Invulnerable Save, alongside an Ethereal's massive Bubble of Buffs. However he's not as crunchy as literally any other tau character, and more just a [[fluff|fluffy]] character to be used if you've got points to sink on an Ethereal that might need to be more survivable. I wouldn't skip him over, but use him for casual play at most.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Xenos]]
[[Category:Tau]]

{{Tau-Characters}}

Attilan Rough Riders

2023-06-09T21:53:41Z

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[[File:Atillan Rough Rider.jpg|300px|thumb|right|If you ever have the misfortune to be charged by Rough Riders, a lance pointed center mass at your upper torso will usually be the last thing you ever see.]]
{{Topquote|I would say that was the cavalry, but... I've never seen a line of horses crash into the battlefield from outer space before.|Agent Washington, Red vs. Blue: Revelation}}

The Attilan Roughriders are [[Imperial Guard]] horse cavalry formations originating from the planet of Attila. They are, essentially, Hun warriors in SPESS. They are fierce fighters, and it is said that they are born in the saddle (and more than likely will die in it). While they can be deployed en masse, they usually doled out in small units to other regiments that can make use of their swift flanking abilities. They are also used in a variety of asymmetric roles such as message running, scouting, insurgency suppression, raiding, and just generally being an annoying long-term hindrance from within the enemy's rear support areas. In battle they employ tough, foul-tempered horses and use [[Basic_Close_Combat_Weapons#Hunting Lance|lances tipped with explosives]] (up to and including melta charges) to fuck up your shit. They also employ the same variety of small arms, special weaponry, and close combat weapons that you would expect from any Imperial Guard unit.

The [[Only War]] supplement <i>Hammer of the Emperor</i> gives a slightly unnerving fact about these guys: Guardsmen need food to eat, but a horse can survive on vegetation alone. Therefore, if Roughriders ever find themselves in a situation where they can't find edible food or water they can drink the blood of their steeds as a stopgap measure (even more disturbingly, this technique is copy-pasted from IRL Mongolians). By taking just a few swallows that the steed can easily replace, the Rough Rider can sustain himself for a considerable time until he can resupply. Indeed, the fact that the Attilan uses a horse, not a vehicle, is the main reason why he is still relevant on the many varied battlefields of the 40k universe.

Any Imperial Guard cavalry are generally called "Rough Riders." Although this is obviously a bit of a misnomer when it concerns cavalry formations drawn from other worlds, the Attilans themselves can thus be considered the vanilla cavalry of the Imperial Guard.
[[File:B84F477D-0E0E-44C9-A149-E6B496D300E6.jpg|thumb|left|Its enough to make any old grognard cry]]
==Modelling==
Unfortunately, as of 8th/9th Edition Attilan Rough Riders are long out of production and are considered a Legends unit. Interestingly, [[Forge World]] does still offer a Death Rider [[Krieg]] horseman, all for the low low price of $30 ''per model''. In the past they also offered mounted [[Tallarn]] riding Mukaali beasts (now OOP). Other than this, if you want to field models of your own, you'll either have to convert some (the new Dustback Helamite riders from Necromunda look ''very'' promising) or scour the dark recesses of Ebay.

That being said, if you're willing to go a non-GW route then Victoria Miniatures makes [https://victoriaminiatures.com/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage&q=rough+rider Rough Rider arms, legs, and lances] that meld really nicely with the Cadian Shock Troopers torsos and the various torsos that are available elsewhere on their site.

Update: Rejoice! On 3/15/2022 the Rumour Engine on Warhammer Community showed what might be an explosive-tipped lance, so there may still be hope for our Rough Riders.

Update Update: Rejoice! Rejoice! On 10/17/2022 Warhammer Community showed us [https://www.warhammer-community.com/2022/10/17/attilan-rough-riders-bring-horses-to-a-tank-fight-and-win/ the return of Rough Riders] for the 9th edition Guard codex! (Fastest forum update on the plains.)

{{Template:40k-Imperial-Regiments}}
[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]][[Category:Imperial]]

Attack Moon

2023-06-09T21:52:47Z

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{{Awesome}}

[[File:Attack_Moon_Model.JPG|300px|right|thumb|The Ork's own Death Star.]]

{{Topquote|That's no moon...|[[Star Wars|Imperial Rogue Trader, Hanus Solus finding out the terrible secret]]...}}

You know a [[Rok]]? Yeah, imagine one scaled up to the size of a ''small moon''. Ladies and gentlemen, meet the Attack Moon.

An Attack Moon was the Imperial designation for a class of massive Ork vessels encountered during the [[War of the Beast]].

*'''Diameter:''' 100+km
*'''Mass:''' 5+ gigatonnes; approx
*'''Crew:''' Metric shit ton of Orks; approx
*'''Acceleration:''' 0.5 gravities max sustainable acceleration
==Overview==
The flagships of the [[Warboss]] known only as [[The Beast]], an Attack Moon was a hollowed-out planetoid that travelled via transitioning into the Materium from a realm known as "subspace". Its arrival from subspace could take some time, and nearby planets were wracked with gravity and geological catastrophes, sometimes even torn apart.

Once in-system, the Attack Moon would "recharge" by shattering and consuming worlds via powerful tractor beams, a bit like [[Transformers|Unicron]]. The largest feature of the Ork Moon was an enormous snarling face, [[Wat|which could move and even speak in sync with the will of The Beast.]] In truth, [[Pretend|the Attack Moon was neither a true sphere or an independently operating vessel.]] It was simply the end-point for the Ork subspace tunnel dubbed a "Waaagh! Gate" by the greenskins. This allowed it to employ endless waves of Orks warships and landing craft. The main weapon of the Attack Moon was a "gravitic whip", a massive gravity weapon that would decimate entire squadrons of Cruisers and crush even Battleships in a single volley.

Attack Moons were constructed through a complicated process of placing one gravitic nexus into orbit and another on the surface of a planet, which would send the contents of the doomed world into space to be reformed into a massive space vessel.

The end of the War of the Beast hailed the end of the Attack Moon threat, although several ork factions after the opening of the Great Rift began construction of very similar - albeit smaller - ships on behalf of Gazghkull.

==See Also==

*[[World Engine]] - The [[Necrons]] take on an Attack Moon.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Battlefleet Gothic]]
[[Category:Xenos]]
[[Category:Orks]]
[[Category:Freebooterz]]
[[Category:Vehicles]]
[[Category:Ships]]

{{40k-Ork-Ships}}

Atramentar

2023-06-09T21:52:19Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

{{Heresy}}
[[File:Atramentar.jpg|290px|right|thumb|Pretty nifty custom model of an Atramentar. They may not be as fast as their other brethren, but you will still be shitting bricks.]]
The '''Atramentars''' were the elite of the [[Night Lords]] [[Space Marine Legions|Space Marine Legion]] who were equipped with [[Cataphractii Pattern Terminator Armour]] and formed the First Company under First Captain Jago Sevatarion. They were for all intents and purposes, served the same role as an [[Honour Guard]] for daddy [[Konrad Curze]], although in reality, Curze wasn't interested in having bodyguards, especially slow-asses like them who could not keep up. So they were regulated as frontline wall-breakers.

Now, I know what you are all thinking. "Slow-ass bulky-as-fuck Terminators in a legion of hit-and-run specialists? How does it work?" Well, this can be best explained that anything that causes terror would suit the Night Lords' MO, and Terminators are fucking terrifying, so they still tick the boxes.
==Historical Stuff==
During the [[Thramas Crusade]] the Night Lords' Batman Daddy [[Konrad Curze]] teleported across to the [[Dark Angels]] flagship Invincible Reason to exact revenge on the Dark Angels Primarch [[Lion El'Jonson]] and ordered [[Sevatar]] to take the Atramentar and join him. Sevatar complied and 100 of the Atramentar attacked the Invincible Reason, initially making strong progress until the Dark Angels fought back. Eventually, Curze had his fill in inter-galactic [[Troll|trolling]] and retreated, but by that time the Atramentar had suffered heavy losses. [[Dick|Not like Curze cared about it or anything]].

Following his death of Sevatar, the Atramentar largely dissolved rather than follow Zso Sahaal, who succeeded Sevatar as the First Captain. Some, like Apothecary Talos Valcoran, put this down to Sahaal not being a Nostraman, but according to the Atramentar asked by Mercutian, a member of First Claw, 10th Company, it was mostly because the Atramentar felt no one could live up to Sevatar's reputation and he had formed the Atramentar into the brotherhood they were.

Atramentars are usually equipped with [[Lightning Claws]], but they can carry other power weapons or close-combat weapons such as [[Chain Weapon#Chainglaive|Chainglaives]], [[Powerfist]]s, [[Chainfist]]s, [[Power Sword]]s or [[Thunder Hammer]]s. Their only sort of ranged weapon seem to be [[Combi-Bolter]]s based on the crunch, so yeah. They are definitely more on the melee side of things.

==Crunch==
On the [[Horus Heresy]] tabletop, whilst they don't have an official model yet. They do have rules. For an additional [[WTF|70(!) points over normal Tartaros terminators]], these guys are pretty fucking expensive, but you are getting ''Fear, Deep Strike and Cloaked in Murder''. The lattermost rule gives them +1 to charge a unit that's already in combat as well as a +1 to hit if the charge is successful. They come stock with Power weapons and can exchange them for Chainglaives (free), Fist/Claw (5 points) and Chainfist/Thunder Hammers(10pts), while they have the same ranged options as Legion Terminators. If Sevatar is in the army they may be selected as non-Compulsory Troops choices and count as Legion Terminator Squads for the purposes of his Warlord Trait. Ironically, they also have applications in lists without Sevatar, as they can Deep Strike even without him.

{{Night Lords}}

Atomiser Beam Lance

2023-06-09T21:51:57Z

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[[File:AtomiserBeamLance.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Atomiser Beam Lance]]
The Atomiser Beam Lance is the primary and <u>ONLY</u> ranged weapon for the [[Canoptek Reanimator|Canoptek Reanimators]]. Not much is really known from this weapon other than the fact that it can disintegrate its foes...which isn't really telling much [[Derp|since every]] [[Necron]] [[Herp|weapon disintegrate their foes.]]

So whether it is a form of [[Gauss]], [[Particle Weapons|Particle]] or [[Enmitic Weapons|Enmitic Weapon]], we have no fucking clue. However, it could also heal back downed Necrons, so it might be some sort of molecular manipulator. It does have four orbs of doom however, so it at the very least has a good rate of fire.

==Crunch==
Crunchwise, the Atomiser Beam Lance is a really short ranged (''As in 12"'') Assault 3 weapon, that is S6, AP-2 and deals 1 Damage each. For something of such size, it is severely underpowered and undergunned which is surprising given the modus operandi of Necrons [[Anal circumference|assblasting their way through anything into oblivion.]] Nevertheless, this weapon is also a part-time [[Narthecium]], as it has this special rule called '''Nano-Scarab Reanimation Beam''': which, in your Command Phase, you can select one friendly Dynasty unit within 9" of this model. If you do, until the start of your next Command Phase, while that unit is within 9" of this model, add 1 to Reanimation Protocols rolls made for models in that unit.

Given that the Reanimator is a support unit, it would be given that the Atomiser is focused in cleaning up GEQs, but its crippled short range and underwhelming statline puts the Reanimator in an awkward situation.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Xenos]]
[[Category:Necrons]]
[[Category:Weapons]]
[[Category:Warhammer Weapons]]

{{40k-Necron-Weapons}}

Atomic Disassembler

2023-06-09T21:51:31Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:Atomic_D.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Atomic Disassembler]]
The Atomic Disassembler is a [[Awesome|really cool gothic raygun weapon]] used by The Archivist, a [[Zoats|Zoat]] in the new [[Blackstone Fortress]] game.

We have no idea what the fuck this is other than the fact that, for a pistol, it hits <u>'''''HARD'''''</u>. With range of 18", S8, AP-3, Damage of D6, and a special rule that when resolving attacks made with said weapon, [[Troll|the target does not receive the benefit of cover to its saving throw.]]

==What the Fuck is This?==
Judging by its name, it could be some sort of [[Archeotech]] anti-matter weapon, like those of a [[Conversion Beamer]], or even a form of esoteric [[Radium Weaponry|Radium Weapon.]] What we ''do know'' is that it is either powered or got its ammunition from [[Wat|a Zoat's blood]], why ''that's'' the case, we have no fucking clue. It is unknown if the Atomic Disassembler is a one-off weapon unique to The Archivist or a standard-issue weapon fielded out by the Zoats.
{{clear}}
{{40k-Tyranid-Weapons}}

Atlas Recovery Tank

2023-06-09T21:51:04Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:Atlas.png|350px|right|thumb|Atlas doing what it does best.]]

The Atlas Recovery Tank is the big brother of the [[Trojan Support Vehicle|Trojan]] [[PROMOTIONS|no, not the one you're thinking of, you dirty]] [[/d/]]...anyways on topic, the Atlas is often used to tow back wrecked and destroyed Imperial vehicles, so that they can be salvaged and their machine spirits/armaments can be recycled. [[What|What? You're surprised that the Imperium contributes more to recycling than we do today?]] [[Imperium of Man#However, is the Imperium really that bad?|You will be surprised.]]

In order to tow the vehicles, the Atlas uses a powerful rear-mounted crane that is powerful enough to carry one [[Leman Russ Battle Tank|Leman Russ]], however, anything larger than it such as a [[Baneblade]] will require up to four Atlases to move. If a vehicle is completely destroyed beyond all hope of repair, it is stripped of usable equipment and unfired ammunition and its chassis left to rust over time.

===Armament===
The Atlas uses the same chassis as the Leman Russ Tank, but with the turret ring and armour plating removed, and the engine overcharged to provide more power. Being a recovery vehicle and thus situated at the back lines, the Atlas usually waits until the heat of battle has cooled enough and would proceed to [[Looted|tow back any destroyed vehicles.]] Due to this, they are lightly armed with only a hull-mounted [[Heavy Bolter]] for general protection, but as they share a Chassis with the Leman Russ they at least have good armor.

However, the Atlas can come equipped with Camo-Netting, Extra Armour, a [[Hunter-Killer Missile|Hunter-killer Missile Launcher]], an Improved Communications System, a Mine Sweeper, a pintle-mounted [[Heavy Stubber]]/[[Storm Bolter]], Rough Terrain Modifications, a Searchlight, Track Guards, and smoke launchers in order to improve viability much to the dismay of the Tech-Priests.

===On the Tabletop===
The Atlas is pretty much a giant Enginseer in the 8th Edition codex; it's an unarmed tank that repairs other vehicles. If nothing else, it's an interesting alternative. Oddly enough, it uses a [[Chimera Transport|Chimera]] statline instead of a Leman Russ statline.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Imperial]]
[[Category:Imperial Guard]]
[[Category:Chaos]]
[[Category:Lost and the Damned]]
[[Category:Vehicles]]

{{Template:40k-Imperial-Vehicles}}

{{Template:Imperial-Guard}}

Athonian Tunnel Rats

2023-06-09T21:50:17Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:Athonian Tunnel Rat-0.jpg|thumb|And someone says there are no Skaven in space anymore...]]
'''Athonian Tunnel Rats''' are a regiment of [[Imperial Guard]] in [[Warhammer 40,000]]. They come from the world '''Athonos''', which is a shithole where [[Skaven|dozen of rival families constantly fight for power, with streets and sewers of their hydroponic gardens being a place of constant warfare.]] When Athonians are recruited by [[Imperium]], they are already masters of urban combat and subterranean warfare, [[Savlar Chem Dogs|which is almost like the other Imperial Guard regiment...]] but let's not talk about it. They are mostly used against [[Chaos Cults|Chaos]] and [[Genestealer Cult]]s. Athonian favorite weapons are [[Meltagun]]s, [[Flamer]]s, and a light armor support in form of [[Sentinel]]s and [[Chimera Transport|Chimera]]s, with which they fight in a caverns.
==Gallery==
<gallery>
Image:Athonian Tunnel Rat.jpg|thumb|No these aren’t Chaos Cultists.
</gallery>
{{40k-Imperial-Regiments}}
[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]][[Category:Imperial]]

Atalan Jackal

2023-06-09T21:49:55Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:GSCPreview-Jan27-GSCJackals14bf.jpg|240px|right|thumb|BMX 40,000]]

Atalan Jackals is a name given to any [[Genestealer Hybrids]] that is capable of driving and going fast. They specialize in riding rapid-assault bikes and quads to battle, dealing devastating hit-and-run tactics. They act as the eyes and ears of [[Genestealer Cult]] forces, and may be led by a [[Jackal Alphus]].

These outriders are swift and skilled at evading enemy fire as they speed around the battlefield. The Wolfquads also offer the Jackal packs some handy fire support with a heavy weapon mount.

==Overview==
Like many of the Genestealer Cult's activities, Atalan Jackals operate under a shield of legitimacy. [[Pretend|Under the guise of scouts using industrial machinery to search out new seams and quarries,]] Jackals scout for their Cult and track out new territory with little notice. Even so, cultists always cover their tracks and Jackals live a nomadic lifestyle that sees them only return to their brood lairs when they have something of importance to report.

They are so named the Atalan because [[Derp|they ride a variety of rugged Atalan-class exploratory machines,]] of which the most common are [[Bike Squad#Genestealer Cults|Dirtcycles]] and four-wheeled [[Wolfquad|Wolfquads.]] As STC templates, just about every Imperial planet short of a Feral World would be expected to have a bunch of them lying around for use- they're built to last for decades or even centuries in almost any conceivable situation, are cheap to manufacture, and easily repaired, making them the [[lasgun]] of civilian industrial vehicles.

==Tabletop==
Being the 'biker' units of the Genestealer Cults, the Atalan Jackals have a movement of 14" and can be setup “Underground” during deployment which makes them ridiculously mobile in an already mobile army. They are also surprisingly sturdy and tough for a 'fast-attack unit', as they have the toughness of 4 with 2 wounds each (oh and the Wolfquad has 4 wounds). And just to increase that survivability a little bit more they also have Skilled Outriders ability, which subtract 1 from hit rolls for attacks that target this unit in the Shooting Phase. Also they make good tank/superheavy hunters. Give them demolition charges take them as a rusted claw cult and for merely 4CP you can place them in 3" of your target (LYING IN WAIT), throw all their charges with EXTRA EXPLOSIVES, and improve your chances with DRIVE-BY DEMOLITIONS, then flee 14". Even with 4 bikers this is 4d6 shots (8S -3AP d6D) that hit on 3+ and wound on 3+/2+ depending on the target.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Xenos]]
[[Category:Tyranid]]
[[Category:Genestealer Cults]]

{{Genestealer-Cult}}

AT83 Brigand Super Tank

2023-06-09T21:49:28Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:AT83_Battle_Cannon.JPG|300px|right|thumb|AT83 conversion with a Battle Cannon, a tank bristling with underwhelming expectations.]]

Considered a 'step-up' and bigger brother of the [[AT70 Reaver Battle Tank]], which really isn't saying much nor highly of the AT83 despite having the name 'Super' in its identification. The AT83 Brigand Super Tank was a type of Battle Tank produced by the [[Forge World]] Urdesh. One of the principle forge worlds of the Sabbat Worlds, when Urdesh fell under the sway of [[Chaos]] so too did the AT83 Brigand, becoming one of the ubiquitous machines used by the [[Blood Pact]] and later Sons of Sek. After looking at all the products Urdesh comes up with and taking a single glance at what is supposed to be their big ticket tank, one ends up wondering if Urdesh was just called a Forgeworld out of pity for the poor motherfuckers trying to make tanks in their backyard on the planet.

==Overview==

[[File:AT83_Demolisher_Cannon.JPG|250px|left|thumb|AT83 with a Demolisher Cannon.]]

Unlike the smaller, more primitive AT70 Reaver the AT83 was considered the equivalent, at least on paper, to the [[Leman Russ Battle Tank]]. This included the use of auspex guidance, weapon stabilisers and torsion bar suspension, making them one of the best battle machines used by the Blood Pact. Let us reiterate it again, this is a tank that is of equal firepower to the Leman Russ Battle Tank, yet judging from its name, [[Wat|is actually a Super-heavy tank in pure tonnage.]] So we have a Super-heavy tank with absolutely underwhelming firepower for its size. Oh gee, [[Malcador Heavy Tank]] you're off the hook for now, cause we got a new king of underwhelming shit here ladies and gents.

On the other hand, it’s size and tonnage may actually be comparable to the Leman Russ and is simply called a “super tank” for the sake of marketing. Either way, one can only pity the crews who end up with this “Super Tank”.

Due to being the fusion of the AT70 and the Leman Russ, it is safe to assume that the AT83 possess only a hull mounted [[Lascannon]] and a turreted [[Battle Cannon]] or [[Demolisher Cannon]] depending on the task needed to accomplish.

Prior to being conquered, Brigands were used by [[Planetary Defence Force|PDF forces]] as mainline battle tanks in cases of heavy insurrection or xenos invasion. Since being conquered, Urdeshi AT83 Brigands are most often used as command vehicles in charge of squads of AT70 “Reaver”. They also form units of their own to fight Imperial armour forces. Usually by being blown up in massive numbers and trying to stop the Imperium's advance with walls of their own wreckage.

Realistically though, the Blood Pact’s heavy emphasis on air superiority and support probably would mean that a heavily armored Leman Russ analogue is all that was needed and the Reaver was probably hard to contest when your own tanks and artillery were busy being dead or bombed out of existence. Also, if we go by the “super tank” as being more literal, its turret may have been large enough to not need that expensive hand-made inertia dampener that Leman Russ battle tanks require for their battle cannons’ recoil. Which would enable this tank to probably outmatch Leman Russ production while offering equivalent quality.

==History==
When the forces of [[Chaos]] captured Urdesh during the middle of the Sabbat Worlds Crusade, many Urdeshi-designed weapons and vehicles were produced in great numbers to equip their forces, including Brigands. Among those who used the tanks was the [[Blood Pact]] which just so happens to be the biggest user, which was often engaged in heavy fighting with Imperial forces, especially against the [[Tanith First (And Only)|Tanith First and Only]] led by [[Colonel-Commissar Ibram Gaunt]]. With the recapture of Urdesh by Imperial forces, use of the AT83 by the Blood Pact would eventually decline.

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Chaos]]
[[Category:Lost and the Damned]]
[[Category:Vehicles]]

{{Lost-and-Damned}}

AT70 Reaver Battle Tank

2023-06-09T21:48:38Z

2A02:1810:4E2C:A900:74C8:173C:80DE:549E:

[[File:AT70_Art.png|500px|right|thumb|AT70 art from Inferno! Issue 28]]

The '''AT70 Reaver Battle Tank''' was a main battle tank produced by the Forge World Urdesh and it was considered as the cheap knockoff of the venerated [[Leman Russ Battle Tank]]. As such it is seen as the Leman Russ' version of the [[Baneblade]]'s [[Macharius Heavy Tank]].

==Overview==
The AT70 was considered an inferior design compared to the standard tank of the Imperium, the Leman Russ Battle Tank. The tank lacked any Auspex or laser rangefinding equipment, requiring the gunner to aim by visual methods only. It also lacked any gyro stabilizers, limiting its ability to hit targets while moving. The AT70 was armed with a hull-mounted [[lascannon]] and a 105mm hypervelocity main gun, which had a slow rate of fire and was [[Fail|unable to penetrate the side armour of a Leman Russ.]] Yeah...not looking too hot eh? In game terms that'd probably mean that the gun would have a strength value of 7 or 6 back in the days before GW shifted to an "anything can wound anything" approach in 8th edition. Which would definitely be absolute shit for a single shot tank gun. We're talking "like a nova cannon without the ability to ignore cover" or "one S7 AP4 small blast shot" levels of shit.

Due to their inferior quality, Reavers were only a threat to Imperial armoured forces when they outnumbered them. The only reason why they are still made, is due to their low cost and ease of manufacturing in places where the technological advancements or resources are dirt poor that this is seen as the only alternative to a tank. But one must ask themselves how [[FAIL|shit of a Forgeworld Urdesh is,]] if this is the only main battle tank they can make despite the blueprints of the Leman Russ being found everywhere.

AT70s can also be equipped with twin-linked [[autocannon]]s in place of the main battle cannon. This was originally for use in heavy suppression operations during hive riots; it has since become the bane of many Imperial Guard units pinned down by enemy fire. Before you point to this as proof of its superiority over the [[Predator Destructor]], note that 8th edition makes it very clear that the Predator Destructor's cannon is not your regular garden variety autocannon with its 2d3 shots and thus having on average at least twice and possibly as much as thrice the in-game dakka of a normal autocannon. Out of game, random numbers of shots usually mean that the gun in question is some sort of explosive, which means the Predator cannon can launch explosive shells powerful enough to threaten multiple bunched up targets at once which regular autocannons don't get.

It’s pretty clear the vehicles of Urdesh were meant to help local forces oppress their citizens. In any case, they’re only funny until you realize there are too many for your own anti-armor and vehicles to handle as you’re drowned in an avalanche of cannon shells. And the Blood Pact favored air support, so your own tanks and stuff are dying in droves anyway.

==History==
When the forces of [[Chaos]] captured Urdesh during the middle of the Sabbat Worlds Crusade, many Urdeshi-designed weapons and vehicles were produced in great numbers to equip their forces, including Reavers ([[Reaver Battle Titan|No, not the one you’re thinking,]] although it would be [[awesome]] if it was really these murdermachines). Among those who used the tanks was the [[Blood Pact]] which just so happens to be the biggest user, which was often engaged in heavy fighting with Imperial forces, especially against the [[Tanith First (And Only)|Tanith First and Only]] led by [[Colonel-Commissar Ibram Gaunt]]. With the recapture of Urdesh by Imperial forces, use of the AT70 by the Blood Pact would eventually decline, though given how the thing is basically made out of old duct tape and spit it's possible that any half sane blood pact member could put together an equivalent machine in their basement.

==Conversion Ideas==
Many people have attempted to make AT70s (and [[AT83_Brigand_Super_Tank|AT83s]]). Many do this using minor variations on two main themes (the same two themes used for converting most fluff-only vehicles in 40k).

The first is to use a [[Chimera Transport|Chimera]] chassis and then either give it a [[Leman Russ Battle Tank|Leman Russ]] turret or to use an entire LR chassis with Chimera tracks (this author’s preference is to the latter method, preferably using the old, derpy LR turret).

The second is to take a historical tank (often at 1/35, but vehicle scaling is fucky in 40k, so YMMV), and dress it up in [[Chaos]] iconography. Tanks from [[Warlord Games]]' [[Bolt Action]] are a good choice for that, as their scale more or less matches that of 40k.
Whichever way you do it, you will need red paint. A lot of red paint.

==Gallery==

<center>

<gallery>

Image:AT70.jpg| AT70 conversions, when you thought the [[Malcador Heavy Tank]] was dated. (These seemed to have been converted from some Panzer IV's).

</gallery>

</center>

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Chaos]]
[[Category:Lost and the Damned]]
[[Category:Vehicles]]

{{Lost-and-Damned}}