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Stormblade, Plasma-Fueled Hunter: LORE

By Juan Lopez | October 14th, 2017 | Categories: Imperial Guard, Lore, Warhammer 40k Articles & News

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The Stormblade is a variant of the Shadowsword, a super-heavy vehicle used by the Imperial Guard as a Titan-hunter and super-heavy tank killer.

Via our good friends at Lexicanum

It is developed by Ryza, a Forge World noted for its mastery of plasma weaponry. It is a formidable world, known for its plasma weapons and vehicles mounted with them, such as the feared Leman Russ Executioner (which is no longer produced by any other Forge World) and the Stormblade Super Heavy Tank (which was first developed on Ryza). The Stormblade represents a viable alternative for those Forge Worlds which lack the STC data necessary to construct a Shadowsword. In the Age of the Imperium, working STCs are practically unknown. The recovery of fragments of an STC or the templates used in one is the primary focus of the Adeptus Mechanicus’s quest for knowledge.

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The Stormblade is built upon the same chassis as the Shadowsword but lacks some of the advanced features of the original design, primarily the long-range tracking device and redundant generators and capacitors to power the Volcano Cannon. In its place it mounts a Ryza-pattern Plasma Blastgun, a powerful if short-ranged weapon capable of destroying Titans and other super-heavy vehicles, powered by massive photonic fuel cells. The Plasma Blastgun uses the same technology as its smaller cousins, the Plasma Pistol, Gun, and Cannon, but on a massive scale. Unlike its smaller brethren the Blastgun does not suffer from the same overheating problems due to the fact that the massive engines carrying it can install more efficient cooling systems. Still, the sheer amount of waste heat and thermal shockwave generated by the Plasma Blastgun can be dangerous to anyone standing too near, requiring some caution when operating around friendly units. The firepower unleashed by a Plasma Blastgun is stupendous, able to defeat Titan-grade Void Shields in a few shots and reduce armor to slag.

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Additional space left over is used for extra heat shielding to protect the crew and an extensive cooling system to make it more reliable than the Executioner. To compensate for the loss in long-range firepower both sponson turrets are fitted with Lascannons with a fire control system adapted from the Baneblade, while the sponson mounts themselves are fitted with twin-linked Heavy Bolters and a coaxial Heavy Bolter is also included. A Targeter just above the primary weapon and an off-set armored housing for a Searchlight are standard. It was once common practice for Stormblade to mount racks of Hellion Missilesto assist them in bringing down the heaviest of Titans, however after three Stormblades of the Phyressian 31st Heavy Tank Company were destroyed by their own missiles the weapons were withdrawn from service. Some Stormblades will mount a Hunter-Killer Missile and/or a pintle-mountedsupport weapon, either a Heavy Stubber or Storm Bolter. Others still will replace the sponson mounts for additional armor.

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About the Author: Juan Lopez