Stormblade

The Stormblade super-heavy tank is a variant of the Imperial Shadowsword Titan-killer tank, though it is armed with a Plasma Blastgun instead of a Volcano Cannon, it is still able to perform the role of Titan-hunter on the battlefield. Stormblades are built on Forge Worlds that lack the ability to build true Shadowsword tanks, and thus have to compensate by using different weaponry and other lass advanced technologies than the original.

History
The very first Stormblade was built on the Forge World of Ryza, with the help of the world's amazing understanding of Plasma Weaponry. In the 41st Millennium many Forge Worlds that lack the ability to build Shadowswords instead build Stormblades, and even though it is not a known official STC design it does not lack in performance and thus is very popular choice when a true Shadowsword isn't available. Most Stormblades, along with the Shadowsword and Stormsword are built on the Arkurian-pattern Hull, although more conservative Priests of the Adeptus Mechanicus view the rarer Mars-pattern hull as superior.

Known Forces That Use Stormblades

 * Krieg 1st Heavy Tank Company
 * Cadian 98th Armoured Regiment
 * Phyressian 31st Heavy Tank Company
 * Sarenian 5th Heavy Tank Company
 * Krieg 61st Tank Regiment
 * Krieg 11th Heavy Armoured Regiment
 * Vaust 14th Regiment
 * Krieg 12th Heavy Tank Company

Known Stormblades

 * "Huntsman" - Vaust 14th Regiment

Armament
The Stormblade is armed with a massive turret-mounted Plasma Blastgun, normally found on Titans, this weapon is ideal for both anti-armor and anti-Titan roles. The large capacitors and generator of the Shadowsword is replaced by large photonic fuel cells to power the main gun. The extra space that left over is used for a well-designed cooling system, used to keep the weapon from over-heating, the crew is protected from the heat by thick heat shields. The Stormblade is preferred over the Executioner variant of the Leman Russ tank due to its cooling systems reliability and its overall firepower. The Stormblade replaces the Shadowsword's sponson-mounted targetors for two lascannons, but retains the two Twin-linked Heavy Bolters. The Stormblade can also have a Hunter-Killer Missile Launcher, Improved Communication equipment, a mine sweeper, a pintle-mounted Heavy Stubber or Storm Bolter, and smoke launchers. The Stormblade is always outfitted with spotlights, used to highlight enemy infantry for the sponson weapons. At one time in the past these tanks could also be equipped with external Hellion Missile Racks, but these were prone to exploding catastrophically when hit by enemy weapons fire, after three Stormblades of the Phyressian 31st Heavy Tank Company were destroyed in this way they were deemed unsafe and withdrawn from service.

Gallery
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