Marauder Destroyer

"You're foe is well equipped, well trained, and battle-hardened. He believes his gods are on his side. Let him believe what he will. We have the Imperial Navy on ours."

- Squadron Leader Oleric Navar, The Malumvast Reclamation

The Marauder Destroyer is a variant of the standard Marauder Bomber that is used by the Imperial Navy as their primary atmospheric bomber aircraft. The Marauder Destroyer is the most widespread variant of the Marauder Bomber and is specialised in low-level ground attacks instead of high altitude strategic bombings. The Marauder Destroyer variant features a reduced bomb payload in favour of overwhelming direct firepower. The Destroyer variant was first developed during the Second War for Armageddon, where it was outfitted for night operations and armed to carry out precision strikes on key targets with a heavy amounts of firepower. The Marauder Destroyer was accepted as an officially recognised variant of the Marauder Bomber and it has become common within the Imperial Navy's bomber wings. The aircraft is usually based on an orbiting starship, and can operate in the vacuum of space as well as in a planet's atmosphere. During a prolonged Imperial campaign, Imperial Navy airbases can be established on the ground, yet due to the Marauder's extreme range they can located safely behind the front, sometimes even on another continent far from the frontlines. During ground assault missions, the Imperial Guard forces on the ground will mark the enemy's positions with coloured flares, allowing the Imperial Navy's bomber wings to strike with even greater accuracy. Sometimes experienced Imperial Navy Pilots will accompany the ground forces to better coordinate air strikes.

Armament
The Marauder Destroyer is more heavily armed than the standard Marauder Bomber, featuring three sets of nose-mounted twin-linked Autocannons instead of a single set of twin-linked Lascannons and up to eight Hellstrike Missiles located on external wing-mounted hardpoints. The Marauder Destroyer has a smaller bomb-bay, and is capable of carrying only six Heavy Bombs, as opposed to the standard design's twelve. The Destroyer variant also replaces the standard rear-mounted set of twin-linked Heavy Bolters with a set of twin-linked Assault Cannons, giving the craft greater protection against enemy aircraft while in flight. The Marauder Destroyer can be outfitted with ejection seats or an armoured cockpit, if these are not already installed, and either flare or chaff launchers which are used to confuse incoming enemy fire, making it more difficult for the enemy to damage the craft. The craft can also be equipped with infa-red targeting equipment for better accuracy during unfavourable conditions where visual sighting of a target may be difficult, such as nighttime combat, and illumination flares that allow ground and air co-ordination as aircraft fly through the lighted area, which is useful for both locating enemies and keeping track of friendlies in the sky. These aircraft can also feature distinctive paint schemes or decals that can help hide the aircraft against the corlours of the sky or environment, or specialised paint schemes such as flames, teeth, or lightning flashes that can give nearby friendly troops a morale boost as they recognise the aircraft flying by.

Known Users of the Marauder Destroyer

 * 2424th Imperial Navy Bomber Wing - The 2424th Imperial Navy Bomber Wing made use of Marauder Destroyers during the Third War for Armageddon, while fighting against the massive Ork WAAAGH! of Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka.
 * 4521st Imperial Navy Bomber Wing - The 4521st Imperial Navy Bomber Wing made use of Marauder Destroyers during the Third War for Armageddon.
 * 23rd Imperial Navy Bomber Wing - The 23rd Imperial Navy Bomber Wing made use of Marauder Destroyers during an Imperial campaign on the jungle Death World of Denkari-Prime.
 * 501st Imperial Navy Bomber Wing - The 501st Imperial Navy Bomber Wing has been known to make use of Marauder Destroyers.

Also See

 * Imperial Vehicles