It's no secret that at my core, I am a dyed-in-the-wool treadhead. It's the main thing that draws me to the Guard (or Imperial Army in this case), and in addition to all the lovely Leman Russ and Chimera variants available, the Guard also has access to some of the most ferocious superheavy tanks in the 40k universe. Back when I played Epic waaaay back in the day, I absolutely loved all the Baneblade and Shadowsword variants that were included. Over the years more and more have become available in 40k scale, and the one I've been most looking forward to is the Stormhammer, one of the few to arguably out-gun the Baneblade. When FW came out with their interpretation of the beast I knew it would be mine!
I'd picked up the model at GenCon and had initially thought I'd just pop in the Closet of Doom for some future date, but I couldn't resist the siren call of building a kit I hadn't tried before. Overall the build was a snap, essentially the only plastic parts are the track sections and the bottom hull, everything else is resin and fit surprisingly well!
They provide the option for all sorts of sponson weapons, but when it comes right down to it it's hard to go wrong with six lascannons! It turns out that the Shadowsword I'd originally built for the Spireguard is no longer supported by their army list, so the Stormhammer will take its place as the centerpiece of the army. Was quite looking forward to painting it, right up to the point where I realized how many rivets I'm on the hook for! Yikes!
That Sir, is a beast.
ReplyDeleteStill, a small part of me can't help thinking it could do with more guns....
Such a sweet tank.
ReplyDeleteWait you can't use your old Shadowsword? Well that sucks. Can you mod it to fit?
ReplyDeleteI do like the look of that Shadowhammer though. It reminds me of a more World War 1 or 2 vibe sort of tank. I do love tanks as well. Trying to fit some predators into my army as well.
Does this mean that the Spireguard Shadowsword might become two really kool terrain pieces ?
ReplyDeleteThat Shadowhammer is nice. Good luck with the rivets, do let us know how many there are !
Such a gorgeous beast! Can't wait to see it painted my man!
ReplyDeleteI'm so in love with that tank. Did the original one in epic have 2 sets of twin barreled guns?
ReplyDeleteIt certainly has presence :-)
ReplyDeleteNeeds a few more guns...and about 40 orks manning them :)
ReplyDeleteI've been lusting after this kit since it first appeared on FW. I may have to break down and get myself an early B-day present.
ReplyDelete@Greg: why must we ruin everything with orks? :P
Ruin? You mean make super awesome and amazing? :)
ReplyDeleteWow! That thing's impressive. So many guns....
ReplyDeleteAnd far too many rivets. Blech. :P
@Phil Morris: More guns are always in order. It can technically have up to four hunter-killer missiles!
ReplyDelete@TheAmbit: Indeed - FW really did a great job!
@Rory Priest: Aye, the list in Tempest only allows for the Baneblade and the Stormhammer. Doh!
@Zzzzzz: Hah! Nah, luckily the Thousand Sons contingent is still allowed a Shadowsword, so it'll end up being the centerpiece Lord of War for their next incarnation!
@jugger: Indeed! I'm looking forward to coming to grips with it!
@Col. Ackland: Aye, the old Epic version had two twin-barreled battlecannons, but overall I do like this new interpretation of it!
@Stephen: It's a monster, there's no doubt!
@Greg Hess: Hah, it's bordering on Ork-ish as it is! :)
@#2501: I was rather impressed with how well it went together - always nice to get in early in the mould's life when everything fits nicely!
@Jakub Furlanetto: Indeed - it's been too long. A whole mess of Guard/Imperial Army on the horizon with the Spireguard and the Geno Five-Two almost on deck!
@Dai: Hah! It's just on the edge of having too many guns. ...And rivets! Hah!
Cheers, everyone!
My friend, the smoke launchers are blocking the citadel guns traverse
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