Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Just got a shadowsword/ stormlord kit for my birthday from a GOOD freind. what variant should i build. I play Ultras and have about 5K pts so i can field all different varieties of lists. I am leaning toward something that can kill enemy armor and superheavies. Shadowsword? your input please.

make all of them, nothing stopping you from switching the pieces between each other. I don't own a Baneblade or anything so I'm just assuming that...
never understood why people ask these questions...

any other HELPFULL advice?

Don't paint it in Ultramarines colors. That's supertacky, and the Ultramarines(and every other Space Marine Chapter that's still loyal to the Emperor/Imperium) can't actually possess superheavy tanks as they're the property of the Imperial Guard/Adeptus Mechanicus.

Do, however, come up with an awesome color scheme that would be a good offset to your Ultramarines, and make sure you look into the "Ultramar Planetary Defense Force".

Though I have no experience with building 40k tanks, I'm fairly certain that Lotet's advice was helpful.
I've heard of a whole lot of people that use magnets on their units (everything in size up to dreadnaughts as far as I've heard) to switch out weaponry.
So what's stopping you from doing that with your superheavy?

I'd agree - get the most out of the kit by spending a few £ on magnets. Or pin it with wire if you have to.

I dont think the kit lets you build both kits.

For a small apoc game on 6x4 or similar, the cover ignoring short ranged variant is killer.

The Kit lets you build either:
A) Storm Lord
or
B) Shadowsword, Banehammer, Banesword, Doomhammer, or Storm Sword.

The Banehammer is the only oddball due to the Troop capasity and firing platform; but I modeled mine with said platform and let the rest of my Guns get that extra 2"(of course all the really long barrels have ridiculous range anyways).

So Lotet was right: build (nearly)all of them.

Shadowsword:

- fine if you need the firepower to kill opposing superheavies and MC/HQ.

Stormlord:

- fine if you like short ranged firepower ( anti inf mostly ) and the ability to transport various things, as superheavies rely upon the apoc rulebook and may transport more than just infantry.

Banehammer:

- interesting but only 2nd tier choice.

Stormsword:

- artillery. Nice but also 2nd tier.

Doomhammer:

- doesnt warrant the glue, just use the barrel piece...

Banesword:

- worst choice.

For your first SHV, try to either add a Shadowsword or a Stormlord.
The Shadowsword adds most welcome firepower against primary targets. The Stormlord adds transport capacity and firepower,
but needs 'passengers' to fill his role as a mobile bunker.

sennacherib wrote:Just got a shadowsword/ stormlord kit for my birthday from a GOOD freind. what variant should i build. I play Ultras and have about 5K pts so i can field all different varieties of lists. I am leaning toward something that can kill enemy armor and superheavies. Shadowsword? your input please.

Here's how I did mine.

O_O
That is so pretty.
I now want seven.

Thanks gang. I do appreciate the input from Lotet however he didnt give me the same kind of direction that 1hadHq did. Thanks all. I will magnetize it so that i can build the shadowsword variants.
http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/268622.page#1165925also special thanks too...Kanluwen... i will look into paint schemes for ultramar armies.
what do yall think of this as the starting point for paint scheme

1. Build the body
2. glue *support* beams inside the tank( you will find out why soon)
3. Prime the body
4. paint

5. build ALL the guns
6. see the big "turret" and the little piece that switches from armor plating to just metal and a little door? Dont glue that onto the body.
7. Magnitize ALL the guns
8. Prime and paiint guns *turret* piece and the little armor plate/ troop holder thing

9. because of gluing the supports in step 2 you can switch the spots of the main gun and the armor plate/troop holder and can now make all the verients.

I would show pics of how I did it but their lost in the world of technology..... I'll try to get pics up soon.

Thanks Cambak.

I would build Stormlord (Transport) or Shadowsword (SD). The rest are more for looks, I think.

1hadhq: The Stormsword isn't really artillery; it is far too short ranged to be classed as artillery.

That said i have had great success with it is a Standard(albeit superheavy) battle tank; you just need to purchase the "upgrades" to give it the lascannons and hull t-L HB.

The No-coversave 10" blast kill the crud out of anything and everything within 36" main gun is just tops; then also being able to fire 9 t-l Heavy Bolter shots into the same unit(assuming the unit was not Armor) while firing 2 Lascannons at some hard targets makes it a pretty fantastic main battle tank.

I do agree that the rest are rather Naff; I actually don't really like the Shadowsword variant, but that is mostly due to the lack of opposing super-heavies I see in most apoc games(Only Super Heavies I ever go up against are a Stompa and a Mine layer, and in both cases I would rather vapourize some Ork hordes, letting my regular anti-tank weapons take on the bigguns).

Kommissar Kel wrote:1hadhq: The Stormsword isn't really artillery; it is far too short ranged to be classed as artillery.

Too short? Medusas and Griffons are called artillery.....
Should have called it close range support then. Agreed its a mix of a 'mortar' ( no cover ) and a siege cannon ( medusa ).
Good to hear it works for you.

Shadowsword FTW. Stormlords are like Land Raiders, chump transports!

Shadowsword.

Watch your opponents' cry as you remove handfuls of models at a time with it.

I am going to magnetize and ignore the afformentioned chump stormlord. i like the look but the build is Mehh.

Ignore the stormlord? Really? Those things are awesome. I've fought alongside them and having 15 S6 shots which ignore MEQ armour is awesome. Whats that? Need anti-tank? Stick some devastators in it. Hu? You need a powerful armoued vehicle that dominates both range and assault to be slightly more survivable? Stick a dreadnought in it.

IMO, the stormlord and the shadow sword are the two only really useful variants.

it is a really easy model to magnetize so that you can have all 6 varients, including magnetized armour so you can move the sponsons to any of there 3 locations.
I have magnetized several of these and sold them on ebay.
the main things to know are:
the turret does not need supports it sits in the hull no problem.
the armour and sponsons have little bumps that can hold magnets easily with a 2mm drill bit and the hull has resecces that you can do the same too, i would just drill the hull magents first then use a piece of prue behind for extra support.
the plate that changes from floor panel to hull top will need a couple of small peices of sprue on the inside of the hull to support it when at either end of the model.
the small gun piece that doesnt fit by friction will need a T shaped piece of sprue glued in it so that a magnet can go at the end of the T and one on the turret (inside the gun bay area) to recieve it.
the only other tricky is the heavy stubbers that will need a couple of small pieces of sprue on each to allow you to attach magnets to the inside edge of the hull.

think it through first, its an easy magnetization if done properly otherwise it will go wrong.
a great model for magnetization

1hadhq wrote:

Kommissar Kel wrote:1hadhq: The Stormsword isn't really artillery; it is far too short ranged to be classed as artillery.

Too short? Medusas and Griffons are called artillery.....
Should have called it close range support then. Agreed its a mix of a 'mortar' ( no cover ) and a siege cannon ( medusa ).
Good to hear it works for you.

Bot the Medusa and Griffon are bought as part of an Ordnance Battery not an Artillery Battery; Most of the Pieces in the Ordnance Battery options are Artillery Pieces though.

To be fair the Medusa is a siege cannon not an artillery piece.

The Griffon is close to an Artillery piece, but also does not quite have the Range of true artillery(modernly defined as a weapon system that can fire from beyond the reach of personal weapons)

I actually do wish, after having gotten the kit and then getting the rules for a baneblade, that I had gotten the Baneblade model instead.

Out of the 7(8) different Super heavy Tanks the baneblade most fits my style and desire in a superheavy tank(as an IG player), The HellHammer is a close second followed by the StormSword.

The Storm Lord would only be all that great if you could turn it into a pure infantry muncher, replacing the lascannons with Targeters, and firing with 20 special/Heavy weapons from the firing platform. But then again it will nearly always be a semi-mobile pillbox.

Kommissar Kel wrote: Out of the 7(8) different Super heavy Tanks the baneblade most fits my style and desire in a superheavy tank(as an IG player), The HellHammer is a close second followed by the StormSword.

The Storm Lord would only be all that great if you could turn it into a pure infantry muncher, replacing the lascannons with Targeters, and firing with 20 special/Heavy weapons from the firing platform. But then again it will nearly always be a semi-mobile pillbox.

Of the 8 IG Superheavies, there are only 3 viable models:
1. Baneblade with Extra Sponsons - 2 useful guns, throws a ton of firepower downrange
2. Stormlord - awesome firepower and Transport
3. Shadowsword - long-range S(D) for the mirror match

The Stormlord is cool enough as-is, and it would be cooler if it could fit Plasma Cannons in lieu of the Lascannons. I'd love that.

Kommissar Kel wrote:
Both the Medusa and Griffon are bought as part of an Ordnance Battery not an Artillery Battery; Most of the Pieces in the Ordnance Battery options are Artillery Pieces though.

To be fair the Medusa is a siege cannon not an artillery piece.

The Griffon is close to an Artillery piece, but also does not quite have the Range of true artillery(modernly defined as a weapon system that can fire from beyond the reach of personal weapons)

The SPA of the IG is 'bougth' as ordnance battery, but the single choices you get isn't called ordnance...... ?tank?
( Header page 52, 2nd line under ornancebattery page 103. ) , I may guess its artillery...... ?tank?
The definition of artillery in 40k seems to either vary ( localization of dex ) or I was too used to think of it like real artillery Rgt/Batt/Co
tend to call anything towed or selfpropelled ...?..artillery since more often than not 'ordnance' is just one variant of artillery.
Anyhow, would agree on 'beyond reach' as possible modern definition, which may have its restrictions if you look at what GW
used to draw its inspiration from ( WW1/WW2 ) to create vehicles and arm them.

Kommissar Kel wrote:
I actually do wish, after having gotten the kit and then getting the rules for a baneblade, that I had gotten the Baneblade model instead.

Out of the 7(8) different Super heavy Tanks the baneblade most fits my style and desire in a superheavy tank(as an IG player), The HellHammer is a close second followed by the StormSword.

The Storm Lord would only be all that great if you could turn it into a pure infantry muncher, replacing the lascannons with Targeters, and firing with 20 special/Heavy weapons from the firing platform. But then again it will nearly always be a semi-mobile pillbox.

The Baneblade is a fine Tank.
Had assumed the Baneblade was wellknown and its later cousin isn't alone on the shelves usually....
You know, you WANT a second SHV if youre really into IG.

The Stormlord isn't soo bad in a mixed force. Put some dreads onto it and move closer if you wish.
Every tank suffers from pillbox syndrome a bit ( except BA ) as GW dislikes real tank warfare in rules and opts to only accept it in fluff.