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I am really aware that 38,000 years from now. human still use rail transport systems. as displayed in GW site sometimes ago (the time of.. possibly The Fall of Medusas IV). there's a choo choo (one that looks ALOT like steamer but the transmission system is either Shay or Diesel) and the rail for it to ride.
1. Does the expression of railroad systms in WH40,000: Space Marines (The videogame) canon? the whole gameplay featured in a forgeworld (can't remember its name) and at some point, player must reach a titan and the reactor lab FAST! (and it means one Astartes agaisnt the green tide . the only possible measure is to take a train. a very HIGHSPEED one!. The train featured in that scene runs on a very very broad gauge! large enough for a baneblade (or maybe even two!) to be placed on the flatbed bogie side by side!. the hauling loco however. uses a VERY antique technology. STEAM! yes! it is steamer choo choo! but i'm not sure about its power transmission system because next moment after a player had shot down an Ork aircraft (can't remember the name but it's some kinda transport like Valk or Thunderhawk). the player entered the loco cab and threw a brake switch. and the train crash! in the wreck you'll see that the train has a 'skirt' cover its driving wheels. however the interior from the previous scene seems to indicate that the loco is indeed a steamer and maybe even oil-fired (bunker-c fuel oil I think). but since Adeptus Mechanicus has access to nuclear reactor for vehicles. the steamer might use the nuclear reaction as a heat source for its boiler. much like how conventional nuclear power plant and nuke sub works.
I don't think coal/wood fired or oil fired steamer fits the forgeworld that world. but what about 'average' Imperial worlds. who knows?
2. Who runs the railroad systems throughout the Imperium? does it belongs to Admech? is it a part of Administratum (equivalent to 'Ministry of Interior)? or is it belongs to local businessmem just like Wild West?
3. What is the track gauge used throughout the Imperium? Does the Imperium / Admech still considers "1.435 meters" a standard gauge like what we do today? or is 'standard gauge' ruled by the Imperial Standard is much wider?
4. Locomotive powering systems. Do they still uses the same powering systems as we do today? (Steam, Electric, and Diesels)
5. Given that an Imperial world still uses steamers in its rollingstock. Do you think that a very uncommon steamer like "Double ender steam locomotive" (like Fairlie), and "Frontcab steamer" will become available too?
6. Do any fortress world also has railroad systems designed for military purpose?
7. Does the IoM has a fleet of 'armored trains"? is there any record of an armored train shipped from the homeworld to ride the rail of the embattling world?
I don't think this is practical thing to do. Y'know. Armored trains and "Castles on the rail" became obsolette in WW2 and no army maintains any after the war ended (as the tank took over all of its role), the railroads now only serves as military logistic systems. (trains still travels faster than tanks )
8. Given that you are either an IG commander, or an Ork boss. and you have either a full squadron of leman russ (3 tanks) or a full 'team' of Kustom Battlewagons of similar size. and there's an operatible rail lines linked to an objective location. also you're now in control of a train yard that has a funcitonal loco and several flatbeds in the rollingstock. now the next target is a very very very very important Strategic Point. accessible by rail. but primalily defended by AAAs (thus preventing the effective use of Valks or Kopters) and counter-battery artillery. while you can still lay siege that strategic point. there's a faster alternative which can win the Strategic point quicker. yes! by train! what will you do?
A. Roll out your tanks by the rail without taking the train
B. take 3 flatbeds with the tanks riding it, then have them sadwitched the loco. and take the route *
C. have those flatbed card in front of the loco and load up three tanks into those flatbeds. *
D. Sometimes. Blitzkrieg may turn out bad, i'd rather lay siege that Strategic Points instead. the train will only ferry in troops, tanks, guns, and supplies.

* the purpose is to have Leman Russ do shootin' while sitting in.

A lot of your questions can be answered by understanding this:

'The Imperium' isn't a staunch system. It's an empire spanning millions of planets, each with different cultures and different levels of technology. Membership of the Imperium means you make sure your culture isn't prone to Chaos corruption, and paying your Psyker tithes. The Administratum can't dictate the whole universe, it can only set a few general guidelines.

The first Siege of Vraks book describes trains: basically, their landing site is a ways off from the front line, so they need a fast way to transport stuff: the admech apparently have train transports (like titan transports) so they plop them down and build a bunch of track to support them.

That's the only place I can think of where trains have been mentioned in 40k.

spiralingcadaver wrote:That's the only place I can think of where trains have been mentioned in 40k.

Eisenhorn: Hereticus.

1: Yes, the expression can be considered canon because we have plenty of references to rail systems being used.

2: The Ad Mech would certaintly be responsible for manufacturing the hardware. Who runs the train itself will probably depend on what that train is used for. One a Forge World, everything is run by the Mechanicus. On any other planet it would probably be either the planetary government or the Administratum, through a Department of Transportation most likely.

3: Gauge will depend on the trains purpose. On a forge world where they need to move large pieces of equipment I would see a very HUGE gauge. possably as wide as 10 meters. Civilian transport trains would probably be smaller, who knows if they still use 1.535m as standard, but we can't be sure of the exact size.

4: Diesel and Steam are misnomers as for power source. Steam just says they heat water to power hydraulics, it could be any heat source. Diesel is just a fuel that is burned. You could have a Diesel powered Steam locomotive for example. Electric might be fairly common with the ready avaliability of the Imperium's advanced Fusion generators. otherwise, if they have a cheap fuel source they will either go with Steam powered by Wood/multi-fuel OR Multi-fuel engines that power electric generators(like our modern trains do)

Fusion power would probably be straight to electricity and not using Steam, but the Imperium probably uses both methods. There is little standardization because the circumstances are different in different places.

Grey Templar wrote:Civilian transport trains would probably be smaller, who knows if they still use 1.535m as standard, but we can't be sure of the exact size.

Or as GW are british so track gauge could be western "stephenson's" 1435mm...or any size that is most fitting for the task (like in RW - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Track_gauge)

Grey Templar wrote:

4: Diesel and Steam are misnomers as for power source. Steam just says they heat water to power hydraulics, it could be any heat source. Diesel is just a fuel that is burned.

Sorry, but "diesel" is very specific kind of internal combustion engine (developed by Rudolph Diesel, could be built to operate on very wide range of fuels like unprocessed crude oil or food oils up to spirits or gases/oil mix) while steam engines which operated on similar fuel were traditionally called just "liquid-fueled".

Though with WH40K you can bet that all known kinds of engines are used...and some unknown/downright crazy too - i bet that if some BL authoкs knew 'bout gas-generators for internal combustion engines( or that steam plane really flew reasonably well in '30s) then they would add these dead-end or ersatz technologies into the mix - just like (WW2's) V1-like pulse-jet fighters in "Double Eagle"

Yes, railway systems exist on many worlds. Forge Worlds in particular rely on them to transport goods, workers, and materials around. There is no unified transportation ministry in the Imperium or the like, and rail systems are operated by a wide variety of groups. The ruler of the world (Mechanicus on Forgeworld, and so on) would be the most common.

in the game Space Marine you ride a massive train.

There are also trains from steam to mag rail in the Gaunts Ghost's novels.

spiralingcadaver wrote:The first Siege of Vraks book describes trains: basically, their landing site is a ways off from the front line, so they need a fast way to transport stuff: the admech apparently have train transports (like titan transports) so they plop them down and build a bunch of track to support them.

That's the only place I can think of where trains have been mentioned in 40k.

oh! tell me which volume of Siege of Vraks features this Military railroad?
And i guess it will use a very big gauge of tracks (Baneblade and some other superheavies has to be loaded onto it.). possibly Isambard Brunel's one. while the WW1 the military railway uses a very small tracks (60 cm ones for France, Brits, and Imperial Germany. and 75 cm for Russia)

And i believe that the Admech will use either Diesels or plasma loco for this. and it will have to be double ender.



and does the books also features that all of those trains are armored just like what Germans and Soviets did in WW2?

As for "steam power" being 'antique' ...


Even "Nuclear" power plants run the turbines on steam.
They just use the fissionables to heat water to make the steam instead of burning some other crud to do it.

Yes, this means that even the "nuke" aircraft carriers and ships are "steam powered".

chromedog wrote:As for "steam power" being 'antique' ...


Even "Nuclear" power plants run the turbines on steam.
They just use the fissionables to heat water to make the steam instead of burning some other crud to do it.

Yes, this means that even the "nuke" aircraft carriers and ships are "steam powered".

In real life. no one mounts fission nuke reactor in place of the steam loco firebox while technically it's possible to. maybe because the 'fuel materials' is very dangerous; it's rad-active elements, a very strong one that ... the foul Nurgle might like it because he want's to see anyone touch it suffers a cancer/mutation.
well the purpose-built Nuke locomotive exists and I think both Americans and Soviets built some prototypes but never put ones into regular uses.
for both sides. safety concerns are big reasons why nuke loco didn't come to active service but Diesels are widely chosen. but for either sides. there are some separate reasons
America
1. Golden days of rail transports are long passed. the railroads are on decline. first the roadbound automobiles. seconds the commercial jetplanes. only heavy frieghters remains (and profitable... maybe?)
2. Diesel oils (including marine diesels) were so CHEAP back then ?? dunno but some Union Pacific locos are so weird. it uses a very viscous bunker c fuel oil instead of easy-flowing marine diesels (i think)
but I don't know the reasons why Soviets don't use nuke loco?

And do you think that in 38,000 years from now. is fission nuke reactor still remain in use? and do you think that a conversion of coal-fired to nuke powered steamers are practical by then??

We are actually working on getting our Rail system back up and running again.

There is a High Speed rail being proposed here in CA to run from SF to LA in just a couple of hours.

I looked on the games workshop website and they had something about the battle of cold steel ridge and there was a picture of a huge armoured locomotive.

oh Thank you! i've found this!



^ It appears that this train runs on 1 meters (in Thailand. there was a picture of an APC being transported via flatbed on train,) or 1.435 m. track. and this one is intended to be Locomotive unit. probably runs on either Diesel engine (much like L. Russ) or (more likely) plasma engines. the building itself is nothing other than an engine shed.
the train itself seems to be inspired by 30s American diesel streamliners. (and it should share the same heights too!)

the power source of the railways of the Imperium all depend on the level of technology of the planets themselve, in one of the gaunts ghost books (think Necropolis) they describe fighting in a train yard surrounded by the wreck of Diesel Shunters, Locomotives and rolling stock. In Warriors of Ultramar they mention a high speed rail network that while automated they still contained a driver which sounds to me very much like how subways and the tube in London are run so guessing electric HST's, the first Siege of Vraks book contains the mention of the massive lumbering trains of the adeptus mechanicus making out huge massive Locos. They do not mention what they are powered by but since the Mechanicus use plasma reactors for many large vehicles like Ordinatus arrays (note in Mechanicus an Ordinatus is mounted on a railway wagon) so it is safe to assume these AD Mech Locos were the same.

For the gauge this again is upto the planets, I would guess the Mechanicus would have a standard gauge for their forgeworlds (at a comfortable massive size) but other planets may have gauges as little as 2ft (think narrow gauge lines in Wales) or could go upto as wide as 10ft or more, not really known.

Thread is being locked due to thread necromancy.