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Anyone have more infomrtion on super heavy tanks that the space marines use? I am looking at building one, most likely the Fellblade, or a varient of one. But does anyone know more about the Mammoth?

http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Mammoth

I cant find much more then this... If someone has more info, or read about it in a novel, or fluff, please share!

Just so you know FW has released a Fellblade minie. You should be able to find it in the Horus Heresy section of the website if you take a look.

 crimsonfist832 wrote:
Just so you know FW has released a Fellblade minie. You should be able to find it in the Horus Heresy section of the website if you take a look.

Yup, I have seen this model. It looks pretty awesome! I dont think I would get it tho... To me, that is a model from 30k. I was thinking about doing some converting so it looks like a model is still in production, and was makde in 40k time frame. I am not sure that goes along with the fluff or not.... I just never really heard of Space Marine Super heavys before forgeworld came out with the fellblade. But I have learned that it has been around for a while.. just not well knowen.

J99Pwrangler wrote:

 crimsonfist832 wrote:
Just so you know FW has released a Fellblade minie. You should be able to find it in the Horus Heresy section of the website if you take a look.

To me, that is a model from 30k. I was thinking about doing some converting so it looks like a model is still in production, and was makde in 40k time frame. I am not sure that goes along with the fluff or not.... I just never really heard of Space Marine Super heavys before forgeworld came out with the fellblade. But I have learned that it has been around for a while.. just not well knowen.

Simple answer - no it wouldnt. You would have to live with the 30k ethic of the FW tank. SM legions had them before and during the heresy but they have never been resupplied with them, they have become part of the Imperial Guard. The few SM Super Heavies would be relics from the 30k era.

There are a lot nicer homebuilt conversions of Fellblades than the FW one though.

Superheavies aren't really something Marine chapters bother with in the contemporary 40k period.

They don't fit their tactical and strategic doctrine of precision, decapitation strikes, and are much more suited to the Imperial Guard doctrine of "Guns on top of Guns,"

Realistically, anytime a Marine strikeforce would need a superheavy, they'd just tell the Guard to bring one. Notice the heaviest "normal" Marine units are really just super-transports; the land raider is at its core, a troop carrier armed with support weapons. Everything's about infantry for the chapters.

30k, and the traitor legions, are different beasts entirely, though I can see justification for the Space Wolves and Black Templars having superheavies, due to their rather abnormal organization and military doctrine.

I can see loyalist legions having maybe a fellblade or two... That, or successor chapters that go absolutely ape on the relics. The ones that are obsessed.

@MajorStoffer: You do make a good point. Also, since Black Templar are a Space based fleet. They normally dont have time to deploy such equipment. But we are not a typical "codex marine" as well.

@Legion of Flame: You also make a good point, Black Templars are all about keeping relics around. So it could be a slight possibility that the Black Templars have one stashed away somewhere.


Thanks for the responses! I am still not sure if I want to make one yet... we will see how much all the supplies will cost. I am not too fond at buying a $100+ baneblade model and cutting it up. lol

Especially as the Black Templars prefer Armoured Spearheads. A Fellblade would be one hell of an Armoured Spearhead...

 AlmightyWalrus wrote:
Especially as the Black Templars prefer Armoured Spearheads. A Fellblade would be one hell of an Armoured Spearhead...

Thats true! It would be like driving a suburban with mini coopers and smart cars flanking it! lol

@almightywalrus: So then what would you think of the Black Templars having one of these ancient relics? Would it be alright fluff wise? I try to tie everything in to the fluff some how. MY Warhound Ttian is from the Legio Matalica. They fought with the Black Templars on Armageddon.

I think the problem with this tank is that in the 40k era they have no use for this heavy tank any more. The LR and Pred is the bread and butter for armor for the SM and if they need super heavy fire power they call in their thunder hawk gunships to lay waste. It also why SM dont use titans. I mean who would not want a titan in an army, but 2-4 thunderhawks fill the role of a titan or even super heavy units.

That being said i would still love to see one.

I am not sure I agree that there is no use for it….. just very limited. If you look at the Space Marines as a whole, they dont have any Super heavy ground units... do they? They need to call in support from the Mechanium, or Imp Guard. Yes they can have air superiority with the thunder hawks, and all the new flyers. You can get the battle cannon, and one of the super heavy weapons (plasma blast gun or the turbo laser) on the thunder hawk.

I do agree with the landraider, and variants, and preadator main battle tanks as there bread and butter, no doubt.

I just personal feel, as mentioned above, that a super heavy tank may not be used a lot because of how cumbersome the fellblade is. I am sure its used very rarely, because of that fact. When thinking about it, a space marine should be able to overcome most obstacles without laying heavy siege to an objective. They are more mobile to circumvent the situation.

It might be used more or less as a primary defense weapon. The tank would hunker down and just lay out massive amounts of fire power when the enemy tries to push in. So this makes me wonder more and more….. is it even worth building? It would be a nice model to see, but practical game use, I am not sure current space marine chapters and crusades would deploy such a weapon.

They weren't really a "thing" outside of 80's material when there were still half-eldar Ultramarine Librarians, the Imperial Guard had Land Raiders, and Space Marines bore Lasguns and Shuriken catapults as often as Bolters. Then a plastic Imperial Guard Baneblade kit came out and the 80's stuff started getting repurposed as "heresy era" for art in a 3rd party collectible card game, and suddenly everyone wanted the cheap IG superheavies for their Marines, aided by a lot of fanfic from Bell of Lost Souls, so Forgeworld came out with rules in the Horus Heresy book released a few months back for Great Crusade/Horus Heresy era Space Marine Legion armies.



To be honest, there isn't much on SM superheavies because, until recently, they weren't really considered appropriate for Space Marines since the 80's before they had really clarified where stuff falls in the fluff, Thunderhawks fill the same role that a Superheavy tank would and more so there wasn't a need for them, and standard SM transport (e.g. thunderhawk transporters) cannot carry superheavy tank. Really, as it stands in the 41st millenium, Space Marine superheavies are essentially nonexistent.

Hum, Good to know. With that being said. Its always nice to have a cool super ehavy model around, but I dont think its worth my time, and or money to invest in to it.
Thank you!

Nice models are always cool regardless, it's just that the only "contemporary" Space Marine superheavies would be found amongst the Chaos Space Marines, as GW has actually showcased those in White Dwarf (they had a really cool looking Iron Warriors baneblade) and the like and has rules for a Nurgle CSM superheavy in the Apoc rulebook.

The CSM's never went through a "Codex Astartes" reorganization and have lots of heresy era equipment left and/or fewer compunctions about looting/using enemy equipment.

Well the other thing you need to see is that the SM are not ment to be super heavy steam roll army. they are a spear head army, attack fast, hard, blow it up or capture it then GTFO. which is why they dont have lots of heavy tanks, walkers, ect ect.

Yeah, it wont really match up in current fluff for them to have a super heavy imo. I have been playing since 3rd ed. and just never ehard of a space marine super ehavy tank before. Wanted to get a little more info on them.

I think it would be more fitting for a army like Ultramarines or Imperial fist to have something like this to be honest. A legion chapter to keep a relic around, a chapter more bound by the codex.

The problem is for conventional chapters, their manpower is capped at 1000. A superheavy is supposed to be a force multiplier for a significantly larger force, and for a chapter, would consume a lot of the forge's resources to maintain, crew and operate.

For a Fellblade, Baneblade or whatever, the crew requirements mean the forge has to take crew off of land raiders, predators and other, more flexible units for this big, hulking beast.

Hence, given that the SW and BT are significantly over-strength, the concerns about manpower cease, and they fit their tactical doctrine better, as both "chapters" don't really focus on the precision warfare of Codex ones. They like to smash heads, burn heretics, and level cities.

That is very true... but in the lexicanum link I read, it stated that it can be crew by space marines or surfs of the chapter. So it will still suck up a lot of man power, but it doesnt have to be a space marine...


Personally, If i was a marine and I saw that deploying on the battle field with me, i would throw a tantrum right in from of my commander. "I want to drive that!!!" kicking and screaming on my back the whole time! I think marines should be commanding that.

Relics are very rarely entrusted to the rank and file in 40k. Green tank crews don't get to drive baneblades, and I sincerely doubt a chapter's Master of the Forge would be comfortable letting a 10,000 year old, irreplaceable superheavy be driven by mere *humans.*

It's like giving a toddler a corporate CEO's credit card. No good can come of that.

Probably the only way a 3+ Founding Chapter has a Fellblade would be by finding one.

But I have to echo that the Fellblade just doesn't fit into the current 40K era scheme of maneuver for Space Marines. Too big, too heavy, too slow. It's a weapon for a bygone era when Space Marine Legions fought in conventional battles more often than not. I mean, it might have a time and place for use, but most of the time? No.

The IA books do a good job of describing the space marine style of fighting in the 41st millinieum where they are not a stand and shoot force but strike hard at a specific target then pull out and regroup. A fellblade, or any super-heavy just doesn't fit with that doctrine.

I imagine first founding chapters that didn't lose the majority of the men and equipment on Istvaan V or earth, like the imperial fists or dark angels, might have some super-heavies in their armories, but I doubt they've seen action in many thousands of years.

Well if the imperial fist had a few of them, I am sure the Black Templars would have taken one or two on there great crusade with them. They maybe a fast strike army, but also can run a nsaty spearhead armoured assault as well. A fellblade at the front of that is a mighty punch!

Google Blood and Skulls Industry. That is where I got my parts to make my Fellblade.

(Still a wip)

 SickSix wrote:
Google Blood and Skulls Industry. That is where I got my parts to make my Fellblade.

(Still a wip)

Lol, Thats where I am getting my ideas from as well. They have some really awesome parts for making a Fellblade. The bigger concern for me is the fluff. Still... they look pretty awesome! Nice work on this one!