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How long does a chainsword with a full tank of promethium last before it runs out?

5 Turns.

As long as a piece of string.



Thing is how long is a bit tricky because it will have three states. Off; engine ticking over; running. During a battle it would likely spend much of it just ticking over as you're moving around. You wouldn't want to fully engage it to moving the teeth until you're actually in need of using them to cut and slice through things. So the few seconds to minutes of brutal combat you'd have it running; but then you'd release the trigger and let it sit idle ticking over once you're hunting for the next target or moved back to stand off with your target etc...


Considering that a real world chainsaw can run a fairly good length of time on one fuel load; one from 40K years in the future might well run for a considerable length of time. Certainly in many of the stories I've read the Chainsword running out of fuel or needing to be refuelled doesn't come up that often. In contrast Imperial Guard lasguns are often having to change down power settings to conserve charge; putting the magazines into fires to charge them up and swapping magazines. Bolters also run out of ammo (bolt pistols often run out).

So I'd wager that they've a very efficient engine and thus run for quite a considerable length of time.

It runs for the length of time the plot demands it to run. I'm not even joking here. Whatever the reason you want to know this is, that's the honest answer here.

If you want this for a writing project, the answers are "Brother Corpus grinned, the machine spirit was pleased with the blood of the heretics, and he sensed that the holy promethium had only just begun to burn the fires of retribution in its belly." to "Even the sacred promethium had retreated from his chainsword, and now Brother Corpus was truly alone facing a horde of monsters."

If you want this for game design, then the question is "what turn will cause the most drama?" Turn 1 is too early, because then it's just "you don't have chainswords". Turn 5 is too late, because it's then just "you don't have chainswords". Randomly between turns 3 and 4 is probably the best because then it's "you don't know if you can make it to the end".

So seriously - the actual answer isn't important (and frankly, can't be known - we don't know how efficient promethium is or how the chainsword's engine works - and with it being the Imperium and their weird use of tech, a chainsword's efficiency and the efficiency of some other similar device could be totally different from each other, so we can't even use comparisons effectively). The only answer that's important here is what you NEED the answer to be.

Y'know, this all reminds me of a joke I once heard when I made it up myself just now.

 Overread wrote:
So I'd wager that they've a very efficient engine and thus run for quite a considerable length of time.

Yeah - replacing the teeth in them seems to come up more often than refiling them.

Hmm I feel like this is the same question as why do space marine never run out of Bolter amo. I guess assume there is just someone running around topping them up.

Also they would blunt, the chain would get loose and the would get all gunked up on stuff.

I would like to see something that provides a bit of context on this type of thing though. It’s a good question because adding in ammunition constraints is a good way to add peril to stories but as it is ammo seems to be unlimited.

Especially with the choas marines. If your so hell bent on acquiring skulls for the skull god then when do you find time to get you chain axe serviced. There must be some level of logistics involved in running a heretic warband.

The only weapon to have seen it addressed for is lasguns which run on cheap long lasting solar charged batteries.

mrFickle wrote:
Hmm I feel like this is the same question as why do space marine never run out of Bolter amo. I guess assume there is just someone running around topping them up.

In the fluff there's Chapter serfs and servitors who follow the Marines into battle with extra ammo & spare kit - the Custodes do something similar (as do Knights, but theirs are a bit bigger).


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Psychic Awakening: The Stand of the Sabre

mrFickle wrote:
Hmm I feel like this is the same question as why do space marine never run out of Bolter amo. I guess assume there is just someone running around topping them up.

Also they would blunt, the chain would get loose and the would get all gunked up on stuff.

I would like to see something that provides a bit of context on this type of thing though. It’s a good question because adding in ammunition constraints is a good way to add peril to stories but as it is ammo seems to be unlimited.

Especially with the choas marines. If your so hell bent on acquiring skulls for the skull god then when do you find time to get you chain axe serviced. There must be some level of logistics involved in running a heretic warband.

The only weapon to have seen it addressed for is lasguns which run on cheap long lasting solar charged batteries.

In lots of fluff marines constantly run out of ammo, because that's part of their modus operandi. You don't want to weigh the troops down as they crash into their target, but reinforce them a bit later if they survive that long. Recent examples I've been reading that spring to mind would be Betrayer and Dropsite Massacre, where it is constantly remarked on that marines slam in with drop pods and fight ceaselessly for an intense moment, after which they are given more ammunition via supply drops. Especially in the Dropsite Massacre historical records from survivors at the hottest front line reminisce how they ran out of bolts in a matter of minutes of unbridled violence. In Betrayer, where the situation was a bit less intense, World Eaters dropped into a city and fought until their guns ran dry and chainweapons sputtered into pieces after too much hacking. Looting the field was a constant activity, while some of the Astartes were digging into the supply caches others were pressing on for days on end with whatever weapons they could pick from the ground. At one point Kharn himself just picked swords, axes, bolters and even lasguns from the ground, used them until they were empty or broke and just kept rushing the defenders for there would be more for the taking later on.

Marines drop in, smash their target in a furious flash and either bounce off or get reinforced immediately through close armour and air support. Protracted fighting where they'd be lugging around large packages of stuff goes against their strengths in comparison to normal soldiers.

Dark Imperium likewise suggests this, noting that ammo supplies for intercessors are pretty limited and that they're supplied in field via drop pods filled with ammo