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.

I would expect the Imperial Guard to possess some huge Bismarck type battleships, or at least some gunboats. Would be useful on campaigns on earth-like planets. Do battleships 'exist' in 40K at all?

 Matthew wrote:
I would expect the Imperial Guard to possess some huge Bismarck type battleships, or at least some gunboats. Would be useful on campaigns on earth-like planets. Do battleships 'exist' in 40K at all?

When you have a space navy, an old fashioned wet navy is pretty obsolete.

You might find them as part of PDFs, or hyper-specialized guard regiments. But not in general use.

Guard not have a battleship.

Maybe some lighter gunboats with armour like Vietnam if headed to a pretty wr campaign or a few larger pt boats mounting like auto cannons bur not much bigger in regular use.

 Matthew wrote:
I would expect the Imperial Guard to possess some huge Bismarck type battleships, or at least some gunboats. Would be useful on campaigns on earth-like planets. Do battleships 'exist' in 40K at all?

You have chimeras.

Air/space dominance makes a lot of the roles/uses of a surface navy grossly inefficient or obsolete. 'Bismarck-style battleships' would require a conflict to be centered somewhere with lots of deep water, and to worthwhile investment, would require an enemy navel fleet to engage (which should have been easy targets for space-based fire). That also supplants their alternative role of shelling coastal targets - space based platforms wouldn't have the same range limitations.

Which isn't to say there are no boats in the 41st millennium - they pop up in the literature a lot because they're useful to have around on planets where they fit in, but their situational nature makes them a planetary level concern, and so we don't see them represented in the galactic-scaled forces of the IG.

In the novels, they feature gunboats and ferries, but these are few and far between with aircar technology being relatively common on developed worlds.

There is mention of all such things in "Flesh and Iron" including things like miles long aircraft carrier and giant battleships with meters thick armor plate down to small "Orca" Gunboats

They were part of the PDF due to the planet being mostly water with Islands spread out across the planet.

Guard can be specialized in using Wet craft but they are not common.

I'm more wanting to see giant LAND battleships with huge tracks and guns. basically Tanks big enough to rival the mightiest titans.

If a campaign needs boats its likely they get them off PDF or squire them localy and retrofit them with guns n armour.

They use submarines in a ravanor book but that's more as high end transportation to get to a area under ice caps.