Volkite Weapon
Ranged | Close Combat |
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"Volkite Weapon" is a Mechanicum term for a type of ancient "thermal" ray[6] weapon dating back to the Age of Strife. How these differ from other rays that heat up a target (such as a thermal laser or melta weapon) is unclear.
Overview
Possessing a killing power surpassing most armaments of their size, Volkites were little-understood and difficult to replicate on even the most capable Mechanicus Forge Worlds. Volkite weapons could deflagrate organic matter, explosively burning flesh into ash and jetting fire[1]. A direct hit by a Volkite weapon could cause a target to simply combust, often taking nearby comrades with them.[7]
At one point they were relatively common in the fledgling Space Marine Legions, but by the time of the Horus Heresy were a rarity and had been replaced by the more flexible and easy to manufacture bolter.[1] The loss of Forge Worlds during the Horus Heresy sped the decline of Volkite weapons in the Imperium.[1f][7]
Telerac pattern weapons are far more ancient and ill-omened than even those designated 'Proteus', the name implying dark associations with the technological horrors of the Age of Strife. The shortage of reliable supplies of Volkite weaponry saw many Telerac pattern weapons restored to service, and carefully maintained in the Space Marine armouries.[6]
Types
Personal
- Artellus Numeon's glaive - A glaive with an integrated volkite weapon.[14]
- Volkite Serpenta - Used by Mechanicum, Adeptus Mechanicus, and Legiones Astartes[1a][1b][1c][5a][5b][5c]
- Neo-Volkite Pistol - Modern Volkite weapon used by Primaris Space Marines[18]
- Volkite Charger - Used by the Imperialis Militia, Solar Auxilia, Mechanicum, and the Legiones Astartes / Adeptus Astartes[1][5c][5e][5g][5h][9][11]
- Volkite Caliver - Used by the Legiones Astartes, Mechanicum and Astra Militarum[1e]
- Volkite Blaster - Used by Tech-Priest Dominus[8]
- Volkite Cavitor - Used by Contekar Terminators[17]
Support/Vehicle
- Volkite Incinerator - Mounted into the chest of Ursarax troops.[5d]
- Volkite Falconet - Used on the Deredeo Dreadnought[16]
- Volkite Sentinel - Twin-Linked Volkite Chargers controlled by a Servitor brain. Mounted on larger Mechanicum war engines such as the Triaros Armoured Conveyer.[5d]
- Volkite Saker - Mounted on the Sabre Tank Hunter[15]
- Volkite Demi-Culverin - Mounted on the Leman Russ Incinerator[10]
- Volkite Culverin - Used by Myrmidon Destructors, Knight Acastus-pattern Imperial Knights, Tactical Support Squads and Contemptor Pattern Dreadnoughts[1d][5c][5e][9]
- Volkite Carronade - Mounted on the Glaive Super-heavy Special Weapons Tank[4]
- Volkite Cardanelle - Mounted on the Kratos Heavy Tank.
War Engine
- Volkite Combustor - Mounted on Chaos Knight Abominants[21]
- Volkite Veuglaire - Mounted on Knight Moirax-pattern Armiger-class Imperial Knights[12]
- Volkite Chieorovile - Mounted on Knight Styrix-pattern Questoris-class Imperial Knights[13]
- Volkite Eradicators - Mounted on Warhound-class and Reaver-class Imperial Titan[19]
- Volkite Destructors - Mounted on Warlord-class Imperial Titan[19]
- Volkite Storm Accelerators - The largest known Volkite weapon, mounted on the Emperor's flagship Imperator Somnium during the Great Crusade.[20]
Images
A Volkite Charger[2]
A Volkite Culverin[6]
In the center an Iron Warrior fires an Volkite Charger on Tallarn
Artellus Numeon raising his glaive, with integrated volkite weapon[14]
Sources
- 1: The Horus Heresy Book One - Betrayal
- 2: The Horus Heresy Book Five - Tempest, pg. 92
- 3: The Horus Heresy Book Two - Massacre, pg. 103
- 4: Forge World (last accessed 13 January 2016)
- 5: The Horus Heresy Book Three
- 6: FW Volkite Culverin with power pack (last accessed 13 January 2016)
- 7: Codex: Cult Mechanicus (7th Edition) - Weapons of Enlightenment
- 8: Codex: Adeptus Mechanicus (8th Edition), pg. 74
- 9: Codex: Space Marines (8th Edition), pg. 132
- 10: Solar Auxilia Leman Russ Incinerator
- 11: Solar Auxilia Veletaris Storm Section
- 12: Knight Moirax Datasheet
- 13: Forge World - Questoris Knight Styrix
- 14: Vulkan Lives (Novel), pg. 79, 93
- 15: Warhammer Community: Tanks for the Reinforcements (Posted on 29/11/2019) (Last accessed on 29 November 2019)
- 16: Forgeworld: Deredeo Pattern Dreadnought with Boreas Air Defence Missiles and Volkite Falconet Battery (last accessed 12/9/2019)
- 17: Warhammer Community: The Road to Thramas – Part 3: Terror Troops (posted February 3 2020) (last accessed 2/4/2020)
- 18: Warhammer Community: Warhammer 40,000 Preview – What’s in the Box? (Posted on 13/06/2020) (Last accessed on 13 June 2020)
- 19: https://www.warhammer-community.com/2021/03/25/pop-void-shields-like-bubbles-with-adeptus-titanicus-new-volkite-weapons/
- 20: Mortis (Novel) - Chapter 14
- 21: Warhammer Community: Enter the Abominant – Two New Chaos Knights Revealed at AdeptiCon (posted 23/3/2022) (last accessed 23/2/2022)