Heavy Machinery of the Adepta Sororitas

With the updated Sister of Battle Tanks revealed at this years Blood and Glory event, I felt it was time to look at all the fantastic machinery that is part of the Sisters of Battle armies.

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(Most descriptions are taken from Warhammer 40k Fandom and the W40k Lexicanum, links below)

Sororitas Rhino

 

“The Rhino personnel carrier is the most common transport vehicle at the disposal of the Sisters of Battle, allowing units to move swiftly to where they are most needed, be it to seize an objective or strike deep into the heart of an enemy force. This tried and tested vehicle is famously robust, easy to repair and utilised extensively by the Imperium’s most elite fighting forces such as the Adeptus Astartes and the Adepta Sororitas. The Rhino is fully capable of interacting with power armour, recharging power cells and downloading tactical battle information as troops are transported into the thick of battle. Rhinos, like all Sisters of Battle vehicles, are bedecked with holy symbols and relics in addition to military insignia denoting squad and Order markings. The door hatches of the Order’s Rhinos are often emblazoned with the Sigil Sororitas — the icon of the Sisters of Battle.” [Source]

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Immolator

“The Immolator battle tank is a design exclusive to the Adeptus Ministorum, based upon the ubiquitous Rhino chassis. Immolators carry deadly, but short ranged, twin heavy flamers that cleanse the battlefield of all but the toughest of foes. The sight of such a tank rumbling into sight has disrupted more than one enemy battle line as warriors try in vain to evade an Immolator’s fearsome inferno. Sisters of Battle favour bolters, flamers and meltas to eradicate their enemies — the so-called “holy trinity” of weapons. As a result, some Immolators are armed with a pair of tank-busting multi-meltas instead of the traditional heavy flamers, whilst others mount heavy bolters to cut down enemy infantry formations at range. Immolators are tactically versatile vehicles and the tank of choice for many Sororitas commanders, for in addition to their prodigious armaments, their armoured hulls can carry squads of Battle Sisters, deploying them onto vital objectives and then supporting them with heavy weapons fire.” [Source]

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Exorcist

“An Exorcist is one of the Adepta Sororitas’ unique weapons of war, a vehicle that unleashes volleys of explosive, armour-piercing judgement upon the foes of the Imperium. They are, however, unpredictable machines that are only vaguely understood by the Tech-Priests who must continuously service them. Many Exorcists have been in service since the Age of Apostasy, further adding to their erratic nature. The Exorcist missiles fired by these revered vehicles are capable of splitting open enemy battle tanks or destroying entire squads of heavy infantry in one punishing salvo, provided, of course, that the Exorcist’s temperamental machine spirit does not malfunction. Most vehicles in the Sisters of Battle’s armoury serve multiple purposes, for in addition to being weapons of war, they are mobile shrines adorned with devotional icons and carvings. The Exorcist is perhaps the most ornate example of this. Each is an individual work of art whose battlefield role of providing devastating long-range fire support is secondary to its significance as a potent, divine symbol of the power and glory of the Ecclesiarchy.” [Source]

► I love the idea of the Exorcist and its iconic look. There are different versions of this tank, but the one with an organ as rocket launcher definitely stands out (and should be the only version taken into account! ^^) I see a lot of potential to give this vehicle some unique special rules and I already collected some ideas in a different article (s. Chorals of War). All in all, give it some tunes!

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Repressor

“The Repressor is an Imperial armoured personnel carrier (APC) based on the standard Rhino chassis. The Repressor is used by both the Adeptus Arbites as a riot control and crowd suppression vehicle, and by the Adepta Sororitas as an infantry transport during intense urban battles. The Repressor uses an extensively converted Rhino chassis; the transport compartment has been greatly expanded upon, a raised roof featuring firing slits for the passenger’s weapons has been added, a large dozer blade used to plow through debris and rioting mobs is attached to the front of the vehicle, and the vehicle possesses a small forward cupola-mounted turret. The Adeptus Arbites variant of the Repressor is armed with non-lethal weaponry such as water cannons and grenade launchers that fire stun and gas grenades at angry mobs. When the Adepta Sororitas started to use Repressors near the end of the 40th Millennium they replaced the non-lethal weapons with Storm Bolters and Heavy Flamers.” [Source]

► With its really rare feature of having 6 firing points, allowing embarked units to shoot out of the vehicle, the Repressor is a nice addition to the army and to the diversity of the Sisters of Battle. Unfortunatley it only got Forge World rules in the latest editions and I would really hope to see it finally in the new codex – though I’m not very optimistic.

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Penitent Engine

“Penitent Engines are towering, bipedal vehicles that rampage through the enemy’s battle lines, leaving death and carnage in their wake. The machines’ arm-mounted flamers blaze a trail of fiery destruction as they thunder towards their foes, and their gigantic, razor-edged buzz saws carve through armour, flesh and bone with every frenzied swipe. To be a pilot of a Penitent Engine is to have committed a terrible crime, one so heinous that punishment such as imprisonment, exile, arco-flagellation or execution is deemed too lenient. Many of the unfortunates sentenced to pilot a Penitent Engine were once members of the Ecclesiarchy — priests fallen from grace or Battle Sisters who have, through failure of duty or faith, caused the deaths of their fellows. A multitude of wires and chemical injectors are implanted into the condemned pilots’ spines, and when they are not ripping through the ranks of their enemies, lances of pain and images of guilt shoot directly into their brains, reminding them of their sins. Driven by their pilots’ frantic need for forgiveness, Penitent Engines charge towards the closest foe in sight heedless of any danger, knowing that only in death — theirs or the enemy’s — can forgiveness finally be  earned. Penitent Engines often charge into battle beside the ranks of the Orders Militant. The Sisters of Battle consider it their sacred duty to witness these great machines in the fires of combat, observing the actions of their fallen brothers and sisters as they atone for past sins and seek redemption.” [Source]

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(Incarcerator)

Only few might know about the wonderous Ministorum Incarcerator. This vehicle was once part of a special 40k scenario, published in the Black Gobbo Nr.13 several years ago.

“The Incarcerator is a psychic shielded vehicle used by the Ordo Hereticus and Ecclesiarchy to transport prisoners of the Imperial Church to their eventual judgment and execution. They are crewed by the Sisters of Battle and are equipped with a jet turbine whose compression chamber also serves as the holding cell for as many as ten prisoners. However, if the psychic shielding is breached or there is a risk of the prisoners escaping, the Incarcerator’s turbine can be activated to purge the heretics within in a huge blast of swirling pure flame, as befits the Emperor’s judgment.” [Source]

► Being mostly a prisoner transport vehicle, there are not many uses to a battlefield-army. But with the Psychic Awakening on the march, wouldn’t it be great to get some sort of Incarcerator to take up the fight against mighty psykers? Maybe a similar vehicle with an Anti-Psyker / Nullzone…

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So this is the list of known vehicles of the Adepta Sororitas. Not mentioned are all the vehicles that the Ministorum could attend to, like nearly everything the Astra Militarum has to offer I guess.

Is there anything you would love to see in the new codex? Maybe a flying unit? And what is your all-time favorite vehicle of the Sisters of Battle?

Let me know and may the Emperor protect you!