Titans

Imperial Titans are the colossal god-machines of the Adeptus Mechanicus's Collegia Titanica.

The Imperium's Titans are mechanical, humanoid-shaped war-machines; some Titan classes reaching up to a hundred feet in height. Their presence inspires nothing but terror - few enemies can stand against them - and only another Titan can equal their power.

A human pilot, linked directly to the machine via a Throne Mechanicum, controls the movement of a Titan merely through thought. Titans are powered by plasma generators, as nothing else can provide the vast amount of energy required. Energy fields known as void shields are the Imperial Titan's first line of defense. The shields can absorb incoming damage until becoming overloaded. A Titan's limbs move using electrically-motivated fibre bundles which act as synthetic muscles.

Imperial Titans are transported world to world by Mechanicum-operated Heavy Transports.

Titans are divided into a number of general types depending on their size and function. The Battle Titans are the most numerous and general type. Widely varying in size, they stand between 40 and 80 feet in height. Some types of Battle Titan have been built by the forces of Chaos over the years since the Heresy, or have been corrupted from their original design. These Titans are unique to the forces of the Traitor Titan Legions.

Each general type of Titan is further divided into classes. The most basic class of Battle Titan is the Warlord. Finally, each class has a number of variants, determined by the weapons it mounts.

The Main classes of Imperial Titan are as follows;

The Warhound

The Reaver

The Warlord

The Emperor

While Knights are a class of titan, I have covered them in an earlier post; http://imgur.com/gallery/2bgbL

The Warhound Scout Titan is the smallest class of Imperial Titan. With the deployment of a full Titan Legion, Warhounds are commonly used to reconnoiter ahead of the Battle Titans and draw enemy war machines towards them. Despite its designation as a scout, the class is formidably armed.

Warhound Titans are primarily designed to perform reconnaissance missions and terror raids deep behind enemy lines. As the eyes and ears of the Legion they typically range far ahead of the main battlegroup and operate in pairs in order to outmaneuver larger Titans they might encounter. In major engagements they prefer to operate on the flanks and seek out "soft" targets such as enemy infantry and Battle Tanks against which their lighter Titan-grade weapons can cause immense damage.

Warhounds are also consummate ambush predators. Where most Titan combat might take place at ranges of five kilometers or greater, Warhounds can lay in wait for their prey to come closer and engage at point-blank range. This potentially allows them to defeat larger foes on their own; a Reaver Battle Titan might tonne for tonne outclass a single Warhound, but if caught by surprise the smaller engine is more than capable of killing its larger foe. The Warhound's ability to go from idle, with main drive and systems shut down and the powerplant almost asphyxiated, to full sprint in less than twenty seconds and crash through stone walls three times its height helps in this regard.

With their emphasis on speed and agility over strength Warhounds are considered lightly armed and armoured for Titans, protected by just two Void Shield generators and limited in their selection of weaponry. The result is that enemy infantry and tanks can actually pose a serious threat to these war engines without proper support. However they are still very dangerous and deadly engines. Warhounds can unleash more firepower than over a dozen squads of Imperial Guard could hope to muster. Their void shields are capable of sustained bombardment from weapons which would destroy normal battle tanks in a single hit. Sustained bombardment from a battery of Basilisks will eventually topple one over. Warhounds have even been known to survive a direct hit from a Volcano Cannon, though the force of the blow will knock them sideways and their shields will be heavily damaged. In other cases such firepower will result in the Titan's catastrophic destruction, leaving behind nothing but a pair of legs. In general enough firepower to level a city block will pulverize a Warhound.

As in other Titans a Warhound's crew consists of devout members of the Adeptus Mechanicus. The Titan's commander is known as a Princeps, charged with overseeing all aspects of the war engine's functions through a Mind Impulse Unit. The MIU link also allows the princeps to commune with the Titan's "Machine Spirit," an intelligence which guides and assists in operations. Such spirits, as old as the veteran war engines themselves, are often surely and cantankerous, resentful at being woken and forwards in following commands. These qualities, likened by some to having to bring to heel a ferocious dog, are also what make Warhounds so murderously effective.

As in other Titans a Warhound princep comprehends their war engines and realise the surrounding environment through the Manifold, an immerse and interactive sensory space and the hard-plug equivalent of the Noosphere. It also results in the princep unconsciously aping the posture of the Warhound in action, while damage taken by the Titan can appear as psychosomatic welts on their body. A wealth of sensory data is viewed through the Manifold, normally paired down the the four essentials of detecting heat, motion, mass, and code activity, and can be data-streamed back to the Legion. For example, a Warhound can pick out the heat signature and power source of a Land Raider anywhere within one kilometer of its position.

The princeps sits in the forward cockpit along with two Moderati who assist in piloting the Titan: the first functions as the driver and navigator while the other commands the weapons and sensors. In turn each one controls the Warhound's remote servitor-slaves, which are hardwired into the war engine's weapons, void shield generators and engineering system. The final crewmember is the Techpriest situated in the engine room behind the main cockpit, tasked with overseeing the smooth running of the Warhound's plasma reactor. All are hard-plugged into the Titan and make use of hard-switches, as subtle haptics and noospheric links are considered too easily compromised or damaged for controlling the Titan in the midst of combat.

Two Warhound Scout Titans have also guarded for thousands of years the Eternity Gate, the sole and final entrance to the Sanctum Imperialis, the Emperor's resting place.

The Reaver Battle Titan is a medium class Imperial Titan, a flexible war engine typically deployed to provide close support for conventional forces in a shock/assault role. The Reaver pre-dates even the mighty Warlord Battle Titan, though the date of its original manufacture is kept hidden within the deepest sealed archives on Mars and known to a handful of Magos in the Titan Legions. While not as common (or heavily armed) as the Warlord, nor as quick and agile as the Warhound, the Reaver is nonetheless a deadly machine and regarded as a holy engine of destruction by the Adeptus Mechanicus.

The Reaver boasts four Void Shield generators and is protected by thick, well-sloped layers of adamantium armour plating, giving it an immense level of protection. It can mount up to three weapon systems of terrible destructive power which are configured based on its mission role: those operating in support of conventional forces typically mount short-ranged, rapid-fire weapons and close-combat weapons, while operating as part of a Titan battle group one or two will be given longer-ranged firepower. Indeed such is the power of the Reaver that only another war engine of similar capability or entire tank battalions working together have a hope of defeating one in open combat. However the Reaver is not invulnerable, especially when fighting against larger Titans. In a one-on-one duel a Warlord can easily destroy a Reaver by itself, while a Plasma Destructor can drop a Reaver's void shields in three shots, with another three scalping its head and shredding its carapace.

The Reaver differs from other Titan designs in that it's plasma reactor is placed in the rear of the carapace housing. This unique feature makes it much harder for an enemy to knock out the Titan when attacking from the front, while simultaneously making the reactor an easier target when attacking from the sides and rear. Reavers therefore are less suitable for extremely heavy fighting in cities and other built-up areas, though their speed on the open battlefield makes this problem less of an issue.

Reaver crews are the same as found in other Imperial Titans, consisting of a Princeps with overall command of the machine, two Moderati who control its weapons and movements, and a Tech-Priest to manage the plasma reactor, assisted by servitors wired directly into the Reaver's many systems.[4] The Princeps directs from an armoured command throne, where he connects directly with the machine's Mind Impulse Unit through neural connectors (typically cranial socket connectors and cyber-optic implants, though spinal-cortex coils or even immersive vitro-tanks are not unheard-of), allowing him to directly receive information from the logic-engine, auspex and control systems. In most cases the Princeps' commands are carried out via the MIU interface, though a master override allows the Princeps to directly control all of the war engine's functions, including as a last resort manual override controls in the arms of the command throne. Of the Moderati one is charged with controlling the Reaver's primary weapons while the other pilots the war engine and monitors sensor information.

The Reaver's standard armaments consist of a single carapace-mounted weapon, typically equivalent to the smaller weapons carried by Warhounds, and two arm-mounted weapons equivalent to those carried by Warlords. As with other Titans these multi-configuration mounts allow a Reaver to easily swap out weapon systems, although many crews tend to stick with a specific configuration. In addition Reavers are built with a standard weapon configuration based upon their pattern: for example the standard configuration for a Mars-pattern Reaver, and the most common configuration for Reavers in general, is an 'Apocalypse' missile launcher with a laser blaster and gatling blaster. Non-standard configurations have also been sighted, such as Reavers where all three hardpoints mount missile launchers.

he Warlord Battle Titan is a class of Imperial Battle Titan. It is the most numerous of Imperial Titans with millions having been built over the many years of its existence; in fact the design is older than the Imperium of Man itself. The Warlord is essentially a walking fortress, packing enough firepower to wipe out entire armies on its own. The only true threat to a Warlord is another Titan of the same magnitude, such as those used by the traitorous Dark Mechanicus or the alien Ork and Eldar races. Thousands of Warlord Titans saw action on both sides during the wars of the Horus Heresy.

The Warlord is by far the most widely employed, numerous and versatile class of Imperial Battle Titan deployed by the Collegia Titanica; it is second in power only to the rare Emperor Class Titans. Some Warlords date back to time of the Great Crusade or even the Dark Age of Technology. The sheer longevity of the Warlord means a variety of different patterns and variants have been built, some mounting unusual upgrades such as landing platforms for aircraft, siege rams to batter down walls and assault pods to disgorge infantry into the enemy's strongholds. This also means the design's capabilities and tolerances are well-known among the Mechanicus, making the Warlord an ideal test-bed for new devices conjured up by the Divisio Investigatus.

The primary role of a Warlord is as front-line combatant where the fighting is heaviest. Its primary line of defense are six Void Shield generators which intercept enemy fire before it even hits the war engine.[8] So powerful are these shields that a Warlord can withstand continuous bombardment from over five dozen armored vehicle and artillery platforms with no loss of shield strength. Beneath the shields are meters of adamantium armoured plating, which themselves can ward off a regiment's worth of firepower with but minor scarring. The weaponry the Warlord mounts is similarly stupendous, with four primary Titan-grade systems and numerous secondary armaments for fighting in built-up areas. So powerful are these weapons that Warlords can level entire cities with them. A Warlord can easily destroy a Warhound Scout Titan in a matter of seconds, and will handily defeat a Reaver Battle Titan in a one-on-one duel. Warlord Battle Titans do have one weakness in that their plasma reactor is located in the abdominal cavity, making it susceptible to heavy weapons fire if the armour is breached. For this reason many Warlords are geared towards long-range fire support.

The Warlord Titan is equipped with powerful heavy-duty auspex equipment meant to allow it to locate targets within the most hellish and inhospitable conditions. Everything from radar scanners and echo-locators to spectrographic sensors and electromagnetic detectors are used to paint an accurate picture of the surrounding terrain and the location of enemy forces. A Warlord can get an accurate target lock based on heat signatures, seismic activity, motor noise, communication signals, even falling masonry knocked over by foes attempting to flee the war-god's wrath. A Warlord's aural phones are sensitive enough to locate the distinct "wailing" made by void shields operating in a high-static environment while in the middle of a sandstorm.

The command crew of a Warlord consists of a Princeps and several Moderati housed in the armored head of the Titan, which connect with the Titan on an intimate level through a Mind Impulse Unit and view the outside world through the Manifold. The Princeps maintains primary control of the Titan, thoughts becoming action with a direct link with the mighty war engine's spirit. In the days of the Great Crusade a Warlord Titan could be controlled through a command throne with implants fused into the princeps' flesh and hard-switchs for emergency overides, but even back then this method was fast becoming obsolete. Both the mental and physical strain of a princeps being disconnected from his engine, combined with the degradation of their body through wear and tear over the many centuries of service, meant many quickly transferred to a fully immersed amniotic tank. This method of being suspended in liquid information means a Warlord princeps is able to maintain remote congress with their Titan, while the loss in personal mobility pales in comparison to being a walking god on the grim battlefields of the far future.

The cockpit is split into two levels, with the moderati, steersman and sensori seats placed in the chin while the princeps' amniotic tank is placed behind them. In the event of an emergency the head contains a fire suppression system and a weapons locker, protected by biometric sensors, containing shotguns and lascarbines to fight off boarders. Access to chemical stimulants means the crew is capable of over eight days of continuous combat, although by this point they will be dangerously exhausted and forced to return to replenish ammunition anyways. While the head is armored against attacks, a kamikaze run by a Lightning fighter is capable of decapitating the Warlord.

Other members of the crew include a Tech-Priest housed in a secluded alcove in the back of the cockpit and an Enginseer who monitors the machinery in the belly of the Titan. Like other Titans the Warlord is equipped with Servitors who are slaved to individual weapon systems. While it is possible for the firing of weapons to be done manually by one of the crewmembers, servitors are able to do so far more effectively. Assuming manual control is sometimes necessary in cases such as the Titan's spirit overwhelming the low-grade servitor minds in a fit of feral bloodlust and firing the weapons itself without being commanded.

To steady itself Warlord Titans are fitted with internal gyros and gravitational stabilisers to brace themselves when firing or moving over difficult terrain. Warlords have a stride length of 20 meters.

The Emperor Titan is the largest type of Imperial Titan, consisting of two classes: the Imperator and Warmonger

Emperor Titans are immense, mobile fortresses, mounting veritable arsenals of weaponry, protected by void shield generators and armour so thick an Emperor Titan would not be out of place on a planetary defence installation. Emperor Titans are among the largest mobile battle units that can be deployed on a planet's surface. It forms a vital role, employed against the most formidable and overtly powerful enemies, providing massive, destructive and directed power. Emperor Titans employ the same technologies as other Titans but on a massive scale, relying on huge plasma reactors to supply their colossal requirements.

The most noteworthy feature of an Emperor is the fortified castle-like structure which occupies the entire upper half, sporting ornate features like spired towers and stained glass viewing portals. The building is heavily-armed, and more than capable of contributing to combat. Due to its prominent position, the Titan's head is situated lower than normal on the body, almost at the same level as the arm weaponry.

The Imperator is one of the two variants of the Emperor, the other being the Warmonger. Of these two, the Imperator is a more general-purpose assault platform, whereas the Warmonger is a dedicated fire-support unit with advanced fire control and targeting systems crewed by just one man.

Both types of Emperor Titan are extremely powerful; they are loaded to the brim with pre-installed weapons, and their mounts can handle Titan weapons too big for even the other classes (they do not however carry any close-combat weapons, as their sole focus is on extreme firepower). Emperors are very rare, and can utterly crush many weaker war engines. By default they also carry companies of troops on board for defense and assault assistance.

The Imperator is one of the larger examples of an Emperor Titan. Only the most battle-hardened Princeps are given command of an Imperator. In comparison to Battle Titans of all classes, Imperators are rare with most Titan Legions only able to field three or four Imperators in a campaign. The Grand Masters of Titan legions often use Imperator Titans, modified to a greater or lesser degree, as mobile headquarters. From here they issue commands to the whole legion or even lead vital assaults personally if the situation warrants it.
Imperators are employed most of the time as vast mobile fortresses to strengthen vulnerable sectors of the battlefront or to act as a reserve force behind the front-line. When a major offensive begins, Imperator Titans spearhead massive assaults of men and machines, their terrifying firepower blasting a path through enemy lines. A complete company of infantry plus supporting troops can be housed on board the Imperator to guard it against infantry assault or be transported to a vital objective.

The Imperator is configured to deliver salvos of devastation at all ranges, the fire intensifying as the Imperator closes with its target. However, Imperators are not normally equipped to fight other Titans in close combat. Instead they rely on their deadly firepower to cripple opponents before they get too close.

According to the scale diagram from the Imperator's Apocalypse datasheet, it stands approximately 39" tall on tabletop, equivalent to 55.5 meters (166ft) in real life. Dies Irae, the famous Chaos Imperator Titan that laid siege to the Imperial Palace, was stated as being 43m (130ft) tall, though it is by no means clear that Dies Irae had cathedral spires, serving as it was during the time of the Imperial Truth. As discovered in Dawn of War: Winter Assault, the planet Lorn V houses the fallen Mars-pattern Imperator Dominatus, which became a battleground for Imperial and Eldar forces as they fight for control over the Titan's weapons. In the campaign of Dawn of War: Dark Crusade, the planet Kronus bears the Hellstorm Cannon of the Imperator Aquila Ignis.

The Warmonger is very similar in structure and appearance to the Imperator Titan. Which was designed first is now lost to the mists of time, and all that is known for certain is that both Imperators and Warmongers have served in the Titan Legions since well before the Horus Heresy. However, while the two types of Emperor Titan are similar, they perform different functions of the battlefield. The Warmonger's weaponry is configured to provide long range fire rather than the more flexible configuration of weapons found on the Imperator. In battle, Warmongers will usually be held back to provide long range support, bringing down devastating salvos of missiles and defence laser fire on the enemy, while other units forge ahead and drive into the heart of the enemy.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

If you want to learn more about Warhammer 40k, I recommend www.lexicanum.com , who's description I shamelessly stole.

There's also my usual facebook haunt:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/340625096141735/

Hope you like what I've posted, and if you do, feel free to check out some of the other things I've got up. (2000+ images for 40k as of this post :D )

http://imgur.com/gallery/u56yN

Chaos Wills It.

Most Viral Edit: Thanks for the updoots folks, they please the Chaos Gods, Fickle as they are. If you liked this, feel free to check out some of my other lore/art dumps in the link immediately above this edit. Stay Classy, and enjoy your Sunday!