Warhammer 40K: The Mighty Mastodon
The Land Raider might be the iconic heavy transport of the Space Marines, but the Mastodon is it’s big brother.
When it comes to Space Marine Heavy Tanks there’s a few contenders. But during the time of the Great Crusade and the Horus Heresy, one stood out even more. Enter the Mastodon.
The Mastodon Heavy Tank
The Mastodon is a Space Marine Heavy Tank used during the Horus Heresy and likely the Great Crusade. It was typically reserved only for assaults on the most heavily fortified positions.
The Mastodon was in use with every Space Marine Legion by the later Great Crusade, but they were used only sparingly. At the outset of the One-Five-Four-Six ‘Kharaatan’ Campaign, the Salamanders had enough Mastodons to transport the entire Legion force present – approx. 6000 Legionaries, which would translate into around 150 (or 40 Marines per vehicle). It could also choose instead to carry up to two Dreadnoughts.
The Mastodon was a heavy-duty tank far larger than the Land Raider Battle Tank. One of the largest transports of the Legiones Astartes, it was equipped with Void Shields to protect it and its occupants from harm. These power-fields were powerful enough to block Autocannon shells and even Lascannon blasts. As such, they were often used to protect Legionaries on the battlefield from enemy Titans.
The Mastodon was most commonly equipped with a forward Siege Melta Array, a turret-mounted Skyreaper Battery, two sponson-mounted Heavy Flamers, and two sponson-mounted Lascannons. It could also be equipped with up to four Hunter-Killer Missiles. The Siege Melta Array was it’s main source of devastation for heavily armored targets. The Skyreaper Battery helped it advance when it needed anti-air defenses. And of course those sponsons could be used for up close or longer range engagements based on the loadout.
When you need to crack a siege it’s time to call on Big Brother Mastodon!
For more on the Mastodon and other tanks of the Legiones Astartes check out the Lexicanum.
