Skaven Weapon Team
The Clans Skryre churn out mountains of material every day, more guns and machines of war that could ever possibly be used by themselves. A great many of these are bulky factory-built weapons of annihilation intended to be borne by a pair of skaven known as a Skaven Weapon Team. They can be either carried into battle by dedicated Skryre Acolytes or sold to some overconfident fools of the other Great Clans. [1a]
Contents
Doom-Flayer
The Doom-Flayer is a machine that was originally developed for tunnel clearance in mining and subterranean warfare, until one day an enterprising warlock realised it was equally effective when used as a tool of slaughter. To explain it simple terms, it's a motorised metal ball of whirling blades, powered by a warpstone generator. If handled carelessly, it may malfunction and burst apart in a spray of shrapnel. Sometimes, however, particularly deranged crew-rats kick the generator to overdrive their Doom-Flayer (and sometimes they even survive such an experience). [1a][1e][4a]
The first crew-rat tries to keep the Doom-Flayer moving and to save it from self-destructing, the second looks for suitable victims and directs the machine heading, cackling maniacally amidst spills of viscera and sprays of gore. If the Doom-Flayer gets stuck in a pile of enemies, crew-rats' vengeance will be inevitable. [1a][4a]
Every Doom-Flayer is armed with Whirling Blades, it's weapon team wields Rusty Knives. [1e]
Poisoned Wind Mortar
Poisoned Wind Mortar crews use their crude but effective contraptions to hurl corrosive orbs of warpstone gas and chemicals into the enemy line. [2a]
Ratling Gun
Ratling Gun is a multi-barrelled death-machine powered by a complex warp-steam battery and hand-cranked by a loader. Six barrels of the Ratling Gun spew out a barrage of warpstone-laced bullets, tearing enemies to bloody shreds in a matter of seconds. Overheating makes it very difficult to fire the Ratling Gun and can lead to an explosive misfire, but precision is not really necessary in a hail of slaughter created by this deathly weapon. [1a][4a]
A Ratling Gun’s crew can release its gimbal-limiter, increasing the gun’s rate of fire at the risk of a catastrophic malfunction. [1c]
Every Ratling Gun's weapon team wields Rusty Knives. [1c]
Warp-Grinder
The Warp-Grinder is the strangest and the rarest of all the contraptions wielded by Skryre weapon teams. Originally created as a device to help the skaven tunnel more quickly, this weapon’s warp-energy projector or warp-prong (warp-core haphazardly attached to a drillhead) creates a violent energy field that demolishes a wide arc of compacted earth, rock and even metal ahead of a crew-rat. Warp-Grinder is used either to annihilate enemy machines and warriors or to dig a tunnel for Clanrats to surround the foe. Given their usefulness in sneak attacks, these weapons are often utilised by Eshin clans. [1a][1f][4a]
Warpfire Thrower
For ranged mass carnage such as city-clearing or tunnel warfare, the Warpfire Thrower is a popular weapon. It consists of a sloshing barrel filled with warpstone-infused oils (or simply warp-fuel) and connected to a heavy brass nozzle, through which it is sprayed in gouts across the enemy when the crew-rat presses the trigger. The hideous alchemical brew ignites on contact with the air, bursting into sheets of green-black flames. The solution is so deadly that neither water nor sand will work against it. The victims are left to suffer in pain as the fire burns away their bones. [1a][1d][4a]
A Warpfire Thrower's crew can disable the weapon's flow regulator, allowing it to unleash great, uncontrolled gouts of warpfire but at the risk of immolating themselves. [1d]
Unfortunately for the crew-rats, their backpacks are compustible. All it takes is one swipe of a blade or a precise shot from a sniper for a weapon team to explode on the spot, delivering a death sentence to anyone nearby. [4a]
Every Warpfire Thrower's weapon team wields Rusty Knives. [1d]
Warplock Jezzail
Warplock Jezzails are long-barrelled rifles that require two sharp-eyed skaven to load and fire. They loose high-velocity rounds crafted from a refined, highly toxic warpstone that can break through even sigmarite war-plate. Such warp-bullets leave bright green trails in the air, smashing enemies off their feet like a wrecking ball, bursting skulls apart and taking limbs off. [1a][1b][4a]
Long-distance sniping is a favoured tactic of skaven, that's why Warplock Jezzails are so popular amongst hirelings, Eshin killers and those Skryre forces that fight amidst ruined cities and fortresses. They are lightweight in comparison to the equipment carried by other weapon teams, quick to relocate and easy to maintain, allowing the assassins to kill quickly from a great distance without revealing themselves. However, if detected, the weapon team will be protected from returning fire by a cumbersome pavise. On top of that, shield serves to steady long-barelled rifles. [1a][4a]
Crew-rats that fire Warplock Jezzails often work as a team, turning entire regions in corpse-strewn killzones. [1a][4a]
Every Warplock Jezzail's weapon team wields Rusty Knives. [1b]
Miniatures
A Doom-Flayer weapon team.
A Warp-Grinder weapon team
A Ratling Gun weapon team.
A Warpfire Thrower weapon team.
Another Warpfire Thrower weapon team.
A Warplock Jezzail weapon team.
Two weapon teams, a Poisoned Wind Mortar on the back and a Warpfire Thrower on the front.
Sources
- 1: Battletome: Skaven (2019)
- 2: Spire of Dawn
- 2a: pg. 18
- 3: Warscrolls
- 3a: Doom-Flayer Weapon Team from Grand Alliance: Chaos
- 3b: Ratling Gun Weapon Team from Grand Alliance: Chaos
- 3c: Warp-Grinder Weapon Team from Grand Alliance: Chaos
- 3d: Warplock Jezzail from Grand Alliance: Chaos
- 3e: Doom-Flayer from Battletome: Skaven (2019)
- 3f: Ratling Gun Weapon Team from Battletome: Skaven (2019)
- 3g: Warp-Grinder Weapon Team from Battletome: Skaven (2019)
- 3h: Warpfire Thrower from Battletome: Skaven (2019)
- 3i: Warplock Jezzail from Battletome: Skaven (2019)
- 4: Battletome: Skaven (2022)
- 4a: Weapons of Skryre, pg. 30-33
| Skryre | |
| Units | Doomwheel - Skryre Acolyte - Skryre Warlock (Arch-Warlock - Warlock Bombardier - Warlock Engineer) - Stormfiend - Weapon Team (Doom-Flayer - Poisoned Wind Mortar - Ratling Gun - Warp-Grinder - Warpfire Thrower - Warplock Jezzail) - Warp Lightning Cannon |
| Characters | Blacktail - Enkril - Ikrit - Kratchik - Pitrikk - Quell - Reeknik - Skatchnik - Shoktail - Skowl Scorchpaw - Skrach - Snikrit - Steelklaw - Vileskrit - Volz Flayfang - Vrikt - Warpskreech |
| Clans | Ekkit - Ezzik - Fizzik - Krakhl - Nibbolt - Phrikk - Rhukrit - Tesnykt - Shokryk - Shyvik - Staktik - Vrrtkin - Zikk - Ziknak |
| Armoury - Artwork - Miniatures | |
