Heidronard Pattern Storm Chimera

A typical Heidronard Pattern Storm Chimera in use by the Cadian Shock Troopers

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The **Heidronard Pattern Storm Chimera**, more commonly shortened to just *Storm Chimera*, is a variant of the Chimera that utilises a more powerful main weapon known as the Hot-Shot Multi-Laser. While it shares a name with the more famous Storm Chimera of the Death Korps of Krieg, the two vehicles are unrelated beyond sharing the same base chassis. The Heidronard Pattern Storm Chimera is intended to be a more dedicated infantry support vehicle than the regular Chimera, able to lay down a potent barrage of firepower from its more powerful weaponry. It is produced exclusively on the Forge World of Heidronard and is among one of its most widely adopted patterns.

## Capabilities

### Battlefield Role

The primary role of the Heidronard Pattern Storm Chimera (hereafter referred to as Storm Chimera) is an Infantry Fighting Vehicle or IFV, though thanks to its armaments it also is in many respects a general combat support vehicle, able to provide support and firepower to almost any unit, be it armoured vehicles or infantry. Due to the power demands of the Hot-shot Multi-Laser, the Storm Chimera is forced to replace space meant for carrying troops with a enlarged power source. This space is further reduced to make way for additional smaller power sources used to power 4 hull mounted Hot-shot Lasguns, which replace the regular passenger firing ports. This means the Storm Chimera can only carry 6 Guardsmen, half the capacity of the standard model. These factors have made the Storm Chimera a vehicle only used by the best and most experienced crews and squads as an elite IFV.

The squads transported by the Storm Chimera are typically either Tempestus Scions, a locally raised equivalent such as Storm Troopers or Kasrkin, or veteran mechanised squads to make up for the lower capacity with higher quality. Their crews are similarly highly trained and experienced to best utilise the more rare and expensive vehicle; they are also trained and taught how to maintain and repair the vehicle to a much higher degree than other crews. In combat, the Storm Chimera acts more like an IFV than the Standard Chimera, providing devastating and powerful fire support for infantry whilst providing tanks with more robust support; they also work well as the elite of Chimera units. Their squads are trained to fight in tandem with and support the vehicle and vice versa, delivering a more powerful punch than the standard Chimera and squads. Due to the costs and requirements of the Storm Chimera only a few regiments are granted access to them, typically Tempestus Scion Regiments or the elite sections of Mechanised and Armoured Regiments.

### Armament

The primary armament of the Heidronard Pattern Storm Chimera is the Hot-Shot Multi-Laser. The Hot-Shot Multi-Laser or HSMLaser, is an enhanced version of the Standard Multi-Laser commonly found on Chimeras and Sentinels. In many respects, the HSMLaser is to the Multi-Laser what the Hellgun is to the Lasgun, a more powerful and penetrative upgrade at the cost of power demand and complexity. The Hot-Shot Multi-Laser can pierce thicker armour than its standard counterpart and has a longer effective range, making it a deadly weapon that is effective against not just hordes of Infantry and light Vehicles like the typical pattern but also against more heavy targets like heavily armoured infantry and heavier vehicles. However, like the Hot-Shot Lasgun, the HSMLaser is much more complex to build and maintain; it also requires a significant power source to power it sufficiently, meaning it cannot be fitted to Sentinels, instead finding itself installed exclusively on the Storm Chimera. It is also prone to overheating, requiring the gun to be allowed to cool fully before it can be fired again, Its parts often end up being replaced frequently as the amount of power unleashed leads to components burning out or breaking. Like the standard Chimera the Storm Chimera is equipped with a hull-mounted Heavy Bolter or Heavy Flamer, while a pintle mounted Heavy Stubber or Storm Bolter is often attached. The Storm Chimera has only 4 passenger hull-mountings rather than the standard 6 due to the need to give up space for the power source of the HSMLaser, however to offset this the mountings are equipped with Hot-Shot Lasguns, giving the troops extra firepower.

### Armour

As to be expected of a more combat oriented variant of the Chimera, the Storm Chimera has an additional 20mm of armour added to give it more staying power and survivability, bringing it to the same level of armour as the Hellhound. This level of armour is often improved on by regiments through up-armouring with appliqué, spaced or reactive armour, to improve the survivability of a vehicle.

## Known Users

* **Keltan Mechanised Guard** - The Keltan Mechanised Guard have received a number of Storm Chimeras, these prized vehicles are only given to their elite Grenadier units and veteran crews.
* **Armageddon Steel Legion** - The Storm Chimera has found itself in the service of the Imperium's most renowned Mechanised specialists, the Armageddon Steel Legion. As with its usage by other regiments the Storm Chimera is given to only the most veteran squads and Steel Legion Storm Troopers.
* **Cadian Shock Troops** - Rather unsurprisingly given how relatively close to now lost Cadia Heidronard is among one of the most frequent users of the Storm Chimera have been the Cadian Shock Troops whose veteran squads have long valued the Storm Chimera. Even after the fall of Cadia the Storm Chimera is still produced for its regiments.