Thunder Hammer

The thunder hammer is among the most devastating melee weapons the Imperium fields. At the instant its head strikes home it discharges a stored burst of energy in a blinding flash and a peal of sound like a thunderclap, so that the blow lands with the force of a falling gunship. Armour buckles, bones shatter, and even armoured vehicles are staved in by a single ringing impact.

It is most often paired with a storm shield and borne by the elite Terminators and veterans of the Adeptus Astartes, whose thick plate lets them close the distance the weapon's weight demands. A wall of warriors advancing behind crackling shields, thunder hammers raised, is a hammerblow aimed squarely at the heart of the foe, and few battle-lines survive the moment it lands.

The weapon is heavy and slow, and a warrior who misses his swing leaves himself badly exposed. Yet the reward is worth the risk, for there is little a thunder hammer cannot break. Such weapons are treasured relics, their heads inscribed with oaths and their bearers chosen for both strength and honour. When one is raised, the enemy hears the storm gathering in its head and knows that the next sound will be the last thing many of them ever hear. There is a grim ceremony to its use, for a Chapter does not hand such a relic lightly, and the warrior who bears it swears to spend its wrath only upon foes worthy of so mighty a doom.