At a single thought-impulse from the Techmarine these prow
and wing-mounted weapons can be calibrated for strafing runs.
In such circumstances, auxiliary grenade launchers mounted at
the rear enable the craft to rain down a hail of explosive
projectiles – either infernus grenades that detonate in clouds of
burning promethium, or frag charges that hurl deadly shrapnel
over a wide area. A full squadron of Blackstars can clear a
beachhead amongst a Tyranid swarm in a matter of moments
before their passengers descend to deliver the killing blow.
The Blackstar has advanced systems to ensure its survival from
the inevitable reprisal. Its robust construction can shrug off
even a direct hit from enemy flak, and when fitted with an
infernum halo-launcher it becomes extremely difficult to land a
telling blow. Should an enemy missile, drone warhead or similar
explosive device close in on the Blackstar, high-calibre auspicator
arrays will detect its aura of hostility, and send a wide spread
of decoys, interceptors and flares to thwart the incoming
munitions. It appears as if the Blackstar spreads wings of
smoke and fire behind it, a sight known to the Chapter’s
warriors as the Wings of the Sky Angel. Many a primitive
culture, saved from the predations of the alien, has seen the
Blackstar that brought their deliverance as a mechanical seraph
and worshipped it for generations afterwards.

On the strategic scale as well as the tactical, the Deathwatch
are noted for their use of advanced technologies. They strike
with clockwork precision, whether their assault numbers a single
Kill Team or several Watch Companies working together. The
Watch Captains ensure each team reaches its target at the
critical moment, their fine-tuned war plan a series of
overlapping attacks from which there can be no salvation.
Corvus Blackstars soar from the clouds, debarkation doors wide
to allow the Deathwatch within to drop directly into combat.
Thunderhawk Gunships swoop through storms of flak, their
Space Marine passengers making high-speed insertions on
tongues of flame. Even ancient and rare methods of attack are
sanctioned by the Watch Commanders – synched
teleportariums crackle within Strike Cruisers, Kill Teams sent
through the ether to burst back into the material universe with
bolters blazing; burrowing transports drill under the foe to
erupt with explosive force; psychic portals open in the midst of
the enemy, Librarians leading assaults from nowhere just as
the foe is at its most vulnerable. When the Kill Teams attack
together, they bring a swift and unmerciful end.

The greatness that runs in the veins of a Deathwatch Space
Marine is an echo of his Primarch’s godlike power. The
supernatural strength and toughness of his genetic legacy are
potent indeed, but these are far from his only weapons. Each
warrior is given free rein of his fortress’ armoury, and chooses
those tools of war most suited to his combat style.
Just as with all Adeptus Astartes, the bolter is a sacred
weapon to the Deathwatch. Those borne by the Kill Teams are
the best of their kind, thrice-blessed before every engagement
and possessed of fearsome machine spirits attuned to the
bearer’s war-style. They are commonly fitted with auspicator
scopes, lumin suppressors, las-accusors, judgement clips and
more adjustments besides.
The self-propelled projectiles that complement the Deathwatch’s
bolters are each tiny masterpieces of war. Some types, such as
the vengeance and hellfire rounds and kraken bolts, have been
in use for so long they can be found in the remotest watch
station. Others, such as rare anti-phasic and radbleed bolts, are
found only in a few fortresses – each such bolt is as valuable
as a small city.

MKVIII battle plate
The MkVIII armour common to the Deathwatch is a latter-day
design, but provides just as much strength and agility as its
predecessors. Some suits bear backpack-mounted auspicator
lenses to improve data prescience.
ICONography
The heraldic icon of the Deathwatch shares its origin with that
of the Inquisition – theirs too is the duty of constant vigilance,
merciless judgement, and excruciation of those who would do
harm to the Imperium.
bioscryer cuff
The right forearm of a Deathwatch battle-brother’s power
armour can bear a complex monitron relay that allows the
wearer to analyse the hostility of the environment – and his
own vital signs – at the touch of a rune.
ARTIFEX pattern bolter
The artifex pattern bolter is amongst the most potent of its
kind. Fitted with multi-spectral augur lenses, a silacharibdis shot
selector and a gene-grip bioveritor, its warlike spirit responds
only to its rightful owner.
Chapter icon
When a battle-brother ritually repaints his colours to those of
the Deathwatch he keeps his former Chapter icon intact upon
his pauldron, both as a mark of respect to his history and to
the machine spirit of the armour itself.

The finest wargear the Imperium can provide lines the
reliquaries of each watch fortress. Though many of these
artefacts are the work of the Adeptus Mechanicus, not even
the Tech-Priests of the machine cult know of their true
number. The act of innovation is tantamount to heresy in the
rest of the Imperium, but it is not forbidden within the
Deathwatch Chapter. With every new war the Chapter
reassesses and fine-tunes its mission tactics, and its equipment
is subjected to the same rigorous scrutiny.
The weapons these black-clad warriors bear to war are
painstakingly engineered, customised and auto-sanctified to be
the bane of specific alien foes. Not a single bolt round’s
potential is wasted; be it filled with bio-acid, volatile promethium
or superheated plasma, it will be selected and aimed to do the
maximum possible damage to its target upon detonation. Even
heavy weaponry and the guns of strike craft can be set to fire
different ammunition types or discharge variable energies
depending on their target. This is a necessary measure, for Kill
Teams rarely know the exact composition of the enemies they
will be facing, and consider versatility a weapon unto itself.
With a small arsenal of military assets at his command, a
member of the Deathwatch can theoretically wrest victory from
any breed of foe.
The suits of power armour found amongst the Deathwatch are
amongst the finest of their kind. Many are so ancient and well-
respected they bear names of antiquity, such as Iron Sanctum
or the Pride of Lord Varicco. Just as with guns, blades and
other weapons, it is up to the initiate whether he continues to
use the battleplate he is familiar with, or whether he replaces it
with a suit tended to by the Deathwatch’s own Techmarines.
There is no uniformity enforced upon this order save the
Chapter colours – the only real dogma is that the
battle-brother maximises his own effectiveness in the field. It is
not uncommon to find a Kill Team where every member bears
a different suite of weapons to war, even to the extent that
some use jump packs or ride rugged bikes into the fray whilst
their brethren go on foot.
Though many of the Chapter’s tools of battle resemble
advanced versions of those used by their fellow Adeptus
Astartes, there are far stranger and more exotic relics of battle
available to them. The war vaults of the Deathwatch contain
everything from oversized thunder hammers designed to slay
alien giants to stasis bombs that use time itself as a weapon.
Some even contain doomsday warheads that can set an entire
world aflame – many are weapons of last resort, but the
Deathwatch do not hesitate in their use.

Силовой доспех типа VIII «Странник» представляет собой дальнейшее
развитие идей типа VII и остаётся единственной моделью, разработанной
после тёмных дней Ереси Гора. Особенность «Странника» состоит
в том, что о его создании или первичных испытаниях не осталось
точных записей. Многие предполагают, что информация затерялась в
бюрократическом лабиринте Администратума. Другие утверждают, что
появление брони типа VIII – результат несанкционированного проекта,
или что он был утверждён на таком высоком уровне, что доступ ко всем
данным отсутствует.
Наиболее важные усовершенствования «Странника» относились ко
внутреннему устройству. Шлем, созданный с расчётом на установку
самых технологичных баллистических авгуров, значительно улучшил
меткость и повысил скорость реакции носителей. Заплечная силовая
установка была снабжена дополнительными теплообменниками и
вентиляционными модулями типа «Святой», благодаря которым доспех
VIII практически застрахован от перегрева. Также прошли оптимизацию
схемы распределения мощностей, вследствие чего неповреждённый
комплект «Странник» способен действовать вплоть до десяти лет подряд
без перезарядки и пополнения запасов.
По внешнему строению доспех типа VIII также выигрышно отличался
от предшественников. Его преимуществами стали усиленные броневые
секции на наплечниках, горжете и диафрагме, предназначенные для
более эффективного отражения вражеских ударов в рукопашном бою.
Кроме того, было разработано новое шейное сочленение, призванное
решить проблему с «магнитом для снарядов» в доспехе типа VII: выстрелы,
попадавшие в нагрудник, иногда рикошетировали в шею носителю.
Представляется, что «Странник» был создан полностью интегрируемым
с доспехом «Аквила». Его общительный и покладистый машинный
дух быстро соединялся с автоматизированным анимусом типа VII и
увеличивал его эффективность. За исключением специализированного
шлема и шейного сочленения, элементы силовой брони «Странник»
можно было использовать в сочетании с деталями «Аквилы» в любых
пропорциях. Это оказалось весьма полезной возможностью, поскольку
компоненты типа VIII встречались сравнительно редко. Фактически, в
орденах распространено награждение отличившихся воинов деталями
«Странника», и броню чаще всего носят ветераны, как символ их
положения.