| rdfs:comment | - Devastator Marines are those Battle-Brothers tasked with manning the heaviest and most powerful of portable weapons. In his parent Chapter, the Devastator Marine might recently have ascended from the 10th Scout Company, and therefore be undertaking a crucial stage in the process of mastering all of the arts of war. In the Deathwatch, however, it is more likely that the Devastator Marine has already served in his parent Chapter as a Devastator, Assault Marine, and Tactical Marine, and is returning to the role he most excels in—the application of overwhelming firepower. In battle, the Deathwatch Devastator Marine carries one of a wide range of heavy weapons, and his role is to provide fire support for the other members of the Kill-team. It is often the case that a concentrated burst of fire
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| abstract | - Devastator Marines are those Battle-Brothers tasked with manning the heaviest and most powerful of portable weapons. In his parent Chapter, the Devastator Marine might recently have ascended from the 10th Scout Company, and therefore be undertaking a crucial stage in the process of mastering all of the arts of war. In the Deathwatch, however, it is more likely that the Devastator Marine has already served in his parent Chapter as a Devastator, Assault Marine, and Tactical Marine, and is returning to the role he most excels in—the application of overwhelming firepower. In battle, the Deathwatch Devastator Marine carries one of a wide range of heavy weapons, and his role is to provide fire support for the other members of the Kill-team. It is often the case that a concentrated burst of fire from a heavy weapon like a Heavy Bolter or Plasma Gun will force the enemy to seek cover, thus allowing the Kill-team to advance across otherwise perilous ground. Weapons such as the heavy bolter are ideal for this task, as they combine a high rate of fire with a powerful ammunition type. For this reason, the Heavy Bolter is the most common type of heavy weapon carried by Deathwatch Devastator Marines, but there are plenty more, chosen according to the nature of the mission and the enemy. If it is considered likely that the Kill-team will encounter especially large and tough alien beasts, such as a Tyranid Carnifex, the Devastator Marine may take to the field carrying a Lascannon or a Plasma Cannon. Both are long-ranged weapons with an extremely powerful attack. The former is designed to destroy enemy tanks with the single shot, while the latter is capable of wiping out enemies wearing heavy armour that are caught in its deadly blast effect. If the Kill-team is likely to face enemies occupying highly fortified bunkers or similar structures, the Devastator Marine may carry a Multi-Melta to battle. This weapon is an even more powerful version of the standard Meltagun, and is capable of reducing an entire fortress wall to slag. A Devastator Marine wielding such a weapon must be a master in its use, for it is all too possible to bring down an entire structure on to the heads of the Kill-team instead of burning a tunnel through an obstacle. Another commonly wielded heavy weapon is the Missile Launcher. The strength of this weapon is its versatility, as it is able to fire a wide range of missile types. Most common are Frag and Krak Missiles, which are essentially larger versions of the grenades of the same name. However, the Deathwatch maintains stocks of more unusual or specialised warheads, including those capable of delivering devastating toxins, gas, or even defoliants for destroying vegetation. The Devastator Marine must be adept in the use of all such weapons, and he trains endlessly to master their application. In addition to his heavy weapon, a Devastator Marine is likely to carry a range of specialised equipment. Many carry suspensors, small devices attached to the heavy weapon that utilise a miniature anti-gravitic generator to provide sufficient lift to offset the weight of the weapon. Other devices include additional targeting gear built into the Auto-senses of the Devastator Marine’s helmet and integrated with pick-ups on the weapon itself, allowing him to see his target from the point of view of his weapon’s barrel. Some Devastator Marines utilise rare or exotic systems, often supplied on a mission-specific basis by a Techmarine. These include motion predictors, psych-ocular buffers and wide band electromagnetic filters. The number of Deathwatch Battle-Brothers designated as Devastator Marines for a given mission depends upon the nature of the objective and the enemy, as does the exact weapon load-out each will carry. Deciding such details is the responsibility of the Watch Captain, and a mission’s success or failure might rest upon it. Assigning two brothers to deployment as Devastator Marines allows for more flexibility, perhaps with one being equipped with a Heavy Bolter and the other with a Lascannon, but doing so reduces the overall flexibility of the team, for fewer brethren will be serving as Tactical Marines. Sometimes, two Devastator Marines may both carry the same weapon, so that one may cover the entire Kill-team as it advances, before he redeploys covered by his Battle-Brothers. It is said that the single most important qualification to serve as a Deathwatch Devastator Marine is not skill at arms or the ability to maintain the heavy weaponry, but raw courage. A Devastator Marine must often stand before gargantuan alien horrors, and it is vital that he remains as cold as steel as he draws a bead on his enemy’s weak point. It takes a very special type of warrior to undertake such as task, one who has faced and prevailed upon a million different xenos abominations and emerged victorious.
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