Crew: 9 (1 company commander, 1 comms officer, 1 Master of Ordnance, 2 gunners, 2 Loaders, 1 tech adept, 1 driver)
Known Patterns/Subvarrients: I-IV (A-D)
Armament:
Main Armament: Orbital Bombardment/Artillery Strikes
Secondary Armament: Pintle mounted Storm Bolter or Heavy Stubber (2000-10000 rounds), 2 Hull-Turret Mounted Heavy Bolters (1000-2000 rounds each)
Mobility:
Max Speed: 30 km/h
Traverse: 6 degrees (hull turret)
Elevation: N/A
Powerplant: MR507 V18 Multi-Fuel engine
Dimensions:
Weight: 260 Tonnes
Height: 6 metres
Width: 6.4 metres
Length: 13.5 metres
Ground clearance: 1.2 metres
Armour:
Superstructure: 200/200/200mm Faramite Alloy Plate
Hull: 200/200/200mm Faramite Alloy Plate
Gun Mantlet: N/A
Command Unit: 280/280/280mm Faramite Alloy Plate
Lore: The Shadowlord traces its history back to the early days of the Imperial Army at the onset of the Great Crusade. Through hundreds of thousands of meetings across the ruined remains of earth's still-surviving nation states, questions were raised and answered about an army that had to venture out into the galaxy to reclaim all that was lost in the War of Iron and the Age of Strife. Hundreds of delegates, former national leaders and former generals clashing and debating over how the final organisation would look, how it would function, and how it would be funded.
Of the countless concepts and military doctrines that would be supposed, tried and either fade away or be implemented; the super heavy tank company was one that would show promise. The original plan was to have the then-newly-created Baneblade super heavy tanks arranged into company formations of 20-30 tanks with a couple of specially created command vehicles to lead them. Equipped with state-of-the-art observation and communication equipment, these heavily armoured tanks would provide field commanders a safe and highly effective platform from which to lead armoured regiments from the front with their super heavy spearhead company.
The idea had a lot of appeal with younger and more hot-blooded commanders, and even a few old hands saw some merit in it: as a commander that followed their troops into battle was likely to garner high respect from them and keep morale high, and from a heavily armoured super heavy from which there was little chance of being killed in action.
The tank itself was similar to the Baneblade in overall form, but lacked either the Demolisher Cannon or Mega Battle Cannon main armaments of the more common battle tank. Room was instead allocated to targeting cogitators and vox casters, which allowed a company commander access to accurate targeting data on all opponents in an active theatre, and direct lines of communication to every tank in their company. The tank also allowed for good visual communications, with both digital and mechanical optical enhancers built into the vision slits that lined every wall of the Comand Unit which replaced the turret on a Baneblade. Said Comand Unit was also large and spacious enough for a small plotting table, and (although barely) there was enough room for 3 people to stand and go about their duties in the space. These 3 people would normally be the company commander, a comms officer to relay orders from the commander, and a master of ordnance who could call in cross-regimental artillery and naval support to assist the tanks. For defence the tank had a hull-mounted turret with 2 Heavy Bolters mounted in it, and a Pintle Mounted Storm Bolter or Heavy Stuber that could be manned if needed by an access hatch on top of the Command Unit.
The newly named Banelord was put into production, and would see service with the early Baneblade companies in the Great Crusade. Here the vehicle performed more or less exactly as advertised. Units which had the benefit of a Banelord command tank were normally far more effective on the Tactical level, as the commander could respond to rapidly changing battlefield situations and maintain a high degree of fighting morale among troops who had more respect and admiration for an officer that joined them on the frontlines. During this time, the Banelord would earn the nickname 'Kingpin' which would stick with it for the rest of its service with the Imperium.
During the Horus Heresy however, when heavier weapons would be turned on the super heavy regiments of the Imperial Army on a far more regular basis, very few Shadowlords would survive. Most would be destroyed by traitor Space Marines, to whom the tank had little to defend itself against. But also rival super heavy formations would often target the Shadowlords first, the resulting bloody tank brawls leaving only a handful of super heavy tanks still in operation for the victor, and rarely was a Shadowlord among them.
Post-Horsus the Imperium has very few super heavy formations large enough to warrant the services of a dedicated command tank. Normally company commanders will instead opt to simply command a tank tank command from either the back lines or from the front in their own super heavy tank of choice. However, those Shadowlords that survived the Horus Heresy still see active service primarily as artillery spotters. As their excellent observation capabilities and communications equipment allow the tank to perform the role quite well, and the heavy armour protection makes counter battery fire largely ineffective when in a prepared hull-down position. Some even still get used as command tanks on occasion, although rarely alongside many other super heavies, but instead as part of much larger formations of lesser Leman Russ tank variants. In these engments, the 'Kingpin' is able to relive its glory days as the leader of armoured formations as they cut bloody swaths through hordes of xenos and traitors alike, as it conducts the orchestra of death. But it is a dying breed that grows more rare with each passing day.
Authors Note: If you play the tabletop game, I have play-tested stats for all of these Super Heavies, PM me if you're interested in having them.