40K Friday: The Second-Coolest Weapon Ever

I think we can all agree that the coolest weapon ever is the lightsaber, right? OK then.

The second-coolest weapon ever, is the chainsword. It's the weapon that sealed he deal for me when it came to Warhammer 40,000.

This was actually an ad in Dragon magazine in June of 1988 that had the complete up-to-date weapons chart for the game. Regrettably it's been scanned at too low a resolution to read the tiny print but among the many interesting weapon names is the Chainsword, and the mere concept of the weapon with that name pretty much pulled me in. I had already picked up some of the miniatures because they looked cool and I had seen a game locally, but this pushed me over the edge.

Unlike the lightsaber, it doesn't really have a defensive quality - you're not going to be deflecting blaster shots with it, at least not deliberately. But it does have a visceral quality that 'sabers lack. You sweep a lightsaber past someone and they may not even realize their arm is off. A chainsword leaves no such confusion - they will know it, their nearby companions will know it, and everyone within a hundred feet will know it, thanks to the motorized ripping sound and the shower of gore that goes with it.

 Now it's not a stealthy weapon given the noise it emits when used. Then again, lightsabers aren't either, with that whole glowing thing. Let's face it, when it comes to stealthiness, the coolest weapons rarely care - they want you to know what's coming!

There are more powerful weapons in the 40K universe, but I think the humble chainsword is the coolest one of all.

I rarely post videos but this one pretty much covers everything that needs to be covered on the subject. Give it a second, it's worth it.