Thundering Bastiladons lumber into battle, their impregnable shells scarred by the enemy’s futile attempts to slay them. Upon the beasts’ backs are mounted ancient relics, crewed by brave skinks, that carve blazing furrows through the enemy army, or spill forth endless tides of venomous serpents.[1a]
Overview
An inviolable monster of flesh and carapace, the Bastiladon wades through the chaos of battle, blades and bolts sparking off its natural armour. Protected by its thick shell, the beast stomps and mauls anything foolish enough to stand in its way, moving with the irresistible force of an avalanche.[1a]
Shielded by their plate-like scales, Bastiladons are able to carry weaponry powered by the fearsome heat of the stars. The Solar Engine blazes with the light of a sun, its crystal core casting forth beams of incinerating light that reduce flesh, stone and steel alike to glowing embers. Daemons are especially vulnerable to this Azyrite light, and its merest touch is often enough to obliterate their physical forms, sending them howling back into the Realm of Chaos. In addition, the backwash of concentrated celestial energy produced by the thrumming weapon energises nearby seraphon, strengthening their presence in the Mortal Realms and infusing them with renewed vigour.[1a]
The Ark of Sotek spews a never-ending tangle of serpents from its heart, which slither outwards from the Bastiladon like a carpet of venomous death. Their fangs dripping with star-venom, these ophidian terrors wriggle between gaps in armour and bite into soft, exposed flesh, setting their victims’ blood afire with the flames of Azyr.[1a]
The Bastiladon is also a mighty foe in its own right. The same strength that enables it to bear the seraphon’s heavy engines of destruction into battle allows it to crush a warrior in full plate with its clamping jaws and pounding feet, mashing their broken bodies into the ground without breaking its ponderous stride.[1a]
Against particularly tough enemies, the Bastiladon can bring its brutal club-like tail to bear. A massive, boney protrusion attached to a bundle of thickly corded muscle, the Bastiladon’s tail can lash out with blinding speed to shatter fortress gates, smash down reinforced walls or reduce even the sturdiest warriors to pulp.[1a]
Wargear
A Bastiladon attacks with its Bludgeoning Tail, while the skinks riding atop it hurl Meteoric Javelins. Some Bastiladons carry a mysterious Ark of Sotek on their backs, which unleashes a tide of snakes to overwhelm the foe – others bear a devastating Solar Engine, capable of emitting a Searing Beam of celestial energy.[1b]
Sources
