Tanks or Terminators? Two of the most fun Space Marine detachments in the current codex push your army in opposite directions. Ironstorm Spearhead turns your vehicles into a rolling gun line; Terminator Storm Force drops elite First Company veterans into the enemy's face. We play both with our Ultramarines, so here's what each detachment does, how it plays and which one fits your collection.
Published November 4, 2026. Rules summarised in our own words from Codex: Space Marines; check your codex and the latest balance update for exact wording and points.
Quick comparison
| Ironstorm Spearhead | Terminator Storm Force | |
|---|---|---|
| Army style | Tanks and vehicles | Terminator-armoured veterans |
| Main rule | Vehicles re-roll one hit and one wound when shooting | Terminators get +1 to charge |
| Best at | Long-range firepower, killing big targets | Getting stuck in fast, being very hard to kill |
| Model count | Low: a few big kits | Low: elite infantry |
| Feels like | An armoured company rolling forward | The First Company teleporting into battle |
Ironstorm Spearhead: the armoured fist
In the lore, Space Marine armour usually supports the infantry. Ironstorm Spearhead flips that: the tanks are the army, deployed at squadron strength to smash through enemy lines while the battle-brothers follow behind.
The detachment rule
Your Adeptus Astartes vehicles (not walkers, so no Dreadnoughts) share targeting data. When they shoot, each one can re-roll one hit roll and one wound roll. That sounds small, but on big single shots, like a lascannon or a heavy plasma blast, rescuing the one roll that matters is huge.
The enhancements
- Redoubtable Machine Spirit: gives one vehicle a 5+ invulnerable save and lets it heal a wound every Command phase. Perfect on your biggest, most expensive tank.
- Gunnery Honours: gives a vehicle's guns the [HEAVY] ability, so it hits more often when it stays still. Great on a gun platform you park on an objective.
Both enhancements can't go on Dedicated Transports, flyers or walkers.
Stratagem highlights
- Layered Ceramite (1CP): a vehicle gets a 5+ save against mortal wounds. Your answer to psychic attacks and mortal-wound spam.
- Might of the Machine Spirit (1CP): until your next Command phase, one tank ignores penalties to Move, Ballistic Skill, and hit and wound rolls. Damaged tanks keep fighting at full strength.
- Headhunter Doctrine (1CP): a vehicle's guns get Lethal Hits against monsters and vehicles. This is how you delete enemy tanks and big Tyranids.
How it plays
Ironstorm is a patient army. Park your heavy hitters with clear lines of fire, use the re-rolls to make every big shot count, and let the enemy come to you. Its weakness is board control: tanks are few and big, so you need a few cheap infantry units to grab objectives.
Terminator Storm Force: the First Company strikes
Every Codex Chapter's First Company is its veteran elite, and the best of them wear Tactical Dreadnought armour. Think of the Ultramarines First Company that died to a man holding Macragge against the Tyranids. This detachment is built around those warriors.
The detachment rule
Your Adeptus Astartes Terminator units get +1 to charge rolls. Terminators are slow, so this extra inch is what turns a failed 9-inch charge out of deep strike into a successful one.
The enhancements
- Champion of the First Company: a Terminator character's melee attacks get Lethal Hits. A brutal upgrade for a Captain or Chaplain leading a squad.
- Corporeum Reliquary: lets a Terminator unit make an ingress move in your first Movement phase, so your squad can reposition across the table on turn one.
Stratagem highlights
- Tactical Dreadnought Fortitude (2CP): attacks against a Terminator unit get -1 Damage until that enemy has finished attacking. Turns lascannons and power fists into a shrug.
- Merciless Veterans (1CP): a shooting Terminator unit gets Lethal Hits and Sustained Hits 1. Huge with assault cannons and storm bolters.
- Gunship Extraction (1CP): at the end of your opponent's Fight phase, pull an unengaged Terminator unit back into Strategic Reserves to drop it somewhere better.
How it plays
Storm Force is aggressive. Drop or ingress your squads where they hurt, charge with the +1 bonus, and dare your opponent to shift them. Its weakness is model count: if you lose a big squad, you feel it, so pick your fights and use Fortitude on the unit that matters most.
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Which detachment should you pick?
Pick Ironstorm Spearhead if: you love tanks, you own several big vehicles (Repulsors, Gladiators, Predators, Land Raiders), and you enjoy shooting from range.
Pick Terminator Storm Force if: you have one or two full Terminator squads plus a Terminator character, and you like an elite army that hits hard up close.
Our take: we enjoy Ironstorm more for casual games, because seeing two battle-scarred grav-tanks roll down the table never gets old. For a punchy, low-model army that's quick to paint, though, Terminator Storm Force is hard to beat. If you own both, you can even combine them: see our list below.
Or run both: our undefeated combo
You don't always have to choose. My Ultramarines core combines Ironstorm Spearhead and Terminator Storm Force: Calgar with ten Terminators, a Repulsor Executioner and a Gladiator Lancer. Read the full breakdown: The Ultramarines OP Combo: Calgar, 10 Terminators and two unstoppable tanks.
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What you need to start
- The codex: both detachments are in Codex: Space Marines.
- For Ironstorm: two or three big tanks, like a Repulsor Executioner or Gladiator.
- For Storm Force: a box of Space Marine Terminators and a Terminator character to lead them.
New to the army? Start with our Space Marines guide and Ultramarines lore guide, and meet the Chapter Master who leads them all: Marneus Calgar.
FAQ
Can Dreadnoughts use Ironstorm Spearhead's rule?
No. The detachment rule and enhancements exclude walkers, so Dreadnoughts don't benefit.
Can Ultramarines use these detachments?
Yes. Both are Space Marine codex detachments, so Ultramarines and other Codex Chapters can use them.
Do Terminator Storm Force rules work on Terminator characters?
Yes. They apply to Adeptus Astartes Terminator units, which includes Terminator-armoured characters.
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Sources
- Games Workshop: Codex Space Marines warhammer.com
Written by the WIZY creator
A lifelong gamer and Warhammer painter from Calgary, Canada, and the maker of the Crusade Journal and the WIZY RPG game. I write about games, hardware, Warhammer and crypto in plain English, and I check every fact against its source.
