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Stylistically, the tanks of the Imperial Guard contain elements of design from all throughout history. For instance, the Leman Russ battle tank has a hull design similar to World War II -era tanks. However, it has exposed tracks around the outside of the chassis and gun sponsons similar to the tanks of the First World War . The tanks of the Imperial Guard range from lightly-equipped scout tanks, heavily-armoured battle tanks to self-propelled artillery. This article discusses the various Imperial Guard vehicles in the Warhammer 40,000 and Epic tabletop games. It also takes from the vehicles' other appearances in various 'spin-off' publications such as Video Games . ARMOURED FIGHTING VEHICLES Basilisk . ]]The Basilisk is one of the artillery tanks commonly used by the Imperial Guard in the Warhammer 40,000 universe. It is similar in appearance to real-life Self-propelled Howitzer s, being essentially an artillery piece mounted on a stripped-down chassis of another Imperial Guard vehicle, the Chimera transport. The Basilisk mounts one of the longest-ranged weapons in the entire game, the 'Earthshaker' Artillery Gun . Basilisks utilise the standard Chimera chassis but replace the passenger compartment and turret with the Earthshaker, leaving it with the hull-mounted Heavy Bolter weapon and driver's compartment. In-game, the Basilisk's Earthshaker gun normally is fired like any other ordnance weapon, directly pointing and shooting at a target just like any self-propelled artillery gun. However, the weapon can be adjusted to fire Indirectly in a way similar to how artillery guns such as Howitzers are used. In-game, this is represented by the adjusted Earthshaker using the special ''barrage'' rules for firing artillery.1 In the fiction, the shells are renowned for the powerful shrieking they make during flight, the mere sound of which is often enough to break enemy morale. Additionally, it is also mentioned that Earthshaker crews tend to go deaf. Unlike the other artillery units in the Imperial guard, such as the Bombard, Griffon, and Manticore, the Basilisk is capable of direct as well as indirect fire, giving it a limited ability to defend itself from enemy vehicles and infantry. Consequently, Basilisks are often placed at the front of an artillery detachment. The Basilisk also appears in Epic, both as a self-propelled gun and as a fixed weapons platform. Outside of the tabletop miniature games, the Basilisk has appeared in at least two computer games based on the Warhammer 40,000 franchise. The first one, , the Basilisk is one of the vehicles available to the Imperial Guard faction, introduced in the expansion Winter Assault as one of the longest ranged weapons of all the races.3 Bombard The Bombard mounts a Siege Mortar on a Leman Russ chassis. Despite its comparatively short range (as an artillery piece), it is one of the most powerful artillery pieces in the Imperial Guard. This is represented in Epic game rules by the Bombard ignoring cover when being used against fortified troops. Early Epic scale models and the Forge World model are based on the Leman Russ chassis. Its use is rather limited, however, due its short range and lack of direct fire capability; it is primarily used on fortresses after the fortress's occupants are forced inside their walls. The inspiration for the Bombard may have come from the World War II German Mörser Karl self propelled gun. Centaur The Centaur is a light vehicle used to transport men and ammunition or tow light artillery pieces. It is lightly armed with only a single Heavy Stubber, but tends to carry weapons teams and heavy mortars. Although not suited for heavy combat, it is popular with the Death Korps of Krieg. The Centaur is based heavily on the real-life Bren Gun Carrier s of World War II. Chimera The Chimera is the standard Armoured Personnel Carrier of the Imperial Guard. It can carry a variety of heavy weapons in its Turret , such as Heavy Bolter s, Heavy Flamer s and Multilaser s as described in the third edition (second release) of the Imperial Guard codex. Other weapons, such as Autocannon s can be mounted using special rules and conversion kits released by Forge World . The Chimera also mounts a hull-mounted Heavy Bolter or Heavy Flamer . The vehicle also has six hull-mounted Lasgun s on the sides which can be fired from the passenger compartment, making it akin to a modern Infantry Fighting Vehicle . As an APC, the vehicle is capable of carrying up to twelve miniatures, although in-game some miniatures such as Space Marine Terminators and Ogryns take up double the space of a typical model. The Chimera has amphibious capabilities, allowing it to take part in naval assaults. There are three specific close variants of the Chimera named; the Chimedon, '''Chimerax''' and '''Chimerro'''. The Chimedon replaces the gun turret weapon with a battle-cannon, while the Chimerax has four linked autocannons in the turret. The Chimerro is the standard pattern Chimera with a 'Hunter-Killer' missile mounted on the turret in addition to the multilaser. The Chimera chassis is the basis for many other Imperial vehicles, including the Basilisk and Hellhound. The Chimera appears in as the Imperial Guard faction's troop transport. Cyclops The Cyclops is a Remote Control led, tracked, explosive Demolition vehicle. Just small enough to fit within the passenger space of a standard Chimera or Valkyrie flyer along with its controller, the Cyclops is intended to roll off its parent vehicle and be steered remotely towards its target, at which point it is detonated with devastating force. The Cyclops is most probably inspired by the German Goliath Tracked Mine of the Second World War. Deathstrike Missile Launcher An Intercontinental-range support weapon, the Deathstrike is no more than a chassis to carry a single ICBM -class ''Deathstrike'' missile, for which the launcher is named. The Deathstrike Missile can generally be fired only once during a game, and is only seen in the Epic large-scale battles game. Gorgon Armored Assault Carrier A large transport tank commonly fielded by the Death Korps of Krieg, the Gorgon bears a similarity to the Higgins Boat, a US landing craft used during World War II. Structurally, it features a large, open-topped hull that serves as a staging area for the soldiers being transported. There is also a large, armored prow with an integrated disembarkation ramp. The Gorgon is designed to use its large transport capacity (50 men, or a complete platoon) as its main weapon, and therefore only features light weaponry. Like the Higgins Boat, it features a raised superstructure in the back for the driver. Next to the drivers station are two twin-linked Heavy Stubber turrets. The tank can also be fitted with side sponsons armed with either 4 Mortars, Heavy Flamers, Heavy Stubbers, or Heavy Bolters. Griffon The Griffon is another example of Imperial Guard self-propelled artillery. It carries a Heavy Mortar mounted in place of the passenger compartment on a Chimera chassis. It is shorter ranged and cheaper to field than other Imperial Guard artillery vehicles like the Basilisk or the Manticore. Griffons were introduced in ''White Dwarf 189'' in 1995.45 They were present in the standard Imperial Guard army from the second edition of Warhammer 40,000 all the way to the third edition of the game.6 In the second version of the Imperial Guard codex released for the third edition of Warhammer 40,000, a few vehicles along with the Griffon were taken out of the codex. The original models are still available and Forge World supplies an alternative design. The Griffon is also present in Epic, where it acts in a similar role, softening up enemy formations before an attack, acting in general as a supporting unit. Hellhound The Hellhound, based upon the Chimera chassis, is a Flame Tank . Its main weapon is the Inferno Cannon (in earlier versions called the "Dragon fire Thrower") which is a large Flamethrower which projects streams of burning Promethium at range, making the Hellhound well-suited to close-range support (such as countering enemy melee units that attempt to assault Imperial armour) and driving dug-in enemies out of cover. It is also armed with a Hull-mounted Heavy Bolter The promethium storage is in the form of two large tanks, replacing the passenger area at the vehicle's rear. This makes the tanks, and the vehicle itself, vulnerable to enemy weapons. In the game's Fluff , the crews of Hellhounds are often Pyromaniac s, and in addition to being considered insane by other Guardsmen for their willingness to operate such a dangerous vehicle are often found modifying the components of their Inferno Cannons to produce even greater output. Some Alternate versions of hell hound incorporate a thicker turret, as well as a large gas chamber on the back. These were released in early 2006 by Forge World. Hellhounds in EPIC are functionally similar to their 40k counterparts, and are especially adept at flushing enemy infantry formations out of entrenched positions due to the vehicle's main gun having the game-ability to ''ignore cover''. Hydra Also based on the Imperial Guard Chimera, the Hydra is a Self-propelled Anti-aircraft Weapon , its four long-barreled Flak autocannons mounted on a turret that operates automatically. Games Workshop has released official rules for the Hydra for use only in ''Epic'' , though Forge World has released conceptual rules that can be used in the main ''Warhammer 40,000'' game, as well as several models. The Hydra was probably based on the World War II German Wirbelwind self-propelled antiaircraft gun. However, the tracking system and turret layout are reminiscent of the German Flugabwehrkanonenpanzer Gepard SPAAG. Land Crawler The Land Crawler is the STC design for a Tractor or Bulldozer , an all-purpose labor and utility vehicle used for a variety of tasks. In the fiction, it is often said to be the most important discovery made by Arkhan Land, more so that the military-purpose Land Speeder and Land Raider designs. Due to its ubiquity, it has been found modified for military use, as needs dictate. Variants
The Bruennhilde is a light APC variant armed only with a single heavy stubber. As it's not very good on the front line, it is usually only used by Planetary Defense Forces.
The Siegfried is a scout tank developed during the 500-year Civil War on Krieg as a replacement for lost Sentinels, and is still found in Siege regiments. Like the Sentinel, it is armed primarily with a Multilaser. Leman Russ See Also: Leman Russ The Leman Russ Battle Tank, named after Primarch Leman Russ of the Space Wolves , is the Main Battle Tank of the Imperial Guard. The standard armament is a Battle Cannon mounted in the turret and heavy weapons (usually Heavy Bolters) in side sponsons and glacis plate mounting. The Leman Russ has thick armour to the front and relativly thick armour to the side however it has quite weak rear armour, it is relativly manouverable but due to no visible suspension system the ride is assumed to be relativly rough and the tank is reknown for its loud engine, based on the scaling of the vehicle the tank is rather small and this space is shared by its crew of roughly 5 to 6 consisting of Commander, Primary Gunner, Sponson gunners and Driver as well as the engine and is reflected in published materials describing the inside as uncomfortable, cramped and loud. Design-wise, the Leman Russ contains several features from World War I and Inter-war tank design, such as gun Sponsons , a Rhomboid side profile and wrap-around tracks. However, the Leman Russ also bears a resemblance to the Soviet T-34/85 , and it's compact profile and relative height are reminiscent of the M4 Sherman . It is by far the most common battle tank in the Imperial arsenal, and many variants have been built on the original design. The Leman Russ appears in Warhammer 40k, as well as Epic. Variants
The common Demolisher variant mounts the heavy but short-ranged "Demolisher cannon". It is often used in city fighting or line breaching where its powerful cannon can be used to best effect. This variant appears in both Warhammer 40k & Epic.
The rare Vanquisher variant mounts a high-calibre long-range battle cannon and co-axial storm bolter. It is used for long-ranged anti-vehicle support. Often sports a mounted heavy stubber also. This variant appears in both Warhammer 40k & Epic.
The Conqueror mounts a stub-barreled low-calibre battle cannon that can be fired with greater accuracy when on the move. This allows the tank to be used in an assault and infantry support capacity. This variant appears in both Warhammer 40k & Epic.
The Exterminator variant carries a pair of linked autocannons in its turret, and heavy bolters in its sponsons. The Exterminator is best suited to anti-infantry work, and has limited anti-air capabilities as well, while it is also faster than the standard. Exterminators are also common tank command vehicles because of their unique weapon systems and defensive capabilities. This variant appears in both Warhammer 40k & Epic. This varient was also made availible to the Space Wolves in their independant codex, the only Imperial Guard tank allowed to be used by Space Marines.
This tank replaces the standard battlecannon with a plasma destroyer. This is an extraordinarily powerful but temperamental plasma-based weapon which is prone to breakdowns and explosion. This variant appears in both Warhammer 40k & Epic.
This pattern includes double lascannons in place of the battle cannon, much like the Space Marine Predator "Annihilator" variant. This variant uses experimental rules and appears in Warhammer 40k only.
Less a weapons difference (As with all the above variants) and more a cosmetic change, Mars/Alpha pattern Leman Russ tanks feature an increased interior capacity; for this reason, they are favoured as command tanks.
The destroyer tank is almost a completely different model of the leman russ. The destroyer has no turret mounted weapon, instead its sports a massive laser cannon effective against vehicles, mounted on its hull, and draws heavy influence from German World War II tank destroyers, such the Jagdtiger. Because of its lack of pintle-mounted weapons the destroyer relies on stealth and far ranged attacks to utilize its weapon well. In a way the destroyer is the sniper variant tank. A good account of how a destroyer operates can be found in the book "Honour Guard' by Dan Abnett, one of the Tanith First and only books.
A variant on the Destroyer tank hunter, the Thunderer is an improvised siege tank. The Destroyer anti-tank laser is an extremely complex weapon and very difficult to repair. Tank crews will often replace their Destroyer lasers with a Demolisher Cannon rather than attempt to fix them. This has created an impromptu siege tank that is similar in appearance and function to the Vindicator of the Space Marines. Macharius heavy tank The Macharius heavy tank is a newly released tank from Forge World that is larger than a Leman Russ but smaller than a Baneblade Super Heavy Tank. It is armed with twin Battle Cannons, twin-linked Heavy Stubbers, and two weapon sponsons, on which there can be mounted Heavy Bolters, Heavy Stubbers, or Heavy Flamers. A newly released conversion kit from Forge World allows you to swap the twin Battle Cannons for twin Vanquisher Cannons. Malcador heavy tank A new model recently released from Forge World. An ancient tank design perhaps even older than the Leman Russ, the Malcador is a huge, heavy and lumbering war machine intended to smash through enemy lines and batter through fortified defences with brute force. The Malcador effectivly works as a mobile fortress, its upper works either mount a battle cannon with a limited arc of fire or an impressive 5 heavy bolters which spread around the upper works present an effective 360o arc of fire, its hull either mounts a heavy bolter or lascannon when mounting a battle cannon in the upperworks, or if it is the heavy bolter variant a powerful demolisher cannon for smashing enemy fortifications, it also mounts side sponsons of either lascannons or heavy bolters. However it is relativly uncommom and has been superseded by superior vehicles and hence only finds use in more specialised regiments such as the Death Corps of Kreig as a fortification clearer or as a battle tank in PDF regiments. Manticore The Manticore is an example of Rocket Artillery ; a Chimera chassis carrying four powerful ''Storm Eagle'' missiles. A variety of warheads are often used for a wider range of effects. Its rate of fire is half that of a Basilisk and it does not have the direct-fire capability but a single barrage from a Manticore is twice as powerful and it has a bit more range. It can also be used as a Self-propelled Anti-aircraft Weapon , firing anti-aircraft missiles. The Manticore may have been based on the design of the Cold War -Era German Wiesel 2 LeFlaSys Launcher Medusa The Medusa is a self-propelled gun like the Basilisk and also built on the Chimera chassis, but with a larger-bore and shorter-barrelled gun. Functioning as an Assault Gun rather than long-range artillery, it is also commonly deployed in sieges. The Medusae (there are models for several patterns) bears a strong resemblance to the World War II-era Soviet SU-14 self-propelled gun. The Armaggedon Pattern Medusa bears a strong resemblance to the German World War II SdKfz 138/1 Grille I/II with the armoured Gun Encasment. Ragnarok In the game's storyline, like the Siegfried, the Ragnarok heavy tank was developed in the Krieg Rebellion out of necessity. It was designed solely to crush the enemy through the sheer weight of numbers. Simpler and more lightly armed than the Leman Russ, the Ragnarok is armed only with a battlecannon and a pair of heavy stubbers. It is still often used by Siege Regiments such as the Baran Siegemasters, who refer to it as the "Mk. I Mobile Bunker", or the Vostroyan siege administrate. The Epic 40k Ragnarok looks to have been based on the Russian World War II KV-2 . Salamander Also based on the Chimera chassis, the Salamander is an open-topped, lightly armored scout vehicle armed with a single autocannon. A command variant of the Salamander is armed with a heavy flamer. Due to the dangerous nature of the mission salamander crews must undertake, the vehicle is significantly faster than most Guard vehicles. The Salamander is also used by artillery company forward observers. The open top provides better visibility when spotting and relaying targets. Sentinel A lightweight Walker , Sentinels are often fielded in squadrons as scouts or flank support. They can carry a variety of heavy weapons and bring high levels of power and maneuverability together in one place. They are lightly armoured however, and are susceptible to small arms fire. Sentinel pilots are often loners and outcasts, and are frequently considered to be on the borderline of insolence by officers. There are multiple Sentinel variants, each variant a different combination of primary weapon and level of pilot protection. The most commonly used variants are:
In the second edition of the game the most common Sentinal variant was equipped with an Assault Cannon, and a significantly less armoured Cockpit. However, this variant disappeared with the advent of 3rd edition. On top of these there are Support Sentinels armed with rocket and missile launchers but these are rare. Sentinels are also the base for many service vehicles, often equipped with "power lifters" to transport supplies and for resupplying other vehicles. Powerlifters are not intended for combat use but they can be used as improvised close combat weapons. Sentinels show a clear similarity to the AT-ST in Star Wars Trojan The Trojan is very rarely seen in the game, as it is a support vehicle, serving behind the lines to reload heavier tanks and Tow Fixed Gun Emplacements . It is a Forge World model, and for 40k it is covered by the ''Imperial Armour'' rules, while for Epic it is covered by the 'collector's' rules. SUPER HEAVY VEHICLES Baneblade .]] The Baneblade Super Heavy Tank is the primary Super-heavy Tank of the Imperial Guard, and one of the largest and oldest Armoured Fighting Vehicle s in Imperial service. The tank is a venerated STC design, with ten people needed to fully crew one. Massively armed, the standard Baneblade complement includes a turret-mounted Mega Battle Cannon with a coaxial Autocannon, three twin-linked Heavy Bolters (one sponson-mounted on either side, and one mounted on the front hull slope), two turret mounted Lascannons on either side, directly above the side sponsons, and lastly, a fixed-forward hull-mounted Demolisher cannon. This totals eleven weapon barrels of various sizes and roles, giving full coverage in all arcs. In the storyline, the vast majority are produced in the sacred forges of Mars, with a select few other Forge Worlds granted the right to build it or one of its variants. Every Baneblade bears its own identity number and name, echoed in real-life by Forge World including individually-numbered certificates with every Baneblade resin kit {Link without Title} . The Baneblade is so powerful, that in ''Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War: Winter Assault'', the Baneblade is the Imperial Guard's Superweapon, requiring considerable resources and preconditions to be met before it can be requisitioned and fielded. In 2003, Games Workshop commissioned a 1/6-scale Radio-controlled Model of the Baneblade to be built, from Mark 1 Tanks. This as delivered in July 2004 and was shown at a Games Workshop Day at the National Indoor Arena , Birmingham . {Link without Title} For the purpose of illustrating the vehicle's size, a table detailing several measurements is provided below. Please note that some of the given values are approximate, and the Challenger 2 entry is intended for comparison against a modern main battle tank. Baneblade Variants There are a number of variants on the Baneblade for different battlefield roles. The major change is in the main weapon(s); for all of the currently-produced Baneblade Variants (Whether in 40k scale or Epic scale) the turret is replaced by a fixed-forward housing, in order to accommodate a larger weapon. Shadowsword ''Weaponry'': Volcano Cannon, two sponson-mounted, twin-linked heavy bolters. ''Role'': Tank Destroyer -style Titan -hunter ''Details'': The massive size and energy requirements of the Volcano Cannon preclude the Shadowsword from mounting any other significant weapon. Unlike the Baneblade which fulfills a general purpose on the battlefield, Shadowswords are used in a specialized role with their main armament best being used against war engines and Titans . Stormsword ''Weaponry'': Fixed superstructure Siege Cannon, four turreted heavy flamers, four sponson-mounted heavy bolters, one housing-mounted heavy bolter. ''Role'': Urban Warfare specialist tank, with Assault Gun capability ''Details'': A reconfiguration of the Shadowsword, designed for and only deployed in urban environments. Stormblade ''Weaponry'': Plasma Blastgun, two turreted lascannons, four sponson-mounted heavy bolters, one housing-mounted heavy bolter. ''Role'': Tank destroyer-style Titan-hunter ''Details'': One of the many 'counterfeit' Shadowsword variants, all of them replacing the Volcano Cannon with some other Scout Titan weapon. Though less powerful and having a shorter range, the Plasma Blastgun is cheaper and consumes less energy than the Volcano Cannon, making the Stormblade more easily produced. Stormhammer ''Weaponry'': Twin turrets with two Battle Cannons each and no Demolisher Cannon OR Single turret with two Battle Cannons and Demolisher Cannons, eight sponson-mounted heavy bolters, and sometimes four turreted lascannons. ''Role'': Extreme firepower ''Details'': The reason for the odd weaponry loadout listed above is due to the fact that it varies depending on what source material is being referred to. That being said, the Stormhammer is perhaps the rarest of all Baneblade variants both in the in-game universe and real-life. It was initially described as an urban combat vehicle with equal armour all-round, and bears at least some superficial resemblance to interwar tank designs with multiple turreted weapons such as the Soviet T-35 , T-100 , T-28 , the German Neubaufahrzeug , and the UK A9/Cruiser Mk I or the Vickers A1E1 Independent Tanks. The two-gunned single turret configuration is also somewhat reminiscent to the Mammoth Tank of the '' Command & Conquer '' series. Unlike the others, this is the only variant not converted into 40K scale by Forge World, and it is not currently sold for Epic scale either. Gorgon The Gorgon is a superheavy, amphibious, open-topped, armoured assault transport; roughly the same size as the standard Baneblade chassis. See scale comparison here. The Gorgon is designed to smash its way through most things with an extremely armoured front prow. This protected the tank and cargo from frontal attack, and the prow could be lowered to form an assault ramp, allowing infantry deployment in the middle of enemy positions. The Gorgon bears a pair of twin-linked Heavy Stubber turrets at the rear that can cover the front and sides, as well as a pair of sponsons that may carry Heavy Stubbers/Bolters/Flamers; there is also a variant that exchanges the sponson weaponry for single-shot mortars. See here. The Gorgon was introduced in the Epic scale but, has subsequently in 2006, become available in the 28 mm scale through Forge World. Leviathan The Leviathan Command Vehicle is a massive Land Battleship commonly used as a mobile command center. The Leviathan was built on a massive vehicle chassis produced by the Squat Worlds - the same as that used for the Squat ''Colossus'' and ''Cyclops''. With the removal of the Squats from the WH40K universe, it does not appear in the current edition of the Epic game and is not currently available as a model, although it is still commonly mentioned in the background stories and excerpts. Its main weapon is the ''Doomsday Cannon'' or "Macro cannon" The discharge from these guns is said to be clearly audiable from several miles away and the recoil can be felt at similar distances. MISCELLANEOUS VEHICLES Burrowers In early versions of Epic burrowing vehicles were introduced. Hellbore The ''Hellbore Heavy Mole''' is a super-large burrowing vehicle capable of carrying many units of troops safely underground into enemy positions at which point they disembark for close assault. It is equipped with multilaunchers and heavy bolters. The model used the same (non-GW produced) plastic components as the Capitol Imperialis. Mole The Mole is an intermediate size burrowing vehicle. Termite Termite is the smallest of the burrowing vehicles. It can carry only a squad or so of troops into combat. BIBLIOGRAPHY REFERENCES SEE ALSO
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