Author: Felix

Mastodon Heavy Assault Transport

The Mastodon was one of the heaviest assault transports in the arsenal of the Legiones Astartes during the Great Crusade, and is still found in the armouries of the Space Marine Chapters of the 41st Millenium. Its cavernous assault bay, capable of housing almost half a Company, is protected both by thick layers of ceramite armour as well as crackling void shields. It also mounts a fearsome siege melta array, allowing it to breach even the most formidable defences with ease, as well as an array of secondary weaponry intended to defend the vehicle as it approaches its target. Unleashed only against the most fearsome of enemy redoubts, there are few obstacles that can stay the wrath of this relic of the Imperium’s bloody birth.

These Mastodon transports were on display at Warhammer World in the Battle of Signus Prime diorama.

The Mastodon is heavily armed and armoured, carrying 40 Space Marines, and even Dreadnoughts, safely to the heart of battle. Whilst embarked, the warriors within will defend their immense transport, turning the sponson weapons on any enemy brave or foolish enough to come close. It’s Siege melta array can easily destroy fortifications, and makes short work of armoured vehicles, whilst its Skyreaper Battery will tear through any airborne threat with ease.

Legion Imperialis Batte Report

In the next issue of White Dwarf there will be an early battle report for Legions Imperialis.

From the cover:

Blood Angels take on the Death Guard in our first Legions Imperialis battle report.

The Warhammer Community website says

…and you can whet your appetite for the upcoming Legions Imperialis in an early battle report. 

This will be an issue of White Dwarf I will get when it comes out.

Now what does this tell us about the release date for Legions Imperialis? Well, not anything concrete, but I wonder if this means we might see Legions Imperialis before November? If not then in November?

Epic Battle Group

This is an Epic Battlegroup of mine.The models are from the 1990s.

The Warlord Titan is the original plastic model from the original Adeptus Titanic game, complete with plastic weapons.

The Land Raiders are plastic models, whilst the dreadnoughts are the original metal castings from Space Marine.

The scenery is from the (now defunct) Snapdragon Studio.

The models were painted in a similar manner with a light brown base coat and an ink wash.

Douglas C-47 Skytrain

The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota  is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II and remained in front-line service with various military operators for many years. The Douglas C47, known as the Dakota in the Royal Air Force and Commonwealth services, became the world’s best known transport aircraft. The type saw widespread use by the Allies during the Second World War and by Air Forces and airlines post-war.

In the Cold War Exhibition at RAF Cosford, suspended from the ceiling is a Douglas Dakota.

More photographs of the Douglas C-47 Skytrain at RAF Cosford.

An alternate SR-N1 Hovercraft

Back in January I wrote a piece about an idea I had for an alternate Desert Storm set in 1959.

The re-release of the Fairey Rotodyne reminded me of an idea I had for an alternative history background for gaming. The basic premise was a Desert Storm background but with 1950s tanks, aircraft, helicopters and VTOL craft like the Fairey Rotodyne.

My premise was that the British armed forced faced with a new threat would make use of aircraft such as the  Fairey Rotodyne.

I was reminded of this article following the announcement from Airfix that they are going to re-release their 1/72nd scale model of the SR-N1 Hovercraft.

Debuted in 1960, it hasn’t been seen in the range since the 1980s. 

SR-N1 Hovercraft

The SR-N1 was the first practical hovercraft and demonstrated the potential of air-cushioned transport.

On 11 June 1959, the SR.N1 performed its first flight in front of the public. The SR.N1 participated in the test programme for four years prior to its retirement, by which point it had served its purpose in successfully validating the concept and further hovercraft had been developed.

Now I actually remember building the Airfix kit, but I painted it up as a military version. I think it was all over black to be used by special forces.

Airfix on their site talk about the military application of the SR-N1.

The SR-N1 Hovercraft is an experimental machine with space for the pilot and his observer, although on demonstration it has carried 20 fully equipped soldiers. 

If I was to go down the Desert Storm 1959 idea, then I think I would get some SR-N1 hovercraft (well at least one) and build it as a troop carrier, or an armed version.

Tiny Drop Pods

Over on the Warhammer Community website we have seen a preview of some Drop Pods for Legion Imperialis.

Drop Pods for Legion Imperialis

The Legiones Astartes utilise a number of methods of deployment into hostile war zones – but none are more iconic than the Drop Pod assault. Each pod is a self-contained orbital descent capsule, launched from a spacecraft and searing through a planet’s atmosphere before retro jets fire to slow its descent just enough not to be obliterated upon impact with the surface. Upon landing, a deadly cargo of Space Marines charges directly into the heart of battle.

Though not entirely clear from the article, I think these are in fact plastic models.

There is also the intriguing final comment…

They’ll be available – much like Legions Imperialis itself – sooner than you think!

Typhon Heavy Siege Tank

This Typhon Heavy Siege Tank was on display at Warhammer World in the Battle of Signus Prime diorama.

Typhon Heavy Siege Tank

Named for the ‘Great Beast’ of Ancient Terran myth, the immense Typhon Heavy Siege Tank was developed by the Mechanicum alongside the Spartan, with which it shares a basic chassis design.

This is the Forge World resin version of the Typhon Heavy Siege Tank which was released and available before the current Horus Heresy plastic kit.

I really like this model and I think it is one of the better Land Raider variant designs.

I have the plastic kit version of the Typhon Heavy Siege Tank on my workbench.

Typhon Heavy Siege Tank Miniatures Gallery.

Epic Ork Great Gargant

I got this metal Epic Great Ork Gargant model when Space Marine came out in 1989. I have recently rescanned the original photograph.

It was an all metal kit, with the main body comprising three parts, with then  parts for the weapons (arms), feet, belly weapon and gunhead.

I really like this model and only really got it on the gaming table with Epic 40000. I know most Epic players don’t like Epic 40000, but it is my personal favourite of all the Epic games produced by Games Workshop.

I know there was a resin hybrid metal kit of this gargant, which didn’t get a wide retail release. This was a much easier kit to put together (and wasn’t as heavy, which I am not sure is a good or a bad thing.

I was disappointed with the metal Epic 4000o Ork Gargant, it never was as good as this one. It was also surprisingly more challenging to put together.

Of course with the focus on the Horus Heresy, we’re not going to see a Legion Imperialis version of the Ork Great Gargant. I would really like to see a modern version of this model. We know Forge World in the past may have produced something like this, though they never did for Epic, they have done retro versions of the Space Marine Land Raider and Rhino.

Type 95 Ha-Go light tank

The Type 95 Ha-Gō was a light tank used by the Empire of Japan during the Second Sino-Japanese War, at Nomonhan against the Soviet Union, and in the Second World War. It proved sufficient against infantry but, like other light tanks, was not designed to combat other tanks.

This one was on display at Bovington.

The French Fourth Republic used leftover Japanese military equipment from the Japanese invasion of French Indochina. An ad-hoc unit of French and Japanese armour including the Type 95 Ha-Go light tank called the ‘Commando Blindé du Cambodge’ was created and this unit participated in the early stages of the First Indochina War