Category: warhammer the horus heresy

Plastic Macharius Heavy Tank, perhaps?

Will we see a plastic version of the Macharius Heavy Tank?

The Macharius Heavy Tank stands as a testament to the ingenuity and desperation of the Imperium of Man. Born from a necessity to field potent armoured firepower when the legendary Baneblade super-heavy tank is unavailable, the Macharius represents a “second-generation” approach to heavy tank design.

I guess the question is whether the Macharius is a Horus Heresy era tank like the Malacador, or is considered more of a 40k Imperial Guard tank.

This is one of my favourite models, and is probably at the top of the list of wanted models.

Sadly the Macharius Heavy Tank and its many variants have been removed from the Games Workshop range. If the Macharius Omega had been in stock when I visited Warhammer World last year I would very likely have picked one up. The second hand market prices have gone up considerably as a result.

So I for one would be pleased if we did eventually see a plastic kit of the tank, well even a re-release of the resin kit as a made to order special.

More photographs of the Macharius Heavy Tank.

That Whirlwind is back…

In al the recent previews one certainly stood out for me, and that was the Legion Astartes Whirlwind Missile Tank for The Horus Heresy.

The Whirlwind is a certified Astartes classic combining the venerable Rhino chassis with a huge missile launcher that hurls storms of explosive warheads into enemy ranks, whether it has line of sight or not. The sophisticated range-finding and targeting auspexes mounted to the launcher allow multiple different kinds of munitions to be loaded and fired independently, from standard high explosives to incendiary Pyrax rounds.

The Whirlwind is an Imperial artillery support vehicle based upon the Standard Template Construct (STC) Rhino armoured personnel carrier (APC) chassis that was used by the Space Marine Legions. 

This new model reflects the original conversion from 1989. The original Whirlwind was a conversion using a slottabase and plasticard for the rocket launcher. This was published in the September 1989 issues of White Dwarf, #117.

Whirlwind

You can see the instructions in this post.

Since 1989 we have seen many different versions of the Whirlwind which have evolved from this original conversion.

“Original” Space Marine Whirlwind
Ultramarines Space Marine Whirlwind on display at Warhammer World.
Space Wolves Whirlwind at Warhammer World
Space Marine Whirlwind
Ultramarines Whirlwind at Warhammer World
Deimos Pattern Whirlwind Scorpius
Space Marine Whirlwind Hyperios on display at Games Day 2005
Sons of Horus Deimos Pattern Whirlwind Scorpius

I have also preferred the original conversion to the newer versions, so it should be no surprise that I will probably get one of these when they are eventually released.

Caladius Grav-Tank Annihilator

Based upon the technology of the Coronus Grav-carrier, the smaller Caladius grav-tank is designed to utilise the firepower afforded by the heaviest elements of the Legio Custodes’ arsenal on a highly mobile, protected platform. Given the fusion of advanced systems and weapons, the Caladius is perhaps the most powerful battleline armoured unit of its size in the Imperium’s forces, utilising technologies and materials derived not only from the Dark Age of Technology, but from developments made as a result of the Great Crusade’s two centuries of warfare.

A particularly powerful variant was the ‘Caladius-Annihilator’ which featured an enhanced capacitor-fed Arachnus blaze cannon potent that is enough to pose a threat even to super-heavy armour.

These Legio Custodes Caladius Grav-Tank Annihilators were part of the displays at Warhammer World.

Legio Custodes Caladius Grav-Tank Annihilator
Legio Custodes Caladius Grav-Tank
Legio Custodes Caladius Grav-Tank Annihilator

Solar Auxilia Leman Russ

The Solar Auxilia use the Leman Russ Strike Tanks in various roles. The tanks have been upgraded with solar-pattern survival systems, this allows the tank and the crew to fight in any harsh conditions on different planets.

Solar Auxilia Leman Russ

It is usually armed with one of four primary weapons – a battlecannon, twinned heavy lascannons or autocannons, or a long-barrelled Vanquisher battlecannon with a co-axial autocannon.

Solar Auxilia Leman Russ

Dracosan Armoured Transport

The Dracosan Armoured Transport is manufactured to standards only usually required of war machines destined for service with the Legiones Astartes. It is large enough to accommodate a full strength Solar Auxilia Infantry Section of twenty auxiliaries, and heavily armoured enough to protect them from intense enemy fire.

Dracosan Armoured Transport

More photographs of the Dracosan Armoured Transport.

Blood Angels Legion Thunderhawk at Warhammer World

Blood Angels Legion Thunderhawk at Warhammer World
Blood Angels Legion Thunderhawk at Warhammer World

The Thunderhawk gunship is used by the Adeptus Astartes as their primary means of deploying forces for ground combat as well as their primary source of air support. The Thunderhawk gunship is often considered the lynchpin of any Space Marine Chapter, as it is able to fulfill many combat roles. The Thunderhawk is fully capable of functioning as an orbital drop ship, a heavy ground attack gunship, or as a bomber. The aircraft is able to quickly carry Space Marine forces from orbiting starships down into the midst of a battle, while at the same time providing supporting fire against enemy ground or air targets.

Achilles-Alpha pattern Land Raider

Minotaurs Achilles-Alpha pattern Land Raider on display at Warhammer World.

Minotaurs Achilles-Alpha pattern Land Raider

This Achilles-Alpha pattern Land Raider is from the Minotaurs Space Marine Chapter. The Minotaurs is a Loyalist Space Marine Chapter whose true origins and genetic lineage remain unknown. The Space Marine formation by this name at large in the Imperium today appears to bear little resemblance to accounts of its past.

The Achilles-Alpha pattern Land Raider is the most durable vehicle currently in the service of the Legiones Astartes. These vehicles shrug off weapon strikes that would cripple other battle tanks, and are proof against even the most toxic environment. The weaponry of these vehicles is formidable, featuring an advanced quad launcher and powerful volkite batteries.

I quite like the up-armoured appearance of this pattern of Land Raider, and the weaponry looks quite formidable. I can imagine this being used to clear barricades in the ruins of an Imperial City.

Land Raider MkIIb

The Mark IIb Land Raider Phobos is one of the earliest marks of the standard pattern of Land Raider, and it still bears similarities to both the Land Raider Proteus and the Spartan Assault Tank that served as the models for the design.

Land Raider MkIIb

The Mark IIb Land Raider Phobos is the only pattern of the standard Land Raider Phobos that uses the older armoured sponsons, as they do not allow the weapons they hold to fully rotate. This pattern of Land Raider is mostly extinct within Space Marine Armouries, having been replaced with newer marks and patterns of the standard Land Raider Phobos. However, some Chapters may still possess one or two as treasured relics of their ancient past.

The Land Raider MkIIb is probably my favourite Land Raider variant. I do have one of them in my collection. I knew that if I was going to get a Land Raider it would have to be the Forgeworld MkIIB Land Raider. I did get one in the end at GamesDay 2006. Sadly it was recently retired from the range. I wrote up some reflections on my MkIIB Land Raider, on the current state of the painting and what I needed to do next. In the end I went down a different route.

Malcador Infernus

Malcador Infernus

The Malcador Infernus is a variant of the venerable Malcador Assault Tank design. It is not widely used by Imperial armed forces at the present time and is in fact little known even within the Imperial military. In many regions of the Imperium, the Malcador passed out of common service many millennia ago. The few Malcadors that remain in the Emperor of Mankind’s service have been relegated to the Departmento Munitorum’s strategic reserve, to the arsenals of second-line Planetary Defence Forces or are maintained in active service only by a few units of the Imperial Guard due to ancient tradition. The Malcador Infernus variant has been mostly replaced by the faster and more reliable Hellhound in front-line Imperial Guard regiments. The Infernus is armed with a massive, vehicle-sized Flamer known as an Inferno Gun.

More photographs of the Malcador Infernus.