land raider Archives - Felix's Gaming Pages

Mark IIb Land Raider

This Forge World Mark IIb Land Raider was on display at Warhammer World.

It was looking a little dusty.

The Land Raider MkIIb is probably my favourite Land Raider variant. I do have one of them in my collection.

Grey Knights can use Land Raiders! When I first started putting my Grey Knights force together 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.

The standard Land Raider, also known as the Land Raider Phobos, is an Imperial main battle tank and troop transport which serves as the “armoured fist of the Space Marines.” Available to the Space Marines, the Traitor Legions of the Chaos Space Marines and the forces of the Inquisition and Adeptus Mechanicus, it is one of the most resilient and iconic armoured vehicles in the galaxy.

The Land Raider’s heritage predates even the founding of the Imperium of Man, yet it remains the single most destructive weapon in the Adeptus Astartes’ arsenal. Protected by bonded Ceramite and Adamantium armour, the Land Raider is nearly impervious to all save the most destructive weaponry.

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.

Of course the Mark IIb reflects the Epic 40000 version of the Land Raider from the late 1990s.

Salamanders Land Raider Tanks

This Salamander Land Raider Phobos was on display at Warhammer World.

The Land Raider Redeemer is a variant of the Land Raider Crusader, which itself is a variant of the standard Land Raider used by the many Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes to provide short-range, anti-infantry assault support during urban offensives.

The Land Raider Redeemer replaces the Land Raider Crusader’s weapons with the dreaded sponson-mounted Flamestorm Cannons. These massive flame-based weapons send burning sheets of promethium into the thick of the foe, purging even well-defended bunker complexes in solar seconds. This enables the Redeemer to be highly effective against infantry during gruelling and dangerous urban combat.

This Salamanders Land Raider Redeemer was in the displays at Warhammer World.

Imperial Fists Legion Land Raider Proteus

The Land Raider is regarded by many as the finest armoured fighting vehicle of its class in the Imperium’s arsenal, and is the mainstay battle tank of the Space Marine Legions.

Imperial Fists Land Raider Proteus at Warhammer World

It is a phenomenally powerful war machine, its multi-layered composite armour and reinforced hull all but impervious to even heavy weapons, being a sealed unit designed to resist enemy attack from any approach. Intended to serve in almost any environment as both war machine and exploration vehicle, it can operate freely in war zones ranging from acid swamps to rad-deserts without any noticeable impediment to its performance, and can even operate in hard vacuum, ensuring there is no open battlefield on which its armoured wrath cannot be unleashed.

Those of us who have been playing Warhammer 40K since it was first released will recognise this model. It is of course a new version of the original Land Raider that was released back in 1987 following the release of the 1st edition of Warhammer 40,000, Rogue Trader. Forge World released a resin version a fair few years ago, and since then, a plastic version of the kit has been released as part of The Horus Heresy range.

Legions Astartes Land Raider Proteus Miniatures Gallery

Space Marine Land Raider Proteus in Warhammer 40K Miniatures Gallery.

Dark Angels Death Wing Land Raider Crusader

This Dark Angels Death Wing Land Raider Crusader was in the displays at Warhammer World.

The Land Raider Crusader is a variant of the standard Land Raider Phobos used by the Space Marines and the Inquisition. The Land Raider Crusader is rearmed to provide short-ranged, anti-infantry assault support for Astartes offensives. The Land Raider Crusader is intended to be an assault-based variant of the Land Raider that is a linebreaker without peer. The Crusader can smash through enemy formations, shrugging off small arms fire in order to disgorge a squad of Space Marines into the heart of the foe. In place of Lascannons, the Crusader is armed with Hurricane Bolters that cut down the first line of defenders before an assault is launched. A hull-mounted twin Assault Cannon adds to its formidable anti-infantry firepower, its Frag Assault Launchers suppressing the foe while the tank closes in. The Crusader also boasts an improved transport capacity by reclaiming the space normally given over to the Land Raider Phobos’ bulky las-power generators.

Land Raider Redeemer

This Dark Angels Death Wing Land Raider Redeemer was in the displays at Warhammer World.

Land Raider Proteus

There were various Land Raider Proteus models on display at Warhammer World.

Mechanicus tech-savants believe that the Land Raider Proteus is a precursor to the Phobos pattern vehicle now found amongst the armouriums of the Adeptus Astartes. Bulkier and faster than the Phobos, ancient and forgotten data-looms describe the Proteus as a forward assault vehicle, commonly fielded in Explorator missions during the dawning days of Mankind’s fledgling galactic empire.

Those of us who have been playing Warhammer 40K since it was first released will recognise this model. It is of course a new version of the original Land Raider that was released back in 1987 following the release of the 1st edition of Warhammer 40,000, Rogue Trader. Forge World did release a resin version over ten years ago and this is the model on display above.

There was also this variant Proteus with armoured hull mounted dual lascannons on display made from the new plastic kit.

This variant can be made from the Horus Heresy plastic kit.

It is similar to the armoured Proteus which was announced back at Games Day 2011. However it is missing the sponsons.

Land Raider Proteus Miniatures Gallery

Legion Imperialis Land Raiders

We have seen a preview of the forthcoming Legion Imperialis Land Raiders.

These look really nice and looking forward to getting some to paint.

I actually thought we had seen these already. I suspect that might be more down to the fact that when Space Marine and Epic 40000 were released the Land Raider was in those initial releases. Looking back at the (delayed) forthcoming Legions Imperialis boxed set, I see and realise now, that Land Raiders are not part of that set.

So will we see a Typhon Heavy Siege Tank as well now?

Mark IIb Land Raider

This Mark IIb Land Raider was on display at Warhammer World in the Battle of Signus Prime diorama.

This is one of my favourite Forge World models.

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. 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.

MkIIb Land Raider Miniatures Gallery.

My own MkIIb Land Raider on the workbench. When I first started putting this force together I knew that if I was going to get a Land Raider it would have to be the Forgeworld MkIIB Land Raider.

Sadly the model is now no longer available from Forge World.

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.

Land Raider Achilles-Alpha pattern

This Land Raider Achilles-Alpha pattern was on display at Warhammer World in the Battle of Signus Prime diorama.

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.

Land Raider Achilles-Alpha pattern gallery.