Leman Russ Battle tank....

[DartzIRL]

Not sure if this is quite right place, but if in doubt, general discussion is king, anyway...

One day, you're happily sitting at your computer, posting away randomly on Warseer, when for no reason, a large Black Helicopter lands outside, marked with the sinister symbol of the Inquisition... Three men in black, hooded robes smash the door in, and drag you kicking and screaming to a black steel box somewhere inside the helicopter...

You feel yourself jostled, for what seems like an eternity, especially since you need to pee...

Finally, you're released into an eight foot by ten foot sealed cubicle, complete with food dispenser, toilet facilities, modelling tools, kit-sprue ordering pack and plasticard.

On the desk is the note:

"To be freed, Design the new Leman Russ battle Tank"

So then, what do you do? What sort of tank to you try and build? How would you redesign the imperial Guard range?

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I'd guess the Leman Russ, coupled with the Basilisk and Chimera, would be some of the oldest models still in production, certainly one of the oldest tanks anyway. I think the sprue's say 1993.... though it's been some time since I built one. Given the look of the latest Baneblade, aswell as the rumours of a new 5th ed Guard Codex next year, there has to be something in store for the venerable Russ, right?

What I'd like to do, is carry over some of the heavy, rivetted asthetic of the Baneblade, to the Russ, make it seem more Like a Turreted WW1 MKVI. Make it look like the clanking, smoking, unsophisticated lump the fluff says it should be.

I think the tracks should be that little bit wider, and the Sideplates that little bit longer, so the Sponsons can be shifted between two seperate positions. Add the Heavy Flamer option to the tank-kit, and Enlarge the turret somewhat,

Then, bang on the walls and tell the Master inquisitor I'm finished and want to go home :P

[catbarf]

Sounds good for me. Of course, do realize that they don't let you go home... they feed you to the Golden Throne.

[unclejimbo827]

One thing I would definitely not do is make it all 'gothic' like the baneblade. Rivets = good, Arch thingies = not so much. I like your ideas though, about making it look more like a turreted mk I. I guess what I'd like to see is something more akin to the macharius.

As for the Chimera, I'd just like to see the chasis be about 15% bigger, and give it a proportionately larger turret than that of the current chimera.

[Shield of Freedom]

The Leman Russ looks pretty good now IMO. Especially with the updated accessory sprue that includes the track guards that seem standard now. It's a model that has stood the test of time, it STILL looks good amongst newer and newer models. That being said, I admit to being a little biasd... I just plopped $275.00 US on the 10 Leman Russ box.

Still, I would like to see the Leman Russ more modernized. Give it the tracks like the banblade (or Rhino only wider of course)... you know, tracks that are not flush with the full... tanks that don't have "wheels" that can't respond to uneven ground can't go very fast (say, 5mph) I know it's supposed to be "lost technology" and all, but it's STILL the future. I'd like to see it more as a M4A3 Sherman (welded hull instead of stamped hull pattern) or maybe Panzer IV look. Mk1 from WW1 to me seems TOO archaic IMO. I'm not of the opinion that severly gothic or severely ancient looking equals "cool" in a Sci-Fi setting. I mean look at the guardsmen and even thier heavy weapons, they look like futuristic light infantry... let's not make the vehicles look like they came from 1918.

[Noserenda]

Id probably widen the central hull and enlarge the turret while lowering the profile a little, the overall effect making the tank seem squatter as i think the current model is a bit... Towerish...

And ofc add baneblade stylee rivets, all options available and Imperial Eagle/Chaos tread options and maybe a couple of specific Chaos/Imperial upgrade bits like optional gothic arches and stars, that kinda thing.

[MrP]

Shorter hull, longer hull, smaller bore but same length main gun, updated (i.e. better-looking, especially the Fat Lascannon of Ugliness) hull and sponson weapons, no exposed upper tracks. Larger turret capable of accommodating more than 1 bloke.

[TheNZer]

I'd like to see a larger turret on a slightly less boxy tank.

Maybe more like a King Tiger from WW2

[Joewrightgm]

I would definityly make it wider. roughly the same proportions, but wider. This, I think, would make it look squatter and less sophisticated.

From there, I would definitly look backward to the old tank accessory sprue, to get the bladed dozer blade, and the cool box HK missile. Otherwise, keep the sprue the same, but recut it with higher detail (IE rivets).

[imperial_scholar]

I'd like to see it modernized, but the problem is that they are suppose to have a 'industrial dark' feel to them.

Here we go:
I'd widen the tracks and the model base to match (make similar to) the baneblade. I'd like to move the hull mounted gun to the turret. If that's a big no cause it requires lots of re-writing I'd lower the hull and make the hull mounted gun set back further and move the turret back like the churchill (WW2).
http://www.military.cz/panzer/tanks/...hurchill_2.jpg
I'd also like to see a challenger 2 style turret. Larger/slanted front.
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/image...9_basra203.jpg
I'd double the length of the barrel.
I do like the SM sponsons. 'Grunt Phone' in the back of the tank. A 'Fuel port' or 2.
Something to make the front armour 'look' 14. Rivets?
50% of the tread showing by default.
Some pretty narly exhaust pipes at the rear.
The front would have some down facing triangles by default just to make it look more angry. Think old rhino dozer blade facing down.
A rear fuel tank that doesn't look like a barrel.
Internal & Turrect mounted Pintle Mounted Storm bolter/heavy stubber. I know this defeats the purpose of the name... but it'd look cooler! Otherwise a more enclosed pintle mount like the up-armour humvee's (gun shield).
http://adg.armorholdings.com/images/...actical_tn.jpg

[TheOTHERmaninblack]

I second the notion of the Shermanesque Russ. The whole tracks over the roof thing has always bugged me, almost as much as the "suspension? We don' need no steenkin' suspension!" chassis.

A larger turret and smaller bore gun are also no-brainers.

Finally, I'd like the side sponsons sunken into the hull, such as those in the Malcadore.

Face it, as a WWI tank, the Malcador pwns the Russ anyway, so the Russ may as well move past and have a lash at WWII. I mean, it'll be 2008 in a couple of days; WWII is getting long enough in the tooth to qualify for GW's current tech.

[Vaktathi]

Personally, I'm a huge fan of the way this Turret looks like
Attachment 32146

If the body were made a little flatter and made this turret the standard one we'd have a perfect new Russ.

[Warpcrafter]

Id probably widen the central hull and enlarge the turret while lowering the profile a little, the overall effect making the tank seem squatter as i think the current model is a bit... Towerish...

And ofc add baneblade stylee rivets, all options available and Imperial Eagle/Chaos tread options and maybe a couple of specific Chaos/Imperial upgrade bits like optional gothic arches and stars, that kinda thing.

That would be awesome, something like the T-34, which was so low-slung that the maximum height for the crew was 5' 4". It would look much more menacing.

[Hicks]

I like how it currently looks and wouldn't want the desing to change too much. I guess GW wouldn't want the new russ to be incompatible with FW pieces anyway, so chances are the tank won't change much.

One thing I don't agree with is to make it bigger. It's already hard to maneuver and use cover effectively with the current size. It would need updated weapons yhough, even the battlecanon looks fat and too short. The turret Vaktathi posted would be pretty cool and with GW borrowing FW models it could very well happen. The rest of the tank would also really need to have suspensions, right now the hull is almost flush with the ground and that is just stupid. Details like rivets would be icing on the cake and I don't mind if it gets the same gothic treatment the baneblad got as long as it remains subtle enough.

Multiple plastic weapon choices for the turret and sponsons would of course be a must.

[Ghudra]

Definitely drop the height and make the model wider/longer. The M3 Lee-esque fascination with turret altitude needs to go.

Narrow the battlecannon barrel down a bit as well. It's all good and well to imagine lobbing 250mm+ shells through the tunnel the current model has, but it would benefit from some elegant redesign.

I'd also make the hull gun look less "tacked on" by making the rectangular mounting more horizontal than vertical and moving or eliminating the hatch position. Even the anorexic schoolboy fit of most WW2 English tank hatches doesn't jive with that front hull gun.

[eek107]

Widening the tracks is all I'd do if the kit absolutely MUST be changed. But I feel the Russ still looks good, given how long it's been in service.

[RexTalon]

I would make it much more like the Macharius.

Take a look at that beauty...

The swagger of that top hatch. The sexy new track layout. The thick armor plating. The big sweaty engine, just pulsating with desire to rev-up and... Sorry, got carried away...

[chunk]

Move the commanders hatch from behind the main gun! The recoil on that thing would pulp him!

A wider turret that could fit two guardsman in it, and space for ammunition. I'm thinking more like the predator turret, without the bullet catcher. For that matter you'd have to increase the size of the turret ring as well.

Updated sponsons, so it looks a man can use it from the inside.

Style wise, a touch of gothic/mechanicum iconography. Go rolling temples of death!

[Stella Cadente]

I'd order a ChallengerII kit, plonk 40k-ish bits on her, and thats it, job done

[Varath- Lord Impaler]

Hmmmm....


I know what i'd Do to the Guardsmen vehicles.

First:

Leman Russ:

http://www.forgeworld.co.uk/machvanq.htm

Scale down this model. No other changes necessary.

Chimera:

http://www.forgeworld.co.uk/gorgon1.htm

Again, Scale Down. Thats all that is needed (except perhaps you may need to remove the sponson weapons and replace with Firing Ports (not in built lasguns!)

Chimera Varients:

Not difficult, just add the weapons to the Gorgimera hull.

[Darkhorse]

Something along the lines of a Pzkw IV Ausf. F for me.