Our Big Gun Has No Tires

I couldn't let the Mantis Warriors win a battle without a reward. 

Here you go, boys, easily the best tank ever made - the Vindicator! 

Yes, it's a premium addition and no mistake. The high points cost, the rather erratic and short-range artillery, the strategem nobody ever uses because you have to field three of these before it works, yes, the Vindicator has it all!

It's got this terrible reputation online, somehow. Look at it on paper, and there's not much to dislike. It's relatively cheap, it's tough and if that cannon actually gets a good roll for hit dice, it can murderate something pretty hard. Now with Blast rules, you can point it at all those hordes of Custodes out there and really see some bang for your buck. As long as you don't get tied up in combat, because you still can't fire it then. 

Okay, fair enough, I can see the drawbacks. So the Mantis Warriors get a secondary prize too, somebody who has none of these shortcomings. Here you go boys, have a Tactical Marine with a Melta gun. 

Rescues from eBay, these guys. Vindicators are a dime a dozen there. I actually saw one thrown in free with a Land Raider the other day. Obviously, nobody fell into that trap, and it went unsold. 

The fireguard was hanging off the front, and the cannon was actually a fixup job that was missing its barrel. The previous owner had done a rather good job of improvising one out of two top hatch bits glued back to back, but this gave the inside of the gun a weird look as it was actually the inside of a turret gunner. 

Here it is as I got it. Clever use of the turret rims, I think, but not as threatening as the original.

There's the stoppage removed.

And my repair job, held in place mostly by green stuff and good wishes.

So I took it all off, restored one hatch (and gunner) to top of the tank and used the other as the rim for a bit of appropriately-sized plastic pipe. I also botched together a storm bolter pintle, two tac marine bolters glued to some bits of sprue with odds and ends to cover it up. Two bike aerials at the back, the better to make it impossible to transport without damaging it, and then a lick of new paint. 

More Centurion bits and the back of a Goliath's spanner in there. Raptoriales are apparently the technical name for the modified forelegs of a mantis. Educational hobby, this.

The Tac marine was previously glued sideways and headless to the base of a Genestealer. Spare parts from a Centurion to the rescue, and he's back on his feet. 

 

Job's a good 'un! Mantis Warriors are White Scars, I'm thinking that being able to support a bike advance or Rhino push with a shooter on wheels might be worth a go at some point. Although equally, this could spell the end of their winning streak for the rest of 9th Ed, only time will tell. 

Forwards! To whatever the Mantis Warrior equivalent of Victory is!