Tau Manta Gunship

[Kelsik]

I've started a log of this project on heresy online but id like to post updates here as well.

To sum up,  I'm creating a gunship varient of the manta transport like the U.S. army aircav develpoed the cobra attack helecopter based on the huey transport chopper.  Same over all reasoning for doing the project.
The current state is about 60% done.   
I'm short on time so let me post some pictures of the gunship




I will be creating stats for. AI, 40k,and bfg for this craft. 
Currently it uses all the standard mantas weapons plus a few more in the wings,  the open holes will house twin linked ion cannon turrets,  those will make ai games more interesting as it gives the aircraft hard hitting anti air or ground in all fire arcs.

[Zelnik]

Very cool! Working within the known story, the manta has two known armaments, one is the 2000 point monstrosity we know and love, the other is the "manta missile destroyer", which is represented in bfg when you take torpedo bombers for the tau.

Aeronautia rules will be amusing, since the vessel launches 20 anti ship missiles at a target (10 tau missiles for every strength) so how would you work it? Ground attack obliteration I would expect, since these are meant to break ships kilometers long. 

[Kelsik]

Ive often wondered about what the payload of the  vaunted Missle Destroyer was.   Ive read snipets  that in the bomber/anti ship roll  that the rail cannons are the primary weapons using drone guided projectiles to seek weakpoints in a ships armour.   
A missle laiden manta would need a dedicated launch port.  Its lower cargo bay would probably be stuffed with missles in pallets or what ever form the tau use for fast loading or storage of their missles.  With out a bulk launch port  obvious on the model I would guess that the  grill on the front belly of the manta  could be  fitted with a high volume launcher ( with autoloader and a cup holder)    Another method to drop bulk missles is to just do that,  Drop em out the back door and let  missles own engine take over.  That may work for dropping daisy cutters over a planetary target,  but Im not too crazy about dropping the bulk of my missle payload out the back door,  Id have to lean back towards a belly launcher.

Speaking of BFG,  resilliant bombers.  survives on a 4+ when intercepted.   for the manta,  what do you think is the main elements that gives the manta its resillancy?
Its shields? its all around point defence? cup holders for the pilots?
What would it take to field a craft with  even greater survivability of 3+?   

[Easy e]

Proposed rules for the BFG missiles in AI:

Launch up to 1-10 torpedoes. 
Place Apoc (clover or regular?) template over target. 
Roll a d6.  On a 1, the weapon destroys anything under the center hole.
On a 2-6 it destroys everything under the template. 

Optional: Replace the template with a crater model.  Extra VPs if it is still smoking. 

 

[Kelsik]

Proposed rules for the BFG missiles in AI:

Launch up to 1-10 torpedoes. 
Place Apoc (clover or regular?) template over target. 
Roll a d6.  On a 1, the weapon destroys anything under the center hole.
On a 2-6 it destroys everything under the template. 

Optional: Replace the template with a crater model.  Extra VPs if it is still smoking. 

 

its a interesting idea,  however I think your overlooking a existing rule  that would simulate about the same thing.   The chaos Harbingers  bombing payload
number 3.  I wont list stats other than " any targets hit are destroyed on a dice roll of 4+ regardless of hits.

can you imagine how much of the table top you can cover with the apoc templates?  The only things that should do that much damage should be  strategic weapons of mass distruction.  or Orbital bombardment.  So far I dont think we have had a discussion of orbital support for AI,   
mabey we should float some ideas for it.

[Kelsik]

Ok,  time for a fast update,  Ill just post the pictures and very few comments,  if you want to see the main post,  its listed at  Heresy online in the hobby projects section.  the link isnt working for me at this time so ill just move on.







ive filled in the central body mostly,  mostly as in its not as thick as I would like it,  so more work will be needed, 
The drones are here to show im working on other projects as well.  Im working on rounding out all aspects of my void wing,  not just the heavy hitters.

Im looking for a name for the gunship.  Ive been looking for aggressive fish from google and the list of good ones isnt long.   I like Devil Ray but im concerned with confusion with the devil fish.
I like Koi  ( yes some Koi are aggressive,  not well armed as far as fish go, but aggressive.)
Lion fish is good but I dont like names that end in fish.
Any Ideas?

[Zelnik]

it's just a manta.. not much you can do to call it something else.


However, when it comes to rules... I hate to admit it, but it just is too powerful a craft to fairly place into AI. The missile destroyer is designed to KILL WARSHIPS!

I mean, the missiles are the size of a city bus. It's craft like the missile destroyer that give the Tau good reason NOT to make land based titans!

Remember, the Manta can take on any other imperial titan up to a reaver. Two can take down a warlord. 

For an Imperator.. well.. thats what orbital bombardment is for.

[Kelsik]

Indeed,  it is a powerful platform for AI  and im making a even more potent  beast.  It will drive other factions to  get a contender into this race.  So far  Cheesyrobmans  Void Specter is a good counter to the comming of super heavy air craft.  Twin D cannons on a vampire gives  him one shot kill power on  just about any thing he can shoot at.  He used it in round 1 against a chaos Harbinger.  It had new modle jitters and failed to hit it  but he did put the right aircraft armament package  up to the job.  Ive been consulting with Worldbleeder for a chaos contender.  Orks will eventually creat some scow contender,  perhaps some enlarged varient of thier heavy bomber.
Imperium has the technology and mabey they still have a airframe to be a contender.  The Storm bird that is featured in the Horus Heresy series is depictued as a super heavy drop ship much larger than the thunderhawk.  I havent found a good picture of one of them either.  when ever I read about one  I picture in my mind  the image of the X mens  black bird, well a more husky version of the blackbird. 

The point scale of games featuring super heavies is still a work in progress,   as is the questions of what missions would  be best served by sending in mantas. 
Zelnik when you mentioned mantas vs titans  were you recounting something you read about?
Ive been searching for any source material of duels between a manta and any class of mechanicum titan with no luck.   I would like to creat a ground attack mission to take down a titan.  Im not sure how to translate a titan to AI's rules. 

[Easy e]

I think Orks would use some sort of flying Traktor Kannon.  Orks are supposedly masters of Force Field technology.