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So, I've got a new project that I'm working on - a Ravenwing/Deathwing army and I'm planning on making all of the bikes jetbikes. I found a style on B&C that I really liked and that seems relatively easy to convert. Here's my issue, though. I want to include an attack bike in the squad as well, but I'm not sure how to translate the rules into a jetbike. I know that there are 40K CCG cards with pics of jetbikes, but are there any pics of attack jetbikes?

I'm of two minds on the matter, but I wanted to get input from Dakka on their thoughts on the matter. Should I:

- Convert a jetbike sidecar (like the existing attack bike)? Or
- Build a platform on the back of the jetbike for the heavy weapon and operator (more like a viper or the ATV-style attack bikes)?

What are folks thoughts on this matter?

A sidecar would look really bad on a flying vehicle. However you don't need to copy the viper style either. Perhaps you could make a cockpit like situation where you have the gunner in front of the pilot and then sling the heavy weapon underneath the nose.

Hm. That gives me ideas for a Servitor-operated heavy weapon...

Okay, I had been thinking that there was a pic in Rogue Trader that showed a jetbike with a sidecar. I went through it and this was the pic I was thinking of.



So, not actually a sidecar...just two jetbikes side by side...That's kind of what I was thinking of though as far as a look.

And just to give folks an idea of the style of jetbike I'm going to be doing, I'm stealing a design from Tiriel over on B&C. I've talked with him about how he did it and I think I can replicate it easily enough. The eagles on the fairings will be the most challenging part, although I'm sure that if I don't do that I can come up with something simpler that will look good (although that is one of the most striking parts of the model).




Edit: IMPORTANT! These aren't my models! These are just pics of what Tiriel has done and what I'm basing my design on. I can only hope that mine turn out this well!

the Cities of Death sprues include several stylised eagle/wing bits, or a carefully chpped imperial eagle would work

I think the simplest option fro the overall model is something like your B&C photo above, a really big bike (as close as you can get to a standard attack bike in size, to keep the rules nazis quiet) that mounts a heavy weapon but only has one rider. The heavy wepon could look good either as a side or front mounting

death by monkeys, I sent you aPM in regards to some ideas.. I think a side or even grille mounted heavy weapon would look cool.. ala car wars rocket launchers and micro missile launchers or even james bondish hidden behind a light or grille mounted heavy weapons.

It's not so much the size of the bike that I'm worried about re: the rules lawyers, it's the lack of a second rider. I was looking over the rules recently and noticed that each may fire with one weapon for each rider on the bike - thus if you've got a Biker with a melta, you can't fire both the melta and the TL bolters on the bike. That's a big part of the reason I'm trying to figure out how to fit a second rider on the bike.

I mean, having grown up in the 80's, the first GI Joe toy I ever got was the motorcycle with the gatling gun sidecar, so I'm definitely partial to having a heavy weapon outrigger. And taking a page from Sammael on his jetbike, I could definitely see mounting the heavy weapon on the front...As I'm planning on making it a multi-melta attack bike, it'd be pretty easy to mount the melta barrels on the front and it'd just look like a set of big headlights.

That still doesn't solve my issue of the extra rider, though...

if you put a platform, with a seperate weapon or even had a seperate weapon as a side mount, it would be very easy to "count as" an attack bike.

I think I kinda like the pseudo-viper idea myself. I'd do some rough sketches of a few possibilities and decide which one you like the best. Also, back in the day, GW used to have some "build your own vehicle" rules in White Dwarf. Maybe you could track them down, or come up with some of your own. The 40K universe is a big place full of all sorts of stuff you know.

WOW killer! That pic rocks!

You could use one of the plastic servo skulls from the devastator box and say that it operates the heavy weapon. Mount it behind/above the rider, or even attached to his backpack.

What about a 40k/Space Marine-ified take on the classic Twin Pod ship?


Ghidorah

Dead Horse wrote:You could use one of the plastic servo skulls from the devastator box and say that it operates the heavy weapon. Mount it behind/above the rider, or even attached to his backpack.

yeah, a 'Machine Spirit' equivalent would be the fluffiest excuse for a sole rider, it simply 'counts as' the missing second rider.

or a side-by-side combo could be ok, if you want a 'mini-land speaader' look? Hmm, that could be quite fluffy, the tech priests haven't rediscovered imperial jetbike tech, but they're working on a lightweight cut-down land speeder, which conveniently has the same stats as an attack bike

Or you could make a normal jetbike with one rider, and then just have the other guy strapped underneath like a hang glider.

Abadabadoobaddon wrote:Or you could make a normal jetbike with one rider, and then just have the other guy strapped underneath like a hang glider.

At one point, I was actually considering having a normal jetbike with a single rider and then having a second marine hanging on the side with his feet on a running board, gripping the bike with one hand and a multimelta with the other....

having a second marine hanging on the side with his feet on a running board, gripping the bike with one hand and a multimelta with the other....

It's really a shame most chapters are too rigid to do something like that, because of all the suggestions that would look seriously badass if modeled up cleanly. I cast my vote for the "Hang on tight!" second gunner. Too cool.

Thank the Emperor for the incredible enginuity of the Blood Angels!!
if you look on pg. 180 or 181 if memory serves me correctly of the collected visions of horus heresy,
there is a "chariot-style" jetbike. i made 5 for my BA army and they look great. the idea would translate well into the imagery of other armies too.

I would use a Training Fighter jet setup, where the gunner was behind/in front of the pilot.

DeathReaper wrote:I would use a Training Fighter jet setup, where the gunner was behind/in front of the pilot.

ditto, lengthen the bike body for a second rider and put your multimelta on the side rear of the bike, kind of attaching where the rear bike axle would be

Just give the secound dude an old style hvy weapon and have him riding pillion one hand with the weapon the other hugging the driver ..

+3 that JETBIKE looks absolutely amazing. That is probably the most original thing i have seen on the forums thi year. It looks good enough to be a FW release!

have you seen the jetbikes in the movie "The Island"???
they have the heavy weapon guy elevated on the back, and looked awesome...

i look forward to seeing what you come up with, as anything jetbike style is cool to me...

cheers
jah