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I know each tank has a time and a place, but what three variations have you had the most fun with? Include those epic win stories too!

Executioner, Exterminator, Vanquisher. Executioner puts out incredible damage at 36'', Exterminator with MM/LC extra guns can multi-role effectively, even against flyers, and the Vanquisher can kill any tank in the game that isn't a skimmer abusing cover saves. Also, points for giant gun.

The Punisher is ridiculously overrated, even with Pask, and is my least favourite LR of all of them. 24'' range means you open yourself up to a massive number of your opponent's strategies in the mid-board, and it is easy to either lose the tank or be in a position where it is useless. Meanwhile a double Executioner squadron means you can stand off and kill plenty of stuff at 36''.

Punishers don't kill themselves after 2-3 turns.

My 3 favourites. Battletanks, Demolishers, Punishers. Usually squadroned in 2s.

No Leman Russ Incinerator? My personal favourite. Nothing like having a martian death-ray as a main gun!

Never played a Leman Russ or used one, but I have my favourites.

The Punisher isn't too effective in general, but fething 20 S5 shots?! I can just imagine it go "WRRZZZZZZZZZZ" for like, half a minute, then running out of bullets

The Demolisher is cool, not because of the gun (S 10 AP 1/2 (don't remember which) is a bit excessive in my mind), but because it's so damn threathening. It's damaging, tough, is slow and has a short range, which just makes it up to be that siege-breaking machine I imagine it to be!

The Vanquisher, or "Cansquasher" as I call it, is one of my favourite tanks all around, just for having so huge a gun. No Blast, no nothing, just high strength, AP and Armourbane... It's a better tank destroyer than the goddamn Railgun!... I wish the Railgun had Armourbane :/

Pusknisher with MM sponsons and LC - excellent all round tank that can deal with most things out there be it vehicles, monsters, infantry or even flyers. 24' range is the only downside but you have to eventually play offensive with maelstorm, so stuff ends up in your range earlier or later anywayz. If it doesn't - use pasknisher as a 30' area denial. People ARE afraid of it. One of the best candidates for a Warlord or a part of an allied force.

Eradicator with HB all around - one of the best tanks for the points. An ignore cover pieplate and a bunch of HB are doing the job. A good candidate for a Pasknisher retinue. Especially in an allied force.

Not sure bout the 3-d.
Executioner is great in a Squadron with Pask if he's your warlord or if you buff it with prescience.

Exterminator is supposed to be an all-rounder. Not bad with mixed weaponry overall but not outstanding too.

Vanquisher is a nice workhorse especially if you make it a command tank. Add in a hull LC. Not sure bout sponsons. I'd probably go with PC sponsons as your main gun and LC allow you to stay out of range. PC are for a sort of backup as the opponents are inevitably gona get closer anywayz.

LRBT and Demolisher are overpriced a bit with the changes to lumbering behemoth <-> ordnance. You're basically paying all the points for a carcass with 1 gun. Though, you can go with Heavy flamer sponsons. It might seem odd but if the mellee-oriented opponent is close to the tank, it's dead anywayz, so it might be more benefical to roll forward and flame them instead of rolling bacwards and firing a blast. Just cause the opponent won't be able to advance even further using movement + charge.

I must say, i've run Ig allies in 6-th edition with my orkses when we were AOC. First it was an Exterminator with HB, LC and Pask. Old 5-th dex Pask allowed to get +1 str against vehicles if stationary, so It was a great way to do the loota's job better than they did it themselves with no fear of ignore-cover stuff that everyone happened to have.
When the codex got an update, i've run Pasknisher + Eradicator. Was very happy with the combo.

 zedmeister wrote:
No Leman Russ Incinerator? My personal favourite. Nothing like having a martian death-ray as a main gun!

That's a 30K only unit

My first is vanquishers. They're the only real option for creating tank fights in this game, the other russes being anti-infantry weapons. It's pretty sweet when you get to do it. Plus, you'll occasionally see that long-barreled tank throwing down the last wound on a monstrous creature and the like.

They do what you expect an epic tank to do.

Second for me was a tie between executioner and punisher, because both are just silly, and they even play weird on the table as well.

Vanquisher with Lascannon and Plasmas is number one, and my default setup. It can handle basically any target with ease, although in my last game it did manage to miss all but two shots in four turns.

Next is the Exterminator with all HBs. That much AP4 makes Crons, Tau and Eldar cry, and is a rather cheap all rounder.

Next is the Demolisher. Bad range and Ordnance is irksome, but as a 'deal with or die' unit there are few better.

In gameplay terms?

Exterminator w/Heavy Bolters & Lascannon. Great "all rounder", can engage armor, infantry, even flyers in a pinch. Not particularly excellent against anything, but will always have a use and always at least pull its weight.

Punisher w/triple Heavy Bolters. Now that this thing is reasonably costed, it's a pretty solid buy., particularly as a "mop up" unit when an enemy squad is left with two or three guys, but you *really* need them gone, dumping 29 S5 shots on them usually sees them off.

LR Eradicator w/triple Heavy Bolters. Super cheap, able to wipe out light infantry, still put lots of wounds on MEQ's, basically an AV14 Hellhound with greater range and more secondary guns, for almost as cheap.


As for the other variants...

The basic Leman Russ Battle Tank is rather mediocre without any upgrades, 150pts for a battlecannon that's at its least effective as an AT gun ever in 7th edition, and that all too often its prime targets are getting cover saves against, just leaves it feeling like an over-investment, and the change of "Lumbering Behemoth" to "Heavy" has neutered the usefulness of any sponsons.

The Demolisher is much the same as the LRBT, except wildly more expensive. It's particularly bad when comparing it to units with similar armament, primarily the Vindicator, which, while having lower armor, doesn't waste "Heavy" the way the LRD does and is nearly 40% cheaper and is more accurate to boot.

The Executioner, so expensive but useful in the last book, is cheaper but almost guaranteed to kill itself without the enemy needing to do a thing while often failing to get to fire all of its shots in the process due to the new "gets hot!" rules.

The Vanquisher looks really cool at first glance, but BS3 *really* kills it, as does a lack of AP1 on the main gun (particularly with 7E's damage table), resulting in it actually being really rather poor at engaging enemy tanks (SM Trilas predators, much bemoaned, are actually generally much better for a similar cost). They kinda work in IA Armored Battlegroups as command tanks where they get their own Orders, BS4 and can take a coaxial Heavy Stubber to twin-link the main gun, but those are also ~200pt+ tanks as opposed to ~150pt tanks.

The Annihilator has a sweet model, but a single TL'd lascannon as the sole armament for a base cost almost that of a Trilas BS4 Space Marine Predator is just hard to get to like much. They were good choices in 4th/early 5th, but just have not kept up.

I really want a few Conquerors to add to my Renegades but alas they do not sell that turret variant anymore...

For me, the classic Battle Tank, the Demolisher and the Vanquisher.

For the battle tank, I still think the large template S8 AP3 is incredibly useful against MEQs and elite infantry in general. They aren't really effective at AT, but can hammer light tanks and transports when required.

The Demolisher is just nasty. A S10 AP2 template can crush armour and blitz infantry with equal aplomb. It's short range and obvious threat make it a target, such that it rarely survives games, but I still think they're great.

Recently I've started runnning the Pask/ Vanquisher combo, after converting my own Vanquisher with a ridiculously long-barreled gun on a regular LRBT chassis. As well as looking bad-ass, The re-rolls to hit of Pask (at BS4) combined with armourbane on a S9 AP2 shot usually give you a penetrating hit per turn. Hull lascannon at BS4, and you've got an excellent, reliable tank sniper.

Without Pask however, I wouldn't take a Vanquisher. They become too unreliable at BS3.

1) Executioner. This thing just does so much damage, and has enough shots to threaten MCs and vehicles too.

2) Eradicator. Cheap and cheerful.

3) Demolisher. Probably not the most efficient, but there's just something about S10 AP2 - it's the kind of weapon that makes just about anything in the game wary.

 koooaei wrote:


LRBT and Demolisher are overpriced a bit with the changes to lumbering behemoth <-> ordnance. You're basically paying all the points for a carcass with 1 gun. Though, you can go with Heavy flamer sponsons.

Not sure I follow this logic. The LRBT/Demo are bad because the sponsons must snap shoot (even though sponsons aren't mandatory) however you then suggest adding the only gun that can't fire at all after ordinance as sponson weapons. Then again, I never did see much point in heavy flamers on IG tanks in general. People say 'oh it's great for dealing with stuff that gets close'. Well, if it's close enough for you to flame, it will charge you next turn, and how many hits can you expect? 3? Maybe? I prefer kiting with heavy bolters personally.

I think the point is that, if an enemy unit is close to your tank (or other units), firing something like a Demolisher Cannon is very risky.

A Heavy Flamer is not risky at all.

I like the battle tank, exterminator, and vanquisher.

The battle tank and vanquisher are nice for reaching out and touch someone... I mean mess someone's day up before they can return the favor. The exterminator with pask looks like it would be good and quite versatile, makes me think a bit of the old T54E1 concept tank

I liked the old Vanquisher, back when it was a small blast or a 2d6 to penetrate armour single target shot at 72" range for five points cheaper than the normal Russ.

Executioner, Vanquisher, and standard, these days, probably.

As far as point efficiency goes:

Executioner is the best, eradicator in a firm second place being such a cheap hunk of armor that murderkills anything below a marine, and the vanquisher can be situationally good with a tank commander in it, for horde lists perhaps. Pask-punisher is very strong but.. rather expensive and has an enormous bullseye on it.

Sadly, none of the sponsons are really worth it on any tank for most lists. Those 20-30 points can probably be spent in a more effective place elsewhere though the melta ones can be a good idea in some cases. Now if lascannons were available that'd be a different story.

Annihilator, Vanquisher and Standard.

Though I have alot of love for 110 Point conquerors as Renegades.

kodi wrote:
Sadly, none of the sponsons are really worth it on any tank for most lists. Those 20-30 points can probably be spent in a more effective place elsewhere though the melta ones can be a good idea in some cases. Now if lascannons were available that'd be a different story.

Aside from the tanks with Ordnance weapons, I actually see the sponsons as a really good buy.

The way I look at it, you're paying a lot of points for that AV14 AV13 chassis, so you might as well make use of it.

I mean, take the Executioner. You're paying 150pts for 3 plasma cannon shots. For about 1/5 of the cost, you can increase your firepower by 67%. Seems like a good deal to me.

vipoid wrote:Aside from the tanks with Ordnance weapons, I actually see the sponsons as a really good buy.

Sponsons are the reason you take russes. An exterminator with las/MM has roughly the same damage profile as a lascannon and an autocannon HWS. Except cheaper, and MUCH more durable. The other russes with sponsons behave similarly.

... unlike the ordnance ones. Without sponson shooting, russes just become really expensive ways to put a little bit of firepower around, and spending 160+ points for a heavy 1 weapon with that small of a range on that slow of a vehicle borders on madness, regardless of its S and Ap. Though the damage output of large blast weapons has been rather anemic for awhile now.

It's sort of hard to see why you'd take either ordnance russ over a deathstrike, which has a bigger blast, ignores cover, and is likely to get about the same number of shots in...

Thanks for all the responses! I will be purchasing my first Russ soon and all your reviews/suggestions definitely help guide my dollars! It seems that there are a variety of differing opinions out there to which variants are better then others. In general, do you run sponsons? (Edit: You just simultaneously answered my question)

 Opera wrote:
I really want a few Conquerors to add to my Renegades but alas they do not sell that turret variant anymore...

Yeah, I'm saddened that FW has removed so much of their 40k stock. I can't imagine all that 30k stuff takes up that much room. Seems to me that they should still list the "removed" items and just cast them on a order-by-order basis.

I have found that if you have the product code for the "removed" item, they still may send you it. For instance, I recently ordered some Chimera Track Guards, which have been removed from the website, and they sent them to me! I'm going to give it another go in the next couple days too. You might be able to find the Conqueror's product code from someone on Dakka that has an old FW catalog sitting around. You will most likely have to order via FAX.

 Vaktathi wrote:

...

The Vanquisher looks really cool at first glance, but BS3 *really* kills it, as does a lack of AP1 on the main gun (particularly with 7E's damage table), resulting in it actually being really rather poor at engaging enemy tanks (SM Trilas predators, much bemoaned, are actually generally much better for a similar cost). They kinda work in IA Armored Battlegroups as command tanks where they get their own Orders, BS4 and can take a coaxial Heavy Stubber to twin-link the main gun, but those are also ~200pt+ tanks as opposed to ~150pt tanks.

The Annihilator has a sweet model, but a single TL'd lascannon as the sole armament for a base cost almost that of a Trilas BS4 Space Marine Predator is just hard to get to like much. They were good choices in 4th/early 5th, but just have not kept up.

Yes, I would have liked to see the new IG/AM codex change the Vanquisher cannon's profile to AP1. That would gel better with its intended role as an armor hunter, maybe at a slight increase in points.

I like the look of the Annihilator too and it's original role in the fluff as an expendable, poor-man's Vanquisher. I wish they would have maintained the price at around 130 pts. and beefed the main weapon to TL Heavy 2. No love for the forgotten.

 vipoid wrote:
I think the point is that, if an enemy unit is close to your tank (or other units), firing something like a Demolisher Cannon is very risky.

A Heavy Flamer is not risky at all.

I can see your point of view, but isn't the Demolisher intrinsically risky? It seems to me that firing the Demolisher cannon and risking blowing yourself up, but also potentially severely blunting an assault is a better gamble then the couple of casualties a HF would give, especially if your going to get assaulted anyways.

 vipoid wrote:

kodi wrote:
Sadly, none of the sponsons are really worth it on any tank for most lists. Those 20-30 points can probably be spent in a more effective place elsewhere though the melta ones can be a good idea in some cases. Now if lascannons were available that'd be a different story.

Aside from the tanks with Ordnance weapons, I actually see the sponsons as a really good buy.

The way I look at it, you're paying a lot of points for that AV14 AV13 chassis, so you might as well make use of it.

I mean, take the Executioner. You're paying 150pts for 3 plasma cannon shots. For about 1/5 of the cost, you can increase your firepower by 67%. Seems like a good deal to me.

From my point of view naked russes of the right variant are crazy cost effective for what they are. The devastation they can bring will draw a ton of enemy fire, since he can't just ignore them - except for arguably the exterminator. That's why I figure it's a good idea to for example get two more plasma guns or upgrade 3 autocannons to lascannons elsewhere rather than splurge on the plasma sponsons. If you find yourself with ~60 points left after you've created your list and a new unit would be too expensive, sure, go for some melta or plasma sponsons.

 Ailaros wrote:

vipoid wrote:Aside from the tanks with Ordnance weapons, I actually see the sponsons as a really good buy.

Sponsons are the reason you take russes. An exterminator with las/MM has roughly the same damage profile as a lascannon and an autocannon HWS. Except cheaper, and MUCH more durable. The other russes with sponsons behave similarly.

... unlike the ordnance ones. Without sponson shooting, russes just become really expensive ways to put a little bit of firepower around, and spending 160+ points for a heavy 1 weapon with that small of a range on that slow of a vehicle borders on madness, regardless of its S and Ap. Though the damage output of large blast weapons has been rather anemic for awhile now.

One other aspect is in terms of Weapon Destroyed.

If you don't buy sponsons, a Weapon Destroyed result has a 50% chance of crippling a Russ by destroying its main weapon. But, if you have sponsons, that chance goes down to 25% *and* you'll often still be putting out decent firepower even with the main turret gone. 2 Plasma Cannons or 2 Multi Meltas can still be pretty brutal (at the very least, they're far better than being left with a single Lascannon or Heavy Bolter).

 Crabbit wrote:

I can see your point of view, but isn't the Demolisher intrinsically risky? It seems to me that firing the Demolisher cannon and risking blowing yourself up, but also potentially severely blunting an assault is a better gamble then the couple of casualties a HF would give, especially if your going to get assaulted anyways.

I imagine it would depend on the circumstances and what else the Demolisher could hit.

Considering that all you're trading is a perpetually-snapshotting Heavy Bolter, I think it's a reasonable option to have. Also, if you lose your main gun to a weapon destroyed result, a Heavy Flamer is more likely to do something than a Heavy Bolter.

kodi wrote:
That's why I figure it's a good idea to for example get two more plasma guns or upgrade 3 autocannons to lascannons elsewhere rather than splurge on the plasma sponsons

Where are you putting the plasmaguns?

Maybe I build my lists differently, but when I want plasmaguns I just put them in the squads at the same time I buy those squads. I don't leave 'spare' veterans who might get upgraded later.

I personally love my LR Executioners. With a full Squadron of 3 of them, you can take out all but AV 14. They excel at killing all Infantry models, especially the 2+ save models. They are just as good on Light vehicles too.

The 2nd Favorite LR is the Vanquisher. They are the best Vehicle to Vehicle fighters in the game. Nothing like 72" of Armorbane.

The 3rd LR favorite would be the Demolisher. This model can destroy anything but a Flyer. They are great fire magnets to draw fire away from more squishier targets.

I'm still a bit new to playing IG, but the first LR I ever built and played with was a Vanquisher, and so far I'm really liking it. BS 3 does make it tough sometimes, but upgrading him to a commander can really help out. I haven't had anything extraordinary happen yet, mostly just stripping hull points. But I've yet to lose him so at least he's undefeated! ( Mostly from hiding in the back and picking people off from far away lol. )

I also dig the Exterminator. Can't go wrong with 4 twinlinked Autocannon shots. I know a lot of people prefer to make their units ( not just their Leman Russes ) have a very specific role, but I'm still a fan of models that can go one way or the other in a pinch. I can either shoot light tanks with it or chew up some heavy infantry.

 vipoid wrote:

 Ailaros wrote:

vipoid wrote:Aside from the tanks with Ordnance weapons, I actually see the sponsons as a really good buy.

Sponsons are the reason you take russes. An exterminator with las/MM has roughly the same damage profile as a lascannon and an autocannon HWS. Except cheaper, and MUCH more durable. The other russes with sponsons behave similarly.

... unlike the ordnance ones. Without sponson shooting, russes just become really expensive ways to put a little bit of firepower around, and spending 160+ points for a heavy 1 weapon with that small of a range on that slow of a vehicle borders on madness, regardless of its S and Ap. Though the damage output of large blast weapons has been rather anemic for awhile now.

One other aspect is in terms of Weapon Destroyed.

If you don't buy sponsons, a Weapon Destroyed result has a 50% chance of crippling a Russ by destroying its main weapon. But, if you have sponsons, that chance goes down to 25% *and* you'll often still be putting out decent firepower even with the main turret gone. 2 Plasma Cannons or 2 Multi Meltas can still be pretty brutal (at the very least, they're far better than being left with a single Lascannon or Heavy Bolter).

Perhaps a novice question, but does sponson firing arc ever sway your decision to take them? The firing arc seems somewhat limited, resulting in both sponsons not being able to simultaneously fire without unintended tank rotation.

 Crabbit wrote:

Perhaps a novice question, but does sponson firing arc ever sway your decision to take them? The firing arc seems somewhat limited, resulting in both sponsons not being able to simultaneously fire without unintended tank rotation.

I've very rarely had problems with their arc of fire. Usually I can easily rotate the tank enough to bring the sponsons to bear, without exposing much side or rear armour to my opponent.

Hell, even if I turn my tank perpendicular to the table edge, I can still just move a Chimera or somesuch to block its rear-armour (and AV13 sides are still tough nuts to crack).

And, if worst comes to worst, I can always just not fire one of the sponsons.

Although, the tank I use most often is the Executioner. Considering that it slowly kills itself anyway, I tend to be of a 'do as much damage as possible while it's still alive' mentality. So, especially with that tank, I'll happily risk exposing its side armour in exchange for 5 plasma cannon shots.

Crabbit wrote:Perhaps a novice question, but does sponson firing arc ever sway your decision to take them? The firing arc seems somewhat limited, resulting in both sponsons not being able to simultaneously fire without unintended tank rotation.

No. Anything you want dead enough to shoot at, you're probably also wanting to make sure you have your front armor facing towards. Plus, the one upside of lumbering behemoth these days is that you get a lot of flexibility in positioning before you fire.

There have been occasions where I've had both sponsons not able to fire at the same time, but it's usually my fault caused by trying to cram too many tanks into too small of an area.

kodi wrote:From my point of view naked russes of the right variant are crazy cost effective for what they are. The devastation they can bring will draw a ton of enemy fire, since he can't just ignore them - except for arguably the exterminator.

What?

A battlecannon is only Ap3, so it's not causing vehicles to be killed by exploding them, and its only heavy 1, which makes it terrible at stripping hull points. And taking down MCs, who often have a Sv2+ or a ++ on top of multiple wounds. Meanwhile, against infantry it doesn't ignore cover saves, and you can always displace down to the point where even a "hit" will only catch three models. Which you still have to wound. And make it through armor saves. Even if it's just bad-Sv units, then you have the problem of single-blast weapons not being that effective against hordes. And it can't even shoot at fliers, and is terribly unreliable at even glancing AV14.

The best way to think of a battlecannon is a heavy 3 missile launcher against infantry, and as a heavy 1 missile launcher against anything else. Battlecannons have been hopeless since 4th ed ended.

 Ailaros wrote:

The best way to think of a battlecannon is a heavy 3 missile launcher against infantry, and as a heavy 1 missile launcher against anything else. Battlecannons have been hopeless since 4th ed ended.

That's depressingly accurate.