Hello fellow dakkanauts!
I, like a lot of old Tau players, have been really excited this month, what with the new mini releases
GW have been throwing our way.
I especially like the rules (and model) for the Riptide, however I felt that, like everything, I needed a more 'personalized' design.
Thus, I came up with the XV -106 'JIKOKU' Battlesuit. In games its going to be a counts as Riptide (with everything
WYSIWYG) however I've tried to build it
to be more fitting to the fluff of my army, and because I like to build things
The fluff (Warning - lots. feel free to skip!)
Cadre Code - Name: ‘Umbra’
Cadre Leader: Shas’O Commander ‘Greenstrider’
Cadre Founding: 3rd Sphere Expansion
Predominate Terrain of Homeworld: Dense Jungle
Predominate Climate of Homeworld: Tropical
Tactical Philosophy Preference: Kauyon, The Patient Hunter
Military Tactic Preference: Mobile Fire Teams for overlapping fields of fire
Cadre Function: Exploration of New Worlds
Ethereal Caste Presence: Low
Auxiliary Size: Normal
Auxilary Composition: Kroot Jungle Fighters, Vespid Strike Teams
Preferred Enemy: Imperial Guard and Tyranid forces
Commander Greenstrider (Skip below to read JIKOKU fluff)
An ambitious and old XV8 Battlesuit pilot, O’Cars’era earned the name ‘Greenstrider’ after his unique jungle fighting abilities. Opting to leave his heavily modified Crisis Suit for smaller engagements on foot, the Fire Caste Commander developed a strong bond of kinship with both the Kroot Warriors and Vespid Strains under his command. His relationship towards members of his own race also became that of blood trust, with many veterans populating his ranks.
Greenstrider’s tactics had found a home in the far outlying reaches of the Damocles Gulf, where the Tau’s need for expansion had taken them into Imperial Space. There the Tau met the might of the Imperial Guard, and vast battles were fought under the stars and over planetary sectors. One such world was of particular importance to both members and was known as Harkn IV, an agri world ripe with supplies enough to allow the Tau to gain a serious foothold in the sector.
Greenstrider’s jungle fighting guerrilla tactics, adapted from the Kayon ‘Patient Hunter’ philosophy, were to prove invaluable in the skirmishes that took place across the densely tropical jungle planet. Due to the topography, Imperial Guard forces on the planet were mostly concentrated companies of Catachan, alongside Thunderbolt fighter escorts and a veteran company of Cadians that had much experience of fighting the Tau.
Greenstrider used small teams of Fire Warriors and XV8 veterans with long range weaponry to move swiftly between the trees and swampy environments. Using scouting Pathfinders with markerlights to light up sentinels and infantry buried deep in cover, Greenstrider picked off target after target with startling precision.
Once Imperial forces had gathered for a counter attack, the Shas’O had already retreated, his units taking cover in the fields of trees covering the landscape. This hit and run tactic began to quickly whittle down the enemy lines, and soon areas of the jungle were being cleared for outposts and bunkers. Heavy Cadian Leman Russ battle tanks rumbled across the vegetation, following burning trails left by Catachan Hellhounds. Armoured sentinels exchanged Autocannon fire with Missile loaded battlesuits, the veteran pilots of both sides darting in and around the thick jungles. The true fighting had begun in full force, and Greenstrider soon took to his own heavily modified battlesuit.
Diving into the thick of the fighting, the enemy were soon burned from their trenches, running back through the compounds under hails of devastating plasma fire. Return fire was made against Greenstrider and his bodyguard, but the heavy armour of the XV-9 Jungle Suits coupled with the incredible piloting skills of the veteran operators left little for the foe to aim at. Almost as soon as they had arrived, Greenstrider retreated back into the surrounding flora, only to burst out again minutes later when the lines of the guard reformed. The huge losses the Catachan fighters suffered due to the consistent and unpredictable attacks made by the small pockets of infantry and battlesuits forced them into retreat, and allowed the Tau total control across the tropical regions of Harkn IV.
Fighting took on a very different turn out in the few cities and surrounding plains, however. The Cadian veterans had dug in deep, and utilized the space in the streets for quick mobile tactics. Plasma armed veterans mounted in chimeras made short work of any Tau infantry that dared move too close to the city on foot, and soon the battlefield become littered with the husks of missile battlesuits and chassis of shattered chimeras, as heavy weapon met heavy weapon on the open ground. After a gritty stalemate, Greenstrider re - evaluated this threat and changed tactics. With only a handful of battlesuits and a barracuda modified from a devilfish chassis and downed Valkyrie, he made a daring raid into the heart of the city. Using his bodyguard retinue’s flamers, he jumped from building to building, lighting up areas with great gouts of stolen promethium. The barracuda streaked overhead, acting not only as an effective dogfighter, but as a fast moving seeker missile platform from which Pathfinders could inflict heavy damage against armoured targets that threatened the flamer equipped Crisis Teams.
Fighting in the streets became fierce, as Greenstrider opened up a safe landing zone for more modified battlesuits. Missiles and plasma filled the air, and from outside the city there began the whip cracking sound of discharging railguns, which punched into the defenders as they attempted to reinforce the outer perimeter. The attack lasted over an hour, but then the Tau quickly withdrew, leaving the Imperial forces in disarray. Left to pick up the pieces, the Cadians struggled to rebuild an effective defense. The Tau commander watched with interest as the enemy tactics changed, and continued to harry them with huge hit and run attacks until finally, the Imperial Guard were forced to perform a tactical planetary withdrawal. The planet was quickly taken for the Greater Good, and Commander Greenstrider was given the honour of leading a separate sphere expansion; one which continually took him into contact with the Cadian regiments and eventually, the great maw of the Tyranid swarm, where his constantly evolving tactics bought enough time for both Tau and Imperial Guard reinforcements to arrive and repel the alien threat.
The 'JIKOKU' Emerges
After Greenstriders' pitched battles against the Tyranid hordes, he knew his cadre needed a new kind of weapon to stem the endless tides of chitin and claw that tore toward his ranks.
Tales had reached him of a great battlesuit variant currently being tested in the field, designed to withstand an incredible amount of punishment whilst being able to deliver a fearful retaliation.
He spoke to the surviving members of his earth caste engineers, and ordered that a similar suit be built. Greenstrider had requested one of these 'XV -104' Battlesuits, however heavy fighting against the ever growing imperial forces meant they were needed more urgently elsewhere.
Undeterred, the commander oversaw the construction of this new experimental suit, urging his engineers to use anything and everything at their disposal to help it better serve the Greater Good. Utilizing half destroyed plasma drives from StormSword wrecks, and using the high grade metals from destroyed Hammerheads and other tau vehicles, the gigantic battlesuit slowly took form. Greenstrider ordered that his most trusted Shas'vre should each learn to operate its advanced mechanisms, so any XV8 veteran would be capable of piloting the great machine if the enemy forces proved too fast to muster an organized defence in time. If this happened, the closest pilot would activate the suit, taking charge and holding the line until the cadre could muster a counter attack.
When the XV - 106 was finally finished, Commander Greenstrider looked up at his towering prototype, and commended the engineers on such fine work, even in such harsh and difficult conditions. The Tau under his command saw this new construct as a great protector; a vast guardian for the Greater Good. Greenstrider agreed with the sentiment, and named the experimental suit 'JIKOKU, the great Sentinel of the East'.
Now, onto some pics! - I apologize in advance for the naff quality. :(
I started by using the size comparison chart in the new codex to get an idea of the size of this new suit. I concluded that sections of pirahna bodies would be best suited for the thighs:
Here is a shot of the expected leg design:
I've also got a lot of bits to work through, having taken apart both my XV Angels and my Farsight count as (both can be found here -
http://www.dakkadakka.com/gallery/images-36687-27722_Tau%20Stuff.html and here-
http://www.dakkadakka.com/gallery/images-36687-13769_A.r.r.c%20Xvangels.html )
I then started work on the torso. I wanted a pilot sitting inside, gundamy style, so built the body around that.
Deciding that the engines on the sides were too big, I scaled them down from devilfish engines to pirahna engines. They seemed to suit much better!
Next I started work on the interior of the cockpit, however my comp is being a
now, so I'll try uploading the next batch of pics in a few hours.
Either way, thats the start of my new project. Any comments are welcome!
Automatically Appended Next Post: Righto, entry No. 2.
Added some more detail to the interior cockpit, including the Shasv're pilot:
I've also added a metal hinge I dug out of somewhere onto the back, which will serve as hinge for the hatch.
)
