Underslung AC aside, it's fine.

The design aesthetic would bother me more if I hadn't already become acclimated to the Stormraven, and I think the design fits the one-man assault fighter better than it does the transport.

It's still ridiculous, but this is 40k after all.

ddunkelmeister said:

I don't know. By the standards of 40k that is practically hard science fiction.

Maybe too much so - I don't see a single skull on it anywhere!

--

The 360 spin view thing on its product page is worth looking at:-

http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/catalog/productDetail.jsp?prodId=prod1600096a

I like it with one simple modification (and one complex one):

*Replace the Astartes ppilot with a servitor. This isn't an astartes vehicle, this is a vehicle that supports astartes. It should be servitor or chapter serf operated.

*Replace the rear fin with a lateral fan (think the Combine Gunship from Halflife 2 - boss is standing in the cubicle next to mine, so I'm not looking up a link for you. You have google and I trust your ability to use it :P)

 I recon if you make those changes, it'll look good and fit the astartes aesthetic more.

AluminiumWolf said:

Wow, that really does make a difference. Looking at it in profile, the only thing I'm left with some nagging doubts about are the weapon pods. They just seem overly large… But this is 40K, and every damn thing seems to have oversized weapons, so what the hell! :)

AluminiumWolf said:

Here the turret isn't so bad… the gun pods… meh. Its less ridiculous than the OP's link and the White Dwarf article pics. I wouldn't use giant flying goldfish tank, but I could see a place for it in the Deathwatch's S.O.P. for vehicles and C.A.S. roles.

 Well this why GW started putting in 360 degree views. As a model it's more complicated than looking at a single picture, especially ones with large wings.

Seems to fit the criteria though, and they clearly wanted something a hell of a lot smaller than the Storm Raven and even the Imperial Flyers from Forge World (the Lightning is a pretty big kit, the Thunderbolt as massive if you've seen them on tables by other models), so that'll make actual purchasers happy (compared to other GW kits anyway). As for gun size, that's a basic tenet of Imperial vehicles isn't it? Bigger guns than can possibly fit, even as far back as the Leman Russ model, I like that they've actually paid some deference to where ammo would go on those side guns, even though it bulks it out. Certainly more sci-fi than modern plane which is a requirement really.

In summary, niggles but it's a pretty bold design and it ticks the boxes.

I actually think the Ork flyers a better kit, less thought put in (just early jet fighter made Orky) but it succeeds quite well. It looks Orky without looking like it wouldn't fly at all, it's got lots of customisation and character.

Necron Flyer looks good actually, no difference between the two builds except for what's tacked on the bottom (which I guess was always going to happen given the gate thing needed to be there). Would have liked the guns to more integrated (as it's actually pretty streamlined except for that, even with the exposed pilot) I guess but I think that's the way they want to with Nec's. Not sure I'll ever get used to Nec vehicles have separate pilots but that's the way they're going and it's my own hang ups really.

Erg… ugly model. Not as bad as I originally thought, but still bad.

My main problem is that this thing has never existed in the background before, nor (more importantly) anything like it. It just doesn't feel like something you would get in 40k. I have a similar problem with the Stormraven, though in that case it was just copying the same role as an already existing thing (the Thunderhawk) which they couldn't produce a model of, and so they just invented it to have a model to sell.

Frankly, in my version of 40k neither this or the Stormraven exist. The Thunderhawk is the Astartes' transport aircraft and air support, and that's the end of it.

 Why can't GW design anything that looks like a "cool" aircraft for SM? The Tempest (By forgeworld) is a fine example. What is this crap? The Orc bomber looks more aerodynamic! The Original Thunderhawk gave that same "Mailed fist" look while still looking at least somewhat like it's meant to fly! This is another ugly duckling like the stormraven! Forgeworld has another mid-sized aircraft called the Storm eagle that would fill a similar role to the Stormraven. Pity GW can't adopt good designs when they see them! http://www.forgeworld.co.uk/New_Stuff

borithan said:

That's a good point. I haven't read anything about the Stormtalon yet- is it supposed to be a new invention?

Adeptus-B said:

Not as far as I can tell from the background in White Dwarf.

As for "it's never been in the background before", if that was the only reason not to include something, nothing would ever be added to the setting, and the setting would never develop or be expanded upon. I personally don't regard that particular argument as a particularly solid one…

 I don't think the 360 view helps any, neither did the White Dwarf article I perused at a FLGS.

It desperately needs to be 4-6 inches longer in the tail, the Y shaped tail section is terrible, and the stubby wings on the rotating engines add nothing. This thing ain't aerodynamic, it flies by brute force, why include stubby mini-wings that don't add anything?

The huge turret under the nose is laughable, even by GW's outlandish 40K proportion standards. 

The assault cannon turret needs to be replaced with the assault cannons from a Landraider Crusader.

N0-1_H3r3 said:

True dat. I love innovation in the 40k setting, and dislike the "well we haven't seen it before, so they shouldn't introduce it now!" arguments. It's a big galaxy, we certainly haven't seen all it has to offer yet. 

As for the Stormtalon, I like the concept and aspects of the execution, but on the whole, I'm not a fan. I like the side gunpods, cockpit and engines, but the tail seems far too short, and as many have pointed out, the underslung cannon turret is disproportionately large. I understand arguments for military aircraft (and Astartes aircraft in particular) being ugly flying tanks, and will admit to a history of gunship/ground attack aircraft being ugly as hell…(A-10 Warthog, Apache gunship, HIND gunship etc etc) but such aircraft tend to have a certain menacing elegance about them, and the Stormtalon lacks that. 

It actually reminds me a bit of the XF-85 parasite fighter jet in terms of its overall proportions.   

To me, the prevailing design ethic for Astartes equipment seems to be moving further and further away from the riveted, clunky look of materiel used by the wider Imperium to a sleeker, more "cyberpunk" style. In setting terms, this makes perfect sense, (the Astartes will have access to the best, most advanced equipment from the golden age of the Imperium, before the loss of tech-data and the accretion of OTT gothic imagery) but I'm not sure this approach is paying dividends in design terms. Which is better: the clunky, WWII influenced Thunderbolt fighter, which looks like it's held together by rivets, or the higher-tech Stormtalon? The Thunderbolt, unquestionably.     

EDIT: I look forward to seeing what the Forgeworld design team will do with it. The Storm Eagle is clearly derived from (and a tremendous improvement upon) the Stormraven, so I imagine they'll do something similar with the Stormtalon.  

awful…

borithan said:

I'm old enough to remember when the Thunderhawk (and the Thunderbolt, Valkerie and countless others) had never existed before :*(