Radwraith said:

Radwraith said:

Don't think you're giving the xenos and renegades enough credit to roll up somewhere or prepare for engaging the Imperial Guard as they've had 10,000 years of practice and experience to figure out, meeting the Imperial Guard means you're going to have tonnes of artillery landing all over you. Then they're going to roll tanks and squishy dudes in flack with flashlights all over what the artillery didn't blow to shit.

However, the enemy also has communications, their own tanks, artillery and anti-armour units so you probably wont have a turkey shoot of pew-pew infantry for too long before something just as big, scary and shooty turns up and returns the favour. Course the downside of being in a tank isn't as survivable as it would seem when a full theatre lights up, because it just means you're afforded more ordinance somewhere in your direction.

Radwraith said:

While I do see where you are coming from, the system has a few examples of this premise, already. In RT, if you are a lucky SOB, and your ship has fighter/bomber bays, you might get to be a Void master ace pilot. Now, in conventional space combat, this isn't good for you, as they take all of the mechanics out of the fighters, and abstract their use, and you'll probably ALWAYS lose several to enemy fighters and turrets, but, if you are ever so lucky, you might get to use them in atmosphere. Your party goes down to a planet, and you get to fly down, zipping through the atmosphere in any of a number of fighter craft, and let loose the power of space guns on ground people. It makes you significantly more BA than the rest of your party, and nothing less than AA gun turrets, or a guy carrying a rocket launcher, is likely to be a risk to you, until you have to land, and join your buddies, to go inside. Deathwatch does the same, if your character can happen to become a Dreadnought. They are considerably more powerful than a "regular" Marine. basically a high-armored tank in their own right. On this thought, a one-man tank crew COULD work.

The big problem I am having is a lack of info, on exactly how the tram mechanic will work. The IG is usually a massive force of hundreds, every person a faceless meatbag about to be ground into pulp for the better of the Imperium. Most of their units are large assortments of similar people. If you have 4-6 characters, how will they work compared to the rest of the nameless drones? Are we expecting that the players are all in a single platoon/unit, so their character choices should work into that, or might they be spaced out, across the army, so that they have more freedom to play what they want, and the whole army feels more relevant, but will interact personally less, and not depend on each other as a team, as much? Not every character will necessarily be a leader, but then they are just a guy, being bossed around by NPC Officers, with little choice of what they'll be doing. If they make it so that you are a one-man tank-crew, or a soldier in a horde, that could work, and also maybe balance out the two ideas a smidge. If everyone is in one Leman Russ, that could work to, assuming everyone has something to be doing, and everyone has some skill at what they should be doing; a LRBT is not meant to transport troops, so they all need to contribute. Once I get a better idea of how the team dynamic will work, I will be better able to formulate how hope this thought turns out.

Radwraith said:

It isn't like you would be turning up with five tanks to investigate rumours of cult activity at the noodle bar on hab level 17b. As the mailed fist of the Imperial Guard, you will be well, re-enacting Cambrai, attacking infantry held trenches, or the invasion of France in 1940, launching a blitzkrieg against unprepared opponents, or Kursk,  attacking massive defence in depth with 70 dug in lascannons per kilometer of front, or the much anticipated World War Three/Team Yankee, with the thin grey line of Imperial Tanks defending against an unending horde of Ork armour. 

You may have a tank, but since you are in the army now the enemy rolls just as heavy. They get tankbusting aircraft, anti-tank missiles, poison gas, massed batteries of MLRS launchers and Titans.

Great, I've already started mapping out how to requisition tanks and stuff for a Tank based Imperial Guard Campaign.

Basically, they'll all be part of the crew.... a Driver, a Gunner, the Commander, the loader can be an NPC, and if we have Sponson gunners, we'll have room for two more people... Eventually, the Commander and his crew will either accrue enough points to move up into a new vehicle, or be promoted higher.

Simply: Tank Classes

Main Battle Tank: (Leman Russ, Leman Russ Conqueror)

Infantry Support Tank: (Leman Russ Exterminator, Hellhound)

Tank Hunter/Destroyer: (Leman Russ Vanquisher, Leman Russ Executioner,  Leman Russ Annhilator, Destroyer Tank Hunter)

Siege Tank (Leeman Russ Demolisher, Thunderer)

Super Heavy Class 1: (Malcador and Macharius hulls, etc.)

Super Heavy Class 2: (Baneblade, Storm Hammer, Stormsword, Stormlord, etc.)

Super Heavy Class 3: (Titan Killers, Shadowsword, Stormblade, etc.)

Lionus said:

Thanks for the compliment! I actually worked in CIC on an naval warship in my youth. I had a some of buddies who were Marine corp tankers back then and that was where I learned how similar their methods were to to what we did in CIC!  

To those advocating the single tank model: I am not saying that this method cannot work. As Venkelos pointed out; It's very similar to playing a fighter pilot. I simply stated that the Tank crew model would be MY preference. Nor does being in a Tank make you truly Invincible in a Battlefield scenario. The Problem is that the AVERAGE NPC of Chaos, Eldar or whatever does not carry any weapon that could touch a Tank of any variety! That's as it should be! whats the point of having armor if your base model rifleman can smoke you! This is really the difference between a Air war or Star fighter type game vs. the focus of OW: In the Air war scenario your primary opponents will be other Fighters, Voidships and AA batteries. Most Pilots will never even see what's going on with the people on the ground! In the Ground war scenario the Infantry (and possibly civvies) are right next to you being ground into your treads! The Overwhelming killing power of a Tank on the battlefield cannot be overstated! Sure, There are Anti'tank weapons, Other Tanks and even threats from the air but you are still fighting amongst the common soldiers. You are a rolling engine of devastation among amongst a (largely) helpless throng of flesh! This is why I am reticent to make each player their own war engine. 

It's not that hard to have a single tank game. I mean, look at the Israeli movie Lebanon (2009), a movie practically filmed entirely from the perspective of a tank crew:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1483831/

So, the commander will be given an order from either the squadron leader or from his commanding officer, like, take that hill or move in support of 'x' platoon of infantry. You then play to that. Urban combat will be hellish for those in the tank, as visibility is limited and you're going to have alot of ghost returns on the Auspex... The driver will have access to the hull mounted gun and have to make steering tests...you have the gunner making tech use tests and then what ever the big guns count as... and so on :D

My question is: how do you keep a tank-centered campaign from becoming just an endless series of "drive" and "fire" rolls?

Let's see, you can have the tank knocked out, or a sneak attack on the depot where the crew is in for either refuel and reload....

Tank breaks down, the crew is stranded in an area where the locals are quiet happy with murdering them for whom they are...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beast_(1988_film)

Spaulding his one of the crew members requireing first aid, etc. Think of all the little issues tank crews have to deal with, from fire to chemical attacks...

Another tank movie: Sahara (1943) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0036323/

Heck, there's a new horror movie coming out involving a German tank crew fighting some daemon... if that doesn't inspire you... :D