Sunday, March 20, 2011

Leviathan - Ecclesiarchal Pattern

Here is a little project I've been working on lately. I've been playing a few apocalyptic battles with some friends and after looking at other people's work, I've finally decided to make something bigger than your average baneblade.

There are a few exceptionally beautiful Leviathans out there and they inspired me to create my own. I wanted something that would fit my sisters of battle army. To be constant with the army I've build so far, here's a little piece of fluff to match the creation of this beast:

    It had been several weeks now since Canoness Amelia and her Sororitas had made planetfall on this world. What was supposed to be a simple mission had turned quickly to a nightmarish invasion by a relentless enemy. The first distress calls had been intercepted by the battle cruiser transporting them and they had come to assist. Little did they know that they would be facing a tyranid infestation upon landing.


   How this had happened was still a mystery. The most plausible theory at this point was that an infested cargo ship must have landed enabling the tyranids advance force to begin multiplying on the ground. Being an agri-world, most of the planet's surface was used to grow food and house livestocks that would feed the untold billions of imperial citizan in the quadrant. A single fortress city was located on the world with distant outposts of workers that would man the installations as required. 


The tyranid horde had not been vast enough at first to assault the city's protected walls and they had instead feasted on the unfortunate workers and ingesting as much of the planet's bio-mass as possible.


On their arrivals, the sisters affronted small packs of roaming invaders and quickly dispatched them. Their foe now know, Amelia had consulted with her second in command, Jacynth, and they had both decided that the best way to slow the monsters advance was to first cut off their food supply. After reaching the city they had instructed the planetary garrison to begin rationing food and water and to put the population to gathering everything edible from the outlying farms. The tyranids would be here soon and the best chance of survival for the population was to outlast the invaders.


Amelia's biggest concern was the lack of support for her troops. They had a few rhinos and immolators that they could depend on, but they had not been able to get as many as she would have liked. Now that what could be gathered had been taken from the outlying fields, she had also put those immolators to burning everything within a two miles radius of the city. What they could not have, the tyranids would not. The scorched landscape would also provide little cover for the invaders she reasoned. Time was of the essence however and she knew that they would not have the months required to get everything prepared before the horde set it's eyes on the city and it's inhabitants.


The Emperor provides for his faithful however and none are more believing than the Adepta Sororitas and as faith would have it, Amelia soon found out that the city's vaults house a revered Leviathan that had been kept in working condition by a small contingent of tech-priests. The vehicle had been cared for for almost two millenniums now after it had originally helped in liberating the planet from the xenos that were polluting it.


It was not time to bring the behemoth out of it's slumber. Amelia had instructed the tech-priests that she needed a few modifications made. The doomsday cannon was to be removed and the adepts were to conceive a flamer big enough in it's stead so that they could finish scouring the vegetation surrounding the city.


After three days and three nights of hard labor, a near miracle was achieved and the Leviathan was taken to the field to assist the Immolators. Amelia had big expectations for the war machine, but never had she ever witnessed such glory before. It was as if the hand of the Emperor was sweeping the landscape turning everything to ashes in it's wake. The Purgatus pattern cannon was a wonder to behold.


At that precise moment she knew that once the tyranids came, no matter how large the horde, they would break themselves against the walls and would turn to dust when faced with the now renamed "St.Mina's Vengeance".


Here are a few shots of my work in progress beginning with the structural design.



Here's one of the original concept for what would be replacing the Doomsday Cannon.



Some early shots on the landing pad:




Fast forward several days later.

Here's a nearly completed Purgatus pattern cannon.


and a size comparaison shot


Viewed from the left, size comparison once more. You can see the three heavy bolters on the side, the other side houses the same armament. I've also received the six twin-linked lascannon this week that will go on top of the shrines on the side.


Some close ups on the turret atop the leviathan. Still very much work in progress.



Some of the work done on the back door as well. I have decided in favor of practicality and opted to leave the door shut on the back. Allowing it to open as a ramp in the back would have been difficult to say the least with the two side doors and might made the structure weaker for it.


Armament:

1 x Purgatus Pattern Cannon
1 x Volcanno Cannon, shadowsword pattern turret mounted.
6 x twin-linked heavy bolters
6 x twin-linked lascannon
2 x quad mounted auto-cannons

The Purgatus cannon has two firing modes. In either mode it uses the Apocalyptic Flamestorm template.

1. Rg: 24" - S: 7 - AP: 3 - Template must be placed so that small side is closest to the tanks cannon

2. Rg 0" - S: D - AP: 2 - To be measured from cannon itself. All four cannons are fired at once scouring what would be standing in front of the tank.

Special rules:

Void shields: 3
Structure points: 5

Inspirational Vision:

St. Mina's Vengeance was such a blessing in a time of despair that all faithful units within 24" of the Leviathan gain the Relentless special rule as they keep up to guard the vehicle.

Command Vehicle:

All faithful units within 24" may re-roll failed morale checks. Should the Purgatus cannon be activated in it's second mode, this rule is lost for the rest of the turn as the Cannoness has to retreat from the balcony due to the intense heat generated by the cannon.

I am currently pricing this creation of mine at 1500-1600 points or so.

If anyone has any suggestions on either price or special rules. Im open to suggestions.