Genswick 5th Armored Regiment, 3rd Company

Alrighty then, while my painting output has slowed a bit thanks to a persistent cold and my wife's business trip to Florida, I figured I'd finally get around to starting a series of posts on my 33rd Genswick Rifles army that people seem to be quite fond of (well, I know I am). I started this army at the end of 2003, just as the new Bretonnian models started to arrive in the US. By adding Cadian lasgun arms to Bretonnian Men-at-Arms bodies it was actually pretty easy to create and army that had a distinctly WW1 feel and a strong 40K aesthetic.

On to the first installment of an ongoing feature.

Strangely enough, I didn't start the army out with any tanks (proper tanks that is). After playing a bunch of games with it, including the 2004 Baltimore GT, I felt that this was an army I could keep adding to over the years. In 2006 I started work on the armored company you see below.

First up we have the Company Command Tank, a short-barreled Vanquisher, #301 or The Forbes (named after a friend and colleague who passed away while I was working on this project). I had shortened the barrel so that it could be comfortably be used as a Leman Russ in tournaments, without too much hassle. Other features include an extended hull and trench rails, all hand cut from plasticard - a common feature of the tanks of 3rd Company. A street light from the CoD sprues serves as a loud speaker for blasting the Imperial Creed as the brave boys of Genswick advance. When the Apocalypse command frame was available, I added the Imperial eagle radar dish. You'll also notice a number of triangles painted on the front, right track guard. This is the number of enemy armored fighting vehicles (AFVs) that the tank has taken out in combat (well... actually... not really in my battles, but just in my background story). Finally, the heavy bolters in the sponsons are Ork Big Shootas from the metal Deff Dreads, the same parts that I used for my infantry HBs.

Next up we have 1st Squadron of 3rd Company, tanks #311, 312, and 313 (or Saviour of Aexe Cardinal, Golden, and something starting with a G and ending with an F - if only I could remember it...). These guys are sporting a fairly standard Leman Russ armament of battle cannons, hull-mounted lascannons, and sponson-mounted heavy bolters (made the same way as the command tank. As with the command tank, I added the tops of armored sentinels to the turrets to switch up the profile a little bit. For this squadron without track guards, kill markings are painted on the side of their turrets.

2nd Squadron of 3rd Company are another trio of Leman Russ Tanks. #321, 322, and 323 are known respectively as Kratzenberg's Hope, Iron Gate, and Thracian Arch. This squadron obviously does not have the heavy bolters and so takes on a more mobile role.

And 3rd Squadron of 3rd Company are a set of Leman Russ Demolishers. I've always loved the Demolisher cannon, and three Strength 10 AP2 ordnance templates dropping down on something is always very tasty! Throne of Khan (#331), The Arbutus (#332), and Xerxes' Hammer (#333) are always a firm favorite! To all three I've added some of the old, old Chimera armored plating from back in the day.

So there you have it, a look at the 3rd Company of the 5th Armored Regiment. I hope you enjoyed it. If you have any thoughts about what the name for #313 is, please leave it in a comment below.

Cheers

Dave