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LandRaider

by Jonnel Mendiola

Greetings once again. This time around I would like to take a closer look on the toughest tank in 40K --- the Land RAIDER.

I have heard people say that the Land Raider is too expensive. At 250 points it simply cannot kill enough units to get back its worth in points. However, we must also remember that the Land Raider can also carry troops 10 Space Marines or 5 Terminators. Thus the Land Raider can be used in two ways: the Gun Tank and the Assault tank.

The Gun Tank:

Using the Land Raider as a Gun Platform is ideal. It is the Pill box, the Bunker or the anchor from which you can form your defensive line. In this role you must pick out the biggest, and most threatening targets to your troops that is Dreadnoughts, Other Tanks and APC's in that order.

However, the land raider is not very good at killing hordes of troops. It is for this reason that I usually assign a squad of troops to hold the line with the land raider. They use their bolters to shoot at the infantry and protect the Land Raider from assault. Furthermore, if you have to move your defensive line or decide to go into the assault, just load up the squad into the Land Raider and move elsewhere.

The Assault Tank:

In this role, load up your best assault troops and head straight for the enemy and don't stop until you get them on the other side. Once there, assume the Gun Tank role.

As for which role you want your Land Raider to fulfill is completely up to you. The Crusader Variant however, is more ideal for the Assault Role due to its larger transport capacity and it can kill lots of infantry with its hurricane bolters and assault cannons. The normal Land Raider can fulfill either role reasonably well.

The Fire Magnet Reaction:

Let me say that your opponent will take the greatest pains to kill your Land Raider. It is such a BIG, JUICY target that he cannot resist trying to kill it and get 250 points. I call this the Fire Magnet Reaction. My Land Raider has been Demolisher cannoned, Dark Lanced, Bright Lanced, Las Cannoned, Melta Bombed, Zzap Gunned, Power Klawed, etc... Expect half the guns on the table to try and knock out your Land Raider.

It is this reaction that I really hope to get from my opponent. Putting the Land Raider where he can see it he will put his heavy weapons in a position to destroy it. He then ignores my assault marines and other close combat troops mounted in rhinos racing toward his lines. Also, opponents always think that there are troops inside the Land Raider, that it has the BEST troops and that it will go forward to assault his lines ( They always think that the HQ is inside). Thus I am able to deceive my opponent as to my true battle plans.

Flexibility

The Land Raider is a very flexible tank, able to switch roles from 'Tank' to 'Assault' in an instance depending on what mission you get. I used this during the tournament once where the mission was to get across to your opponents side with the most 5 man squads. Therefore I loaded up one of my tactical squads into the Land Raider and rumbled forward straight into his troops.

The Land Raider is also a back-up transport vehicle. In cases where your rhino is knocked out early, transfer the squad to the Land Raider and keep rolling forward. It is for this reason why I prefer to use a heavy slot for the raider rather than as a transport for the command squad.

Duex Ex Machina

Remember that the Land Raider's Computer enables you to shoot at an extra weapon at a different target every turn. This enables you to move 12' and still shoot with your las cannon. Although this shooting is at BS 2, your guns are still twin linked so its not really bad.

Also, even if your tank gets stunned, you can still move 6' forward and shoot your gun using the computer. This makes the Land Raider nearly unstoppable.

Using the Land Raider is never simple. It must coincide with your overall strategy and you must still have some luck. Good Luck to you!