Wednesday 9 August 2017

Warlord Games Manta Prowl Tank

Up until now I haven't looked at the vehicles of Mega City One that I'll be using in my Judge Dredd Miniatures Game campaign. That changes now as I showcase one of the most awe-inspiring vehicles used by the Justice Department. The Manta Prowl Tank is a vehicle used by the Judges to deal with serious disturbances such as riots. It can also be used in wartime. It has antigravity and a powerful armament. It is not the Justice Department's biggest tank, however, which is the more powerful Heavy Tank, which runs on caterpillar tracks and is reserved for military use, as opposed to normal law enforcement.
This resin cast model was produced by Warlord Games and I was fortunate enough to buy mine just a month before the Judge Dredd range was temporarily suspended. It measures 29cm in length, 24cm in width and is 6cm tall. I don't know what it weighs but it is solid resin and quite heavy. It came in numerous parts which I glued together with two part epoxy resin for a strong bond. It comes with a small flight stand, which I have fitted for these photos but it has not been glued to the tank. It raises the model about 2 cm off the ground. I have placed my 28mm scale Wargames Foundry figure of Judge Scott alongside it in my photos to give you some idea of just how large this model is.
In JDMG, the Manta Prowl tank is classed as a Massive Hover Vehicle, so it is not affected by difficult or impassable terrain. If a Justice Department force wished to use one in a game, it would cost them a whopping 900 Credits, making it the most expensive vehicle in the game.
It has a crew complement of 2 drivers, 4 sensor operators, 5 gunners and can carry 30 passengers, including 4 Lawmaster bikes. Its JDMG stats are Move 12". Agility -2, Ramming Dice 10D, Front Armour +10, Side Armour +8, Rear Armour +7 and it has 30 Hits.
Its weapons are a High Intensity Laser Cannon (scarily powerful!) and two Anti-Personnel Laser Cannons in its turret as well as Stumm Gas Dispensers and Riot Foam Jets. Note, when activated, the Stumm Gas Dispensers and Riot Foam Jets will attack every model (friend or foe) within 6". However, they may not be used if the Manta Prowl Tank moves in the same turn.
The following rule applies to the drivers. If only a single model uses a Move action to drive the Manta Prowl Tank, its Agility becomes -4. Both drivers must use a Move action on the tank to avoid this; with the Manta Prowl Tank being moved on the second driver's action.
The following rules applies to the sensor operators. If the Manta Prowl Tank does not have any sensor operator crew positions filled, it may not use any weapons. If one or two sensor operators are present, it suffers a -2 or -1 penalty to all shooting attacks respectively. If four sensor operators are present, it gains a +1 bonus to all shooting attacks. Sensor operators must spend two Special Actions in each phase, or they will not count as being present at their stations.
There is no question at all that the Manta Prowl Tank resin kit is a very impressive model. Despite its very high price tag (I paid £125.00 for it) I have no regrets in buying it. It may not see much use in my campaign but when it does you'll just know that the Judges mean business! However, I do have one major criticism of the model and it is this - this is NOT a 28mm scale model. It is vastly under scale. There is no way you could fit 11 crew members, 30 passengers and 4 Lawmaster bikes inside it unless they were 15mm scale. Now I can understand the problem of scale here. To make this in true 28mm scale would mean doubling it in size, making it roughly two feet square, which is just unfeasible for tabletop skirmish gaming. So I accept the scale reduction on the grounds of playability. It is still a mightily impressive model and is one that I am incredibly proud to own.

21 comments:

  1. Wow! What a beast!

    Brilliant buy Bryan, true about the scale but it is still a monster and as you say can't possibly be any bigger. It is stunning

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It is a beast, Andy. Yes, it is under scale but I have come to accept that.

      Delete
  2. If that does not stop a block war then you do have some SEROUS problems.

    Yeah expensise but how many are you going to need at a time? A shame it is Undersized but as you point out understandable.

    Excellent stuff.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Clint. Yes, one of these could easily stop a block war. That is the whole point of the Judges having them.

      I agree, I couldn't imagine anyone wanting more than one of these unless they were playing an epic sized battle on a huge table.

      Delete
  3. Nice painting on a large chunk of resin, I remember we discussed the size issue on my visit and the way they manufacture it would have to change as they would need to make it hollow with bracing. As it would be 2 foot square roughly, you could almost play a game in the interior

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I well remember our discussion, Dave, and how you pointed out a similar problem with the Games Workshop Rhino APC. No way can 10 Space Marines fit in the back of one of them! As for playing a game in a Manta Prowl Tank, that's a great suggestion and it could be done with a true 28mm scale floor map. Now there's an idea!

      Delete
    2. Glad I could contribute an idea mate

      Delete
    3. Terrific idea guys, I might have to play around with that a bit...

      Delete
    4. My blog would be a much poorer place without the wonderful input from you both. Thanks so much! :-)

      Delete
  4. Wow that is a monster!! really impressive piece of work on the painting too. looking at the shape of it you could probably make a 3D "map" of the interior with card (like a posh cardboard box really), would make for a great scenario, taking back a stolen Manta "Can you see me Toecutter!!!".

    Cheers Roger.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Many thanks, Roger. I guess if you could get a 2D map of its interior, it wouldn't be too hard to add walls and doors and make the floor plan 3D. I must admit, I am loving the idea of someone trying to steal one of these tanks.

      Delete
  5. I don't know what impresses me more, Bryan, the sheer size of the brute, your truly tip-top paintjob (one of your very very best, imho), or the fact that yours is complete!! Albeit I note you got this one from "Warlord Games" rather than "Mongoose Games" - whose quality control for these beasts soon became sadly infamous.

    As others have said, that is a serious chunk of dough you've paid out, but knowing of your great love for "Judge Dredd", and the enthusiasm this post clearly shows you have for the vehicle, then its been money very well spent, imho.

    Giving Dave and Andy ideas about future projects etc isn't something I condone however, as those two are seriously distracting me from my own projects with their scenic castings and postings. A serious of space-vehicle accessories certainly wouldn't go amiss for my "Metamorphosis Alpha" campaign though, Dave, and might kill a few birds with one Stone ;-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Much obliged, Simon. This is indeed a Warlord Games casting and I can assure you there were no casting problems whatsoever. I had read of the problems with the Mongoose Games version, which is why I waited so long to buy mine.

      As a massive Judge Dredd fanboy, I had no qualms in paying what I did for it. Plus, because I placed such a large order with Warlord Games at the time, they kindly sent me some Judge Dredd related freebies as a thank you.

      Andy and Dave (especially) are great at coming up with ideas I wouldn't have thought of. They are certainly worth chatting with and I've no doubt that Dave could help with your own "Metamorphosis Alpha" project.

      Delete
    2. funny you should mention interior pieces as I have had a few ideas kicking around for a while, but if you have specifics send me a EMAIL MATE WITH YOUR IDEAS i'LL ADD THEM TO THE POOL. aS A HINT ONE IS A HOLOGRAPHIC TABLE WITH A HEAD BEING DISPLAYED ABOVE IN TRANSLUCENT RESIN

      Delete
    3. I greatly appreciate the offer, Dave. There is a load of sci-fi interior details I'd love to see. Now much of what I'm after will hopefully be arriving later this month when the Battle Systems Sci-Fi terrain sets are released. But that does not preclude me wanting similar items from you. Chairs, tables, cupboards, control panels, computer screens and of course, toilets (does anyone make sci-fi toilets?) will always be welcomed by me. I will e-mail you with a long list after I receive my Kickstarter package from Battle Systems.

      Delete
  6. Wow what a beast and under scale to! Fabulous looking model and lovingly painted by yourself Bryan it looks the dogs danglies!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Despite the flaws you outline so clearly, it is very impressive indeed.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Fantastic model Bryan, it'll look jaw-dropping on any Mega City gaming set up!
    Delete "paid" and insert "invested" :-)

    ReplyDelete