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Devilfish Troop Carrier Swift Maelstrom
If
you want Pathfinders, you have to have a Devilfish to carry them.
It's a rule. The Pathfinder Union on T'au is remarkably powerful,
especially since they were permitted rail rifles; assassinations are
up and Union opposition is down. So, no Devilfish, no Pathfinders.
They go on strike, you know. Even if they don't want or need them.
Fortunately,
Fire Team Commander Stormwind does have a use for a Devilfish; he
hides behind it with his team and lays down a withering barrage under
the hovering vehicle, using it for a shield. This 'Fish of Fury'
technique is old but still valuable; you can shoot but the enemy
cannot get to you easily.
Especially
since approaching the Devilfish can cause the activation of
flesh-shredding Flechette pods if an enemy assaults the thing.
And,
of course, it is a good battlefield taxi, which can be used to run
away... move to a more strategic position... in at a moment's notice.
But
perhaps the best thing about the Swift Malestrom is the sweet, sweet
Seeker Missile mounted underneath. If the Pathfinders can stop
playing railgunner long enough to bother to get a Markerlight lock,
no one can say no to the Maelstrom's gayly red-tipped message of love.
Commander
Stormwind already considers the Maelstrom to be 'his' personal vehicle.
About
the Miniature:
I
used an airbrush to coat the model with the custom color I created
for the entire army. Just this shade of Heliotrope -not pink, not
purple, Heliotrope- is impossible unless you mix it yourself. I keep
the excess in a small squeeze bottle - I doubt I can ever match it
perfectly again.
I
had originally intended that all the hatches should work, but I was
unable to deal with drilling hinge holes, so I have marginally glued
the side and top hatch shut - they could be reopened if I ever get
ambitious enough. The interior is painted, and I tried to weather the
inner grating of the working back hatch (above). The engines have oil
and dirt streaks, I see the Vas'Quez mission as getting old equipment
freshly repainted... all looks and no substance.
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About
the Army Card:
The
options I took for my Devilfish are a bit of overkill, but I don't
expect to have another one in my army, so I wanted to kit my only one
out. Flechette Pods seem a grand defence, but so far have never been
used; I am generally attacked from afar, or, as was the case in a
recent game, destroyed instantly (by a single blow from an Eldar Witchblade!)
The
number of attacks a Devilfish can produce may seem impressive, with
three Burst Cannon rounds and two Gun Drone shots, but it is overall
five very weak attacks, and the Drones, as always, almost never hit.
The
Seeker missile can only be activated by a Markerlight externally, so
that really doesn't help the Devilfish itself.
Oddly,
I've seldom actually used it for transport. It is basically a
hovering mobile attack wall to me. |
