A Salamander Scout awaiting orders to proceed forwards
The Salamander is a small, armoured reconnaissance vehicle used by the Imperial Guard and based on the Chimera chassis. It is designed primarily for reconnaissance duties and is lightly armed and armoured but moves very rapidly. The Salamander is also used as a lightweight and fast moving command vehicle, as its open-topped design allows the Imperial Commander to better coordinate his units.
Tactical Role
A Salamander Scout, the front is fitted with spikes for anti-infantry purposes
The Salamander is used for many roles, from a scouting vehicle, towing vehicle, and even as a command unit. When the Salamander is used as a scout vehicle it usually forms the backbone of an Imperial Guard Armoured Regiment's reconnaissance company. Equipped with Salamanders and Sentinels and sometimes even motorcycles and riding beasts such horses. A reconnaissance squadron is often at the forefront of an offensive, fulfilling the vital role of scouting the enemy's routes of advance and locating their positions for an attack.
Salamander Scout
Operating in front of the main Imperial Guard force, these scout units need to be able to provide their own fire support. The Salamander Scout, equipped with an Autocannon and Heavy Bolter, provide this heavy weapon support. Sentinels are extremely mobile and able to operate in nearly any type of terrain, but they are lightweight and unlikely to survive a protracted engagement with the enemy. This is where the more heavily armed Salamander shines. While it is certainly no match for a true main battle tank, it is extremely fast and therefore capable of getting out of harm's way quickly. An armoured vehicle capable of taking on other light vehicles is a highly useful asset, since first contact between enemy forces is often a clash between their light scout units.
For mutual protection, Salamander Scouts often operate in tandem, teaming up to provide extra support. One vehicle will provide cover for the other as it moves forward, with each taking turns leading the way. Salamanders are often the vehicles at the very front of an Imperial Guard advance and so are often ambushed or encounter an unexpectedly strong enemy position or unit. When an Imperial Guard Regiment is on the defensive the Salamanders are often relegated to a rear area for security duties. Like Sentinels, it is not unusual to find Salamanders guarding supply dumps, headquarters units or patrolling supply routes.
During a major offensive, Imperial Guard reconnaissance units often do not have enough vehicles to fulfill all of the necessary missions. In this case, the shortfall is made up by Armour Fist squads operating in Chimeras. A squad will be detached from its parent platoon and company and temporarily attached to the reconnaissance company. Because of this, Armoured Fist patrols and Salamander Scouts often operate together.
The Salamander Scout is operated by a 4-man crew that is comprised of a gunner and driver inside the vehicle and a commander and vox-operator on the rear fighting platform. Due to its reconnaissance role, each Salamander is fitted with unusually potent communications equipment to allow it to report back to the command units in its rear. Direct links to regimental command units, such as Leviathans and Armoured Company command tanks, are not unusual.
Salamander Command
A salamander Command vehicle using its dozer blade to clear rubble from the street
When used as a command vehicle the Salamander acts as the personal transport of the Imperial Commander during the battle, and is usually outfitted with enhanced communications equipment. The Salamander Command is not meant for front-line combat, and is usually used as just a officer transport vehicle that allows the Company or Regimental Commander to keep in touch with his units. The Vanaheim pattern of the Command Salamander is fitted with a multi-spectral surveyor as part of its overhead hatch, this advanced piece of equipment provides the vehicle with magnification, night vision, and tracking eqipment. The Salamander Command is armed with a Heavy Flamer in place of the Autocannon usually mounted on a Salamander.
Armament
A Command Salamander towing an Earthshaker Cannon to its new location
The basic scout variant of the Salamander is armed wit ha top hull-mounted Autocannon to be used as a heavy support weapon for infantry squads and a hull-mounted Heavy Bolter for defense purposes. The Command variant of the Salamander is used as a light behind-the-lines transport for officers and commanders and thus is only armed with a top hull-mounted Heavy Flamer and hull-mounted Heavy Bolter for defense purposes. The Heavy Flamer can be replaced with another Heavy Bolter, giving the vehicle better medium-range power. Both variants can be outfitted with the following enhancements; camouflage netting, extra armour plating, a Hunter-Killer Missile Launcher, improved communications equipment, a mine sweeper, a dozer blade, rough terrain modifications, a Pintle-mounted Heavy Stubber or Storm Bolter, track guards, a searchlight, and smoke launchers.
Variant Patterns
- Vanaheim Pattern - The standard pattern Salamander Scout, Command Salamader is equipped with a multi-spectral surveyor.
- Gryphonne IV Pattern - The Gryphonne IV Pattern Salamander Scout makes use of a Gryphonne IV pattern Autocannon
Regiments Known To Use Salamander Vehicles
- 28th Valhallan Armoured Regiment - Betalis IV Campaign
- 98th Cadian Armoured Regiment - Used during the Luxor Uprising
- 146th Catachan Jungle Fighters Regiment "The Red Cobras"
- 90th Tekarn Armoured Regiment - Denkari-Prime Deathworld Campaign
- 122nd Cadian Shock Troops Regiment - Siege of Vogen City during the Khai-Zhan Uprising
- 101st Tallarn Armoured Regiment - First Assault on the Palace of Tears
- 2nd Death Korps of Krieg Armoured Regiment - Battle for Tartarus Hive - Third War for Armageddon
- 8th Palladius Armoured Regiment - Atria Wilderness Campaign
- 114th Cadian Shock Troops Regiment - Deployed during the Taros Campaign
- 1st Death Korps of Krieg Heavy Tank Company
- 409th Tallarn Heavy Tank Regiment - Used during the Taros Campaign
- 12th Tallarn Armoured Regiment - Used during the Taros Campaign
- 21st Death Korps of Krieg Panzer Division "Death's Head" - Used during the Quatara Prime Campaign
- 3rd Mordian Heavy Tank Company
Adeptus Mechanicus Technical Specifications
| Vehicle Name: | Salamander | Main Armament: | Autocannon |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forge World of Origin: | Mars, Vanaheim, Gryphonne IV, Stygies VIII, Voss, Triplex Phall, Graia, Tolkan, Accatran, Lucius, Metalica and many others | Secondary Armament: | |
| Known Patterns: | I - XXIX | Traverse: | 22 degrees |
| Crew: | 1 Commander, 1 Driver, 1 Gunner, 1 Communications Operator, | Elevation: | -3 to 24 degrees |
| Powerplant: | Vulcanor 16 Twin-Coupled Multi-Fuel | Main Ammunition: | 500 Rounds |
| Weight: | 33 Tonnes | Secondary Ammunition: | 600 Rounds Rounds |
| Length: | 6.90 metres | Armour: | |
| Width: | 5.70 metres | ||
| Height: | 3.18 metres | Superstructure: | 150 millimetres |
| Ground Clearance: | 0.45 metres | Hull: | 130 millimetres |
| Max Speed On-Road: | 100 kilometres per hour | Gun Mantlet: | N/A |
| Max Speed Off-Road: | 68 kilometres per hour | Vehicle Designation: | 0427-941-0340-SA38 |
| Transport Capacity: | N/A | Firing Ports: | N/A |
| Access Points: | N/A | Turret: |
N/A |
| Vehicle Name: | Salamander | Main Armament: | Heavy Flamer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forge World of Origin: | Mars, Vanaheim, Gryphonne IV, Stygies VIII, Voss, Triplex Phall, Graia, Tolkan, Accatran, Lucius, Metalica and many others | Secondary Armament: | |
| Known Patterns: | II - XXII | Traverse: | 22 degrees |
| Crew: | 1 Commander, 1 Driver, 1 Gunner, 1 Communications Operator, | Elevation: | -3 to 24 degrees |
| Powerplant: | Vulcanor 16 Twin-Coupled Multi-Fuel | Main Ammunition: | 10 Shots |
| Weight: | 33 Tonnes | Secondary Ammunition: | 600 Rounds Rounds |
| Length: | 6.90 metres | Armour: | |
| Width: | 5.70 metres | ||
| Height: | 3.18 metres | Superstructure: | 150 millimetres |
| Ground Clearance: | 0.45 metres | Hull: | 130 millimetres |
| Max Speed On-Road: | 100 kilometres per hour | Gun Mantlet: | N/A |
| Max Speed Off-Road: | 68 kilometres per hour | Vehicle Designation: | 0427-941-0350-SA42 |
| Transport Capacity: | N/A | Firing Ports: | N/A |
| Access Points: | N/A | Turret: |
N/A |
Sources
- Imperial Armour Volume One - Imperial Guard and Imperial Navy, p. 129-142
- Imperial Armour Volume Three - The Taros Campaign
- Imperial Armour, pp. 24-27
Also See
Gallery
