Walking Tank: Difference between revisions

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[[File:~~battlewalker_l5riesig_01_9973~~.png|link=Battlefield 2142|frame|Be shot or be stomped.]]

[[File:battlewalker l5riesig 01 9973.png|link=Battlefield 2142|frame|Be shot or be stomped.]]

A common feature of military stories set in [[Steampunk]] settings, and also [[Twenty Minutes Into the Future]] and beyond, a [[Walking Tank]] is [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin|just that]]; a tank with legs instead of treads. If it has arms (they don't always), they're usually decidedly non-humanoid in appearance (elbow-joints optional), and more likely to end in [[Arm Cannon~~|Arm Cannons~~]] instead of hands.

A common feature of military stories set in [[Steampunk]] settings, and also [[Twenty Minutes Into the Future]] and beyond, a '''Walking Tank''' is [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin|just that]]; a tank with legs instead of treads. If it has arms (they don't always), they're usually decidedly non-humanoid in appearance (elbow-joints optional), and more likely to end in [[Arm Cannon]]s instead of hands.

While ''slightly'' more reasonable than the humanoid [[Humongous Mecha]] more common to Japanese media, these still mostly fall into the [[Awesome but Impractical]] category, and thus this trope owes its existence primarily to the [[Rule of Cool]]. Pretty much the only reasonable justification is the ability of legs to more easily handle rough terrain, but that's generally pretty flimsy.

Given that they're used almost exclusively by military forces, it should be no surprise that Walking Tanks are always treated as [[Real Robot~~|Real Robots~~]]. The physics are also generally handled pretty realistically. Don't expect these guys to be [[High-Speed Missile Dodge|dodging missiles at high speed]] at any point; they're never nimble. Taking advantage of this fact is usually the best way to take them out; wrap some high-tension cable tight around the legs and then stand back to [[Death by Falling Over|watch the show]]. If you're lucky, [[Every Car Is a Pinto|Every One Of These Is A Pinto]]. If you're not, the design includes all-round machinegun coverage.

Given that they're used almost exclusively by military forces, it should be no surprise that Walking Tanks are always treated as [[Real Robot]]s. The physics are also generally handled pretty realistically. Don't expect these guys to be [[High-Speed Missile Dodge|dodging missiles at high speed]] at any point; they're never nimble. Taking advantage of this fact is usually the best way to take them out; wrap some high-tension cable tight around the legs and then stand back to [[Death by Falling Over|watch the show]]. If you're lucky, [[Every Car Is a Pinto|Every One Of These Is A Pinto]]. If you're not, the design includes all-round machinegun coverage.

This is a [[Super-Trope]] of [[Chicken Walker]] and [[Spider Tank]], and [[Sister Trope]] of [[Humongous Mecha]].

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** The Expanded Universe also has the AT-XT, a [[Super Prototype]] for the AT-ST. It's got better armament, slightly stockier legs, and ''[[Deflector Shields]]''. Which would tend to defeat the tripwire trick (not to mention [[Rock Beats Laser|rocks and logs]]).

* The ED-209 from ''[[RoboCop]]''.

* In ''[[Battle: Los Angeles]]'', the aliens have a ~~7ft~~-tall walking gun that fires missiles. [[Macross Missile Massacre|A lot of them.]] It is worth noting that the alien walker seems to be ''manufacturing them before firing''.

* In ''[[Battle: Los Angeles]]'', the aliens have a 7 ft-tall walking gun that fires missiles. [[Macross Missile Massacre|A lot of them.]] It is worth noting that the alien walker seems to be ''manufacturing them before firing''.

== [[Literature]] ==

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* The Step-Walkers of Orson Scott Card's ''[[Orson Scott Card's Empire|Empire]]'' appear to be this, but they're more of a role in anti-personnel - they're only armed with heavy machine guns and a few were disabled by a fleet of police cars ramming the legs.

* The [[A Mech by Any Other Name|serv-machines]] in Andrey Livadny's ''[[The History of the Galaxy]]'' are between this and [[Humongous Mecha]], depending on the novel. In the 'verse, serv-machines are considered to be the epitome of planetary warfare, refined over the centuries since they were introduced during the First Galactic War. The original walkers were designed as terraforming tools by the colonists who have settled Dabog, a hostile world with treacherous swamps and large, dinosaur-like lizards, which eat standard planetary vehicles (e.g. tanks, troop transports) for breakfast (sometimes literally). The colonists studied the lizards' locomotor system and designed new types of vehicles using this method. The walkers proved extremely effective at clearing away hostile flore and fauna and, during the invasion of the [[The Empire|Earth Alliance]], showed them to be superior combat vehicles to traditional tanks and troop transports. Since then, the latter were relegated to support roles, leaving most of the fighting to serv-machines.

** Unlike your typical [[Walking Tank]], serv-machines (later models, especially) are partially automated using an onboard AI module. Most are equipped with short-range jump jets, allowing them to either quickly change location or pop out from a cover.

** Unlike your typical Walking Tank, serv-machines (later models, especially) are partially automated using an onboard AI module. Most are equipped with short-range jump jets, allowing them to either quickly change location or pop out from a cover.

** Some are also equipped with a system of indirect fire, allowing it to precisely calculate the trajectory of a Gauss round [[Pinball Projectile|bouncing off objects with known properties to hit the target]]. In one book, this is used to perform an assassination with a 30-mm round. A seemingly wild shot bounces off several ruined structures, as well as the remains of a skyscraper, and hits a man living in an enclosed compound on top of a large hill. Only a machine can pull this off.

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** The Eldar have a walker unit similar to the Guard's.

** The Space Marines' Dreadnoughts are essentially this. They're big metal boxes with mortally wounded marines inside controlling them and guns and legs bolted to the outside.

* About 50-60% of Battlemechs in the ''[[BattleTech]]'' series are this type. The rest are either traditional "Armored Soldier" types, [[Spider Tank~~|Spider Tanks~~]], or something in between. This number goes up to 80-90% for the Clans. While some may look humanoid, they all behave like walking tanks - fairly large and slow. You could ''attempt'' to dodge in any mech, but doing so is largely pointless because of how fast projectiles are (it's largely used to screw up an enemy's aim), and you'll probably just faceplant your 'Mech into the ground because it's still a 20+ ton tank that happens to have legs.

* About 50-60% of Battlemechs in the ''[[BattleTech]]'' series are this type. The rest are either traditional "Armored Soldier" types, [[Spider Tank]]s, or something in between. This number goes up to 80-90% for the Clans. While some may look humanoid, they all behave like walking tanks - fairly large and slow. You could ''attempt'' to dodge in any mech, but doing so is largely pointless because of how fast projectiles are (it's largely used to screw up an enemy's aim), and you'll probably just faceplant your 'Mech into the ground because it's still a 20+ ton tank that happens to have legs.

** The [http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Goliath Goliath] 'Mech deserves a particular mention, being a walking tank in [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin|the most visually literal sense imaginable.]]

* Most of the Panzerkamfers in ''[[Gear Krieg]]'' fall into this category.

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** And the [[Starcraft II|sequel]] brings us the gigantic Thor, and the transforming Viking.

* ''[[G-Police|G-Police 2]]'' had the Raptor, a bipedal, walking, gliding tank. It was awesome.

* Some enemies in the ''[[Star Fox (series)|Star FOX]]'' games take the form of ~~[[Walking Tank|~~Walking Tanks]].

* Some enemies in the ''[[Star Fox (series)|Star FOX]]'' games take the form of Walking Tanks.

** The Arwings themselves would qualify in the unreleased [[Star Fox (series)|Star FOX]] 2, with a quick press of the Select button.

* The Shredders from ''[[World of Warcraft]]''.

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* The Malta Group's Titan walkers from ''[[City of Heroes]]''.

* Warmech and several lesser enemies from ''[[Final Fantasy I]]''.

* Most AFWs in ''[[Ring of Red]]''. Those that aren't (the 4-legged AFWs) are [[Spider Tank~~|Spider Tanks~~]].

* Most AFWs in ''[[Ring of Red]]''. Those that aren't (the 4-legged AFWs) are [[Spider Tank]]s.

** Just to emphasize how much they fit this trope, most of the AFWs are blatantly based off of actual World War II tank designs.

* ''[[Fallout]]: Tactics'' got four-legged [http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Pacification_Robot Pacification Robot] and bigger six-legged [http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Behemoth_(robot) Behemoth].

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* The Slug Gunner from ''[[Metal Slug]] 5'' is a walking tank with great firepower but a painfully slow turning animation.

** In ''Metal Slug 3'', there are walking tanks... which are actually [http://images.wikia.com/metalslug/images/9/94/Japanese_tank_firing.gif three Japanese soldiers carrying a hollowed-out tank]. Too poor to afford a regular tank?

* While many designs from ''[[BattleTech]]'' are already examples of walking tanks, the various ''[[Mechwarrior]]'' games have been much more true to the spirit of the ~~trope--some~~ humanoid 'Mechs that are normally possessed of features like hands or vague face shapes have had much of that anthropomorphism stripped from them and replaced with guns. [[More Dakka|Lots and lots of guns.]] This is also true of the fan-made Mektek [[Expansion Pack]] for ''Mechwarrior 4'', though in that case it is purposefully invoked; the lead modeler for the project stated that he disliked 'Mechs possessing overly humanoid features like hands and faces, and went on to remove said visual features from many of the new models added to the game.

* While many designs from ''[[BattleTech]]'' are already examples of walking tanks, the various ''[[Mechwarrior]]'' games have been much more true to the spirit of the trope—some humanoid 'Mechs that are normally possessed of features like hands or vague face shapes have had much of that anthropomorphism stripped from them and replaced with guns. [[More Dakka|Lots and lots of guns.]] This is also true of the fan-made Mektek [[Expansion Pack]] for ''Mechwarrior 4'', though in that case it is purposefully invoked; the lead modeler for the project stated that he disliked 'Mechs possessing overly humanoid features like hands and faces, and went on to remove said visual features from many of the new models added to the game.

* The mecha in ''[[Trenched]]'' are World War I-era trenches with mecha legs.

* ''[[Ground Control]] II: Operation Exodus'' has the [[The Empire|Terran Empire]] use walkers alongside their [[Hover Tank|hoverdynes]]. The missile-armed variant is very effective against air units, even your [[Drop Ship]].