In my current campaign, the players will be getting into 3 large-scale tank battles in the next sessions.

They are fighting endless hordes of Orks and their vehicles, including some fighta-bombas.

I will be treating infantry like hordes, but there are specific events that should take place. The ones I've put together until now:

- Stormboyz hop on the players tank and start tearing the hatches in an atempt to throw in a grenade.

- Flamer teams close in on a nearby tank and are trying to fire on the air-breathing vents of it.

- Ork bikes shows up on their flanks, carrying shaped-charges.

- Landmine.

- Allied tank with a crippled lagarta needs to be towed away.

- Sandstorm.

- Hydra AA tanks require rescue/protection.

- A guardsmen platoon with a high ranking officer is cut-off, the players are ordered to break through the mob and open a corridor for them. At all costs.

- Priority targets present themselves (warboss, squigoth, squig catapult, artillery).

- Gargant (anyone have stats for that?).

More ideas please! >

Terrain, terrain, terrain. Make them fight the environment too!

Sinkholes or geysers or melting ice

cliffs or trees that let enemies get above them,

mud and dirt and sand and dust get in everything

geological features that interfere with weapons or sensors: reflecting lasers or scrambling auspicies.

alien flora and fauna: imagine being charged by a bull the size of a tank, or swarms of venomous insects drawn to promethium

Terrain indeed!

One option is to give the players a nemesis; an enemy tank which is very succesful and has killed some of their friends....

In a gearkrieg campaign, I had my players go up against two nemesis walkers (the Ghost and the Darkness ). When they finally managed to get them after several mishaps and lost comrades, they were euphoric!

Another option is to provide certain terrain features which provide bonuses for cover, concealment and targeting. This way, the friendly and enemy tanks are actively trying to gain a beneficial position on the battlefield instead of a more static fire-dodge-fire sequence.

Problems with the vehicle is also a good way to liven up vehicle warfare. Perhaps the tanks throws a thread and the crew has to get out to fix it before the enemy notices it. Or fix it under enemy fire....

Perhaps the vehicle is stuck and under attack by infantry....have the driver modifier decline by 10 points per round from -60, thus making it easier to get unstuck as the rounds go by....while at the same time, make the enemy infantry get closer and more dangerous per round....

Another thing is to have valuable things on the vehicle fall off or get destroyed by enemy fire....such as pets, important parts or even gifts for loved ones.....and then have the players go back to find it.....

And since its orks, perhaps a personal challenge from an aspiring nob? Fight him (and his vehicle) or he'll execute some peasants, cherished regimental mascot, regimental commisar or whatever will inspire the players to take up the challenge...

Due to unfortunate drop the tank landed on top of a skyscraper...

Protecting a disabled command vehicle from attacking enemy armour?

The tank's radio/internal radio is disabled by a lucky shot, meaning one of the crewmen has to go outside and repair it in the heat of battle to restore their internal communications and ability to coordinate with other vehicles?

A tread is thrown and the tank is immobilized until it can be repaired?

The squad is cut off from friendly forces and has to break through enemy forces to link up with them again?

Also keep track of their ammunition, how many shells they're flinging from the main gun, and have them need to rearm occasionally, withdrawing from the engagement in order to link up with logistics vehicles.

We can probably create a table for a 1d100 roll with modifiers depending on how the battle is going (losing badly, violent impasse, near-victory).

Keep the ideas coming!

Last game's massive battle:

1. They got hit x2 by an artillery barrage.
2. Comissar Player (tank commander) almost lost his head to a stormboy that landed atop the player's tank turret.
3. Opened a corridor to rescue a flanked infantry regiment that was being massacred.
4. One of the player's squadron tanks got their motive-systems damaged, was overwhelmed by the ork horde and shaped-charged - the entire crew cooked, including rescued infantry that was sitting on top of the vehicle.

Daumn, I am enjoying this armoured regiment campaign. : )

More ideas:

The main gun takes a hit, and it's now useless. The tank has to withdraw for repairs, with only their secondary weapons to protect them during this.

The tank has bogged down and is immobile until it can be towed. Opportunistic enemy infantry are closing in on all sides, and the crew have to desperately keep them from slapping mines on the hull.

Reports are coming in of a repair/resupply depot under enemy assault. The squad needs to relieve pressure on them. If they pull this off, the squad might get extra supplies (or a modifier to a Logistics roll) after the battle from the grateful logistics people in charge of the depot.

Imperial lines are breaking and the player squadron needs to go into the breach at the forefront off an infantry push, and push the enemy back lest they roll up the entire defense line.

Poor weather conditions (fog, sandstorms, heavy rain) reduces visibility to nearly zero and possibly even cuts off comms, making keeping up cohesion between tanks all but impossible.

Enemy AA brings down a command Valkyrie carrying a high-ranked officer/valuable data/something else that it's vital it be recovered. The squad needs to secure the wreckage before the enemy bear down on it.