Sentinel

a Armored Sentinel with Plasma Cannon

The **Sentinel** is a one-man, all-terrain, lightweight, bipedal combat walker that is used by the various regiments of the Astra Militarum. The Sentinel is most favoured when Imperial Guard patrols must move across rough terrain that would completely immobilise heavier vehicles. Sentinels achieve a perfect balance of robustness and mobility, able to negotiate terrain that would immobilise heavier battle tanks and armoured vehicles whilst still able to face down fire that would shred ranks of infantry.

## Overview

The Sentinel uses a robust and highly sophisticated gyro-stabiliser system that keeps the walker steady while traversing any terrain, including steep slopes and deep craters. The articulated legs of the Sentinel allow the walker to stalk quietly through urban ruins or dense undergrowth while still allowing it to achieve an impressive speed over open ground. Scout Sentinels have noise-reduction modifications applied to their power-plants to reduce the possibility of their movements being heard by the enemy.

The crews of Sentinel squads will adapt their vehicles for all sorts of difficult operating environments, making use of everything from large chainsaws for cutting through dense jungles and forests to servo-claw spikes that can grip glacial planes. Sentinels are often fielded in squadrons as scouts or infantry fire support vehicles. They can carry a variety of heavy weapons and bring intense firepower and maneuverability together in one highly mobile unit. Scout Sentinels are lightly armoured, however, and are susceptible to heavy barrages of small arms fire.

Some Sentinels, appropriately called Armoured Sentinels, may possess better cockpit armour-plating than the norm and are fitted with stabilisers to let them carry heavier weaponry. This transforms the Sentinel's role in an Imperial Guard regiment from one of armed reconnaissance and light infantry fire support to one of full-on anti-armour or even artillery support.

While Scout Sentinels range ahead of the main force, conducting hit-and-run raids and ambushes, Armoured Sentinels march alongside columns of Imperial battle tanks or at the fore of Astra Militarum infantry formations, laying waste to the foe without breaking stride. Both Scout Sentinels and Armoured Sentinels are often deployed far from Imperial supply lines, deep within enemy territory. When operating as autonomous units, the pilots of Sentinel squadrons are often forced to use their own initiative -- a quality that is not generally fostered in Imperial soldiers. As a result, many Sentinel pilots have acquired a reputation as would-be hotshots, glory seekers or insubordinate mavericks.

## Armament

The Imperial Sentinel can be armed with a wide variety of weapons. The original Sentinel design called for a completely open canopy and an Assault Cannon as the walker's standard armament, but eventually this design fell out of use in place of more common weaponry and an armoured or partially armoured canopy.

In the 41st Millennium the Astra Militarum usually equips its Sentinels with whichever weapons are most tactically useful for a given mission or campaign, but some regiments use their own standard pattern of Sentinel.

The most common armament of the Sentinel originates on the Forge World of Mars and carries a Multi-Laser, with a partially armoured canopy. This Mars Pattern Scout Sentinel is used by regiments across the Imperium. Sentinels can also be equipped with Autocannons, Lascannons, Missile Launchers, Multi-Meltas, Heavy Flamers, Plasma Cannons, and Heavy Bolters.

The heavy fire support variant of the Sentinel, the Support Sentinel, can be equipped with a Multi-Rocket Pod or Missile Launcher Pod to maximise the missile ordanance load. Any Sentinel outfitted with missile weapons will make use of both Frag and Krak Missiles for effectiveness in both anti-personnel and anti-armour roles.

All Sentinels can be outfitted with Camouflage Netting, Searchlights, and Smoke Launchers. Armoured Sentinels equipped with fully armoured canopies have additional gyro-stabilizers which allow them to carry and fire heavier weapons, as well as Auspex arrays that are used to equip a powerful Hunter-Killer Missile Launcher that allows the Sentinel to serve in an anti-armour role.