Land Raider - Early Land Raiders: The standard Phobos Pattern Land Raider was not the first Land Raider developed for use by the Imperium of Man. Several variants preceded the development of the Phobos Pattern and were widely in use during the Imperium's early days in the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy eras of the late 30th and 31st Millennia.Land Raider Proteus - The Land Raider Proteus is the very first pattern of Land Raider that was developed by the Imperium. The Land Raider Proteus was originally designed and deployed as the main battle tank used by the military forces of Mankind at some point during the Dark Age of Technology. Its Standard Template Construct (STC) data was recovered by Imperial technoarcheologist Arkhan Land, during an expedition into the fabled Librarius Omnis on Mars. The Land Raider Proteus was heavily used during the Great Crusade, and while the tank performed exceptionally well in nearly every regard, some Astartes commanders argued that the Proteus' transport capacity and lack of a forward assault ramp were problems that needed to be corrected with a redesign of the vehicle. The Mechanicum exceeded expectations when they developed the Spartan Assault Tank to fix these problems. After the end of the Horus Heresy, the Spartan Assault Tank itself was eventually replaced with a more compact variant, which became the Land Raider Phobos, the standard pattern of Land Raider now in use amongst the Adeptus Astartes. The Proteus Pattern contains an extraordinarily sophisticated Auspex sensor suite that allows it to determine existing battlefield conditions with an uncanny degree of precision. This technology, combined with the design's great antiquity, has led many in the Adeptus Mechanicus to surmise that this pattern may be the very first Land Raider design created by Mankind, intended to explore and conquer new worlds. Its exceptional sensor capabilities makes the Proteus an excellent choice to serve as a command tank and to spearhead large armoured assaults. However, since it has a small troop transport capability, lacks an integrated forward assault ramp and possesses advanced technology that is difficult for current Forge Worlds to manufacture, the Proteus is rarely used by the Space Marine Chapters of the 41st Millennium. However, because of its antiquity, the Land Raider Proteus is considered a valuable relic of any Chapter lucky enough to have one in its Armoury. The Land Raider Proteus is also sometimes deployed by various Chaos Space Marine warbands, as the Traitor Legions possessed a number of these vehicles during the Horus Heresy and fled with them into the Eye of Terror. The Hereteks of the Dark Mechanicus work hard to keep these few machines combat-ready for their patrons. It is common for these foul Tech-adepts to replace any failing components on these ancient war machines with arcane devices of Chaotic or daemonic origin. The Land Raider Proteus is outfitted with a suite of powerful Auspex sensors and the powerful networked Cogitator systems required to fully exploit them. Its main armament is 2 sponson-mounted Twin-linked Lascannons and can be upgraded to carry hull-mounted Heavy Bolters or Heavy Flamers, additional Ceramite armour plating intended to lessen the damage unleashed by Melta Weapons, a Hunter-Killer Missile Launcher (or Havoc Launcher for Chaotic versions of the vehicle), pintle-mounted weapons, extra armour plating and a Dozer Blade. Like all Land Raiders, the Land Raider Proteus is outfitted with an artificially intelligent Machine Spirit, although Chaotic versions of the Proteus may instead have a possessing daemon spirit.Spartan Assault Tank - The Spartan Assault Tank, known in older sources as the Land Raider Spartan, was designed by the Mechanicum in the latter days of the Great Crusade as a way for the Space Marine Legions to carry their Terminators into combat. The Spartan was armed with two sponson-mounted Quad-Lascannons and hull-mounted twin-linked Heavy Bolters. The Spartan Assault Tank was widely used by the Space Marine Legions during the Great Crusade and the Horus Heresy, and later during the campaigns of the Great Scouring. During the later part of the Great Crusade the Mechanicum designed the first Phobos Pattern Land Raiders, which were also capable of transporting Terminators. After the Horus Heresy it became more and more difficult for the new Astartes Chapters and Forge Worlds to obtain the resources necessary to build Spartan Assault Tanks, and so the smaller Phobos Land Raider became much more common within the arsenals of the Space Marines. It is unknown if it is still even within the Adeptus Mechanicus' ability to build new Spartans or if the technology has been lost. In the 41st Millennium, a Spartan Assault Tank will be treated as a treasured relic by whatever Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes is lucky enough to keep one in its Armoury.Mark IIb Land Raider Phobos - The Mark IIb Land Raider Phobos is one of the earliest known marks of the Phobos Pattern Land Raider, and it still bears similarities to both the Land Raider Proteus and the Spartan Assault Tank that served as the models for the design. The Mark II Phobos is the only pattern of modern Land Raider that uses the older armoured sponsons, as they do not allow the weapons they hold to fully rotate. This pattern of Phobos Land Raiders is mostly extinct within Space Marine Armouries, having been replaced with newer marks and patterns of Land Raider. However, some Chapters may still possess one or two as treasured relics of their ancient past.Grav-Raider - The Grav-Raider is an extremely rare Land Raider variant that was once used by the Legio Custodes and the Sisters of Silence during the time of the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy. The Grav-Raider made use of the anti-gravitic plates designed by technoarchaeologist Arkhan Land.