Unit Review: British Cruiser Tank, Comet I

Tank, Cruiser, Comet I (A34)

The British Comet I was a type of Cruiser Tank that was fielded by the British near the end of the Second World War and was characterized by its very close appearance to the Mk VIII Cromwell Cruiser Tank. However, unlike its predecessor, the Comet I possessed heavier armor and an intimidating variant of the well-known Ordnance QF 17-pounder made famous by the Sherman Firefly. The sacrifice in speed between the Cromwell and Comet was considered negligible. It's late entrance into the war in Europe -- December 1944 -- meant that the Comet I did not play a role in any major engagements before the surrender of the Third Reich. It did, however, participate in the Crossing of the Rhine and the Victory Parade in Berlin that took place in July 1945.

Assembling a Comet I for Bolt Action

Warlord, unfortunately, does not yet have a kit for the Comet and there currently exists no model for the Comet that fits the 28mm (1/56) scale that matches Bolt Action. What I ended up having to do was build one using two different Bolt Action kits already on the market which was the plastic Cromwell (an amazing model, by the way) and the current resin Sherman Firefly.

Originally, I had plans to construct the final Comet I turret out of plasticard. This proved to be a little too ambitious when taking into account my skill-set for conversions and working with plasticard. What I did instead was do research on images of the Comet Prototypes which -- as far as my research took me -- looked very much like Cromwells armed with the OQF 17-pounder; a considerably easier job than the one I originally had in mind.

As this was a birthday gift for my friend who plays the British, I am pleased with its aesthetic appearance to the Comet Prototypes, but equally horrified in what I have just added to my opponent's arsenal.

Thoughts on the Comet I in Bolt Action

It plays very similarly to the Panther. In fact, it's very much the British mirror to the German Panther in both armor and armament. All around, it's a great vehicle -- it's lower visual profile makes it a scant bit harder to hit based on line of sight. I imagine once Warlord comes out with some variant of a Comet kit, we'll be seeing a lot of 'em in Tank War.