| rdfs:comment | - The Spider Tank is one of Skynet's Non-Humanoid Hunter Killers as a principal ground-based combat robot. Spider Tanks are roughly two-and-a-half times the height of a human being. They are quadrapedal ground units of a similar design to the HK-Centurion. Spider Tanks have two arms, each with a forward-facing and rear-facing plasma cannon. A Spider Tank is stored in the belly of an HK-Aerial for transportation.
- The Spider is a beetle-like, quadruped (with wheels on each leg) vehicle which is armed with a small laser weapon. It's most important ablity is the Laser Web, which allows it to link with other Spider units. This causes a web to form between the group. Any units trapped inside the web will take continual damage while they are inside the web. Nod has not declassified any information on its deployment or development history, however.
- Spider Tanks are the all-terrain combat units of the Decepticlone army. Large quadruped assault units, Spider Tanks can traverse uneven terrain more easily than most other Decepticlones, though they aren't terribly fast. They don't really need to be, however, as their legs are equipped with large blaster-deflecting armor panels, making hitting their vulnerable main body difficult.
- The Spider Tank is a demonically-possessed modern war-machine and a boss in Spawn: Armageddon. This was once a prototype for a new military weapon to be used over any type of terrain. It was taken over by a demon and has begun to mutate into some sort of hellish spider. The Spider Tank tries to ram its opponents, grinding them in the treads on its feet. It also has a pair of chain guns on its turret with which it can fire hails of bullets in any direction. The cannon on the front of the Spider Tank fires a powerful explosive projectile that can track its opponent and cause tremendous damage.
- A subset of the Real Robot Genre, with a decidedly non-humanoid appearance. These are often used by sci-fi series that want to use giant robots, but feel that humanoid shapes won't fit the setting. Even if the setting doesn't use giant robots, and sometimes even if it does, smaller Spider Tanks may be found as robotic drones. In series that use giant humanoid robots as well as spider tanks, you can bet that the humanoid robots will often be more agile than their multi-legged counterparts, despite the fact that the opposite logically would be true. Examples of Spider Tank include:
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| abstract | - The Spider Tank is one of Skynet's Non-Humanoid Hunter Killers as a principal ground-based combat robot. Spider Tanks are roughly two-and-a-half times the height of a human being. They are quadrapedal ground units of a similar design to the HK-Centurion. Spider Tanks have two arms, each with a forward-facing and rear-facing plasma cannon. A Spider Tank is stored in the belly of an HK-Aerial for transportation.
- A subset of the Real Robot Genre, with a decidedly non-humanoid appearance. These are often used by sci-fi series that want to use giant robots, but feel that humanoid shapes won't fit the setting. Even if the setting doesn't use giant robots, and sometimes even if it does, smaller Spider Tanks may be found as robotic drones. In series that use giant humanoid robots as well as spider tanks, you can bet that the humanoid robots will often be more agile than their multi-legged counterparts, despite the fact that the opposite logically would be true. The form has a number of advantages over the human shape: lower to the ground (thus less of a target). Your classic Spider Tank spreads its legs out more, making the vehicle more stable overall and allows it to traverse terrain that would give wheeled vehicles considerable trouble. All of which helps it cheat that pesky Square-Cube Law that gives giant humanoids considerable engineering problems. (Of course many settings then turn around and give it pointy ballerina feet, ruining any overall improvement in the ground-pressure department, but hey.) While wheels are faster and more efficient and tracks are best on a soft ground (it's hard to beat one big support area), spider legs can navigate extremely rough terrains and are more reliable because the vehicle can stand or even walk after losing a leg or two. Since "extremely rough terrains" include rubble blasted all over streets or hedgehogs made of rails and "losing a leg" includes little gifts from artillery, you see why an excavator isn't the only potential application. In fiction this means the spider design is most attractive for settings supposed to be gritty and realistic. Depending on the size of the Spider Tank, it may or may not have wheels on its feet. Caterpillar tracks are also common. If the Spider Tank is under 4 meters (roughly 12.5 feet) tall you can expect it to have wheels or tracks on its feet; if larger, you can expect it won't. It will probably have pointy feet instead. Despite the name, Spider Tanks rarely have eight legs. Four is the most common, and some have six. It's usually guaranteed that they'll have an even number of legs, though. Please note, Spider Tanks are not tanks designed to look like spiders; they are simply tanks that walk like spiders (or scorpions). If you encounter a giant robot shaped like an insect or arachnoid it's more likely that they are a Mechanical Horse and not a true Spider Tank. In video games some Real Robot humanoid mechas occasionally have four or more legs, but still have an upper body and arms. They are also not spider tanks, as they do not fulfil the tank requirement. It's also not an arachnid version of the Snake Pit or Shark Pool. A similar (and broader) concept is Tripods. See also Giant Spider and Giant Enemy Crab for their autonomous organic counterparts. Sub-Trope of Walking Tank and, depending on the type of Spider Tank, Starfish Robots. Examples of Spider Tank include:
- Spider Tanks are the all-terrain combat units of the Decepticlone army. Large quadruped assault units, Spider Tanks can traverse uneven terrain more easily than most other Decepticlones, though they aren't terribly fast. They don't really need to be, however, as their legs are equipped with large blaster-deflecting armor panels, making hitting their vulnerable main body difficult. Spider Tanks are capable of spotting a target from far greater distances than normal Decepticlones, often sighting an Autobot before the intended target is aware a Spider Tank is nearby. They are also capable of picking off said targets with remarkable ease, even when they are running at top speed. Their attacks can be avoided (barely) by staying close and running around them in circles, preventing them from getting a hit with their standard shots; Spider Tanks will not try to use their charge-shot when under these conditions. Spider Tanks typically spray rapid laser fire bursts at their targets, followed with a charged-up powerful single shot that can send even a large Autobot flying backwards out of control. Although they do not possess eight legs, the moniker "Spider" Tank is still valid due to the way in which they move. Being as heavy as they are, Spider Tanks are not affected by Autobots ramming into them in vehicle mode. It should also be noted that if an Autobot were to get too close and attenpt melee attacks on a spider tank it would slam the ground to sent an Autobot flying, like the heavy unit, this can be avoided with a well-timed jump.
- The Spider Tank is a demonically-possessed modern war-machine and a boss in Spawn: Armageddon. This was once a prototype for a new military weapon to be used over any type of terrain. It was taken over by a demon and has begun to mutate into some sort of hellish spider. The Spider Tank tries to ram its opponents, grinding them in the treads on its feet. It also has a pair of chain guns on its turret with which it can fire hails of bullets in any direction. The cannon on the front of the Spider Tank fires a powerful explosive projectile that can track its opponent and cause tremendous damage. The Spider Tank is vulnerable from the rear, since its main gun cannot face that way. If Spawn can get behind it, only its chain guns will pose a threat. It is also revealed there are recently developed, yet later possessed, Spider Tanks.
- The Spider is a beetle-like, quadruped (with wheels on each leg) vehicle which is armed with a small laser weapon. It's most important ablity is the Laser Web, which allows it to link with other Spider units. This causes a web to form between the group. Any units trapped inside the web will take continual damage while they are inside the web. Nod has not declassified any information on its deployment or development history, however.
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