Here be dragons... Yan Shou Flame Tanks provide Empire Generals with a highly offensive, fast-moving, tank that is ideally suited to close with the enemy and support your infantry at critical moments of the game. The Yan Shou uses the same basic chassis as the Fangun; an unusual ball-tank design that looks like it could pivot on a dime and nimbly thread a path through a forest. This neat design aesthetic reflects how these tanks perform in the game, where speed and maneuverability are something of a substitute for heavy armour and weaponry, with a lower points-cost to match. Because both the Fangun and Yan Shou miniatures use many of the same parts, Empire generals may need to choose between them when assembling their forces – as we’ll see below the Yan Shou is a specialist tank, while the Fangun is a solid all-rounder, so it’s most likely that the Fangun will be chosen initially.
In assembling the Yan Shou (and the Fangun) it’s important to note that while the two halves of the vehicle look identical at first-glance, they aren’t and you need to match them together in pairs if you want the tank to resemble that in the instructions (with the track band on both sides of the hull in-line with the commander’s hatch). Then it’s just a matter of substituting the main gun for the terrifying and cool-looking dragon-head flamethrower mount and putting the smaller dragon head mount on the sponsons.
In terms of
gameplay, the Yan Shou is an industrial-size mobile flamethrower. Even faster
than the Fangun, it moves at an incredible (for a tank) Speed 8" and
retains the PIONEERS ability, allowing it to move through difficult terrain
with ease. It has the same protection as
the Fangun, with Defence 3 and Damage Limit 3, meaning it will take 9 hits
before a model is destroyed. The Yan
Shou's weaponry is extremely short range at 4"/8" against both Heavy
and Light targets. It lights up Light targets with a massive 7/11/15
which is a TORRENT, SIEGEBREAKER and SUPPRESSIVE removing cover, potentially
damaging buildings and giving a -1 penalty to Suppression tests caused by this
weapon. Against Heavy targets it's less
effective, cooking with 3/6/9 which is both TORRENT and SUPPRESSIVE.
If the Yan
Shou can get to its target, you can expect a spectacular barbecue - but a lot
hangs on whether its speed and armour are sufficient for the task and whether
there is difficult terrain, (like forests), to help shield its rapid advance. The Yan Shou has a low Discipline of 5 and
SPONSONS (4) for close protection, but instead of Impact, it has a Melee of 3/6/9
which, when added to the Sponsons, means it can put up a decent fight if
attacked in Melee. A unit of Yan Shou
are an economical 100/190/285 points, less than the Fangun due to its
specialised armament, but yielding the same 2/4/6 Victory Points when
destroyed.
As the name suggests, these tanks are also ideal for rapidly redeploying to 'hold-fast' against the unexpected arrival of enemies (for example via Portals, burrowing transports or Drop Capsules). However, a wider question for Empire players is whether the Yan Shou is preferable to the more versatile Tongshi Lion Automata, which are slightly cheaper and have a similar flamethrower attack, albeit without the SIEGEBREAKER quality. In addition, they can deal fearsome damage to Heavy targets in Melee due to their WRECKERS quality and won’t be phased by casualties. But the automata are also slower and can’t receive Special Commands.
Accordingly,
the choice of whether to use Yan Shou Flame Tanks will likely depend on the
circumstances of the game. If you’re
expecting to face large numbers of light targets, or infantry occupying
buildings, the Yan Shou is likely to be a solid pick. The Yan Shou’s speed also makes it ideal for
supporting your Bulnabang Flying Infantry in rapid Objective assaults,
especially in scenarios like Supply Drop where timing is everything.
This post reflects the view and opinions of the author – your experiences may vary. It was written based on the state of the game at the time of the Armoured Clash Global Update in May 2026 (Rules v1.04). All game rules, descriptions and pictures created by Warcradle remain their Intellectual Property.
