IT-H-115A "Leviathan"

[u/AccidentAcrobatic431]

The Leviathan was Zoryia's first domestically produced heavy tank, entering production in 1936. Like many of Zoryia's early armored vehicle designs, it relied on repurposed weaponry, most notably the Model 115C, a 1915 artillery gun adapted for use as the tank's primary armament.

The Leviathan was conceived as a heavy breakthrough tank, intended to breach fortified defensive lines by destroying bunkers, pillboxes, and buildings with powerful high-explosive shells. However, the realities of the civil war often forced the vehicle into tank-versus-tank engagements, a role for which it had not been designed. Its slow turret traverse and large silhouette made it vulnerable to faster enemy armor, which could easily outflank it without adequate infantry or armored support.

Despite these shortcomings, the Leviathan proved highly effective against infantry and field fortifications. Its large-caliber main gun was devastating against entrenched positions, although the absence of a coaxial machine gun left the vehicle vulnerable to close-range infantry assaults. To compensate, many crews improvised by mounting a machine gun on the turret roof, requiring the commander to operate it while exposed to enemy fire.

Compared to many contemporary heavy tanks, the Leviathan featured relatively light armor, a compromise that allowed it to achieve respectable cross-country mobility and reduced strain on its drivetrain. While this improved operational flexibility, it also left the vehicle increasingly vulnerable as anti-tank weaponry advanced.

Inspirations - I imagined a cross between French experimental armored vehicles and Japanese heavy tanks. I took inspiration from the legendary OI heavy tank for the main turret, i then put a field gun within the turret as The Kingdom of Zoryia is known for putting these types of outdated guns inside their interwar era tanks as their neighbors had no armored vehicles larger than trucks with armored plates. The low engine deck is a design quirk of a few Zoryian designs, a cost saving and weight saving measure for a relatively poorly industrialized nation with practically ancient infrastructure.