Jornath 40k: Kula

Location:   Kula, Kula Province

Country: Manfredi-At Prima

Province: Kula Province

Population: 4.5 Million

Kula is the capital of Kula Province, the largest civic and maritime producing region in the nation of Manfredi-At Prima along the Imperial World of Jornath’s Northern Hemisphere. It is the focal point of the opening stages of the Battle for Jornath.

History: Kula was founded 3,500 years after initial human settlement on Jornath, springing to life at the confluence of the bountiful river systems flowing in from the coast. It was a combination of numerous agricultural facilities, communications outposts, and minor maritime ship crafting factories. For several generations Kula gathered regional influence, through the petty feuding of local Lords or Kings, it even purportedly enjoyed a brief time as the capital of a regional kingdom. Though much of the information and histories of this period were lost during reunification, with the Imperium of Mankind.  After the Legiones Astartes departed, vast caravans of interplanetary traders, artisans, and the enigmatic tech-priests of Mars, flooded the planet, Kula was one of many cities on Jornath to benefit from the technologies of the wider Imperium. Already a truly labyrinthine metropolis,  the advanced building capabilities and solutions that the techpriests offered turned Kula into North-western Jornath’s first Hive city,  though a meagre hive by comparison to other worlds, Kula’s reputation terrestrially, as a beautiful river city, a place of business, art and mercantile power was amplified a thousandfold.  Soon the Patrician Families from Guffmans-Platz, to Oakenzid and even further south were scrabbling, bribing, and scheming to control the “River Jewel”. This reached a head several years later, during the outbreak of the Horus Heresy. The Genntim Family, with the backing of the Black Cross Shipwrights Union, and a notable supporter of the Warmaster’s cause, (Addolense Genntim, the family patriarch seemed to believe the burgeoning Church of the Emperor was being encouraged rather than dissuaded by the Emperor) marched into Kula’s southern civic basilica, with a few dozen well armed retainers, and began shooting.   The Genntim Massacre, solidified Kula Province in the name of the Warmaster; echoing similar scenes across the planet, and indeed the galaxy as Chaos tore at the soul of the Imperium.  Fortunately, the Traitor’s did not hold Kula for long, thanks in large part to the commander of the (then infantile) Kula Conservator Cohort, Euclid Kinnell, who remained loyal to the planetary governor’s ( an Ultramarine Administrator and Advisor) final order to maintain the Imperial Truth, as laid down by the Master of Mankind himself.  The Kula Conservator Cohort, was at this time billeted several kilometers outside hive spire,  in the Indigo Sparrow Dockyards, Euclid rallied his men, and marched to the southern civic basilica, encountering traitor union men from Black Cross, and mustermann from House Genntim. Eventually the K.C.C.  battered their way to the civic basilica, and therein forced the Genntim families surrender, under pain of having their name expunged from the noble enscrolle of Kulaian Families, a threat worse than the death of each member of the family. Since that time the people of Kula hold loyalty, and pride of arms in high esteem,  the path of the KCC’s march to save Kula’s soul from Heresy is now immortalized and is a must see for any pilgrims to the area,  beginning at the Indigo Sparrow Dockyards (now the regional command center for the planetary defense forces) and ending at the Cathedral to Saint Euclid the Loyal.  

Geography: The Hive city of Kula covers an area of 1567 km,  and sits only slightly above sea level,  the city itself is criss crossed by rivers, tributaries and lakes, which sparkle with the millions of lights from the city, which is divided into 27 districts. The land around the city is marshy, and nutrient rich,  covered in agricultural complexes, fisheries, and swamps.

Military: About 5% of the population is permanently enlisted into the Kula Conservator Regiment, which equates to roughly 225,000 fighting men and women.  Which is broken into 10 Regiments of 22,000 Armsmen apiece with a single 5000 Armsmen mechanized regiment.  Basic equipment is fashioned in the Cadian style, but with a bent towards the finery and circumstance consistent in traditional Jornathi battledress. The Cadian Flakhelmet Mk XI, is an expensive and highly technical piece of equipment, which can be difficult for less disciplined or less technically inclined personnel to maintain efficiently,  the Jornathi Defense Forces meeting both of these criteria, the optionable alternative chosen by many cities on Jornath, is the Alar-Median, Slatthelm K1,  which, offers a similar weight and protective capability to that of the Cadian Mk XI, but does not include the Vox interface or advanced user HUD, or sensory deadening suite.  In terms of Body Armor, Jornath sources from Antax, Alar-Median and Tolkhan.  Kula chooses to take from the Tolkhan Dura-Curiass 023, which takes the Cadian style flakvest, removes the shoulder plating, and alters the sensory and trauma response systems to maintain operation at peak efficiency under water, or in highly damp conditions, but it suffers from decreased performance in high-dust situations, it offers similar impact resistance. The Kula Conservator Regiments, use the M36-C Kantrael Pattern Lasgun, for the carbines obvious benefits in naval operations.  The Regiments use the Chimera Armored Personnel Carrier as its chief combat transport,  the Helstannon “Intrepid” Carrier, for both hauling equipment and most terrestrial troop conveyance. The Chief combat vehicle for the KCC units, is the Leman Russ Battle Tank

This has been a detailed look at one location involved in the Battle for Jornath.

-Your Favorite Madman-