Outer Rim: Battle of the Catedra Hills

Foreward: In this 15mm Sci-Fi Battle, we used the rules for FUBAR, a one-page easy-to-pick-up framework that we have found some general success with for replicating sci-fi and modern style conflicts. This scenario sees an asymmetric militia style force, with our settings equivalent to post-Soviet equipment squaring off against a powerful conventional style military, with the primary deciding factor being territorial control and body count, with fighting continuing until a decision could be reliably determined. The militia will deploy their forces on top of ambush markers, which were scattered across the table prior to set up, as each militia unit activates they are placed next to a marker and that marker is removed, hopefully, this creates a chaotic environment, with militia appearing in surprising places, forcing a careful approach from the conventional force to cover their sightlines. On the other hand, this staggering deployment could allow the more disciplined and effective conventional force to shred the militia piecemeal

It has been 3 years since Volochek forces successfully repelled Corporate, Conclave and Transhumanist Forces at the Battle of Angelshearth. In the aftermath, the Outer Rim Coalition (O.R.C.) was formed of lesser colonial nations, coreward Corporate and government interests with the objective of quelling the growing spread of internecine warfare on the edges of human space. With their over investment of resources at Angelshearth having yielded no reward and with both the Volocheks and the ORC spreading quickly through the region, the Conclave pulled back from dozens of systems, moving its remaining military strength to its core worlds near to the Arana Nebula. The haste with which this mass withdrawal was carried out left a yawning no man's land of colonial worlds, filled with Conclave Military surplus and former Conclave militiamen now lacking the umbrella of institutional authority that formerly instilled order. Racketeering, piracy, trafficking and much else soon became the norm, such that this region became known as Cutthroats Rift by ships captains. Having consolidated its control of Angelshearth and its neighboring systems, The Volocheks, looked eagerly at this region, hoping to expand into it and thereby stake claim there in what were expected to be brutal negotiations with the ORC in the coming year. Thus the stage was set for Volochek Expeditionary Forces to clash with Former Conclave Miltia and Outlaws in the black market cities of the Cutthroat Rift.

Miltia Kingdom of Pytor I.

1x Type 12 GEV [Seasoned, Medium Vehicle, with Light Cannon and HMG]

1x Gazelle Scout Mech [Seasoned, Light Vehicle with RPG and HMG]

2x 8man Miltia Squads [Seasoned Inf. With 1x RPG and 7x Assault Rifles and Light Armor] 1x 7man Militia Squad [Seasoned Inf. With 7x Assault Rifles]

1x Militia Command Team [Veteran Inf. With 7x Assault Rifles]

King Pytor the First, [Birthname: Vasili Kosova] rallies a throng of militia in the Catedra Hills as a Corp of Volochek Mechanized Inf rolls through his territory

1/2 of the Milita appear from concealment and suppress Both Volochek rifle teams, the Type 12 GEV stuns one of the IFVs. 2 Volocheks are slain in the opening Salvo, but Volus' finest are far from beaten and start to push from their deployment.

More militia arrive from concealment onto the street and fire an RPG into the IFV nearest to them. The Type 12 destroys an IFV, and the Volochek MBT puts Salvos into the Gazelle Scout Mech, tearing off its HMG and leaving the pilot stunned

The Volochek infantry team, pinned down by their burning vehicle with the bailed-out crew find their spirit and flank the militia squad by the apartment building, gunning down the entire unit in a hail of bullets. King Pytors Command team, moves into town, and finds themselves caught between a storm of rifle fire from the newly arrived flanking squad and the other infantry team pinned down in the alley further into town. Calling on Conclave training and years of combat experience, the team is able to rally and moves into the newly arrived flankers, eager for vengeance.

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The Gazelle is put down by cannon fire from the tank, rendering it immobile and weaponless, but still recoverable

The Type 12 trades rounds with the Volochek MBT, ultimately disabling the tanks primary cannon, thus, the vehicle slams forward into the rushing militia command team intent in cutting them off from the flanking squad, moving out of the vehicles path, the command team is none the less hampered in its advance, but none the less, the last of the militia squads arrives from concealment and guns down the Flankers boxing the Volocheks into the village.

Another round from the Type 12 sees the MBT immobilized, an exchange of fire from the rallying Volochek infantry and vehicle crew's and IFV armaments into the milita and the Type 12 continues for a short time. A final RPG shot into the IFV that disables its Autocannon, finally forces the Volochek withdrawal.

[9:57 PM]

The Miltia sustain, 8 KIA and the Gazelle Scout Mech Disabled

[

9:58 PM

]

The Volocheks sustain 12 KIA, 1 Vehicle Destroyed and 2 Disabled.

Vahland: Haustic Belief and The Cadmusians

 The Hausticans and Haustic Belief : Inside the Vahland sub-sector there are a number of divergent Imperial belief structures tolerated by the Ecclessiarchy. One of the most popular, particularly on the eastern edges of the Urient Sub Sector and Southern stretches of the Kalomyr sub is Hausticanism or Haustic Belief which holds a polytheist view of the Emperor. Essentially viewing the roles of the Emperor's life as separate divine entities manifesting through the singular vision of the Emperor as godhead. Thusly, his Astartes, and Primarchs represent divine fragments of the God-Emperor. There is a popular series of readings meant to complement the Leticio Divinitatus, called the Haustic Cantos which ascribe many of the sub-faiths particular practices and Belief structures in long-form poems in the Drenjion Style favored by many writers in the late M.40 Vahland Sector.

The Cadmusians: At the fall of Ankou, Shield Captain Cadmus of the Akhelian Shield fell in glory at the Stand in the High Civitans Palace. Two years later, at the Liberation of Ankou by the 3290th AG, his remains were recovered from the field of his death, untouched and barely decayed from his gene forged birth his body had evidently become a bad omen for the greenskins during their occupation of the moon. Building on his legend the Civilian administration of Jornath rechristened Ankou as Cadmus' Rest, and reappropriated supplementary control of the world from the Cult Mechanicus to the Ecclessiarchy, specifically Cardinal Emanuel Telly, who dabbled frequently with Haustic Belief. Tully alongside several members of the Jornathii Planetary Elite, developed the Cadmusian Canto, an embellished hagiographic retelling of the Ankou War, canonizing Cadmus in the Haustic Belief structure as a divine being, and therefore technically making Ankou (now Cadmus' Rest) a shrine world, Increasing the amount to be sent to the world via the Administatum for rebuilding efforts, and catapulting Jornaths importance as a cultural center beyond its already lofty heights in the sub-sector, potentially clinging to Casa Urients heels for Sub Sector Capital status years later The Sect Cadmusian has become an entrenched part of the pantheon of Imperial God heros within the Urient Sub Sector, the Bishopric of Cadmus' Rest established a military order about 60 years after the end of the 1st Jornathii Ork War, producing Crusaders for protection of Ecclessiarchy officials, as well as Guard officers, and Puritan Inquisitors. This order, is called the Miseracordia Jornathii officially, after the ubiquitous Custodians side arm. Their heraldry is that of the Akhelian Shield, being royal purple and gold. The Civitans Park where the last stand took place is preserved as it looked during the Liberation campaign, the body of Cadmus himself can be seen laying stricken atop the toppled Aquila, at the site of his death, though those in leadership are aware that his body is actually far away on distant Terra, and that the "corpse" on Ankou is actually a vat-grown flesh proxy clad in gold-tinted steel. The Akhelian Shield has on multiple occasions made its displeasure known about the deification of one of their fallen, and while the Ecclesiarchy has profusely apologized they have refused to issue a formal declaration of decanonization for Cadmus as it could spark a violent religious schism on or around Jornath

A Haustican Priest encouraging the 4th Devosite Penitents during the Landings on Harshfang

Unit Profile: The Sages of Enmity

 

Born of the Ultima Founding the Sages of Enmity Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes began life as members of the Unnumbered Sons of Guilliman, known also as the Grey Shields. Drawn from the genetic progeny of Ferrus Manus these men fought within the mighty armada of the Indomitus Crusade, plying the stars to arrest mankind's headlong plunge into ruin. When the devastation of the Praeses Vahlandia was discovered by the Crusade upon their arrival in the Sector, the sanction was given to form a new chapter to stand sentinel in Vahland. 

The Sages' Chapter Master, Zhong Kui. was chosen for his even-handed temperament and capable mind for political maneuvering, a useful skill in the often tumultuous political, religious, and military organizations that make up the Vahland Sector. Master Kui, after much discussion with his new Chaplains, based the Chapter's heraldry on the tragedy of their Primarch, The helm and arms of each brother would bear a blood-red pigment, symbolic of their father's sacrifice, and referencing the chapter's teachings where the origins of a warriors power lie in the mind and are channeled outward through the arms. In contrast to the fiery red, the core of their armor would be a slate gray showing their immovable resolve and acting as a symbolic metaphor for their role as the bedrock of humanity, for without the constant sacrifice and strife of the Astartes, the dominion of Mankind would surely topple.

The Chapter's Organization follows the Codex standard as laid down by Primarch Guilliman but has the quirk of the Order Youxia [You-She-Ha], which is a variation on the Crux Terminatus Honorific within other chapters, it essentially signals personal veterancy, meritorious adherence to the cult and creed of the chapter, and highlights the Brothers aptitude in combat. The Youxia, make up all manner of ranks throughout the Chapter, and each bear specially forged power blades and a ritual plumed helmet as a signifier of the honor they bear. 

The Liberation of Haspis Marina was the first conflict that the Chapter took part in, Vahland Sector's capital world, it was paramount that the new stewards of the region take part in freeing its highest offices of the taint of Chaos. A brutally hard-fought campaign, which lasted for 7 Months, the action saw the Sages of Enmity and hundreds of other Imperial formations sweep through a Chaos Tainted Coalition led by major elements of the Word Bearers. The aftermath of this action would have deeply resonating aftershocks, with many of the traitor coalition fracturing across the Sector and going on to launch their own campaigns in the years that followed, some of the Sector's most notorious villains and most glorious heroes fought at Haspis Marina, such as Galgathrax the Unwholesome, and Captain Corporis of the Sons of Medusa. The Campaign is memorialized on the Chapter Standard with a flaming sword plunging through 9 spheres wrapped with a twisting serpent, noting the Emperor's Sword wielded by Robute Guilliman, the nine worlds of the Haspian system, and its occupation by traitors.

Following the victory at Haspis Marina, the Sages of Enmity journeyed to the nearby system of Iocles, where the Chapter founded its homeworld, in the high altitude mountain ranges of the systems prime world, adopting its barely industrialized society as theirs. Master Kui, favored the world for its similarity to Medusa, the world of their gene line's progeny, and for its supposed "Sage Kings" who operate fledgling client states amidst the bones of a once ascendant Dark Age of Technology civilization. 

When the 1st Jornathii Ork War began, some 93 years following the Liberation of Haspis Marina, the Sages of Enmity had several smaller campaigns throughout the Sector under their proverbial belts. The Orks of the Skinner Worlds had been a spot of anxiety for the Chapter, Ork Empires are notoriously volatile, and prone to violent land grabs. The Sages were scattered throughout the Vahland Sector, when the initial Ork landings occurred on Jornath, dealing with threats from a number of great and lesser Xenos and Heretic forces. It was hoped that the Jornath system, being the seat of some of the Urient Sub-Sectors most prolific trade guilds, and noble families would be able to bring to bear such overwhelming manpower and equipment that a landing by Orks in such numbers as were present on the world in the Early War period would not greatly threaten regional stability. When the Emerald Scream incident occurred, triggering a major fleet deployment of Orks from the Skinner Worlds, it became clear to the Sages of Enmity that they would be required to aid in the defense alongside those Astartes and Imperial Guard Armies already present in the system. 

The Sages of Enmity arrived shortly after the Fall of Ankou, in fact, their 2nd, 4th, and 6th Companies arrived in the system during the final hours of the Battle for the High Civitans Palace, during which they joined forces with the withdrawing portions of Battlegroup Ankou, and took positions with the Jornathii System Defense Fleet and Battlefleet Vahland where the took part in what is still the largest orbital fleet action in the Sub-Sectors history.  When the Orks broke through and began landing forces in the Writt Expanse, near Hive Oakenzid, the Sages of Enmity took to the ground alongside thousands of other Astartes and millions of PDF and Guard troops. In that time many great actions occurred, with members of 4th Company neutralizing a formation of Xenos Gargants under Traggazog Metalcap, and the 2nd leading the push of 10th KCC, the 7th Chonn Heavy Infantry, 32nd Antinar Deepers and the 12/16th Oakenzid Conscripted Levy in the jaws of Ur Bloodstamp, one of the Starflaya's prime lieutenants, resulting in the death of that great foe at the hands of Color Sgt. Felica Janol of the 32nd Antinar Deepers, earning the respect of Captain Hóng tāo. The 32nd to this day bear the Sages Chapter marking on their regimental banner, alongside the mummified skull of Ur Bloodstamp, which hangs from the banner pole. 

In the years following the 1st Jornathii Ork War, the Sages have been active in advocating for a number of significant military expeditions in the Sink of Erasmus, and the Skinner Worlds to neutralize the significant threat posed by these dens of the aliens and heretics before they can again sally out to sew havoc through the sub-sector.  As the Chapter ages, they have continued to refine their Cult and Creed, focusing on a methodical and dispassionate response to threats, and placing special credence to rapid ruthless strikes to eliminate their targets.