Carnage in Minos

The war on Minos had been quiet for a number of weeks, The Iron Warriors taking the opportunity to resupply, while the Imperial forces fortifyied their positions. This lull came to an end when Lunar Guard spotter teams reported civilians led by soldiers massing near Imperial lines. The Lunar guard armoured reserves reinforced their artillery emplacements and a tense stand off ensued. At noon, 2002.016M42 the stand off came to an abrupt end when armed civilians poured from their defensive positions and makeshift artillery opened fire. The Lunar Guard returned fire against the soldiers, now known to be called the “Agema”. The Agema lost their only anti-armour weaponry; the Rapier destroyers, but the renegades continued pouring artillery fire into the Lunar Guard positions, slowly taking their toll. To their credit the Lunar Guard managed to momentarily rout the inexperienced Agema commander leading the largest mob of rebels, and the far more veteran Lunar Guard commander never ceased crisp, precise orders that aided the Imperial attack. However the sheer number of rebels took their toll and once the Mutant forest tribemen joined the fray the Guard in the ruins were torn apart. From here the rebels had the upper hand and the battle soon became a slaughter, the Agema and civilian renegades sparing no one. The loss of the Lunar Guard artillery meant Iron Warrior forces were able to press forward unhindered and in the coming days controlled more than half the utilised areas of the planet.