Malkaor invades Dnatha Prime

As 06.020M42 began the Tau high command had been suitably chastened by the debacle of their first invasion attempt of Dnatha Prime, and were determined not to make the same mistakes again. For the second invasion, the Tau waited until their own intelligence confirmed that there were no astartes in the area. Having confirmed that there were no space marines on the world through aerial intelligence.

 

These recon missions ensured the Imperial Guard defending the world were well prepared however, and as the forces of Malkaor landed and moved towards the single imperial settlement, the Librian 57th and 101st regiments, experienced at fighting Tau, were waiting for them. Accurate artillery fire soon caused havoc amongst the tau forces, and the Librians rushed forward en masse - inviting the Tau into open warfare, trying to use their superior numbers to simply overwhelm the xenos' ability to fight back.

 

At first this strategy worked, and although the Tau sent in their own infantry, breachers equipped with devastating close range weapons, the cost to the Tau from the pumelling artillery barrage was immense. Malkaor lost his heavy broadside and Riptide support to the onslaught, and an high altitude drop from the Imperium's elite scion forces started to collapse the Tau right flank, even as Malkaor's troops began to overwhelm the Guard forces on their left.

 

Eventually, it was the elite Tau commanders in their versatile battlesuits that had to stabilise the situation. This they did, although even Malkaor himself was injured as the he and his fellow commanders rushed about the battlefield, using their close range melta weapons to put the imperial armour out of action. One tau commander unfortunately found his weapon fail him at a critical moment, and his basilisk target fired a heavy shell at point blank range, obliterating him.

 

The battle raged outside the main settlement for many hours, until the Tau finally overcame the imperial attack, though suffering heavy losses. The remnants of the Imperial Guard regiments defending the city regrouped for a last stand within the settlement itself, as Malkaor assessed his losses and the Tau regrouped for a final assault on the city. The Tau were within touching distance of securing the Dnatha system, but one final effort would be needed. The Imperial Guard remaining in the city prayed to the Emperor for deliverance.