The middle of 022M42 was characterised by a number of battles on Mordecai, following the significant strategic reversal of fortunes on the planet after the decisive fleet battle. Throughout 08.022M42 and 09.022M42 supplies and fresh troops had been deploying for the Imperium, and while general Kutuzov built up his armies, the forces of chaos attempted to grind down the front line troops of their enemy as much as possible, aiming to blunt any future offensives and buy time for them to reach a more favourable strategic situation.
The first of these attritional battles occurred in the south of the central front, as the nurgle faction known as the House of Eschar attempted to grind down the imperial guard in the Sathugar Mines region. Employing a number of super heavy tanks the threat was noticed by Kutuzov, and fortunately a recently arrived lance of Imperial Knights of House Eagle Claw was swiftly able to deploy in front of the nurgle force.
Ideally suited to the destruction of enemy heavy tanks, the knights were able to close the distance and wreck each in turn in close combat. Initially the battle looked to be developing into a close run thing as traitor shadowswords annihilated one of the knights as soon as it came into range of their volcano cannons, but the accuracy of the nurgle force wasn't maintained, and the remaining knights were able to despatch the powerful behemoths. With their heavy support smashed, the nurgle forces had to withdraw, allowing House Eagle Claw and the Imperial Guard to move in, retaking the rest of the Sathugar mines and improving yet further the Imperial position on the front lines of Mordecai Secundus.
Imperial intelligence had by mid 08.022M42 caught on to the chaos plan, and general Kutuzov asked his war council of lower ranking generals, astartes commanders and the adeptus sororitas for options. It was the Sisters of Battle who came up with the most attractive plan and also the most aggressive. Although the Imperium was still reinforcing, there was an opportunity once again to besiege Festergax by cutting off the large salient that had developed in previous chaos offensive.
The plan approved, the Sisters of Battle would attack from the north, covered by the Imperial Fists and Adeptus Mechanicus forces. At fist this went well, as the Sororitas forces swept south with an army of faithful priests chanting the Emperor's name. Unable to resist this insult, the Death Guard resolutely closed with their hated enemy, only to face a wall of multi-meltas which devastated even the tough terminator armoured plague marines. Having smashed the strongest force to oppose them, the Sisters now brushed aside the rest of the chaos forces defending Festergax, encircling the city.
The success of the encirclement was not to last long however as the chaos forces counter attacked strongly with significant traitor astartes involvement. The warband known as "Creations of Bile" clashed with the Imperial Fists, killing the imperial commander and opening up a corridor to Festergax. This was further exploited by the Iron Warriors, who fought in a protracted and tight engagement with the Adeptus Mechanicus, narrowly defeating the imperial force and widening the corridor to the chaos held city.
At this point in late 08.022M42 the imperial move to encircle Festergax appeared to be unravelling, as tenacious and stubborn fighting by traitor astartes forces had all but reversed the imperial gains. However, the imperial logistics situation was now vastly superior to their enemy's and by early 09.022M42 the Sisters of Battle had already resupplied and were ready once again to undertake a major operation.
The Adeptus Sororitas launched another major offensive to encircle Festergax on 1309.022M42. This the astartes opposing them were unable to hold back, and the forces of chaos were forced to summon a host of daemons in the hope that the creatures of the warp would hold back the elite Ecclesiarchy force. At first the appearance of a Bloodthirster caused some concern, as it obliterated two squads of retributors, but sustained multi-melta fire and finally krak grenades sent the creature back to the warp. In the centre of the engagement, a Lord of Change was cut down by the Sisters Repentia, and after the loss of the two greater deamons the task seemed more manageable for the Imperium. This was almost put in doubt by the arrival of a horde of flamers of tzeentch, which caused significant casualties to the back lines of the Sisters of Battle, but by that point it was too little, too late. The daemon army was cast back into the warp and the city of Festergax was cut off once more.
During the middle of 022M42 the change in strategic fortunes on Mordecai was now starting to be felt. Chaos forces were still able to achieve victories at the tactical level, but now every Imperial victory counted effectively three times as much in terms of gains as each stubborn and hard fought chaos success. Only time would tell if the Imperium could keep the momentum to make a decisive breakthrough - one that had not been achieved by either side in the many long years of the Mordecai campaign.
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