While the imperial forces on Libria IV were still clearing up after the eldar raids, the alliance initiated their invasion. Windgather was the head of this force and the eldar forces were once again in the vanguard. Utilising orbital deployment and the webway, the imperial defenders soon found their lines in chaos as alliance forces appeared from all directions.
While the local PDF collapsed and the Novgorod guard, badly mauled from their previous engagements retreated, only the Lunar guard put up significant resistance to the initial landings. Savage battles between the red liveried guardsmen and the forces of the alliance continued from 16-1908.015M42, but the alliance could not be prevented from establishing a bridgehead on the world. However, the imperial defence had prevented capitulation, for now.
Wednesday, August 19, 2015
Libria V: Sky Lords break Novgorod offensive
In the end however she was beaten to it, as the Novgorod guard launched a new offensive along the Acronia valley on 1608.014M42. Her forces depleted, there was little meaningful resistance from the crusade, until the Novgorod reached the outskirts of Daralon. Here the Sky Lords launched a counter attack headlong into the Novgorod forces, while more substantial crusade units scrambled to get into defensive positions. The Sky Lords managed to halt the Novgorod attack in its tracks, holding off the imperial guard for two days while taking heavy casualties. At one point a loyalist and Crusade Knight met in the middle of the battlefield, and the titanic combat culminated in the spectacular detonation of both war engines, after the crusade knight had smashed through hundreds of Novgorod conscripts.
The gigantic explosion ripped the heart out of the northern district of Daralon, but also further blunted the loyalist offensive. By 1808.015M42 the Sky Lords themselves were utterly spent, with just one uninjured marine and one battered vehicle left in the fight. However it was too late for the Novgorod as they now faced a significant defensive force. By 2008.015M42 the loyalists had actually lost ground, as Vannaheim regiments dislodged and ground the Novgorod back past their starting positions. The Libria V war had gone hot once more.
Saturday, August 15, 2015
Raids begin on Libria IV
Following the destruction of loyalist forces on Libria III the alliance wasted little time in continuing the offensive against the imperial forces in the system. Having been defeated on Libria V and still facing a significant crusade threat on Libria III, the alliance desperately needed a secure base from which to launch operations. Now that they had the control of Librian space an invasion of Libria IV seemed the most obvious, but first the alliance drew on their eldar contingent to assess the defensive capabilities of the forces on the ocean world.
A series of raids conducted by eldar and dark eldar forces all along the coastal settlements of Libria IV caused a great deal of collateral damage, while massacring an entire batalion of Novgorod guard posted to defend the world. Satisfied that the planet was ripe for invasion the eldar then disappeared via the webway, leaving the imperium to clean up while the alliance prepared their invasion force.
A series of raids conducted by eldar and dark eldar forces all along the coastal settlements of Libria IV caused a great deal of collateral damage, while massacring an entire batalion of Novgorod guard posted to defend the world. Satisfied that the planet was ripe for invasion the eldar then disappeared via the webway, leaving the imperium to clean up while the alliance prepared their invasion force.
New Alliance offensive destroys Launceston's Loyalists
While Launceston's loyalist army was still retreating across the northern plains Horon and Hevenia, harried all the way by Vorushko's crusade army, the alliance launched their next major offensive against him. Aware that much of the loyalist army was engaged in a fighting withdrawal in the west, the alliance quickly gathered a sizeable offensive force against the imperium in the east, facing the imperial lines across the Sederra Tundra Highlands in Far Hevenia.
The alliance force was potent. Committing their reserve to this assault in order to break through the Voral defensive line and take Chapel Cross before the crusade, the alliance boasted nearly one hundred librian regiment, the entire (or close to) Iron Warrior's legion led by Apollo himself, Commander Windgather's army and a large contingent of defectors from Vannaheim.
Commander Skyfall's army was sent north in the initial attack, along with much of the Librian force, and the offensive succeeded in creating a ywaning gap in the imperial lines. Into this Apollo lead his elite forces, and on 0808.015M42 the alliance met General Launceston's strategic reserve in the Voral highlands. The heaviest fighting took place at an outpost settlement in the mountain pass, which was the lynch pin of the loyalist defence. Here the imperium had placed their veteran forces, consisting of Novgorod Guard and the Adeptus mechanicus Warhound-knight maniple, the last loyalist mechanicum force on the planet.
In reserve Launceston had the Librian 8th armoured division and the Prozan 9th attack win, and these were quickly committed after the alliance began the assault on the outpost. Initially Windgather suffered horrendous casualties from the Warhound, but the knights in the maniple were quickly eliminated. For a time it looked like the imperium might hold on, as Apollo struggled to get his reserves co-ordinated in the mountainous terrain. Eventually though the ancient astartes commander teleported into battle, and despite losing many of his terminator comrades, Apollo himself survived the titanic energies unleashed by the warhound, and he created a legend for himself as he destroyed the towering war machine in single combat in front of the imperial lines.
The loss of the warhound seriously impacted the loyalist ability to hold the line, as the Novgorod were shredded by artillery and massed fire from Windgathers tau and eldar forces. on the right flank the Librian armoured regiment was battered by a traitor knight and eldar fire dragons, while in the centre the alliance were now able to advance unimpeded. By the end of the day the outpost had been taken, and the imperium were retreating down the southern slopes of the Voral mountains.
With his last defensive position compromised, Launceston's army was soon cut in two, with half retreating back towards Chapel Cross, and the other half caught in the wilderness of Hevenia between the crusade and the alliance. Two days later Launceston disobeyed his commanding office on Libria IV, and offered his surrender to Captain Apollo and the Federacy. The alliance accepted, although it took a while for the tau to agree the surrender to the Federacy and not the alliance. Meanwhile the alliance immediately sent forces to bolster the retreating loyalists against the crusade, allowing those who recognised the new situation to fight on for the Federal army. Most of the Novgorod refused, some even refusing to surrender, but nearly two-thirds of the Librian forces accepted the terms, after a clever ethereal managed to present them in a way consistant with the Librian book of law...
The loyalists had now lost control of Libria III, and the alliance only had to defeat the crusade now to take the prize of the Librian system.
The alliance force was potent. Committing their reserve to this assault in order to break through the Voral defensive line and take Chapel Cross before the crusade, the alliance boasted nearly one hundred librian regiment, the entire (or close to) Iron Warrior's legion led by Apollo himself, Commander Windgather's army and a large contingent of defectors from Vannaheim.
Commander Skyfall's army was sent north in the initial attack, along with much of the Librian force, and the offensive succeeded in creating a ywaning gap in the imperial lines. Into this Apollo lead his elite forces, and on 0808.015M42 the alliance met General Launceston's strategic reserve in the Voral highlands. The heaviest fighting took place at an outpost settlement in the mountain pass, which was the lynch pin of the loyalist defence. Here the imperium had placed their veteran forces, consisting of Novgorod Guard and the Adeptus mechanicus Warhound-knight maniple, the last loyalist mechanicum force on the planet.
In reserve Launceston had the Librian 8th armoured division and the Prozan 9th attack win, and these were quickly committed after the alliance began the assault on the outpost. Initially Windgather suffered horrendous casualties from the Warhound, but the knights in the maniple were quickly eliminated. For a time it looked like the imperium might hold on, as Apollo struggled to get his reserves co-ordinated in the mountainous terrain. Eventually though the ancient astartes commander teleported into battle, and despite losing many of his terminator comrades, Apollo himself survived the titanic energies unleashed by the warhound, and he created a legend for himself as he destroyed the towering war machine in single combat in front of the imperial lines.
The loss of the warhound seriously impacted the loyalist ability to hold the line, as the Novgorod were shredded by artillery and massed fire from Windgathers tau and eldar forces. on the right flank the Librian armoured regiment was battered by a traitor knight and eldar fire dragons, while in the centre the alliance were now able to advance unimpeded. By the end of the day the outpost had been taken, and the imperium were retreating down the southern slopes of the Voral mountains.
With his last defensive position compromised, Launceston's army was soon cut in two, with half retreating back towards Chapel Cross, and the other half caught in the wilderness of Hevenia between the crusade and the alliance. Two days later Launceston disobeyed his commanding office on Libria IV, and offered his surrender to Captain Apollo and the Federacy. The alliance accepted, although it took a while for the tau to agree the surrender to the Federacy and not the alliance. Meanwhile the alliance immediately sent forces to bolster the retreating loyalists against the crusade, allowing those who recognised the new situation to fight on for the Federal army. Most of the Novgorod refused, some even refusing to surrender, but nearly two-thirds of the Librian forces accepted the terms, after a clever ethereal managed to present them in a way consistant with the Librian book of law...
The loyalists had now lost control of Libria III, and the alliance only had to defeat the crusade now to take the prize of the Librian system.
Crusade take Pardula Bay
Evading patrolling alliance ships with apparent ease the Minotaurs conducted the latest in their series of assaults on imperial positions, mostly held by Novgorod regiments. As 08.015M42 began a devastating strike against the loyalist positions on the Breaklen mountains broke the maine line of resistance to Pardula Bay. the Horon isthmus quickly fell and after a massacre of Novgorod forces the remaining imperial forces on the peninsula surrendered to the Crusade. now Launceston was forced to move his HQ to Chapel Cross, a small city on the shores of the Inner Sea.
In addition Launceston began building up a significant defence line in the Voral Mountains, and pulling back his forces from the largely unpopulated wildernesses in the north. Launceston's long march wasn't even half complete when the final blow was delivered...
Iron Warriors fleet mauls imperium
Ever since admiral Pendragon ambushed the federal fleet in 05.015M42 the imperium had controlled the space around Libria III and prevented the alliance from resupplying from off-world. Although the tau and federal forces had managed to resupply from the vast swathes of Librian territory they now controlled, the offensive to take the world had stalled and the crusade were making significant gains. Then on 0608.015M42 Apollo's pre-heresy Iron Warrior fleet, previously held in reserve, was thrown into the fray.
The entire Iron Warriors fleet was sent against Pendragon including at least eight capital vessels and one battleship. This ought to have easily defeated the imperial battlegroup, but unknown to the alliance only days before Admiral Collingwood had arrive with a significant flotilla, and now the two forces were evenly matched.
Apollo's commanding admiral handled his vessels skillfully, forming his fleet into a line which was aimed at neatly crossing the Imperial "T". Pendragon, aware of the damage a pre-heresy fleet's massed long ranged lances could do nevertheless resolved to meet the attack head on, intending to rush headlong at the alliance formation to deliver a devastating torpedo run, followed up by mass gun battery and lance fire.
A more conservative imperial admiral may have turned for the Iron Warrior's vulnerable rear, but Pendragon wanted a decisive result, to avoid the inevitable stand off should neither side be able to inflict significant casualties in the ensuing action. Unfortunately for the imperial admiral, despite some woefully inaccurate shooting on the side of the alliance, particularly with their lance batteries, the imperial attack failed to deliver a decisive blow, and the chaos vessels easily avoided the torpedoes which were launched.
Worse still the angle of approach of Pendragon and Collingwood's vessels was nowhere near the 90 degrees the imperial admiral wanted. The effect was to string out the imperial fleet at an angle to the alliance battleline, allowing the Iron Warriors to concentrate their fire on each imperial ship while half the imperial vessels remained out of range. One by one imperial vessels were picked off in this way, until the Manticore, Sir Bedeviere and Wyvern had been reduced to complete wrecks. The Sir Percival was crippled and four cobras destroyed before the remaining imperial vessels turned and disengaged, allowing the Iron Warriors to take control of space near Libria III. On the alliance side the damage was exceptionally light, with only the hades class Barium taking any significant damage. In their first engagement in 10,000 years the Iron Warrior fleet had scored a major success.
The entire Iron Warriors fleet was sent against Pendragon including at least eight capital vessels and one battleship. This ought to have easily defeated the imperial battlegroup, but unknown to the alliance only days before Admiral Collingwood had arrive with a significant flotilla, and now the two forces were evenly matched.
Apollo's commanding admiral handled his vessels skillfully, forming his fleet into a line which was aimed at neatly crossing the Imperial "T". Pendragon, aware of the damage a pre-heresy fleet's massed long ranged lances could do nevertheless resolved to meet the attack head on, intending to rush headlong at the alliance formation to deliver a devastating torpedo run, followed up by mass gun battery and lance fire.
A more conservative imperial admiral may have turned for the Iron Warrior's vulnerable rear, but Pendragon wanted a decisive result, to avoid the inevitable stand off should neither side be able to inflict significant casualties in the ensuing action. Unfortunately for the imperial admiral, despite some woefully inaccurate shooting on the side of the alliance, particularly with their lance batteries, the imperial attack failed to deliver a decisive blow, and the chaos vessels easily avoided the torpedoes which were launched.
Worse still the angle of approach of Pendragon and Collingwood's vessels was nowhere near the 90 degrees the imperial admiral wanted. The effect was to string out the imperial fleet at an angle to the alliance battleline, allowing the Iron Warriors to concentrate their fire on each imperial ship while half the imperial vessels remained out of range. One by one imperial vessels were picked off in this way, until the Manticore, Sir Bedeviere and Wyvern had been reduced to complete wrecks. The Sir Percival was crippled and four cobras destroyed before the remaining imperial vessels turned and disengaged, allowing the Iron Warriors to take control of space near Libria III. On the alliance side the damage was exceptionally light, with only the hades class Barium taking any significant damage. In their first engagement in 10,000 years the Iron Warrior fleet had scored a major success.
Tuesday, July 21, 2015
Admiral Tragean Breaks out of Kendrenec
For several Terran months following the defeat of Jellicoe at Bastien by Admiral Thok and the Gotterdammerung, the imperial fleet had searched the vast and dangerous Perseus Deeps region of the Aleph sector for the dangerously powerful war engine and her escorting fleets. Aware of the power of the vessel, Jellicoe had ensured that he kept his forces together, preferring to leave some areas exposed rather than risk part of his fleet being cut off and devoured by the Gotterdammerung.
This policy of concentrating his forces meant the main bulk of the imperial fleet, save for admiral Pendragon's force (including Admiral Somerville) at Libria spend most of its time at Farport. Only escorts and light cruisers, capable of getting away from the chaos fleet were sent out, ranging far and wide to search - in vain - for Admiral Thok.
Fortunately for Jellicoe the eldar and necrons seemed uninterested in their usual raids, while the forces of the alliance were concentrated in the Zadoc subsector. The tau in particular were unable to take the opportunity presented by Jellicoe, as they desperately needed their fleets to protect their holdings and convoy routes.
Admiral Tragean however needed bottling up in Kendrenec. Since the overwhelming defeat of chaos at Bastien in 014M42, Tragean had not ventured out of the Kendrenec system, and it was widely believed his vast space docks were also home to the majority of the remaining fleet of the Arch Cleric. However time had past and by mid 015M42 Jellicoe knew that the forces at Kendrenec would now be much restored, and at least part of his fleet would be needed to maintain the blockade.
Jellicoe made his case to the segmentum command of the imperial navy directly, and just weeks later Admiral Collingwood appeared with a battlegroup of cruisers and cobra destroyers. This welcome force was immediately added to the blockade at Kendrenec, allowing Jellicoe to maintain his large fleet at Farport.
Tragean was accutely aware of the blockading fleet's and Jellicoe's difficulty, for he had worked with Thok on the new plan to wrestle the naval initiative away from the Imperium. With the naval blockade weakened, the chaos warlord decided to probe the imperial defences, and sent a force of five cruisers on a blockade run. They immediately ran into Collingwood's newcomers, and an engagement took place on 1007.015M42.
The imperial fleet approached prow on, adhering to standard imperial naval strategy when confronting chaos, while Tragean's forces formed a tight arc bringing their formidable broadsides to bear. In the first exchange of fire the chaos fleet managed to avoid serious damage, while Unicorn, a tyrant clash cruiser, was quickly hulked. Tragean then launched his escorts, five iconoclasts, through an asteroid fields for a surprise attack. Unfortunately two out of the five were lost in collisions with rocks, seriously blunting the attack. Only one escort survived the battle.
Collingwood now sent in his cobra escorts on a torpedo run. The chaos vessels however did not turn away from the onrushing destroyers, and the cobras faced the full weight of the enemy firepower. All were destroyed and Collingwood found himself on the back foot. The exchanges continued, with Doombringer and Unforgiveable crippled, but the two carnage class vessels remained largely undamaged and able to pour continuous withering fire on the imperial vessels. Collingwood too had two more capital ships severely damaged, and outgunned, was forced to disengage the remainder of his fleet.
The blockade had been broken, and although the result wasn't one sided, the imperium had suffered a strategic defeat allowing Tragean and his allies to leave the Kendrenec system. Jellicoe now feared that Tragean, Thok and the Arch Cleric might form up again, and with the Gotterdammerung be a force that only overwhelming superiority in numbers could defeat. Forced to concentrate his forces at Farport, Jellicoe effectively left the rest of the Perseus Deeps open to raiding by the forces of chaos.
This policy of concentrating his forces meant the main bulk of the imperial fleet, save for admiral Pendragon's force (including Admiral Somerville) at Libria spend most of its time at Farport. Only escorts and light cruisers, capable of getting away from the chaos fleet were sent out, ranging far and wide to search - in vain - for Admiral Thok.
Fortunately for Jellicoe the eldar and necrons seemed uninterested in their usual raids, while the forces of the alliance were concentrated in the Zadoc subsector. The tau in particular were unable to take the opportunity presented by Jellicoe, as they desperately needed their fleets to protect their holdings and convoy routes.
Admiral Tragean however needed bottling up in Kendrenec. Since the overwhelming defeat of chaos at Bastien in 014M42, Tragean had not ventured out of the Kendrenec system, and it was widely believed his vast space docks were also home to the majority of the remaining fleet of the Arch Cleric. However time had past and by mid 015M42 Jellicoe knew that the forces at Kendrenec would now be much restored, and at least part of his fleet would be needed to maintain the blockade.
Jellicoe made his case to the segmentum command of the imperial navy directly, and just weeks later Admiral Collingwood appeared with a battlegroup of cruisers and cobra destroyers. This welcome force was immediately added to the blockade at Kendrenec, allowing Jellicoe to maintain his large fleet at Farport.
Tragean was accutely aware of the blockading fleet's and Jellicoe's difficulty, for he had worked with Thok on the new plan to wrestle the naval initiative away from the Imperium. With the naval blockade weakened, the chaos warlord decided to probe the imperial defences, and sent a force of five cruisers on a blockade run. They immediately ran into Collingwood's newcomers, and an engagement took place on 1007.015M42.
The imperial fleet approached prow on, adhering to standard imperial naval strategy when confronting chaos, while Tragean's forces formed a tight arc bringing their formidable broadsides to bear. In the first exchange of fire the chaos fleet managed to avoid serious damage, while Unicorn, a tyrant clash cruiser, was quickly hulked. Tragean then launched his escorts, five iconoclasts, through an asteroid fields for a surprise attack. Unfortunately two out of the five were lost in collisions with rocks, seriously blunting the attack. Only one escort survived the battle.
Collingwood now sent in his cobra escorts on a torpedo run. The chaos vessels however did not turn away from the onrushing destroyers, and the cobras faced the full weight of the enemy firepower. All were destroyed and Collingwood found himself on the back foot. The exchanges continued, with Doombringer and Unforgiveable crippled, but the two carnage class vessels remained largely undamaged and able to pour continuous withering fire on the imperial vessels. Collingwood too had two more capital ships severely damaged, and outgunned, was forced to disengage the remainder of his fleet.
The blockade had been broken, and although the result wasn't one sided, the imperium had suffered a strategic defeat allowing Tragean and his allies to leave the Kendrenec system. Jellicoe now feared that Tragean, Thok and the Arch Cleric might form up again, and with the Gotterdammerung be a force that only overwhelming superiority in numbers could defeat. Forced to concentrate his forces at Farport, Jellicoe effectively left the rest of the Perseus Deeps open to raiding by the forces of chaos.
Monday, July 06, 2015
Libria III: Loyalist retreat continues
While the crusade made significant gains against the alliance, the loyalists continued to retreat. In the south their toe hold on Farran isle was finally wiped out by the Iron Warriors in mid 06.015M42, the Novgorod guard largely surrendering with some even joining the rebel cause. Further north the Minotaurs were able to make gains against Launceston's forces, taking the region of Hodor from the Novgorod defenders.
The last offensive however involved orbital drops, and soon Launceston was protesting and appealling for admiral Pendragon to intervene against the crusade when they attacked what he considered "imperial" forces. Jellicoe however ruled that there was to be no intervention, although the fleet would only provide supplies as directed to Launceston's men. This irked Vorushko, who was loathe to stand by and watch as the imperial fleet unloaded supplies to her enemy, but since the defeat of Admiral Doenitz she had nothing with which to seriously contest Pendragon, and by extension Jellicoe's fleet. Her few strike cruisers and escorts could not be risked in an engagement against the imperial navy, so for now she was forced to stand by as troops, equipment and supplies made their way down to General Launceston's forces.
The last offensive however involved orbital drops, and soon Launceston was protesting and appealling for admiral Pendragon to intervene against the crusade when they attacked what he considered "imperial" forces. Jellicoe however ruled that there was to be no intervention, although the fleet would only provide supplies as directed to Launceston's men. This irked Vorushko, who was loathe to stand by and watch as the imperial fleet unloaded supplies to her enemy, but since the defeat of Admiral Doenitz she had nothing with which to seriously contest Pendragon, and by extension Jellicoe's fleet. Her few strike cruisers and escorts could not be risked in an engagement against the imperial navy, so for now she was forced to stand by as troops, equipment and supplies made their way down to General Launceston's forces.
Libria III: Crusade sweep through Cartasia
The assault on Cartal was swiftly followed up. Utilising their full orbital strike capability, a sweeping and complex operation lasting nearly three weeks swung into operation. Strike cruisers from the Sky Lords and Minotaurs chapters supported the push north through the centre of Cartasia, with the Minotaurs and Order of the Crimson Veil launching an aggressive offensive towards the city of Grisk and the important industrial heartlands of the south.
Performing multiple drops the astartes were able to continuously outflank and outmanoeuvre their opponents, which were mad up of Apollo's retreating Iron Warriors and elements of rebel Librian and even novgorod guard. Unable to counter the Crusade's ability to redeploy rapidly, Grisk soon fell, and Apollo was already warning of worse to come, with the three cities of Regina, Parth and Santos now under dire threat from the Crusade army, which was rapidly exploiting its breakthrough.
Vorushko wasn't about to let the opportunity go begging. Knowing her astartes forces were not going to suffer from fatigue, the Sky Lords now joined in, deploying their forces by Thunderhawk for the assault on the three cities. The Sisters of Battle and Vannaheim Guard went for Santo, the closest of the cities and one which did not require orbital support. Simultaneously the Minotaurs prepared a drop on Regina in the centre, while the Sky Lords, supported by the Minotaurs, focussed on Parth.
In the event Parth fell relatively quickly, with Minotaurs astartes ripping apart the kroot and Riptide formations defending the city. The Iron Warriors' mobile forces were able to intervene, destroying a number of Sky Lords' Land Raiders, but never looked likely to retake the city itself. Further east the Sisters of Battle and Vannaheim Guard had a sporadic engagement with Skyfall's tau forces in Santos, but it was in the centre where the main fighting took place.
Both sides had bet that Regina would be the key to the battle, and both sides focussed their efforts their. Imperial Knights were wielded on both sides, and Apollo committed his heaviest tank forces to the engagement. Initially the losses, particularly on the left wing of the Adeptus Sororitas formation were severe, as combined armoured firepower ripped through the crusade forces. The Minotaurs then intervened, dropping their lethal dreadnoughts from strike cruisers, with almost all of them surviving their decent and ripping into the Iron Warriors' armoured forces.
With the battle in the balance the Sky Lords mounted Thunderhawk support missions, delivering thunder hammer equipped terminators into the fray, and lack of air cover once again proved decisive as the crusade were able to dictate the flow of the battle. Despite heroic stands by the elite alliance forces, they were unable to hold and on 0607.015M42 the crusade had effectively captured all three cities. The crusade had inflicted a devastating reversal on the alliance, but overall the tau, Iron Warriors and rebel forces still held more than half the planet.
Tuesday, June 16, 2015
Libria III: Minotaurs retake Cartal
A key part of this strategy was the non-intervention of the imperial fleet now in control of space around the planet. So far the imperial fleet under Jellicoe had largely remained neutral in the loyalist/crusade conflict, following the disastrous encounter between admirals Doenitz and Pendragon. In any case the imperial fleet around Libria III was under strict instruction not to interfere with crusade actions against the alliance, although the position of the fleet involving crusade attacks on Launceston's army was less than clear. Vorushko decided not to push the imperial admiral for the time being.
The Minotaurs launched an orbital strike against the Iron Warriors holding Cartal on 1506.015M42, having informed the imperial fleet their intention to attack the alliance. Unimpeded the astartes forces landed a devastatingly accurate wave of drop pods in the forested area just to the north of the city, cutting across the alliance supply lines. In the initial drop much of the Iron Warriors' armour was destroyed, and despite a hail of counter fire somehow the Minotaurs survived. Having failed to dislodge the space marine force behind their lines and now facing a broad frontal assault from other crusade units, Apollo decided to give up the truly ruined landscape of the capital of Cartasia on 1706.015M42.
Tuesday, June 09, 2015
Blood Martyrs massacred at Breaklen
Having taken the Grabell Highlands in late 05.015M42, it was obvious that Breaklen would be the next target for the crusade in the north. The city itself, home to nearly ten million in the extended urban sprawl, sat on a flat plain between the highlands to the south east, the Fulmar mountains to the west and the rolling hills of bennia to the north. The Varrus Isthmus, and the alliance armies, lay to the south west.
The Crusade had already secured the northern and southern arms of the Grabell Highlands, already cutting Breaklen off from the city of Pardle bay. The southern arm of the mountain chain, with peaks above 7000m, was the more rugged terrain, but the northern arm dominated the northeastern approaches to the city itself, with sumits of 4000m less than 100km from the city centre. The crusade's forces were concentrated in the Pardle gap, an area of lower terrain and many mountain passes, and the strategically important road to Grisk.
Launceston counted himself fortunate however. The axis of attack was obvious, as any attack from the southern highlands would have to cross the breaklen plain, a vast stretch of open farmland, which would be easy to defend against utilising the imperial artillery. An attack from the northern highlands would require significant redeployment into the mountainous terrain, across the Pardle gap, while orbital strikes were currently not an option, with pendragon's fleet remaining in orbit. Added to this a company of Blood Martyrs space marines, and the Knights of Cyprarcaea, an Adeptus Mechanicus & knight world in the Valitane subsector, had recently arrived to aid the loyalist cause, while Inquisitor Hathek remained on Vastrid in an attempt to direct more resources to help.
Breaklen represented the last major city held by Launceston's forces. Losing Breaklen would mean losing the region of Bennia, and leave the loyalists in control of largely barren wasteland and smaller settlements. The Blood Martyrs and the Knights immediately took position to defend the city from attack which on 0806.015M42 duly materialised.
The assault on Breaklen did indeed come from the Pardle Gap, lead by the Sisters of Battle and the "Knights of the crusade", a detachment of imperial knights who appeared to owe their allegiance directly to the ecclesiarchy. In support, indentured Vannaheim, Librian and even Lycaon "converts" swelled Vorushko's army, who advanced on a broad front towards the city. Initially the loyalist defence plan went well, as the astartes were able to pick the timing of the main engagement, simply waiting for the enemy to come into range then launching their armoured counter offensive. The initial shots from the loyalist counter attack were less than impressive, but the response from the crusade was crippling and immediate.
Melta equipped short ranged sororitas squads weathered heavy fire from the Cyprarcaean knights before unleashing devastating and accurate fire on the giant war engines. Within minutes the Knight units assigned to the defence of breaklen had been reduced to wreckage, while the crusade behemoths continued to close with the defenders. Worse followed as the Blood Martyrs' counter assault was quickly battered by combined guard and sororitas firepower. However it was the crusade knights which made all the difference. Equipped with fearsome power claws the knights were able to simply pick up and hurl the Blood Martyrs' vehicles, while shrugging off intense melta, lascannon and multimelta fire. One knight is known to have hurled and destroyed a land raider, a predator annihilator and a whirlwind in the space of a few minutes, crushing space marines with debris and critically confusing the Blood Martyrs' assault.
Apparently paralysed by the overwhelming enemy force, the Blood Martyrs' assault collapsed. Most of the astartes were simply slain, but many fell back, some even shamefully running from the combat. The sight of adeptus astartes fleeing the battle broke the imperial will to fight, and by 1006.015M42 the loyalists were in full rout. Thousands died in the open ground to the north of Breaklen as they tried to flee, and an entire Librian army group was annahilated. General Launceston barely escaped from the debacle, and although a new defence line was set up to the north of the Grabell Highlands between the mountains and the sea, bu 1306.015M42 the region of Benia and the Fulmar mountains had simply been surrendered to the crusade. It was a black day in the Blood Martyrs' history and a severe setback for the loyalists on Libria III.
The Crusade had already secured the northern and southern arms of the Grabell Highlands, already cutting Breaklen off from the city of Pardle bay. The southern arm of the mountain chain, with peaks above 7000m, was the more rugged terrain, but the northern arm dominated the northeastern approaches to the city itself, with sumits of 4000m less than 100km from the city centre. The crusade's forces were concentrated in the Pardle gap, an area of lower terrain and many mountain passes, and the strategically important road to Grisk.
Launceston counted himself fortunate however. The axis of attack was obvious, as any attack from the southern highlands would have to cross the breaklen plain, a vast stretch of open farmland, which would be easy to defend against utilising the imperial artillery. An attack from the northern highlands would require significant redeployment into the mountainous terrain, across the Pardle gap, while orbital strikes were currently not an option, with pendragon's fleet remaining in orbit. Added to this a company of Blood Martyrs space marines, and the Knights of Cyprarcaea, an Adeptus Mechanicus & knight world in the Valitane subsector, had recently arrived to aid the loyalist cause, while Inquisitor Hathek remained on Vastrid in an attempt to direct more resources to help.
Breaklen represented the last major city held by Launceston's forces. Losing Breaklen would mean losing the region of Bennia, and leave the loyalists in control of largely barren wasteland and smaller settlements. The Blood Martyrs and the Knights immediately took position to defend the city from attack which on 0806.015M42 duly materialised.
The assault on Breaklen did indeed come from the Pardle Gap, lead by the Sisters of Battle and the "Knights of the crusade", a detachment of imperial knights who appeared to owe their allegiance directly to the ecclesiarchy. In support, indentured Vannaheim, Librian and even Lycaon "converts" swelled Vorushko's army, who advanced on a broad front towards the city. Initially the loyalist defence plan went well, as the astartes were able to pick the timing of the main engagement, simply waiting for the enemy to come into range then launching their armoured counter offensive. The initial shots from the loyalist counter attack were less than impressive, but the response from the crusade was crippling and immediate.
Melta equipped short ranged sororitas squads weathered heavy fire from the Cyprarcaean knights before unleashing devastating and accurate fire on the giant war engines. Within minutes the Knight units assigned to the defence of breaklen had been reduced to wreckage, while the crusade behemoths continued to close with the defenders. Worse followed as the Blood Martyrs' counter assault was quickly battered by combined guard and sororitas firepower. However it was the crusade knights which made all the difference. Equipped with fearsome power claws the knights were able to simply pick up and hurl the Blood Martyrs' vehicles, while shrugging off intense melta, lascannon and multimelta fire. One knight is known to have hurled and destroyed a land raider, a predator annihilator and a whirlwind in the space of a few minutes, crushing space marines with debris and critically confusing the Blood Martyrs' assault.
Apparently paralysed by the overwhelming enemy force, the Blood Martyrs' assault collapsed. Most of the astartes were simply slain, but many fell back, some even shamefully running from the combat. The sight of adeptus astartes fleeing the battle broke the imperial will to fight, and by 1006.015M42 the loyalists were in full rout. Thousands died in the open ground to the north of Breaklen as they tried to flee, and an entire Librian army group was annahilated. General Launceston barely escaped from the debacle, and although a new defence line was set up to the north of the Grabell Highlands between the mountains and the sea, bu 1306.015M42 the region of Benia and the Fulmar mountains had simply been surrendered to the crusade. It was a black day in the Blood Martyrs' history and a severe setback for the loyalists on Libria III.
Sunday, May 31, 2015
Libria III: Alliance retake West Cartasia
The loss of the Dark Eldar from the alliance didn't seem to make much difference to the ongoing ground campaign on Libria III as 06.015M42 began. Although the loyalists were now in control of the space around the planet they were unable to turn that to their advantage, as the alliance still had a huge advantage in terms of atmospheric craft. With only one carrier following the destruction of Sir Bedeviere, the imperial navy simply couldn't compete. Orbital bombardments were helpful, but the imperial fleet had to both conserve ammunition in case they were attacked from space, and bombardments tended to lead to the ultimate destruction of settlements rather than their liberation, so were used only in the direst of situations. For the most part the imperial navies resources were spent ensuring supplies reached the beleagured General Launceston. They were no help whatsoever to the crusade, who Pendragon's fleet largely ignored.
The alliance launched their next offensive on 0105.015M42, moving a powerful tau force, led by commander Skyfall and his experimental riptide wing into the plains of West Cartasia. Here the land was generally flat, and the defending crusade forces were unable to match the alliance in raw firepower. The initial; assault quickly took the urban area of Krichten and swept the small inquisition indentured guard forces out of the area.
True to the crusade tactical doctrine, once the tau had committed their troops the elite counter attack followed. The Sky Lords mounted an armoured spearhead into the centre of the tau defence, supported by an Adeptus Mechanicus Knight. Initially the tau had severe problems countering the mechanicus war engine, and several precious riptides were simply ripped apart by the mechanicus leviathan. the sky lords too had initial success, their armour largely protecting them from the withering fire. However the battle turned in the city of Krichten itself, as the core of Skyfall's troops desperately tried to defend key positions from the onrushing astartes.
In the middle of the thickest fighting, a riptide finally managed to wreck the Sky Lord's command land raider, forcing the terminators inside to advance on foot. Not only did this slow the marines down, but the entire tau line was now able to open up on the infantry. Despite their advanced ancient armour the terminators were cut down by sheer weight of fire and prevented from reaching the tau lines. This was a significant setback for the astartes force, who now found their flanks beginning to buckle under tau pressure. The Knight continued to wreak havoc, but there was only one. Eventually the remaining Sky Lords, accompanied by the Knight, were forced to turn back to the coast, leaving Krichten and West Cartasia in the hands of the tau. A weakness in the riptide wing had been identified, but more territory had been lost to the xenos invaders.
The alliance launched their next offensive on 0105.015M42, moving a powerful tau force, led by commander Skyfall and his experimental riptide wing into the plains of West Cartasia. Here the land was generally flat, and the defending crusade forces were unable to match the alliance in raw firepower. The initial; assault quickly took the urban area of Krichten and swept the small inquisition indentured guard forces out of the area.
True to the crusade tactical doctrine, once the tau had committed their troops the elite counter attack followed. The Sky Lords mounted an armoured spearhead into the centre of the tau defence, supported by an Adeptus Mechanicus Knight. Initially the tau had severe problems countering the mechanicus war engine, and several precious riptides were simply ripped apart by the mechanicus leviathan. the sky lords too had initial success, their armour largely protecting them from the withering fire. However the battle turned in the city of Krichten itself, as the core of Skyfall's troops desperately tried to defend key positions from the onrushing astartes.
In the middle of the thickest fighting, a riptide finally managed to wreck the Sky Lord's command land raider, forcing the terminators inside to advance on foot. Not only did this slow the marines down, but the entire tau line was now able to open up on the infantry. Despite their advanced ancient armour the terminators were cut down by sheer weight of fire and prevented from reaching the tau lines. This was a significant setback for the astartes force, who now found their flanks beginning to buckle under tau pressure. The Knight continued to wreak havoc, but there was only one. Eventually the remaining Sky Lords, accompanied by the Knight, were forced to turn back to the coast, leaving Krichten and West Cartasia in the hands of the tau. A weakness in the riptide wing had been identified, but more territory had been lost to the xenos invaders.
Monday, May 25, 2015
Libria III: Dark eldar mercenaries show their hand
While Pendragon's fleet was conducting its surprise attack on the federacy at Libria III, Admiral Somerville was left behind to patrol the jump point and protect the rest of the imperial fleet from being ambushed itself. His force was centred around the fast battleship Lion, sister to the experimental Tiger which had blown up so spectacularly against admiral Thok.
Tiger led a battlegroup which included an apocalypse class cruiser and a dictator, as well as escort support. While on patrol, Somerville encountered anomalous sensor readings on a number of occasions, and on 3005.015M42 moved to investigate. Proceeding with caution the rear admiral was not surprised to find the strange readings materialise into four dark eldar cruisers, which closed with the imperial battlegroup at speed.
The ensuing engagement was indecisive. The dark eldar vessels found it difficult to penetrate the imperial armour and shielding, and Lion's speed and long range gunnery quickly crippled three of the xenos cruisers. At the same time the aliens found that while the imperial cruisers were almost immune to their attacks, the sword class frigates appeared vulnerable. Somerville lost all five of his escorts in the battle, but was able to group his cruisers together for mutual protection. The dark eldar declined the offer of battle and withdrew to lick their wounds.
Meanwhile on the ground with the federal fleet driven off, the alliance looked to their mobile eldar allies to carry the fight to the enemy, using the webway to quickly deploy overwhleming force. A previously unutilised dark eldar kabal were seen in the vanguard of the new alliance offensive in the Cartal mountains. This extra force proved decisive and once again the crusade armies were driven out of the highlands and back to their narrow coastal strip, with the adeptus sororitas taking the brunt of the casualties.
In Comorragh meanwhile, the archon of the Shattered Silence, which had provided much of the dark eldar support to the alliance was beginning to consider his position in the venture. His kabal had gained much wealth and power from the arrangement, but now increasing demands were being made of his mercenary force, and with other kabals now competing for alliance "contracts", the ability of the Shattered Silence to negotiate high prices for their services was being undermined. With immediate effect the Shattered Silence declared they would no longer provide forces for alliance needs, depriving the alliance of one of their most flexible formations.
Tiger led a battlegroup which included an apocalypse class cruiser and a dictator, as well as escort support. While on patrol, Somerville encountered anomalous sensor readings on a number of occasions, and on 3005.015M42 moved to investigate. Proceeding with caution the rear admiral was not surprised to find the strange readings materialise into four dark eldar cruisers, which closed with the imperial battlegroup at speed.
The ensuing engagement was indecisive. The dark eldar vessels found it difficult to penetrate the imperial armour and shielding, and Lion's speed and long range gunnery quickly crippled three of the xenos cruisers. At the same time the aliens found that while the imperial cruisers were almost immune to their attacks, the sword class frigates appeared vulnerable. Somerville lost all five of his escorts in the battle, but was able to group his cruisers together for mutual protection. The dark eldar declined the offer of battle and withdrew to lick their wounds.
Meanwhile on the ground with the federal fleet driven off, the alliance looked to their mobile eldar allies to carry the fight to the enemy, using the webway to quickly deploy overwhleming force. A previously unutilised dark eldar kabal were seen in the vanguard of the new alliance offensive in the Cartal mountains. This extra force proved decisive and once again the crusade armies were driven out of the highlands and back to their narrow coastal strip, with the adeptus sororitas taking the brunt of the casualties.
In Comorragh meanwhile, the archon of the Shattered Silence, which had provided much of the dark eldar support to the alliance was beginning to consider his position in the venture. His kabal had gained much wealth and power from the arrangement, but now increasing demands were being made of his mercenary force, and with other kabals now competing for alliance "contracts", the ability of the Shattered Silence to negotiate high prices for their services was being undermined. With immediate effect the Shattered Silence declared they would no longer provide forces for alliance needs, depriving the alliance of one of their most flexible formations.
Libria III: Pendragon ambushes the federal fleet
This remit was almost impossible to fulfil. The federal fleet had been largely succesful in keeping supply lines open, but without tau support their force wasn't large enough to be everywhere at once, and the crusade in particular were able to continuously resupply their own forces using their fast moving astartes warships and conduct orbital strikes.
To counter the crusade specifically in 05.015M42 the federal admiral moved his ships much closer to Libria III itself. His force consisted of the battleship Haskell, heavt cruisers Pride of Tallax, Peacemaker and Liberator, as well as the dauntless class cruisers Romulus and Remus, with support from four firestorm frigates.
This new deployment prevented the crusade orbital strike capability and enabled the crusade to move forward with their ground campaign, but the close blockade of Libria III put the federal fleet at risk. The battlegroup was now stationary around the planet, and deprived of its scouts which would warn against attack. To mitigate against this the federacy began to build defences around Libria III, converting two vessels into defence monitors and laying minefields.
These defences were far from complete when the loyalist fleet, led by Admiral Pendragon, launched an attack against the federacy. Admiral Jellicoe approved the plan submitted by his junior admiral, and detached an additional force to supplement Pendragon's fleet.
The imperial force arrived in the Libria system in late 05.015M42 and remained undetected as it moved in system. Rear admiral Somerville's supplementary force led by Lion was detatched to patrol the area of the jump point, while Pendragon's fleet, led by the battleship Sir Gallahad and the grand cruiser Sir Bors, moved towards Libria III itself.
As the imperial flotilla approached the planet, Pendragon ordered silent running, and the imperial battlegroup was able to close to deadly range before being detected by the federal warships, which were mostly in orbit around the world. This ran significant risks as the imperial ships were running on 30% shield power, and an ambush would have been catastrophic. Fortunately the federal force remained in orbit, unaware and unprepared for what was about to happen.
The initial salvo from Pendragon's ships was the first the Federacy knew of the loyalist presence in the system. This could have been devastating, but poor fire discipline from the loyalist ships meant that the defence monitor Emancipation took much of the intial fire, reducing her quickly to a wreck. In reply the federal fleet scored immediate hits, with the vast majority of the alliance vessels reacting quickly to the appearance of an enemy battlegroup in their midst. The exception was Peacemaker, and the dominator class vessel failed to move, her guns staying silent and she soon became an easy target for the imperial vessels.
The federal admiral was immediately able to cross the imperial "T" with his fast moving firestorms supported by Romulus and Remus manoeuvring into position broadside on to the advancing enemy vessels. To counter this, Pendragon ordered his dictators to rush ahead, launching a devastating torpedo and bomber attack which saw two firestorms wrecked, Remus hulked and Romulus crippled.
The initial action had been a success for the imperium, but the dictator class vessels Sir Percival and Sir Bedeviere now took the full firepower of the federal battlegroup, with Sir Bedeviere destroyed in minutes, her plasma reactor detonating showering the immediate area with debris. Sir Percival managed to escape the fusilade, but the grand cruiser Sir Bors was badly damaged by nova cannon fire.
In retaliation the imperial dominator class cruisers switched their fire to the enemy flagship Haskell, and accurate nova cannon fire caused crippling damage to the federal battleship, while Peacemaker, still inactive, became a sitting target for the loyalist fleet as they passed her by. Twenty minutes into the engagement Peacemaker was put out of action, her power generators knocked out, and she took no part in the battle.
The advantage was now strongly with the imperial admiral, and the federal battlegroup began to turn to port, forming a line parallel to the imperial vessels but travelling in the opposite direction. As they passed down the starboard side of the approaching imperial battle line, a bombing wave from Pride of Tallax wrecked Sir Bors, who had failed to get herself out of the battle line following heavy damage. Even with this success, with Peacemaker lost, Haskell badly damaged and his fast squadron eliminated, the federal admiral knew he was in an impossible tactical position. After a few more exchanges, during which Liberator was crippled, the federal fleet disengaged en masse, leaving the imperial fleet in control of the planet.
Pendragon realised too late that his enemy had disappeared, and lacking escorts, he was unable to relocated the enemy vessels. Peacemaker was captured, but the hulk of Romulus was taken in tow by the federal fleet, and the rest of the battered battlegroup was able to escape. The victory was widely hailed in loyalist circles, and provided a much needed morale boost to General Launceston's beleagured forces on Libria III, but given the tactical situation and the risks taken, Admiral Pendragon was left with the question "why didn't you get the lot?"
LOSSES Loyalists: Grand cruiser & cruiser destroyed
Federacy: cruiser & light cruiser destroyed, 3 escorts. Battleship & 2 cruisers crippled
Order of Battle:
Federal Fleet
Haskell (crippled)
Pride of Tallax
Liberator (crippled)
Peacemaker (hulked - captured)
Romulus (crippled)
Remus (hulked - escaped)
4 Firestorms (2 destroyed)
Imperial Fleet
Sir Gallahad
Sir Bors (Hulked)
Sir Bedeviere (hulked)
Sir Percival
Sir Tristran
Sir Robin
Libria III: Alliance push ahead
As 05.015M42 drew to a close the alliance continued to make gains on Libria III. In the south of Cartasia the Iron Warriors reversed the crusade's recent successes, taking the ruined city of Cartal back from VOrushko's army before she had even had time to reclaim her former seat of power. By now the Federal fleet had been recalled to close orbit, preventing further crusade intervention from space, and the alliance's domination of space and the air sooned reaped dividends.
Further north the offensive up the Varras isthmus continued, with the Shattered SIlence kabal emerging from a previously unknown webway portal in the flank of Launceston's loyalist army. The Space WOlves responded supported by loyalist mechanicum skitarii, but the dark eldar pulverised them as they moved into position. By 2605.015M42 Launceston's capital had fallen, and the alliance continued to push forward.
Further north the offensive up the Varras isthmus continued, with the Shattered SIlence kabal emerging from a previously unknown webway portal in the flank of Launceston's loyalist army. The Space WOlves responded supported by loyalist mechanicum skitarii, but the dark eldar pulverised them as they moved into position. By 2605.015M42 Launceston's capital had fallen, and the alliance continued to push forward.
Minos: Imperium holds on
On Minos the brutal fighting had taken its toll on both sides by the end of 05.015M42. However it was the imperial army which was better able to absorb these kinds of losses, as the iron warriors were an elite force of ancient super humans . The simply couldn't afford to suffer the attritional losses the same way the Novgorod could. With no hope of immediate re supply the imperial commanders simply had to dig in and await what was coming for them.
The next assault on the imperial lines came on 2205.015M42. Rather than expend his precious elite forces or even his limited mortal human units, Warsmith Stahl consented to a plan put forward to him by one of his allies, a tzeentch sorcerer who Stahl despised. The sorcerer proposed utilising the power of the warp to defeat the common foe, and while the Iron Warriors' leader detested the denizens of the empyrean, he was not above using them as tools to meet an end. In fact many of his war engines were powered by the shackled spirits of warp entities, so the plan was approved.
The daemonic hordes were duly summoned in front of the lines of Novgorod soldiers, and they threw themselves wholeheartedly into the fight, capreing gleefully at the opportunity to wreak havoc in the mortal realm. Once again the imperial forces took heavy casualties and were inexorably forced to give ground, but despite the ferocity of the daemonic onslaught, the lines held long enough for the imperium to weather the storm, and before very long the unnatural army began crumbling, its tether to the physical plane slowly dissolving.
The operation had caused carnage, but the line had not been broken. Stahl made his displeasure clear to the tzeetch sorcerer, who was summarily dismembered in front of the ranks of his loyal followers, but the warsmith knew the casualties inflicted had been useful and his own forces had not been diminished. The fall of Minos was only a matter of time so long as the corpse god's followers failed to send any reinforcements to the beleagured Novgorod defenders.
The next assault on the imperial lines came on 2205.015M42. Rather than expend his precious elite forces or even his limited mortal human units, Warsmith Stahl consented to a plan put forward to him by one of his allies, a tzeentch sorcerer who Stahl despised. The sorcerer proposed utilising the power of the warp to defeat the common foe, and while the Iron Warriors' leader detested the denizens of the empyrean, he was not above using them as tools to meet an end. In fact many of his war engines were powered by the shackled spirits of warp entities, so the plan was approved.
The daemonic hordes were duly summoned in front of the lines of Novgorod soldiers, and they threw themselves wholeheartedly into the fight, capreing gleefully at the opportunity to wreak havoc in the mortal realm. Once again the imperial forces took heavy casualties and were inexorably forced to give ground, but despite the ferocity of the daemonic onslaught, the lines held long enough for the imperium to weather the storm, and before very long the unnatural army began crumbling, its tether to the physical plane slowly dissolving.
The operation had caused carnage, but the line had not been broken. Stahl made his displeasure clear to the tzeetch sorcerer, who was summarily dismembered in front of the ranks of his loyal followers, but the warsmith knew the casualties inflicted had been useful and his own forces had not been diminished. The fall of Minos was only a matter of time so long as the corpse god's followers failed to send any reinforcements to the beleagured Novgorod defenders.
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