Black Star Initative on You Toob

 I know that there is some Black Star Initative thing for some online space opera game.  But this me, so you know I'm not talking about that.

This is what little men are for.  This is why my garage is full of the little guys.  I absolutely love what is being done here and commend this whole series to you.  It builds.  At the moment it goes to Episode 7.  I hope they do more.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nnJtGebVSOo

Three way in the garden. Sounds like fun eh ?

Now, where was I ?  Ah yes, doubtless you'll have seen Karitas' four way in the garden, to which I added my view here.

So we come now to a three way in the garden.  Admiral Drax's annual foray north to civilised lands where there is bacon and tea at the same time.  Karitas quite wonderfully brought down his 'event shelter', and a good job too as it happens.  I can see this ending up on every gamer's Christmas list - whilst the garage is dry and provides shelter from gusting winds that steal army lists and blow over large unstable models, the 'event shelter' has light.  Not electric light, but as long it's day time, you can see what you are doing.  Which is not always the case in the garage.

Anyway, Unteroffizer Z of the Death Korps of Kreig is leading a small patrol into the ruins of some emperor forsaken town somewhere else; to investigate the presence of Orks, which has been reliably reported by someone who probably shouldn't be trusted.

Admurul Drak and 'is boyz are holed up in the intact Administratum building, waiting for something.

Corsair Prince Karitas is looking down on the whole thing and decides that the orks and DKK offend his sensibilities so much that his going down the planet (he will have to get new shoes afterwards) and going to tidy up.

DKK Hvy Wpns cover the downtown area.

So what we have here is three armies at 525 points (exactly) each.  And no vehicles.

The shootin' starts.  Guardsmen have enormous cover saves, but orky shootin' is rubbish anyway.  But at this stage of the game the orky shootin' is still enormous in volume, so Unteroffizer Z is loosing Hvy Wpn teams at an unsustainable rate, whereas the orks are just soaking up the hits.

Hurrah for the brave Landsers.  Most of what you can see in this picture are bout to be obliterated by the Corsair Prince's Orbital Strike.  Thus begins the slow heamorage of VPs as my little army is chomped through by the baddies (hey, if they're not on my side, they're baddies).

"Orks, orks, orks, orks... Which way to da whaaagh ?"  Boyz jus' chillaxin' (see what I did there ?)

Corsair Prince and ablative blades, calling down the orbital strike on the DKK.

Gee-gees moving up into a different (but ultimately no better) position.

Deep striking corsairs.  They wipe out my remaining infantry squad.

But are then eaten by Death Korps Horses...  true.

Ooooh, jus' out of charge range, lucky for me.

Killer Klowns forgetting that they ignore terrain and thus failing to assault the orks in the building this go.

Furious melee.  Ends with all waffenritters chop suey and only the Nob left.

The ones the Harlequins should have got if we'd have read the codex properly.  Sneaky orks.

Sticky out bottom lip.  How apt, yet gauche at the same time.

Yeah !  Jet packs !

The last Nob.  Except the warboss, who was the only boss left at the end, the gallant Unteroffizer and the Corsair Prince both ending up deaded.

I ended up with just Unteroffizer Z and the standard bearer left.  At this point, in a not particularly DKK fashion, I tried to run away and was gunned down by shootaboyz.  Oh well.  

An excellent game - on an open board, I'd have gunned them all down.  On this board, the orkz reigned supreme due to Admurul Drak deploying more or less in the middle.  There'll be a next time.  Anyway, we cleared this all away and had a swipe at the plastic crack mountain.  But generally agreed that for fun and spectacle, Epic 28 is great, but that smaller battles like this are the way to go for multi-side matches.

Excommunicate Traitoris: A Four-Way in the Garden

Excommunicate Traitoris: A Four-Way in the Garden

This is the Tau Gundam thingy.  If you play Tau and want your opponents not to shoot at the rest of your army, get one of these.  It attracted a lot of shooting which other wise would have been targeted at the rest of the Tau.  Or worse yet, at me.

The cream of the Chaos army.  Unfortunately the eldar had surviving 'prisms and an orbital bombardment strategic asset. So this was quickly just a DP and Predator.  Harumph.  Whose job was it to take out those Fire Prisms ?!?!  Oh yeah.  Mine.

Three Dakka Preds trying to shoot the EJBs off of the objective, whilst the 'zerkers TAB across the battlefield to contest said Objective.  If only they'd had three more turns...

What I did send was a typhoon speeder.  Which scattered back onto itself and blew itself up.  Classy.

The other three 'speeders deep struck in front of the eldar lines. Misfortunately, I choose to flame the rangers instead of melta-ing the Prisms.  Bad news for the rangers, but ultimately bad news for the forces of chaos too.  Oh well, easy come, blood for the blood god etc.

I had a great time and even found a reason for the Tau to join forces with the forces of Chaos.  Lessons for next time include more Khorny terminator goodness, target the fire prisms first, and drop pod the zerker horde where it needs to be, rather than making it walk from behind Tau lines.

Fortynumda

There were a number of gangs:

De Laque
Cawdor
Van Saar
NYPD/Carabineri
Orangedemptionists
The Socialised Workers Party
Escher
Brotherhood of Drums and Flames
Porns of Chaos
Loup Grous
Striking Scorpions
Iron Broo
Wrecks
Mordian 7th
Black Templars

We got through them all in seven hours.  No idea how many turns, twelve maybe ?  The Players were randomised and then worked through the gangs in the order presented - largely because they'd been written in that order and had a reasonably strong sequential narrative holding the thing together.

The BT were last on the table with two Tac Squads in Rhinos and orders to purge the district.  Seemed to have a decent level of finality to it.

The Brotherhood of Drums and Flames possibly had the best kill ratio (ie greatest number of charred victims in the shortest amount of time) in the hands of Courtney from Cadian 127th.

There was a lot less collaboration than I expected; I thought there would have been a shifting pattern of alliances going on with plenty of double crossing and broken promises.  Disappointingly there was nothing of the sort.  Gangs came on and were promptly wiped out to be succeeded by more gangs.

Only two of them made their victory conditions; Andy BG (Iron Legion)'s Porn's of Chaos's victory conditions were achieved, but only after that gang were done for, so I'm not sure if that counts or not.

As far as furthering the Devos IV campaign narrative goes, there are now definately CSM on the world, BT on Acer and the goats have stolen the remaining servitor.

East Side Rumble (What really happened at the weekend)

This was the player's brief: 

Welcome to Bruboxville, a small industrial town on the north east coast of Acre.  Its main claim to fame is being the most easterly town with a rail link.  Its port is modest and not really part of the war effort. It smells of diesel and fish.  Please try to imagine this, you don’t need to bring items that smell of diesel or fish to try to recreate genuine ambience; it’s enough to know that the minis can smell it.

The main reason for Bruboxville being of any interest to anyone at all is that it had, until a few hours ago, one of the main communications hubs linking 72AG to the war effort taking place on Benq over the ocean.  However, an accident has occurred and the station has shut down and gone off line.

Whilst the Ad Mech and Imperial Guard scramble to fix the problem, some of the comms servitors have just wandered off through the war damaged ruins of the downtown areas.  These comms servitors could have codes allowing access to 72AGs network, or data about supply contracts that would useful now and probably in the future as the economy is rebuilt after the war.  Possession of one of these comms servitors would be a definite boon to anyone who had one.

At the very least, possession of one should be denied to any rivals.

	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld	Sv
Comms servitor	2	0	2	2	1	3	1	4	5+

Shotgun, vox caster, independent character.

At the beginning of the game the comms servitors are controlled by the GM.   Servitors will shoot at the closest threat until such time as they are captured and the weapons can be deactivated.  To capture a servitor, simply move into base to base contact.  The servitor will stay in base to contact with any other model that the controlling player moves into base to base contact.   If the controlling player moves all of his figures out of base to base contact with a servitor, its weapons system will re-arm and it will go back to being moved by the GM.

Servitors can be targeted or avoided at the discretion of the attacking player.

You do not have let other players know what your victory conditions are.  Unless your ‘army list’ tells you to for some reason.  The game will last six turns. 

You may ally with other players if you wish, but keep it fluffy.  Bear in mind that any alliance is going to fall apart at some point – probably tied to victory conditions.

This game was never intended to be balanced.  The actual Necromuda style gangs are tweaked for some vague degree of parity, but if you meet a dreadnaught, run away.   Some gangs will need to gang up with others just to stay in the game. 

Do not be dismayed if your initial gang gets wiped out; this is to be expected in such interesting times.  There are replacement gangs drawn to the east side by all the commotion. 

A pink prawn is generally held to be a Slanneshi symbol.

If you defeat an opponent in HTH, you can elect to capture them, rather than leave them bleeding in the gutter.  Captured individuals behave like a captured servitor except that, if the release conditions are fulfilled, they return to the control of their owning player.  They are considered to be unarmed for the remainder of that turn.

Deployment:

You will be given a counter on the board edge which is your gang’s entry point, either on foot or mounted, your gang, deployed, must be in base to base contact with the counter.  (so they could be in a blob or strung out in a line).

Unless, of course, your ‘army list’ tells you otherwise. 

The plot coagulates.

Ancient Iago maintains a ceaseless watch over the ambush site.  One of the things that's easier when your sarcophagus is loaded into a contemptor.

The strike and holding forces wait in dead ground for the ambush to be triggered.

At the sign from Ancient Iago, the terminators teleport into battle, determined to stop the convoy in it's tracks. Literally.

The hidden vindicator cripples the LR Crusader.  Enraged by the bare faced cheek of anyone thinking that they could interfere with the Emperor's business, the Brothers of the Lostwithial de-bus to confront their attackers.

The sudden close assault of the unmarked, silent assault marines is a bit of a shock to the bored Templars, who have not fought a worthy foe for very long time.

But Castellian Brodeep is not one to let his Templars forget their vows.  The Black and White Crusaders prepare to sell themselves dearly.  The un-named Captain of the mysterious marines alights directly in front of the Castellian in a wordless challenge.

Driven by his vows, Castellian Brodeep squares up to someone twice his points value.  Idiot or flawed genius, either way, the Castellian is left as a crumpled wreck.

"Oh shit !" The Templars are temporarily stymied by the realisation that they outnumber their attackers, which happens at the same time that their revered leader hits the dirt.

The mysterious green marines begin to disengage. leaving the column to be straffed by over flying hurricane bolter armed Stormdrains. 

Their task evidently complete, the mysterious marines make good their escape, taking their dead and wounded, or booby trapping the bodies with melta charges, leaving no clues.

Who were these mysterious marines ?  What were they doing on Mhuven 158 ?  Why assassinate Castellian Brodeep ?  (Brodeep has two wounds and will be back to commit atrocities another day).

ECW - my back yard.

So, if you follow the Palladian Guard at all you'll have seen Col Scipio's Royalist Infantry.  And a number of comments about the fact that the ECW is not covered at all in school.  I started school in 1975 and from then until 1986, it wasn't mentioned.

The Aylesbury Vale District Council's badge/emblem is a silhouette of the statue of Oliver Cromwell which subtly dominates (it's not much bigger then lifesize, but it has presence) the town'd market square.  He would have ridden through there often enough during the mid 1640s.  This is about twenty minutes east of here.

Oxford, which was Charles 1st capital during the war, is about twenty minutes south of here. Whilst a magnificent seat of learning, and architecturally imposing, it wasn't London.  He didn't stay in London because it was naturally Parliamentarian in outlook.  Oxford was mostly loyal to the king at the outset.  The city still floods now.  It used to flood then as well. And it wasn't London and they soon ran out of money and the King had to resort increasingly to coercion to maintain his capitol.

Moving west from here, 10 minutes up the M40 is Junction 10; this is the approximate position of the Parliamentarian camp before Edgehill.

A few miles north of there is Edgehill (Oct 1642); the first meeting engagement of the English bit of the wars.  There are places oop norf and in the west country which have interesting claims to the first shots fired; the first actions per se; but Edgehill is the first time the two armies meet in the field.  The Royalist Army is led by Sir Jacob Astley; he was, by inclination and conviction, a parliamentarian.  However, he was the General of the king's armies and felt that he could not betray that confidence and so spent the war leading the side he felt he should have been opposing.  Tough gig.

Sir Jacob Astley

A lot of the war was armies manoeuvring through the countryside, dancing around each other for advantage and using up the goodwill of the population in pretty short order.  A few more miles west of Edgehill is Cropredy Bridge (Jun 1644), these days more famous for it's music festival.  But it was once the scene of a running battle when the armies did actually run into each other.

Half an hour south west again is Stow on Wold (Mar 1646); the last meeting engagement of the war.  Here the last remnants of the Royalist Army finally succumbed to the New Model Army.  The last battered remnants of the Royalist Army, despite having the high ground at the outset of the battle (I've stood on the NWA's startline, it's not ground anyone would choose for any sort of battle; but they had to strike or the Roaylists would have escaped).  The NMA repeatedly assaulted uphill until they routed the Royalists into the town. Here Sir Jacob Astley finally broke his sword.  The roundhead commanders respectfully brought up their drum for the aging and tired man to sit on.

Half an hour south of there is Burford; scene of running battles through the town (including through one of the inns, still open as a pub) and a post war rebellion by Soldiers who had not been paid for months. (if you follow the link, the 1649 bit is about half way down the page).

The ECW is usually studied in isolation as king vs parliament.  I think this is a gross over simplification, Walsingham, working for Elizabeth I, spent a lot of his professional life foiling Catholic plots to assassinate the Queen after she failed to wed the King of Spain.  So the reformation has to be seen against the backdrop of the times; there was a time that if you were flagrantly Catholic then trying to just walk into London would find your head on a pike on the gates to the city.

Post Elizabeth and Walsingham, we have what are generally known as the Bishop's Wars which are often viewed as being confined to Scotland.  But the fact that they abated without seriously threatening to unseat Charles I gave him enormous confidence.  This led directly to the clash with Parliament and the bit we think of as the ECW.

During the commonwealth, the Lord Protector then turned his attention to Ireland, perceived as a threat due to it's Catholic allegiance and feared due to (not being being understood because of its unfathomable) non-English culture.  This was never going to go well.  The Puritanical elements of the New Model Army saw invasion of Catholic Ireland as the continuation of God's Work.  Just to contextualise, contemporaneously, Matthew Hopkins is busy drowning cat ladies in the home counties to the accompaniment of loud popular acclaim.

So the ECW is an act in three parts; preceded by the Elizabethan era of cold war type tension and deniable black ops, it kicks off with the Bishop's Wars, and goes through the civil war in England and on to Cromwell's Irish campaigns without missing a stride.  It's a big slew of history with obvious roots in the reign of Henry VIII and troubles that are arguably still with us today.

The Ibirnan Incident

The Fight-back against Operation Ewbehin

General Horpan ("Danny Bloodcoat") is no fool.  As he sees 72 Army Group's assets accumulate, he knows he must act before the imperium simply swamps his PDF.  His political leadership has promised direct military aid, which he is content to assume for the time being will be from other worlds with a similar separatist outlook.  But he doesn't want a stand up fight just yet.

He knows that 17 Korps is gearing up for an offensive and break-out of the Randstat area.  Operation Ewbehin is designed to prevent 17 Korps from focussing its fighting strength in one place.  He has hived off a (not insignificant) part of his own fighting strength, based around 2nd "Hunter" Div of the PDF; one division of four brigade combat teams (one of which includes 2 Battalions of 99th 'Bloodcoat' Regiment), a battalion aviation wing and full support service battalion.

Bloodcoat squads occupying Ibirnan

As 18 and 32 Korps are shipped from Acer to Benq behind 17 Korps' bridgehead, the PLA's 2 Div is not enough to face 17 Korps in a meeting engagement.  However, 17 Korps is not in the most wonderful of positions and it will take a number of months to get 18 and 32 Korps into good order and commence operations.  So one of Danny Blood coats four formed Divisions is more than enough to pose a serious threat to the Imperial forces; one that they cannot ignore. 

Operation Ewbehin is potentially a masterstroke.  He has positioned the PLA's "Hunter" Div to the SSE of the Randstat area, the imperial forces must move to counter the Division or leave their soft underbelly exposed.  Furthermore, to prevent the Division being a permanent thorn in said underbelly, they must commit significant forces to neutralising the threat.  Hunter Division is under orders to continue to fall back in face of the enemy, drawing them South and away from the expected main thrust of their campaign, towards Xyphonica in Central Benq.  If at any point the enemy appears to be losing interest then the Division is to turn and bite.

4* General Tolstoy knows he cannot afford to leave Hunter Div threatening his southern flank.  Keeping 901 (Cadian) and 902 (Kreig) Div to secure his position he sends 903 Inf (Valhallan) Div directly against the Op Ewbehin forces.  904 (Corbanian) Inf Div and 905 (Palladian) Inf Div to pincer the rebels and bring them to battle.  Even if the result is only that they are scattered, then the threat posed by the remains of Hunter Div is much reduced and would no longer preclude 17 Korps from concentrating on its main objectives.

903 Inf Div contains several units in administrative terms only.  Some are combat ineffective, one is actually on the other side, others are reduced strength.  The Valhallans look like easy pickings.  Hunter Div's sub units get carried away with local successes and over extend themselves, allowing the Cobanians to dig in and the Palladians to hammer them from the west against the Corbanian's prepared defences.  Chronologically, his happens two months before the Apoc game with Admiral Drax and Col Corbane in the summer. 

This game is the highpoint of Operation Ewbhlien;   The small trading town of Ebirnan, still some 400kloms south east of Randstadt.  Essentially, the tip of the Bloodcoat spear at the furthest extent of its thrust meeting the crumbling edge of 903 Div's anvil and the smart, shiney, Palladian hammer.  The Corbanians are digging in to the northwest to be the anvil; what we have here is the very first encounter of  17Korps fightback.

The defenders of Ibirnan

The Valhallans holding the town are a reserve company for 6^th Bn of the Kado 540^th Regt, which is deployed with all its support assets a few kloms to the east.  There is no expectation that the PLA would make it this far west.  The Valhallans are essentially waiting to be relieved by the incoming Palladians in order to move up and support the rest of their battalion.  Expecting the town to be secure, the Palladians bringing a troop of Basilisks into the town.

Why bring an earthshaker to a bayonet fight ?  Because Palladian SOPs say so.

The lead elements of 4EL are being supported by 836^th (Armageddon) Arty Bty, with Kaptain Schwartzkopf pulling the short straw today, as spearhead FOO.  905 Divisional recce, manned by a motorcycle battalion of the Mordian Iron Guard, have screens of motorcycle outriders ranging beyond the main thrust.  Other Korps assets (aside from the ASL Arty) include Korps Liaison Teams from 11/157^th Vostroyan Support Regt.    Additionally, 4* Gen Tolstoy has directed his firemen, the Arcomet 887^th, to support the Imperial Guard response to Operation Ewbehin.

Palladian and Arcomet forces advance to contact on the southern edge of the village

So with Karitas' Arcoment 887th spearheading Col Scipio's Palladians (in this instance, 4th Expeditionary Legion - part of 905 Div), the lead elements of the PLA's Hunter Division found themselves trapped in the thobbing metropolis that is Ibirnan.  

With me playing the Devos IV 2nd Regt and Headologist taking charge of the 3/99 Bloodcoats, the game began well enough for the rebels.  Plunging fire from Hvy Stubber and Las Cannon teams thinned out the Valhallans to the North and Palladians to the South.  Three or four Arcomet and Palladian tanks were toasted.  The unsanctioned psykers of the PLA network support battalions frazzled more Palladians than the mortars did the first turn.  Maj Drule, on horseback, was shot by snipers. 

Through devastating bombardments by rebel quad guns and mortars and 17 Korps artillery and heavy mortars, the infantry slugged it out with the Valhallans taking an awful licking from various Bloodcoat elements including massed autocannons.  By the end of the game the Bloodcoat infantry were poised to overrun the Valhallans and escape the Kessel; however the airmobile elements of the Arcomet force were dropped in to help contain the Bloodcoats, their Vendettas straffing the remaining rebel tanks.    

The DPF's 2nd Regt company was almost entirely wiped out.  The Coy Cdr "challenged" the Coy Cdr of the Palladians (already wounded by 2nd Regt snipers) and tipped him off his horse and aftger batting his sword aside, ran him through twice.  He was then bundled to the ground by the rest of the command squad.  Another one to be handed over to the OH and their Necroduman enforcers. 

Two Company Commanders face off.  Maj Drule of the Palladian Guard would spend the next two years in a military hospital in Acre.

The hammer blow was driven home by the Arcomet stormsword and hellhound.  The Hellhound accounted for the unsanctioned psyker chior, the snipers who shot Maj Drule, Bloodcoat autocannon positions and squads of 2nd Regt, Armchair generals for years to come will note that the Bloodcoats lack anything by way of AT and that the Palladians would have had much harder time pushing the rebels out of Ibirnan, without the assistance of the Arcomet heavy assets. 

In the end, less than a quarter of the Bloodcoat manpower escaped the Kessel, taking with them none of their heavy or support weapons.  As a fighting force, this company, were finished, their supporting tank troop and AT and fire support providing attachment from 2nd Regt were all consumed in the fight in the village.  

Chimeltavets from 1/1 SF Bn.  Their brothers in arms would excel against the Corbanians, but these guys were toasted by the time they were facing the right way.

What did happen was that the scattered survivors, possibly with help from sympathisers amongst the civilian popultion, managed to warn the main body of Hunter Div; they would go on to lead Palladians a merry dance for the next two months, until 72AG was ready to force the initiative. 

The Devos IV liberation campaign so far.

Cornish (oo-ar) Beserkers were seen on Mheuvan 158, but not on Devos IV.

As if you needed reminding...

Devos IV is an important Agriworld in the Dynorwic cluster, with large, productive seas and vast prairies and grox herds.   It is on an almost direct line (accounting for prevailing warp currents) between Cadia and Hydraphur, which puts it equidistant from both the Sabbat Crusade and Cadian Gate warzones.  It has a population of less than 20 million, a well respected PDF with a history of Mechanicus collaboration and modest garrison of IG for the system defence network[1] based on the outer moons.

There has been a long history of increasing liberalism, espousing the rights of the individual and ‘improvements’ in governance over a period of a hundred years or so.  Attempts by the head of the Church to scare the ecclesiasty on the planet into compliance backfired and the problem began to snowball.

Eventually, with a person now known as ‘Caux Na M’rrsee’ close to government, asylum was offered to Apocrypha Quinelle, a witch on the run from the OH.  When eventually cornered, the tables were turned by the authorities on Devos IV, the OH was put on trial for failing to protect her from possession in the first place.  The legitimate Planetary Governor was sidelined without being deposed or arrested and Caux Na M'rrsee became the defacto ruler of the continent of Benq, which is where the newly formed 'people's congress' meets and establishes the new republic.  

The world was split[2], the continent of Benq is in full rebellion with Imperial institutions, mocked, dissolved, dismantled and lately wrecked.  Loyalists gather on the continent of Acer, where the Starport is.  The Cadian 144 Recce Regt are diverted to Devos IV to shore up the regime, but soon find themselves fighting a guerrilla war on Benq.

The OH petition the High Lords and an Army Group (72AG) is sent from Klestor Sub Sector Command (based on Agripinna, nowhere near Klestor).  The Starport is secured[3] and in a couple of months there is a secure base of operations on Acer, depots and rail lines are constructed and the Dyamo of Acer give themselves over to the war effort.

There is a minor fleet action, during which the Imperial Crusier ‘Thunderchild’ is lost with all hands. 

The invasion of Benq begins with Operation Lockheart, the seizure (largely by air) of the city port of Ranstadt.  This culminates with the Battle of Freeman’s square, won largely by the Cadian’s of 2/24, supported by the Arcomet 887^th.  It becomes apparent that the Preatorian 5^th (nominally the garrison for the system defences on the moon [Devos XII])  Have thrown in their lot with the rebels, as have almost all of the PDF.  It is reported that Deamonic incursions take place during this battle.

The PDF renames itself the People’s Libertine Army (PLA).  The Planetary Governor, Maj Gen Marcus Frith III (Cadia), is escorted to Randstadt by a small number of loyal men from the Devos 2^nd regt.  He is placed under house arrest in Acer by the OH.

17 Korps consolidates its position around Randstadt, occupying the strategically important Nolag Heights to the NE of the city.  They are threatened by and respond to feints from the SE.  A number of witches are captured and handed over to the OH.  This, along with overstretch of 17 Korps[4] is used as justification to expand 72AG.  72AG is expanded to three Corps; over half a million fighting men.  A maniple of the Legio Astoria is assigned to the campaign.

A major component of the expanded Imperial Navy force remains on station, preventing a reoccurrence of the ‘Thunderchild’ incident.

With a greatly enhanced force, 4* Gen Zhukov (Vostroya) launches an offensive, the imaginatively entitled Operation Righteous Thunder.  The Colil Promethium Refinery complex is seized with overwhelming force and provides 72AG with a base (and valuable resource) for a push eastwards.  Simultaneously, a distraction action at the Cudlip defence lines (72AG’s next objective) becomes a breach in the rebel defences due to the brilliant quick thinking of Gen Pallumgski (Vostroya) who is promoted for his pivotal role in this successful action.    

Warpsmiths from 'The Cleaved'.  None of these on Devos IV, surely (?).

Paint by Mr Lee.  You shouldn't see any of these on Devos IV at all.  No siree, no CSM here, thank you very much.  This is a local rebellion, for local people. 

---

[1] The Inquisition now believe that the Eldar attack on the missile silos was an attempt to get the Imperium to bolster its defences.  As it is, it turns out the threat is internal, so much for their over estimated powers of foresight.  Pah !

[2] Idealogically. The cultural revolution was a gradual one, which has allowed persons with strong inclinations one way or the other to move location as it suited them.

[3] Operation Tranquillity.

[4] 72AG basically leaves 17 Korps to occupy the Randstadt area whilst waiting to be given a bigger army in order to prosecute the war in a manner to liking of Gen Zhukov.  They are in the field for almost a year before 72AG takes any further action.

August Apocalypse (four or four)

3* Gen Romos (Macragge), Commander 18 Corps, faced very little resistance at the Colil Promethium refinery.  Having a few scant hours warning, much of the high value military equipment that the PLA had there was evacuated.  The remaining forces, whilst tenacious and courageous, quickly collapsed down to a level where 18 Corps were able to move from isolated pocket to isolated pocket, hunting them down and neutralising them. 

Having had a complete briefing by the 72AG's officio strategae, Gen Romos, knowing what 17 Korps has been ordered to do, releases a pair of warhounds from the Legio Astorium to support their attack. The warhounds swiftly cover the 30 kloms, outstripping their Knight Praetorian escorts, not the best of moves, as it turns out; before the battle ends, the Devos IV Chimeltavets (whose vehicles can be seen here, facing away from the rear of the wrecked Corbanian Hellhammer) were able to walk under the void sheilds and significantly damage one of the Warhounds. 

The appearance on the scene of a Warhound armed with an XR3i pattern Turbo Laser Destructor removed the Baneblade that had been damaged by the martyrs of the Corbanian Special Forces.

The other valiant strike by the Corbanians was into the Thudd Gun position.  They gunned down the rough riders who were there as a counter attacking force and would have destroyed the Thudd Guns as well however, they were ambushed in turn by Ogryn beserkers dosed up on 'Slaught.

On the Northern Flank, Feldwebel Nonead and his last surviving Gibergsjeager now occupy the position where the Bloodcoats attached PBS had been.  Of their whole platoon, they are the last two to survive the murderous curtain of mortar and heavy stubber fire.

The center of the PLA's lines, reduced to ten tanks from twelve and two Baneblades.  With support from the titans, the remaining Imperial forces would be able to force and hold a breach in the 140 + Klom line of trenches, minefields and bunkers that blocked 72AG's line of advance towards Xyphonica.

One thing that the Corbanian's are thankful for is that Gen Zhukov immediately puts Gen Pallumgski up for promotion out of 17 Korps and the Departmento immediately reassigns him to the ongoing Sabbat Crusade.  Every cloud has a medal dangling from it somewhere.

The Ogryn's dosed up on 'slaught tore into the Corbanian storm troopers.  The 'Zerker Ogryn leader with the power weapon accounted for six of them with his charge alone.  However, comma, the chemical over stimulation slew him at the zenith of his (one combat round) military career.  Paraphrasing Helen Lovejoy; "Will no-one think of the Ogryn ?" I think it's criminal that these metal and resin simple folk are being abused by both sides in this terrible conflict. 

On an only slightly less frivolous note, the shite GCSE proof reading and sense checking of GWs products has even reached BOLS.  An author, either as a conceit or for valid dramatic or story arc preserving reason, might write a story as end, beginning, middle.  Or middle, end, beginning.  Which ever; the point is that if Osprey or Simon Shama did it, it would make no sense due to the nature of the subject and the manner in which the writings are likely to be accessed.  Nice one GW, everyone thought you uncommonly avaricious, now they think you are incompetent as well. 

August Apocalypse (three of four)

As the Armageddon Steel Legion are torn apart by the defenders, the 20th DKK push up behind them but their advance is constrained by the wrecked vehicles in front of them.  The Adeptus Mechanicus came on and repaired one of the Cadian 144th's scout cars.

Corbanian Special Forces behind the enemies front line finally manage to seriously damage one of the pair of Baneblades that bolster their front lines and prevent a decisive breakthrough in the center.

As an interesting couterpoint to the Corbanian Storm Trooper's actions inside the fortifications, stay behind Chimeltavets from the Devos IV 1/1 Special Forces, in vehicles almost identical colours to the Corbanian ones, are allowed to close with the Hellhammer with devastating results.  They would remain in situ, protected by constant bombardments from Bloodcoat Thudd Guns and mortars, defying the efforts of Corbanian veterans to dislodge them.

Private Corbo infiltrates the Command Bunker and manages to wipe out the Bloodcoat commander, his command team and almost all of the heavy stubber teams therein.  He was then ignominiously slain by the psyker on the roof.

There is not that much to add here in terms of editorial: the Flecktarn platoon that came on the left flank were seriously threatened by scouting sentinals from the Tigers coming on behind them and took a pasting from the mortar fire and the Heavy Stubber teams before Pte Corbo did his thing.  The Corbanians on the right flank were seriously inconvenienced by thudd gun fire which made their attempts at any infantry actions more or less ineffective.  On the plus side the huge number of tigers manning the barricades in front of them was being chomped through at an alarming (for Admiral Drax) rate.